Tag Archives: present

malachite and silver pendant – green is good

I created this malachite and silver pendant as a commission for a client. The gemstone was chosen by my client from my collection, and given to her friend as a gift, with the proviso that I would create something that would please the recipient.

malachite and silver pendant

 

The stone is huge, and once I had met with the recipient, her request was for it to be simply showcased by the silver. My favourite way of course is to let the stone do the talking, so that suited me!

 

Malachite is green because of its high copper content. Throughout the ages, artists have widely used it to create green paint, until a synthetic replacement was formulated in the 1800s. It is named after the Greek word for mallow, which is a plant with leaves that are reminiscent of malachite. You can find some more information about malachite here.

 

As well as this malachite and silver pendant, you can see some other malachite pieces I have made here on the blog; like this malachite and silver ring and these malachite earrings.

I adore malachite, for its rich wonderful patterns and hues. In its raw form it is spectacular. Imagine digging that out of the ground! Mother Nature, you’re amazing! Green is my current favourite colour, because it is fresh and reminds me of nature in all her glory. What’s your favourite? You could find it and name it yourself over here!

lapis lazuli and silver pendant – made with love

Morgan, my lovely longest-standing best friend in the world, asked if I could make a lapis lazuli and silver pendant for her mum whom I have known since I was little, so I was happy to oblige!

Lapis Lazuli and Sterling Silver Pendant

Bet is an amazing actor and director, and was the person who first introduced me to the wonderful world of fabulous large jewellery. I remember being in awe of her dressing table contents, and my love of huge chunky rings stems from Bet. She has been a role model and inspiration to me in many ways throughout my life. Among many other things she is a strong, progressive, independent woman with a wicked sense of humour and an amazing sense of fashion.  I like to think I now share some of those attributes with her!

Lapis Lazuli and Sterling Silver Pendant

I created the pendant with a cut-away back, so that the stone can touch the skin. What started out as three lilies (I know, more like toadstools in the end!) represent Bet’s three beautiful daughters.

Lapis Lazuli and Sterling Silver Pendant

It’s a bit of a statement piece as you can see from the size – just the way we like it!

Love you Bet. 🤗 xx

{As shown in this lapis lazuli and silver pendant, lapis and silver go beautifully together. Afghanis have mined lapis for over 6,000 years. It is believed to be good for communications and good judgement, for enhancing memory, and to attract success. You can see some other lapis pieces I have made here on the blog; like this lapis, silver and gold ring and this lapis and garnet bangle. You can find some more information about the gemstone lapis lazuli here.}

Sterling Silver Bunting Necklace

silver bunting necklace – with bows

My sister Juliet is not only fabulous, she has exquisite taste, so when she mentioned wanting a silver bunting necklace I knew it would be a winner!

Bunting was originally a type of wool fabric manufactured from the turn of the 17th century. It was used for making ribbons and flags, including signal flags for the Royal Navy. 

I wanted to capture the feeling of bunting without making the necklace too movable, so I suspended the bunting pieces from a fixed wire. Once I’d arranged the initial design, it suddenly became clear that the bunting needed tiny bows on either end!

Sterling Silver Bunting Necklace

I then suspended the design from silver chain, and attached handmade hook closures to finish this piece off.

I gave my sister this silver bunting necklace for her birthday recently. She is a motivation and health coach, so I hope it brings inspiration and joy to her! Shine Motivation is her business. If you would like a bit of help kick-starting a new you, I highly recommend getting Juliet to help you. She’s real, she’s kind, and she knows where you’re coming from! Alternatively you can browse her website for tips. If you’re more of a social media person, join her on FaceBook, Instagram or Pinterest! You can find The Silver Forge on those forums also.

Sterling Silver Bunting Necklace

Solid Silver Reticulated Pendant

solid silver reticulated pendant – drop of silver

I created this solid silver reticulated pendant for Louise. She saw one on FaceBook I made for a dear friend of mine. That piece can be found here. Although I don’t usually recreate custom pieces exactly, I was pleased to make another similar one for Louise.

Solid Silver Reticulated Pendant

I made the bottom of the pendant by heating a solid chunk of silver until it melted and became round and reticulated. I shaped silver wire into a spiral and added that as the bail. Then I soldered the pieces together, pickled them, brushed them et voilà!

Solid Silver Reticulated Pendant

So simple but effective, and this reticulated pendant makes a lovely everyday piece. I enjoyed making it. Silver is such a fabulous and endlessly changing medium! Working with silver is just the best. You can read more interesting info about silver here.

If you’d like your own custom silver piece, do feel free to contact me. Perhaps you’d like a piece for yourself, or a gift for a loved one, or a family heirloom? I’m always happy to discuss your silversmithing requirements.

If you’d like to connect up with me on social media, head over to FaceBook or Instagram. It would be lovely to see you there!

Charoite and Sterling Silver Pendant

charoite and silver pendant – art for an artist

My gorgeous friend and lovely client, Margaret Ingles, is a wonderful artist and I am always thrilled when she asks me to create something for her – this charoite and silver pendant was no exception. You can see some of my past work for Marg including these coherent wave pendants, this amazonite, chrysoprase, topaz, and turquoise infinity pendant and this blue drusy agate and sterling silver ring.

Charoite and Sterling Silver Pendant

I searched around for the right gemstone for Marg. She decided this beautiful teardrop shaped cabochon was perfect for her new charoite and silver pendant.

Charoite and Sterling Silver Pendant

I was so glad to be able to make this lovely piece for a lovely person! Check out Margaret’s amazing art on her website. I just adore her hyper-realistic painting style – ‘Morning’ from ‘These Hands’ and ‘Devotion’ from ‘Bliss’ are two of my favourites. While I am very glad to be a silversmith, I reserve a certain awe for people who can transcribe vision to paper through the medium of paint!

Charoite is a beautiful gemstone, often found in Russia. That glorious purple is always stunning, and isn’t it amazing that it comes out of the ground like that! The name charoite comes from the Russian ‘chary’ – charms or magic. You can read more about charoite here.

Sterling Silver Leaf Logo Pendant

silver leaf logo pendant – bespoke handcrafted necklace

My lovely client Angela contacted me and commissioned to make this silver leaf logo pendant for her.

Sterling Silver Leaf Logo Pendant

Angela emailed me her logo, and I got to work with my jeweller’s saw and my soldering torch. I pierced the logo into a sheet of silver then soldered the pierced work onto another sheet of silver. I formed and attached a bail to suspend the piece by. After I used liver of sulphur to oxidise the piercing, I finished the piece with some emery and elbow grease. This is the end result!

Sterling Silver Leaf Logo Pendant

I think this silver leaf logo pendant turned out pretty well. What a lovely logo!

If you have a logo that you’d like made into a pendant, contact me and we can discuss whether your logo would be suitable for this or some other kind of silversmithing work. We could even add a gemstone or two to really add some pop! This is a great gift idea for someone who runs their own business, or to provide to employees as a reward or marketing idea.

If you’d like to connect up with me on social media, head over to FaceBook or Instagram. It would be lovely to see you there!

Kaleidoscope Jasper and Sterling Silver Pendant

kaleidoscope jasper and silver pendant – art deco

This kaleidoscope jasper and silver pendant has a nice story behind it. My lovely client Colleen contacted me after she found the cabochon in my gemstones available for custom pieces. She and her husband were keen to get a pendant made as a keepsake for their daughter, who was celebrating her 40th birthday.

Kaleidoscope Jasper and Silver Pendant

After browsing my custom gallery, Colleen did me a rough sketch of how she wanted the pendant to look. This is the result! I got the piece to Colleen’s daughter just before she embarked on some international travel, and she loves it. I hope it sees some fabulous sights with her!

Kaleidoscope Jasper and Sterling Silver Pendant

Jasper is a variety of chalcedony. The name jasper comes from Greek and means “spotted stone”. Kaleidoscope jasper comes from a small family run mine in Oregon, USA. The family states they named the stone ‘kaleidoscope’ because it means ‘collage of colours’. That sums it up in my opinion!

Rhodochrosite and Sterling Silver Pendant

rhodochrosite and silver pendant – take two

My lovely client from Paris, Helena, emailed me because the rhodochrosite and silver pendant I made for her mother a while back had gone missing, so she wondered if I could build her another one.

Rhodochrosite and Sterling Silver Pendant

Hunting around for another piece of rhodochrosite that would be as beautiful as the first was fun. After I provided Helena with a few options, she and her dad settled on this gorgeous teardrop shaped cabochon for the new rhodochrosite and silver pendant.

Rhodochrosite and Sterling Silver Pendant

Rhodochrosite is such a beautiful gemstone. You can read more about it here. I love the way the cross section of this stone looks as though it was cut from a stalagtite. I was so glad to be able to make this lovely piece for a lovely person!

Sterling Silver Fox Pendant

silver fox pendant – bespoke handcrafted necklace

My client Mark contacted me and commissioned to make a silver fox pendant for a 50th present.

Sterling Silver Fox Pendant

Mark emailed me some ideas. Between us we worked out the design he was picturing, which I then drew up. I spent some time with my jeweller’s saw and my soldering torch, and this is the silver fox pendant I made for him. So sweet! Sterling Silver Fox Pendant

I think it turned out pretty well, Aren’t foxes beautiful? You can read up on them here.

Sterling Silver Initials Pendant

My client came to me with an idea to give his girlfriend a pendant with their initials on it for her 18th birthday.

This is the design I made for him. What a lovely and timeless idea!