Simple Linked Materia Bracelet

Need a linked materia option that's also a versatile fashion accessory? This style has you covered! Magic materia plus an Independent materia make for nearly limitless options! (Personally I recommend Mega-All + Master Magic, but y'know, whatever the battle calls for.)

I really, really wanted to get back to chainmaile. For some reason. And I wanted it to be relatively simple, so... I should have picked another project. Oh, it's a simple enough weave, but the gauge of the wire for the rings is quite a bit thicker than I was used to. Combine that with the fact it's nice, sturdy stainless steel and that pretty much makes the easy method of this chain weave completely impossible to achieve. So it took two days. Can't argue with the results, though.

And yeah, I'm more than up for custom pieces/colors/designs. I mean, this was a prototype. And it worked. Yay there.
(Sold.)

A Little Hint of Evil Corporation

Your super soldiers are freaking out, your scientists are nuts, your secret police force are... well who knows what's wrong with them, but it's got to be something serious because one of them has this weird obsession with robot cats and he talks to himself a lot. Like, a lot. But at least you've got this sweet bling. The bling won't cause you any unnecessary moral quandaries.

If not already excessively clear, I'd been wanting to so something with the Shinra logo (from Final Fantasy 7, if you are unfamiliar) for a while now. I had a very large pattern started, pretty much an enormous wrist cuff... but then I considered the possibilities of simplifying to the point where the Shinra logo is actually quite subtle. That seemed almost too simplistic, of course, so I had to come up with a band that wasn't. At all. Me being me, I wanted something very non-traditional and off-center. I mean, it does partly represent Shinra, after all.

As a side note, the sheer amount of stabilizing and reinforcing this design was maybe a little excessive. Then again, I can't classify "actually strong enough to survive 100,000 hair flips or more" as excessive reinforcing. (Sold)

Alfador Pixel Bracelet

A gift for my girlfriend, schalakitty, since she’s kinda into Chrono Trigger or something. It’s the purple cat, Alfador! On a bracelet. Because bracelets. While not technically “pixel perfect”, the minor edits were made as a stylistic choice, and just look at how shiny. Ahem.

Classic Transformers Insignia Bracelet

Well... I just had to do another Transformers-related thing. I still really enjoy the reversible Beast Wars cuff, so I decided to cut that down a little and make a smaller one for the classic Autobot and Decepticon insignias. My hope that the beads would take on two distinctly different properties actually worked out, too! In low and/or indirect light, the insignias are actually relatively subtle. Direct light, though? SPARKLE! It was sort of rubsign-inspired. You remember rubsigns, right..?

1,934 beads. Geez. I also wanted to do a little something different with the actual "bracelet bits", so the chain itself is meant to loop through one side and clasp onto one of the jump rings hanging from the chain. That lets the bracelet to expand from a touch under 6 inches (for the tiny-wristed, like myself) to 9 inches. Options! (Sold.)

Shockwave Bracelet

This may be what happens when I'm staring idly at Transformers while taking a break. Seems dangerous. At least I managed something that is actually simple, right? Relatively, anyway. I wanted to do a simplified version of Shockwave's distinctive "face", then decided that I really wanted a simple band to go along with it. To make that happen, I used some super-thin but reinforced beading thread for the bracelet bits to make sure there was extra strength and stability even with the relatively thin band. Success and shiny!
(For Sale)

Legacy of the Nameless Queens

Well beyond our cultural memory, there was a long line of queens--warriors and scholars, from "proper" and learned to rough and feral--who abandoned their names to take on their country; and with it, a symbol of their status. The Legacy jewels have been stolen, bartered, hidden and, if the stories are true, were once melted down only to miraculously re-form in the hands of a True Queen. Clearly the legends differ from region to region, becoming more grandiose as time passes. The fact remains, however, the Legacy jewels do remain intact, perhaps waiting for their next queen...

As is usually the case, I didn't mean this project to be quite so... extensive. I'd gotten these gorgeous little "slightly imperfect" seraphinite beads a long while back with the intent to do a necklace of some sort, and it seemed like the right time to finally get around to doing that. And that seemed pretty simple, really... then I decided to add just a little bit of extra dimension by making it "not quite flat", which wasn't really a problem. Of course I followed that up by electing to develop a method with would make relatively thin beaded pieces extremely strong while maintaining flexibility and a bit of "stretch", which was more time-consuming than I wanted it to be... then came the thought, "Hey, you know what this needs? Earrings." And. Um. Well. This.

I learned. I learned a lot. As a result, the necklace is flexible and comfortable worn either as a choker or a double-wrap bracelet, and the ear cuffs are surprisingly comfortable even while I was trying them on with glasses. Weird. I'm also quite fond of using the non-pierced rings as the "actual earring portion", because it gives more flexibility to exactly where on the ear they get worn.

(For Sale)

Miss Diana

Miss Diana is all gussied up and ready for a long drive. A long, long, long drive. Well hey, it's for charity!

My first completed Desert Bus for Hope 2014 chocobo! And wow did that take... some time. In extremely massive hindsight, maybe I should have waited until Desert Bus 10 before making a Desert Bus-themed chocobo, but... Desert Bus 8, ∞, infinity and beyond... uh, there was a reason in there somewhere. Not important.

My initial thought had been another armored chocobo, which I was perfectly prepared to do, and then... well. I wanted to change up the legs a little. Changing up the legs kind of required changing up the body type a touch, which I was perfectly okay with since I'd wanted to incorporate various chocobo types. But then that meant changing up the tail and the head/face a little too, and... well, the body became more advanced, so I thought instead of armor (and accidentally making her look far too much like another chocobo I'd already made; they're each individuals) I would just go ahead and make her a little hat. Which was a production in itself, but the Desert Bus for Hope symbol came out decently (and unfortunately looks much better in person) and the hat worked out. I knew that I wanted her to have a sash of some kind, so I just decided to bead one so that I could add an optional expanding section to turn it into either a choker or a double-wrap bracelet for whoever's lucky enough to wind up with this little lady for a companion. Then came the little tail decoration. Because... I'm me and she needed more sparkly.

The result: a fully poseable bus driving chocobo! Her bottom jaw, crest, head, neck, legs, toes, wings and each individual tail feather are all individually wired. And she's just so stylish, too.

She was ultimately sold for $1,300. I'm still recovering.

Baby Jewel Dragon Pendant and Bracelet Set 2/10

Preferred element: earth
Current favorite food: flowers (violets in particular)
Sex: male
Size: 2 inches long, 1.5 inch wingspan

Jewel dragon mothers are the most notorious for gathering a pile of shiny stones with which to circle their nest. Once their clutch starts to hatch, the babies naturally gravitate toward one stone in particular, partially "feeding" from it for the next several months. Here you'll find all you need to care for a baby jewel dragon, should you choose to take one into your home.

Accidentally made an EVA dragon.  2/10 completed.  I sure don't want to say this little guy was any easier than the last one, but at least I've kind of developed a little muscle memory for them now.  Enough.

Funny/tragic: while I was coating the stone with clear enamel, some green dye started to come off on my brush.  (That hadn't happened with the previous stone.)  I was close to being enormously frustrated until I realized that the dye was mixing beautifully with the enamel and of course the effect is impossible to properly photograph, but the green is so very, very GREEN everywhere rather than in just certain places.  It worked out beautifully.  And thanks to the fully cured enamel, there's no worry about the dye running ever again.

(For Sale)