Jun 12, 2010

Music "on" my ears - Earring Tutorial

Music is a loved source of inspiration for me next to nature. This is a short tutorial on how to make these unique and lovely earrings for the music lover in your life!

Materials:
Matte finish Mod Podge
Glossy Accents clear, dimensional embellishment or Diamond Glaze
Two nickle sized rounds cut from sheet music
Small, soft bristle paint brush
(2) 5 inch pieces of 16 gauge sterling silver wire
Anvil or jewelry block
Stainless steel jewelry hammer
(2) 16 gauge sterling silver jump rings
(2) sterling silver french ear wires or post ear findings (whatever you prefer)

First, take your rounds of sheet music and coat one side with Mod Podge. Allow to dry, then apply a coat to the other side of each round. Allow to dry. 



Take your 5 inch piece of sterling silver 16 gauge wire and form a loop at the top end. 

 

Round the bottom end using a large marker as a guide. Leave a tail which you will wrap softly around the body of the wire. Leave a bit of the tail unwrapped. Now grab your hammer and anvil (or block) and hammer out the rounded portion of the wire and the bit of unwrapped tail. You may need to sand the tail end with a Dremel as burs will likely form from hammering. Using a pair of nylon coated flat nose pliers, shape the hammered remaining piece of wire around the body of the earring wire.

Take the dried sheet music rounds and begin to apply the Glossy Accents or Diamond glaze according to the directions. Avoid air bubbles as much as possible. If air bubbles occur, I use the soft bristle paint brush to smooth them out and it also helps spread the glaze evenly.  

  
Now take the coated sheet music rounds and apply them to the back of the rounded and hammered portion of the wire. Use additional gloss/glaze to coat the sterling silver wire and create a seal between the wire and paper. Smooth out any air bubbles and allow to dry for approximately 60 minutes. 

 

Once dry, insert the jump ring into the top loop and apply the ear wire. Voila! 


Belated Recipe Friday: Caesar Vinaigrette


This is a simple salad dressing mixture that I learned from a friend of my mothers when I was a kid. I use this dressing on a bowl of leafy romaine with homemade garlic bread croutons. I make this dressing very "garlicy", if you prefer less garlic please reduce the amount of garlic to your taste as my recipe packs a garlic punch!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup aged balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Zest of half a lemon 
5 large cloves freshly minced garlic
1 Tbsp. Anchovy Paste
2 Tbsp. Bleu Cheese
1 Tsp. Salt
Mix all the ingredients with a whisk or fork. The zest of a lemon can be substituted with ready lemon juice. Anchovy paste is used in place of actual anchovy from the can as I have a friend who doesn't care for the bits of anchovy to be visible in the dressing. If you choose to use a can of anchovy, drain the oil and paste the anchovy slightly with a fork.

Jun 10, 2010

Winner!!! "One Year Older - Birthday Giveaway!"

And the winner is.......

Mewes Mountain Arts!

Congratulations and thank you to all the participants who followed, tweeted, hearted and commented during the giveaway! I truly appreciated it!