A first foray into pearls...

[Kithplana]

For eight years now I've been making chainmaille jewelry, and for those eight years I've been trying to get over my aversion to using pearls. It's not that I have a problem with pearls; I've just had a problem with pairing satiny pearls against the high polish of the metals I usually work with. Whatever gemstone bead I use is still the star of the show in a maille piece, but I felt the delicious polished silver chain (mmm...) would compete too much with the pearls.

It didn't help that my only pearls were circled potatoes, which have never been to my taste.

So, in the interest of taking baby steps, I started out with pairing some (Swarovski imitation) pearls with titanium, which is naturally far less lustrous than silver... or the Swarovski pearls.



I like how it came out, but I doubt I'll ever do it again. Titanium is a material that work hardens and snaps pretty easily, and creating those wrapped loops is a nightmare when variations in the hardness of the wire from inch to inch are determining your success...

I am working at learning how to pair pearls with shiny, shiny silver. I just haven't done enough experimentation yet. I may need to pick up some akoyas -- for research purposes, you know.

 

[Marianne]

Beautiful work Kithplana! Welcome to PG and thanks for sharing your art. Acquiring pearls for research purposes is quite normal.... well, here anyway

 

[Caitlin]

Keep it up! That is a lovely way to feature pearls!

 

[Adeline Leigh]

Beautiful work Kithplana! Welcome to PG and thanks for sharing your art. Acquiring pearls for research purposes is quite normal.... well, here anyway

LOL, Marianne. I say this to all the newcomers. Slippery slope, Kithplana. But why akoyas? To me their nacre is thinner than the freshwaters. If chainmaille is anything like heavily oxidised silver, I happen to like the latter paired with textured pearls like druzy pearls.

Beautiful chainmaille btw.

 

[Kithplana]

Adeline,

I've never had the opportunity to examine akoyas in person, so I'm hoping the lustre will be more compatible with my usual materials. I tried some lilac freshwaters with some amethyst and stainless steel today -- the result wasn't bad, but the lustre of the pearls and the lustre of the stainless are not harmonic. (No pics yet, I've been struggling recently with my aging camera.) It might be a different story in silver or gold, and soon I will be having some goldfill come my way, so I'll experiment more then.

 

[Katbran]

Well I love the look of sterling and pearls... so I'd love to see the results ... your experiment with the fake pearls turned out great! I think its a wonderful look ! You are obviously very patient...I'd go crazy with all the loops!

 

[Caitlin]

That design is great. I wonder what it would cost done in sterling with decent freshwaters......

 

[Kithplana]

It would be somewhere around $150 in silver, depending on length and such. The smallest rings are only about 2mm wide, so a good part of that is compensation for the madness that comes with working that small It does turn out a beautifully fine chain.

I'll try to get a photo of the latest bracelet this weekend. I'm getting back into the swing of jewelry photography, so maybe this try will turn out better.

 

[Adeline Leigh]

2mm rings!?! And you are handling countless of them in a single design!?! That must be exhausting. And I thought my labour intensive designs were painful enough. Kudos to your persistence. When I work too long on a piece (4-6 hrs) my tailbone aches, my fingers start to tremble and floaters cloud my vision and I'm not even 40 yet. Lol.

 

[Kithplana]

Here's the bracelet I was talking about. I wonder if the lustres would work together any better if the amethyst wasn't there? Sounds like it's time for another experiment.

 

[Marianne]

This is a wonderful combination and a beautiful, balanced design!

 

[Caitlin]

I love pearls and amethysts together- and I adore durable designs with wire. That makes for a combo that has this mouth watering!

 

[Katbran]

I think that it is lovely as it is! I too love Amethyst and pearls together!

 

[Amrita]

I think that it is lovely as it is! I too love Amethyst and pearls together!

I second that! Love your designs and admire all the hard work that must have gone into your elegant creations..

 

[pattye]

Kithplana,

I greatly admire your work! Sorry I missed seeing this last week. The chainmaille is so interesting and such a strong statement; agree with you finding the pearls and gems that please your eye as the designer will be an interesting road to travel!

 

[Kithplana]

I've made a bit of progress on the pearls-and-steel front:

The pearls look creamy white there, but in reality they are a bright white. The spacers are nickel plated brass. Oddly enough, I like this one a lot -- I think it's because the lustre of these freshwaters is fairly soft so it stands on its own against the steel, and even though the colors of the nickel and the steel don't quite match it works out well for me.

My mom also likes this one a lot. I sense a Mother's Day gift coming on...

My next adventure will arrive when my Pearl Paradise order does Plans are for a knotted strand of white freshwaters and another bracelet of black freshwaters, like the above, paired with gold(fill).

 

[pattye]

Lovely! Wish my Mother was still here~I'd love making jewelry for her!

 

[Caitlin]

I am so glad you are featuring these unique and beautiful designs.

 

[Lulu]

Beautiful! I love the combination of chainmaille with pearls!