Spiral Sea Necklace

This shell sat on my desk for about three weeks while I worked out how to wire wrap it without taking away from its natural beauty. I loved the spiral of this shell so I tried to emphasise it with wire curling around it, but it wouldn’t stay put! Finally I worked out that wrapping vertically would not distract from the natural shape and would mean I could attach the shell to a necklace.

I used dark coloured wooden beads and chocolate coloured hemp cord to bring out the dark colouring of the shell. I used copper coloured wire to wrap the shell to add a little colour to the piece and introduced blue glass beads from England to compliment it.

This piece seems very sophisticated to me, with its mix of colours and textures. The dark colours seem to make the blue beads and copper wire sparkle.

This piece is currently available for sale in my store here

Beachcomber Necklace

I made this piece in the same way I made my Sea Gypsy Necklace. As I wasn’t going to sell my Sea Gypsy necklace I figured I could use the same look with this piece of worn shell I found in St. Kitts. It conveniently already had a hole in the top, which made me automatically believe it had to be made into a necklace. I used the pre-existing hole to create a wire shank and added a swirl at tie the piece in with my other work.

As with the Sea Gypsy necklace I gathered together pale hemp cord, wooden and glass beads. I used five strands of hemp to make the main cord, threading the wooden beads from Miami on all five strands. I threaded the glass beads from New York onto a single strand so they nestled between the others partially hidden.

I like the dramatic affect of this necklace – the central piece is chunky and bold, while the hemp is finer, hiding the smaller, more delicate glass beads.

This piece is currently available for sale in my store here

For Liberty!

I’m back on my ship! I thought I’d managed to miss the madness of the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland by staying home for an extra two weeks…. But my flight to the US was still an hour late leaving because air traffic had been moved south into our flight path to avoid the new cloud! Ah well, I got here in the end. My ship is currently out of New York and in tribute here is a New York inspired craft!

Last summer, the cruise ship I was working on was based out of New York. While I was there I designed an outfit that I felt represented the ship , including a necklace. I finally got to create that necklace recently and really like the way it came out. It is a choker made out of blue and turquoise glass beads inspired by the Statue of Liberty. I even got the beads from New York! Nestled in the centre is a crystal bead that catches the light, maybe the light of hope?! What do you think?

This is currently available in my Etsy shop here

When It Rains, It Pours and Sun Bleached Beauty Necklace

Nothing seems to be going right lately. As I have said previously, I’m currently not on my cruise ship as I came home for my Grandmother’s funeral. It all went very well, thank you for asking! However, I’m now stuck at home because of the volcanic ash cloud crisis. “But Joanne, the ash cloud has gone away!” I hear you all cry. Yes, I know, but at the beginning of the week my employer decided it would be safer to keep me at home for two more weeks to save me getting stuck somewhere. This decision and new flight bookings were all made before BA pushed the first flight through! Ah well, more time for crafting I say! And to top it all off, my other Grandmother is now in hospital with a suspected heart attack…. When it rains it pours apparently! To cheer me, and you, up here’s some new crafting…

When I picked up this piece of shell in St. Kitts, battered smooth by the power of the ocean, I knew it had to be made into a necklace. I wire wrapped the top with white coated wire, then chose beads that reflected it’s colouring. I chose a pallet that made me think of wood or bones bleached in the sun on a hot dry beach. I used frosted white glass beads found in New York and pale wooden beads from Miami Florida. I strung the whole thing on pale hemp to give it that washed ashore feel.

I think the neutral colours and simplicity of this piece will work well with many outfits. It is currently available for sale in my store here.

Deep Blue Sea Necklace and Happy Birthday Dad!

I got a little bit of time to myself this weekend, so I overhauled my site and added new items to my Etsy store. Leave a comment to let me know what you think of both!

See my website here

See my store here

And now for some new craftiness...
I found this chunk of shell in Aruba and it reminded me of a pelvis bone ;-) I liked the bleached quality of its colours, but also liked the negative space created by the central column. Rather than combining it with just pale beads I opted to use it as a base to showcase brighter colours… like the blue of the sea where I found it.

The shell is wire-wrapped with blue coated wire. It is accompanied by wooden beads from Miami, Florida and glass beads from New York and Germany. The harmonising sea grass coloured hemp and blue green beads bring the power of the ocean to this piece.

This necklace is currently available in my store here

And finally, it's my Dad's birthday today. So everyone say Happy Birthday to Mr. Donn!!

Sea Gypsy Necklace

This piece I’m keeping for myself! I found the central shell slither on a beach in St. Kitts and knew it had to be made into a necklace. I felt like the Goddess had placed it on the beach just for me ;-)

I gathered together pale hemp thread and wooden beads to begin with, but then I had the thought to use glass beads as well. I wanted to use several strands of hemp to make a thick cord, but it also meant that I could string the smaller glass beads I found in New York onto a single strand. They then fell between the hemp cord, partially hidden, which I really liked.

I wire-wrapped the shell with white coated wire, making quite a chunky top which I liked with the size of the shell piece. I decided to call this piece the Sea Gypsy Necklace as I feel I am a bit of a sea gypsy. I travel around on different oceans seeing different places but never settling. This piece reminds me of the pull of the ocean, the curl of the waves and that for now, the sea is my home.

Don't forget to go check out the Salvaged Mutiny Store that is now open at http://salvagedmutiny.etsy.com

Store Now Open!! and Tiger Fish Bracelet

The Salvaged Mutiny Store is officially open! Visit http://salvagedmutiny.etsy.com to see my items. Buy something, add one to your Etsy favourites or just leave me a comment, I’d love to hear from you!! But now on to another craft for National Craft Month… an item that is currently for sale in my store here!...

While in Burmuda, I visited the Aquarium, Museum and Zoo. I also visited the summer event Harbour Nights where locals played music, offered food and sold their wares. There was a lot of hand made jewellery there and I picked up a lot of good ideas. On the way back to my ship on the ferry I designed a bracelet around one of the fish I saw, the Tiger Fish with its brown and white stripes. I found an ethnic style centrepiece and used a tri-band fastening so I could have three stripes working their way around the bracelet. I think my jewellery making skills are really coming along!