Reflective Writing

At our meeting yesterday we were given a basic introduction into reflective writing. I found this to be very useful because it has the way to structure the writing and forces me to say everything that would be important in relation to my work. I find it easier to talk about the actual piece that I made than the reason why I made it (because I make pieces for their beauty and not for their meaning) but I am going to try use this format for the creativeness behind my pieces.  

Reverse Taper Shank

Ring and topper soldered together.

Reverse tapered shank.

I decided to do a reverse tapered shank on my ring. I was inspired to do this by the Dahlia rings by Sharron Thompson. I like how her shanks are very simple but with busy toppers. 

This is my first reverse taper since second year, it was a group effort from us (B tech class) trying to remember how it was done. I was very intimidated but was quite happy with the result.

Flower Ring Topper

Flower Ring Topper.

This is the ring topper I made from 4 pierced out plates which were then filled with filigree (I didn't fill all the "petals" because I felt it would be too much.) I am very happy about the way it turned out. To me it looks well balanced with the angle of the four plates.

I am setting a stone on the middle of the ring, originally it was going to be this cubic but then after talking to a fellow student he pointed out to me that it is silly to put a cubic into a ring which had so much effort put into it. So next week I will be going to get a stone to use in this ring.

Sketch of Flower Ring

Drawing from my sketch book.

This is a design I have done for the upcoming digital festival. 

I want to create a statement piece, so I can diffuse it into other pieces.

The Jeweller's Florist

While looking through Facebook this weekend I came across a jeweler from Cape Town, Shannon Thompson who owns The Jeweller's Florist. I was actually shocked when I saw her page because of the similarities between our work. She does large floral cocktail rings, Africa and animal pendants. I asked her if I could do an email interview with her to ask her about her jewellery and she is very interested in doing it, but I don't know what to ask.

Dahlia Rings - Sterling silver and topaz 

22ct Yellow Gold plated Sterling Silver.

Africa Necklaces

The Baby Rhino Pendant in Sterling Silver,

Over-fired Enamel

I really like how the enamel on my piece has the blackened edges.

I never really knew exactly why this happened but while reading up on enameling for my first chapter I came across the reason why this happens. I'm happy about this because now I can talk about it in a bit of a more academic way.

My enameled Art Deco inspired Earrings

The Art of Enameling by Linda Darry