Showing posts with label necklace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label necklace. Show all posts

Thursday, August 13, 2015

Artist Interview: Serenity Wire Designs

Beautiful copper and peridot
pendant!
I'm very pleased to have the opportunity to post this interview with wire jewelry artisan SerenityWireDesigns!  Filled with wonderful swirls and curls, not to mention gemstones, each of these "tree of life" pendants is unique.  Keep reading to learn more about this artisan, their unique pieces, and where you can find them!

When did you get interested in wire art, and how did you learn?

"Well, I always admired wire art, but I never thought I'd be able to do it until a friend of mine started doing wire art. Sometimes I would give her a few suggestions here and there. She didn't take all of my suggestions. Some I really wanted her to do so I finally decided I should do my own. That way I don't need to wait for her to possibly do them or pressure her to make them. So I started doing my own! Once I decided I wanted to make my own pendants, I began doing my research. I'm more of a visual learner so I was looking up video tutorials on how to make them. I also observed my friend's pendants and many others on etsy. That was the most effective way I learned to make them, just by looking at the image of a wire item and figured out how they did it in my head."

What is your favorite project that you have made?

"It's kind of hard to say which one is one is my favorite. As I progress, I start liking my newer pendants more than the older ones. Not only that, but I like many for different reasons. But I guess if I had to choose, it would be my current one called "I'm not crazy." It's a tree of life pendant inspired by one of my favorite Disney movies, Alice in Wonderland, featuring the Cheshire cat."

What do you like best about wire art?

"I like that there's many ways to go about wire art. You can always do something detailed and complicated or nice and simple and still look great. You don't need to make something complex to make it stand out."

Where do you get your ideas for new projects?

"My ideas come from anything and everything.  Like many artists, I feel inspired from what I encounter. I'm a nature/animal and anime/manga lover so I try to incorporate that into my wire art a lot. I'm pretty obsessed with birds, though. I always have since I was little so I tend to make more bird-themed projects or at least try to."


A sampling of gorgeous wire and gemstone pendants in a variety of metals and styles.
The first is "I'm not crazy," mentioned in the text.  Note the wonderful spirals
used to make designs both serious and playful.

Do you have any special or long term goals for your wire art?

"A contest, or major project, or producing a certain number of type of pieces, or some such? I hope to continue doing wire art for the rest of my life. I definitely plan on doing contests and giveaways in the future but it is not set in stone yet as far as dates go. Most of my work is a 'one of a kind' and rarely reproduced. Therefore, I have been trying to start producing a few "made-to-order" items. I also hope to go to fairs and events to showcase or sell my work but that's farther into the future."

Is there one aspect or technique about wire art that you really want to learn?

"Not exactly. If I want to learn a specific technique I usually do my research right away and practice. Though quite frankly I try to not use other's techniques. I try to do my own unique techniques."

Where can people go to view/buy your art, and do you take commissions/do custom work?

"I have an etsy store where I have all of my wire jewelry and other wire artworks. You can go here if you're interested!: Serenity Wire Designs etsy shop.  I do take commissions/custom orders! I've had a couple of them in the past. If anyone wants something specific you can send me a message on my etsy or click the button that says 'Request Custom Order' You can also contact me in any of my other social platforms (dA, Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest)"

Many thanks to SerenityWireDesigns!

Image Credit: All images are of art belonging to SerenityWireDesigns - Pieces are Earth Kingdom, I'm Not Crazy, The Air Nomads, Little Peri, and The Darnassus Tabard

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Spiral Jewelry - Eyes Always Open

I was at a bead show, hunting through a box of sterling silver clasps when I found it - a beautiful, huge, toggle clasp that looked like a quilled, eight petaled flower.  I make a lot of gemstone jewelry, and my mind immediately began processing all the ways I could use the amazing clasp in a beaded design, with the clasp obviously meant to show in the front.

And then the more I thought about it, the more I just wanted to highlight the clasp itself.  My mind came up with simpler and simpler designs.  Until I realized what I wanted was to not use the "bar" part of the clasp at all, and instead convert the "flower" part into a pendant.  So that's what I did, and hung the pendant on a simple chain.  (The "circle " portion of the clasp is bigger than a quarter, more like the size of a dollar coin.)  I get more compliments on this thing ...

Which is great.  I have a lot of jewelry with "spiral" or "coil" themes, which is no surprise at all.  And I also have a number of findings and components with that theme, as well, for making new jewelry.  I have a few new projects in mind, so keep your eyes on the blog for when they appear.

Image Credit:  My pic of my necklace.