Another lovely week for creating new jewelry - and new product photos! I've been using much more morning light, as the evening hours of good light are nearing their end for 2016. This pair, "SOL", was a double lucky find. I accidentally found a new bead store one block from my office. (One block!) Better yet, it sells individual beads - many places only offer packs, so any choice is a larger investment that you'd really want to make. So I picked out the red and mango colored beads, as I'd been wanting some darker warm tones to work with, and the different shapes complemented each other. Then - then I found these turquoise-y green discs that look like globes and said MUST HAVE. In my rush, I didn't write down what they were called. Next time... :)
Now you can see - now you can see why jasper is one of my love languages. Oh! These are ocean jasper, like the last in today's series, so take a second to compare how different they are. Wow! But these strong deep colors and distinctive patterns are brilliant, and since I used all four this week I expect to buy more next week. (Ok, or tomorrow.) While I love the glass beads above the stone, what makes this pair work, I think, is the chain beneath. Only one question outstanding - do we like 2 dangling chains, or do we prefer 3? I may try three next time, or try adding some embellishment to the chain, to see if that enhances or detracts from the gestalt.
Sea glass! Alright, I only remember these are glass and am not 100% sure that they are sea glass. Something to ask my vendor when/if I reorder these. I adore this color, and adore even more how well it photographs. Look at the difference in color across these images! Aren't you so glad you have multiple images with multiple lighting sources, so you can get a feel for how these look? Me too.
Ah, and the second pair of ocean jasper, alongside glass beads and a surprise guest, a plastic bead! I don't normally buy plastic beads - no good reason, I'm just too stuff for plastic. But these caught my eye before I knew what they were made of, and I took them home anyway. Do an experiment for me - pretend the bright blue plastic bead isn't there. Do you still like these earrings? I do. But *with* the bright - and perfectly sized - blue-green, these really come alive. I also like how the darker bits of the stone talk to the darker findings. It will be interesting to see if I can find some similar stones, then pair them with matte navy beads. Onward!