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Behind The Scenes Colour Ideas jewellery making personal Project

SIMple Things

Running low on inspiration, but with plenty of motivation to do anything other than what I should be doing, many of my spare moments lately have been spent watching the new series of Ghosts (thank you, BBC iPlayer, for letting me put my poor impulse control to good use), and showing my kid how to play The Sims 4 (how timely, as I’ve just learned that The Sims 5 is on its way!), and it’s all been very fun. Except for when it wasn’t.

Anyway, my kid and I, we both realised that our favourite way of “playing” the game isn’t actually to play the game; creating the Sims and building the houses are the parts that we love most of all. Maybe because by the time everything is made and ready, it’s either time to do something else, or we’ve run out of steam/enthusiasm. So anyway, it’s pretty much become a design tool for us at this point.

Which has given me an idea: to recreate a piece of jewellery I like from The Sims 4. Not with any intention to profit financially from this, by the way, if anybody from EA is reading!

I thought I should make a pair of earrings, so I scoured through all the options and narrowed it down to these three pairs, as modelled below by the series’ newest iteration of one of its most famous characters, Bella Goth.

(side note, I don’t know when they updated the Goth family in the game, but I do know I’m not a fan of their new looks. But that’s another story for another time. And perhaps another audience. Anyway, she’s #NotMyBella)

I decided on the big birdie pair in the middle, and thought polymer clay would be a good medium for this project. It’s simple enough to work with, I can make pretty close colour matches and – perhaps most importantly – it’s lightweight, so the earrings would be comfortable to wear.

The design of these earrings needs to be the same on both sides, but as a mirror image. I was thinking of approaching this in one of two ways: make a stencil/template, or make a cane.

Using a stencil would certainly be the less time-consuming and simplest option – I’m imagining something similar to decorating a cake, which I enjoy doing (likely because I only do it once a year for my kid’s birthday) – but after watching so many polymer clay cane slicing videos online, I kind of want to try that.

In case you’re like myself who didn’t know what a polymer clay cane was until those videos showed up in my Instagram feed, they’re pretty much like a stick of rock, with a pattern or design running all the way through it.

Unable to make a decision out of only two choices, I gave it a few more seconds’ thought. And came to the conclusion that enjoying the look of polymer clay canes is one thing, but I’ve never made one before and if I can’t get the hang of it quickly, I’d soon be fighting my own waning enthusiasm for the project to get it done.

So, it was decided: stencil method. I could get ready to make my very own pair of big birdie earrings.

But wait! There was another decision to make! There are 12 different colour variations of these earrings, and I liked them all.

But, this time I had the power of the process of elimination on my side:

Right off the bat, I ruled out the green and plum ones. I know I said I liked all of them, but I still have a least-favourite.

Next, I nixed the white one. Because no matter how clean you think a workspace is, polymer clay attracts “stuff” like a neodymium magnet. So dust and other bits would show up too easily.

This also applies to the other lighter-coloured ones. So the cream, pale pink, green and yellow ones were gone too.

Black is nice but – like the white one too, actually – it’s all just one colour. So I don’t want that either. A bit plain. However, the turquoise one is also all one colour and that doesn’t look so simple. Same goes for the bright pink. Maybe this situation isn’t all black and white, as it were…

I tend to find it difficult to separate red and green from feeling christmassy, yet for these earrings, I’m not having that trouble. This colour combo is officially the first one on the ‘yes’ pile. And a close second is the blue and purple pair.

Another ‘yes’, this time for the red and bronzey ones. I like the warm, autumnal colours. Even if it does remind me more of a turkey than an elegant, exotic bird. I suppose it would be fitting if I was making them for someone who celebrates anything turkey-related in autumn, though.

And now we are down to a final three. Again.

…

…

… Stuff it. I’m going with the blue and purple ones.

Colours all mixed, stencils all prepped, I can finally get started! Here’s a quick picture dump, in lieu of a full step-by-step guide:

Tried a few different sizes, and it turns out bigger is better!
Me at the beginning of this project: This Is Ace(tate)!
Needed an extra image to complete my 3×3 grid
Nearly skipped this step until I realised it would be too thin for the eyepin
Almost done! … with the first one anyway. Got to do this all over again for the second earring.
Into the oven! I don’t often use polymer clay, so never bothered with a ceramic tile. Kiln block in tin foil should be okay, right? Yes.
Shaving, filing and sanding done. Nearly there!
A coat of something shiny!
View from the back

And now, the finished earrings:

“BONUS”: Some shots with Instagram Reels ‘Sims’ filters. The Bella one was a fresh shot of nightmare fuel, and the other one gave me clearer skin and a 10-foot neck.

So, final thoughts? I like them. I’m not completely bowled over by them, but for a first attempt off the back of an idea that was completely on a whim, I’m quite happy. And I love the colours. I’d definitely do this again, making something from a game. Particularly this one, as everything does have a simple, cartoony look, so it’s fairly simple to replicate. Plus, it’s an excuse to play it, in the name of research!

So I give these a Pass in terms of how they look, but how about wear? I did mention polymer clay being light. And yes, they are very light and comfortable to wear. I almost forgot to take them out because I couldn’t really feel them! So they get a definitely get a higher score for wearability.

If I did do it again – making this pair of earrings, that is, not just something from the game – my main aim would be to make sure the earrings look like mirror-images of each other. This pair are definitely sisters, not twins. I imagine that’s where learning to make a cane would come in very handy. Other than that, I would add more movement. Maybe thinner layers or separating the tail feathers. They’d make nice clicky-clacky sounds too, actually. Yeah, I’d do that.

If you’d like to see me do something like this again, let me know in the comments? Also, let me know if you also grew up playing any Sims games like I did.

Oh, just one more thing before I go: I’ve not forgotten about my upcoming Halloween make, I’ve just not got around to doing anything to prepare for it as of late. A bit of schedule re-jigging should find me some time.

Right, that’s all for now. Thanks so much for popping in and having a read. Have a lovely rest of your day! 

If you’d like to see more from me, you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and of course, you can support me and treat yourself in my Shop (and the Sale is still on until tomorrow night)!

Helen x

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Ideas jewellery making Project

SEW, WHAT’S NEXT?

I love summer. Bright sunshine and blue skies, smelling the pretty flowers and wearing flowy fabrics. All of that.

But for some reason, I’ve suddenly caught myself thinking about Hallowe’en. Not autumn, but Hallowe’en specifically. As I mentioned in my first post about last year’s big project, Hallowe’en isn’t really something I’ve bothered with. I went to a couple of parties as a kid, but that was about it, really.

Considering how quickly the year seems to be flying by, it will be October before we know it, so I should probably try working out why I have All Hallow’s Eve on my mind. Or at least, what I can do to stop it interrupting my other thoughts and plans.

I often find something that helps me shake off the nagging feelings in the back of my mind is to take a little bit of time to focus on it; bring it to the front and give it the attention it’s after. And how I start that is make a point of noticing when I think about it.

Which is often when I’m making a new piece of jewellery. There’s something about the simple repetition of stringing beads or linking rings that lets new thoughts and ideas flow in.

So that’s probably it, yeah? I should make something new for Hallowe’en. But I did that last year. So? I do like making stuff.

Last year I got 4 blog posts and a cool Dior-inspired choker out of “making stuff for Hallowe’en”. I wonder what this year will get me. Maybe the sooner I get started, the sooner I’ll know.

I could make another choker? No, although I am thinking something bigger than a ring. A bracelet, then. That’s a more likely option.

Now, what can I do to condense Hallowe’en – the first of the two nights in a year (depending on where you’re from and the stories you grew up on of course) I can think of when the dead get to wander the earth – into something you can wear around your wrist? Sounds a bit much when I put it like that. All right, as long as it’s something spooky, or creepy; a bit “off”.

As last year’s project was a bloody mess, so to speak, this one should be nice and neat. A bit of repair work.

Right, that’s all for now. Thanks so much for popping in and having a read. Have a lovely rest of your day! I’m off to do some research; see if I can stitch some inspiration together.

There’s more to come as this project develops, so please subscribe if you don’t want to miss future posts. And of course, likes and comments are muchly appreciated. 

If you’d like to see more from me, you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and of course, you can support me and treat yourself in my Shop!

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Colour Ideas jewellery making Project

ALL CHOKED UP – part 2: the beadening… um, i mean, beginning

[Author’s Note: This is quite a long post. So before we start I’ll say get a drink and a snack, and make sure you’re sitting somewhere comfy!]

If you’ve not read Part 1 yet, you can find it here. But if you’d prefer a TL;DR synopsis, then:

  • I saw an image of a cut throat/vampire bite/blood splattered-looking pearl choker necklace online and wanted it
  • I saw how much it cost, and how long it would take to ship
  • I decided I will make my own instead

I set about beginning this piece of jewellery the way I usually do: shopping my stash. I’m something of a hoarder, so more often than not, I can have a dig around in bits and bobs that I already have and come up with just what I need. Or at least, something very close. Though, I do love an excuse for a good nose around a bead shop, so I was half crossing my fingers that I couldn’t find what I needed at home.

I found all kinds of different beading threads in my stash. And clasps and rings, and loads of pearls (synthetic, not real; but you likely spotted that because of how uniformly spherical they are). I love pearls like this. They look like pearls “should” to me. The kind that has a sort of, vintageyness and an antique…yness to them, while still holding their own in contemporary jewellery. Timelessness! Timeless is the word I was actually looking for. They’re a classic.

I don’t even remember what I got these for, originally. I do make a lot of coloured pearl bracelets and necklaces, so maybe that? Wonder why I never used them. Nothing seems to be wrong with them. But whatever the reason, I was happy I hadn’t used them already, because there was loads! And the colour was pretty much exactly what I needed. Brilliant!

But as you can see, I’d hardly got any red beads. This was not so brilliant. 

It looked like I would have an excuse to buy things after all! This was quite a bit less not brilliant.

Right now, I have the mother of all sinus infections, which is a shame as I envisioned a nice little shopping montage for this part of the blog post. Never mind. Online shopping it would have to be!

While we wait for my order to arrive, I could tell about the first time I saw a ghost? It is spooky season. Plus, can I really call this a blog if I don’t pad it out with a bit of irrelevant backstory?

I was 7 years old, and just dossing about on my own in my living room one afternoon, looking at the books on the bookshelf. Not really searching for anything in particular; just nosing. They were mostly my parents’ books anyway.

Like I say, I was on my own… well, I thought I was. I happened to glance over to my left, and there was an old woman just standing there, on the far side of the room, facing me. She was short, with short, dark, wavy, greying hair, and she wore a colourful floral dress: mostly blue with a pink and green pattern. And now thinking about it, whether it’s just lost to memory I don’t know, but I don’t recall her having any facial features. I knew she was looking at me, though.

She didn’t move, and she didn’t make any sounds. And neither did I. She just kept looking at me, and I just kept looking back at her. I didn’t feel anything; not even surprise at this random old woman who had suddenly appeared in my living room. We lived in a first-floor flat (well, a maisonette; but I like alliteration)! I don’t think climbing the stairs would have been easy for her. I do, however, remember noticing a sudden smell of apples, which kind of ‘broke the spell’. I turned my attention back to the bookshelf, but when I looked back to where the old lady had been standing, she’d already gone, taking the scent of apples with her.

I didn’t see her again. And any other times I smelled apples were because we had actual apples in the fruit bowl. Anyway, the years go by, and I’d almost forgotten about what I’d seen. But then my mom happened to mention someone who used to live in our old place: an old lady who kept apples under her bed.

Who this old lady was, and whether anyone else had seen her since she passed, I don’t know. I might look into it one day.

But not today, because my red beads are here now!

Today, it’s all about the pearls, so these beautiful beads won’t be making another appearance in this post. But they will be back, of course. So let’s have a quick look at them before I put them away, ready for a future update.

Okay, now I had all of the beads I could possibly ever need, I could, first of all, sleep more easily at night, knowing I have a much better chance of finishing this project in time for Hallowe’en. And secondly, I could finally, properly, begin to make my necklace.

Describing the process here, when I don’t intend for this to be a tutorial, might be a bit tiresome. So instead, here’s a quick slideshow of everything that happened:

So, it was going quite well, until it wasn’t: I didn’t actually have enough pearls to make a 4 strand choker. I learned that I needed 64 of them. Per strand. Lesson learnt: count your beads before you start. What could I do?

Well, you saw what I did: I found more pearls, after a second, and more thorough “mom-look”, in my bead stash. These were a slightly smaller size. But the same colour and shape (this also answers a question I had earlier: by the looks of things I had intended to use them to make single-stranded necklaces). These pearls would go at the back, where they add to the length without being seen. There definitely weren’t enough to just remake the whole strands with them, at any rate. 

I did also find some more pearls of the same shape, and the same size, as the first one. Hooray! But they were all pink. They still are. Though that’ll’ve changed by this time next week.

So, panic over, I threaded all the pearls, being careful to make sure the pink ones were all grouped together, and that they would be just visible from the side when I actually put the choker on. 

Like so:

It fits! It’s just the right kind of snug. And I’m feeling pretty smug! Well pleased with it and how it looks on. Almost (and I do mean almost) tempted to track down more of the cream colour beads and make another version of this as it is right now!

Though it was frustrating to have to basically start again, it turns out that the pink beads were more useful than just for filling space: they give me a visual cue for placement of the “blood spillage” beads. I love that. V. serendipitous.

Speaking of blood spillage, on the original necklace, there’s an area above the red beads where a load of shiny red… something looks like it’s been smeared or splashed onto the choker. Here, I’ll pop the picture in again:

image source

I love that. I think it might be my favourite thing about the piece. So, naturally, it’s the part I’m most hesitant to replicate. But I’ll do it anyway. 

And that will be covered in Part 3 of this series, where I’ll be playing with paint, resin, and even a bit of nail polish! I’m aiming to get that posted on 15 October. 

So if you want to see how that turns out, be sure to give this blog a follow so you don’t miss it.  

That’s all for now. Thanks so much for popping in and having a read. Have a lovely rest of your day! 

There’s lots more to come as this project develops, and while I work out a more consistent schedule for this blog, so please subscribe if you don’t want to miss future posts. And of course, likes and comments are muchly appreciated. 

If you’d like to see more from me, you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and of course, you can treat yourself and visit my Shop!

Categories
Colour Ideas jewellery making Project

ALL CHOKED UP – part 1: setting my intentions

I’m feeling very excited and inspired! I’m starting a new project! Something bloody spectacular. But I’m going to take a few moments to tell you about it first. 

Right, so, I was all ready to start a blog post about Christmas and what theme I’m going for this year, when out popped my old friend executive dysfunction, and I opened Twitter. What did I see? This: 

Image Source: Twitter, via Hell’s Belle Designs*

It stopped me mid-scroll. And not only because it’s a tweet from March last year. I just want it. And it seems like the perfect time to get it. It’s October now. Hallowe’en is only a few weeks away.

Now, I didn’t grow up with Hallowe’en being “a thing”. Not saying that was everyone’s experience; people celebrated it, but it didn’t seem like it was that big of a deal. Plus, Bonfire Night is only a few days after. May as well save up your excitement for that! Does Hallowe’en come with fireworks? Exactly. And anyway, Christmas is the end-of-year celebration I truly love. But I really do want that necklace. Choker, really.

Even if all I end up doing for Hallowe’en is sit about on the sofa, drinking Bloody Marys, I will have that necklace on while I do it. Being honest, though, the original is out of my price range. And international shipping wouldn’t guarantee I could have it ready for 31 October.

So I’m going to make my own version. I will be documenting the process week by week as I go – with Part 2 coming up on 8 October – so please keep your fingers crossed for me and stick around to see how I do! 

Should we look at it one more time before I go? Okay:

Image Source: Twitter, via Hell’s Belle Designs

* [Author’s Note 05.10.2021: since originally posting this on 1 October, I’ve learned that the choker design is based on a Dior SS06 look, and has been reproduced many, many times since then.

Christian Dior Spring/Summer ’06 collection

Don’t know how I managed to miss/forget about this. Then again, it was 16 years ago! But I will still refer to the Hell’s Belle necklace in future posts. Because, I have to be honest, I just like it more.]

That’s all for now. Thanks so much for popping in and having a read. Have a lovely rest of your day! 

There’s lots more to come as this project develops and while I work out a more consistent schedule for this blog, so please subscribe if you don’t want to miss future posts. And of course, likes and comments are muchly appreciated. 

If you’d like to see more from me, you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and of course, you can support me and treat yourself in my Shop!