briolette – dianne karg baron

YOJ11-06 More Butterflies :)

Posted on February 11, 2011February 19, 2011 by dianne

Fluttering Butterflies (2011)
Sterling silver, aquamarine
Formed, flame-worked, cold-joined
L 4.8 cm x W 1.9 cm

This week has been very satisfying, both in terms of the pieces I’ve made and the quantity of work I was able to produce. On top of it all, I had fun!

Early in the week, I was still thinking about butterflies and how they flitter and loop around each other. That lead to this pair of earrings, and a matching pendant (not shown). With our local temperatures here still below normal, spring really cannot come too soon.

I’ll be happy to see real butterflies again.

Butterfly Drop Earrings (2011)
Sterling silver, aquamarine
Formed, flame-worked, cold-joined
L 3.8 cm x W 1.0 cm

Last year, as part of the Marquise Series, I made an earring with drops that were interchangeable. I continued that thought with these butterfly drops – the briolette can be removed and exchanged for a different drop, or can be worn plain.

The rest of the week has been devoted to other production pieces, and I’m pleased to be in a good groove!

YOJ09-41 Goddess Jewels

Posted on November 23, 2009February 23, 2021 by dianne

Goddess Jewels (2009)
Constructed, cold joined
Sterling silver, Preciosa crystal

The opening of the Metal Arts Guild of Canada exhibition “MAGC 2067 – Crafting the Future”, held on November 7 at Arta Gallery in Toronto, was a costume ball. In connection with the theme of the show, people were encouraged to dress up in character.

I originally planned to wear a costume, but then, in the week before the opening, the issue I had been dealing with in my personal life came to a head. Although able to attend, I didn’t have the emotional or physical energy to dress up.

My character was “an acolyte of the Goddess” – a jewellery maker for a matriarchal society devoted to worshiping a Gaia-centred deity. As part of the costume, I made a couple of “Goddess Jewels”. These are very loosely based on Bajoran earrings, of Star Trek fame. My version has a chain of handmade spirals, two Preciosa crystal drops, because I love dangles and sparklies, and is worn via an earcuff on the centre of the ear, and a spiral earwire through the lobe.

I used to wear these a lot, and had forgotten how much fun they are. It’s been several years since I made one. Usually only worn on the left side, this time I wanted the pair. Someone took this photo of me at the opening, where you can see one of them. The whole set of photos from the show is worth a peek.

YOJ09-40 Knotted Tourmaline Earrings

Posted on November 22, 2009 by dianne

Knotted Tourmaline Earrings (2009)
Constructed, cold joined
Sterling silver, fine silver, tourmaline

Recently members of the Starving Artists Etsy Team did a critique of my Etsy shop. One of the comments that came up a couple of times was that my descriptions tend to be a bit on the sparse side. I generally give information about the piece, what it’s made of, basic sizing, etc., but only rarely is there a “story”.

My reply to one of the ladies who asked me about this was “Well, sometimes the design is the result of nothing more than “I had this idea and decided to play around with it.” ”

The truth is that I just have no talent for writing bullshit. What I write has to feel authentic, otherwise it doesn’t work for me. Hmmm…. maybe I need to look into a creative writing course…

Anyways… I was playing around with some scraps of wire left over from working on my Clip-on Earrings tutorial. I tied the wire up in a small knot – not quite as tight as I would have liked, but it worked. I have a “thing” about dangles, so I added these little tourmalines. I love the vibrant pink – they’re just juicy! The result is a cute pair of earrings that works for everyday wear.

The SATeam critique did confirm one thing: my photography is pretty good. It never stops surprising me how much time it takes to get the photography done. Nowadays, I’m not only doing photos for my regular record keeping; I’m also doing set up for Etsy. “Product” photography is different from jury photography – attention must be paid to angles, and multiple positions. A lot of people on Etsy photograph on elaborate backgrounds. I have yet to find one that works for me, so I’m still working with the “jurying grey”.

Photographing studs is difficult at the best of times, but these earrings were particularly challenging. There was just no good way of laying them nicely to get a straight-on shot. Finally, I decided to cut a upright display card out of an old layout board and poke holes in it. Voilà! It worked!

Other views:

YOJ09-17 Chalcedony Effervescence Pendant

Posted on April 26, 2009 by dianne

Chalcedony Effervescence Pendant (2009)
Sterling silver, fine silver, chalcedony
L 3.0 cm x W 1.2 cm
Cold connected, flame worked

I went to the Toronto Gem Show today – and I was by myself!! Woo hoo! That meant I had the freedom to be able to browse, and chat with friends, and to shop. I was looking for some things for my upcoming classes at Haliburton, but in the end decided that what I’ve found online is still a better bargain. But… I couldn’t resist a strand of chalcedony brios I came across. In a table full of stuff that looked like it was dyed, I found one package that had a beautiful opalescent glow. So, despite being on a buying moratorium for the past three years, I decided those beads had to come home with me. Even the sales lady commented about the package, saying that if I hadn’t bought it when I did, it wouldn’t have been around later – someone would have snapped it up.

Tonight I picked out one of the beads, and made this little pendant. It looks somewhat similar to the pendant I made in Week 8, so I’ve giving it a similar name.

More photos:

Zilberschmuck Retrospective April 19-May 30, 2009, at Shao Design, Toronto

Posted on March 20, 2009 by dianne

Tag Archives: briolette