Steampunk Spells Envelope Book

What can I say, I just adore the new Steampunk Spells paper from Graphic 45.  I am also excited to show off my crazy wire binding that I just made up as I went.  It may be messy, but I can say it is certainly innovative!

I am not going to show off too much here.  In an attempt to engage readers in another format I have also included a video tour at the end of this post.

Inside the embellishing was done through the use of brads.  I capitalized on the fact that they were envelope pages, so I could hide the backs of the brads inside.   A lot of the embellishments were left loose, as I really like the element of movement in my work.

Did you also take note of my cool new watermark from Graphic 45?!?  I was so excited to receive this badge of honor!  I had to stretch myself to learn how to apply it, but mission was accomplished.   Without further ado, here is my little video tour.

Thanks as always for stopping by!

Cheers,

Rhea

Etched Cuffs with Kristen Robinson

So here is the day two installment of my wonderful retreat with Kristen Robinson last weekend.  The subject of the day was etching, something I tried out once before in a group setting. We had the opportunity to make two bracelets and here you can see my outcome.

I chose to keep one of them on the simple side and "not mess it up."  I had a bit of a struggle in this class, not only with my stamping, but with the distress soldering technique.  Soldering is something I am so interested in, but it will take a while to master.

I think my favorite part of this cuff are the secret words tucked inside.

Here is a better image of the etching.  I was hard pressed to get a decent stamp, due to the curve of the black.  I ended up embracing imperfection and the design still came out pretty.

The bezel on my second cuff is layered with filigree.  Inside the bezel I stacked paper, a transparency and a snippet of text and covered with resin.  I will be playing with resin more in the future, that is for certain.

Well I have one more class to show off and I think it was probably my favorite, although it is hard to pick! Stay tuned for the last installment, plus a few more Graphic 45 treats.

Cheers,

Rhea

Adorned Relics with Kristen Robinson

I was blessed to have the opportunity to take three workshops this past weekend with Kristen Robinson at a super cool spot called Smitten Dust.  The first class I had was called Adorned Relics.  Here we learned how to create beautiful faux mercury glass while playing with resin.  I absolutely fell in love with Ice Resin!

In order to add some of my usual touches, lots of gilders paste was used along the way...surprise, surprise...

A lot of trinkets, charms and filigree used were from Alpha Stamps as I have been designing for them for some time now.  I am so grateful for their support, especially when I am rooting through my amazing Alpha stamp stash!

I think this one is my favorite because it is so different for me.  I think you can really see the faux mercury glass well in this necklace too.  The stone used is picture jasper, there are so many lovely patterns and colors within each and every bead.

This is another bezel that I was excited about.  I simply added paper rhinestones and a Graphic 45 ornate key.  It made for a fantastic focal that was perfect for some vintage embellishments.

I took apart an old three strand necklace and re purposed bits and pieces to create a new necklace.  Bits and bobs were also added to the bottom for balance and movement.

The top portion of this necklace had already been made.  It was not laying correctly with the last focal I had attached.  I was happy to be able to simply add the focal and shore up the chain and I had a finished piece.

On this last one I kept it simple by adding a chain to my enhanced bezel.  I tried my hardest to make something asymmetrical out of these centerpieces, but for whatever reason, my meticulous brain has a hard time not making my jewelry balanced.

I actually have many more bezels to show off, so stay tuned for more art inspired by this class.  I will also be posting from my two other classes from Kristen soon. 

Cheers, 

Rhea