Back to the pitch and some added mask mania

Line work on the two mask profiles.

For those of you who are not in the know, I am first a metal artist and then jewelry artist and while I do keep working on my art, I spend most of my time designing and creating jewelry, using all the techniques I learnt as a metal artist. I use most of what I learned not all and repousse` is one such technique that I rarely use any more. That is un-till I saw a piece by a Laurie Jane Kern on her blog The Adventurous Silversmith. She had made the most gorgeous Cuff which she had named 'The Calamari Cuff' It was a gorgeous piece in silver with detailed repousse and some very smart patina finish. Looking at all of her pictures and the way she had created the relief on the cuff reminded me of my college days and how much I used to love working with copper repousse often creating specialized tools for the required project in hand! ( Our professor was quite the tough task master when it came to hand crafting each tool something that I will forever be grateful to him for it has really made me appreciate a well made tool and the benefits of being able to create one by myself :)

Now you might wonder why a Mask for the design element that is because I have a very old relationship with the subject of masks. You see my final year dissertation subject was mask and masking traditions around the world, so I simply could not resist combining the two passions! 

Mask Cuff
©2012 Nayna Studios™

Although not very detailed these faces took me back ten year when all did sleeping waking talking was think masks ! Heck I had the mask mania so bad I even had my friends hunting for material for my research :P
Well this little piece turned out very well including soldering the edges perfectly :)

Mask Cuff
©2012 Nayna Studios™

Blue Nile necklace

Blue Nile necklace
Blue agate, Oxidized copper
©2012 Nayna Studios™

Have you seen a kid in a candy store with those wide eyes and dazed look? Well that is exactly what happens to me every time I go into  my favourite bead shop :) The last time I was there I managed to get a bag full of agates in various sizes and shapes ( did I mention that dazed look ?  I never take the time to figure out what exactly I am going to be creating with the particular stone, so I pretty much have had this blue agate with me for more than six months. Of course storing beads and stones is not a problem as that simply gives me a chance to buy  more bead storage boxes! 

But that is a story for another day. Recently as I was rumaging through my stone collection I came upon this piece and inspiration struck! A lovely blue agate with some black matrix( viens) running through it.

A close up of the chain maille

A close up of the bezel set blue agate and repousse pendant.

For the longest time I had been wanting to use some chain maille on a necklace and I finally got a chance to do that ! The pendant itself is repousse` with some texturing and the chain maille in byzantine chain maille.