Monday, January 31, 2011

Things move fast sometimes. 14 years in what seem like the blink of an eye. I was semi-blind to that movement of time. In all those years I could not fathom what your end would look like and now it has passed and I will have no more memories of you other than placing your small body inside the coldness of the earth. We will bury you next to the bush out back and hope that in the spring when new roots take shoot they will entwine with you and your lovely bones and take their nourishment from you. I will look at that bush with it's tall willows stretched upward to the sky and know that you are reaching upwards too and that you live on somewhere beyond my comprehension. You will be missed little dog, my little Radar.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Holey moley

I've been quite busy! I am grateful and thankful for the busy-ness though. I am not complaining at all! Besides filling all of my orders I have been busy making treasuries. I decided to join a treasury curating team on Etsy and I have been learning the process of treasury making. I was never one to make treasuries. I would make one here or there just because. So just thinking about a theme and then a title and then who to feature is sometimes a little daunting.  Luckily I have so many wonderful shops on the team to choose from! And the members of the team are wonderful people. I have felt so comfortable there since I was accepted into the group. I really would love to make a treasury that makes it to the front page of etsy but so far that hasn't happened yet. I just want to take a few moments and show you a few of the wonderful treasuries of the members of Project Treasury.











They are all really fabulous treasuries! It is hard to keep up with them but I want to show you my latest:





WOW! That's a lot of purple but I love it! If you have the time come on in to the treasuries and let me know what you think. 

Thursday, January 20, 2011

You Are Here

Just a little shameless promotion! The Etsy Marketing Team submitted my anatomical heart necklace to be featured in a Valentine's day  Gift Guide on Kaboodle.com and it was selected for the feature! I had no idea this was going on and I am thrilled to be chosen for it! I am sitting here in tears, lol :) Here is a screen shot of the article:

 

Share it if you'd like. I would so appreciate it!

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Soap gone wrong and handcasting metals

Ahh I was going to post about the wonderful batch of soap I made last night and show pictures of it's soapy goodness but it seems that I have lost the soap making touch. I couldn't say it was an outright disaster but I already know there are lye pockets and I will have to re-batch it. Sigh. So instead of soap I've decided  to talk about something else.




I have been wanting to try my hand at casting metals. I never really wanted to take the plunge and shell out over $100 bucks for the equipment to do so though. Also if you've ever seen the wax seal pendants that are very popular right now I have been wanting to try making some similar items but wanted to put my own spin on them and not just purchase some ready-made ones. Everybody has those anyways. So I've possibly figured out how to start making some after experimenting with this little hand cast bird shown above. Really the possibilities are endless here and I am thinking of casting many other things to incorporate into my jewelry.

 This little bird on the left was hand cast in metal by a home made mold I made from the original on the right. It is a lovely vintage gold toned clip on earring. The clip has long been broken off but I just love birds so I've had it for quite a while. I decided to use it for my little experiment in casting and I think it turned out great! This is just cast with soft solder. Some of the details were lost in the casting but I love how old and worn it looks and it is definitely something I will incorporate into my pieces. Now my mind is racing on what to cast next!



Tuesday, January 18, 2011

The Dumps

This white marble hexagon tile was scavenged by me in my teen years from a place simply called "The Dumps". I lived quite close to this area and it  was  in the city where houses and developments had sprung up around it but for some reason this area was untouched by that. It was a sanctuary at times for me and other times it was a place of uncovering old secrets left behind. I have many memories of my Mother and I unearthing old bottles thrown away by a lifetime past. What they probably would have never guessed when they tossed that trash out was that I would hunt these treasures like gold. Every time I would pull an old bottle or rusty piece of metal from the earth I just couldn't help but think of who had put it there. I just couldn't wait to get it home and clean it up. I think the days spent uncovering these things instilled in me a love of old, forgotten things. Things that would have no use in an ordinary persons world I hoard like a dragon.

I made this necklace from that tile I pulled from the earth so long ago. My original intention was to sell it in my Etsy shop but I think I will keep it for myself. I actually started to tell this story in my listing then thought twice. I think I will re-create this with new materials in honor of my days spent under the hot sun of summer with my Mother discovering the secrets that the earth hides.

Revisiting an old obsession

Yes i admit it. I was obsessed with making soap at one point in my life. A few years ago, before Etsy and my current jewelry making, I was a soapmaker.  I used to dream of cold process soap recipes in my sleep. As my house was overrun with stacks of soap and my family members were then overrun with stacks of soap I ended up slowing down the making of the soap and then stopping altogether when I didn't have an outlet for all these bars.

Well now I haven't been able to get this off of my mind. I will go and look at soap making supplies and then convince myself that I don't need to get into that again. Then I will busy myself with something else and a few days later my mind wanders back to the idea of making soap again. I know that once this happens I HAVE to make some soap or the idea will never go away. So I will probably make a batch here soon to quell my desire for a bit. I might look into stocking up on some supplies and making some test batches and who knows? Maybe there will be some handmade soap popping up in my shop one of these days.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Thank you...

marymary for featuring my anatomical heart  as the main photo on the February merchandising post in the Etsy Storque blog! It is appreciated so much more than mere words can express!


Sunday, January 9, 2011

Conclusion

I've come to the conclusion that I'm just going to have to work through the pain. A little at a time and lots of ibuprofen. I just spent a small fortune on pain meds, ace bandages, ices packs and epsom salts. I hope they help and I still hope nothing is broken in there. In the meantime enjoy this video for this song that I love.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Unfortunate injury

Ahh I've suffered an unfortunate injury at the hands of one mean, cold, snow covered hill. Yes, I think I may have broken my left thumb, or at the very least sprained it, while sled riding with the children today. The first thing I thought when I did it was "How am I going to work with a broken hand?" I really do think it is just sprained though so after I drop some ibuprofen down my gullet and rest it for a bit with some ice I will be seeing how it handles holding the torch.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Stone

Labradorite
I just love  labradorite and  the way the stone has a hidden quality to it. It has a gray base coloring but at just the right angle you get a gorgeous flash of color.  This particular cab has a lovely blue flash to it. I'm in love! Pictures never do labradorite any justice in my eyes. I'm going to have a hard time letting this one go. I've been carrying it around with me wondering what it will become. Most likely it will become a part of my HAUNTED family of jewelry.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Made of Star Stuff

A while ago I was scrolling through blogs and came across this video of a remix of Carl Sagan and other scientists speaking about the Cosmos and the universe. It was set to music and auto-tuned and made a lot of great points but one that stuck with me was that we are made of the same stuff that stars are made out of. Here is the exact quote:

"The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of star stuff." ~Carl Sagan

I thought that was a comforting and beautiful thought and this simple ring was inspired by it.



Made of Star Stuff Ring


                                           The ring is a size 8 and it will be in the Etsy Shop soon.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Sterling Sweetheart Stackers!



I love how these turned out! Perfect for the upcoming Valentine's Day. Tiny brass hearts hand stamped and customizable with whichever letters your choose ( I recommend you and your sweethearts initials) and included in the set is a small dot of sterling that has been stamped with a plus sign.  A+W = TLA! It's like doodling you and your sweethearts initials in your notebook but much better!

Sweetheart stacking rings
Sweetheart Stacking Ring Set


In the Shop now!

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Wash Me Ashore




       I want to believe 
     That I have a sea in me
          Ebbing and flowing beneath my skin
        And in that sea 
       A tiny shell
      And In that shell a pearl

       Quietly
        Waiting
      It's turn
         To shine   

oxidized sterling and glowing pearl
        
In the shop later today.        

Welcome!

I think it is time you get to know me, the artist behind HouseThatCrowBuilt.etsy.com. I hope this fresh start on blogging will enable you to see inside who I am as a person and an artist. All are welcome here. Please feel free to leave a comment, good or bad, lovely or ugly!

There will be a few new items in the shop tomorrow. Lovely sterling wide banded rings I have been working on. A new addition to the Hide and Seek keyhole rings and the debut of the Wash Me Ashore ring featuring a luminescent coin pearl.  I hope you will love them as much as I loved creating them!

Monday, January 3, 2011

Have you seen this necklace?





It was beautiful and I sent it to someone that says it cracked in transit. If you see this necklace around that person's neck (or her mother's) could you give it a good once over for me? Then you'll see what I am talking about.