Salmon Skin Leather and Other Assorted Projects

I don't know if you remember me posting this photo of the salmon skin leather I picked up in Chile on my South America trip. It looked rather delicious in a design kind of way not the eating kind of way although I am known to fry up smoked salmon skin in lieu of bacon at times.

Actually I was still recovering from the attack of the picoroco barnacles (something scary I et whilst in Chile) when I spied this at an artisan shop.

Anyhow I finally got around to trying some out today, just simply cutting out the shapes and punching a hole in the leather.  Someone asked me what they smell like and they really just smell like leather to me.

I just found these components laying about the house for some reason. They had sari silk tied to them that just wasn't doing it for me so they were prime candidates for some experimentation.

You probably have seen this bracelet before but I finally finished it. 

I have a thing about making bracelets... I don't really like to. 

It's the sizing that does me in when I add the clasp and no matter how I think I have estimated the size it never quite is what I think it's going to be when I finish it. This one however has many possible links to clasp to. That's a Kristi Bowman focal piece and one Scorched Earth ceramic link along with my two beads.

Yes, this one is for someone with a bigger wrist than mine...which isn't that unreasonable since mine are on the tiny side. This was formerly a necklace but those don't seem to be selling much these days and my style has changed a bit since the necklace was made. Hopefully it's new incarnation will attract someone.

I got this idea from Fanciful Devices on graduating rings...no not a graduation ring!

There's a couple of Petra's ceramic connectors, a jade ring, some fused bottle pieces and a typewriter part as well as a relic artifact metal ring.

OK, I'd better post another pic so's you can see the parts better.

Well, sorta better

And since I had stuff I needed to get done to prepare for a trunk show tomorrow I decided to do dishes and make earrings. Funny how procrasterbation works.

sporty dangly matchsticks

It feels good to be making things again back here in Alaska although spring disappeared and winter came back. We might even go ice fishing this weekend. Crazy weather!

torch fired enamel - the only reason the twisted rings are wired is that I can't figure how to keep the jump rings closed. I think the wire works as a design element as a result ...so cool on that

Some new delishes in the shop... and I got a new load of glass just waiting for me until the Garaj Mahal studio warms up enough to work in again.

Mini criffles. The glass looks so different before I crustify it at the torch.

This is the same criffles held up to the light. Pay no attention to that dirty thumbnail!

And these I didn't want to put in the shop

until I took this photograph

These are new mini criffles in my shop too.

These got snatched up pretty quickly, what do you think?

I called them kaleidoscope unicorn horns.

And wrapping it up  here...

My friend just graduated with a construction certificate thru the University of Alaska.

This is the beadwork his mother did on the vest he wore for the ceremony.

I'm pretty proud of him for he's had a hard row to hoe for a long time.

Don't you love my Nancy Reagan gaze?

And now "How Max Paid the Rent"

Sorry it's not a cool gif