WATCH OUT! She's at it again...

If you know me or have read my bio on the website, you know that Sunshine INdustries got its start when I made a beaded watch. I couldn't stop. I started to make necklaces and earrings and bracelets. I made anklets. I made more watches. My bead buying began to take the place of my shoe/clothes buying. I knew right then that this "hobby" wouldn't go away quietly. Nearly 4 years later, I'm still creating. Many people still consider my watches to be my best product.

I haven't been creating them for awhile. Guess we all need a break from time to time.

While taking a break from them, I seem to have gathered a nice stash of lampwork and glass beads perfect for some really unique pieces. I opened the lampwork bin for a peak about two weeks ago and inspiration spilled out!!

I've been concentrating on metal clay a bit more lately, forgetting how much fun it is to string together COLOUR and TEXTURE... With the Art Market coming up this Saturday, I decided to create just a few watches. After all, people seem to like them.

It turns out that I do, too! Ask my husband. I've been up late, trying to keep up with the flow of inspiration that seems to be
calling me from the lampwork bead bin...

I'm almost out of watch faces and still, the pull is there! I don't think that the watch obsession is ready to let me go just yet.

Part of the reason that so much inspiration has come from my glass bead bin is that I have found some seriously talented lampwork artists.

Pam Dansie of Wild Sage Lampwork creates a great variety of gorgeous beads. My favorites from Pam are her lentil shaped beads - see the ivory and turquoise coloured square bead in this watch as an example.

Elly Peters of Elly Lou Creations has become a favorite both for her personality and her beads! She's Canadian - always a plus. Look for her specialty bead - the winged goddesses. They don't work well for watches, but they are so cute! Elly created the "Evil Eye" beads and the focal bead in this watch.

Yvonne Kurpjuweit, who is my selling partner at the Art Market, a fellow Middle Years teacher and most importantly, a friend, is my favorite source of lampwork beads. I hate to bother her for any as she creates her own jewelry line, but I have been lucky enough to purchase a few from her. They tend to be bright colours with beautiful light coming from them. You can see her beads and jewelry at http://www.creativeadornments.ca.

Early on, I was inspired by Yvonne's work to actually try to learn lampworking. I took a short course in Invermere. I learned that I am nowhere near patient enough for that! I much prefer to pound and melt metal... However, while in Invermere, I met a very talented bead artistan at Bliss Beads. Sandra takes the art to a new level. These stunning pink swirl beads and the focal bead are from Bliss.

Of course, some of my beads come from retail stores like WalMart or Michaels. I mix these amongst sterling, gemstones, shell, artisan beads - whatever looks good together. I let the inspiration and the art guide me in choosing components for each watch. I try to create watches of all price points so that everyone can enjoy a one-of-a-kind artisan watch.

Come out and see these watches in person and say hi to Yvonne & I at the Streetscapes Art Market:

Saturday, June 12th

Atrium Centre

10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

May the Bling be with You!

Dawn

Turquoise T-Bird...

My love for classic cars began with my participation in car club activities with my parents. Car clubs are fun. We often went on trips to car shows or rallies - sometimes as far as into the States. Both of my parents had classic cars. Mom had a bright orange '65 Mustang. Dad had a '46 Ford Coupe. I dreamt of someday owning a white '63 split-window Vette. My friends and I would gladly grab a rag and polish Dad's 1946 Ford Coupe at a car show just to get the chance to somehow participate. In addition to the shows and rallies, I have very fond memories of Sunday excursions into the city in the '46 to Dairy Queen with Mom, Dad, our dog, Ralph. Ralph even got his own cone. I remember hanging out in the garage with Dad while he worked "his baby", handing him tools or just sitting and talking to him while he worked. I remember my parents trusting me to drive that car when I got my license.

These memories all came flooding back when I was asked by a staff member at school if I could make something for the car club silent auction. She said that there was always an abundance of items for the men to bid on, but they needed something to appeal to the women. Having just given some necklaces to the SPCA for their silent auction, I was hesitant to donate yet more of my jewelry, but I just couldn't turn this one down. Ideas started to boil in my head.

This couldn't just be any piece of jewelry. It had to be car-themed to reflect my love of classic cars. It had to honor my fond memories. My favorite classic car is the '63 split-window Vette, but when I drew the silhouette for one, it just didn't have a distinct shape for a silver pendant. T-Birds always seemed sexy to me - attractive to women as well as men. When I saw the photo of the turquoise T-Bird, I knew I had to give this a try.

I formed the T-Bird shape in silver clay. Once it was dry, I carved in the details using a Dremel drill and hand tools. I torched it, let it cool and sanded it smooth. I dipped it into Liver of Sulphur to blacken it so that the details would show. Much polishing and sanding brought it to the shiny state that it is now in. I felt the need to add "Just Cruisin' " lettering to personalize the necklace for the car club and I felt that the lettering would take away from the car details, so I added a second handcrafted fine silver tag. This tag went through the same construction process as the T-Bird.

I chose a beautiful lampwork bead from Bliss Beads. (I love her work! I bought a ton of her beads last summer while I was in Invermere...) Next, I added two turquoise beads on each side - the traditional colour of a classic T-Bird. Once I had it all attached to the 18" sterling chain, it looked even better than I'd imagined. I hope this necklace goes to someone who loves it... I know it brought back many happy memories for me.

May the Bling be With You...

Dawn

Who is Sunshine INdustries and what do we do?

Sunshine INdustries... is a one-person home business.


Happiness creates sunshine wherever you go.
Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.

#128 Shore Ripples memory wire bracelet

Beautiful purple & misty blue handmade lampwork beads found on EBay... plus glass and Bali silver accent beads on memory wire.

I added a lobster clasp because the beads are heavy.

Click on photo for a larger view.

$30.00

Email sunshineindustries@shaw.ca to purchase.

Anklets I've sold (for ordering ideas)

Anklets usually run from $20-$25.00.
Email sunshineindustries@shaw.ca to order your own!

Earrings I've sold (for ordering ideas)

My earring sell for between $12.00-$25.00 depending on materials. I have copper, rhodium plated, stainless steel, sterling silver and goldtone wires. I can order 14K gold leverbacks for special orders. I have lampwork, Murano glass, base metal, Bali silver, copper and semi-precious beads.

Email sunshineindustries@shaw.ca to order your own earrings!































Earrings range from $12.00-$25.00 depending on materials chosen. Please email sunshineindustries@shaw.ca to order your own!