Rarh, Bird Tribe!

 Bird Tribe is one of the new tribal necklaces that I made for the Shakedown! It's pretty awesome, if I do say so myself. I love those rough-hewn matte tiger's eye tabs. They were a little pricey but I just had to have them! I think they combine really well with the lava and coral. Lava is quickly becoming one of my favorite materials for tribal jewelry because I can go BIG without it being too heavy, although these particular lava beads are only about 6-7mm.

As for the focal, I bought it at the same time that I bought the wicked skull in Souleater. I would like to work more with this sort of pendant, but I probably can't justify buying more until one of these necklaces sell (so hopefully one will before the next gem show). I can't help it, I have expensive taste!

Twee Tweeter

The Woodland Jewelry section of my shop has been a little neglected lately, but I did recently add these adorable Nesting Time earrings. The charms are of course from Green Girl. How cute are they? They even inspired me to break my usual rule of not making matching earrings. Of course, they're close enough to matching.

So the truth is I have a ridiculous amount of Green Girl components. I mean, I use a lot of them, but I buy even more than I use. Each one is just so sweet, I have to have them all! The fantasy-themed ones are of course my favorite, but I like to throw a few sparrows and owls in for those of you who like your jewelry with a bird on it.

Birds of Ereshkigal

The owl skull necklace is on Etsy now, under the hard to type but fun to say name Birds of Ereshkigal. If you would like to see more bird and skull themed necklaces at Handmade Jewelry by Erthe Fae Designs, now is the time to speak up! My supplier should be at the gem show.

I am cautiously optimistic that my plumbing problems will be fixed tomorrow, which would be nice. A friend has been allowing me to use her shower in the meantime, but it's really annoying to have to drive across town just to get clean! In truth, it will probably take a couple of days or more to get them actually fixed, unless our firs plumber was wrong and it's an easier fix than he diagnosed. I just want this hassle behind me so I can focus on more important things -- like the gem show!

Outside my window

This is a picture from way back in December. I was doing housework and I looked out the kitchen window, and there was a bird of prey sitting in the mesquite tree, eating a smaller bird. I snapped a few quick pictures through the window, because I wasn't about to go outside and disturb his/her meal!

Apparently the Harris hawks nest in Reid Park, which is just a few blocks away from my house, so it's not unusual to see them hunting pigeons in our neighborhood. It was surprising to see one enjoying lunch in my yard, however. When I'd previously seen piles of feathers below that tree, I naturally assumed that they were the work of one of the stray cats.

I've also seen a raccoon under the same tree. And someone on the other side of the park from us saw a ring-tailed cat. Javelinas and coyotes also occasionally show up inside the city. This is the reason why I like to keep all my pets indoors -- well, that and the 100 degree heat, which doesn't stop the dogs from wanting to play outside all day.

I made bindis!

I took a break from beading on Wednesday to delve into the world of super-fancy bindis. These are especially popular with tribal and tribal fusion belly dancers, as we have a "too much is probably not quite enough" approach to costuming and accessorization. In fact, I got tips on how to make these from The Gypsy Kiss, a tribal fusion dancer and costumer of whom I am a big fan. If you'd like a bindi of your own, please click that link and shop with her!

My foray into bindi-craft was inspired by the fact that my friend and dance classmate Meghan recently had a birthday, and had mentioned wanting a bindi with a bird skull on it. When going through my supplies, I found a polymer clay bird skull that was sort of small enough to be a bindi, so I knew I had to do it! It's attached to a repurposed filligree earring, accented with an onyx or sardonyx or some other black stone with bits of brown and white.

But first I had to experiement with proper gluing, so I made myself one with the other earring, a long malachite cab, and a tiny vintage green class cab. Pretty! I think it will look great with the striped skirt that I wore to the Renaissance Festival back in February.
You can see from this side view that the skull has a pretty high profile. Hopefully it won't be too big and heavy to stay attached. Meghan loves it, and I think it will look pretty cool with her rat skull hair clip. (yes, we tribal dancers can be a little macabre, too!)

Crow Moon Inspiration

I'm almost done with my Sap Moon bracelet, but I still need to decide just what I'm doing for Crow Moon, the moon I most want to interpret. Last week, my friend Theresa posted this awesome painting called "A Murder of Crows" which I think is the perfect inspiration. The crows look so ominous, and then there's that cardinal, who clearly thinks he's some sort of badass. You should visit Theresa's She Loves Shiny blog to see more of her work and little treasures she has found.

Introducing Daily Specials!

For at least the next week, I'm going to run a series of Daily Specials. For one day only, one or more items will be discounted! Today's Special is the Forest Singers bird earrings. Regularly $40, now $30 until 6pm PST Tuesday. And remember, always free shipping in the US!

Also, the last week of Beading For A Cure auctions is running now. There are some beautiful items sitting there with very low bids, so now is an ideal time to try to buy yourself something special and help a worthy cause.

Be sure to check this blog, my Twitter or my Facebook for tomorrow's Daily Special(s).

It's an owl!

A little sneak preview of another necklace that's awaiting more photographs. I call this one "Athena's Familiar." It features a two-sided owl pendant by Green Girl, some awesome star-shaped cubic zirconium drops, metallic blue Swarovski crystals, and some unidentified nifty stone beads. Plus clear faceted Czech glass beads with Bali-style bead caps. I have a feeling it will be quick to find a new home, what with the fact that owls are pretty trendy right now and this is a unique, and if I do say so myself, pretty wicked kewl necklace.

I took some great pictures of this one on some black pin-striped paper, but that was after the tripod broke and they were all fuzzy. But I do like this reddish-brownish faux-painted paper. I think it makes for a good dark and dramatic background. I'll probably use it for a lot of Goth and Steampunk stuff.

Anyone want to take a stab at identifying the stones, by the way? They're light to dark grey/black, with moonstone-like chatoyancy and slight translucence. I really like them and think I should have bought more. Why do I always do that? I guess it's because I stopped using stone beads for a while, so I didn't want to buy too many, but I just used them in three projects this week, so I guess my muse likes them again.

The Latest From Erthe Fae Designs!

Today marks my return to weekly updates, which will be on Mondays for now. There are four beautiful new items up on my site.

Moonlit Garden -- Pictured above. Black and white leafy-floral necklace strung on chain. I find the design to be very classic, and I cannot count the number of things I've seen in the stores and on-line that would match it perfectly.

Contemplation -- A beautiful spiral rope with a mermaid pendant, accented by a small lampworked bead. Worked in earthy colors instead of the aquatic hues most commonly associated with merfolk.

Faded Light -- Crystal bracelet in a light golden hue. Very subdued, and a nice compliment for several other items already on my site.

Forest Singers -- Earrings with lampwork beads, crystals, and the cutest little bird charms.

Tomorrow I'll discuss the inspiration behind my recent work.