Silver Penny Designs

New Year And New Website

2009-01-12T09:34:00.003+01:00

I have decided to begin the New Year by beginning my blog on my website because it has the facility and it makes sense that it is all together, so I won't be maintaining this blog anymore, if you are interested in continuing to follow my journey, please head over to the above link: http://www.silverpenny.co.za/page5.htm; and see what happens next.

Fleur De Lis Earrings

2008-12-15T17:07:00.002+01:00

I am sure you know by now that I love long earrings and these just hang so beautifully, I have had several compliments on them!!!

2008-12-15T16:48:00.002+01:00

I cannot believe it is so long since I updated my blog!!!! Definitely need a New Year's Resolution here, at least once a week, even if I don't have a pic!!! Although I do have a pic now, one I have called a Zulu Hut Pendant, for obvious reasons!!!! I loved doing this and am planning a whole range with the same theme being the Zulus.

Yellow Jasper

2008-08-16T12:04:00.002+02:00

This was comissioned and was quite a challenge because I had to listen to what my customer wanted. She did take my suggestions, but ultimately I did what she wanted. It was a really good exercise for me, although I did take a bit long about it, I think because of my self-confidence. She is thrilled with it though!!!!

Onyx earrings

2008-08-04T17:33:00.002+02:00

I made these for fun, I liked the idea of the squiggles, and they were more of a challenge than I thought they would be!!

Harlequin Quartz Pendant

2008-08-03T19:46:00.002+02:00

I began setting this stone when Nikki came to visit, we decided we need to have an aim when we meet. In this instance it was to improve our stone setting, and we had to do something we hadn't done before, so I did a 3 corner setting and once I had made the setting the rest of the pendant just presented itself to me, and I am so chuffed that it came out just as I could see it in my head!!!!! It has taken me a while, because I have too much going on in my life and have resolved to change that and spend more time making jewellery!!!!

New Website

2008-07-10T12:55:00.002+02:00

Am very excited, I have just built a new website, which is why haven't posted anything for a while, just have had too much to do. The address is www.silverpenny.co.za. Still need to put up my shop, but it's there!!!!

Ivory Necklace

2008-06-01T18:41:00.003+02:00

This piece was commissioned by a man for his wife. They normally holiday on a piece of land in Botswana where the animals roam free and he found this piece of ivory from an elephant graveyard, he has other pieces, but this was the piece he wanted in the necklace, and the few ostrich eggshell beads near the pendant were also found on the site as well as the blue glass beads which is what the Portuguese used to trade with the locals a couple of hundred years ago. He wanted me to incorporate this into a necklace for his wife's birthday with silver, because she loves silver. I have done some jewellery for her before. Anyway, this is the result, they are thrilled with it!!!! Thank goodness, it is always nerve racking designing for other people. The silver on the pendant is matt and the loop is textured and LOS'd and the two silver beads are also textured and LOS'd.

Spring Challenge

2008-05-01T13:06:00.002+02:00

I know it's autumn here, but the Jewelry Art Network had a Spring Challenge and I decided I had to do it this time, get the inspiration going, and since I am playing with filigree this is what I came up with. It is light and flirtatious and gives the suggestion of a flower.

Emerald Ring

2008-04-06T11:10:00.003+02:00

Yay, I have finally finished this ring, the customer had the stone and she changed her mind about how she wanted it, so it took a while, but it has turned out really well in the end.

Initial pendant

2008-03-29T16:44:00.003+01:00

I was asked to do this by one of my sister's friends, and it proved more of a challenge than I had expected. I decided to try cuttlefish casting so that I could get the thickness of pendant that I wanted, and it was such a hit that I am definitely going to cast like this again. For those of you who don't know, you melt your silver so hot that it is liquid and you pour it into the mold you have made out of cuttlefish and voila! you have your shape in silver. Of course, you also get the texture which I love, but which was wrong for this pendant, so I had to file it off. Was a lot of work, but worth it. Then, she wanted coloured stones down the centre, and these were all I had, you can't see it, but the two outer ones are sapphire blue!!! This was my first attempt at bezel setting square stones, but they came out well!!! There were scratches that couldn't come out between the stones, but Nikki ('cos I went to Nikki for a learning session - I think I learnt more than she did) had the idea to make a satin finish between the stones and it worked out really well. So at the end of the day, after the huge learning curve, it turned out quite well and I am feeling so motivated and ready to do more, which is great!!!!!!!!!

Stolen Camera

2008-03-17T08:01:00.003+01:00

I haven't been posting for a while because my camera was stolen in a burglary at our house, and this has hit me so hard, that inspiration also went missing for a while. Anyway, when insurance finally pays out, I will post all the things I have been up to in the meanwhile.

Curly earrings

2008-02-11T15:54:00.000+01:00

I need to find a way to hang my earrings nicely when I am taking pics, but I had fun making these and wanted to show them off.

Flowered pendant

2008-02-11T15:51:00.001+01:00

Finally managed to play with my camera and while haven't quite got professional pics, at least managed to get this pic clear. I need to diffuse the light better and then maybe I will get somewhere!!! At least know why I was getting them so wrong though!!

Flower Pendant

2007-12-30T11:10:00.000+01:00

The photo doesn't do this justice, I cut out the shape and then hammered it into a 3D shape, it has turned out the way I imagined it, and am really pleased with it. Will definitely do some more 3D pieces.

Curly Earrings

2007-12-30T11:09:00.001+01:00

This pic isn't so great, but the earrings are fun, and turned out really nicely.

Carnelian Earrings

2007-12-30T11:05:00.000+01:00

December has been quite hectic with all the preparations, and so I haven't had time to post all the things I have been doing. I have also been trying, without success to take better photos, but hopefully in the New Year, I will be able to go and take lessons from someone who really knows what he is doing!!! Watch this space, in the meantime, here are the earrings I made Mum for Christmas, they are clip-ons and I think they turned out quite nicely, I hope Mum likes them.

Earrings with squiggles

2007-12-03T20:14:00.001+01:00

These earrings evolved from a couple of ideas on sweat soldering, and just kept evolving until they were done? Sometimes you just have to let it happen.

Domes with hoops

2007-12-03T20:12:00.000+01:00

These hoops started out as something different that didn't work out, and the domes were going to be a bead, but I was playing around with pieces on my table, and they clicked together and just worked. The pic doesn't really do them justice.

Mother of pearl pendant

2007-12-03T20:07:00.000+01:00

This pendant was inspired by the mother of pearl button that I set in it. I found the button in my mother's button tin.

Smoky quartz ring

2007-12-03T19:29:00.000+01:00

I love smoky quartz, hope this ring does justice, although the picture doesn't.

Carnelian Ring

2007-11-06T14:24:00.000+01:00

Nikki very kindly gave me a demonstration of how to take pics, and she took this pic of a carnelian ring that I made a while ago, not bad, hey. Hope that I have learnt something from her, and that my next pics are just as good?

Purple Swarovski Ring

2007-11-06T14:18:00.000+01:00

I almost forgot to post this, this is a purple swarovski crystal, and I used a big stone for 2 reasons, one being that it is fashionable at the moment to have large stones in rings, and the second reason being that obviously bigger is easier, haaahhaaaa, wrong, this was much harder than the first one I did on course, which was about a quarter of the size. But eventually I got this right and am glad I persevered, because it has turned out well.
Hope you think so too!!! Now to attempt a large oval? We'll see.

3 Ring Earrings

2007-11-06T12:50:00.000+01:00

I loved making these earrings, and I love wearing them!!!!

2007-11-06T11:59:00.000+01:00

Decided to try out my cutting skills on this celtic design, and was very pleased with the result.

Pastel Watch

2007-11-06T11:50:00.000+01:00

Made this watch for fun, I think I might make a couple for Xmas.

Chain Earrings

2007-11-05T12:32:00.000+01:00

Love these earrings, they are a bit heavier than I thought they would be, but I was still able to wear them for a day and my ears were fine.

Carnelian Filigree Pendant

2007-11-05T12:29:00.000+01:00

Then I tried filigree, this pendant came out fine, although have learnt lots, and would change a couple of things, and it is not very centred, but good for a first attempt.

Chain Bracelet

2007-11-05T12:06:00.000+01:00

I made this next, I loved making this chain, using heavier wire and the clasp was also fun to make, you can see I really like the textured hammered look!!!

Sodalite Stamped Earrings

2007-11-05T12:04:00.000+01:00

These are sodalite, and since they were a pair, I had to make earrings, also was trying out stamping patterns, think I should antique these, they are very bling? We'll see.

Jasper pendant

2007-11-05T12:01:00.000+01:00

The stones in this pendant just begged to go together and this is how I saw them. This pendant took much longer than I expected, suppose I was using new techniques, but I just love this one, not sure I would want to sell it!!!

Lapis Lazuli Pendant

2007-11-05T12:00:00.000+01:00

I love lapis lazuli, so made this pendant next, also hammered texture, and the antiqued look.

Hammered Discs

2007-11-05T11:57:00.000+01:00

I love dangly earrings so I made these simple disks, which are hammered to give this lovely texture, and I antiqued it, because I love the look, and polished up the raised areas.

Tiara

2007-10-26T11:51:00.001+02:00

Thought that I should post this pic of my sister, Laura, wearing her tiara, just to show where I began!!! She's gorgeous, hey!!!! Oh, and I made all the jewellery too, also embroidered the dress, but don't have a pic of that!!!

2007-10-26T08:50:00.000+02:00

I made these celtic earrings to show off my cutting skills, I love these earrings and wear them often. Unfortunately my photography skills need work!!!

What else I have made

2007-10-26T08:45:00.000+02:00

These are some of the things that I have made, beginning in order of progress.

2007-10-22T11:14:00.000+02:00

This is what I made on the first course that I went on last year. That was when I realised that I had found what I wanted to do. Only took 20 years?!!!!!

2007-10-22T11:12:00.000+02:00

I am beginning this blog to have a presence on the net, to track my progress, and to show off what I make to my friends!!! So here goes.....................