jewelry – Page 14 – Karla's Cottage

Plethora of Packages and Presents

jewelry, swaps, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 4, 2007

While packing up fairy swap and other items that needed to be mailed, I decided I should be sending something to my family too!

So, I made up little packets of photos of our visit to see them all, added a hand made charm to each bundle and tucked a sweet little quote about sister hood into each before tying them all up with pink tulle bows and black velvet ribbons.

For my friends that are coming to visit on Wednesday, I cut some more sisterhood quotes out of the same book, but to these, I added a drop of vanilla rose essential oils and then glued down a vintage button.

I have made up flower pots to welcome them to my cottage. Inside are the scented quotes, magnets I have made from old jewelry, a white crocheted doiley, a floating candle shaped like a flower and wrapped in white tulle, and a pair of earrings.

I made the earrings for them from colored pearls. I don’t know how pearls get colored, but I like the result. They are genuine pearls that I bought in about a dozen colors or so. I kept them simple by just adding them to silver French hooks.

All of the earrings are wrapped in vintage newspaper quilt patterns I picked up when I was on vacation in Indiana. The date at the top of the paper says 1929 and 1930.

The earrings are hung from a business card, then wrapped up in the old paper and tied with raffia. I’ve added my buddie’s names in gold pen to the package before gathering up all the gifties to add to the pots.

Photo copies of my favorite watercolor, "Blue Hydrangeas" are glued to the terra cotta pots with gel medium, after backing them with a bit more of the 1929 newspaper.

This day has been a lot more fun than it would have if I had spent it cleaning house like I should have done. Between wrapping up bundles to mail, posting, blog reading, and making gifts, I read some of the 1929 articles, including some reviews of Lon Chaney as the Phantom and the lurid details of Joan Crawford’s brother’s ugly divorce. I’m sure my friends will be happier with presents and Hollywood gossip that I picked up, than they would be with sparkling light fixtures.

Although, they have never been out to visit and now that I am out of time, I am having second thoughts and wondering if I should stay up all night to clean so I can make the house look good……….

Pretty packaging and some procrastination

give away, jewelry, paintings, swaps, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 4, 2007

I have been packaging today. Funny how those little details at the end of a project can take as long as the project itself.

Here is how I finished my charms for the swap. I added beads to compliment the roses, I ended up using a variety of crystals. Then I tied each to a business card with a sheer ribbon. I will slip each into a little plastic bag as soon as my poor arthritis eases up a bit. Too much ribbon tying today!

I still have 3 charms left to sell, if you want one. Plus, you can win one in June by leaving any comment.

I jump from media to media, partly because I want to do EVERYTHING and also because I get easily sidetracked by shiny objects and go off to start another sort of project.

But also because I am always hurting, my joints are a wreck. So, I will paint a few days, do jewelry a few, etc. If I were to do the same thing day after day, I’d cripple myself. I need to keep changing my repetitive movements so that they aren’t too repetitive!

I had a good time wrapping up my fairy swap pieces to send off to Australia, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania.

I used pages from a flower fairy book to fold around each tag, and tied them up with ribbons, a business card, and made use of some of the hanging frames that came with the charms I painted roses on. I added a bead to the center of each open frame, hoping that Holly, Natasha, and Heather will be able to use these in one of their projects.

I really like the open frames, now that I decided I didn’t want them on the charms. I bought a million of the set (trying to save on postage and thinking I’d use a ton of them), and thought I was stuck with something I hated, but now can see endless opportunities for these as separate bits instead of together.

Well, I should finish the charm packing. Or I should unload the dishwasher from our dinner party last night. Or I should change the sheets from yesterday’s house guest and get ready for the next guests. Or pull weeds in the garden. Or attack that cobweb I saw swinging from the chandelier. (I know if there is one, there are others up there on the ceiling.)

But I think, I’ll goof off and play in the studio. The house always gets cleaned up somehow before guests arrive. And if I turn down the lights and use candles, maybe they won’t notice the cobwebs?? I know, I’ll make them gifts to welcome them! They will appreciate presents more than non fuzzy chandeliers! (but I will manage to change their sheets before they get here, for sure, don’t worry about that one)

To Frame or Not to Frame, that is the question.

flowers, give away, jewelry, swaps

By Karla Nathan / June 1, 2007

Thanks to everyone who helped out with advice! Overwhelmingly, the frames have the vote. But, here is a close up in case you want to re-think it.

3 ways of doing the charms are shown here:

1- plain

2- dangling frame

3- plain with vintage pink crystal

I think my problem with the frame is that it is kind of big, and slightly cheesey, too shiny, maybe?? And see how the rose paintings sway inside of the frame?

Well, the photo in the catalog I ordered them from looked so much better! I’m sure there are ways to age them, a little sand paper and a soak in an oxidizing liquid might make them more appealing to me. But, I do tend to be overly picky, maybe that is not necessary.

Here is what I did with one empty frame, I used it on a page in the scrap book I am making for my sister-in-law, Sandy. I added gold paint and glued a gem into the jump ring.( I went back and glued another tiny jewel in the other jump ring hole after I saw this picture)

Speaking of cheesey, not every page in a scrap book is a winner. This one is a bit much. I just gaudied after slapping down the picture by trimming it in gold paint and plopping some Michaels clearance stickers in the corners. Sometimes it is nice to just do some quick & simple pages and not worry about being ‘arty’!

My BFF, Beth http://bethleintz.typepad.com/ came over today to work on charms together. She is in the same swap and we thought we’d hang out while we worked on them. She is in the tiara swap too. I’m really looking forward to that one! We’ll get together to make those too. It is always good to have another person to bounce ideas off of.

I should have taken a better photo of her charms, instead of just this one of the one on her nose.

Here she is in action. Looks like she is in CRAFTING NINJA MODE.

We are signing up to go to the Silver Bella classes in Omaha during November!!!! I’ve never done anything like that before, am more of a do-it-yourselfer than a class-taker. But I think it will be a blast and I hope to meet some blogging friends there.

If you want to join us, it should be a lot of fun, and we can take that sharp knife away from Beth if it frightens you.

We like to get together for projects as often as we can. The shirt she is wearing is one we did last summer. I threw a tie dye baby shower for Sugarwings, and everyone brought something white to dye. I ended up with a life time supply of fiber reactive dyes because I bought so many, wanting one in every color to use that day!

So every once in a while, we do a craft day with them. She and I both complain about how many shirts we ruin with Coffee splotches, and this is a good way to save a stained tee shirt. Tie dye camouflage!

I’m a coffee dribbler and about half of my shirts are dyed over. I’m wearing one in the photo above, with Sandy and I surrounded by stickers and gaudy gold paint.

You can still enter my charm/swap giveaway! I made 30 of them and only need 22. So for any comment left in the month of June, I’ll enter you to win one. And if you like them framed, that is how I will send yours to you.

I also have some to sell if anyone wants to buy one. They are teeny little paintings of a rose on a piece of textured watercolor paper attached to a metal charm then protected with diamond glaze. With or without a frame as you would like, with or with out a vintage crystal bead, as you would like. But no two are the same, all are hand painted. Some have hydrangeas with the roses, some have daisies too, but most are a single rose. Heck, I can custom paint one for you how ever you’d like too. They are fun to make.

$10 each plus $2.50 postage

I might need better photos. I am not having a very attractive photo day. Oops, no offense, Beth, that isn’t how I meant it!!

Another Giveaway, Another Charm

flowers, give away, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / May 31, 2007

I’m no longer confused by my charm swap, the kind hostess, Mary, http://mymothersdaughter-maryb.blogspot.com/2007/04/anyone-up-for-charm-swap.html explained that we still need to make 22 charms even though she hasn’t heard from everyone. If there are extras, she’ll send them back.

So this afternoon, I painted 25 thumbnail size roses on watercolor paper, (and added 3 teeny fairies too, wonder what that is for??).

I am so bummed by the charm pieces I ordered to put them on. When I ordered them online, I thought I was getting a solid piece, but they are two pieces, the centers come out and swing free in the frame.

And of course, I ordered about a million of them at once, thinking that the photo of them was perfect and I’d want to make a TON of these things, and just ought to order them all at once to save postage. Now I have all these charms and don’t like working with them.

There are a lot of extra steps involved since I can’t simply pop the paintings into the tiny frames and cover them with diamond glaze. I have to take the pieces all apart first, and now will have to reassemble them. But- I think I like them better WITHOUT the dangling frame. What do you think?

I have the diamond glaze coat on them and sprinkled a hint of glitter over it. The glaze is still wet in the photo here, it looks cloudy yet. I am always too impatient to wait for things to dry.

I’ve never been in a charm swap before, I want these to look nice. So here’s an idea, give me your advice and have a chance to win one!!

Here is a close up, still cloudy, because it is wet- but what do you think? Should I hang them in their frame or leave them as is? Vote or leave a comment this week and I’ll enter you in a drawing to win one of the extra ones I made today!

Someone always ends up being a fairy

fairies, jewelry, paintings, Travel, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / May 31, 2007

I’m in a fairyswap !!!!!!! I am so excited about it, I am a fairy-aholic. I was disappointed to see all the fairy jar swap people, knowing I had missed it and was too late to get in. Taking pity on me, (or maybe wanting to stop my whining?) Natasha Burns http://natashaburns.blogspot.com/ set up a mini swap with some talented bloggers, Heather http://prettypetalsboutique.blogspot.com/, and Holly http://hollydoodledesigns.com/WordPress/.

This will be my 3rd swap, and I am glad it is a small one, the charm one I am in is a doozy. I need to make somewhere between 15- 22- 33?? I need a final count, I am confused. I also need to start making them…….

I’ve spent the last two days making scrapbooks of my trip to give as thank yous to the people we stayed with. For my sister-in-law, Sandy, I found a clearance journal for 50 cents and foofed up the cover with vintage goodies and scrapbook paper. Hers has no photos yet, I need to finish it tonight so I can think about doing some charms……

For my brother-in-law, I bought one of those mini,ready to go scrapbooks, this one is from Studio K, love that line!!

I added more papers, copies of my paintings, some hand drawn doodles and writing, stickers, then the photos. I like to make pockets to slide the pictures into. I make the pockets from card stock so they are sturdy.

The ready to go books are so nice, since the background is already printed, they make simple gifts, just with a few personal touches and pictures, they are ready to go.

And of course, in every book I make, someone always ends up being a fairy. This is Emily, she is a tiny, dainty little 15 year old who has a natural fairy quality about her. She makes a lovely sprite.

Oh- I have been having inquiries about my hand painted charms. If anyone wants one, here are few to look at, I can send close ups, or photos of more. They are $18 each plus $2 shipping. Thanks!!

Homesick before I even leave

flowers, jewelry, Travel, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / May 16, 2007

I am leaving on vacation tomorrow and need to work my butt off today to get ready. First of all, I need to mail the May Bucket prizes.

I should be kicking up my heels with excitement over my vacation, but I am more worried about being ready to go.

I have a baby shower gift and a sign to paint and ebay boxes to pack and a magazine article synopsis to write and send off too. Did I mention that I have 2 painting jobs that need bids and a garden to plant and sprinklers to set up and PACKING before I leave tomorrow too????

Here is one thing that needs mailed today. I chose a 2nd place gift for Michelle Ward for the May Bucket drawing. Her style isn’t as pretty-foo-foo as mine, so I made her a special gift, something a little funkier. This necklace is made from an old piece of hardware I picked up at the flea market a couple weeks ago. I love the old green paint clinging to it.

Well, I should be starting on my mile long list for getting ready for my trip. I am such a homebody, I hate to travel or think about leaving. I miss my flowers, my pretty house, my wonderful studio, MY COMPUTER. But I always have a great time once I get where I am going.

I will have to pack up my flowers that are still looking fresh and give them away before I leave. How could I just leave all these pretty roses from the party last week to die alone while I am gone??? I’ll have to find someone to take them home and enjoy their last days. That is the kind of thing that I worry about before a trip, I can’t leave my pretty flower arrangements!!

And Sugarwings!! How can I leave Sugarwings for TEN DAYS???? I’ve never been away from her for that long in her entire life!!

She is coming over today to say goodbye. And I am going to finish a few more pages in my art journal about her, to keep with me in the car, so I can stare at her pictures.

My roses have started to bloom, finally,after the terrible freeze that I thought had ruined them.

I will miss them, and every inch of my fairy cottage. I love my home down to the smallest details like the vines I drew in the cement as the new sidewalk was poured.

And I will miss all my bloggie friends. What if you all forget about me in the 10 long days I am gone??? What if people get out of the habit of coming here to look because there is nothing new for sooooo long???

I won’t even think about that.

Off to work, I have more to do today than humanly possible and here I am playing with Typepad. Geez, sometimes I wonder about myself. But, I know I’ll be back today to write more… can’t help it.

Feeling Sentimental and LAST CHANCE FOR THE MAY BUCKET

flowers, give away, jewelry, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / May 14, 2007

Still basking in the glory of my marvelous Mother’s Day, my thoughts are on family things.

I never knew my great grandmother, but found out that when she was 18, she went away to art school. Not something a lot of young girls did in 1906.

She did a handful of pieces while there, then came home to be a farm wife. No more time for art when there are chickens to feed and a family and garden to tend. Thinking about it makes me realize how lucky I am to have so much time to make things pretty.

I was given these two pictures done by my great grandmother, Nellie during her short time away at art school I think that if I had known her, we would have had a lot in common.

Sentimental days are good for scrap booking. I’d made a book of my husband’s family earlier, but didn’t care for the way I’d done the cover. So, I added a faded and torn old piece of red velvet from an ancient album and glued a vintage oval framed family photo onto it.

Rich (my husband) is the dapper young man in the bow tie.

At the top of the oval frame, I added a brooch that belonged to my sweetie’s grandma. I used to wear it, but the clasp is broken, so I thought this would be safer.

Since I had my glues out, and was thinking family type thoughts, I made a couple more Sugarwings pages in my journal/scrapbook. I was never a scrap booker until she came along. Now, I try to add a few pages a week, as I take photos of her.

When she grows up and looks at my book, do you think she’ll roll her eyes at me, and say, "Oh, Grandmama, wings- again??!"

I also did a photo shoot today at my house with my pal, photographer, Diane Guthrie, who did the Romantic Homes layout with me last year. We got half done and will finish tomorrow. I’m afraid that I can’t tell you any more about it for now, but here is a teeny peek from my camera- not hers.

We did 3 photos in 2 hours, that is not a bad rate. Maybe 3 or 4 more tomorrow and we should be set.

Well, maybe one more teeny peek.

You know a photo shoot sounds glamorous, but in real life it is a mess. I had cords and lights and equipment all over, plus I had all the ordinary, everyday, useful things piled up out of the way of the camera, so that only pretty things were in the shots. I did run across town to Walmart before Diane arrived so I could get 2 white toothbrushes in case they showed, I wanted them to match the bathroom! Sounds silly, but those little details matter.

My bathroom is still all topsyturvey and will be until we are done.

Don’t forget about the MAY BUCKET!!

Today is the last day to enter!! I will be shipping it off to its new home tomorrow.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your kind comments and entries. I had over 500 entries, what a surprise for me!!!!!!!!! I counted each and every comment you made as an entry and will continue to do that for the COTTAGE CHARM GIVEAWAY.

You can enter the Cottage Charm Giveaway as many times as you would like. I love getting comments and will bribe you anyway necessary to get you to write to me!!

I am making the $1.99 a dozen roses I bought a week ago last till the very last petal curls up and turns brown. I keep trimming the stems and making them a bit shorter each day. But I might like them this way better than any of the other arrangements so far.

I am avoiding housework by taking pictures of the room I just happened to be in

jewelry

By Karla Nathan / May 7, 2007

Remember my beautiful swap gift from the May Day basket giveaway? It just got even better! Karin http://www.creativechaos.typepad.com/ sent me MORE! I got these two tags in the mail and promptly put them up on a shelf in my office. Thanks, Karin!

Which made me think about taking photos of the rest of my office instead of finishing the housecleaning that I have been putting off. It takes me days to clean because I get so sidetracked.

My office is a corner of my art studio and the walls of it are made up of old doors hinged together.

Here is a view of the outside, peeking in through a French door. I try not to block the light by hanging anything solid on the doors, so my sparkly K and an embellished frame are a perfect fit.

French doors (from a garage sale for $15) are the best, they keep the room from feeling too closed in. The gazebo thing is something my son and I made out of porch columns from a junk store for $6 each, some corner brackets and 2x4s.

The painting is a watercolor I did of the front of my studio. Did I mention that I adore my studio and spend all the time that I can out here? After years of using the kitchen table, or a card table in the guest room, or the garage- I am thrilled to have this space to work in.

The floors are cement that I have stained to give them some color. The rug is a vinyl floor cover remnant ($5) that I painted like stones, originally for an article I wrote for Romantic Country? Small Room Decorating? Can’t remember which one it was right now.

Having a computer right in the studio is way too convenient for goofing off and surfing blogs too. The room also has all of our home office needs, so I’ve tried to use attractive hiding places for all the necessities. Old suitcases, vintage paper covered boxes, parts of old dressers, etc.

For furnishings,I mosaiced the top of a narrow white cabinet I found at a garage sale for $2, used a $45 walnut drop leaf table for a desk, and the black hutch is another garage sailing find for $50- lots of space in it.

The shelf on the wall is an old chippy paint planter box I bought from Beth http://bethleintz.typepad.com/ and I like it so much, I don’t put much in it, I hate to cover it up. It has photos of Sugar Wings and of my Dad who passed away last year. (If you notice in the photo, I am in it- with ANOTHER hair color- and no paint on my clothes!!) the sign above the box "comfort & joy" is one that I painted, and it used to be the name of my shop.

The file cabinet is a new oak one that I painted white and distressed. As much as I like to use only vintage and used furniture, sometimes I have to be practical and a filing cabinet the right size was just not turning up for me, so I got a new one and made it look old.

One more thing I love about my office- I found this calender at Sentimental Journey (an antique shop full of bargains) with the month and day torn off to my birthday 5-5-58! Had to buy it, and it has a great pocket for stashing things.

An office isn’t that interesting, all the tech stuff and paperwork around, but I just don’t want to go and clean my house for the Boss’s Dinner Party Feast I have coming up tomorrow night. I was bored and avoiding work and I just happened to be in the office and started to take photos. It doesn’t take much to entertain or sidetrack me.

I do run on, don’t I? Well, I’ll keep going, the more I play around with this the less cleaning I have to face. No, wait, it will still be there, won’t it???

Two of my blogger friends asked about the shard jewelry I didn’t sell because of the art show raining out. so here are photos to shop from for them, if you are interested also, let me know. They are usually $28 each, but that is considering show fees, percentages paid to the fair, etc. So, blogging price to you guys? $20, what a steal!! The bails these hang from are sterling silver and the solder is all lead free.

Okay, here is my ROSE A DAY FOR 10 DAYS IN MAY– rose # 7, in honor of Caring Bloggers Rose Day on May 10th sponsored by: http://brittarnhildshouseinthewoods.typepad.com/brittarnhilds_house_in_th/

Twinkle in a rose patterned hankie sitting in a rose needle work chair. Happy May 7th!!!

Playing Jewelry and BONUS PRIZES

jewelry

By Karla Nathan / May 2, 2007

Today I have been making jewelry for the art show on Sunday. It has been so long since I "played jewelry" -thats what my sister and I call it, when we make things- that I spent more time looking through my stash and admiring the bits and pieces than actually piecing things together.

I collect vintage jewelry to take apart and remake, and over the years have gathered up a few containers like these.

It takes a bit of admiring and enjoying for a while before I get down to business and start making new pieces from all the old ones.

Yesterday was painting day, I did a dozen or so mini paintings to make into more charms. Here are a few finished ones as well as a couple pair of earrings I put together from my vintage goodies stash.

The teacup mini is the one I made for myself. My sis, who likes to ‘play jewelry’ too, gave me the very old blue topaz stone I put on it.

There was a casualty yesterday. I didn’t plan to be painting, thought I was going to be making cards. But,I got sidetracked, and picked up a paint brush. Next thing you know, I forgot I am wearing my favorite shirt. I have a bad habit of wiping my brush on myself as I work.

The habit got started when I was up on 20 foot high scaffolding or on a ladder painting murals. It was easier to use my shirt instead of a rag. Now, I just can’t help it, its automatic. And sometimes I forget what I am wearing. Sadly, I have more clothes that look like this, than look normal.

Here is #2 in my Rose for a Day for 10 Days- another little canvas I painted yesterday. It was a gift in my May basket swap from Karin http://www.creativechaos.typepad.com/.

Hopefully, tomorrow’s Rose for day #3 will be something from my annual Sparks and White Cloud flea market trip!! But the weather looks yucky, hope I don’t get too soaked there to find a pretty rose to show you.

Natasha http://natashaburns.blogspot.com/ has tagged me to list 7 weird things about myself. I emailed family and friends to get their opinion, I’ll see what they have to say about me and post it Saturday for my birthday.

On Saturday, for my birthday, I will also draw a name from the pretty hat. This will be a BONUS PRIZE!!!

Do you remember I told you, that if I had enough entries for the May Bucket FULL OF GOODIES, I’d add a second and maybe a third prize? Well, I certainly have had lots of entries! So I will draw a name for a birthday present on May 5 and send it to the winner so they can help me celebrate. But the winner has to promise to eat a piece of cake and think of me.

You can stil enter the Maybucket giveaway and this bonus prize too. Just leave a comment.

After Midnight

jewelry

By Karla Nathan / April 27, 2007

Tomorrow I get to babysit all day for Sugar Wings again. So, to make up for lost work time, here I am after midnight, making jewelry. Well, I guess it already is tomorrow?

I painted a few one inch pictures, cut clear glass to fit them added a copper back and tape, then soldered and added jump rings.

Here are a few that are finished, cleaned up and beads added. I used vintage crystals with genuine pearls. I only got 14 made, but might make more tomorrow while I have the mess spread out.

For now, I am off to bed. Tomorrow, I mean later this morning, I will be chasing after my fairy grand baby and she is a pretty fast little crawler.