Jewelry: 2011 Holiday Necklace

I found a great "little black dress" for the company party this year. It hits just above the knee, has a figure-flattering shape, and an interesting scallop-puckered fabric that forgives any remaining flaws. It also has a deep "v" in front and back. And, as I happen to have super short hair, I got the idea to make a necklace with most of the interest in the back.

I stewed on a design for a few days and then went on a scouting trip to my favorite bead store, Crystal Bead Bazaar in the Lawrenceville section of Pittsbugh. I needed chain, a metal ring, and some dangly items. I had considered adding clay elements to my design but decided against it, opting to go simple and more delicate than my usual tendency might be.

As luck would have it, I found exactly what I needed: three different chains, a delicate sparkly ring, and 3 cones  in a gunmetal finish.

Note...the clothing shown here is not the fabulous dress mentioned above.

 The necklace is just long enough that it fits over my head, therefore, no clasp required. Good thing, because I couldn't figure out how I was going to make a clasp look good -- no idea I had in mind was wowing me.

The football-shaped links of one chain were joined by figure-8 shaped links which proved to be the ideal size to link all the chains to the ring. Once I figured out that I didn't need a clasp, the whole thing went together in about 20 minutes. I had one big crystal bicone that I wired into the center drop down the back. And for an added bonus, the metal cones at the end are like tiny wind chimes and make a delicate clinking sound when I move.

In other news...
Anyone watching "American Horror Story"? Freaky, bizarre, and interesting. I've watched all 4 episodes and I'm hooked. You can watch them online here:

http://vod.fxnetworks.com/watch/ahs

Also watched the first two episodes of "Project Accessory" and enjoyed it. You can watch it here:

http://www.mylifetime.com/shows/project-accessory/video/full-episodes

In the Artybecca shop tomorrow...

This is two sets mixed together.

These have holes from end to end.

What to wear to the party?

I'm going to an Alice In Wonderland-themed fundraiser tonight with my friend so I wanted something theme-related to wear. My brooch below started off as a teacup but then took on a hat quality so...voila! Now it's the Mad Hatter's top hat. I wore it to work yesterday and it held up fine. Better yet, when I asked people what they thought it was, everyone said hat, and one person even said, "a hat like the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland." I didn't add the white card with "In this style 10/6" although I could. Should I leave it generic or really make it the Mad Hatter's hat?

Okay, I'm not even finished writing this post and I've decided to add the card. There's a weird white blop on the left side and the card would allow me to cover that and add more dimension at the same time.

(With card, posted later after the party.)

Dukan diet update...down 35 lbs now! Only 5 more to the new goal. Since June 13 I've lost 4.25" off my waist, almost 5" off my hips, almost 3" off each thigh. Of course, as always, some fat comes off where you don't want it to...3.5" off the bustline as well. But I like to think that much of that was the unsightly back fat, which is indeed gone! You can do it too! It was not hard at all.

Idea: Potential clasp?

I made these two snake-ish things that could be a non-attached clasp for a necklace. I envision it hanging in front, with the ends running through rings at the end of the necklace portion. I haven't tried it out so not sure how it would work in actual practice. Can you think of any other interesting ways to use them? They are both fairly large...the smaller green one is about 4 inches long and the larger one is about 6".

This one looks a little reptilian!

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I feel very continental. I bought a Bialetti Moka Express, a coffee bean grinder, and a faux coffee shop cup with lid (dishwasher safe plastic cup with a rubber heat sleeve....very cute!) so I can make lattes at home. Sugar-free syrup and skim milk stays in my diet guidelines so it's a treat I didn't have to give up! While the coffee was heating I had a small pot of milk on the stove and frothed it with a wisk. It worked fine. I am drinking my first home made latte right now...pretty good! My $50 investment will pay ff in less than a month. I also bought a French press to give that a try.
I never even drank coffee until I was 40. It was the Starbucks Frappucino that got me hooked one summer. When winter rolled around I didn't want a cold drink so someone suggested a latte. Yum. Actually, what I really like is not really coffee, it's more like coffee-flavored sweetened milk.

Home from my clay adventures

Had a great clay month! I have some new ideas and now I need to stock up the etsy shop. Here's a quick look at some new shapes...

The center of these pillows are Sculpey Ultra Light so they are not very heavy.

The back is is gold and warm orange.

I like how this one turned out. So much so, that I'll be keeping it for my very own self!

Artist: Barb Fajardo

Check out some lovely work by my new friend Barb Fajardo, also known online as rubarb04. I have a pair of earrings similar to the set shown here; you can see other colors and designs on this page. Or you learn how to make her interesting designs in her Textured Tesselations class on CraftEdu.com.

I'm leaving in a few hours for the Pittsburgh Polymer Clay Guild's weekend retreat. It's always fun to have a weekend with the ladies and see what everyone's been up to all summer.

Today is the official end of my Phase 2 fthe Dukan diet. Down 32 lbs, two more than my Dukan chart said I would be on this day. I don't plan to stop; aiming for 8 more pounds.