Ice and Fire - Amber Rock Crystal Clear Quartz silver gold necklace and earrings set. Handmade fine jewelry by Arctida

I'm a huge fan of fantasy books so it's only natural that I get my inspiration from the books that I've read. So here is the set that was inspired by the *A Song of Ice and Fire* book series. The popular HBO TV-series *Game of Thrones* is based on these books.

A little bit about the jewelry pieces: the focal was made using Fine Silver Precious Metal Clay (PMC) and decorated with 24K gold foil using ancient technique called Keum-boo. The chain and the earrings were handcrafted using genuine Baltic Amber and Rock Crystal Clear Quartz beads wire wrapped in 14K gold filled, 18K Vermeil and Argentium sterling silver (High tarnish resistance). 

 

For more of my pmc fine silver jewelry click here

Pure silver 999 with Rock Crystal Clear Quartz necklace and earrings set. Handmade PMC fine silver jewelry by Arctida

The vacation is over, I had a really nice and long one this year and it is time to get back to work. I have tons of new projects in progress and in my sketchbook but I have not had the time to photograph any new pices yet. So instead I'm gonna show you the latest jewelry set that I've made for myself :)

The delicate free-formed focal was made by me using Fine Silver Precious Metal Clay (PMC) and decorated with Cubic Zirconia in the center. The chain has been hand-crafted using Rock Crystal Clear Quartz faceted round beads and Argentium sterling silver (High tarnish resistance). The matching earrings are simple high quality Rock Crystal Clear Quartz briolettes wire wrapped in Argentium sterling silver.

 

For more of my pmc fine silver jewelry click here

Odaia - Fine silver jewelry Keshi pearl earrings. Handmade artisan jewelry by Arctida

As I mentioned earlier, lately I've been working a lot with PMC (Precious Metal Clay). I love working with PMC, it is such a versatile medium, there no limits of what you can do with it :) and it is mainly composed of recycled silver particles so it feels good to make something Eco-friendly. I have tons of projects in my head and in my sketchbook so I’ll be posting more pieces in the near future.

So here is my latest creation - Fine silver earrings with Keshi pearls (Keishi pearls).

  

Oh and on this picture you get a glimpse on the working process, this is the fine silver ovals during *production* :)

 

Odaia - for sale in my Arctida and Etsy shop  

For more of my pmc fine silver jewelry click here

Deliah - Fine silver jewelry PMC Ruby pendant on leather cord. Handmade pagan style jewelry by Arctida

I've been working with the coolest new media in jewelry making - PMC (Precious Metal Clay) for the past couple of weeks and I'm finally starting to list pieces of jewelry that are made of it.

What is PMC? A unique form of pure silver (mainly composed of recycled silver particles) suspended in an organic binder. In this clay-like state it allows PMC artists to form and sculpt metal clay by hand. When fired at high temperatures by torch or in a jeweler's kiln, the binder burns off and the silver particles are fused together. The result is a one-of-a-kind pure silver piece (.999) purer than Sterling silver (.925).

So here is my latest piece, Deliah - fine silver pmc Ruby pendant on leather cord. This time I wanted to try attaching a stone with a wire, to get that *floating in the air* look, instead of *simply* setting it into the clay. I chose a genuine AA Ruby gemstone for better contrast with oxidized/non oxidized silver.

For more of my pmc fine silver jewelry click here

Enaja - PMC fine silver jewelry pure silver pendant with Cubic zirconia. Handmade pagan style jewelry by Arctida

Here is another piece made of PMC (Precious Metal Clay). This time I wanted to make something ethnic looking, inspired by tribal and pagan influences. I chose the shape of Venus of Willendorf for the pendant because I find it very intriguing and so different from a modern view of a *perfect* female figure. But I didn't want to do an exact replica so the embellishment and the rest of the details on the pendant is a product of my muse :)

What is PMC? A unique form of pure silver (mainly composed of recycled silver particles) suspended in an organic binder. In this clay-like state it allows PMC artists to form and sculpt metal clay by hand. When fired at high temperatures by torch or in a jeweler's kiln, the binder burns off and the silver particles are fused together. The result is a one-of-a-kind pure silver piece (.999) purer than Sterling silver (.925).

So here is Enaja - fine silver pendant with Cubic zirconia on a leather cord.

For more of my pmc fine silver jewelry click here

PMC Oak leaf, Amber, Carnelian, Citrine, Garnet, and Pyrite mixed media gemstone necklace. Handmade jewelry by Arctida

I've been learning to work with the coolest new media in jewelry making -  PMC (Precious Metal Clay) since last spring and I'm finally starting to list pieces of jewelry that are made of it.

What is PMC? A unique form of pure silver (mainly composed of recycled silver particles) suspended in an organic binder. In this clay-like state it allows PMC artists to form and sculpt metal clay by hand. When fired at high temperatures by torch or in a jeweler's kiln, the binder burns off and the silver particles are fused together. The result is a one-of-a-kind pure silver piece (.999) purer than Sterling silver (.925).

So here is the first piece of many :) The focal pendant was made PMC using real Oak leaf from my garden as a template. The leaf has gone through a lengthy layering, drying and firing process that allows its physical properties to transfer to the silver replication. After firing, I hand polished the silver leaf pendant and applied multicolored iridescent patina, to make it look like a real fall leaf. So of course the necklace had to be made in autumnal colors as well. I chose different sizes of Amber, Carnelian, Citrine, Garnet and Pyrite rondelles and wire wrapped them into a handmade chain.

I love the versatility that PMC offers to the artists and all those endless possibilities to incorporate colored gemstones, the reason why I've entered the world of jewelry making in the first place. So stay tuned as more jewelry pieces are on the way :)

For more of my pmc fine silver jewelry click here

Arctida Celebrates 100 Sales on Etsy!

I was so excited to see that I reached the 100 sales mark in my Etsy Store yesterday! Yay! :) Thank you so much to all of my awesome customers who allow me to do what I love and love what I do! I'm hoping 200 sales will come sooner than I think. Wish me luck! :)

The 100th sale was my wire wrapped Tree of Life necklace in Copper and Peridot! 

and as it seems, my Tree of Life necklace becoming my best seller, I decided to introduce another variation in Sterling Silver and Peridot.. Ta Da! :)

Lea - Hammered Rustic Organic Tribal Talisman necklace with Rough Natural Beryl, Labradorite, Sterling Silver and Leather cord

-->So, I’ve decided to try something new here…more of the primitive, organic and ethnic looking style....
The focal pendant is hand formed (by me) from sterling silver wire and hammered for texture. The silver has been oxidized to achieve more of an antiqued look and slightly polished. Inside the loop I placed rough and naturally shaped Beryl. The necklace is threaded with black leather cord and fastens with a lobster clasp and extension chain, which I've finished off with a Labradorite polished rondelle.

Mad Scientists of Etsy (MSOE) monthly challenge - "Cretaceous Ocean"

So the April is almost over and here are the results of the monthly challenge from Mad Scientists of Etsy (MSOE). This month’s challenge was a creation inspired by the theme of "Cretaceous Ocean".

…just a little bit of mandatory nerd (= science) talk now :)

The Cretaceous was a geologic time period approximately 145 to 65 million years ago. It was a period with a relatively warm climate and high sea level. The oceans and seas were populated with now extinct marine reptiles, ammonites and rudists; and the land by dinosaurs. At the same time, new groups of mammals and birds as well as flowering plants appeared. The Cretaceous ended with one of the largest mass extinctions in Earth history, the K-T extinction, when many species, including the dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and large marine reptiles, disappeared.
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So I’ve decided to try my new acquired skills in digital drawing and create underwater scenery what could’ve been seen at that time. I’ve used my own shots of the Triops (tadpole shrimp or shield shrimp).

 
Their external morphology has not changed since around 220 million years ago, which would mean that their early relatives were much bigger but looked exactly or similar to what these little guys look today. The rest of the scenery was digitally drawn in Photoshop by yours truly :)