8/52 an eyeful

sterling silver, prehnite

I was talking with a friend last night about feeling stressed out because I hadn't yet started my ring. He said it was no wonder I'm stressed - I'm trying to build the Eiffel Tower every week. That put some things into perspective and tonight my goal was to make a ring that's an eyeful, rather than an eiffel ring. I went into the studio with no plan and had a really fun and relaxing time. I have avoided setting this gorgeous piece of prehnite because I was intimidated by the curved bottom. It worked out ok!

thoughts on ring a week

Ring a Day 47/365

Welcome to the very first Ring a Week (RAW) blog carnival! Some of the RAW participants have chosen to write on the question, "What was your inspiration for participating in Ring a Week?"

I made a ring a day (RAD) last year and that project was more about finding new ideas than it was about making cohesive and well-planned work. With RAW I want to take more time designing and fabricating rings, I want each piece to be extensively thought out and well-finished. For RAD my ideas were all over the place - I needed a lot of variety to stick with the project. My goal for Ring a Week is to maintain a disciplined art making practice and to end the year with a cohesive body of small, wearable sculpture.

My secondary goals for RAW are to improve my stone setting skills, never miss a Sunday deadline, and start to incorporate some of my conceptual ideas into the work. I am moving to a production style of jewelry making this year (uggh) with a wholesale line, and making art for RAW will provide some balance.

We're seven rings into the year and I find I am only meeting some of my goals. The last three weeks I've put off fabrication until Sunday despite designing the rings early in the week. I've ultimately been unsatisfied with the work because I can't take the time to properly solve problems. I can't step away and come back fresh, or make sure I have the right materials ahead of time, and I haven't had time to suitably finish the rings. I'll keep working on it - onward and upward!

Please visit the blogs of these RAW participants to read their thoughts:

Marcie Abney
Amy Nicole
Janice
Aleksandra Micic
Lana Chu
Evelyn Markasky
Lorena Angulo
Kate Jones
Maria Apostolou
Rebecca Bogan
Laura M (Zoeowyn)
Kimberly (bahamadawn)
Erin Austin
Catherine Witherell
Michele Grady
Joan Furilla
Kathryn Cole

pearl and carnelian

sterling silver, saltwater pearl, carnelian

Ring plus pendant. Once again I procrastinated until day 7,
nevertheless I'm very happy with this one.

what is real?

"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."

"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.

"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful."When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."

"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"

"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."

- from The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

my first spinner ring

sterling silver and acid etched copper

My first spinner, commissioned by a friend. The copper ring spins freely around the band.

featured: a bunch of RAW rings

Well, I fell off the blog wagon again and landed on my ass. Here are some stellar RAW rings to catch me up.

Frederick Cruz
RAW 6/52

Solidworks 3D rendering."Inspired by a mechanical aperture...like the one in a camera lens."

Reagan Hayhurst
RAW 5/52

"Why wear 4 rings when you can just wear one really big one! I have seen a few rings this week that span the entire hand. I love the idea, it is very unexpected and always gets a second look."

DDee Wilder
RAW 3/52

Index finger Goatse rings.

Sanna
RAW 1/52

copper and paint

Carole Zakkour
RAW 3/52

"Sterling and copper stacked saucers - HEAVY!! 47mm x 30mm"

Danielle Miller
RAW 1/52

Marquise Glider. 18k gold, oxidized sterling silver, tourmaline. "The stone setting freely glides back and forth."

6/52 circles and rectangles

Phew, I started late tonight and finished this just before midnight. Ring plus earrings, sterling silver and copper. I'm not completely satisfied with this so I'm going to add a second circle to each earring, but I'm too exhausted to do it tonight.

featured: christopher duquet

Three Stones in a Lake, 18k gold

Christopher Duquet created this digital 3d design for a custom ring with Zen principles in mind. In this Modern Jeweler article the artist said, "It’s as though it’s 6 a.m. with no wind or rain, nothing to disturb the surface of the lake. Then you dropped a pebble, waited a minute, and then dropped another. You’d have this pattern on the surface, so that’s what we based the shapes on. It’s sort of to give you the evolution of time.” The ring was designed with CAD and then milled and fabricated (I couldn't find a picture of the fabricated piece).

featured: philip sajet

Philip Sajet made this gorgeous ring from waterbuffalo horn and gold back in 2003. There's no information on his website, but you can see some lovely work there.

featured: maria apostolou

My Ring a Day Secret Santa gift has arrived! Maria Apostolou made this beautiful key ring from sterling silver and tourmaline, she sent it to me from Greece before Christmas and it took nearly two months to arrive, it was worth the wait. I love it and it fits perfectly! Thank you Maria!

ring display

I finally put up some (crooked) shelves for some of my RAD and RAW rings. After making 365 rings last year I find that I have maybe 50 left. I launched myself into RAW as soon as the new year started and I feel as though I haven't taken the time to adequately reflect and digest the accomplishment of 365 rings in 2010. So now they are on the wall and I am starting to think more about what Ring a Day meant to me, and what Ring a Week is becoming.

I am two rings behind in features and I apologize to my loyal readers, they will be up later today. Posting a new ring each day has been a little difficult - mainly because I'm tired of daily ring responsibilities! What? You suggest I schedule them? What a great idea, in fact blogger allows you to write posts in advance and publish later. Why haven't I? I DON'T KNOW! But I plan to get with it. Really. I promise.

my creative endeavors

This month the topic for the EtsyMetal blog carnival is "What other media do you work and play with? How often do you get to create? Does it relate to or inspire your metalworking?"

My graduate degree is in fibers and I still occasionally make quilts.

Art is Permanent Revolution, large wall hanging made from commercial fabrics.

Love Blues, small wall hanging made from both commercial and my hand dyed fabrics.

Queen size bed quilt made from my hand dyed cotton velveteen.

I also make pillows.

Tufted pillow with piping, made from my hand dyed fabrics.

Pillow with quilted top and prairie points, made from commercial fabrics.

And I make bags of all sorts.

(Yes, I know, Bettie's name is misspelled.)


I like to make books as gifts.


I am very heavily into mail art, Ray Johnson is sort of a personal hero of mine. I made the pieces below, and I have a huge collection of mail art by others.

Lastly, I make sculpture from paperclips, this one is unfinished:


This one is finished and is made of over 2000 paperclips:

I am very involved with metalwork right now, but I work on my other interests as time allows. I think that everything I make relates to my metalwork, I don't separate my creative endeavors as they all come from the same source (my head, eyes, and hands.)

Please visit my EtsyMetal friends to learn about their creative interests:

kate jones
kathryn cole
2Roses
Twigs and Heather
Erin Austin
Nodeform
Beth Cyr
stacey hansen
Nina Gibson
elizabeth scott
Evelyn Markasky
Amanda Conley
Jenny Baughman
Catherine Chandler

featured: danielle miller

Kylix - Drinking Bowl
sterling silver

Danielle Miller made this amazing drinking bowl for both RAW and the flickr Superbowl challenge. Danielle used crimping, raising, sinking, and fold-forming techniques to create this gorgeous piece.

5/52 squares

Ring with earrings. Sterling silver and copper.

featured: d.k. and wei

A friend sent me a link to this Heart of Love ring by D.K. and Wei. Unfortunately the website doesn't have much info about the way it is made or the designer, but I love it.

featured: daniel chiquet

Daniel Chiquet makes amazing rings!

featured: Glen Liberman

Glen Liberman designed this Gear Ring, according to his website it is, "made from high quality matte stainless steel. It features micro-precision gears that turn in unison when the outer rims are spun (as can be seen in the video)."

featured: nick dong

Nick Dong's Introspective Rings, I can only imagine how difficult these are to create. His work is very well made and clever, check out his Multicultural Utensil from 2001.