Tri Color Steampunk Claw Necklace

I have a necklace to share today that is from my husband Rick's Steampunk Collection.

He's made it using copper, brass and some silver tone rivets.  When I first saw it I thought it looked like a claw or even a tooth.  I love the way he can take a piece of what looks like scrap and make something cool and quite unique!

This piece is for sale in our ArizonaCopperCraft Etsy Shop too.

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Copper Wire Weave Necklace in Azurite & Malachite

I mentioned last week that I'd made this necklace from a tutorial I'd discovered on Pinterest and thought I should share it with you today.  You can visit Rukodel's blog for the full tutorial.

This necklace is made using Azurite/Malachite semi precious gemstones and Copper Wire.  The new technique I learned is really fun to do and learning from this tutorial by Rukodel was very rewarding for me.  I love the finished piece.

The finished necklace inspired me to make a matching bracelet and earrings.  I had Azurite Malachite in round gemstone beads so I figured I'd play some more.  I didn't get a photo of the earrings, I do like how they turned out but they seem a little heavy to me.  One day they may become a couple more bracelets like the one above.

Aqua Terra Wire Weave Necklace

I have my second wire weave pendant today!

I took a class online earlier this month to learn how to make wire woven pendants.  More info about that in this blog post.  This particular pendant is Aqua Terra Jasper and has a very small hole drilled in the top making it difficult to make a fancy bail for.  And, it's time to learn new skills and techniques!  I used a tight basket type weave for the bezel portion pictured below.

For the bail I went back to the figure eight weave I'd learned in the first class because I really like the look.  After the pendant was finished I made a matching necklace chain using Aqua Terra Jasper stone beads and copper wire adding in some fancy figure eight links.  The next step in the process is antiquing and polishing.  I love the way antiqued copper looks so it's my preference for most jewelry pieces I make.  The very last step is to treat the copper to maintain and protect the finish I've given it.

There you have it, my second wire woven pendant!

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Copper & Brass Steampunk Necklace

I have another one of my husband Rick's amazing projects to share with you today!

This is a Steampunk inspired necklace he made using copper and brass.  He's added gears, pieces and parts as well has rivets and eyelets.  It's on an antiqued copper rolo chain and in our ArizonaCopperCraft Etsy Shop.

Edited to add, this item is no longer available in our Etsy Shop - sold 1/21/17.

Entangled Bead Wire Bracelet with Aqua Terra Jasper

Today's Project -

A bracelet using Aqua Terra Jasper, Copper and a new (to me) wire wrap/weave technique from a tutorial by a very generous artist I first saw on Pinterest.  

You can find the tutorial at Rukodel's blog.  The tutorial is actually for a beautiful necklace which I've made and haven't shared yet.  From that I was inspired to make this bracelet.  

Here it is all stretched out.  I used a large oval Aqua Terra Jasper gemstone for a center focal piece then added smaller round gemstones tying it all together with triple wrapped links and finishing with a copper lobster claw closure and extra copper jump rings on the other end to make it adjustable in length.  I love Aqua Terra Jasper and I'm quite happy with my finished project.

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Crazy Lace - Laguna Lace Agate Wire Wrap Necklace

I've been fascinated with Crazy Lace Agates lately and discovered there are also Laguna Lace Agates that are equally as beautiful.  The natural colors in some are really stunning.

Here's a little information I found online:  Crazy lace agate, also known as Mexican agate, is an attractive, white, opaque stone, patterned like a beautiful, multicolored paisley cloth you want to wrap around you. It is a cryptocrystalline quartz, found in Mexico.

For this stone I made a fancy wire wrapped bail and for the necklace chain I added three Crazy Lace Agate round stones on each side.  It's all done in Copper that's been antiqued and polished then treated to maintain and protect the finish I gave it.

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Freestyle Wire Wrap Copper Bracelet

Today I wanted to share a neat freestyle wire wrap/weave bracelet my husband Rick made with you.  He's used square wire for the body of the bracelet and added round wire for adornment.  It's been antiqued and polished to bring out the natural beauty of the copper then treated with ProtectaClear to maintain and preserve the finish.

Unisex Twisted Bracelets in Copper

Today's Project!

I'm still working on learning new techniques in jewelry making.  Today's project is a video tutorial via University of YouTube by Lan Anh Handmade.  I'd seen this bracelet before and thought it was really nice, in one of my Facebook groups there was a link to the tutorial by a generous artist who is willing to share her gifts & talents.

I used copper wire because that's what I have the most of and what I like to work with.  I've done this type of weaving before so I chose to use dead soft wire in 18 gauge and 20 gauge.  My sweet hubby Rick found some dead soft 22 gauge copper wire for me in our stash so I switched to a little finer wire after my first experiment.  

So far I've made five of these and feel like I still need practice to get the shape uniform.  As with everything the more you practice your skills the better they'll get.

I'm off to practice my skills & hope you have an amazing day!

Natural Crazy Lace Agate Cross Necklace

I recently discovered carved stone crosses that I could use in jewelry projects.  This is a natural Crazy Lace Agate that's been carved into a cross with a hold drilled in the top so I could make a bail for it and put it on a necklace chain I made.  

The cross measures two inches in length so it's a nice sized piece.  I used copper wire to make a very simple bail to attach it to the Crazy Lace stone bead necklace that I made also using copper wire for the links.  It's finished with a copper hook and eye type closure I've been experimenting with.  The necklace chain is about 26" in length making it a good length to dress up or use for everyday casual wear.  I'd wear it with my jeans and a nice sweater.

The copper has been antiqued and polished to bring out the beauty of the metal then treated with ProtectaClear to maintain and protect the finish I gave it.

This piece will be available for sale on Sunday's at the London Bridge Swap Meet in Lake Havasu City, Az @ Arizona Copper Craft/Connection spaces 400 - 401.  If you are in the area stop by and see us!

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Shield of Faith Copper & Brass Necklace

Arizona Copper Craft is the business my husband and I started a couple of years ago.

Together we make copper jewelry using different techniques we've learned by taking classes at our local community college, purchased and free online classes and of course University of YouTube.  

This is a pendant my husband Rick made we are calling the Shield of Faith series.  He's made several and they are similar in that they are all on a "shield" yet different because the crosses are never the same and sometimes he uses brass and sometimes not.  

When he made the first one I thought they were so neat and asked him to keep making them.  I think they are something our customers will really like and have high hopes for them.  We have some for sale in our ArizonaCopperCraft Etsy shop and also have them for sale on Sunday's till the end of April in Lake Havasu City at the London Bridge Swap Meet spaces 400-401.

Craftsy Class by Dawn Horner

Today's Project -

I've been wanting to learn new wire wrapping/weaving techniques and stopped today for an online class.

In this class by Dawn Horner on Craftsy I learned how to do a figure eight weave to make a bezel and bail for a cabochon (un-drilled stone). This Rhyolite Pendant is my finished project and it gives me all kinds of ideas for other pendants!

I really enjoyed the class, it comes in a video format so you can watch as many times as you'd like or need. She's very thorough and you'll have a finished piece at the end of the class.

Here's the back, I've always wondered about the back of a piece and how everything is held in place.

Now I know!

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Arizona Copper Craft - 2016 Our Making Journey

If you've followed my blog for any length of time you know I like to do a New Year's Day post of my favorites for the previous year.  It' s a look back on things I've made that I loved, things that challenged me, things I've learned and some I've even mastered.

I'm starting in June because that's when I began making dated folders of jewelry that my husband Rick and I had been making.  This is a Rhyolite bracelet I made using the inspiration from a jewelry making book I'd purchased.  

During June and July we learned how to etch copper adding a new skill set to our creations.  We had a lot of fun making cuff bracelets, earrings and pendants with etched designs.  The Paisley cuff bracelet is one of my favorites and we are still etching copper.

August was a month of learning how to make fancy copper links for bracelets and necklaces and also freestyle wire links like the center of this bracelet.  As you can see I love making bracelets.  One of the reasons is they can be a starting point and inspiration for a matching necklace.  This is a Chevron Amethyst and copper link bracelet.

In August I was still working on fancy links for necklaces and bracelets as well as learning how to do some wire woven/wrapped bails for pendants.  This is a Rhodonite pendant and matching gemstone bead necklace in copper.

My husband Rick was learning how to make upcycled cuff bracelets using found pieces and parts as well as rivets and eyelets.

In September my husband Rick took me to the Kingman Turquoise Mine to do some shopping at Colbaugh Processing where they sell their Turquoise.  This Mohave Green Turquoise necklace incorporates a couple of my newly learned skills.  Wire weaving on the pendant and fancy wrapped links on the necklace chain.

In October we were gearing up for the winter event season in Arizona.  My husband Rick made this freestyle copper wire bracelet.  By the third week of October we were out selling at the London Bridge Swap Meet in Lake Havasu City on Sundays.  Beautiful weather to start, a little warm in the 90's when it was tear down time...

November began my love affair with Aqua Terra Jasper.

December brings a busy season with creating new jewelry pieces, events, family and friends.

This necklace is made from Kingman Turquoise using new skills I've acquired in the last six months.

Rick has a new design I think will be really popular in 2017 - I'm calling these "Shield of Faith" pendants.  He's made several different cross designs each on a similar shield. 

We wish you a happy and prosperous New Year & God Bless you!