Category: New Work

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New Embossed Wrap Rings

Finished embossed wrap rings

Now that most of my new pattern rollers fit my Cavallin mill, I have spent a few days on wrap rings. It’s a good thing, too, since I was almost out of them. I am very happy with the results!

The rings in progress

After hand-cranking plain wire through the rollers, I cut and formed the rings into shape. Here, you see a pile of spirals on my anvil… These are so much fun to make.

Antiquing the rings

After forming, I add the dark, antique patina. It adds a nice depth to the embossed designs.

3 of the new style of wrap rings

These rings are adjustable and pretty. Right now, I’m making them in sterling silver and copper. I’m pleased to be able to finish these rings in time for Art on the Green in Hudson, Ohio coming up tomorrow! If you come by and see them at the show, I can size them for you on the spot.

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On modifying tools…

I’ve been wanting these for so many years. I special ordered them from FiveFoxes to fit my old Cavallin rolling mill.

The new roller in place and ready to use.

After all the measuring, planning, and agonizing, the new pattern rollers arrived in the mail. Much faster than I expected and in perfect condition. I was ready to roll, or so I thought. Most of them were too small to fit on my mill! Luckily, I know a little bit about metal working. I resolved to modify them to fit.

The measurements were all correct, even a bit larger than I ordered. That meant all they needed was just a fraction of a hair’s breadth removed with some abrasive, and I would be embossing wire with beautiful patterns.

Hours of sanding and fitting those rollers

My humble Foredom saved the day. After diligent and tedious sanding, I was able to use the rollers. I can’t wait to make some new rings!

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Making Plique a Jour Enamel Earrings

Plique a jour is an ancient technique where glass is suspended within a metal frame. For me, the technique is perfect for earrings. The pair I made above are like little stained glass windows of pure silver. Here is how I made them…

I started out with pure silver sheet and pierced out the designs that will be filled with glass.

I filled the pierced spaces with powdered glass enamels and placed the earrings on steel supports called trivets.

Here is how the earrings looked after the first firing. The glass usually doesn’t fill completely the first firing. It takes several firings to completely fill the piercings with glass.

After the piercings were completely filled with glass, I sanded them flush with the sheet metal and refined the outside shapes.

Here’s how they looked after sanding.

The earrings got one more firing to give the glass a final polish. After this step, I burnished the earrings with a glass brush. I made 10k gold posts and heat rivets to suspend the plique a jour designs.

Rosebud plique a jour enamel earrings
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Making a Cloisonne Enamel Necklace

This year, I decided to set aside some time to work in cloisonne enamel. I documented my journey with photographs as I balanced the technical demands of the medium with my natural inclination to experiment. I didn’t start out with a sketch or a drawing, but I did know I wanted to create a floral design. Here’s how it went:

hammered copper sheet metal shapes, ready for glass enamel
I began by hammer-texturing sheet copper and giving the shapes a gentle dome
First coat of enamel along with the wires and fine silver foil.
copper enamel work with the first colors, translucent white, blue, and lime green.
Adding colors, layer by layer. I think I fired these pieces more than a dozen times.
copper enamel work in progress with more picks and greens added
More colors, this is close to complete.
copper enamel work after grinding
After I finished added colors, I wet-sanded the glass back down to an even, smooth surface. The dull areas are higher and glossy areas haven’t been touched by the sanding belt yet.
copper enamel pieces ready to be set in sterling silver
After griding the enamel down, it got a final fire polish, where I melted the glass just enough to give it a nice gloss. The next step is to make the sterling necklace links and settings.
sterling silver setting for the enamel, ready to be soldered
I laid out sterling silver flattened wire so that each lobe of the pear shape enamel will have two prongs.
cloisonne piece, ready to be set in the sterling frame
After soldering the prongs and bending them upright, I adjusted the setting to match the enamel. Then, I placed it into the setting and bent the prongs over to hold it in place.
enamels in different stages of setting
Here, I have two enamels finished with the prongs secured and polished. The bottom center piece has the prongs bent forward, ready to cut. The top center piece is not set yet.
necklace chain links and clasp
The finished necklace showing the sterling chain links and clasp.
The finished cloisonne enamel necklace
The cloisonne adventure complete, necklace ready for sale.
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A new approach to art festivals

Art fair booth display

I’ve been working up to this for years, and it’s finally come together. I’ve designed a pop-up booth for exhibiting my work at art fairs. The first voyage and installation was to the Chautauqua Institution in western New York for the Fine Crafts Shows at Chautauqua. The weather was beautiful and sunny, which was a blessing.

Side view of the art fair display of handmade jewelry

I have plenty of tweaks to make to my setup, but the overall idea was well-received. People came up to shop with me and sales were good. I’m now working on adding an awning because the weather won’t always be so perfect.

I sold quite a few pieces at the show, but I still have these earrings. Asymmetrical designs like these are my new direction and I had fun talking to people about wearing different earrings together. In fact, several people mixed and matched their own earring pairs. That was unexpected, but I loved it. I’m so grateful to everyone at Chautauqua who attended the show. I’m also grateful to Crafts Alliance for organizing the event and including my work.

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Social Distancing in the Studio

The finishing touches for earrings, lapis lazuli beads, freshwater pearls, and sterling silver wire.
The finishing touches for new earrings…

In a normal March, I’d be preparing for another summer of art fairs. That seems like a different world already. I’m wrapping my head around this new reality of Covid-19 while I make earrings in my studio. I have my dog for company. I get that feeling of accomplishment as I finish pieces. And I think about how to reinvent myself in response to these new times. I’ll be posting what I come up with as time goes on!

the finished earrings by Kristin Ellis in hammered sterling silver and lapiz lazuli

In the mean time, here is a new pair of sterling silver earrings. They are asymmetrical. I’m having so much fun making earrings that are unique yet harmonious with each other. Satisfaction in the face of uncertainty. I hammered the silver shapes and polished them. I’ve chosen baroque lapis lazuli gemstone beads to compliment the silver, securing them with decorative wire knots. I made the ear wires myself. I hope to make the most of this time of solitude and push new creative boundaries. For now, I’m liking these new earrings.