What a weekend

We just got to Chicago for our connecting flight back to Buffalo after SNAG. What a massively inspirational trip.  I can't wait to get back and start working.  It was incredible to meet so many talented makers and see their exhibitions and their studio spaces. Just amazing.

SNAG!!!

SNAG!!!!!

Done with my tiara

Hot damn, I'm done with my tiara.  I have the fabric for it in place and the resin on the flag is drying.  There might just be a few other minor things I might want to tweak to just further the piece.  I'd like to see if I can do somehow age the fabric I have in order to make it match the rest of the piece better.  The longest part was trying to sand and polish the resin.  I think I finally got it to a place where it looks decent.  I've accepted that it will never look as bright as I want it to, but that's because I want the resin to look like it does when it's wet, and the only way I could achieve that is by constantly wetting it down. 

Now that the tiara's done I need to start focusing on my metalsmithing projects, my SNAG pin swap pins, my final jewelry piece, and then eventually putting the finishing touches on my linkages project, not necessarily in that order.  I'm still leaning towards wanting to do the two finger anticlastic ring for my final piece, but we'll see what ends up happening. 

The end is in sight for the tiara which is a good thing considering it's due on Wednesday but I've started pouring the resin and crushed coral.  I've also found a very creepy version of Entry of the Gladiators (the circus theme song) that I plan on using for our mock fashion show so I should be all set to go.

10 days until SNAG!!!!!!!!

I've been making good progress on my tiara.  I should hopefully get to doing the inlay over the next couple days.  That's going to take a bit of time just because I have to let each panel set before I can rotate the tiara to do the next panel over.  After some other options weren't working I decided to go with a simpler "base" to the tiara and just use five posts that will help support the piece while you wear it.  I plan on going to the fibers studio to dye some fabric to match the way the inlay and patina combo will look.  I also think that the inclusion of the fabric will help to tie in the overall aesthetic that I am going for. 

I have also come up with an idea for my final piece of the semester.  I think I would like to make a two finger ring with an anticlastic band filled with an inlay similar to the panels on the tiara and then set with a stone I purchased at the last gem show.  We'll see however how feasible doing something like that would really be right now. 

Barbara Minor Enameling workshop

A very long but enjoyable weekend. The three day long enameling workshop was a lot of fun and overall successful (more so at certain times than others). It was a lot of fun to learn this new skill.  Barbara Minor is a phenomenal teacher and person.  Meeting and working with her was highly influential in ways beyond just learning enameling techniques. 
I had quite a few difficulties when it came to enameling on copper but in the end I was able to achieve some decent samples, some that I might even consider finishing up and putting them in settings. It was a great time but I am definitely welcoming getting the time back to work on my own stuff. 

Pictures of my samples are soon to come.