End of the Year & A Give A Way

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 This early winter weather has brought many surprises into the yard. This seedling which can grow as tall as six feet with a beautiful flower is growing amid the stones near the front of the house. If you know the name of this flower which also gives lots of seeds to the birds, just reply to this post or if you are reading this on facebook, make a comment. I will be giving away either a glass plate or a pair of earrings.

 The greenhouse although small is home to several geraniums. These I picked right before Christmas along with the lemon balm. The red flowers continue to bloom when there is little red color outside.

 Planted several years ago, these  snowdrops are blooming. The new double snowdrops are up and their leaves are showing. No blooms yet!

 While the sun shone through the studio windows the prisms danced with rainbows. A faery charm from Green Girl studios dangles from a gemstone necklace. This is my favorite necklace I made during 2015.

From turquoise and chrysolla the charms dangles with a faery on the front and a star quote on the reverse.

Crackled Black Agate with a little of this and a little of that

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 These jewelry components had been sitting on the bead board waiting for creative inspiration. Maybe it was the Open Studio or maybe it was the muse, Sunday I finally finished this necklace. It is cracked black agate stones.

I found some Tim Holtz metal tags long ago. This one which reads encourage your hopes not your fears I used for this necklace. It is strung with beading wire and then I added copper metal bead caps, copper jump rings, copper crimp beads, copper crimp bead covers, and a copper clasp.

I collected Susan Lenart Kazmer Industrial Chic charms for their artistic flair. Love her work! I added a glass lily of the valley charm to the SLK charm.

I used two sizes of crackled black agate for this necklace. Agate according to The Book of Stones is a stone of stabilizing and strengthening.

Antique pendant, agate, and aventurine necklace

 I purchased this pendant at an antique store. It reminds me of dogwoods blooming in the spring.

 For this necklace, I used aventurine and agate.  Green aventurine is said to to a stone of optimism and a zest for life according to the Book of Stones. Agate helps with balance and stability and if recovering from an illness. The two green stones are also earth stones.

Here is a close up of the agate with all the different variations of the gemstones. The round stones are aventurine. A little bit of spring all year long....

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Soapstone and antique daffodil pendant

 I found this wonderful antique daffodil pin when a local antique store went out of business. I took off the backing and sanded it really well. I attached a hematite bail to the new pendant. I put it in a safe place which sometimes in this studio is a misnomer. I decided yesterday that I was going to make a necklace with the pin.

 Soapstone is a gemstone that is said to create a positive energy around itself and can exert a calming influence on the person wearing it. The research I went to about the stone added more. It is used when undergoing great changes in one's life and help to prepare you for anything. It is thought to allow your ideas and inspiration to broaden, open, and develop. Soapstone comes in many variations of color. I used more vanilla and creams with some pale green and then used caramel soft browns with copper spacers and antique brass clasp. There are two tiny crystal butterflies and two tiny crystal flowers separating the soapstone. I must have been thinking about Valentines when I added four copper heart shaped beads.

The finished gemstone necklace is a little over 24 inches long. Aren't the daffodils beautiful?

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Chrysocolla, Malachite, Turquoise, and Fly

 I have always enjoyed the charms made by Green Girl Studios. This charm I purchased in a bead shop in Asheville, North Carolina. The charm has a dragonfly on one side.

 The word fly is on the back of the charm. This necklace started with the charm. I wondered what gemstones would accent with the dragonfly. One of my very favorite gemstones is chrysocolla which is a copper based stone in colors of blue and green said to have gentleness and power. Each chrysocolla  is unique in its blending of colors . I  used two other copper based stones turquoise and malachite.

 Fly is joined with a turquoise chip and a turquoise nugget. The green stones are malachite. The larger stones are chrysocolla.

 The chrysocolla is quite a large stone. To finish this necklace, I added green turquoise nuggets and a blue turquoise stone. The clasp is copper based.

 After I finished creating the necklace, I made a pair of earrings. They are chrysocolla and malachite on a silver beaded wire. The ear ring wire is dappled sterling silver.

Just to let you know the size of the chrysocolla. I am thinking this necklace might be one just for me.

www.carolingrammoore.com ~ www.artisansofthegap.com www.facebook.com/CarolIngramMoore

Prehnite, Rose Quartz, Tourmaline Necklace & Lentil Soup

 I had some prehnite in the studio that seemed to be calling to me. I went to the gemstone book to see what gemstones harmonizes with prehnite. I found pink, green, and black tourmaline and quartz harmonize with prehnite. The prehnite is the green stone. Rose quartz is the pink stone. The small stones are tourmaline.

Here is a photo of the finished necklace.

www.carolingrammoore.com ~ www.artisansofthegap.com www.facebook.com/CarolIngramMoore

While taking the photos this morning, there were rainbows in the studio. 

About the lentil soup...

While in the studio this morning doing a bit a drawing, I smelled the lentil soup. This is not a good sign. The vegetables had burned into the pan. Soaking, adding salt, and then lemon juice, I was able to use a lot of scrubbing to clean the pan. And started over. The smells are simply wonderful.

Here's the reciepe: Boil one cup of lentils in six cups of water  for twenty minutes. Set aside.

Saute one onion in olive oil for three minutes. Add shredded carrots to onions saute for three more minutes. Add two tablespoons of lemon juice, one teaspoon of tarragon, salt,and pepper for a few minutes. Add some sweet peppers. Add one can of tomatoes drained. Use the juice and add enough water to make one cup of liquid.Add to the vegetables bring to a boil and turn down the heat. Cook on low for 15 minutes. Add the lentils and cook for an additional ten minutes. Great soup for a winter's day.

Christmas Stone Ignites Creativity

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Imagine coming home after practicing the organ on a dreary cold day to find a package hanging on the door of your studio. I put the Christmas gift under the tree and waited until Christmas Day to open it. Wrapped very carefully in the bottom of the bag was this beautiful gemstone. On the bead board was the carnelian already wrapped. This began the creative juices flowing.

Having created the necklace, I decided to create some earrings. It took just a few tries to remember how to wrap all these tiny little jasper gemstones to the larger jasper. They look like little flowers dangling from the larger flower blossom. The sterling silver ear wires I purchased are hammered and heavier than I normally use.

The finished necklace is shown in the photo above. It is full of jasper gemstones much like the stones in the earrings. There are five links of copper wire on each side of the necklace. A sterling silver clasp was added. Lately I have been creating gemstone and mixed metal necklaces long enough to simply place over your head and fall across your chest.

You just never know what happens with a Christmas stone.