Nipsenålstræf

This saturday I went to the 2'nd Annual Get-together of the Danish pin collectors.
It sounds very fancy, but in reallity it is simply Marianne being nice and inviting us over for an afternoon of chatting, buying/selling/trading and having a good time - and some cake, yum! :)

We will each bring the pins we want to sell, and the ones we want to show off, like these cushions from the large collection of Søren.

 

A small part of Mariannes figure collection, with a star pattern of rounds in the background.

Cartoon and fairytale characters

 

I don't know who owns the next two cushions, but they are fine examples of how to display your pins.

 



The old fashioned way - make a pattern of rounds and an outline of figure pins

I love bell jars :)

 

Finally a close up of Sørens supremely solid and very heavy cushion from the first picture again. The pins cover the front and sides completely and at least half of the back too. It's basically a very fancy brick. Sweet!

My own collection is very small as I only began collecting last year, and I am not all that serious about tracking them down. You don't find pins just anywhere. But of course I brought pins to sell. Last year I had made bee pins for the day, and this year I brought my new mermaids and also horses in black.

 

Two more pictures of my own handmade pins can be seen at my brand spanking new instagram account. I have a feeling I am going to like that app :)

And finally - a picture of pins by the incredibly talented Susanne of dugperlasnipsenåle.dk. Her pins are insanely detailed, and so small it boggles the mind. She even makes miniature pins, exstra tiny ones. Enjoy (and visit her site for fine pictures of very fine pins) ...

Testing Tumbled Beads

After the first success of tumbling the seaglass pendants, of course I turned to my ladies next.

I tumbled only a few, to test before possibly ruining a whole bunch at once :) and here is the result:

On these I am not quite as enthused about the clear lines. It doesn't show much on the ivory ladies, but is very prominent on the black one. I checked in on them at 10 hours, but this is the result of 24 hours of tumbling. If I tumble them anymore there will be no nipples left, and still the clear does not seem to go away.

Which was of course the entire point I was raving about earlier, and so -

Here are my new babies!

Beads with deliberate patterns as impressed lines, then tumbled for just 4 hours. They are sooo delicious! All frosted and smooth, still translucent, and with clear paths trailing all around. They are fairly large for what I normally make, but on a short cord you don't even notice the weight.

I have a second batch in the tumbler as I write this, in other patterns and other colours, and they are huge! Also, I build them up with clear cores and just two layers of a transparent colour on the outside, so they would be a bit lighter in colour than these, which are colour all the way through. It is summer after all :)

I can't wait to see how they turn out ... :)

ETA: The before and after ...

Shiny beads

Frosted! I like it :)

Yay! :)

Kim Fields: Sculptural Flowers Class at Bifrost Copenhagen

Last week I and a bunch of other lampworkers had a great time with the lovely Kim Fields, teaching sculptural flowers at Bifrost. Oh my, was it ever hard!

Kim's flower technique is quite advanced and takes a LOT of attention and focus from first timers.

Kim Fields showing the first bead, having everybodys attention

These are my beads from the first day.
First a small basic flower. I made mine in babyblue, with 5 petals. This one came out okay.

Basic babyblue flower

The second one, a dogwood flower, was larger, and that alone made it more difficult. My petals almost got away from me a couple of times, but I pushed them back in and gave up on the final shaping  ... well, here it is. The rubino oro came out well at least :)

A dogwood flower (supposedly)

The last bead of day 1 was a poppy, with 2 rows of petals. Phew!
Keeping all those from touching, and also keeping them all squished and nicely thin, was quite a challenge. Kim demoed it in periwinkle, but I wanted a bright red one, like the first single petal she had made to show the shape and how to ruffle the edge.

Kim's tip of the day: make single petals untill you know what you are doing. Then worry about getting them made directly at the bead.

Kim's single poppy petal. Sweet!

My first ever Poppy!

Apparently I squished the inner petals a few times too many, which made the black part smear the whole petal. The outer ones are fine, but hard to see. I think this calls for a do-over :)

We also made our own cane. I am very pleased with mine, so I might just keep it forever :)

Day 2, another challenging day:

This one, shot from it's very best angle here that makes it look fairly okay, was quite difficult, with 2 layers of different coloured leaves and petals. It is made sideways on a small barrel, so no hole in the center.

We also made a small leaf, but mine broke so I tossed it. It looked very nice until then :)

This final flower, the sweet pea ... well, it doesn't really have a good angle, so there you go. It's rather tiny, so perhaps a larger size would have been better to start out with.

Tiny Sweet Pea flower

And here they are all together for a show of size.

Phew! That was a hard 2 days, but very rewarding. Many thanks to Kim for traveling this far to teach us, to Jette for arranging the classes and to all the students for being there and completing the experience.

My seaglass pendants are published, yay!

Whee! My beads are in Soda Lime Times again, Yay!
This months issue (july) is ocean themed, and my pendants are on page 11. 

I had made these beads more than a year ago, wanting to sandblast them, but the hobby kit I bought ran out of canned air after1½ bead (the blue one), so I knew that was not the way to go. But this year at the Danish Lampworkers meet-up I treated myself to a new tool. I bought a tumbler!

I had to try it out right away, so in went the water, the fine powder siliciumcarbide, the little scratchy ceramic bits and finally the beads ...

Before tumbling, 2 blue ones sandblasted

and less than 10 hours later I had a great first result. I am very happy with the lines of clear surface in the swirls and in other parts that I had shaped.

'Seaglass' pendants

I think it could be a very interesting technique to try out. Making yummy smooth frosted beads with deliberate patterns in clear impressions. Doesn't it sound intriguing?

If you know someone who does that, please let me know. I'd love to see examples.

Coming up: This years get-together of the Danish Glass Beadmakers

Just a short note before I dash off to this years Beadmakers Ball at Ravstedhus in Southern Jutland.
Okay, it's not a Ball, but I liked the alliteration :)

I any case - in just a few hours I'll be off for Jutland and 2 days of all glass and fire. Yay!

This year, in addition to two full days of demos,  we have not one, but two bead competitions, and I can't wait to see what has been sent in. Here below are my submissions.

First, for the single lose flower themed bead, I have sent in a little flower fairy.

Baby flowerfairy hugging her pet Ladybird

And for the new competition, which I will translate to 'Finished Work' I sent in this emerging fairy pendant, hanging from a grass leaf I made from copper.

Emerging butterfly fairy pendant on handmade copper stand

And a close-up of the pendant

Emerging pendant

She has little wings on her back and is not yet fully emerged from her crysalis.

That is all for now. I must pack up the last few things and get my car on the road. I shall return during the next week with a photo report af the weekend.
Have fun till then :)

I have a bead in Soda Lime Times!!!

Woohoo! I have a picture in Soda Lime Times, the online lampwork magazine.
It's on page 3 of the Neutral Issue, June 2014, and it's my first published bead ever! Wee! I'm so excited :)

The issue is full of beads especially in black, white, grey and the lovely ivory. I am happy to see so many people loving ivory as it is a favourite of mine. It sculpts so well and I love the organic reactions to fine silver, even though I rarely use it myself.

This is the picture I sent in, my new black and white yin-yang bead, this time with shoulders.

Please click to see full version details

I am a new subscriber to Soda Lime Times, but I have to say I am very happy with it. It is full of inspirational pictures and tutorials and all kinds of lampwork goodness. If you make beads yourself, like to work with them or simply to wear them, this is a great resourse for you, and it's only $4.95 pr. month. You can even get a free sample issue if you want to look it over first.

If you don't know it, go here and have a look: http://www.sodalimetimes.com/

The Yin/Yang or Goddess/God bead

Last year I made a bead for the competition at the annual beadmakers meet-up in Denmark in june. The theme was 'Contrasts' and my bead was a double body of a male and a female in black and white. (I wrote about it here, and I came in second, Wee! :)

Last week I had an urge to take up the design again. I really like the idea of it, but there are a couple of things that could be improved on to make my idea fully bloom.

First of all, last year I got the colours wrong. And it's not because I didn't check and google to see which colour is male and which is female. I did, then went to my workshop and promptly used black for the male and white for the female. 4 times in a row ...
This time I have it right, and I have to say it 'feels' right too, when I look at it. Sweet. 

Please click the photo to see it properly

The first 4 beads I made last year, they kind of have a 'let's stick these two bodies together'-look, and that is not what I am going for. I want the bodies to be connected, united into one piece, though still two distinct parts. I rather like my solution of a swirl on either side of the legs, both in the same direction, tying the colours together.

I will keep working on this design, there are a few more things I'd like to incorporate before it looks like the bead inside my mind, but this one came out great. I am very pleased with both bodies, and seeing this lady in black makes me want to use black more often in my Goddesses.

A Dotty Challenge, Part III

Here is my 3'rd round of dotted beads as per Heather Trimlett's 40-bead challenge.

My sizes are still all over the place, but I am very pleased with the pattern on no.2, though it is a bit difficult to see here because of the reflections. 

No. 4 was a surprise. It looks very, very similar to one I made last time, no.6 from the beginning. Woops!

But my intention with this one was clearly different. The first one I just made like that, but with this one I set out to make a circle with a tiny dot in the middle. So ... do they count as different? ;)

I'm up to 15 now ...

Winter Berry Brooch

This weekend I had a lovely compliment on this brooche I made last year, so I thought I would show it to you.

I made it combining my two great loves in crafting, lampwork and metalwork. My first thought was to make a leaf with a lampwork flower, but then I realised that working in copper gives the leaf a very autumnal colour, and flowers don't bloom in autumn.

What then?
Aha, berries of course. So I made up a few delicious winter berries for the birds to feed on. 

The leaf is made with the foldforming technique, and a little bit on the large side at 4 x 9 cm (1 37/64" x 3 35/64"). The shape is very satisfying though.

Since this is only my second time putting bits together and soldering (except for 20 years ago), I tried my way through it, and made the pin in the back and the berries on separate copper wires. This was not easy to fit into the crease in the leaf, which left me with a tiny curl at the top, and the berries with a bit of a jiggle. Next time I would like to make it a single wire running through from tip of pin to attachment of berries.

Here are a couple more Pictures of the brooch, which really should be held in hand to fully appreciate the wonderful organic shape.

Front of brooch - those colours go well together

Side of brooch

Backside of the brooch - see that twist?

I'm rather pleased with it, and since it works very well with warm sweaters, I have been wearing it almost daily for months by now. Sweet!
I love working in metals and also finishing pieces ;)

Snow Time!

Another challenge I have set up on the new forum (www.glasperleforum.dk ) is a monthly theme. It is not a competition, just a gentle nudge in case somebody need it, and a bit of fun to be had.

This very first month I have chosen Winter/snow as the theme. Here we are, in January, and we have barely had a single snowflake all of this season. So I thought we could make some snow beads instead, and here are the ones I have made so far.

Snowflake beads for january

Snowflake bead on lavender silk ribbon

The big one is 26x20mm and the little one fell on the tiled floor and chipped so I'll have to toss it :/

I was thinking of coring the big one, and I made it on a 5mm mandrel because of that. But now I think I will ream the hole properly instead and make it transparent, to let the colour of the ribbon show through the bead. .

I hope I find time to make more Winter/Snow beads, but until then - it seems the temperature is dropping. We may get snow after all :)

A Dotty Challenge, Part I + II

Some time ago I came across this challenge on lampwork forum Lampwork Etc. Then later I found it again, on Frit Happens. Both times I were intrigued and read through all pages of each thread, full of insights, tips and pictures.

The challenge was Heather Trimlett's 40 bead Challenge, and on jan.1'st I began my own set of 40 dotty beads. I am having so much fun! I haven't made any dot beads for years litterally, and now I am enjoying it muchly all over again.

If you don't know this challenge, here is the gist of the rules:

Make 40 beads, using just 2 (contrasting) colours.
Decorate with dots only, making all 40 beads a different pattern.
Use no tools (except for the mandrel), and get all beads to be the same size and shape.

Beautifully simple, isn't it, for an exercise in creativity, attention, precision, heatcontrol and much more?

You can find the full version here, on Heather Trimlett's page.

I have chosen coppergreen and black for my 2 colours, and here are pictures of my 2 first sessions, nine beads in all.

I need to work on keeping my size and shape, but I'm quite happy with my dots. And making 40 different patterns - time might prove me wrong, but I don't think that will be a problem. Dotting up patterns is the fun part :)

These will need a bit of a clean-up after the lot is done. A soak in coke over night, to clean off the reduction and get a more even colour.

I have set up this challenge in the brand new Danish lampwork forum www.glasperleforum.dk too, so if you are Danish/Nordic - come join the forum, and join in on this fun and challenging dot-o-rama.

If you would like some inspiration, here are the links directly to the threads in Lampwork Etc (you have to log in) and Frit Happens.

Have fun!

New website - www.nipsenåle.dk

It isn't mine, but I'm on the frontpage, Yay!

It's a brand new danish site for the antique toy and collectible 'nipsenåle'. I have writen about them before, because I like making them, and I have even bought a few of them for my own tiny collection. It can be quite a challenge working on the tip of a pin, but it's a challenge I like :)

See those 3 little cars?

I made them on request of Søren Schmidt (who made the page), after a rare pin from 1924. I made a few changes to make it my own, but it looks much like the original pin, a little car from Hanomag. It is a tiny little vehicle, with one headlight in the center, but it still fits two people side by side to go for a ride. I only put one person in it, as on the original.

On www.nipsenåle.dk you can see pictures of the antique pins from the 1895 and up, and the pillows they are kept on. You can find links for sellers and producers of contemporary pins if you have caught the collecting bug.
The site is still being build, but there are many pictures already, and if you have pins yourself that are not shown, Søren would be happy to recieve pictures for the site.

Go have a look at www.nipsenåle.dk. Me? I'll be off to make a bunch of the pins called 'snegle' (snails), pins with just a round blob of a glass swirl on them, used to play games with. I'll see if I can get my girls interested in a few rounds of 'nips'. Fun!

Have a look at my 'nipsenåle' here and start/expand your own collection :)

Foldforming - I love it!

My first attempts with a more suitable hammer :)

You wouldn't believe it, but this is the start of a beautiful organically shaped leaf. The shape to the right is folded on the straight side, and then cut out of a 0,5mm copper plate.

The cresent to the left had the same shape before I took my hammer to it and gave it a good whacking. From the center and out to both ends, taking care not to hit the folded edge too much, just the open side of it.

Height of straight fold - 4,5cm

After hammering on both sides (to get the texture on both sides) I took it to my kitchen and heatet it on my gass stove to a dull red glow, then into the sink in a bath of cold water to cool it quickly.
Then the magic of unfolding begins ...

Oh yes ...!

Yummy

Smaller version, 3cm. I consider giving it a twist

 

And am I ever pleased. I love organic shapes, I love leaves, I even love the colour of copper!

 

These are straight from the flame (or the sink actually), and while I love the burnt autumn colours I would like to try a polished version some time. And a silver version ... Oh yum!

 

~ o 0 o ~

 

Oh, a slight problem - my lovely little anvil is now full of marks from the half of the hammer not hitting the copper (cause it's a tiny little bit of metal to work on). I rather thought anvils were too hard to get marks from hammers so I'm a little down by that.

 

Does this mean I should get a slimmer hammer? One that does not protrude beyond the edge of the copper. Is that what you all use out there in foldforming-land, tiny little hammers that are 1cm or less wide?

The Making of 'The 7 Seas'

Hmm, what kind of ocean beads/jewelry could I make?

I had this thought of overlapping wavebeads. A wide, yet lightweight, area of sea colours intertwining, all around (or at least halfway around) the neck.

After a few colour and shape tests, I settled on this drop shape. I made a bunch of them, then sorted them by size to be gradually smaller towards the sides. I quickly realised there were way too many and settled on 7 drops, which seemed not too heavy to wear or look at.

Then I began playing with the form. The drops I had made were way too large for my first idea of the final form, so I made my way by trial and error

Should the middle drop be on top?

Or underneath?

Well, as you can see, neither version was any kind of light or elegant, but rather massive and clunky. And the drops didn't lay down nicely, like I had intended.

So I spread them out, but I didn't like the thought of filling the gaps with spacers either, which would be necessary to stop the drops from sliding about.

After that I were out of ideas ... but as I were fondling the beads, moving them here and there, I pushed all the drops tight together, pressed the flat parts to the same level, and an open fan-shape appeared.
That will never hold up to being worn I thought, so I tied half a knot at the top, pulling the two ends together, and voilá!

I were happy :)
I added a spacer at the top to help keep the silk in place, and there's a little spacer on either end of the ribbon, for easier handling when tying and un-tying behind your head.

I am very pleased with this shape. It is as flat as I wanted. It seems light, yet has a definate presence. It keeps it shape nicely (as long as you don't bend over and let it swing freely) and the colours in the drops are perfectly matched by the ribbon. Yay!

Now I have just 1½ week to finish up and send off my bounty, and I still need to order cord necklaces (for the smaller version I'm sending too, that is just one drop on a cord), to sort and assemble the drops I have ready, and to make a bunch more, just because I don't want to run out :)

Up, up and away!
Lene

A new design, for Glasmuseet in Ebeltoft

I made a necklace!
My very own design, that I haven't seen done before. Woot!

Shortly before christmas all members of the Danish Bead Society were invited to produce Ocean themed beads and/or jewelry, and send in pictures to the Glasmuseum in Ebeltoft. The museum will host an exhibition this year with an ocean theme, and wanted pieces to match for the museum shop. 

We had 27 days over christmas and new years to come up with suggestions before the deadline, and this is what I made. I even have a name for this piece, 'the 7 Seas'. These are the pictures I sent in.

 

 

The Ocean exhibition will run from march 23'rd to november 3'rd 2013, and my contribution for the shop was accepted. Yay! I'm so exited.

Now I have 6 weeks to make a number of these and send them in. Which would be very possible, if not for the fact that I have just boxed up my entire workshop to get the room renovated! Doh!

Oh well, I am sure it will turn out wonderfully in the end, and I have promptly ordered more silk ribbon from the lovely Heidi at Jamnglass. They really are quite delicious, and I have several of her colourways in my supplies by now. I look much forward to trying this design in other colours (as soon as the 6 weeks are gone and I have made my delivery to the museum).

May Love and Beady Goodness rain upon you,
Lene

Tolkien Event at Galleri Castens!

The premiere of the new Hobbit movie is just around the corner, and jeweler extraordinaire Karin Castens of Galleri Castens in Copenhagen is making an event of it.

She has made a series of jewelry with an elven theme. It fits her style perfectly, and this saturday, on dec. 8'th at 2pm you are invited to come to her beautiful shop and enjoy a free Tolkien themed harp concert and the unveiling of her new pieces.

She has only revealed one of her designs, a gorgeous pair of earrings. They are so very pretty and I want them! I'll pet them and squeeze them and name them 'my precious'.
You can see them here, on her facebook page, where you might also be very lucky and win a pair! Yes, Galleri Castens has been touched by the spirit of Christmas and is giving away treasures right and left (or at least a fabulous piece every sunday until Christmas). Go and like her page NOW to have a chance at winning.
 
Karin also asked all of us, who have pieces in her gallery, if we would like to participate in creating Tolkien inspired jewelry for the event. Why yes, yes I would :)

My first idea got dumped pretty quickly, and my second thought was to make orc teeth and maybe some bones. But when I showed my children the tooth I had made, and asked them what it was (is it a pelican? is it a tadpole? well, at least one child suggested it was a claw) it was pretty obvious I'd need more time to practice to be able to pull that off.

In the end I was very pleased to send in this leaf and flower necklace on handpainted silk ribbon.

Making this have me tempted to do an all flowers necklace, with different colours and sizes all around the neck. That would be lovely for spring :)

Now I am looking very much forward to saturday, where I will go and have a listen and a look at all the beauties that has been made. Want to join me? :)