Back for 2011

Well, a slightly belated "Happy New Year" to you. Now that it's mid January, I guess I really should take down my Christmas tree.

I've been working on upgrading and updating my websites these last couple of weeks. Wow, websites are going to be the death of me for sure. As a temporary measure, I have built one of those free websites that are quite easy to deal with while I try and decipher Joomla. Oh my head hurts just thinking about it! Please have a look at the new site here and let me know what you think. Once I get my head around the whole uploading and hosting stuff, hopefully, it will run smoothly, un like the current sites which give me constant grief. I know, you're wondering why I have such problems....well, it's a long story, the short version of which is that I had a lovely lady doing my site building and maintanence. She did a great job, but moved away and due to her explanding business was unable to continue with me. She assured me Joomla was easy and that I could maintain it myself......she overestimated me and now I'm in this pickle. 

The studio is coming along quite well, still a lot to do but it's certainly getting there. We now have bathroom walls and a floor! It's starting to look good, I can't wait.

Workshop Tip:

  When I'm finished using my saw-frame, should I take the blade out or leave it in?

I get asked this fairly often and I have come across many forum discussions about it with both options being pretty evenly recommended. So, I'll put my two cents worth in here and give you my opinion.

Definately leave it in... You'll notice that if you take a blade out of the frame that you have been using for a while, it will have a big bend in it. While the blade is in the frame, it stays straight due to the tension, but it warps once the tension is gone for any length of time. Now, if you put that warped blade back in the frame to use it again it never seems to get back into its right shape and you will find that although the blade looks straight in the frame and "pings" the way it should, your cuts will go off to one side. You'll think you're just having a bad cutting day, but really, it's your blade that just got too used to being relaxed (kinda like us when we get back from holidays!)

Speaking of holidays, we had a great Christmas. As usual we totally pigged out on oysters.

Who pinched the one in the middle???

 

And here's one of my latest jobs, a remodel of an emerald engagement ring.

My client had a traditional claw-set cluster engagement ring with a plain wedding band against it, but wanted to remodel it into something more modern that combined the two rings into one. Protecting the emerald was a big factor as they are quite fragile. I used her original gold, diamonds and gemstones and added a new baguette diamond on the side of the bezel, creating a "secret window" as an quirky design feature.

Thanks for visiting. 

This year I promise to blog more often!! 

Tracy

Getting There......

It's been a busy few weeks with preparations for Grafton Artsfest, which is just a week away. Hard to believe it's been a year since the last one. It's always a pleasure to come up with new projects, the problem for me is that once I start, my mind starts off on its own little track and I end up with notes and scribbles that I then have to decipher later on. My bench is a mess, but that's nothing new, and my partner says it's like living in Santa's workshop, with the tap tap tap of tiny hammers going on all day. 

A lovely Artsfest student, and now friend, Sally, was recently married and I made a lovely ring for her which we designed together. Not your traditional engagement and wedding ring, Sally chose a single ring, which is becoming more popular. It's a lovely design with sapphires and diamonds and with Sally's gorgeous slim hands, it looked just stunning.

And here's another ring I have made recently, an 18ct diamond engagement ring.

The studio is really coming along now. Still doesn't look much, but lots of structural work has been done. I'm so excited and just can't wait for our first class. Right now though, Grafton is my main focus and I'm just finishing up the project instruction folders and making plenty of lists so I don't forget anything! Problem is, I need a list to keep track of my lists....

Well, back to the bench for me. Still plenty to keep me busy. As busy as I am, I'm enojoying it. I was chatting with a jeweller friend the other day, who had just sent me a photo of a ring she had remodelled. She had used a particular technique she hadn't used in some time and we were discussing how great it is that after years of 'doing what we do' it's still so much fun. There's always something to remember, learn or create - always another direction you can take it to keep it interesting. 

I'll leave you with a "before" photo of the studio. Like I said, it doesn't look much now but just wait..... 

Book Review - The King & Dr. Nick

I'm an avid reader and always have a book on the go. I'm particularly into crime fiction but I do stray to other genres from time to time. Anyway, my love for reading led me to BookSneeze. They have a range of books to choose from, which they will send you FREE (that's right, free.....don't get much for free anymore huh!) so long as you agree to review it on your blog and a commercial site that sells the book. Now that sounds like a bargain to me. So, here's my review of The King and Dr. Nick.....written by Dr. George Nichopoulas, Elvis Presley's personal physician.