where have i been?

GREAT question, I apologize to my three remaining readers.

For starters, I've been working on a mosaic tile installation in the courtyard of a local middle school. The students arranged all of the glass tiles before they were glued to the cylindrical benches which are six feet in circumference, there are 5 benches in total to mosaic. I have a fabulous assistant, Rhonda Spight, she is a recent BFA graduate from the Memphis College of Art.

The first bench we've grouted, after it's been dry for a few

days I will take a steel file to the top and bottom edges.

I have also been learning to cut stones

with my friends Beth and David.

Slabbing a hunk of Australian chrysoprase.

(Slabbed by David Day, I watched.)

Two of the four slabs cut, ranging from 1/2" to over 1" thick.

Roughed out on the trim saw with more help from David

who fixed my undercutting. This piece is close to 3/4" high.

Grinding on the rough wheel with Beth.

Heating for dopping after rough grinding into a cylinder. Dopping is the process of heating both the stone and sealing wax to affix a short dowel to the bottom of the stone that acts as a handle during grinding. You remove the stone by placing it in the freezer for a little while, when you take it out of the freezer you can easily pop the stone off of the dowel.

The finished cab, I'm hooked.

I cut this rhodochrosite a few weeks ago.

At the gem show on Beth and David's equipment.

I love the military issue goggles, very comfortable.

Both cabs and a setting I'm working on, the green

stone is actually a little smaller than the pink.

I have been making new pieces for a two-week artshow.

I've also been teaching a digital photo portraiture program to teens at a local community center, they did some great work - none of these photos have been cropped.

14/365 mosaic

sterling silver

Tomorrow I start the largest outdoor mosaic I've done this year and that's what's been on my brain today, so I made a mosaic ring. I like the way it came out and it could be a contender for my new production line, if I can speed up the fabrication a bit.

I really should start calling this challenge "A Ring Every Sunday Made Between 9pm and Midnight" as that's what my last 4 rings have been. This disappoints me since its no different than making a ring a day, except I'm not making so many. I also haven't been keeping up with adding other's rings to the blog. I still love rings, but I hate having appointments with them. My experience with Ring a Day tells me this will change, for now it makes me ancy.

after soldering

I like it like this, gives me ideas for pins and bracelets.

13/52 silver and copper

sterling silver and copper

I am still a week behind on rings, this is a really busy time for me. I'm starting to work on some open and airy geometric designs that I can make from wire and a minimum of sheet. I really like rings that are contoured to fit the finger so I incorporated one of my recent sketches into (what I suppose is last week's) ring. It's in rough shape, I beat the hell out of it on the mandrel.

A few of the ideas from my sketchbook, I'm going to play around more with interchanging the circles with pearls and round bezel set stones.

The copper circle is lined with silver so that it won't turn the finger green.

raw kinetic ring challenge

Here they are! The twenty-two fabulous rings made for the Ring a Week kinetic challenge. I hope I didn't miss anyone. Many made videos of their rings in action, I've linked to those on flickr.

Michele Grady
Rattle Ring
sterling silver, glass, acrylic

Michele wrote, "Since the glass stones are not set in a setting they are free to move around inside the ring...hence the kinetic part. It also makes a great rattling sound when you shake it!" The video is here.

Kest Schwartzman (Vagabond Jewelry)
Guillotine, or, The Divorce

Carole Zakkour
3D Zoetrope Ring
The video is here.

Erga - Metal Design
Kinetic Bead Maze Ring
view Erga's video here

Amy Nicole Artisan Jewelry
Carnival Pinwheel
view the video

Mary Lu Wason
Ship's Log Pirate Ring
copper, brass, silver, Kyanite, feather, cork, paper, leather

"All the captain needs, in a portable, battery free, finger top model. Features - swivel desk for any orientation (suggested use on non-dominant hand). Attached inkwell. Attached, replaceable quill. Leather bound log book with decorated endpapers. Genuine blue Kyanite stone. Engraved 'Ship's Log' and 'Respect the Sea'."

Wayne Henderson (StrikesWhileHot)
Calder Ring
"An homage to Alexander Calder a pioneer in kinetic art."

Catherine Witherell

The minute I found this little chair at a second hand shop I knew what I wanted to do with it. I even knew I wanted it to rock so when Tomi named the kinetic challenge I was so excited and a little nervous because I didn't know how I was going to do it. I thought about it for weeks and then the day before yesterday after I'd cut out the base and soldered the 3x1mm wire around it, the rest of the mechanism came to me. I was still nervous though and tried to use hard solder for the base and it just wouldn't work for me so I went to medium and for the shank, half jump rings and the 18 gauge wire I attached to the sides, I used easy, crossing my fingers that it wouldn't fall apart. It was definitely a challenge!" Catherine's video is here.

Evelyn Markasky
Copper pierced kinetic ring.
Check out the video here.

Laura M (Zoewyn)

Laura wrote, "The coil limits the movement, and also helps a bit getting all three beads to move since one sort of pushes the rest. But they also just flop around."

Lana Chu (GinkgoGlass1)
Ring Swing

citizen.objects

Prayer Wheel

"For the kinetic challenge this week, I have fabricated a mini Prayer Wheel. Except for the chain, this piece is made entirely out of antique cuckoo clock parts. 'Handle' is drill press lathed by hand and pressure fitted into the ring shank so it is removable. There is indeed a tiny prayer etched on copper inside the wheel. ***om mani padme hum****" The video is here.

Stacey Johnson (stayseas2001)

Stacey says, "The top cage spins around. Band is PMC and sterling insert, cage is sterling and brass with a lampworked bead and pearl inside. The top rotates on brass tubing which is fitted on a long sterling wire attached to the band."

tkmetalarts
No Nuke Ring
the video is here

tinkertown pics
Dichroic Kinetic Mosaic
sterling silver, recycled gold, dichroic glass cabochon
Check out the video.

Aleksandra Micic (micicart)
Draw-a-Face

Aleksandra wrote, "Just before the challenge was announced I watched with kids Bruce Blitz episode where he has a wheel with parts of faces on different size wheels and then he spins them.... where they stop you have to draw those parts.... so, it automatically came to my mind to make such ring.... not a high quality piece, but it works :)) and is lots of fun to play with kids..... I used cardboard from biscuit box, wire, paper masking tape, plastic part from the top of a pen, and a metal part I found in a drawer that was suitable for this ring....." The video for this ring is here.

Rebecca Bogan (AdobeSol)
Sterling silver, watch parts.
All parts spin and move up and down on the stem.

Lorena Angulo
Lorena's video is here.

Rae the Smithy
Spinning Planetary Nebulae

Rae wrote, "I was inspired a while back by the beautiful Hubble images I saw while visiting the Griffith Observatory. I loved the way the light refracted in a web like manner while simultaneously creating a geometric shape. It was also made as a memorial to Hubble which is sadly being retired." You can see her video here.

Aja Engel
Agate Geode In Basket Setting w/ Kinetic Tension Band
The video is here.

Joan Furilla

Joan says, "This fine silver ring is for the kinetic challenge this week. The bead and the star motif beneath it both spin. The idea for this ring evolved into a moon lander levitating over a cratered base. I was actually going for a more dark grey patina but when these really wild blues and hot pinks popped I stopped it! Too pretty to lose."

My Ring
sterling silver, 14k gold, quartz
The video is at the end of my blog post.

What a great challenge! We will be making rings for Japan next and many will be sold as fundraisers, the deadline is May 1st.