No Animals Were Unnecessarily Harmed Making This Post

 There is a very talented woman who lives in Iqaluit, in Canada's far north. From time to time, it is necessary to harvest a polar bear and when that happens, they make use of every possible part. She makes beautiful customized fur parka hoods and we also buy pompoms she makes using other fur.

Some time ago, we received a genuine polar bear claw.

My wife Vickie is a very accomplished polymer clay artist. She can duplicate pretty much any rock I can find and the joke is, "If I can find it, she can fake it!". So she embarked upon a quest to duplicate this claw. After she made one that passed her test, we decided to use it as a focal point in a necklace that also included some of her hand made polymer clay beads. Here's the result.

The claw focal point is spectacular.

This piece is available on line or in the shop. Hope to see you some time this summer.

DISCLAIMERS:

Note to animal rights activists. I have rescued several animals and do not hunt. This animal had to be harvested. Would you be happier if it had been left to rot?

Note to those concerned with cultural appropriation- this isn't and I will ignore any negative commentary in this regard.

Time to Create

 It is now the middle of May but it is still too cool to fire up the machines in the rock lab. So we've been using the time to create more pieces for the shop. I had this piece of copper flashing that came from a collapsed and abandoned house and was well over 100 years old and decided it was time to put it to use and give it a second life. It would be reincarnated as cuff bracelets.

The first step was to cut out blanks.

As you can see, they were pretty rough with some still having shingles and paint attached along with a lot of creases and dents. But this is what I treasure because it gives the final piece character. We decided to use two different techniques. The first was to clean up both sides and then pass the copper through our rolling mill with something (such as the plastic netting from an old onion bag) to create an impression.

The results were fantastic!

The second technique was to clean and polish the inside and then remove the verdigris, paint and some of the oxidation from the outer side. At that point we used several different "tools" to hammer from the inside to create raised points and creases on the rough side. Then, after a lot of filing and sanding, we had some amazing results.

Finally, we got a little fancy and combined the copper with some beautiful vintage glass beads.

These are just a a sampling of what we have in the shop and of course we had to add one made from a length of beautiful Viking Knit chain.

But that's not all we've done. In the next post I'll show you some beautiful earrings and one of the most spectacular pieces we have ever created. So stay tuned! And if your travels take you to Digby Neck- the most beautiful part of Nova Scotia (I may be biased) -stop by and say hi and see these pieces in person!

Making Copper Bracelets

 While cleaning out the "Lap of Lapidary, I came across a piece of copper chimney flashing that had been saved from a derelict 100+ year home. So this copper is definitely "vintage". I knew I had to make something with it and decided to make bangle bracelets.

Here's how it looked after I cut the rough forms.

It looks grungy, beat up and ugly or in my eyes, perfect!

After a lot of grinding, filing and sanding and using the metal roller to add some texture,  here's how it looked.

The next step was to shape it around my form. To do this, I heated it up and slowly wrapped it around the form. Then, when that was done, I had to work harden it by hitting it with a rubber mallet. Here's how the first one turned out.

We liked that so much that we decided to get a little more adventurous. This meant adding more (distorted) texture and then "pickling" to give it an antique sheen. This is what we got.

These have turned out so well that we have decided to make a few more and get even more adventurous. I love the idea of creating something from material that had served its purpose as a chimney flashing and giving it a totally new existence. It's not every day you get to create a brand new "antique"!

These will be available on line or in the shop for $45 CDN plus shipping. We're gonna go crazy so stay tuned to see what comes next!

The Process

 I am not a jeweler per se. I am a lapidary. To me the most important element in any piece is the stone so settings are created to best show the stone and keep it safe. In this particular case, I was working with a stone exhibiting amazing patterning so the challenge was to create a setting that didn't cover it up. Step #1 was the design.

I positioned the stone on the paper and located the three shallow tabs where they would be clear of the best patterning and yet keep the stone secure in all directions. I cut the paper (roughly) and repositioned the stone using 2 sided tape. Then I folded the tab extensions up and drew the tab shapes and lengths. I used the square outline to cut a piece from my upcycled copper sheet and then cut the copper plate to fit the design. Then it was a matter of doing a LOT of filing until the plate matched the paper outline. At that point, I switched to sandpaper (400 grit -12,000 grit) to create burnished areas and other areas where I left the patina and character intact. Using a metal punch, a hole was made in the top extension to accommodate  the jump ring. At that point I carefully bent the 3 prongs until the stone was firmly held everywhere.

This agate is really amazing and I thought it deserved a special sliding bail. So I created this one and even added a little copper bead to "cinch" the neck.

The real problem was getting the colouring right on the picture. I can assure you it is much more dramatic in person (a photographer is another thing I am not!). Next step was to choose a complimentary premium leather cord and choose the length. I settled on a dark red to pick up the red in the stone and a length of 52 cm. (20 inches). The stone was hung on the leather and I finished it with a hand made decorative neck clasp.

I think the final piece is a real show stopper! Available on line or in the store and remember, I sell cabochons so if you would like to work with some beautiful rock, just let me know.

See you soon.

By the way, I have just passed 130K (non bot) page views on this blog and I would like to thank all of you for being part of my adventure.

Beautiful Hand Dyed Yarn

 Because I'm a rock guy, I sometimes forget that we are famous for our gorgeous hand dyed yarn.

Actually there's a tie in between the yarn and the rocks. When our daughter Lisa, a talented indy dyer visited for the first time she was struck by the beautiful colours of the local rocks and decided to try and capture them in her Seawall Fibres hand dyed yarn. That's why all our skeins are named after rocks and minerals. But while the local rock is very hard, our yarn is very, very soft! It is merino wool and comes from a mill in England and we sell it in many weights and blends. Our resident artist and colour expert curates it into complimentary colours to make selection easier but one can buy any skein that strikes their fancy.

In addition to the yarn, we sell accessories and patterns as well as amazing hand knit items- mostly from patterns designed by "The Real Artist" who is usually around to answer questions from her knitting "tribe". And if you visit at the end of July this year, you can meet the dyer herself!

As a non-knitter, I must say a few words about this "unique" group of people. They are all crazy. But crazy in a good way and I love meeting them. I used to be in the golf business and thought golfers were the biggest fanatics in the world. Then I moved to Florida and invested in a sunglass company and started rubbing shoulders with surfers and bass fishermen. I quickly pegged them as being the true fanatics- the hard core of the fanatic universe. But then I met knitters and quickly realized I had found the top of the fanatic mountain- the "ne plus ultra" of the genre. One brief encounter sums it up. A few years back a lady came in from South Carolina and picked out a few skeins. She said that even though she had SABLE, this yarn was too beautiful not to buy. I was unfamiliar with the term SABLE and asked her. She said SABLE was a knitting term and stood for Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy. "I'm 75 and have several hundred skeins of yarn. Do the math!" We should all have such a passion in our lives.

So if you are a user of yarn and want to see some absolutely beautiful material in an absolutely beautiful setting, pencil in a visit to Digby Neck. You will NOT be disappointed!

Spring IS Coming

Out here on Digby Neck, the sun is getting stronger, snow is pretty much all gone and winter is, grudgingly, giving up its hold on our amazing slice of Nova Scotia. Sure, we'll probably get a late blizzard but that snow will soon melt. The earth is warming up and I have it on good authority that pussy willows are emerging.

Here at the shop, we are doing a lot of fabrication in studio to produce pieces for the retail shop. We have experimented with new materials such as this leather "barbed wire"- truly unique.

More beautiful copper and silver Viking Knit Chains have been completed and paired with beautiful agates.

New techniques have been perfected- including this show stopping pendant using a really cool cold connection method.

We even have an amazing sterling silver vintage ring from Russia which features an awesome sillimanite cat's eye.

When we got it it was totally black and in need of repair but it has been professionally cleaned and repaired. It is very small (size 4/5) but it is a beautiful example of Russian craftsmanship- complete with Russian hallmarks.

We plan on opening next month if the weather cooperates and even if you have been before, come again as our store is like a box of chocolates- you never know what treasures you will find.

Latest Viking Voyage

As some who read this blog know, the "Real Artist", who lets me share her studio as long as I keep my mouth shut, is also a "Real Viking". Wencke, (her Norwegian name, we call her Vickie) is not one of those fake Vikings who wear the horned hats and watch Minnesota play football. She is a pure blood. And as such she is always off on new voyages of discovery. This time, it's all about dying (the colour not the event).

So now I'm back to the point in time when our daughters were young and I was always afraid to open a door in fear of the science experiment that lay behind it. This morning I found this sitting in the kitchen.

What is it, you say? My guess was an old tin can wrapped in fabric but according to Vickie, I was sadly mistaken. This was a can that she had carefully prepared to be covered with rust- not just rust but premium rust- so that when she folded some material around it, it got dyed by the rust. This, apparently elevates it from junk and rags to...ART!

Here is another cloth that has been dyed lavender by a liquid derived by soaking black turtle beans which, apparently we will now eat. Oh joy.

And this is only part of the voyage which, according to the Viking, will take two years. It didn't take that long for them to discover America! Another aspect will be to use the dyes and hand fashioned objects to make marks and thus transform a mess into an "object d'art".

Trust me, those hands will never be clean again. 

Apparently we are having the beans tonight.

Pray for me.

The Phoenix Collection Gets Larger

Last year I decided to try working with a new material- used guitar wire. And since I have a son-in-law, grandsons and neighbours who play guitar, I had plenty of strings to experiment with. The wires have as much "memory" as any wire I've worked with so it's not the easiest job but it does open up some amazing unique opportunities.

Since the strings were being "reborn", I called it the Phoenix Collection with new jewelry pieces rising from the ashes. Guitar strings that once made beautiful music now make beautiful, unique jewelry. They sold well in the shop and on line so I have decided to expand the selection. Since I started fabricating I've made several pairs of earrings with many more to come. By spring, this display will be full.

 I also want to do about a dozen single strand and multi strand necklaces incorporating Vickie's amazing polymer clay beads. Here are some of the latest.

The first features a "faux" amber trade bead with amazing detail and the second incorporates "faux" jade and a small trade bead. But by far the most ambitious undertaking to date has been the 9 string braided piece with a beautiful local stone and carnelian beads.

Regrettably, the wire doesn't photograph so well so these are even better in person so if you are coming this way, let me know and you can take a look.

Of course, I'm making other items as well, such as this large shark tooth wrapped in silver and hanging on a sterling silver chain- gorgeous.

Stay sane and healthy my friends.

What's New at The Artist's Mark

 I haven't posted for some time because we have been so busy. Lots of work to do to get ready for winter plus we celebrated our 52nd wedding anniversary few days ago. But we have had time to do some new pieces.

This is the time of year I make my Viking Chain. Here's how it looks when I weave it on the dowel (about 8 inches long)

And here's how it looks after I have drawn it through successively smaller holes in my draw plate. Now about 17 inches long. This one was done in 24 gauge copper but my next attempt will be with a thicker, 22 gauge wire.

I have also been collaborating with Vickie on some pieces. Vickie is a master of polymer clay and has developed several of her own techniques while perfecting museum quality jewelry. This time we used one of her beads, featuring a technique she calls her "Burlesque Blend" and hung it on an upcycled guitar string. Vickie also fashioned the wire work and bead work while I did the connectors at the back

I was able to use the original "eye" and attach another to make a really unique clasp.

I have also been making a lot of earrings and while I won't show them in this post, I will show you the display we made using some cool driftwood and plastic mesh. I even added some hooks at the bottom to hold three necklaces and eventually everything on it will be from the "Phoenix" collection featuring upcycled guitar wires.

 

Next time I'll feature more individual pieces.

Cheers!

Winter Hours

 Now that the clocks have changed, we change our hours to reflect it. Unless we are away, we are open every day until 5 unless the weather is really bad. We will close for the winter December 15th but will open the shop for those who call ahead- especially you local knitters. If you want to make sure we are open, call at 902 482-2188 or email me at ptoceanwaves@gmail.com

Also, since our winter winds can get really bad (and since we have already fished one store sign out of the marsh) we will be taking down the large store sign by the road. However, we will still be hanging our "Open" sign so if it is up, come on in!

What's New at The Artist's Mark?

 We are now well into fall and that means I get to start making pieces with all the beautiful stones I created through the summer. But first, I have to finish off the ones I left at the beginning of spring. here's a sample of a few.

 I even finished a few popular sea glass pendants. So a lot of the empty spaces in the shop have been filled.

The last job in the rock lab was to finish a few specimen pieces. Here's one- a gorgeous piece of local plume and fortification agate..

This one is pretty special since that sparkly quartz druzy pocket goes all the way through. So my plan is to mount this to a piece of driftwood with a tea candle right behind the druzy.I've tried it and it creates an amazing effect. Look for this in the shop next spring but I predict it won't last long.

The "Real Artist" is painting up a storm and threatening to make a few mixed media statement pieces with me so stay tuned!