Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
May 25, 2011

Question:

Hi Dale, I don’t know how to get rid of this paper stuck on the back of my druzy that I bought from Wire-Sculpture. I don’t want my customers to see something like that on my work, so what do I use to get rid of this paper?

-Judy in Danielsville, Georgia

Answer:

Hi Judy, in order to ship our druzy cabochons with the least amount of damage, the manufacturer carefully adheres each cab to poster board with double backed tape. Yes, it sticks really well! As such, there is a bit of residue left when the cab is removed from the poster board to be photographed and then bagged for inventory in our warehouse.

There are several products that will remove this adhesive. Personally, I use Goo-Gone. I simply hold my cabochon over the sink, spread a bit of the product over the mess, and wait a moment or two. Then I run warm water over the cab and rub it slightly with my finger. Usually this takes care of the issue. If the residue is a bit older and more stubborn, I repeat the process using denatured alcohol. Some of our Faculty members have success using pure acetone or another product called Un-Du.

I would like to point out that using any of the products I have mentioned in this post are safe on any of the dyed druzy cabochons sold by Wire-Sculpture. I have personally experimented with all of the adhesive removers I listed, and I also know the druzy manufacturer personally! He has kindly explained the difference between the dye process used by his company and that used by his competitors. His process causes a chemical change, which is permanent. If you are not sure of using a chemical on anything that has been irradiated or vapor-coated, please try a small amount on an inconspicuous area first!

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
May 19, 2011

Question:

I was wondering if the insides of a geode can be used in jewelry or will the crystals just crumble apart? Thanks!

-Cindy in Lake Station, Indiana

Answer:

Well Cindy, using the crystal formations inside a geode to make jewelry with really depends on the crystals. (Of course, another way to use these crystals is as cut druzy cabochons.)

Quartz Crystals in Geodes

Most quartz crystals are pretty stable (including amethyst, citrine, etc) and small botryoidal formations (like azurite, malachite and chrysocolla) are good because even though they are a softer material they are rounded and compact.

Azurite Crystals

When we see lovely, feathery crystals of more delicate minerals such as the zeolite natrolite, in my opinion specimens such as these are way too fragile to consider using in jewelry making of any type!

One suggestion, with regards to how to make crystal clusters into wire jewelry, is to use a minimal amount of wire so the focus remains on the featured material. In the picture below, you see a silver-dollar sized amethyst crystal cluster made into a pendant I titled Vineyard Harvest. The cluster reminded me of grapes, so I mixed half hard and dead soft 20-gauge square wire for the simple frame (carefully entwining the softer wire between crystals) and accented it with Bali silver leaf beads. (The modified frame is based on my Anything Pendant Harness.)

Vineyard Harvest by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

Of course, you also should take into consideration the back of the crystal cluster, the geode matrix. If it is very rough you may want to make a woven, open mat-style frame from round or square wire for the back first (or crochet the backing) and then attach the cluster as described above.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Well, it’s the holidays, and whether that means a quiet celebration at home, or a huge party with relatives and children, you’ll have a ton of fun “Discovering Crystal” with these crystal geodes!

Three to a pack, these Geode Crystal rocks are guaranteed to have sparkling quartz inside. All you need is a chisel (or an old screwdriver), a hammer, eye protection, and a good floor, and you’re ready to go! Children will love discovering their own glittering rocks. Watch the video below to learn how!

Three Crystal Geodes

Click here to purchase your Crystal Geodes – only available for a limited time!

September 15, 2009—Salt Lake City, UT.  Wire-Sculpture.com has announced the winner of their 2009 “Inspired Druzy” Jewelry Contest by naming Ms. Rhonda Chase, with her piece entitled “Crystal Cave,” the Grand Prize Winner.   As the Grand Prize winner Ms. Chase will receive a “Wired Retreat,” a convention held in Buffalo, NY, in October.

The value of this prize is $1797  and will feature instructor Dale “Cougar” Armstrong, an expert in the art of wire jewelry making.  She has several projects planned as well as some fun surprises for all participants!

Ms. Chase also receives free accommodation at the retreat, being hosted at the Buffalo Hilton Garden Inn, as well as meals.  The Grand Prize did not include transportation to and from Buffalo.

The essay submitted by Ms. Chase is poetic and is included herein along with a photograph to demonstrate what it takes to create a winning masterpiece when making wire jewelry.

“Plink. Plink. Plink.
A drip.
A faint glimmer.

The moonlike gleam of a stray ray of sunlight. Walk into the dark. Quiet. The world is gone. A new world awaits.

Turn on a light. And see. Like you’ve never seen before.

Enter the cave. Resplendent walls of crystal with fabulous spires and drops. A spectacular shining cavern and a silent secret river sliding past the stone. At the center of it all, a magnificent still pool, saying nothing, but drawing great attention by its beauty. Crystal formations lie just beneath the waters’ surface, shimmering with uncanny light in this dim world. On the banks of the pool, banded layers of gemstone laid down over eons. “

A crystal cave was the inspiration for my Druzy artwork. These fabulous caverns present a world within our own, mystical in appearance, but completely earthbound. The very core of the earth itself–rock. My beautiful Druzy looks like a still blue pool at the base of the cave. Look into the pool, and see the sparkle of crystals beneath the water, the reflection of gems above. Look around the pool and see a liquid silver river winding slowly past it and through the cavern. The Druzy appears to float in its setting so that it is not obscured from light or view.  I have enhanced my crystal cave with Botswana agate and Swarovski crystals carefully chosen to match and accentuate the Druzy. You can see the river break into swirls and eddies as it splashes into these formations. And as the water comes around the far side of the crystal pool, five free-hanging rivulets of fine sterling chain and hand-wrapped links create small, gentle streams. After this, the river will continue on, the cave will continue on, but we can see no further.”

Beyond the Grand Prize, a Public voting and the favorite pick by Wire-Sculpture.com staff prizes went to Stephanie Eddy for her “one Man’s Pond Scum” pendant and Marie Parker for her “Life’s Hope” piece, respectively.   Ms. Eddy won a $100 Gift Certificate from Wire-Sculpture and an autographed copy of Dale Armstrong’s new “Wire Working” book with personalized comments about her entry.  Ms. Parker also received the same for her wire jewelry entry.

The contest required that each contestant create an original piece of wire jewelry using at least one Druzy Gemstone  Cabochon, submit a photo and write an essay about the piece describing where the inspiration came from to create it.  Each entry was judged for its originality (30 points), for its creativity (30 points), and for the artist’s ability to tie in their inspiration for naming the piece and their essay with the created wire jewelry piece (40 points).  There were over 50 entries in the contest.

The term “Druzy” (also spelled as Drusy or Druse) refers to the tiny crystal which is formed within or on another stone in a large number. When the ground water that carries dissolved, silica is through force pushed into the porous area of rock, rapid cooling occurs and it causes the formation of minute crystals.

Wire-Sculpture.com offers wire jewelry making supplies, ideas, and education to hobbyists and professional jewelry-makers and as a result provide the jewelry-making community with a platform to run competitions.  These contests are not only fun but help jewelry makers find inspiration, learn new techniques, and build a community of artists that love to create jewelry pieces.