Gifts in Gunmetal

I'm sure you've been holding your breath waiting for me to add some pictures of the Christmas gifts I made, just like I promised I would.  I apologize that it has taken so long for me to get to this.  The beginning of the year has been a bit chaotic and I haven't done anything with my jewelry since Christmas.  Well, until last night, that is.  But I'll tell you more about that later.

I have discovered that it is very difficult to photograph jewelry.  It's tough to capture the lustre of the metals and the color and sparkle of the beads, especially if I'm using a flash...which I often have to do because I live in New England where winter lasts ten months and there is a significant shortage of daylight.  OK, that's a slight exaggeration, but I live in the woods, so even when it's sunny, I don't get much natural light in my house and I don't like taking photos outdoors when the temperatures are in the teens or when I have to shovel my way to a backdrop.  And let's face it - I feel fortunate enough when I simply have the time to make jewelry.  Having an extra 30 minutes to take great photos of the jewelry would be a luxury I could only dream of having.

All of this whining serves a purpose.  I tell you this to preface the pictures below.  I really couldn't do these pieces justice with my flash and poorly lit kitchen and dining room, but this is what happens when you finish making Christmas presents late at night and must photograph them at midnight so they can be wrapped the next morning.  So please forgive the lighting and try to imagine how they would sparkle in real life.  I really had fun making these pieces, and I'll admit, I wanted to keep a few of them. 

They were all made with gunmetal, which is lightweight and easy to work with.  I love that it is so versatile, and can be used with delicate and funky beads. 

The first necklace is long, which you would be able to tell if I had a model at my disposal.  At a minimum, I think I need to invest in one of those manequin/bodice displays.

And here are the matching earrings.  I think they suit the gift recipient quite well.

Multi-strand Jasper necklace

And the matching earrings

And finally, these fun, flirty, amber and pearl earrings

So, as I mentioned, until yesterday, I hadn't made any jewelry since Christmas.  Yes, we have been very busy, but the biggest problem was not time...It was my workspace.  Or lack thereof.  I often dream of having a large, spacious, well-lit studio in which to design and craft to my heart's content.  But alas, due to lack of space and the aforementioned natural light issue, my dining room is my workspace.  I use the term "dining room" loosely, because in the six years that we've lived in this house, I think we have dined in there twenty times.  (If my son sees me heading into the dining room, he says "I want to go make jewelry with Mommy!"  He never says "I want to eat dinner!")  Sometime after Thanksgiving, my dining room becomes Gift-wrap Central, and it usually stays that way until early February when I get around to organizing it again.  Or sooner, if my sister comes to visit and helps me with this overwhelming task.  

Since my sister didn't come to visit and it just couldn't be delayed any longer, I had to set out and put all the Christmas crap away about a week ago.  Now that my lovely studio, I mean dining room, is back, I can once again make jewelry without fear of the beads disappearing into a pile of wrapping paper.  (I just have to worry about them falling between the glass top and the wooden edges of my dining room table.)  I made a lovely necklace last night, and I really want to share it with you, but this necklace deserves to be photographed in natural light.  It could be my favorite necklace so far.  So it will have to wait for the weekend, when I will hopefully have time, natural light, warm temperatures, and no snow in which to photograph it.