Tuesday, January 21, 2014

On the Wings of Love... Sorry, couldn't help myself!

I made these for the first time almost a decade ago, but I remake them almost every February to get ready for Valentines Day! Thought it was about time I shared them with you.

Materials used to create these pieces:
various jewelry findings to assemble the pieces
ear hooks
leather cord
and any clasps, closures, crimps or jump rings you'll need.

Tools needed to create these pieces:
STAEDTLER Fimo heart push mold
toothpicks
parchment paper



First I made some spacer beads that looked like little crowns. I flattened a ball of silver clay and poked a hole through the middle with a toothpick. Then I made teeny balls of silver clay and set them firmly around the side of each flattened ball bead.


Next I made the winged hearts. I freehand cut out some wings from a 1/4cm thick sheet of mother of pearl clay. My wings were about 5cm wide and about 2.5cm tall. I set two toothpicks near the middle of the wings and used a STAEDTLER Fimo heart mold to make a 3cm wide heart from the metallic red clay. I sandwiched the toothpicks between the wings and the heart. Make sure to twist the toothpicks to make sure they'll come out easily after baking. Bake the pieces in a 230 degree, preheated oven on a parchment lined baking sheet for 20 minutes and allow them to cool.

I strung the leather cord down through one toothpick hole in the heart and up through the other. Then I took both ends of the cord and put them through a crown bead. You can tie the ends of the cord so it will fit easily over your head, or you can add crimps and a lobster claw closure to the ends to finish the piece.



I made the earrings in much the same way. The winged hearts only have one toothpick hole. I added a round silver bead to finish the bottom of the piece and hold the earring together. 

Happy almost warmish weather sometime soon?
We were at -20 something today..... GAH!!!!