Sharilyn Miller

Blog update: Wild Wire Women retreat signups

2012-01-18T15:02:00.000-08:00

I can't believe this much time has gone by since my last post! Yikes, and I meant to do so much better this year than last with regular blogging. Well, since I last wrote, a lot has happened:
• I turned 51 (and I feel great about it!).
• I'm in conversation with the folks at Interweave Press about producing another wire and metal-arts book (very excited about this).
• All of my dad's medical test results have come back A-OK, and he's 91 now... no heart disease, no cancer, no nuthin! That's something to celebrate.
• Downton Abbey got its well-deserved Golden Globe for best TV miniseries, good for them! LOVE that show, love it, love it! The new season is fantastic.
• A sweet friend of mine who has been very ill for the past several months passed away this morning. I'm sad to see her go, but I know that she is pain-free now and with Jesus in Heaven, where she has always longed to be. I'm happy for her, actually, but also praying with concern for her family who will miss her terribly.
• I saw The Iron Lady and was bowled over by Meryl Streep's phenomenal performance. The movie itself was just OK; a little slow, and a bit depressing!
• Four ladies have signed up for my March 22-26, 2012 Wild Wire Women retreat and two more have expressed strong interest. That means there are only two openings available for this date. Spring is a wonderful time to visit Idyllwild and enjoy the daffodils and other springtime flowers while avoiding the heat of summer. If you're interested in joining us, we'll be exploring:
• Wirework including beginning to intermediate techniques that can be used in many different jewelry designs...
• Metalsmithing basics including designing and cutting out metal shapes with shears and a jeweler's saw, forging and shaping, texturing with hammers, punches, stamps, and more, riveting, and (time permitting) some etching too!
• Introduction to torch-fire enameling including headpins, cutout metal shapes, and wire cage beads (pictured above).
Naturally we'll also do some jewelry photography, make our own headpins, design and finish original jewelry pieces, eat lots of great food, and have a terrific time. I'm really looking forward to it. For more information on my Wild Wire Women retreats, click here.
To email me for information, click here.
Hope to see you in Idyllwild this year!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Contemporary Copper Jewelry book & DVD download

2012-01-10T11:04:00.000-08:00

My recent book, Contemporary Copper Jewelry, is now available as a digital download (eBook) with instructional video for the terrific low price of just $19.95!
I can't imagine how the publisher does it, but it's great good news for anyone who is trying to clear her shelves of books and fill up her computer with downloads instead. That it also includes the instruction from the DVD packaged with the book makes this a really terrific deal.
To read more about it, click here: CCJ eBook with video download

And, as mentioned in my previous post, my newest book Wire Art Jewelry Workshop with DVD is also available as a digital download (eBook) with video download, both for just $19.95.
Amazing.
Here's the link: WAJ eBook with video download
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

New eBook & Video combo!

2012-01-03T11:07:00.000-08:00

I just discovered that my publisher, Interweave Press, has launched an eBook version of Wire Art Jewelry Workshop packaged with a video download! You can order both for just $19.95; I think that's a real bargain.
To read more about this offer, click here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn
p.s. And congratulations to my dad, for today is his 91st birthday! He's in good health and very happily living independently with my mom in their cherished mountain home.
We are grateful for so many things this year...

Happy New Year 2012!

2012-01-01T09:00:00.000-08:00

I just want to wish everyone a very happy, healthy, and creative year in 2012. We've been through some stressful times and there may be a bit more to come, but I believe that we have hope for a turnaround in this country if we all work together and help each other through it.
One thing that I started doing in the past few months is to make a conscious effort to buy goods that are made in the USA—whenever possible. I also shopped locally (in my small town of Idyllwild, California) for Christmas presents last December. I'm ashamed to say that I have never done this before, and I've lived in this town for five and a half years!
In 2012 I intend to take even more care with my purchases and look for a "made in the USA" label on everything I buy. This isn't always possible of course, because so many of our goods are made in other countries, especially China. But, we can all try this and purchase American-made products over foreign-made items of comparable value. I'm also keeping an eye out for handmade items, and hope to support local artists (as my budget allows!) by purchasing their small art pieces.
Since we are all coming out of a recession, perhaps we might consider offering budget-friendly items to our customers. I have a rep in the Dallas area who sells my handmade jewelry for rather high prices, which is great of course, but I'm going to be making more earrings and small pins and things of this nature for her, which will be more affordable for everyone.
If we all made a resolution this year to purchase just one piece of handmade art or craft made in the USA, imagine the impact that would have! I'm excited about the possibilities...
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Happy Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T23:37:00.000-08:00

A very happy Christmas to one and all!
It's become an annual tradition for me to create a new necklace for my mother around this time of year, so I thought I'd share my latest creation with you. It was made with lots and lots of sterling silver wire, which is pretty amazing since silver has gone up so much over the years (I haven't purchased silver wire since it was $7 a troy ounce!). Most of the time I use copper wire, which I like nearly as much as silver.
The necklace also features some beautiful raku-fired ceramic beads purchased last March in Santa Fe, a glass focal bead and some of my own enameled cage beads.
Enjoy!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Wild Wire Women Retreat 2012 Dates Posted!

2011-12-17T13:28:00.000-08:00

I just posted new dates for the Spring 2012 session of workshop retreats in my Idyllwild, California studio:

March 22-26

April 19-23

April 26-30

May 3-7

May 10-14

May 17-21

May 24-28

If you've always wanted to come out for a Wild Wire Women retreat, the spring of 2012 is the ideal time to do it!

I'm now offering a wide variety of workshops in wire jewelry design & craftsmanship, metalsmithing techniques, torch-fired and kiln-fired enameling, form folding, etching, and more. Come and learn the latest techniques in very small classes (limited to six adult females) from an artist with over a decade of experience in jewelry making with wire, metal, and beads.

The fee of $825 includes:

Three very full days of workshop instruction in small class sizes

Workshop handouts

All materials (with the exception of beads) such as copper wire and sheet, enamels, etc.

Four nights shared accommodation in my beautiful mountain home

Welcome wine & cheese reception followed by dinner at Cafe Aroma

Four big breakfasts and three delicious lunches, beverages & snacks

All FOUR of my instructional DVDs, a $120 retail value!

24-hour access to the studio and its vast library of books & periodicals

The fee does not include transportation to/from Idyllwild (out-of-area students usually rent a car) or three dinners (Friday-Sunday nights); Idyllwild boasts a variety of terrific restaurants for you to try, suited for all budgets and tastes.

I hope to see you in Idyllwild soon. More information can be found at this blog:

http://wildwirewomenretreats.blogspot.com

Or feel free to email me, anytime:

SharilynMiller@mac.com

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

Wild Wire Women Retreat: Day 3

2011-12-04T21:48:00.000-08:00

It's the end of Day 3 for us, and, as always a bittersweet feeling accompanies the last supper, the last sip of Tuaca, the last laughs of a weekend filled with fond memories and much laughter. We also made lots of jewelry and learned many new techniques in wirework and torch-fired enamel jewelry making.
The picture above shows the bracelets we made during the Silver Sampler Bracelet workshop—obviously we used copper wire!—which included a variety of techniques: hook & eye clasps, coil-wrapped beads, tapered worm beads, heart links, twisted wire jump rings, and more. It's an intensive, full-day workshop, but we also managed to fit in...

...torch-fired enamel jewelry, including enameled headpins and multicolored cage beads! What a blast. I mean this literally, because we had to open the windows to the studio to let in some fresh air, and it came in with a blast! We're having some very cold weather just now. But what fun to form our own cage beads with heavy-gauge wire and roll them in a variety of different colored enamels, torch-fire them, and enjoy our own creativity.
This project is also featured in my latest book, Arty Jewelry IV.
I am so proud of my students, who were fearlessly creative and threw themselves into their arty explorations with such abandon! And they made some truly gorgeous jewelry. What nice ladies they are, too. I will miss them very much!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Wild Wire Women Retreat: Day 2

2011-12-03T23:40:00.000-08:00

Day Two was very productive for all of us, as you can see by the photo above featuring the treasure-trove of jewelry we made! Pins and pendants with wire embellishment, knotless netting, beads & pearls, and lots of creativity...

I was thrilled to capture this photo of Kellie, actually filing a piece of jewelry she made. She likes to tell people that she never files her wire jewelry, but she does, and I've got the photo to prove it!

Kellie also has a store and she teaches tons of classes. Visit her Web site here: http://www.kelliesbeadboutique.com

Above you can see a closeup photo of Kellie's beautiful wire embellished pendant. A similar piece that I call the Silver Swirl Stick Pin is featured in my latest book, Arty Jewelry IV.

Here's a picture of Susan, proudly holding up her finished knotless-netted pendant...

And Stephanie, displaying her beautiful pendant as well.

The photo above shows just how talented Stephanie is: She not only made a gorgeous wire stick-pin, she also designed and made the lampwork bead (embellished with a starfish) adorning it. And here's good news: She sells her beads! Check out her Web site here: http://www.stephaniebeads.com

Ivy played lounge lady while we all worked really hard all day!

Amongst many other techniques explored in class today, Susan tried her hand at torch-fired enameling. She's now addicted to making her own enameled headpins (as am I).

The photo above shows all three pendants made today with knotless netting. Great job, ladies!

And here is Susan's stick pin which can also be worn as a pendant. I'm so proud of my students.

Stephanie had a little time on her hands this afternoon, so she made a second stick pin. The incredible lampwork bead you see here is her own creation.

After a long day working in the studio, we all went out to dinner at Arriba's Mexican Restaurant. Some of us started with a generous bowl of Abundigas soup.

Stephanie's about to dig into an enormous plate of yummyness!

And look at that grilled burrito... I ate half of it and that's the best I could do.

We returned home rather late, but naturally we had to finish off our adventures with another jewelry photography session. This time I gave the photo styling over to Stephanie, who did a fantastic job, don't you think?
Be sure to tune in tomorrow for Day 3 of our Wild Wire Women retreat!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Wild Wire Women Retreat: Day 1

2011-12-02T19:52:00.000-08:00

Day One of our Wild Wire Women retreat has come to an end, and above you can see the fruit of our labors: Metallo del Fiore bangle bracelets made with sheet metal, wire, vintage buttons, and beads. We had way too much fun today!

Here are my three students, clockwise from left: Kellie and Stephanie (from B.C. Canada) and Susan (from California). They look happy and energetic... that's because I took this photo first thing in the morning.

We started with a demonstration on how to design and create motifs suitable for sheet-metal pieces to incorporate into a bangle bracelet. After making several sketches (hearts, flowers, leaves, sea motifs, and more), we transferred our designs to the metal with a Sharpie pen.

Here you can see Stephanie sawing out a small hole in the center of her floral motif.

Here's Susan, sawing away!

After we sawed out our pieces and filed and polished the edges, we used a Dremel engraver to create lovely designs on the surface. Then we hammer-textured our metal pieces with various hammers and used metal stamps and daps as well as dimpling pliers to add fun designs.

Above you can see our finished metal motifs, ready to be attached to bangle bracelets.

Susan was thrilled with her finished bracelet!

After using patina on our bracelets (liver of sulfur) and polishing them, we headed upstairs for a lesson in jewelry photography.

We all made some fun, funky clasps for our bangles and it was important that we get good photos of them for future reference.

After a very full day in the workshop, it was time to head out for dinner at the Hidden Village Chinese restaurant, a local favorite. Here you can see Stephanie and Susan, champing at the bit!

And yet one more photo of Kellie, taking a portion of Sweet & Sour Pork... we all tried some of everything, and it was hard to decide which dish was our favorite. After working hard all day on jewelry, we had developed a big appetite!
The bracelet we made today is just one of nine projects featured in my latest book, Arty Jewelry IV, currently available as a printed full-color book via www.blurb.com. If you'd like to see a preview of the contents, click here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

2011-11-24T09:16:00.000-08:00

Here is my wish for everyone to have a lovely Thanksgiving holiday today, with peace and joyful times spent with family and friends. I'm making a list of all the things I'm thankful for this year, and it is a very long list! Although this past year has been tough, I have much to be thankful for.
1. My parents are in good health, and we see each other regularly and have a great friendship.
2. I turned 50 this year and I continue to enjoy good health.
3. My friends... so many true, loyal friends! I love them all so much.
4. The gift of creativity: what would I do without it? I wouldn't even be myself if I wasn't creative.
5. My beautiful home in Idyllwild.
The list goes on from there, but those are my top-five. I wish all of you much joy in the coming year, and many happy hours creating beautiful things with your hands.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Sharilyn

Finished: Two Wire-Woven Antique Dollies!

2011-11-20T16:43:00.000-08:00

At long last, I can post photos of my two finished Antique Dolly Pendants! I just finished them last night. The doll on the left was from a workshop that I taught on 11-11-11 at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert. The one on the right is actually the very first doll pendant I taught, back in August the weekend before I departed for Cortona, Italy (where I taught this workshop yet again!).

Pictured above is Marsha, my friend and neighboring jewelry artist who lives up here in Idyllwild. She's working on her doll... not sure if she's finished it yet!

And here's my dear friend Pene, who lives part-time in the desert. She brought lots of copper wire from the hardware store, which is one of the things that makes this workshop so great: You don't need expensive materials to make an Antique Dolly Pendant.

Two more happy students, hard at work on their creations, are pictured above.

Just before lunch I'd made decent progress on my doll (pictured on the left) with inspiration from my sample piece (pictured on the right).

In the picture above you can see that another student has made progress on her pendant.

She seems happy about it!

One of the gals decided to turn her doll into a mermaid. It's easy enough to do, just takes some creativity with wire!

Another happy student, concentrating on her sterling-silver wire doll.

And finally, a close-up of my finished doll, which I like to call Butterfly Girl because she has some cute wire wings. I love teaching this workshop, it's so much fun! I'm sure to be teaching it again soon, and I hope that you can join me in a class someday.
If you can't make it to a live workshop, I have stepped-out the pendant in detail with lots of great photos in my latest book, Arty Jewelry IV. Right now it's only available on www.blurb.com, but you can get $10 off your order by typing in the code BIGTEN at check-out. Or, save 15 percent off your entire order by using the code HOLIDAY. These codes are good through 11-30-11, so take advantage of them today!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

More Enameled Cage Beads

2011-11-14T16:13:00.000-08:00

A friend who follows my blog recently asked me what I've been up to lately and it's an easy answer this time: more enameled cage beads! I was going for a "faux raku" look here by mixing colors and using transparent enamels on top of my favorite opaque colors... not sure that I succeeded exactly, but I'm really pleased with these beads anyway.
This has been a process of experimentation for me because I have not had the benefit of a good class or workshop in enameling yet, but I have to thank Barbara Lewis again for helping me via email when I ran into trouble with my beads. They were looking great until I put them in the vermiculite to cool, when I discovered to my dismay that they were cracking and sometimes bits of enamel would suddenly split off with a little "ping" up to several minutes into their cooling session. This really vexed me because I love making these beads and I am crazy about the colorful results.
Barbara made several helpful suggestions that made all the difference, and I thought I'd share her wisdom with you here:
1. Start with a layer of clear fusing enamel.
2. Limit the number of layers of colored enamel; the thicker the enamel, the more likely it is to crack.
3. Heat vermiculite in a crock-pot prior to making beads. I now pre-heat my vermiculite for a full hour in a small crock pot before I even turn on the torch.
4. Flame-anneal each bead immediately after you've made it by holding it several inches beyond the tip of the flame where it's still hot, but not hot enough to melt the enamel any more. I hold the bead out in this position for a full minute before dropping it into the crock pot of heated vermiculite.
5. Once I've made all my beads, I leave them in heated vermiculite for about an hour, then turn off the crock pot, and remove the beads hours later (oftentimes the next morning). They should cool slowly.
You might think this is a lot of work to go through to make some enameled cage beads, but if you don't take care it is very frustrating to have made a beautiful bead, only to find little chips and cracks in it later.
Thank you Barbara, for being so helpful! In case you don't already know, she has a terrific book out called Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry and it's amazon.com's bestselling craft book for 2011!
Happy wrapping (and enameling),
Sharilyn
p.s. We'll be making enameled cage beads during my next Wild Wire Women retreat on Dec. 1-5, 2011!

Just Released: Arty Jewelry IV !!!

2011-11-05T17:36:00.000-07:00

I'm thrilled to finally be able to announce that Arty Jewelry IV was just published today and is now available as a printed and bound book via www.blurb.com!
This new book features nine projects, each one stepped out with full-color photos printed on premium paper. There are 294 photos!
160 pages, text in a big bold font, very easy to read. Learn wire shaping, forging and texturing, annealing metal to make gorgeous sterling-silver rings, wire weaving and knotless netting, metal engraving, etching copper tubing beads for jewelry, enameling copper headpins, wire spirals and cage beads, how to work with super heavy-gauge wire, and more!
To see all nine projects, click here.
To view a FREE preview of the first 15 pages of the book, click here.
Here are the projects:

Winged Things Earrings: Turn your favorite beads and wire into cute buggy earrings.

Wingy-Dingy Earrings: Take it one step further, and enamel those wire wings!

Metallo del Fiore Bangle: Learn to engrave metal and make a cool bangle with vintage button attachment.

Etched Copper Tubing: Etch hardware-store tubing and make beads for necklaces, bracelets and earrings. Step-by-step instructions also included for making the necklace pictured above plus a pair of earrings!

Colorful Cage-Bead Bracelet: Learn to make wire cage beads and torch-fire enamel them. Makes a great bracelet and you can also use these beads in necklaces and earrings, too.

Vintage Button Brooch & Pendant: Detailed instructions on making a brooch using your favorite vintage buttons—or use a favorite bead and turn it into a button (I show you how). Also included: How to turn your brooch into a pendant!

Silver Cutlery Rings: If you have some old silver spoons and forks laying around, I'll show you how to quickly turn them into beautiful, wearable rings.

The Grungy Bangle: Ever work with 8-gauge wire? It's fun! Learn how to make your own bold, grungy bangle with wire-wrapped embellishment.

And finally, the Antique Dolly Pendant! She's all stepped out with over 50 photos and detailed instructions. Learn to make your own gorgeous pendant featuring an antique doll torso.
I hope you like Arty Jewelry IV... it's by far my favorite book and I think the projects are beautiful, fun to make, and educational, too. To read more about it, click here.
Don't forget: From now through November 30, 2011, you can save $10 on any of my five books published on www.blurb.com! That includes my four "Arty Jewelry" titles and "100 Art-Jewelry Inspirations," my artist portfolio.
Just use the promo code BIGTEN when you check out.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

November Snow

2011-11-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

Our first snowfall of the winter, and it's gorgeous! I just took a few really quick pics to share... I'm going to try for more later. The sun was just rising over the mountain when I got this shot from my deck overlooking the national forest.

Ivy jumped out when I scattered some peanuts on the deck for our blue jays, but she came right back in! She's no fan of snow.

Time to fill the bird feeder...

Rosie's stationed in her favorite place, right in front of the heater vent!

Sparkle (Rosie's mom) says, "Hey you fools, get back in bed!"
Happy snow day to everyone,
Sharilyn, Ivy, Rosie, & Sparkle

News flash: Save $10 on Any of My Blurb Books!

2011-11-03T08:30:00.000-07:00

This just in today: From now through November 30, 2011, you can save $10 on any of my books published on www.blurb.com! That includes my artist portfolio, 100 Art-Jewelry Inspirations (pictured above) and all three of my Arty Jewelry titles! Just use the promo code BIGTEN when you check out.

To find my books, visit www.blurb.com and type in "Sharilyn Miller." Four of my titles will pop up. Arty Jewelry features 11 projects stepped out and photographed in detail (216 photos!) on 140 pages. Like all of my books, it's printed on premium paper in full color, and measures 7x7 inches. To see big photos of the finished projects, click here. To see a free preview of the first 15 pages, click here.

Arty Jewelry II (pictured above) features 10 gorgeous jewelry projects stepped out in 219 full-color photos with large text that's easy to read. It's a beautiful book, printed on 140 pages of premium paper. To see all 10 projects click here. To preview the first 15 pages for free, click here.

Arty Jewelry III is also a gorgeous printed book of 160 pages, with nine projects stepped out in 421 full-color photographs! You can see the projects by clicking here. And preview the first 15 pages by clicking here. Remember, if you order any of my titles by November 30, you save $10!
Keep visiting my blog, and as soon as Arty Jewelry IV is available in a printed version, I'll let you know.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III Now in Printed Full Color!

2011-11-01T11:59:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to receive a copy of my latest book, Arty Jewelry III, in the mail last week! It's printed in gorgeous full color on beautiful paper and the binding is first-quality. I thought I'd share a few details with you here.

Altogether nine projects are stepped out in detail with hundreds of color photos and large, easy to read text. You can see the projects in the photo above, but if you'd like a much better view of them click here.

After providing a large photo of a finished project, I describe the piece and provide a supply list.

This is followed by detailed step-by-step images on the right-hand page, and printed text on the left-hand page. It's very, very easy to follow the steps, I promise! In the printed version of Arty Jewelry III, I did not have enough pages to include basic techniques such as "how to make a jump ring" or "how to wrap an eye-pin loop."
Although I do list all the tools and materials you need to make each project, I did not include a detailed description of each tool as I did in the eBook version of Arty Jewelry III. Trying to save space! Every page I add to one of my books adds significantly to the cost of printing it, so I do whatever I can to keep these costs down.
However, all the basic wire-working techniques plus detailed descriptions of tools and materials with a resource guide are all included in the eBook version of Arty Jewelry III, which you can download for just $7.99 on amazon.com, bn.com, and through ibooks. The printed version (with a first-15-pages preview) is located here.
Right now I'm hard at work on the next book in the series, Arty Jewelry IV. I have turned it over to an editor who is converting my book into an eBook, and I'm also working on designing it for the print-on-demand service, blurb.com. As soon as Arty Jewelry IV is available in either version, I'll let you know.

In other news, on 11-11-11 I'm teaching a fun wire-weaving class at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert, California. If you're interested in making a gorgeous pendant using an antique dolly (Monica has lots of them now in her store, and they are all authentic antique dolls), wire, beads, and vintage buttons, be sure to join us from 10 am to 4:30 pm a week from this Friday!
To register, call 760-772-2400
I also have a small group of ladies joining me here in Idyllwild, California the first weekend of December for a Wild Wire Women retreat. My retreats max out at six adult female participants, so if you think you'd like to join us, please contact me at sharilynmiller@mac.com. We'll be doing some enameling, of course, but also wirework and metal arts including sawing, forging and engraving copper sheet, knotless netting, embellished forged wire pendants, and my popular Silver Sampler bracelet.
A very full weekend of three intensive workshop days, lots of great food, and a wonderful retreat in the mountains. Sound like fun? For more info, visit my Wild Wire Women retreats blog here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry "Virtual Book Tour" Stops Here!

2011-10-25T00:00:00.000-07:00

Did you know that you can combine wire jewelry techniques with torch-fired enameling to make gorgeous beads—like the ones in the bracelet pictured above—in just minutes? I just recently discovered this, and I have one very special lady to thank: Barbara Lewis—artist, teacher, and author of the bestselling book Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry (North Light Books). You can order her new book now via amazon.com as a paperback ($14.99) or the kindle eBook edition ($9.99).

First, a little background: I've been making wire-art jewelry for over 10 years now, and I always give credit and thanks to my most influential teacher, Lynne Merchant. She taught me the basic techniques for making all types of wire components and pieces, which I've been combining in various ways to create my own jewelry designs ever since.
For a while I dabbled in other jewelry arts as well, learning to do peyote stitch and other beadwork patterns, PMC, all types of polymer clay beads, shrink plastic charms, resin, fabric beads, and metalsmithing. I briefly considered lampworking, but never delved into it due to the high cost of tools and materials needed to get set up.
A couple of years ago I was introduced to kiln-fired enameling, but it failed to pique my interest; too much time spent sifting on enamels and then waiting for them to fire in the kiln, I guess. It bored me, to be honest—although I loved the results my friends were getting with their enameled pieces.
Then I saw some of Barbara Lewis's torch-fired enamel jewelry and components (headpins, beads, etc.) and I was ON FIRE to learn this technique myself! I guess what really caught my attention was the immediate results you get from torch firing, the creative possibilities, the lack of fussy perfectionism (for example, I doubt that you can do cloisonne with a torch), the mind-blowing color combinations and the simplicity of the setup. And it's fairly inexpensive to get started.
Soon Barbara offered to send me a free signed copy of her book and asked her publisher, North Light Books (incidentally, they also published two of my books, Rubber Stamped Jewelry and Bead on a Wire), to send me a PDF preview of Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry so that I could post a review as soon as it became available.
I downloaded the PDF and read it cover-to-cover immediately, and what a fun read it was! Barbara has a very engaging style of writing that makes you feel very comfortable, as if you were right there with her in the studio going over the basics and then jumping into her creative projects.
My first experiments were with enameled headpins. It may seem to be a very small thing, but I simply love the little sparks of color you can add to your jewelry creations just by using enameled headpins. The earrings below are just one example:

Next, beads. I ordered Barbara's bead-pulling station system (highly recommend it, by the way!) and some of her metal beads, and literally within minutes I was torch-firing my own colorful beads. It really is that easy!
But I'm a "restless creative" type, never satisfied with doing what others have pioneered, always looking for ways to make something new. So I had to try making some torch-fired enamel wire beads and components. I have found that it can be done, but I've a few tips to share with those of you who might be interested in trying it yourself:
1. Use heavy-gauge wire only, such as 14ga, 12ga, 10ga, and even thicker. Finer gauges of wire are likely to melt under the heat of the torch before you can fuse the enamel to it.
2. Spray on some Klyr-Fire adhesive and allow it to dry to the tacky stage before enameling on wire components. Barbara recommends using clear fusing enamel instead of Klyr-Fire.
3. Don't use a butane torch for enameling. It will get hot enough to melt the enamel, this is true, but it also turns your beautiful enamels into an icky gray-green color—yuck! Use a map-gas torch or something similar to get the brilliant colors you're shooting for.
Here is a basic run-down of how I made my colorful cage beads pictured at the top of this post:
1. Make cage beads. If you don't know how, it's pretty easy and I demonstrate the process in close-up detail on my instructional DVD, Tribal Treasures Bracelet Workshop.

2. I recommend spraying on some Klyr-Fire (some enamelists use hairspray as an adhesive) or use some clear fusing enamel as your first coat. This way, your beads are prepared to take on colored enamels that won't chip off later. Allow the bead to dry to the tacky stage, and then sift on some white opaque enamel.
3. Heat the bead while it's on a steel mandrel (which does not conduct heat) until it glows bright orange.

4. Quickly dredge the hot bead through white opaque enamel again (Barbara is a Thompson's Enamel distributor, so you can get everything you need from her wonderful site: www.paintingwithfireartwear.com).

5. Reheat the bead to melt the enamel and fuse it permanently to the cage bead. Why white? Because any subsequent color enameled over it will be very bright and colorful, as compared to enameling colors directly onto copper. But don't take my word for it, experiment!

6. From here it's simply a matter of reheating the bead and dredging it into any enamel color(s) you like. Although it is true that opaque enamels will cover up colors fused to the bead previously, you can dredge portions of the cage in different colors and reheat the bead repeatedly until you have some beautiful color combinations in a single cage bead. See the photo above for examples.
7. To get your beads off the mandrel, I recommend Barbara's invention, the bead-pulling station. It works great and she provides an excellent tutorial on using it, or you can learn more about it by reading her book, Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry.
If you'd like to read my review of her groundbreaking, bestselling book, you can access it by clicking here.
I'd like to thank Barbara for allowing me to participate in her virtual book tour, it's been great fun! And she has lined up some wonderful prizes for those of you who like free stuff. Here's how to enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post and become a follower = 1 chance

2. Tweeting, facebook or blogging about the giveaway and leaving a comment at the original Virtual Book Tour Post= 1 additional chance

3. While you’re at Barbara’s Blog, become a follower and leave a comment that you follow her blog = 1 additional chance

You can earn up to 3 chances per giveaway. A winner will be selected by 10 p.m. eastern time and announced the following day.

You can check at Barbara’s blog for the name of the winner.

To thank you for following along, Barbara is offering a BONUS PRIZE at the end of the book tour! All of the entries will be included in the drawing for a kit containing all the elements of “Floral Cascade,” one of the projects in the book. You’ll receive everything you need to make the necklace, including the chain, jump rings, clasp, enamel beads, and head pins!

For a chance to win the Grand Prize … a Torch-Firing Kit (or $110 shopping experience at www.paintingwithfireartwear.com) … please leave a review at Amazon.com by November 24. Remember, leave an honest review … the book must stand on its own merits.

P.S. Unfortunately, the giveaways are restricted to U.S. residents. Winners should contact Barbara with their name and address through her author website: www.torchfiredenameljewelry.com so that you can receive your prizes!

If you missed any of the previous stops, go back and take a look:

October 6, Mary Jane Dodd, www.mairedodd.blogspot.com

October 7, Gaea Cannaday, www.gaeabeads.blogspot.com

October 8, Linda Larsen, www.objectsandelements.typepad.com

October 10, Andrew Thornton, www.andrew-thornton.blogspot.com

October 11, Lori Plyler, www.waterstonejewelry.blogspot.com

October 12, Diane Cook, www.rosa-josies.blogspot.com

October 13, Lori Anderson, http://www.prettythingsblog.com

October 14, LeAnn Weih, www.summersstudio.blogspot.com

October 15, Jen Judd Velasque, www.jenjuddrocks.blogspot.com

October 17, Melissa Meman, www.melissameman.blogspot.com

October 18, Lisa Crone, www.abeadaday.blogspot.com

October 19, Shannon LeVart, www.missficklemediacom.blogspot.com

October 20, Cindy Wimmer, www.sweetbeadstudio.com

October 21, Laura Twiford, www.souvenirsfromlife.blogspot.com

October 22, Erin Prais-Hintz, www.treasures-found.blogspot.com

October 24, Jennifer Cameron, www.glassaddictions.com

October 25, Sharilyn Miller, www.sharilynmiller.com

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

What I've Been Working on Lately...

2011-10-21T13:24:00.000-07:00

I have been super-busy in my studio lately, wrapping up unfinished projects such as the little vintage doll pin (she has a handmade pin on the back) that I started in Italy last month.

I decided that it would be fun to include this project in my next eBook, Arty Jewelry IV, so I stepped out the process with 60 closeup, step-by-step photos and detailed instructions. Now I'm at work finishing up the remaining eight projects to be included in Arty Jewelry IV, each project requiring dozens of photographs and instructions that I have been editing and proofreading over and over again... So that's what I've been up to lately!

Arty Jewelry IV will be ready to order via amazon.com and bn.com before Christmas. And if you would like personal instruction on making the Antique Dolly pendant (or pin), I'm teaching it at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert on 11-11-11.

I hope to see you there! Register for the class by calling 760-772-2400.

And here's a photo of my most recent obsession, enameling on wire beads! You will find a brief demo on this project here on my blog this coming Tuesday, when I take part in the virtual book tour for Barbara Lewis's incredible book, Torch Fired Enamel Jewelry. I wrote up a review of her book on amazon.com, and you can also access my review by clicking here.

I really love her book, and I've been using Barbara's techniques and generous advice to make some really cool and colorful things. What a wonderful way to jazz up your wire art jewelry!

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

NEW Wire-Woven Doll Pendant Workshop in Palm Desert

2011-10-12T10:53:00.000-07:00

I'm teaching a new class on Nov. 11 (10 am to 4:30 pm) at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert!
This is a great workshop if you're into vintage doll torsos, beadwork, vintage buttons, and wire weaving. Learn to make a wire sculpture that incorporates an antique doll (Monica has some terrific ones for sale in her store!) and beadwork using your favorite small beads and antique buttons. We'll turn this sculptural doll into a pendant that can be worn as a unique necklace or put on display in a shadow box.
Monica has everything you need to make this piece: vintage doll torso, wire (silver and copper sold by the foot), beads, and some gorgeous vintage buttons. Once you register, you will receive a supply list.
The workshop fee is $80 plus materials.
To register for the workshop, call 760-772-2400.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III Now in Printed Full Color!

2011-10-01T20:29:00.000-07:00

I've been working really hard this past week preparing the contents of my recently published eBook, Arty Jewelry III, for sale as a printed and bound book via www.blurb.com. It looks great, and I'm really proud of the final result! If you really wanted to get Arty Jewelry III but aren't quite ready for eBooks, I now offer this terrific resource as a conventional, bound book that you can order anytime!
Here are the facts:
• Arty Jewelry III in printed form is only available via blurb.com. For a direct link, click here.
• You can preview the first 15 pages for free by clicking here.
• The book measures 7x7 inches and includes 160 pages of full-color close-up photos and text in large fonts, making it very easy to follow the detailed instructions.
• The book is printed on top-quality premium paper.
• Nine jewelry projects are included. All the text for making all of the projects from the eBook version is included, and most of the step-by-step photos. A few photos had to be edited out to make the contents fit within the pages of a 160-page bound book.
• There is no instruction on basic techniques such as making wrapped eye-pin loops, etc. as can be found in the eBook version of Arty Jewelry III. Also, no discussion of tools. If these resources are important to you, I encourage you to download the eBook version from www.amazon.com or from www.barnesandnoble.com. The eBook is still on sale for just $7.99!
• The printed version of Arty Jewelry III retails for $40.59 (softcover) or $61.29 (hardcover image-wrap). Why so high? This is due to the fact that the book is a super high-end quality product made by print-on-demand technology, right here in the USA. I cannot compete with major book publishers who ship their products over to China and order thousands of books which are warehoused for years before they sell out. I'm not a major book publisher, I'm just an artist sharing her designs with others who would like to make beautiful and unusual wire jewelry creations.
• Regardless of what you pay for any of my books on blurb.com, my royalty per book is just $5.
I hope you enjoy Arty Jewelry III. If you'd like to see photos of all nine projects in this book, click here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Fired with Inspiration (book review)

2011-09-10T08:44:00.000-07:00

Immediately upon reading Barbara Lewis’s brand-new book, I can honestly say that I was all-fired-up (if you’ll excuse the pun) to try my hand at her techniques. Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry is one of those rare art/craft books that actually delivers on the two most important qualities I look for: useful information and plenty of inspiration to fuel my own creative endeavors.

I say “useful” because I was able to put Barbara’s techniques into practice immediately, and I’ve already made several small pieces of enameled jewelry components without any experience previous to reading her book. I’ve really enjoyed making my own copper and silver enameled headpins, small disks, hammered copper washers, and metal beads. I’ve learned from Barbara’s book how to properly set up a map-gas torch (butane will melt the enamel, but it turns all your colors into grey mush!), safety issues, types of enamel best for torch firing, and how to torch-fire enamel the metal itself.

She also explains related techniques such as balling up wire to make a “heat rivet,” how to etch copper sheet, and basic wire-working methods. From there, it’s on to the project section, which is where I find so much inspiration.

Barbara favors the trendy “messy metal-smithing” style that is so popular these days, so if you prefer perfect, pristine enameled jewelry (which is almost always achieved via kiln-firing), you are better off with Linda Darty’s classic text, The Art of Enameling. But if you emulate the artists of today who are working in mixed media, alternative metals, fibers, daring color combinations and texture without perfection, you will be inspired by Barbara’s book.

For example, some of her metal pieces are deliberately cut into odd shapes, forged imperfectly, burnt, and appear to be a bit wobbly and off-kilter. I love it! You may or may not. A good example of this is the “Achilles’ Shield” bracelet on page 48: A piece of metal is cut out with an organic shape, holes punched randomly, and torch-fire enameled in such a way as to deliberately cause the copper oxides to bubble up to the surface. This instantly creates an aged look to an otherwise brand-new piece, but enamel purists will point out that it is not perfect. That’s the whole point! I LOVE this look, and after reading through Barbara’s process I was able to achieve a similar appearance on some metal I’ve been working with.

Another great thing about this book is Barbara’s use of color. She is gifted in this area, and her brightly colored beads, baubles and jewelry components reflect this. She has experimented with overlays of opaque and transparent enamels to achieve various effects, and challenges the reader to try it too. She also incorporates other items into her mixed-media jewelry pieces such as yarn, leather, fabric strips, beads, chain, threads, brass parts, watch parts, nuts & bolts, even horsehair!

If you make every project in Torch Fired Enamel Jewelry, you will not only learn how to torch-fire enamel. You will learn basic soldering skills, cutting and forging metal, texturing techniques, bead stringing and knotting, wireworking, riveting, dapping, even cutting fabric strips on the bias (useful for jewelry artists).

To sum up, Torch Fired Enamel Jewelry is a content-rich resource, perfect for the home-based artist/crafter eager to get started in this exciting art form. I recommend it highly!

Varenna, Lago Di Como

2011-08-20T19:50:00.000-07:00

I'm in Varenna, Lake Como, staying at my favorite place, Hotel Olivedo.

They are located right on the lake with a ferry landing just across the cobbled street.

As you can see, I'm enjoying an amazing meal out on the patio overlooking the lake. Ciao!
Sharilyn

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Monterosso & Vernazza

2011-08-19T20:07:00.000-07:00

Today was my opportunity to travel a bit and visit the Cinque Terre ("five lands"), which were packed with tourists, naturally. It took a few hours to travel by train from Lucca to Monterosso, which was a fine place for a late lunch. The picture above shows my view from a lunch table at one of the cafes along the beach. I also walked all over the town, but all I really saw was lots of little souvenir shops, cheap eateries and hotels/rooms for rent.

Since it was so hot today (low 100s and very humid), I opted for a train ride back south to Vernazza instead of hiking the trail between the two towns. I've seen lots of photos of this little village by the sea, so I was a bit disappointed to find most of the "charming" homes on the cliffs in need of a good paint job. And Vernazza is really, really small!
You get off the train and hoof it downhill into this teeny-tiny harbor area with barely enough room for a few teenagers to lounge around on the mini-beach. Turn left and you'll find the famous diving cliffs, which I found in use. A couple of teenagers were jumping off the cliff and then climbing back up again, which perhaps seemed more scary to me than it actually was. Still, I admire these young cliff divers.
Tomorrow: the flea market in Lucca!

Arrival in Lucca, Italy

2011-08-18T23:02:00.000-07:00

My adventure to Italy began with a very looooong plane ride from Palm Springs to Milan. While in one of the airports (I believe it was Atlanta), I observed a fantastic display of found-object masks. One of the pleasures of traveling is being able to see so many wonderful art exhibits in the airports, which makes the long hours between flights somewhat bearable.

Once I arrived in Milan at about 7 am on Aug. 18, I traveled by train to Lucca. Pictured above is one of the gates leading into this famous walled city. I wanted to spend some time in Lucca because it has been so highly recommended by travel writer Rick Steves. And there was a big flea market planned for Saturday, which also motivated me to spend some time here.
The only way to get to Lucca by train is to first take the Malpensa airport train to the main train station in Milan; from there you must travel first to Florence and then transfer to a regional train back up to Lucca. This took the entire day; I arrived at my destination (Hotel Rex) at about 7 pm, completely exhausted after flying across the US, then across the Atlantic Ocean, and then 12 hours on trains. And it was HOT! High 90s, low 100s, and humid. I would not do this again; it would have been smarter for me to begin my vacation in Italy with a few days in Stresa, which is only an hour from the Malpensa airport. Live and learn...

My first evening in Lucca I had to stop at a Rick-Steves recommended bistro for pizza. I had the Napoli pictured above, with a lovely sauce, lightly sprinkled with Mozzarella cheese, a few anchovies, and some capers. Mmmmm! My first meal in over 12 hours tasted mighty good, I can tell you!

Once I'd filled up on pizza, I took a stroll on the famous walls that surround Lucca. The lion statue pictured above was one of several outdoor art pieces; I love photographing lions in Italy and have quite a collection now from previous travels.

In the picture above you can see the massive walls, which are wide enough to accommodate pedestrians, runners, moms and dads pushing strollers, bicyclists, and tourists...

...and trees! These huge trees are growing right on top of the walls of Lucca. Gorgeous, and they provided plenty of shade. I sure appreciated that. Once back in my hotel, I took another cold shower and went to bed early.
Tomorrow: Vernazza & Monterosso

Fun Making Art-Doll Necklaces

2011-08-14T22:49:00.000-07:00

On Saturday a group of old friends (we won't say how old!) got together for a day of fun making art-doll necklaces. I was so happy to be invited to teach a workshop for this terrific group of artists. I've known some of them for more than a decade, and some were brand-new acquaintances.

Here they are, all gathered together at a nice big table under the lattice which helped shade us from the hot Costa Mesa sun! We began the day with coffee and yummy pastries...

Soon enough, it was time to get busy on our wire-woven art dolls. You can see that there's some serious concentration going on!

And laughter, too. It can be a challenge mastering several pieces of pesky wire!

I think they're starting to get somewhere by this time. The vintage doll torsos we worked with (many thanks to Carolyn for providing them for us!) were wrapped with wire and a skirt constructed... then comes weaving and embellishment.

In the following photo you can see one of the art dolls taking shape. She later was attached to a vintage bottle and embellished with red and black beads, very Spanish looking.

The sun got a little too hot for Jeri, so she took refuge inside and continued work on her lovely creation.

We broke for lunch, and Carolyn generously dished up some delicious Chinese chicken salad. We appreciated that, I can tell you!

Here's one of the more unusual dolls, nearly finished. Spider Woman! I love it.

One of our favorite art dolls was made by a woman with no prior experience working with wire. I think it's gorgeous, and very wearable.

The day finished around 4:30 pm and I had a very long drive back home to Idyllwild, but it was all well worth the experience, one I will not soon forget. Many thanks to all the lovely ladies who attended this workshop and I hope to see you all again soon!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Podcast Radio Interview & Creative Spark Article

2011-08-11T15:27:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody,
I was just recently interviewed by the fabulous Ricë Freeman-Zachery, who did a great job asking lots of fun questions. If you'd like to hear the podcast, click here!
And if you'd like to read a "Creative Spark" interview with me by Ricë, click here!

And I have good news, my eBook Arty Jewelry III is still on sale! I can't believe it... but it's up to amazon.com to set sale prices at their whim. Take advantage of the sale while you can. To download for just $7.99 (a savings of 20 percent), click here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

NEW Vintage Doll Necklace workshop

2011-08-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

A good friend has asked me to teach for a private group of gals in south Orange County next week, and they requested a workshop on wire weaving. My friend sent me two vintage "frozen Charlotte" dolls to embellish with woven wire and beads, which was a real challenge for me because I don't tend to design Victorian-style jewelry.

The first necklace was made with sterling silver wire, small beads and pearls, and some vintage buttons I had purchased online. Came out nice, but I was not pleased with how short and wide I made the skirt. You can see it below:

After purchasing a few porcelain doll torsos online, I chose one with a hollow head and made another wire-woven and embellished necklace with copper wire, tiny beads, pearls, vintage buttons, and some of my gorgeous enameled headpins. I just finished it tonight and had to share it with you (see the top of this post).

I don't know why the copper doll has wings... it just came out that way. I had a lot of fun and enjoyed the challenge of designing something way outside my usual style (I prefer ethnic jewelry!). In about a week I'll be teaching this design to a great group of gals and I really look forward to that.

Hope you all enjoy it!

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

NEW Dates! NEW classes! Wild Wire Women Retreats...

2011-07-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

I just posted on my WWW blog some NEW dates for NEW classes held here at my mountain home in Idyllwild, California. If you love wire, metal, and found objects (and beads!), you will find something terrific to make and to treasure.
For example, above you can see a sampling (just a sampling) of the bangle cuffs you can make using sheet metal, hammers, a Dremel, etchant solution, hole punches, rivets, nuts & bolts, and more. This is an all-day workshop, very intensive, and full of great techniques for grungy jewelry making. I supply all the copper sheet metal you need to make three cuffs!
The photo below shows my "faux raku" polymer clay beads, another full-day class that results in the most gorgeous beads in a variety of shapes and sizes—super fun and creative!
I provide all the materials needed to make your beads; you may need additional small beads and pearls to make a finished jewelry piece if you so desire.

The image below is my "Fruit of the Vine" necklace with lots of wire links, charms, bead wraps and dangles plus a handmade clasp. It is intensive, but an ambitious beginner could tackle it. You might finish a necklace as pictured below in one day, but it might take more time... in any case, you will love the finished showpiece! I supply all the copper wire to make a necklace, and you provide your own pendant and beads/pearls.

Copper Tubing Bracelets (below) are a blast! Use common tubing from the hardware store (I provide it for you), wire (copper wire is provided, but if you wish to use silver wire you must bring your own), and a few beads as desired... we use wire not only to make fabulous wrapped bead connectors but also a variety of shaped charms. Foreign coins can be punched and altered as well, and added to your special piece. It's the coolest thing ever; even your teenagers will like these bracelets!

I teach a variety of wire weaving classes, too. Below is a new creation using a Frozen Charlotte doll, beads, pearls, vintage buttons, and (naturally) fine-gauge wire. But this is only one possibility amongst many! Check out my Wire Weaving page for more suggestions for what you can create. All the copper wire you need for each project is provided in your workshop fee.

I still offer some of my most popular standbys, too. For example, the Green Goddess necklace pictured below is a very popular piece that I've taught several times in my mountain studio. You will learn wire coiling and shaping techniques, a handmade chain, S-clasp with bead, wrapped eye-pins and more. All the copper wire you need to make a finished necklace is provided.

There are several more workshops—both full-day and half-day classes—offered in my new lineup. I hope you'll take some time to peruse them all and put them on your list of must-do workshops! To see my updated offerings, click here.
Here's the NEW schedule of Wild Wire Women retreats offered in my home in Idyllwild, California for the remainder of 2011:
September 15-19

September 22-26

September 29-October 3

October 6-10

October 13-17

October 20-24

October 27-31

November 3-7

November 10-14

November 17-21

December 1-5

December 8-12

December 15-19

If you would like to join me in Idyllwild for a Wild Wire Women retreat, check out my blog where I provide all the details. If you have any questions or would like to register now for a date listed above, you can contact me at sharilynmiller@mac.com.

I'm excited to be offering such a terrific new lineup, and to be using sheet metal and found objects as well as wire to share my low-tech techniques for making amazing jewelry. In September I'll be back from teaching a found-object jewelry series in Cortona, Italy, so I'm sure to have plenty of stories to share! Looking forward to seeing you soon in Idyllwild...

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III is still on sale!

2011-07-26T11:25:00.000-07:00

I was really surprised to discover that amazon.com is still offering my bestselling eBook, Arty Jewelry III, at a 20-percent discount. Normally $9.99, you can download my new eBook (published last month) for just $7.99!
I don't know how long this sale will last, since it is entirely up to the discretion of amazon.com. If you would like to see all the fabulous projects from Arty Jewelry III, click here.
To download and read it immediately, click here.
Don't own a kindle device? No problem—you can turn your smart phone, computer, iPad, etc. into a kindle reader with their FREE apps. Just click here to download.
For those of you who have a nook (or the FREE nook app used on your smart phone, computer, iPad, etc.), you will also find Arty Jewelry III is on sale for $7.99. Just click here to download and start reading right away. Save 20 percent, and a few trees as well!
I hope you enjoy Arty Jewelry III. I'm getting ready for my teaching trip to Cortona, Italy next month but as soon as I return I'll get busy on the next eBook in the series. If you have any suggestions for content, please don't hesitate to comment here. I appreciate all of my readers and their great ideas!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Fun with Ivy in the Studio!

2011-07-22T16:26:00.000-07:00

I had fun with Ivy in the studio today! She loves to accompany me everywhere... I'm sure you know the type! In the studio, the kitchen, the bathroom, etc. there is no room off limits to this curious and affectionate kitty. But it really drives me nuts when she pops into my photo tent during a session with my camera. Once I get cat hairs in the photo tent, it's very difficult to clean them out.

Today I was photographing three new cuff bangles that I'm now teaching and before I knew it, Ivy had joined in on the fun. After scooting her out (nicely!), I got the following shot:

Up front is a copper cuff bracelet made with engraved metal with a micro fold-formed copper piece attached with nuts & bolts. This is followed by a vintage leather button topped by a Roman coin purchased in Italy, a Bali silver bead cap, and another vintage crystal button.

To the left behind the engraved cuff is a simple etched copper cuff. Etching is so much fun, and not very difficult, although you will need to learn some basic safety techniques.

Finally, in the back is a fold-formed cuff with lots of hammering, stamping and punching. Let me emphasize, lots of hammering! And you have to keep annealing the thing every few minutes, it's quite a chore. But, the results are so worthwhile!

All the cuffs were antiqued in liver of sulfur, and polished. In this workshop, you will learn:

Design considerations

Cutting and filing sheet metal

Annealing metal with a torch

Pickling in an acid solution (safe for use at home)

Etching metal

Engraving metal

Fold-forming

Micro fold-forming

Stamping

Punching

Cold connections

Metal shaping

Patinas

Filing and polishing

Safety tips galore!!!
If you're interested, I do still have some openings in my Wild Wire Women retreats this summer and fall. My last retreat before I depart to teach for a week in Cortona, Italy (Aug. 27-Sept. 3) is July 29-Aug. 1. If you'd like to know more about my WWW retreats, click here.
I'd love to meet you in Idyllwild for a retreat! We learn so much in such a short time, it's incredible.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Fun with Enameling

2011-07-20T23:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I had a FABULOUS time in Carlsbad, getting together with old-time friends Louise, Joyce, and Anne. We haven't seen each other in a very long time, so it was an overdue reunion of sorts. Anyway, what made it extra special was that we all had some time with the torch!
After getting some much-needed coaching from enameling guru Barbara Lewis, who advised us to use a map-gas torch instead of butane (butane turns your enamel icky colors!), we were set to play... and BOY, did we! I am now positively addicted to making enameled headpins, and now that I'm set up with Barbara's bead-pulling station at home I'll begin to torch-fire enamel some beads as well.
I've already experimented a bit with some of my smaller copper beads, but I want to do much more using beads in various sizes, both copper and sterling silver (some fine silver as well).
The trick to making the best use of your silver when enameling is to use transparent enamels instead of opaque, allowing the brilliance of the silver to shine through the color. Opaque colors are perfect for copper, however. You can torch-fire enamel practically anything if it's copper: wire as well as sheet metal, copper blanks, discs, beads, pendants, etc.
Oh, the possibilities!

Louise was making these gorgeous pouffy flowers and I decided to give it a whirl. I used the same basic technique (which she learned in a workshop with Linda Darty—and if you have any interest in enameling at all, I highly recommend Linda's classic text, The Art of Enameling). But I changed my flowers quite a bit by creating much longer tendrils and curling them under, and enameled them with multiple layers of gorgeous color.
I guess it's official now: I'm in love with torch-fired enameling. Given the enormous potential for creativity with this one technique, I know that it's something I'll be pursuing with passion for the rest of my artistic career. I have to thank Barbara Lewis for introducing me to this wonderfully expressive art form! I'll be reviewing her new book when it comes out, too. I've seen it on-screen because the publishers made it available to reviewers for a preview, and it is fantastic! Pre-order Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry by clicking here.
I was thrilled to see that Barbara's book will be available as a paperback and as a kindle edition! I love my kindle eBooks, which I can view in full-color on my iPhone, and I will be purchasing many more in the future. My own bestselling eBook, Arty Jewelry III, is still on-sale at 20 percent off! You can download it for just $7.99 by clicking here.
Happy wrapping (and torch firing!),
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III on SALE at bn.com & amazon.com!

2011-07-05T23:49:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post: Amazon.com has recently reduced the price of Arty Jewelry III from $9.99 to $7.99! This was done without my knowledge—apparently they'll sometimes reduce the prices of eBook downloads at their discretion without notifying the author. I wish they had informed me beforehand because I would have loved to have let all my readers know about it before the sale; but it just happened, and I just happened to find out about it tonight.
So now the download price of $7.99 is good on both barnesandnoble.com and amazon.com... that's a savings of 20 percent. I hope you take advantage of it while the sale is on. I have no idea how long it will last!
To download Arty Jewelry III from Amazon.com, click here.
To get the free kindle app that turns your smart phone, computer, iPad, etc. into a kindle reader, click here.
To download Arty Jewelry III from barnesandnoble.com, click here.
To get the free nook app that turns your smart phone, computer, iPad, etc. into a nook reader, click here.
Happy reading... and wrapping!
Sharilyn

I've been hacked!

2011-07-05T07:22:00.001-07:00

I just learned that my email has been hacked. If you receive an email supposedly from me at my .mac account, please disregard if it says anything about being stranded in Madrid with no money, etc. I am working on the problem right now and will let you know once it's resolved.
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III on SALE at bn.com!!!

2011-06-29T12:30:00.000-07:00

I just discovered—by accident!—that my brand-NEW eBook, Arty Jewelry III, is available for download at 20 percent off the normal retail price of $9.99.
I just released this new eBook, and when I went to www.barnesandnoble.com to make sure it was available before making my announcement, I discovered that they are offering it on sale. The great news is, I still get the same royalty. The bummer is, they never notified me about the sale and I have no idea how long it will last. So, I advise downloading it immediately to take advantage of the new sale price, for a limited time, just $7.99!
To see all nine projects in Arty Jewelry III, click here.
To download it from bn.com, click here.
So you don't own a nook e-reader for reading eBooks such as Arty Jewelry III? No problem! There are some cool FREE e-reader apps available that will turn your smart phone, computer (PC or Mac), iPad, Android, BlackBerry, etc. into an eReader. I use the free nook and kindle apps on my iPhone to read all of my eBooks myself.
To download a FREE nook e-reader app, click here.
Once you start reading eBooks, you may never (or rarely) purchase a printed and bound book again. The advantages are so numerous! Here are a few:
Take your library of eBooks everywhere you go: they're weightless!
No shipping charges!
Saves trees and the environment: no paper used, no printing inks!
A dictionary is automatically built into most eBooks. Just touch an unfamiliar word and the dictionary definition pops up!
You can enlarge or shrink the text very easily! Choose text color, too: You can read black on white, white on black, or dark brown on sepia...
All my full-color photos are close-up shots that allow you to see every detail. If a photo looks small on your iPhone, just use your fingers to "swipe" and enlarge it. Cool!
You'll never lose an eBook! Your library is permanent. Keeps you from accidentally purchasing duplicate books, too!
You can share your eBooks with your friends for up to two weeks at a time!
There are hundreds if not thousands of FREE eBooks available to download from various sources such as bn.com and amazon.com!
OK, I'm running out of breath. Time to order Arty Jewelry III while it's still on sale...
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

New Workshop: Faux Raku Beads

2011-06-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

If you enjoy making your own big focal-point beads, I have designed a great new class just for you. My "faux raku" beads are made of polymer clay, a few other ingredients, and a wild dash of creativity.
If you're interested in learning how to make your own beads and embellishments, and how to make a gorgeous ethnic-style bracelet or necklace, come on up to Idyllwild for a Wild Wire Women retreat! I have several openings in July and then again in September through November after I return from teaching found-object jewelry in Cortona, Italy.
Hope to see you in Idyllwild soon!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III: Eye-Pin Loop Tutorial

2011-06-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Every now and then it's fun to share a tutorial with my readers, and I thought you also might enjoy getting a brief glimpse into my soon-to-be-released eBook, Arty Jewelry III.

This effort has been a huge "labor of love," involving hundreds of photographs and months of concentrated writing and editing. Arty Jewelry III is much more than just a collection of tutorials: It's a real book with introductory text, lots and lots of information (with photos) on tools and basic techniques such as the one shown below, and nine original jewelry projects stepped out in detail with hundreds of close-up photography. It's a real book, but it is not printed. Arty Jewelry III is an eBook.

Here's a tiny sampling of what you can expect, from the "Basics" section:

Making Simple Eye-Pin Loops

Take hold of a wire piece in a pair of round-nose pliers. The placement on the tool where you grasp the wire will determine the eye-pin loop’s size.

Bend the wire over firmly until the wire end touches.

Switch to chain-nose pliers and bend the wire back sharply. This is known as “breaking the neck.”

Reinsert the round-nose pliers and bend the loop forward just a bit, until it is centered on the straight wire piece and resembles a lollipop.

As you can see, I start by giving you the instructions and then follow them with a nice close-up photo so you can copy the step and compare your results with mine. This is one of the best ways to learn; I actually feel that live workshops are the very best way, followed closely by instructional DVDs. But my eBooks are written and produced in such a way that they're almost as good as a live workshop.

Arty Jewelry III will be available for download soon; I hope by the end of this month. You'll be able to get it at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com, as well as through Apple's iBookstore. For now, you can order my other two terrific eBooks in my Arty Jewelry series: Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II. Both were published earlier this year, so they're brand new!

If you don't have a kindle or a nook device, this is no problem. Amazon and Barnes and Noble both provide really easy ways to download their software apps that turn your smartphone, computer (Mac or PC), iPad, etc. into an eReader. Here are the links:

Amazon's Kindle Apps

Barnes and Noble's Nook Apps

I hope you enjoy reading and learning from my eBooks. I sure love writing them, and I really appreciate all the positive feedback I've received so far from my readers!

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III Cover Design

2011-06-09T12:05:00.000-07:00

The final design for Arty Jewelry III's cover has been approved and we are ready to go forward with the contents! It's such an exciting moment to see your book cover for the first time ~ nothing can really compare to it, except perhaps childbirth.
While my new eBook is still in the editing stages, I now have a gorgeous cover for it and I am so excited, I just had to share it with you. As soon as it's ready for download at $9.99, I'll make an announcement.
For now, just a bit about the contents. For one thing, it's huge! I took 241 photos to convey all the step-by-step information required to make nine original jewelry projects. I also beefed up the tools section and basic how-to's quite considerably, adding lots of instruction and information with stepped-out photos to get you started.
For instance, I'll show you how to ball up headpins with a kitchen torch and how to make a safe and easy pickle solution to remove the fire scale, which can be easily disposed of because it was made to go through plumbing. I added lots of techniques for texturing your copper washers, too:

And of course, the curly wire embellishment featured on the cover image, Embellished Copper Washer bracelet. It took 57 photos to provide all the step-by-step info you need to make your own unique bracelet in this style ~ and this is just one of nine original jewelry projects found in Arty Jewelry III.
You can preview the contents by clicking here!
As soon as Arty Jewelry III is ready for download, I'll let you know. For now, happy wrapping!
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III Final Sneak Peek: Woven Treasures Pendant

2011-06-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

So this is it: my final "sneak peek" into my newest eBook, Arty Jewelry III, is the Woven Treasures Pendant.
I'm very happy with this fun design, and even more thrilled that I've finally finished my book!!! It is very much like having a child. You start out very excited, but by the end you just want to be finished and done... which I am! Now I can deliver my document to my editor, who will turn it into a terrific new eBook with an interactive table of contents and web links to great resources.
Arty Jewelry III has nine new, original jewelry projects plus a thorough discussion of the tools and materials needed to make artistic jewelry using wire, beads, and pearls. There are hundreds of closeup photographs illustrating the projects, so you won't miss a step. And I have expanded the "Basics" section to ensure that everyone is on the same page once you start making the projects.
As soon as Arty Jewelry III is ready to download to your kindle, nook, iPhone, Blackberry, iPad, Mac or PC, etc. I will let you know. It will be available via www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com; probably by the end of this month.
Meanwhile, I am extending the sale on my instructional DVDs. For a limited time, they're just $19.95 each! You can learn more about them and see color photos of all the projects you can make by visiting:
www.WireJewelryDVDs.com
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III Sneak Peek: Silver Swirl Stickpin

2011-05-29T15:14:00.000-07:00

I'm getting ready for my next Wild Wire Women retreat, which begins on Thursday evening, but in the meantime I've finished the step-by-step photography for the latest jewelry piece that will appear in my next ebook, Arty Jewelry III.

The bead-and-pearl embellished Silver Swirl Stickpin is really fun to make and presents all sorts of creative possibilities. You could fashion your pin using gold, copper, brass, or bronze wire instead of the sterling silver wire that I used, and your design will depend largely on which beads and/or pearls you use to embellish your pin. I took 44 closeup shots of the step-by-step process to show you how to make a Silver Swirl Stickpin of your own... Look for Arty Jewelry III this summer on www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com!

You can still download Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II for just $9.99 each through the same outlets. I provide several jewelry projects in each ebook and they are all clearly stepped out with closeup color photographs and detailed instructions (hundreds of photos per book). If you'd like to see the actual projects offered in each ebook, just click on the links above.

Soon I need to put the photo equipment away and start organizing the studio to welcome four ladies to my next Wild Wire Women retreat. I'm really looking forward to this one, because they've chosen some beautiful and challenging jewelry projects to make. I hope you'll follow us next weekend as we have a great time in Idyllwild!

Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Wild Wire Women Retreat: Days 2-3

2011-05-22T21:39:00.000-07:00

It's the last evening of our retreat, and we have just eaten a lovely meal over at the Gastronome restaurant. Now I have some time to upload the photos I took during our retreat yesterday and today. Above you can see Laurel hard at work, and in the photo below you can see Marie. Both students are incredibly hard working and very talented. It was so much fun spending time with them!

Yesterday it was all about the Green Goddess necklace... which took an entire day to make. The necklace below is my sample made over the course of a day. We even had time to use liver of sulfur and polish and tumble our finished pieces.

Laurel's version of the Green Goddess necklace is pictured below. She loves to make big, bold spirals!

Here's a photo of Marie, taking a photo of her jewelry using my Ez Cube system from Table Top Studio. We spent the second half of our workshop today in photography, which was a bit challenging because setting up a propped shot takes time, and the jewelry is slippery and doesn't always cooperate!

Here's Marie's Green Goddess necklace:

And earrings by Laurel... We spent our entire first day making four pair of earrings, which doesn't sound like much of a challenge but these are all rather detailed pieces that took lots of time to wrap, coil, spiral, and assemble.

Here's a photo of Marie's earrings:

And mine:

Laurel's pins are pictured below. We spent the first half of today's workshop time making three different pin styles: Ripple pins (from Arty Jewelry II), Fabulous Fibulas (from Bead on a Wire), and Spiral Top Fibulas (from Arty Jewelry).

Marie's pins are pictured below:

And here are a couple of mine. You can learn how to make the Spiral-Top fibula from Arty Jewelry and the Ripple Pin from Arty Jewelry II, both available as downloads from amazon.com.

We're exhausted but very happy campers, ready to call it a night but thrilled with all the progress we made. My next Wild Wire Women retreat starts in about 10 days!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

WWW Retreat, Day 1...

2011-05-20T19:44:00.000-07:00

Our Wild Wire Women retreat began today with a lesson in the kitchen: making ball-headed head-pins with a micro torch. Laurel (on the left) is getting ready to try it, while Marie waits her turn. After making tons of headpins, we removed the fire scale using a simple acid solution. We were off to a good start...

Our first project of the day was the most complicated: Angel's Earrings (from Wire Art Jewelry Workshop), which includes lots of coiling with fine-gauge wire and spiraling, wrapped eye-pin loops, and handmade ear wires. We finished just before lunch.

Here's Marie, showing off her lovely earrings! Our lunch today was a potato bar with sweet and russet potatoes, chili, cheese, guacamole, green salad, jicama, and all the fixin's. Yummo!

Back in the studio, we made a pair of Ripple Earrings (from Arty Jewelry II). I took photos of our progress but they're just studio pix, not taken under very good lighting. We'll artificially age our jewelry tomorrow and start taking good photos of everything on Sunday, so stay tuned for better pix.

Ivy kept us company in the studio while we...

... made Squiggle Earrings (from Wire Art Jewelry Workshop). Every single earring comes out different, which is why I love them so much.

We had a gorgeous, sunny day and the view was quite distracting while we worked. I had the windows open for a fresh breeze and we listened to the quail and the grey squirrels chattering away.

Our final earring project of the day, Snake Vertebra Earrings (from Wire Art Jewelry Workshop), was a nice wrap-up for our intensive workshop. I'm just amazed at how much we all accomplished in such a short time. It was fun but we're ready to take it easy now. Laurel and Marie went out for dinner while I stayed behind to clean up the kitchen and get prepped for tomorrow's activities. We're making the Green Goddess necklace!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Retreat starts tonight! And another Arty Jewelry III sneak peek...

2011-05-19T11:49:00.000-07:00

My next Wild Wire Women retreat begins tonight with a welcome dinner at our favorite restaurant, Cafe Aroma! I have reserved a table for three, hoping that we get Casey Abrams' couch seat in the back. It's been a favorite spot of my family's for years, so my fingers are crossed.
It's challenging for me to blog each day during a retreat because I work so hard and every night I'm just beat. BUT, if I can, I will! I like having you read along as we pursue our passion for jewelry making with wire, beads, and metals. Check back here tomorrow through Sunday and I will post at least once, if not every day.
We're making the Green Goddess necklace, having a Day of Earrings, and finishing with Fibulas and Spiral-Top pins, with (time permitting) my newest design, the Ripple Pin that is featured in my new eBook, Arty Jewelry II.
My students arrive in just a few hours, so I'd better get back to work. In the meantime, I'm leaving you with a couple pictures from the eBook I'm currently at work on: Arty Jewelry III. Pictured above you see my Embellished Copper Washer bracelet with big washers from Harbor Freight that have been textured several different ways. I took 55 step-by-step close-up photos conveying all the information I wanted to provide, including several photos showing some of my favorite ways to texture metal:

I'm really getting into this and LOVING metal. Just purchased a big box of copper sheet in gauges 20-28, and exploring ways to alter it with forging, folding, striking, cutting, dapping, and torching. It sounds like torture, but the results are amazing. I love it.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Sneak Peek into Arty Jewelry III: Fleur-De-Link Bracelet

2011-05-16T16:32:00.000-07:00

So if you enjoy making intricate links of coiled and spiraled wire, you will love my new Fleur-De-Link bracelet. It's featured in my upcoming ebook, Arty Jewelry III.
The bracelet pictured is made in copper wire, but it also looks great in sterling or fine silver. Or you could try brass wire, but I don't recommend it because it's just too hard. Maybe your hands are stronger than mine...
This is a fun bracelet with a unique clasp that sort of disappears into the design, but I like it. I love creating new findings instead of relying on the old standbys like S-hooks and toggles, which do have their place, but are starting to get old for me.
Anyway, enjoy! I hope to have Arty Jewelry III available for download by next month, but it's not quite ready yet. In the meantime, check out Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II, available on www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Savings on Groceries: The Treasure Box

2011-05-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

I just heard about this wonderful program at my local church and had to tell you about it. It's called The Treasure Box, a division of Good Source Solutions (a food-distribution company).

Basically it's set up to help families get through this dratted recession by providing boxes of grocery items at a greatly reduced rate. They offer boxes of prepared frozen meals, the protein box for grilling (that's the one I ordered), a breakfast box, one called "simply enough," and more. Each month the menu changes a bit, so you have to look it over carefully before you order. I'm not big on breakfast items or prepared TV dinners, so I just went with the simple protein box which is ideal for summer grilling.

Here's a link to the June menu offerings: MENU

I'm only paying $32 for a box of grilling meats that would normally cost $60 or even more (especially in Idyllwild, where grocery items are expensive). I think that's a great deal. You don't have to be "poor" to use the Treasure Box system, but you do have to find a social organization (such as a church or synagogue, or something similar) in your area that's set up to provide distribution of the boxes on designated dates. You can order a box online here. Or you can order through your social organization's team of volunteers.

I hope you find this information helpful. I think it's a great program, especially for growing families on tight budgets, but it's great for single people and seniors who don't like to prepare big meals. It's a way to save money during very difficult and stressful times, and I'm all for that!

Sharilyn

Crazy-Daisy Pin

2011-05-12T08:22:00.000-07:00

Here's another project from my upcoming ebook, Arty Jewelry III: the "Crazy-Daisy" pin. It takes some effort to make, but it sure is worth it! I love making these, using either copper (pictured above) or sterling silver wire.

What fun! And if you don't care to wear your daisy as a pin, you can easily change it into a pendant:

Arty Jewelry III will be coming out this summer. In the meantime, you can download Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com. Each ebook has tons of tutorials, and they retail for just $9.99.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry III: Sneak Peek!

2011-05-09T10:49:00.000-07:00

Now that Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II are both available ebooks on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com, I'm hard at work on my next ebook: Arty Jewelry III.
I thought it might be fun to give you a sneak-peek into the contents of this book as I work on it; currently it's designed to offer 10 wire jewelry projects, including the Double Spiral Heart pin pictured above. This pin looks great in sterling silver (pictured) or copper wire, and it's elegant enough to wear on most open-weave fabrics.
It's one of the easiest projects in the book, too. Believe me, I'm providing some rather complicated designs as well as a few simple pieces in my next ebook. I hope you like them!
If you don't have Amazon's kindle, you can download the software app that turns your phone, computer, etc. into a kindle reader device. It's a free app, available here.
If you don't have Barnes & Noble's nook, you can download the software app that turns your phone, computer, etc. into a nook reader device. It's a free app, available here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

More Fun in the Studio!

2011-05-06T13:48:00.000-07:00

Have any of you tried using an engraver on metal? I have a Dremel® engraver that I just love for practical purposes such as engraving my name on my tools (works on the wooden handle or the metal tool itself) but lately I pondered, wouldn't be FUN to use an engraver on metal for decorative purposes?
For the leaf bangle above, I drew a simple leaf shape in copper sheet and sawed it out. Then I did lots of filing and polishing to smooth the edges, hammered the edges with various texturing hammers (Fretz being my favorite brand) and thought, what's next?
So I freehand drew some simple shapes in the leaf using a Sharpie, and then experimented with my Dremel® engraver. It's a great little tool and not too expensive (under $20), lots of fun to use but I do suggest earplugs! The vibrating noise is horrific, and you have to get really close up to it to see what you're doing.
I think I'll be using my engraver a lot more now, for fun as well as practical projects!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Fun in the Studio

2011-05-04T23:52:00.000-07:00

I had fun in the studio today and thought I'd post the fruit of my efforts. It's so much fun working with sheet metal, especially copper. For one thing, there are no worries about the cost because copper is a very inexpensive metal to work with—at least compared to silver. And it's available in so many different gauges, you're sure to find something that you enjoy handling.
I especially enjoyed designing a freeform flower (don't ask me which species it is, as I have no idea!), sawing it out, and making it come to life with lots of hammering and texturing. Using one of my favorite vintage metal buttons in the design was also a treat. I hope you had fun in your studio today... I sure did!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

FREE Book & DVD offer!!!

2011-04-27T17:38:00.000-07:00

Patti Bullard over at Wired Up Beads (makers of my very favorite pliers, Wubbers!) is offering this incredible deal that you don't want to miss. Purchase just three Wubbers tools direct from the Wired Up Beads web site and get a copy of my latest book, Wire Art Jewelry Workshop, with DVD, for FREE.
This is an amazing opportunity. I use and highly recommend the Wubbers pliers to anyone who is serious about making beautiful wire jewelry and keeping his or her hands safe from harm. I have successfully used my Wubbers on all wire gauges up to 8-gauge (yes, EIGHT gauge) without stressing my hands, without causing injury. I love the big "classic" size but for those with smaller hands, you might prefer the "baby" Wubbers.
I especially love the big bail-forming pliers, and I've also been using my bent chain-nose pliers a lot lately for opening and closing jump rings and other links. You will love these pliers, and for a limited time if you purchase just three pair you get a FREE copy of my new book.
Just enter WUBDEALS in the "special requests" section of the shopping cart, and that's it!
Offer expires at midnight on April 29, so get your orders in soon.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Wild Wire Women Retreat April 7-11, 2011

2011-04-14T14:17:00.000-07:00

This is a late addition to the blog; photos from last weekend's Wild Wire Women retreat! Sometimes it's just too busy and hectic to post all of our activities each day, and with the snow we got and everything else, I just wasn't up to posting during the actual retreat. So, here is a recap of our adventures. Above you can see two Wild Wire Women: Sally (left) and Raven, ready to begin the first workshop on Friday morning. They look rested and stress-free already, don't they?

Unfortunately it began to snow on Thursday evening and we continued to have some rather wild weather for this time of year, all the way through Saturday night. So we didn't have our welcome dinner at Cafe Aroma on Thursday as we usually do. I made pasta (Trader Joe's Puttanesca sauce and some chicken ravioli from Costco!), and, given that Sally provided an excellent bottle of wine, we did OK. The next morning we awakened to the scene above: clouds to be sure, a nice dusting of snow, and brilliant sunshine breaking through now and again. We saw deer and other wildlife... it was quite enchanting.

Our first workshop was 10 Trippy Tricks 2, a necklace of many different wire links and bead wraps. Lots of coiling (above), twisting 24ga wire to make "worm beads" (below) as featured in my newest book, Wire Art Jewelry Workshop, and more: spiraling, wrapping, shaping, forging, and generally bending wire to our own designs. It was fun and a great learning experience.

We made 16ga twisted wire using the drill, and then formed it into tight coils which we then sawed apart (below) to make gorgeous jump rings. I provided all the copper wire needed to make our jewelry samples and practice pieces. Sally brought some silver wire because she was interested in using it here and there... she made some very pretty jump rings twisting silver and copper wire together.

Above you can see Raven working hard on her twisted-wire jump rings. Below is a picture of my mom's daffodils, which I had cut from her yard on Thursday morning before the snow started. I'm glad I did, because my parents' house is 1000 feet above mine so their daffies took a beating while mine weathered the storm much better. Sally took the photo below with her iPhone and emailed it to me. Thanks, Sally!

Pictured below you can see Sally in my kitchen, using a common kitchen torch to make ball-headed headpins out of scrap copper wire pieces. Amazing the things you can do with simple tools and materials! On Saturday we used the same torches to do some fine-silver fusing to make links for bracelets. After lunch, we made Worm Bracelets using 24ga twisted wire to make each worm. They came out gorgeous!

Sunday was our last day of the retreat, and we worked on the Silver Sampler bracelet with a Celtic Knot link thrown in... after lunch, we finished our bracelets and I showed the ladies some different types of hook earrings that are easy to make but very stylish, too. Once you learn how to make your own components from wire, you'll never buy them again.

Since we never got our welcome dinner at Cafe Aroma on Thursday night, we decided to have a farewell dinner on Sunday night instead. It finally stopped snowing and the sun melted so much of it that by Sunday evening we were able to drive up the hill to my favorite restaurant in Idyllwild. We spied this handmade sign in a shop window near Cafe Aroma: "Vote for Casey, Our Wild Idol!" Yes, Casey Abrams of American Idol fame lives here in Idyllwild where he attended the local arts academy. He loves Cafe Aroma, too. No, I've never met him myself but I have heard from the locals here that he's super nice.

Here's Raven (left) and Sally at my favorite table in Cafe Aroma: the couch. Actually, you can't see it because I was sitting on the couch while I took this photo. Guess what, the couch is also Casey's favorite seat in the house!

Another Wild Wire Women retreat begins tonight, and I'll be back at Cafe Aroma for our welcome dinner. The snow has long since melted away and it looks like springtime again. My daffodils are up again and nodding their golden heads. Soon we'll begin our workshops... stay tuned!

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry & Arty Jewelry II on Amazon.com!

2011-04-06T23:25:00.000-07:00

I've just managed to upload my two new e-books (Arty Jewelry & Arty Jewelry II) to the www.amazon.com web site, where you can download them to your kindle device or use the FREE software that amazon provides to read books on your smart phone, iPad, or computer. For more information on these e-books please have a look at my previous post (April 5, 2011) which provides all the details.

It's really exciting to finally finish a huge project like these two e-books, which retail for $9.99 each. If you prefer to read them in the paperback versions, they'll set you back 30 bucks plus shipping (just go to www.blurb.com and type in my name). Otherwise, download the e-book versions using either Barnes & Noble's nook (device or software) or Amazon's kindle (device or software).
One caveat: I provided full color photos (over 200 in each book), but the kindle is only readable in black and white, so if you download your e-books to a kindle everything will appear without color. However, you can easily use Amazon's free software to turn your iPhone or other smart phone, BlackBerry, iPad, PC or Mac computer, etc. into an e-reader device that provides images in full color.
I read books on my iPhone all the time, and in fact I order very few printed books these days. It's just so easy and convenient and portable... and saves a few trees as well!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Arty Jewelry & Arty Jewelry II on NOOK!

2011-04-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited to share my news: Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II are now available as download e-books for just $9.99 each!
If you have the Barnes & Noble full-color nook e-reader device, you can download them instantly by visiting the following links:
Arty Jewelry
Arty Jewelry II
What if you don't own a nook? I don't myself, but you and I can easily download e-books from www.barnesandnoble.com to iPhones, iPads, android phones, PCs and Mac computers, or BlackBerry phones, using the FREE nook apps from B&N. To read more about their free apps, click here.

What can you expect from my e-books on nook?
My first Arty Jewelry book was published a year ago on www.blurb.com and is still available for $30.24 plus shipping. It's a small book, 7x7 inches, but printed in full color on 120 pages of premium paper. If you prefer to own physical books, this is the way to go. Arty Jewelry includes 11 projects stepped out with big photos and 14pt type, very easy to follow! To see all 11 projects on my Web site, click here. To order Arty Jewelry as a paperback book, click here.
Arty Jewelry as an e-book provided the opportunity to include all 11 projects plus much more than in the paperback version: an introduction, tools & materials section, basic techniques demos, plus resources with Web links. You get more for less: it's just $9.99. Tons of photos, plenty of step-by-step instruction, a great value for the money. To order, click here.
Arty Jewelry II was published early this year on www.blurb.com, and is still available for $30.24 plus shipping. Like my first book, this one is small but mighty: 120 pages of premium paper, full-color, plenty of instruction, 10 projects plus using liver of sulfur and polishing techniques. If you'd like to see a preview click here. If you'd like to see all 10 projects on my Web site, click here.
Arty Jewelry II as an e-book also provided me with the flexibility of adding more pages and text and photos, virtually repeating all the basics and tools & materials info from my first Arty Jewelry book. Everything you need is included (if you are a novice wire artist) to get you started. But the projects in this book are all unique, no repeats from any of my previous books. It's a great value at just $9.99 and you can download it instantly. Just click here.
Now I have to say—and I admit to bragging here—that my downloadable e-books are far better than any other jewelry making e-books currently available. I've purchased (for my iPhone) all the bestselling titles in the jewelry making category because I had to know what the competition is up to. Some of these e-books have been OK, but my main complaint is that their photos are too small and hard to see, and there aren't very many of them. Not so with my e-books! You get hundreds of photos in each book, all of them very bright and clear, sharply focused, and easy to see because they show you close-up detail of each and every step. Naturally, every step is not only photographed but described in text that is easy to read and follow.
I hope you enjoy my new e-books. I'm very excited to finally be able to offer them to you in a format that I am truly proud of.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Video: Wire Art Jewelry Workshop

2011-03-29T23:25:00.001-07:00

Final Class at Monica's for 2011

2011-03-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

So this is it, my final class for 2011 to be held at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert. The "Silver Sampler" bracelet is a full-day workshop taking place tomorrow from 10 am to 4 pm. We will cover a whole bunch of techniques and learn several wire links and bead wraps that can be used in various jewelry pieces such as necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and the like.
With silver at over $36 a troy ounce (today), I suggest making your bracelet with dead-soft copper wire or something similar. I'm bringing only copper wire to teach my class. No beads required... although you could use some in your bracelet if you'd like to.
In class, we'll make:
Coil-wrapped beads
Double-coil wrapped beads
Heart links
Hook & eye clasp
Jump rings
Pendant dependent links
Worm beads
Double-spiral links
Eye-pins
In short, all the fundamentals of wire jewelry 101 will be covered in detail! I hope you like the workshop. To access the supply list, click here.
To register for the class, call Monica's at 760-772-2400.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Class at Monica's Tomorrow

2011-03-16T14:31:00.000-07:00

I'm finally back from Bead Fest Santa Fe (which was so much fun!) and ready to take on the two remaining workshops I have scheduled at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert.
First, my Worm Bead bracelet pictured above. It's scheduled for tomorrow, from 10 am to 4 pm, and includes twisting fine gauge wire, making wire-wrapped worm beads, bead dangles on headpins, and handmade jump rings. I'll show you how to make a cool clasp, too.
If you'd like to take this workshop, Monica has the supply list; please note that the bracelet looks great in copper wire as well as the sterling silver wire pictured. Register by calling 760-772-2400.

On March 24 I'm scheduled to teach the Silver Sampler bracelet pictured above. Of course, it can also be made using copper wire and still looks great at a fraction of the cost! Learn to make a double-coil wrapped bead, worm bead (slightly different from the worm beads we make in the class held tomorrow), heart links, Greek spiral links, jump rings, hook clasp, and more. A very full day packed with techniques, appropriate for all skill levels. I hope you can come! Monica has a supply list at the store.
To register, call 760-772-2400.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Packing for BeadFest Santa Fe

2011-03-05T10:25:00.000-08:00

This weekend it's all about packing for BeadFest Santa Fe next week. I'm so thrilled to be returning to my favorite city in the US! Santa Fe is a gorgeous art town, and everyone I've met there has been incredibly enthusiastic about the arts.
All of my classes have some openings, so if you'd like to join us and take a class, by all means please do! On March 10 I'm teaching the Embellished Copper Washer Bracelet (pictured above), which is not featured in any of my books or DVDs. We make every single wire component by hand, and use copper washers from Harbor Freight that we hand-forge and texture with our hammers. By the way, I just checked the Harbor Freight web site and they have the package of 110 assorted copper washers on sale for $6.99 plus shipping! By all means, stock up.

The Santa Fe Bracelet pictured above is another all-day class that I'll be offering on March 11. It looks simple, but there's a lot to learn from this one. We'll make three or four coil-wrapped beads and a very sturdy handmade hook clasp. Then we'll make the wire knot links featured in the bracelet. Put it together with our without jump rings—everything depends on the length needed to fit a bracelet to your wrist—and add a counterweight bead dangle near the clasp. I'm bringing my Makita drill so if time permits we'll make twisted-wire jump rings too!

The Fisherman's Catch Necklace pictured above is a real favorite. Once you learn the freeform knotless netting technique, you'll be addicted to it! Take the plainest beads in your stock and turn them into knockout focal pieces in any necklace or bracelet you make... We'll also make twisted-wire jump rings and simple bead connectors to form a necklace. I'll bring samples of other jewelry pieces so that you can see some of the possibilities this design presents. Class is held on March 12.

On March 13 I'm offering two half-day classes: the Squiggly Wrap Bangle (pictured above) and Angel's Earrings (pictured below). Learn to make a beautiful wire squiggly that can enhance bangle bracelets, necklace components, or even beads for earrings. It's really fun. I'm also teaching a simple hook clasp for the bangle (not pictured).

I'll wrap up my week in Santa Fe with this final half-day class on March 13: Angel's Earrings. Make bead dangles, double-coil-wrapped components, an interesting spiral component, and your own handmade ear-hooks. This earring, as well as all the other jewelry pieces featured, can be made beautifully in copper wire as well as sterling silver. All classes are geared for all levels, so if you're a beginner by all means come on out for a class.
We'll be going out for margaritas afterward, and everyone is welcome!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Just Updated My Workshop Schedule

2011-03-02T13:11:00.000-08:00

I just updated my Web site (www.SharilynMiller.com) with a new workshop schedule, including several new dates for my Wild Wire Women retreats this spring and summer. You can find my latest schedule by clicking here.
My blog created especially for WWW retreats can be accessed here: http://wildwirewomenretreats.blogspot.com
I'm also teaching next week in Santa Fe, New Mexico! I'm so excited, I can hardly stand it. Santa Fe is one of my very favorite cities, certainly in the US. It's a gorgeous art town, with amazing art galleries (all types of art, not just southwest), and the food is delicious. BeadFest is hosting the show and workshops, which take place March 10-13. If you were thinking about coming out for it, my classes still have openings. Just go to my workshop schedule and scroll down to see all of my offerings: schedule
I'd love to see you there. Be sure to stop by at meet the teachers night to say hello. If you have any of my books or DVDs on hand, bring them and I'll sign them for you. I will NOT have kits or supplies or books or DVDs to sell at BeadFest, unfortunately. But most of my students already have their own copies anyway. Be sure to bring yours for a free signing!
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

WAJW Preview Copy Arrived!

2011-02-24T14:29:00.000-08:00

It's always a thrill getting a new book in the mail, and never more so than when the book is your own! Seeing my name on the cover of the newly redesigned Wire Art Jewelry Workshop (Interweave Press) is an honor, and I never take for granted how lucky I am to have found such a terrific publisher.

After self-publishing my book Wire Art Jewelry through "Create Space" (affiliated with amazon.com), I found that my readers were very disappointed in the b&w pages and the poor quality paper. The cover looked great and the projects are lots of fun, but it's hard to tell how beautiful everything is when the presentation is in black and white. So a few months ago I took my book out of circulation and sold it to Interweave Press.

Now you can see it's been beautifully rephotographed and redesigned with a smashing new layout that's very easy to read.

I love the "Wrap a Rock" pendant project; the rock pictured looks heavy but it's actually quite lightweight. I picked it up on a rocky beach on the island of Santorini when I was teaching a workshop there in October 2008. I took the rock home, and later made a wire wrap for it so that I could wear it on my favorite sterling silver ball-chain necklace.

Here's the cover piece: Dancing Man Pendant. This necklace would be extremely expensive to make now! Tons of silver wire, plus turquoise and Peruvian opal, and big chunky Thai-silver shell beads. Given the price of silver today, I would suggest making something similar using copper wire instead!

This project is one of my favorites: Triangle-Drop earrings. I used to teach them all the time, and my students always came out with some terrific variations of their own.

This photo shows a series of step-by-step photos that I took for the book; Interweave Press has reproduced them in full color, quite large. I was surprised that my original text, which came out to 200 pages, was faithfully redone in the newly designed book at 160 pages without the loss of a single technique or project.

AND, Wire Art Jewelry Workshop comes packaged with a one-hour DVD! The contents include an introduction, and then techniques: jump rings, jump-ring rosettes, figure-8 links, freeform knotless netting, twisting fine-gauge wire, worm beads (featured on the cover), and double-coil wrapped beads.
The retail price is $26.95, but you can pre-order it on amazon.com for $17.79 by clicking here.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

A Beautiful, Snowy Day!

2011-02-23T13:52:00.000-08:00

We had a gorgeous "snow dump" a few days ago and I took photos before all the magic melted away (as it's doing right now). Normally when we do get snow up here in Idyllwild, it's just a few inches at a time. But as you can see below, there was at least a foot of snow on my entryway and railings this week.

Ivy wanted to go out, and normally I don't allow it (coyotes in the neighborhood, not to mention the bobcat who owns the territory where my house is situated). But I had a feeling she'd come right back inside, and I was right about that. Ivy isn't too keen on getting her paws wet!

I always find it challenging to convey just how beautiful my workshop/studio is now that I've completed the remodel. New 5x8-foot windows take in the surrounding national forest, and when it snows the sunlight bounces off the whiteness and fills my creativity room with a cheerful light.

Here's a funny sight: My birdbath! Mom got it for me last summer; you attach it to the railing and fill it with water, or with nuts and seeds. It gets so hot and dry up here in the summertime, those of us who are fortunate enough to live here enjoy providing water for the birds and chipmunks and gray squirrels.

The snow is melting fast now, but we're expecting another big storm this Saturday with snow levels down to 1,500 feet in elevation! My house is at 5,000 feet, so I'm sure to get at least a foot of snow. I'll take more photos and post them.

Once spring arrives, the daffies will start poking up their yellow heads and the California Poppies and other wildflowers will bloom all over the mountains. We'll see brand-new baby deer, raucous young woodpeckers, squirrels, and who knows what else! Oh, lots of hummingbirds. Believe it or not, I just saw a hummingbird today. That's how quickly the sun warms even a snowy winter day in Idyllwild.

Happy wrapping,

Sharilyn

p.s. I have lots of openings in my Wild Wire Women retreats. Spring and summer are perfect times to visit Idyllwild and take a weekend workshop in the mountains... if you're interested, visit my informational blog by clicking here.

A Day of Earrings

2011-02-15T14:45:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm back to blogging after a long hiatus, apologies for the delay to all of my followers! The past month has been very busy, as I am in the final stages of a very intensive book project (more on that in a future post), and then last week I got waylaid by a bad flu bug that's been circulating the mountain.
But I'm back now, and feeling perfect, and ready to teach a fun workshop this Thursday at Monica's Quilt & Bead Creations in Palm Desert.

"A Day of Earrings" includes instruction on the four earring designs featured in this post, and it's very intensive so I cannot guaranty that we will finish four complete pairs. But, we'll certainly make at least one of each style and you will go home with the know-how and the handouts to complete them at home.

The four designs include (from the top): Squiggle earrings, Angel's Earrings (both featured in my new book-with-DVD, Wire Art Jewelry Workshop), Ripple earrings (from Arty Jewelry II), and Snake Vertebra Earrings (pictured below)—this design is very similar to the one in Wire Art Jewelry Workshop but I have since added a few techniques to make them even more beautiful.

For a supply list, click here.
The class costs $90 including a full day of instruction and detailed workshop handout. You will need to provide your own wire and beads, headpins, bead caps, etc. and jewelry tools, but if you make your earrings using copper wire they won't be very expensive at all. I estimate about $25 for all materials if working in copper.
My earrings are all made of sterling silver wire so they would be pricey to make now, with silver at $30 a troy ounce. You can of course also work in gold-filled if that is your preference, but I discourage using brass wire because it's very tough and hard to manipulate.
Hope to see you at Monica's!
To register for the class, call 760-772-2400.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Pre-order Wire Art Jewelry Workshop!

2011-01-28T10:19:00.000-08:00

I just received word from Interweave Press today that Wire Art Jewelry Workshop is available for pre-order! They sent me an email with lots of beautiful pictures from the book and a great description.
WAJWorkshop is the book I sold to Interweave Press when I realized that publishing a how-to jewelry making book in black and white (Wire Art Jewelry) was a big mistake. Others have self-published similar books in b&w, so I never anticipated that it would pose a problem. However, I do listen to my readers and appreciate the comments posted and emailed by my customers, so I got the message loud and clear when they told me how disappointed they were in the b&w version of Wire Art Jewelry.
The projects in this book are some of my favorites, and, although I am biased, I have to say that I think they're gorgeous. I certainly would want to learn how to make them if I had not designed them myself! So, I sold the book—including text and photos that I took myself—to Interweave Press. They used my text and step-by-step photos, and took new "beauty shots" of the finished pieces. They redesigned the entire book so that it is beautifully laid out, inspirational, and easy to read. Last summer I went out to Loveland, Colorado to tape an hour-long DVD to accompany the WAJWorkshop book, and soon the book-with-DVD package will be available to everyone.
The best news (to me) is that although this book is stuffed with projects and technique, the editors were able to work with the designers to include every single project! Not one thing is missing from the original book, and I'm thrilled with that.
WAJWorkshop's release date is in April, but you can pre-order it now by clicking here.
I hope you like it.
Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn