jewelry – Page 5 – Karla's Cottage

A giant jewelry box

cottage, Hand Painted Furniture, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / February 28, 2022

Recently I had a mini redo of the bedroom. (It felt like a huge redo, that was a lot of painting, and I keep forgetting that I’m a senior citizen now). Some things were moved around and we had a nice, big open space by the door.

hahahahaha

That open space didn’t last long!

But I don’t think it is over crowded now with this new cabinet there. Plus, I really needed it. Really, really!

I might’ve been a bit rude to Rich when he complained, I told him that his office and the hearth room were both filled with nice and open spaces, he should go enjoy those.

It could be that as I get deeper into my senior years, I get crankier. Plus I feel like I know what I am doing, and have a good concept of design. I knew it would fit just fine. He needed to trust me.

But yes, before it was painted it did seem to take up more space than after I lightened it up.

I chose a few neutral wallpapers to line the interior, and used a French vanilla paint on the rest.

The top half holds my jewelry. I have so many pieces that don’t get worn, because they were packed away in a dark chest. Now that they are out in the open, I’ll bet I wear them more.

These jewelry store display boxes started out black.

I dry brushed them white and added lace across the front before filling and stacking them up. I might make pretty labels too.

The lower shelves have my lacy sweaters, scarves, and tops. I’m thinking that having them where they can be seen will also remind me to wear them more often.

And it might remind me not to buy any more cream colored lace pieces of clothing because apparently I have quite a few.

How are you? Seriously, how are you doing?

Corona virus, Current Affairs, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / January 30, 2022

This pandemic seems to never stop.

Daily, I hear that multiple people I care about have gotten ill, or can’t get a test, or were exposed. Not just a few people here and there, but

every

single

day.

The never ending contagion is always lurking in the back of my mind, a constant, “what’s next?”

It isn’t so much waiting for the next shoe to drop, it feels more like waiting for the next elephant to drop.

There is just a lot of sadness and worry rumbling and grumbling around in the backgrounds of our lives that sometimes we don’t even notice, it’s just a part of things.

But it’s there. Like having bad elevator music as the new soundtrack of your daily activities, you try not to listen, but then you find yourself humming some abhorrent song that you can’t shake.

Stir in a little inflation, a pinch of supply chain struggles, a big dollop of potential school closings, flavored with the hard to swallow taste of politics and there you have it- underlying trauma brewing and simmering in your brain.

Then, the regular ups and downs we all face are added over those underlying, relentless worries. No wonder you read about people snapping, they are stretched too tightly!

I'm so lucky to have a wonderful network of friends and family who support each other, and are there to talk to. But when so many of them have sad news to share, sometimes it just feels hopelessly sad all over.

I consider myself an even keeled person. Someone who rolls with situations, does what they can to improve what can be improved and deals with what can’t. And I vent, things don’t stay bottled up. If you know me, you know every thing that has recently delighted or disappointed me because I am sharing it all.

But the other day, my spring was sprung.

Something that should not have turned into such a huge moment did, and I was so angry that my heart was racing, my head felt as if it might explode. I talked myself down, made plans that could take care of the issue if it arose again, then decided I would craft some jewelry to give away, taking my thoughts off of myself and onto creating and thinking of others.

As the day went on, my shakiness and headache became worse not better, and I thought I should take my blood pressure (which is usually maintained at a nice, low rate). It was high, but not sky high. So I took Advil and a needed nap. When I woke up, I felt worse and the BP was now at that sky high point.

After a few hours at the ER, it came back down, no damage done. The nurse and doctor I saw, were stretched to their limits but compassionate. I felt silly taking up their time during a pandemic, but they told me not to feel that way, that stress can cause physical problems and that when it affects you that strongly you are in the stroke/heart attack danger zone.

So, take care of yourselves, don’t ignore the stress that eats at you, it can gobble you up if you let it.

I thought I had a handle on things, but did I? Do you?

From the Flea Market Dollar Table

antiques/junking, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / October 5, 2021

Yep, a dollar.

The $1 tables at Sparks Flea Market are where I make a bee line to the moment I park my car. But this year, I did even better than normal.

When I bought this blackened, dirty bracelet, it was with plans to chop it up and use pieces in projects. But after cleaning it, I discovered it was sterling and Topaz!

Here are more dollar items from the day. Including the painted porcelain heart that was marked $20. I pointed that out to the booth owner, and he said he meant for it to be in the dollar box.

Same with this pretty pitcher. It was marked ten. But he said, nope, it was correctly placed on the $1 shelf.

These curtains were more, and while most of the panels had a lot of tattered areas, two were in good shape, so certainly worth the $50 I paid for the stack of 6. (You can’t even get two panels at Target for that price)

These lovelies were not from the bargain table, but weren’t much more.

We didn’t make it to the second half of the semi annual flea mkt duo, White Cloud. I was pretty satisfied with what I’d found in Sparks, so didn’t really care.
A few sparkly baubles and some rose patterned beauties and I was blissed out.

Collecting memories

jewelry, Ryan

By Karla Nathan / January 17, 2021

For Christmas, I had some blown glass pendants and beads made from Ryan’s ashes. They are done by a local artist, Vaughn.

They are even prettier in person. It is hard to get a good photo to show the luminous quality they have.

Vaughn had a holiday special with free beads added to the order. I added some to this larimar, aquamarine, and adventurine stone necklace that I made.

(Oops, the silver bail is upside down in the pic).

This is a necklace that I’d already made and had dangled a bead from my father’s ashes on. One of Ryan’s beads matched it, so I placed it next to my dad’s.

Ryan had a bead from my dad’s ashes and really appreciated it. I had a rough time looking at my order when I picked it up, Ryan’s voice was in my head as I pictured how excited he would’ve been by how beautiful the pieces are. He was always so enthusiastic and appreciative.

I have a pendant to create a necklace with for myself. The others went onto hemp or leather cords for Adam and Rich to wear, another hangs from Rich’s truck visor, and one hangs from the ash urn.

When the puppies were born I took a break from working on Ryan’s scrapbook, then the holidays came along. I think I need to get back into working on it. It is a painful process, but in a good way. I spend time reminiscing about each photo, and thinking about my boy.

Not that I don’t think about him all of the time, with or without reminders. I don’t need mementos to feel Ryan near me.

But I am drawn to these items, the gifts that came after he died. The blooms I dried from flower arrangements sent to us. The photos, the wind chimes, so many little things. Sometimes they make me smile, other times, I still crumple with grief.

Mostly, I am comforted by keeping these things around me.

Wrapping things up

Corona virus, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / April 26, 2020

Wow, did I actually do something creative? Yes, I did!

I had a dear friend who turned 60, and I wanted to make something special for her.

She teaches yoga, so I thought I'd whip up a wrap bracelet with a chakra theme.

I looked up the meanings of each stone for her and added the list to the gift bag.

While I was at it, I made a few more. This one is for me, labradorite, aquamarine, and some other clear, blue stone.

The pic doesn't show it well, but these stones reflect light with a gorgeous, blue flash.

This one is rose quartz, moonstone, pearl, and opal.

Ryan got some genuine stone bracelets too.

After my surgery, then with the virus lockdown, I wasn't at my most productive. I had a small cleaning or crafty project every day while recovering, but have not spent much time in my studio. Working on jewelry has been something that I have turned to over the years after a surgery or illness. I bring in piles of beads and relax at the dining table, working on making things as I feel up to it.

I enjoy having the supplies convenient to use, without needing to hobble out to the studio.

I can always tell when I start to feel better, the studio begins to call me back, and my small, busy work projects become something larger. It is probably time to wrap up my convalescence and head back out there. Although, this time of year, the garden has its own siren song. I might segue back into real life by doing some digging before hitting the studio.

My doctor and physical therapist have not had encouraging news about the knee. The Dr. tells me to count on 5-6 months of recovery now, not the TWO WEEKS, that he had forecast before the procedure. I still need a cane to walk far and a handrail to go up stairs. But- I luckily picked up a nasty case of poison ivy that required steroids.

I woke up the next morning after the first dose to find this. The swelling had gone waaaayyy down! I could bend it again!

But, doesn't it look like a deflated balloon?

Or a tummy after giving birth?

Man, that thing was swollen. It feels so much better without that inflammation.

The Plaza Lights- from a very special viewing point

celebrations, flowers, friends, holiday decor, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / December 13, 2018

Our pal, Angie lives in an apartment overlooking the KC Plaza with a glorious view of the holiday lights.

The view inside is pretty dang great too. Angie arranged a delectable feast of loveliness for us after a day out together, lunching, shopping, and laughing.

The city looked magical from her window.

It was a day filled with pretty things.

And fun photo ops.

With some silliness thrown in.

I wore my favorite, new Santa shirt (AGAIN, it seems to be my uniform for December along with my decade old, red velvet coat), and found a set of placemats to match it. But since they cost more than the shirt did, I didn't buy them. Actually, besides lunch, and a bag of old fashioned, hard candies, I didn't do much purchasing. Just browsing and enjoying the over the top, holiday displays the stores had out.

We went to the Kaufman center to see the trees and flowers, which are a major mood enhancer this time of year. When the Kansas landscapes are grey, brown, dreary, and dead, it is heartening to see flowers in bloom. I bent over and got some deep whiffs from the pots of white stock and the sweetness of the blooming plants really made me happy inside.

I'm rarely a red or green person, and don't decorate my home in these colors for the season, but I do love pops of these festive shades in jewelry or clothing in December. So, I made myself some silver earrings with red and green semi-precious gemstones. While I was at it, I made enough to pass out to friends too, and took some to lunch that day for Beth, Karla, and Angie to choose from.

In the past, I've painted ornaments as little gifties for friends, and it was nice to see that Angie has some of them on her sparkling tree.

Her home is perfectly coordinated, and she has such a gentle touch with decorating, it is always an honor to see something I'd made in her home.

She crafted gift bags filled with everything we'd need for a winter's night of relaxation at home. (Wine, chocolate, and a good book!) and topped the package with this sweet collaged image.

It was a special day, ending with an even more special evening. I'm blessed to have good friends who could take a day off to simply enjoy the season with me.

Pretty Poured Paint Pendants for a Party

celebrations, Hand painted, how to's, jewelry, paintings, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / August 28, 2018

Sugarwings wanted some gifts to give to her birthday party attendees, and I wanted to make something special for a gathering I am attending this week, so we saved the drippings from our last day of painting to make some necklaces.

This is how it starts.

Ugly, huh?

She laid a piece of parchment paper under her work area to catch drips, then spread the paint with a spatula so it would be thin enough to use in a pendant tray.

The name for this is ugly too. These are called "skins".

Bleck!

But once you start looking up close, you find some lovely, little areas that are ideal for jewels.

A generous dusting of glitter went over the wet paint, then we let it dry a week.

The next step is isolate the pretty areas and place 1" glass nuggets over them.

They are glued to the paint covered parchment, cut out after the glue dries, then the parchment paper is peeled off the back and the domes are glued into pendant trays.

I use a decent sized dollop of glue, press the dome into the tray tightly, then clean off the excess glue that oozes out.

This one had a surprise heart show up.

After drying, I slide them onto a leather cord and tie slip knots onto it to make the length adjustable.

I've also tried just dipping the bottom of the glass into the paint, but I don't think it is as solid of a hold as gluing the paint skin to the nugget then gluing that to the tray. Plus you get more control over the paint this way, you can pick and chose where you want to glue the glass down.

Sugarwings also made this painting to give as a grand prize to the scavenger hunt winner. I was proud of her work, she knew exactly what she wanted to pour and how to do it. This is done with the end of a water bottle! We cut off the curved bottom of the bottle and placed it in the center of the canvas. Then, she slowly and carefully poured one color after another onto the bottle piece, and let the paint flow across the canvas to create petals of a flower.

This kiddo is growing up. She is attending Jr High, taking martial arts, and has a whole new sense of self confidence to go along with her joyful, zest for life. I'm impressed with her as well as her paintings.

A Cameo Makeover

how to's, how-to projects, jewelry

By Karla Nathan / April 19, 2018

I found a deal on these resin cameos, but thought they were a little too obviously resin.

So, I thought I'd age them up a bit.

I used this Martha Stewart stain, but a dark glaze would work too. Or if you were quick and careful, watered down brown paint would do.

Just brush it on, wipe it off, leaving the darker tone down in the creases and shadows. Here are some before and afters.

I was happy with the way they turned out.

Gifts for the Shore Trip

jewelry

By Karla Nathan / April 11, 2018

Two lifetime friends of mine are meeting me in St. Augustine to celebrate our 60th birthdays together for a few days on the beach. So, I created some beachy themed jewels as gifts for them each.

These are for Debbie, who is into hiking and nature. I thought it was beachy, with earthier elements.

Each piece goes with the others, but doesn't match exactly. I find matchy-matchy jewelry too much. Colors and styles that coordinate are more my preference. This set has chalcedony, aquamarine, labradorite, mother of pearl, pearl, jade, moonstone, amazonite, and jasper. I am not sure what the larger, pendant piece is. Does anyone know?

The soft blues are for Sandy, who says blue is her favorite color. I've used lots of amazonite, aquamarine, pearl, and larimar. Gotta love larimar for the ocean!

Oh, there is also some kyanite, that is a new one for me, and I fell in love with them at the gem show. These reminded me of blue moonstones. They are the oval shaped ones on the silver earrings.

Planning and a anticipating a trip can be as much fun as going there, and I loved choosing special beads for my long time buddies.

Opal beads!!!

jewelry

By Karla Nathan / April 5, 2018

At my latest trip to the gem show, I was thrilled to find opal beads! I've always admired opals, but the beads had been elusive on my hunts. This time, I found a few strands, and at very reasonable prices.

My only problem was that very few of them fit onto head pins to make into jewelry. I think they were meant for stringing, and that isn't in my set of skills.

These tiny beads could be a reason to learn how, though.

The handful that fit onto the pins were immediately turned into a necklace for myself, along with moonstone, pearl, beryl, and rose quartz. All of my favorite pale shades of pink and cream, with a hint of fire and opalescence were gathered together to make this piece to wear on my beach vacation next week.

I also made a bracelet for myself, all in white, cream, and clear. There were Herkimer Diamonds at the gem show, and at first, I made up a bracelet full of them. Then, realized that those guys are SHARP. So, I remade it, with just a couple of dangles with those stones. I'll have to come up with a design for a necklace with some, because I'd like to use more of them.

While my tools were out, I turned some Herkimers into earrings for a friend's April birthday. And Kyanite with labradorites for Kia, and just laboradites for Avahni. I'm taking those two teens on a cruise for my birthday, along with the two littlest grandfairies and wanted them to have some beachy colored jewels to wear.

Plus, kyanites for Kia!!?? Of course.