Whew!

Wow! How time flies when you are having fun. I didn't realize my last post was over two weeks ago.

We took a little break from the drab Pennsylvania winter and headed to Florida. I guess I was just having too much fun in the sun to even think about posting, but it's time to get back to business. (Well ease back into it.) I always feel so discombobulated (either I spelled it right or the computer didn't know what the heck I was trying to spell) after being away and it takes me way too much time to get back into the swing of things.

Actually I hadn't done much jewelry in the weeks before I left either. Once again I want to finish up pieces and use up all the "orphan" pieces of fine silver laying around. (We'll see how that one works out!)

Since I don't have much to say (surprisingly) or much to show, I'll just share another piece of copper jewelry that I made recently. I still am not going to spend a lot of time on a piece that might not work. The Art Clay copper is somewhat more reliable for me, but I'm still not sure that I like it. It is so "lightweight" after firing. It doesn't shrink that much but no matter how thick I make the pieces they still feel so light and they don't even look as solid. (Even without my visor they look porous and that is saying something.)

The piece here is a bracelet just made out of half inch squares of textured Art Clay Copper fired on an open shelf for 30 minutes at 1778 degrees. I've added a patina to the pieces and also made a pair of earrings and a necklace to match. (Not intentional though. I didn't know how many pieces to make for the bracelet and it's always good to have extras.)

There are several things I do like about the copper though. They are a big seller since there isn't much copper jewelry out there and copper goes well with most any color of bead.

In a couple of months I get social security and one of the first purchases I'm going to make is a kiln for the long firings that the other copper and bronze clays require. I love my SC2 and can fire for long periods in it but would prefer to save it for the shorter firings.

I'll try to post more frequently but can't promise anything. (Golfing season is almost here and spring has to be just around the corner. )