Regal Headphones: Gothic Regency

So.  You may remember a post a while ago with a photograph of a box of Skullcandy Hesh headphones as well as a cryptic caption.  Yes?  Well, good.  I've completed the project I hinted at earlier and I'm finally comfortable with showing you guys what I made.

I started off with plain headphones of the Skullcandy Hesh variety.  I chose Skullcandy because they are GREAT brand that I trust and they aren't as expensive as Beats.  So, if I manage to seriously bork up my design, it's not like I'm out of two hundred dollars or anything.  I decided to go with the Hesh headphones because they are supposed to have better sound, a better microphone and they have more features that allow the headphones to sit cozily on your head.

The last pair of headphones I gothed up didn't have the lovely memory foam cushioned headband and the speaker cushions pressed against my head awkwardly sometimes.  The cord also presented a problem because it was permanently anchored into the headphones themselves.  That sort of design lead to the eventual death of that particular pair because the cord shorted out.  The Hesh headphones can have their cords replaced.  I managed to snag a pair on sale and avoid paying over $50 bucks for them.  SCORE!

Ok.  Here are my new lovelies.

I followed pretty much the same method as the other headphones, even included leather scraps and ribbon just like last time.  However, these headphones presented a unique problem when it cam time to clean up the residual glue and fly-aways from my sloppy E-6000 work.  Don't get on my case, my neuropathy makes my hands shake like crazy most times, so it's a miracle that I can type, let alone glue over 500 rhinestones, chain, and cabochons to a pair of headphones.

So, the fly-aways.  Because the Hesh headphones aren't made of slick, slippery plastic, but rather self-healing rubberized plastic, when I went in for clean up, my usual method of simply yanking the stray threads of glue off with tweezers meant that I peeled off a bit MORE than I intended.  I had to find a different kind of epoxy that would bond to silicone to help seal the bonds between my headphones and the rhinestones... and I'm still scared that I'll hit them against something at the wrong angle and all my hard work will go peeling off.  So far, that hasn't happened, but the E-6000/epoxy combination isn't as sturdy as I'm used to.


All in all, this was another successful decoden project.  Hopefully, it'll be another year or two before I have to make repairs to my design elements on these headphones. 

Guess what I'm going to be doing.

My old vamped up headphones have broken.  I'm tired of 10 dollaring myself to death by buying cheapo earbuds, so I got me some good Skullcandy Grind Headphones with the Mic in the headseat.  Yep. 

I'm about to goth these suckers up.  *eyebrow wiggle* 

Pastel Goth: Creepy cute

I must have slept on this one, but I swear, I'm awake now.  Pastel goth is a thing. 

As a child of the 80's, I've always liked many elements of goth fashion.  As a girl raised on Disney princesses and Barbie dolls, I've always loved things that are pretty and feminine.  As an anime nerd, I've always liked the idea that the cutest, girliest character can be the heavy hitter, have unconventional interests, or specialize in being tough.  Never, have I seen these ideas married into a fashion or subcultural movement, though.

Well, that is until I heard about this pastel goth thing.  One of the primary things I've never quite liked about many branches of the goth subculture were how ...HARD everything appears.  I understand the philosophy behind it: recognizing, accepting, embracing, and beautifying the things that most fear because they are ultimately inevitable.... but I never could get with shaving half your head, bleaching your skin, and having so many facial modifications that your visage could be mistaken for a dragon or ogre.

Courtesy of Dailymail.uk

I get that many people who associate with the trend are also members of the church of body modification (it's a real denomination that takes the idea that your body is a temple of God and seeeks to decorate that temple with as many piercings, implants, and tattoos as possible), but there's a great deal about that sort of life that doesn't appeal to me.

Finding pastel goth, which marries creepy and cute, was like finding a pretty bead.  I can blend my love of cartoons and love of dark humor into fashion that amuses me.  Further, my current experiment with colors that aren't shades of black, white, tan, and gray OR jewel colors gives me more than enough opportunity to adopt this creepy cute style and try something like this! 

I found this on Google

I can try styles like Lovely Ify, Drew Disaster, and Offbeat Look's styles.

Courtesy of Google

Courtesy of Drew Disaster

As long as my clothes match.  Haha!

Fatal Frame Charm Bracelet

I play more video games than Zelda series additions.  Unfortunately, I have this horrible condition: I always get stuck on the stupidest, easiest task.  Every RPG, action adventure, fantasy, and platformer has a set of levels or mandatory minigames that involve skills that have nothing to do with the regular game play.  You know what I'm talking about.  The race, the timed task, the weird trivia game.  They all have one and I always get stuck on it.  Oh.  I can take down your toughest boss, but I can't break all the barrels in 30 seconds.  It's a personal flaw.

I also can't play horror games without screaming and crying.  I'll admit it.  However, I can make a mean charm bracelet.  This one is themed after the Fatal Frame franchise.  I was staring at some of the charms my dear friend gave me last year and some random beads from an assortment I bought not too long ago.  I also found some silver camera charms. 

Originally intended for something, else, these particular charms and beads looked GOOD together and reminded me of something I'd played a long, long time ago.  Fatal Frame.  You know, that horror survival game based on the old belief that having your photo taken steals part of your soul.  It sends you running around in haunted locations with a cursed camera, defeating ghosts by capturing their essence in Polaroids. 

I did something different with this charm bracelet. Not only did a I use a variety of dark beads and add much more to it than I normally would.  I also added some chain tassels between increments of beads and charms to give it more depth.  It gave the bracelet and interesting and charmingly sparkling appeal.  Pretty fitting for a bracelet based on a game that involves photos stealing souls, huh? 

Saturation: A poem

Too novel and new
Too unique to stay you
Elements scraped, refined, and tinctured
Hues boiled, extracted, and decantered
More
Not added for the benefit of design,
But an arms race to keep it mine.
Fighting for relevance.
They wanted more.

Color seeping from your skin,
Mimicked till water thin
Concentrate the shades to make them real
Super-saturated, lost all appeal.
More
Because the colors made you blind
Burning rods and cones to stay defined
Losing all elegance
You give them more.

Arachne: A Study in Suggestion

In high school we briefly studied Japanese water color and woodblock printing. The art of suggestion, of abstract illustrations of things present in nature with simple brush strokes was key.  I found it difficult to do that sort of thing.  I usually add layers of little details bit by bit until it's ridiculous.  Still, I managed to get the idea of that particular unit.

Recently, I decided to see if I could apply simple themes and techniques with jewelry making.  That was how this particular necklace came about.  As many of you know, I like spiders, bugs, and cute little things represented in jewelry and embellishments.  With this piece I decided to try to suggest the idea of a spider instead of tossing some spider charms in there.  This was the result.  Tell me if you can see the Arachnid elements.

I used some of the same beadwork techniques I used for the red necklace in a previous post.  I made some modifications to the spacing and execution, though.  I wasn't going to use a pendant with quite the same impact as that design, so I had to make sure the elements and spacing of the elements fit with the more modern and sleek feel of this necklace.

I also made a pair of earrings to compliment the necklace.  They aren't nearly as ornate as the necklace.  However, they still suggest elements common to spiders.  As you can see, I used leverback earrings.  They're better for keeping the earrings in your ears.

So, here's my question:  Did you guys see the spider elements I mentioned?  Comment with what you thought was related to our 8-legged friends. 

Abandoned Commissions: Part 2

The next incident of commission related disappointment came shortly after a coworker encouraged me to bring my jewelry on one of the days we would be released early for holidays.  I was still working at my university at the time.  I shrugged and decided to bring some of my hoard.  If things went well, I'd have more money.

I brought the jewelry.  I had to lug it to and from class with me.  Ugh.  At the end of the day, we all sequestered ourselves into one of the empty conference rooms and spread out everything I had on the tables.  It was one of those rare moments when I look at my jewelry as an observer instead of as a creator.  The effect is waaaay different.  I stood back while the ladies pawed at, fussed over, and made agreements with each other about who would get what.  At that time I didn't make duplicates of anything.  So you and your BFF had to come to an agreement otherwise it would turn out like an episode of the Highlander: There can be only one.

I made a decent amount of scratch.  2/3rds what I'd make if I sold at a convention.  However, there was one young lady who wanted something specific for her niece's graduation.  I was still new to this commissioning thing, so I decided to take on her request, thinking that the folks at work might be a bit better than the ones at church.

What followed was an ordeal that tested every fiber of my patience and level temper.  The young woman wanted something 'flashy but not too flashy' to go with her fucsia dress.  I informed her that she would have to secure the beads.  She claimed to not know where to go.  Despite me instructing her on which craft stores she could visit to get the materials for her jewelry set, she never seemed to have time to go and in the end I was asked to take care of it for her.  That's a no-no.  I didn't know what she wanted and I was not about to waste time and busfare going out to a craft store and paying out of pocket for her stuff.

So, I turned to eBay.  I sent her a barrage of links to various beads that could arrive within a week if they were purchased right away.  She went with the smallest number of the cheapest beads she could find.  The quantity wasn't enough.  Thinking creatively and hoping that my dedication to helping her realize a good design would hopefully win me a return customer, I scoured my stash for some left over stardust beads to add into the design and give it a little extra sparkle to attractively contrast the shape of her face.  It would help me stretch the limited quantity of materials I'd be given.

Then she decided that she wanted that particular style of bead to be ALL OVER THE NECKLACE instead of in strategic places.  I told her that I didn't have any more and that she would have to get more from the craft store because they were on the expensive side.  She hem-hawed on that, then claimed that it was ok.  Later she brought a different kind of silver bead, again, cheap as possible, and demanded that I use those instead.  I remade the set.  She wasn't satisfied.   "Add the really shiny ones back in."  I remade the set.   Then we went back to the idea that I buy more stardust beads and add them into the design.

I still wasn't used to putting my foot down when faced with people older than me, so I asked my mother what I should do.  Wise as always, she told me to stand firm and that saying 'no' wasn't impolite because technically I was an adult too.  She also warned me of what was to come.

I refused to buy stardust beads for her necklace.  The woman claimed that it was fine.  Later, just as my mother predicted, the young woman claimed that since she wasn't getting what she wanted, she shouldn't have to pay.  If there's anything that pisses me off, nothing does it quite like giving me the run around when I'm trying to be kind and then having the audacity to act as if a small act of charity has impinged your honor and I should have to pay for it.  I'm sad to say that she brought out the worst in me.

In the end, she spent a total of $2 on materials and I spent 10 hours, nearly $15 dollars, and probably a few dozen gray hairs remaking the set several times.  I was so flustered and upset.  I considered cutting out the materials I contributed to it and throwing the rest away.  But that would be wasteful.  In the end, I gave the darn thing away because just looking at it made me sick to the stomach.  Repurposed and rehomed, I can say this, I felt much better giving the piece away than trying to sell it to someone who didn't want to pay in the first place.

Glitzy Earrings From the Treasure Chest

A while ago I did some photos of some of the awesome finds lurking in my stash.  WELL.  I've turned another of those finds into a pair of earrings.  So, here you are.  I won't make you wait for it.

These are actually already available on my Etsy here.

Something For Me: Skelly Earrings

I almost never make things for myself.  Well.  My birthday just passed and I decided to change that.  These earrings are made of howlite skull beads, gunmetal chain, brass jumprings and cute little swarovski accents to give them more color.  Also, They are Mine. 

Look at those gap-toothed grins.  Adorable.

This is allllllll mine.  Ok.  I'll stop teasing you guys.

They look helpless.  Time to put them on.

Floral inspirations

I like flowers.  They're pretty, simple, and they brighten up a place.  Rarely do I see flowers explicitly expreassed in jewelry.  I don't mean, like, a resin pendant with a flower in it or something like that.  I mean a TRUE expression of a flower with the necklace mimicking vines, branches and leaves around a floral focal.

I've never seen that outside of specific art pieces.  So.... I made my own.  8D  I had some flower bead caps in pink Czech glass.  I also had some vintage leaf beads that I won in a destash auction.  All of them were leftovers from other projects that have either sold already or claimed by yours truly.  Together, they built up something beautiful and rather hypnotic...

I'll let you guys in on a secret.  I name every piece I make.  Each one gets a name.  It's good for helping me keep track of which is which.  Anyway, this baby is called Path of Flowers.  Here are some more photos.

Some detail shots for you too...

I tried to keep the flower and leaf motif uniform throughout the design, even in the little extra elements.

I made earrings as well.  I'm starting to get back into that.  It's awesome.

I tried to make sure they looked as much like fruit and flowers hanging on a vine as possible.  Even though their design is simple, they pack a punch as far as striking visual appeal.

I'd say it worked.


EDIT:  Someone asked for a Link to my Etsy Page. 

Abandoned Commissions

At first, receiving a commission is like an honor.  Someone has bestowed upon you a position of complete authority over the execution and beautification of a paltry handful of beads.  You enter into a covenant with someone to produce a vision because they like your work, trust your skill, and want something unique.  It validates your hobbies and interests in a way that selling to a boutique doesn't.  Plus you get paid for it.  Receiving a commission is awesome on all accounts, unless one specific thing happens: The commissioner doesn't pay for or doesn't want to pay for your work.

It's happened to me a number of times, more times than I like to think about.  Sometimes, it's understandable.  Sometimes it can be devastating.  I am, despite my bluntness and inability to sugar coat anything, kinda sensitive, especially about things I've worked hard on.  Having my work nitpicked or devalued hurts.  Being stuck with a product of efforts someone completely snubbed is like a reminder that I didn't perform as well as expected or that I wasted, time and limited resources on something that didn't meet expectations.

I HATE when things don't go according to plan.  I hate redundancy.  I like doing things right the first, or at worst, the second time.  Errors, repeats, and complete rehashing of a project irks me to no end, stifles my creative juices and leaves me feeling more wrung out than I have any right to be.  I have been that way since I was a child.  Decisive action is the way to go.

That is why abandoned commissions irk me so.

I'll share a few of the stories with you, starting with the first.

I had made my mother a bracelet.  It had a bit of an old Hollywood feel with lots of swarovski crystals, antiqued brass, and vermeil components.  It had been a labor of love.  Painstakingly, I wove together beads, components, and crystals with golden tiger tail wire to make something reminiscent of a a diamond tennis bracelet.  It took a lot of planning to properly execute it and when it came together, it was beautiful.

One Sunday, the Mahogany Stylist wore it to church.  While it was good for me because I received a great deal of commissions as a result, the bracelet's popularity was a double edged sword.  People who never had a kind word for me suddenly wanted my attention, wanted to know everything I was doing and began hounding me for a copy of the bracelet.  Many were content with just that, a copy.  Others wanted a slight variation with silver accents instead of gold.  Some of them wanted COLORS instead of the simple golden and crystalline clear design my mother had.

That meant buying more materials...  I was excited at first, so I obliged to make the bracelets.  I bought materials, crystals, and components in a variety of metallic finishes.  I was planning how I'd spend the remainder of my meager paycheck on supplies that would help me to make more money than I could at the job I was currently working.  My enthusiasm, however, was wholly unwarranted. 

In hindsight, a great deal of the first few commissioners were spot on with their understanding of the expectations for a requested item worked, even if mine wasn't.  They paid gladly, left tips, and chastised me when they found my prices too low.  $25 for a tennis bracelet carefully woven to look like the real thing.  That was cheap even if it was costume jewelry. 

However, it was the ones who had so many requests, so many variations, the "the fancy clasp, not the plain clasp you've been using on everyone else's.  I want mine to REALLY stand out" folks who posed the most trouble.  These self-absorbed, delusional misers seemed to have some bizarre notion that when you ask a person you see regularly at church to make you something, it should be free.  One woman went as far as to claim, "Well, since we're sisters in Christ..." as if Jesus himself would condone her propositioning me under false pretenses and weaseling out of paying for her bracelet.

If I remember correctly, he trashed the temple for robbing the people by soliciting the purchase of sickly, unwanted sacrificial animals they claimed were up to higher standard.  Essentially, he condemned them for taking advantage of the people's naive trust in things related to their place of worship.  Which was what this woman TRIED to do.  By pleading 'sister in Christ' she attempted to absolve herself from something honorable like paying for requested goods.

I will admit that at that age, 19, I was still very naive, but I was not stupid.  I offered to hold the goods until she was able to pay because I needed to try to recoup my costs.  In response, she began telling other churchgoers that I charged 'top dollar', as if my efforts weren't worth the small price I was asking.  In the end, people eventually saw the truth, but she still clamors for attention every now and then by loudly exclaiming 'When Can I Get My Bracelet??'.  Thankfully, no one pays much attention to her any more.

She wasn't the only one to try to worm out of paying for one of those bracelets..and for a long time, I had quite a lot of them on my hands.  I eventually sold them off at a slightly reduced price and recieved quite a few rave reviews for my efforts.  Here are some pictures.  I apologize for the quality.  I was still learning to photograph jewelry back then.  haha. 

Cadena: Classic and Simple

In Spanish, Cadena usually means simply, a chain.  It's also the name of a popular high fashion and sewing magazine.  Love that magazine, btw.  For me, cadena represents timeless and versatile style, form and function married together.  So chic!  That's the motif I was trying to portray with this necklace.

As you can see, it's a super simple, really straightforward and no frills sort of design.  It was made with quality components though. Onyx, hematite, and swarovski crystals.  It came together just as planned.  Lovely, simple and very elegant.

I even took the extra time to make a bracelet and earrings.

Owls

WELL, I've jumped on the bandwagon.  I know you've seen them.  The owls.  They're everywhere.  They're always watching.  From the aisles of tupperware to the decorative boxes of kleenex.  The owls are everywhere.  In the high-end stores and even in Walmart.  Although I like owls and have for the longest time, I've avoided them because of their recent popularity.  I want unique things.  Slapping birds and owls on it is a good way to get lost in the fad.

But... I made an owl necklace.  Does that... does that mean I'm "Mainstream" now?

His tummy is made of a feather.  Isn't it cute?

Nayru's Love Necklace

HAHA!  I fixed this necklace and came up with something decidedly delicate and feminine.  It looks much better than the original in my personal opinion.

I was so pleased with how it turned out with just a few little additions that I set about to making some earrings to go with it.  Take a gander.

Funny how I got better photos of the earrings than the necklace... So it goes..