Tigers Eye and Serpentine Quartz Necklace

http://www.etsy.com/listing/48861070/tigers-eye-and-serpentine-quartz

I gathered a very classic mix of earthy tones for this necklace. The Tiger's Eye has a warm glow that sets off the brass spacers and together they set a charming background for the lovely light green Serpentine Quartz pieces that lend a really great weight to this necklace. It feels really good hugging the curves of your neck and is a very bold piece to set off your favorite outfit. I finished it off with a little silver lobster claw clasp. It's a simple design, but easily worn.

This piece is 24 inches around and about 13 inches long.

All my pieces have my tag (handmade from polymer clay) attached with my signature back by the clasp. 

I ship USPS Priority so my small package doesn't get lost in the mail. 

If you have any questions about the piece, please convo me!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/48861070/tigers-eye-and-serpentine-quartz

Golden Mosaic Steampunk Adventure Goggles

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80923532/golden-mosaic-steampunk-adventure

Taking a Steampunk Adventure across South America? Through Turkey and Egypt? A pair of trusty (and highly fashionable) Goggles will see you through to the end! 

Or maybe you're taking an adventure with a friend to a local coffee shop, an art walk or a Steampunk Convention!

My goggles are made from polymer clay, which is extremely durable and yet very lightweight.

This pair displays a delicate inlaid mosaic pattern of gold, cobalt and turquoise on a pair of softly burnished golden frames embedded with with gears and clockwork cogs and bobs with a rolled down edge for comfort and style. Both frames are reinforced on the inside with 14 gauge brass wire. The polymer clay has some give, but is made to keep its rigid shape. 

Sunglass lenses keep the sun and UV rays out of your eyes and I have 3/4 inch braided black elastic sewn in for the nose guard and head strap (I used black NYMO thread). I used two part fast epoxy cement to make sure all my parts stay where they are supposed to with the exception of the thread and elastic - I want there to be options for you if something needs to be resown and I want the elastic to keep all it's stretch. 

I have broken down clocks for the metal gears and parts for the pieces have been incorporated into the design. 

The frames come up about 2.25 inches and there is about 13 inches worth of elastic for the head strap before any stretch. This should be enough for most people and hats, but might be a little tight around a larger head. My nose guard is a doubled up strip of elastic and gives you about a .25 inch nose guard. It's about the same for most sunglasses, so you shouldn't have any jumbled vision when you put them on. 

My goggles are made to be worn either on your head as is, or on any hat you might want to wear them on. I might ask you to be creative, but chances are, you have that down pat. 

They are not break proof, but works of art to be worn, enjoyed and shown off.

Copper Bonsai Jewelry Display Stand Functional Artwork for Earrings

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80891942/copper-bonsai-jewelry-display-stand

Copper Bonsai

Handmade Copper Stands for all your Jewelry hanging needs. 

Get your earrings, necklaces and bracelets out of the box and onto a work of art to show off your gorgeous jewelry. 

Hate digging through your jewelry box? Takes 10 minutes just to untangle and find the ones you want? Here's your solution - at a glance, neat as can be.

I am the artist, and I personally guarantee the workmanship of my Copper Bonsai.

All Copper Bonsai are numbered and each one is a unique work of art. This is #21 in my series.

I use all sorts of beads and buttons plus polymer clay, wire wrappings and knot-work which are then all worked together with Copper Tubing in my own unique designs - each one is a unique piece of functional art.

This piece features 8mm round marbled agate stones capped with stainless steel flower caps and beautiful translucent red-orange carnelian pebble gemstones. 

Height: 6 inches
Length: 10 inches
Width: 8 inches

(earrings do not actually come with stand, they are just there to show you how it works!)

The best part is that you can not only stand the Bonsai on a dresser, but you can also hang it from a wall, a ceiling, or in a closet! with the help of an "S" or "J" hook(s).

I prefer shipping Priority, however, if you would prefer Parcel Post, please convo me so I can adjust the shipping for you. There's about a $10 decrease in price and a week increase in shipping time. Just an FYI for options.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80891942/copper-bonsai-jewelry-display-stand

Copper Bonsai Jewelry Display Stand Functional Artwork for Earrings

Copper Bonsai Jewelry Display Stand Functional Artwork for Earrings



http://www.etsy.com/listing/80760830/copper-bonsai-jewelry-display-stand

Copper Bonsai

Handmade Copper Stands for all your Jewelry hanging needs. 

Get your earrings, necklaces and bracelets out of the box and onto a work of art to show off your gorgeous jewelry. 

Hate digging through your jewelry box? Takes 10 minutes just to untangle and find the ones you want? Here's your solution - at a glance, neat as can be.

I am the artist, and I personally guarantee the workmanship of my Copper Bonsai.
All Copper Bonsai are numbered and each one is a unique work of art. This is #55 in my series.

I use all sorts of beads and buttons plus polymer clay, wire wrappings and knot-work which are then all worked together with Copper Tubing in my own unique designs - each one is a unique piece of functional art.

This piece features lots and lots of seed beads - blues, greens and pearl whites all wrapped and braided like a vine growing up and around the copper tubing. I have a light silver flower bursting out of the end which I made from polymer clay. The base has some chunky cobalt and gold tiles I rolled out with polymer clay as well as some jasper and green pressed glass beading. 

Height: 7 inches
Length: 6.5 inches
Width: 5.5 inches

(earrings do not actually come with stand, they are just there to show you how it works!)

The best part is that you can not only stand the Bonsai on a dresser, but you can also hang it from a wall, a ceiling, or in a closet! with the help of an "S" or "J" hook(s).

I prefer shipping Priority, however, if you would prefer Parcel Post, please convo me so I can adjust the shipping for you. There's about a $10 decrease in price and a week increase in shipping time. Just an FYI for options.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80760830/copper-bonsai-jewelry-display-stand

Where the Wild Things Live Abstract Woven Beaded Necklace

http://www.etsy.com/listing/71750511/where-the-wild-things-live-abstract

There was once a dream you woke up from.
All that is remembered,
In that vague,
Hazy way half-remembered dreams have over you once the eyes have opened,
Was the symbol.
Talisman of Self. Strength.
It was handed it you to wear. Bold. Confidant. Aware.

I'm created a long, woven DNA strand of machine made seed beads that is juxtaposed with the handmade seed beads that it hangs from. I molded and shaped polymer clay with a laced flower pattern, embedded with a carefully spiraled chain to hang in the center frame to add another dimension of enigma and symbolism.

This piece is 14 inches around and 14 inches long.

All my pieces have my tag (handmade from polymer clay) attached with my signature back by the clasp.

I ship USPS Priority so my small package doesn't get lost in the mail.

If you have any questions about the piece, please convo me!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/71750511/where-the-wild-things-live-abstract

Yellow Flora Earrings

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80335250/yellow-flora-earrings

These earrings are actually inspired by my Farmer's Market Broccoli. I was cutting up some stems and florets from a just purchased bouquet for a yummy lunch and I was struck by how interesting the fresh cut stems looked and I rushed up to my studio to make molds of these fascinatingly grouped cut stems before they started to dry out. So that's the story of how these futuristic, abstract shapes came to be. 

These earrings are made out of polymer clay, which I have been working with quite a bit. It is a compound full of versatility and it's colorful range are inspiring. I can create colors, paint on the surface; pretty much do whatever I want and they are extremely lightweight. 

I wanted these guys to be bright and happy, so I decided on yellows and then highlighted the ridges with copper paint. 

The end piece is full of swing and bounce to match it's sunny nature. 

They will hang about 2.5 inches and will come with rubber stops to push up on the ends of the ear hooks. When pushed all the way up, you never have to worry that the earring is dangling out of place or falling out! 

I ship USPS Priority so my small package doesn't get lost in the mail. 

If you have any questions about the piece, please convo me!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80335250/yellow-flora-earrings

Steampunk Adventure Goggles

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80348191/steampunk-adventure-goggles

Taking a Steampunk Adventure across South America? Through Turkey and Egypt? A pair of trusty (and highly fashionable) Goggles will see you through to the end! Or maybe you're taking an adventure with a friend to a local coffee shop, an art walk or a Steampunk Convention!

My goggles are made from polymer clay, which is extremely durable and yet very lightweight.

This pair displays a mosaic pattern inlaid around, however, each frame has a different design to keep things interesting. Both frames are reinforced on the inside with 14 gauge brass wire. The polymer clay has some give, but is made to keep its rigid shape. 

Sunglass lenses keep the sun and UV rays out of your eyes and I have one inch braided black elastic sewn in for the nose guard and head strap (I used black NYMO thread). I used two part fast epoxy cement to make sure all my parts stay where they are supposed to with the exception of the thread and elastic - I want there to be options for you if something needs to be resown and I want the elastic to keep all it's stretch. 

I have broken down clocks for the metal gears and parts and some of those pieces have been incorporated into the design. 

The big frame is just shy of 2 inches at it's apex. The small frame is about .75 inches all the way around. There is about 15 inches worth of elastic for the head strap before any stretch. This should be enough for most people and hats. My nose guard is a doubled up strip of elastic and gives you about a .25 inch nose guard. It's about the same for most sunglasses, so you shouldn't have any jumbled vision when you put them on. 

My goggles are made to be worn either on your head as is, or on any hat you might want to wear them on. I might ask you to be creative, but chances are, you have that down pat. 

They are not break proof, but works of art to be worn, enjoyed and shown off.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80348191/steampunk-adventure-goggles

Enjoy!

Brassy Window Earrings

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80306273/brassy-window-earrings

Solid brass hexagonal beads radiate in and out of their windows, a little shy and a little coy while they play catch and release with the light. I've curved the pins they sit on so they swing just a little more playfully. Tiny little blue glass seed beads add just a hint of extra color to bring out the glint in your eyes.

They will hang about 2.5 inches and will come with rubber stops to push up on the ends of the ear hooks. When pushed all the way up, you never have to worry that the earring is dangling out of place or falling out!

I ship USPS Priority so my small package doesn't get lost in the mail. 

Check out my Esty store! You can find these earrings listed here: http://www.etsy.com/listing/80306273/brassy-window-earrings

San Diego ComicCon International 2011, Sunday

Sunday the 24th (Day 4): My Convention Buddy and I got up at 4:30 to get in line for Hall H at just after 5am - I think we got there about 5:15 and we were about 2000 people back already.  2000 people back at 5:15am.  Wow!!!!!!!!!!!  Once again, I love line buddies.  They make that 5 hour wait time just that much easier to grin and bear it.  Some people tried to seriously cut in front of us in line during a phase when we were moving up in line and I chewed them out for cutting.  It wasn't just a they were right behind me and walked in front of me, this was they got in line a good 15 to 20 minutes after we did and were trying to cheat the system.  mmm, not happy.  Also, some poor line management from several of the line attendants.  Others were fantastic.  These were some of the great costumes we were in line with   .  Sat through the Glee Panel and watched a clip of the new 3D Glee movie that is about to come out.  Honestly, I'm not sure how much of the audience was really there for Glee.   Mostly, I think people were there for Doctor Who and were really, super excited to see Supernatural. 

Supernatural Panel featuring Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Jim Beaver, Misha Collins, Mark Sheppard, Ben Edlund and Sera Gamble.  Jensen came out first  to introduce us to a trailer for the animated Supernatural TV show that will be coming out soon.  It's voiced by them and the first 5 minutes look good.  Afterwards, the panel  came out meet the audience.  Misha, Mark and Jared  ham it up - to our delight.  Jared is pretty darn adorable  ... so is Misha  and there was a general fun banter between them . Jensen is more serious  .  However, Jensen and Jared play off each other really well in personality  and that translates well to the screen.  They both are able to compartmentalize their character timelines and different storylines. 


Doctor Who Panel featuring Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Toby Whithouse, Piers Wenger  and Beth Willis!  eeeeeiiiiii!!!!!!  Doctor Who!!!!!!!  The Doctor and Amy Pond!!!!!  Fantastic.  Matt came out and did a little bow to the audience as thank you.  Lots of screaming, clapping and cheering from our side.  Matt said hello to us and the Moderator made the "Doctor, Hall H.  Hall H, The Doctor", introduction.  We went a little nuts again.  Matt really took control of the panel, giving props to all the costumes out in the audience and all the love and excitement from the Con.  The first question from the Moderator was did Matt or Karen know what Amy was River Song's mother?  Karen answered that one, saying they were actually given a dummy ending and they were as shocked as anyone to find out the real ending.     After the read though on the final part, Steven took Karen, Arthur and Matt out back to give them the real ending and they jump around and ran up and down the hallway in their excitement.  Alex (River) knew the real ending all along, but besides Steven Moffett, she was the only other one who knew!  Matt said, how could you possibly give River Song with even more power.   So not fair!  But Matt went on to say that they are all such huge fans of the show.  Getting the script is like watching an episode; it's just so exciting and all the twists and turns that Steven and the other writers build in make reading and acting the characters so fulfilling.   Neither Matt nor Karen watched the show growing up, because it wasn't on.  However, everyone in the UK knows about Doctor Who - it really is just a part of the culture there, it's everywhere and it's very important.  Toby said it's just like a DNA woven into society and was happy to see it so well received here in the States.  So they both knew about the show all their lives, had watch reruns, and had family members who were big fans.  Piers and Toby were huge Doctor Who geeks growing up, doing extensive research from a young age.   Beth said  it was like walking out into a toy shop every day, getting to read Steven's scripts and then walking onto the sets.  Yeah, walking into the TARDIS, or anyone of those scenes... my eyes always go big as saucers when I watch episodes.  And they really make as much of the set as they possibly can - there is so much detail and thought that goes into every scene and set.  One of the reasons I love this show so much.  Everyone is SO dedicated.   Toby said  he took his kids up to see the TARDIS inside and was more excited them they were.  As a man of a certain age, being a writer on the show and getting the write, "interior TARDIS", still gives him chills.  Beth related a short story about the script Neil Gaiman wrote.  On the first draft he sent in, scene two, the first lines are, "interior TARDIS" and the next line was, "I've been waiting my while life to write that. That felt amazing."  Loved that story.  We saw a trailer for the next half of the season.  I am so looking forward to what is coming!  And then it opened up to fan questions.   Some great questions and some impressive costumes  .  Matt made a great observation about there being quite a lot of blood on The Doctor's hands and that's why he thinks he is so bright and bubbly and always moving, always saving people and always moving forward.  If he didn't, if he ever stopped and sat down he  would have to start contemplating all the people and friends he had lost along the way and the weight of that would come crashing down on him so hard, he wouldn't be able to move anymore.  Matt loves this part of The Doctor, and is very interested in exploring it, he says so is Steven Moffett.  We should be seeing more of the dark side when the season starts up again and Karen said to remember the number one rule about The Doctor: he lies.  Expect to see some of that as well explored as well.   Oh Amy/Karen and Doctor/Matt; loved getting the chance to see you guys at ComicCon.  Loved hearing from Piers, Beth and Toby as well.  Brilliant panel.  Thank you so much. 




Went to the BBC America Booth after the Doctor Who panel and bought their ComicCon exclusive comic issue about The Doctor and Amy at ComicCon  then we went and tried to fulfill all of our last minute, didn't get to wish list for booths and ComicCon experiences all while fighting the crowd that doesn't ever stop.  Some of my loot =>    After about 3pm, we decided that food was in order and we both really wanted to check out Cafe Diem aka the Hard Rock Hotel's Hard Rock Cafe redecorated and re-menued into a SyFy Channel extravaganza at twice the price   Walls are decked out in Syfy show theme   Even the chairs, tables, menus and kitchen doors are decked out in Cafe Diem style .  Got some nifty purple pens out of it though ^_^

Convention Survival Tips:
#1 Bring meal bars with you.  Not chocolate bars, but actual fruit, nut, veggie bars to give you a balanced nutrition intake when you need it.  Like when sitting though a panel or standing in that 5 hour line.  It'll cost $2 at Whole Foods (or wherever), but it's far, far cheaper then Convention Food and honestly, those soft pretzels are not good for you and are not going to give you a long term energy boost.  There's a good selection of organic, whole food bars out there now, although it might depend on where you shop what your selection is.  If nothing else, you should be able to find Cliff Bars somewhere.  I ate food bars almost breakfast, lunch and snacks the whole convention with the occasional dinner supplement.
#2 A bottle of water is key.  Dehydration will sneak up on you.  You will be sitting, standing and walking a lot. 
#3 Know where you are going and when you need to be there!!!!  For ComicCon International this tip is especially relevant.  It's so huge, that wandering around is not going to get you anywhere, and getting into that panel you want to be part of might just mean you have to queue up in line first.  Room 9 is probably one you can just walk into, but Hall H is a different story.  Legends abound that BR 20 and Hall H are the two ungetable into rooms.  Not true, but you better be willing to queue up at 5 or 6am to get a decent seat first thing.  Especially if you want to see that first panel of the day.  Also holds true for the Exhibit Hall - what booths and artists are you wanting to see?  Better make a list of who and what number.  Always reacting for the Big Book of Events and Maps is cumbersome, so reaching for a piece of paper for a quick glance is much easier and faster. 


#4 Pay attention to people and costumes around you!  Don't trip or rip and try not to cause others to do the same.  Also, strollers?  Nightmare.  Double wide strollers?  Good way to not get anywhere in that crowd and make everyone around you start crying in frustration try to get around you!
#5 Shoes.  Costumes are awesome.  Wearing costumes is great!  But be realistic about what your body and feet can take.  Intermitted walking for 5 miles and standing for another 5 hours is a standard day at ComicCon.   Costume or no, make sure your shoes are going to stay ON your feet and won't kill them or otherwise get you hurt. 


Other costumes: Silk Spectre  Vintage 40's Spider Woman