Tanzanite is a stone that I wish I could use more of-- but finding nice stones is difficult and usually really expensive.
More pictures to come-- we were having such nice weather that I thought I would take some pictures outdoors.
My Mom bought these carnelian drops. I made a few necklaces for her and she gave me the extra stones that were left over. They say that carnelian is the "travelers stone" and will bring good luck to them. Protects the wearer from negative emotions (like rage and envy) and increase ambition and drive--assisting in decision making!
I think they turned out great! I used my original, hand-cast cherry blossoms in sterling with these. I have a few more stone combos-- pictures are coming soon.
I have a coin pearl necklace that needed some earrings. I didn't want to do anything to matchy-matchy...
These are easy to wear. The silver goes with just about everything. I worn these several times now.
I've been meaning to make a pair of earrings to match the necklace--finally got around to it.
I really want to make these with a gold bezel! More to come!
Here's a new necklace that I just finished to match all those cherry blossom earrings that I've been making! These are made from sterling silver, cast from an original design. I used a fresh water pearl drop, but as you can imagine, there are a lot of different drops you can choose from! I just bought some amazing black onyx drops-- can't wait to start working with those!
I can't wait to make more! I have a lot of ideas for these little guys...
These are my new favorite earrings! I made these from the cherry blossom castings-- the possibilities are endless!
Also new is this dark freshwater pearl necklace.
Here's another variation of my cherry blossom earrings. These have pink tourmaline briolette drops!
These are a gift for a friend. I'm planning on doing another casting soon-- so I can make a pair for myself:)
My aunt in Japan recently saw the Renee Lalique exhibit in Tokyo and she was kind enough to send me the exhibit catalog! I will be posting some of my new ideas soon!
Just about finished with the earrings! All the little granules are fused into place. Here's a picture of the backs. you can see how I repoussed the backs to give the leaves more detail.
Now all that is left is to shape the ear wires! Only have to take a few more pictures and then these will be posted on Etsy for sale!
Above is a pair of repousse leaf earrings. I made a pair of these last summer and I love them! They're total show stoppers and I can't part with them so I would like to make another pair to sell!
Then I have to make many little granulation pieces! These are slightly bigger than grains of sand!
So here are some finished pictures of a few items I gave you a sneak peek of. The mother-of-pearl is hand engraved by me. I then set them, like stones, in fine silver bezels.
Trying to take pictures of mother-of-pearl can be difficult--as you can see the lighting makes a huge difference. Of course, mother-of-pearl looks best when worn-- I love how it's constantly changing colors!
This one has a double strand of tiny white freshwater pearls-- it's really beautiful! I really like the bail that I made on this one!
I have to again thank my aunt Haruko for the wonderful book about cherry blossom designs through out Japanese art history! As you can see--it was very inspiring! Thank you!
Just finished these little mini medallions. They're very sweet and easy to wear. The medallions are hand cast sterling silver-- made from my cherry blossom designs!
I've posted these 2 before-- These are all available for sale now! You can see them at the Shop People Gallery in SE Portland.
I've been playing around with this new engraving idea!
My aunt in Japan sent me a book on Japanese cherry blossom designs and it was very inspiring! You would be impressed to see all the different design variations of the cherry blossom there are in Japanese art history.
Now I'm working on bezels to set them in. I'm also on the hunt for some small stringing pearls-- I have a few new pendants that I think would look great on a dainty strand of pearls!
I haven't decided yet-- but I might set them with some fabulous grey moonstones. One pendant has a repousse bail (left) and the other has a more contemporary bail. I love them both.
This one is one of my new sterling flower charms. Very simple and delicate!
This one is the one I've been wearing! I really like this on a leather band-- nice contrast with the metal! The design is an original design. I have a few more like this--just waiting for more leather to make a few more necklaces.
This idea was passed along to me by a customer! I love the way mother-of-pearl looks and can't wait to make more using it! Above is a piece that I engraved-- its a one-of-a-kind!
I've been busy today and finally finished these wonderful little hoops! These little charms can be easily swapped out for other little charms. These are pink sapphires. I have other pictures of pearl drops and flower medallion charms that can also used, see--Hoop hoop Horay for more pictures:)
Above: Cherry Blossom medallion on a larger pendant back--matching earrings are in the works!
Above: Large blossom pendant--will have matching earrings to come next! 
I've been busy with a few new casting projects and here's some early picture. They still need finishing and some TLC-- but I was so excited about them I had to post a few pictures. I also have some amazingly sweet little blossoms for earrings and will post these next time:) These were all made using Lost Wax Casting technique-- so these are all original and unique.
I can totally see this as a pendant charm or as earrings! The petals are repoussed and the petal details are tiny granulation!
