Shiny Things Gallery | Necklaces | Other

Other shiny neck things, yay!

Dreaming of Spring

Dreaming of Spring

08 June 2024
Well. I failed the assignment to do something simple with these components, but I did manage to something different and interesting. Also admittedly the actual inspiration for this whole thing was being deeply offended by a necklace that was made of real silver but fake turquoise. Yeah, this'll... show you, probably rich designer who hasn't done your own jewelry making in who knows how many years. ...Lucky.

Anyway. Most of my gratitude for these truly gorgeous materials goes to a friend who traded me shinies for shinies (and leather! and cookies!). It took a long while of staring at the shiny pile before deciding what I wanted to do. Generally I cringe at the idea of just putting things on a string, because I... cannot do something that bores me. So I complicated. Things. But in an interesting way! And I wanted to do earrings again anyway, so. Many many simple things all jumbled together in labradorite, malachite, turquoise and silver. And predictably trying to get all the colors and flash to photograph was very difficult, but additional challenges.

Also I guess there's technically a whole lot of illustrating things I've learned and ways to improve the strength and comfort of supposedly simple things. It's where the complications come from!

Currently available for sale.
Domesticated Rainbow

Domesticated Rainbow

03 November 2020
I just. Needed to use some of these beads that I have coveted for years. But also it has been The Year of 2020 and we need more mf rainbows.

Initially it started with a rainbow 2-hole bead mix and then somewhat exploded from there. Not to mention the "yeah, sure, why not, all the things" decision of jet black and clear crystal AB Swarovsky beads. While I'm not usually too fond of regular strung necklaces for so many reasons, I tried to use a few techniques I'd picked up to make sure the multiple strands could properly distribute the weight, with a few holding knots between heavier sections to make sure nothing would be accidentally pulling the whole thing apart. I'm also very fond of those "prismatic beads" near the center (see the close up photo) because they actually reflect the full spectrum, it's just that trying to photograph them tends to get one color or another. Because of course pictures would be difficult.

Sold.
Distant Shores

Distant Shores

19 October 2020
It draws you in, sometimes. That call from distant shores.

This was a "tinkering project" in the middle of so very many more. I've had this agate pendant for an awfully long time and just pulled it out of a drawer to set on my desk. The little pieces came together slowly: labradorite beads, seraphinite beads, abalone chip beads, acrylic "silver crackle" beads, and silver. I briefly contemplated gold, but... nah.

Generally I'm very happy with the result, but I was using a different clear enamel coating to bring out the color on the pendant and it shows brushstrokes. Guess I'll know for next time. So far so good on the other elements of the enamel test, but. Argh.
(Available for sale.)
Programming Harmony

Programming Harmony

I finally justified the beads I picked up at an antique store! Ahem. Well when I ran across a couple of circuit board pieces encased in resin, I kept digging for a few more things, then set it all aside for a while. Desert Bus for Hope 2019 was apparently just the right time to dig them out again, add a bunch of other things I had to the mix, and come out with this. Even cyberpunk uber-hackers need a little flash, right?

As for the name, the poem All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace by Richard Brautigan had a bit of an impact on me, long long ago when I was just discovering that science fiction had an endless clinging hold on me.

Sold.

Light Remains

Light Remains

29 October 2019
I've tried repeatedly to summarize the person who inspired this, or to put our friendship in simple terms, but I've come to think that's basically impossible. I will simply say that there is a light so bright and sustaining that I feel the need to share it in whatever ways I can.

A personal piece, shall we say. Deeply so; before the greedy bastard called cancer showed up, my friend Zellie was eager to encourage creativity and expression. She made a particular impression when it came to sending me random things to use and be inspired by, and one of those happened to be a collection of beads. The silver and abalone beads, along with the blue AB "crystals", were some of them. I'd been wanting to do something special with them for 9 years, and here finally everything came together.

As for an explanation of the pendant, something about Carbuncle had always reminded by of Zellie. She loved "ocean colors" and enjoyed "adorable monsters", but also Ruby Light and Aura were just... very much her. Sustaining, protecting. Without specific spoilers, when FFXV's Carbuncle and the Platinum Demo came around, it all very much aligned. So I used the abstract shape of Carbuncle which has shown up in official merchandise, and filled it with tiny abalone chips I've had laying around for probably quite a few more than 9 years, matching the necklace band itself. I thought the other beads, some stainless steel chain, and a little stainless steel chainmaile were just the things to finish the piece off.

And for the curious, please do feel free to check out Lightning Spliced by Zellie Blake, her only completed novel. To this day, all profits go to the American Cancer Society.

(For Sale. One half of the profit will be donated directly to the American Cancer Society.)
Neon

Neon

17 January 2019

Yeah, the moment I saw the centerpiece I had to have it. The rest was acquired later. In service to the theme, you know? And, shocker, that theme is 1980s-adjacent.

I just needed to do something different, and the combination of colors was obviously a draw for me. Very bright, very much not subtle, very fun, and as tempted as I am to keep it... well, material world etc.

(For Sale)

Something Else

Something Else

26 April 2018
Prince's "Let's Go Crazy" popped up on random while I was laying out the pieces to start this, and... there could not have been a better time.

I needed a mini-break from building the enormous and all-consuming yearly chocobo, so I picked up a few beads I had laying around, some cord, and one of the gorgeous heated and dyed agate pendants along with a swivel bail so it's easy to show off both sides I've had hoarded for a little bit. A two-day project in the middle of a ???WEEKS??? bout of madness. Yes, good.
(For Sale.)
Unexpected

Unexpected

21 September 2017
Right on the heels of finishing DB11's chocobo (Apocalypse McGillicutty), I decided that I wanted to do something different and simple. I got the first part down, I think. Not that it's overly complicated or anything I haven't done before, but the colors and style are certainly different.

I was mostly focused on using materials I'd been storing and not using for... a long while. The centerpiece is a glass jewel I've had waiting for a use for a couple of years at least, and the pink dyed quartz beads are from far longer ago. The string itself... eh, somewhere between those two extremes. As is the chain. The two glass bead drops at the very bottom are probably from a time even more distant. The clasp itself is gold-plated and... uh, kinda old too. So altogether this was an accomplishment, even if I invested a little more time than I'd planned to. (For Sale)