my first Blurb Book!

Click on the box on the right hand side of my blog to check out my first Blurb Book! The book is all about my luggage tag and key ring production line. It describes the product and my inspiration through pictures and text. I am so excited and can't wait for it to come in the mail! It says the estimated shipping date is December 8th though. :(
So far away...

Pretty Fungus

The first 3 are from my own backyard!!

Ring Maquettes

For my ring that's going to be made from silver tubing, I was thinking about using the draw plate to help make my tubing more oval-shaped than round. Then I wanted to slice it up thinly and solder the pieces together to mimic the pattern created by one of the slime molds that I saw wrapped around a branch. My idea is for these little silver oval pieces to actually wrap around two fingers creating a double finger ring. I got my inspiration from the red mold below.



This is a maquette I made out of straws worn two different ways:









For my ring that's going to be made out of sheet, I want to pierce out the form that originally got me interested in mold. It is the particular picture of slime mold (blue) below that I tried to replicate when I did my cement, polyurethane and plaster slime mold brooches back in April. I want the actual ring to be pierced a lot more than this, however this was difficult replicate with scissors on paper. I love the way mold grows in an uninhibited way. Nothing can get in it's way and it is quick to branch out in all directions. So I want the mold to be wrapped around the pointer finger and then creeping up the hand.







For my ring that's going to be made out of wire, I want to work with 18 gauge silver wire. I want to cut pieces of different lengths that will wrap around the finger and then flare inwards and outwards to keep the ring attached to the finger. I want to ball up the ends of each piece of wire, put the all together in a bundle, and solder them together where the underside of the ring will be. I got inspired to make this ring by looking at the photo of mold below. I like the way it seems to sprout off of the branches and I want the silver wire to mimic this and look like it is sprouting off of and in between the fingers.








For my ring that's going to be made out of stock, I have been inspired to create something that looks similar to these photos of Jelly Fungus wrapped around a branch. I want to hammer the stock to create a simple band ring that wraps around the finger without connecting and has organic edges and a hammer texture. Around the ring I want to solder pieces of stock that have been hammered into sheets and scrunched up to look like the jelly fungus on this tree.

This image is pretty much what I want my ring to look like:

More Mold

For our next project in Jewelry III, we have been instructed to make 4 rings, one out of each of the following materials - sheet metal, tubing, wire, and stock. This entire semester I've felt so uninspired and nothing has been sparking my creativity. So, I decided to go back to something that had excited me in the past - slime mold. I've been looking at all kinds of mold now as a result and trying to base my ring designs off of the images i've collected.

These are some of the mold images that I liked the most:

green chandeliers

I grew up in an old Victorian style house in New Orleans that was filled with huge crystal chandeliers so ever since I was little I have been attracted to them. In school we have been researching and looking at lots of eco-friendly objects so my eye has been jumping to any kind of green design I see. I came across these chandeliers that were eye-catching and beautiful and green at the same time!


This chandelier is made by Studio Verissimo out of recycled coffee stirrers.



This one is made by Michelle Brand. She cut the bottom off of plastic bottles to craft this.


Although this one isn't sparkly, I still love the feeling it gives off. It's not glitzy, but very soothing. It's made Julia Lohmann from dried Irish and Japanese kelp.

My Felt Luggage Tags!

So my felt luggage tags finally came in the mail yesterday! Although they don't smell too hot at the moment, they sure do look great! Each leaf has been laser cut and has the name of the leaf etched on.

Below is what I typed up on a piece of paper that explains what my project is about. Each description is folded and goes inside the packaging, which happen to look like mini suitcases! The packaging is stamped with a fleur de lis, representative of New Orleans, and has stamped on it reNew Orleans.


one side reads:

reNew Orleans
a simple concept for a complicated time

Initially created weeks after Hurricane Katrina swept through New Orleans, the reNew Orleans slogan became a rallying cry for thousands of displaced citizens as they struggled to rebuild their city.

Ropeadope Records relaunched the campaign to reach more people in need by partnering with three key non-profit organizations in New Orleans - Replant New Orleans for environmental help, Common Ground for rebuilding efforts and the Tipitina's Foundation for musicians' support.

Part of the Proceeds from the sale of these luggage tags and key rings will be donated to reNew Orleans.


the other side reads:

Fleur de Leaf Designs:
Luggage Tags and Key Rings

Some of the trees heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana included the:

Red Maple, Southern Magnolia, Southern Catalpa, Slippery Elm, Live Oak, and Water Locust.

The leaves from these trees are beautifully represented as luggage tags and key rings. Made from a renewable resource - eco-friendly 100% wool felt - they are durable and can withstand the elements, yet eye-catching enough to help you navigate your way quickly through baggage claim or just through your pocketbook.

Interesting Rings