Connie Briscoe's Blog

Like the earrings? Just click the photo above to be taken to my shop where you can check them out. And a whole lot more. ‘Cause if you’re like me, you just can’t leave home without wearing a pair.

My jewelry shop opened today, September 23, 2014. On Etsy. Whew! It’s been a long, challenging, but joyful journey.

I’m offering free shipping all week long. And I’ll be adding new items weekly. So stop by often.

Connie Briscoe Design

All in a day’s work. Looks like all those years I wanted to be a photographer (this was before I became a writer) have finally paid off.

Roman jewelry from 61 A.D., uncovered from a site being excavated beneath a department store 50 miles outside of London. Amazing how long it has lasted. The gold jewelry looks like it just needs to be brushed off and polished. The silver will need more work but seems intact. One thing is for sure, the shoes, bags and clothing that we spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on would never have held up this well, if at all.

The work that goes into making a pair of open hoop earrings… This is what it looks like after I’ve measured and cut the wires (two of four pieces shown below) and bent them into shape with pliers. The reddish clay holds the wires in place while I solder the earring wire to the ear wire (the thinner wire). And that white gooey stuff is there to keep the silver from oxidizing too much under the flame. The big brass object on the right is my torch, probably the most important and most used tool that I have. All I need to do now is light that baby up. One thing I’ve learned about myself when it comes to making jewelry…I love playing with fire!

Kind of messy looking, huh? There’s lots of cleaning and polishing to come after using the torch to get to the results in the photo below. And I’m not done yet. Always trying to make things better.

Sterling silver earrings

Part of my collection of natural stones. Lapis lazuli: prized since ancient times for its deep blue color. Opal: fiery, delicate, precious. Turquoise: ever beautiful and immensely popular. Plus labradorite, petrified wood, azurite and more. Colorful and vibrant cabochons waiting to be set into pendants, rings, and earrings. If only there were more hours in a day!

Slowly easing back into the thick of jewelry-making after a much too-short but very exciting vacation on Martha’s Vineyard. Among many other wonderful moments shopping, sunbathing and hanging out with friends, I met Hillary Clinton when she signed my copy of her new book, Hard Choices. Thought that was a huge deal, until my son strolls into our vacation house and announces that he and some friends met Malia Obama. Okaaay….

Hillary Clinton Book Signing

So, to come down from the heady days of summer, I took some sterling silver beads I’ve long been meaning to use and hand decorated them with stamps to give them a bit more organic, rustic look. Then I put them together with some other beads and wire, creating my own beaded chain. Finally, I added a sterling toggle clasp.

And soon to be on sale in my online shop, perhaps with a bit of tweaking…

Recently off the bench–earrings! A preview of what’s to come.

Sterling silver earrings with gold, amethyst, garnet

Earlier this year I asked my Facebook friends to share their ring sizes. They were most generous; more than 60 people answered the call. The results are below.

Sizes range from a teeny tiny 4.5 to a whopping 11. Seems that sizes 6, 6.5 and 7 are the most popular. There were also sizes 6.75 and 9.75, not included in the chart below.

Obviously, there is nothing scientific about the survey. So don’t quote me. This is all just in fun.

I decided that this gorgeous turquoise gemstone that I bought in Denver would work better as a pendant. I like the earthy, slightly weathered feel of the stamped and riveted silver cuff bracelet. But when I wore it for a few hours (something I sometimes do with a new design, you know, to test), it would catch onto stuff. And you know what they say about design…form follows function. Or working well is just as important as looking good, maybe even more important.

So I removed the cuff–it had been attached to the bezel with a few hidden rivets, which are sort of like nails. I make them by hand, using sterling silver and a few tools. You can see one in the photo above, on the lower right. Luckily, I had not attached the stone permanently and it was easy to remove it, solder a bail onto the backplate (to hold a chain) and replace the turquoise, this time securing it in the bezel. I also added a little more texture around the edges of the backplate.

All this silver and turquoise beauty needs now is a chain or something to hang it from the neck. Lots of choices there–long, short, silver, leather.