Glistening Silver Steam Punk Cuff

My girlfriend thought it might be a fun challenge to purchase a few pounds of bulk vintage jewelry from EBay and see what a few of us could make from it.    When I arrived at the meeting, I drew a number, and received the corresponding numbered bag.  It was like Christmas all over again!  In there were some terribly cheesy wooden teacher necklaces, some 1960's plastic Christmas pins, plastic beads and a mishmash of everything silver, gold and painted, beaded and chained.  Wow!

I took a deep breath and sorted the pile into what I liked and what I didn't and the silver pieces just stood out and screamed, "Use Me!".  Like a crow, I kept picking at them -- taking a pair of pliers and prying off rhinestones from old necklaces, a fish from an old tie tack, some luggage keys and old buttons.  Soon I had amassed enough to cover my $2 cuff from H&M that I had brought along on a whim.

As the room filled with the toxic fumes of my E-6000 glue, I glued away, placing the silver pieces all over the cuff until it looked just right and my head was just this side of getting high.

I love the way it glistens and it looks great on-- dare I say a little "steampunkish?"   I would never describe myself as a "sparkly" person, but I'm dying to wear it, probably dressed down with my jean jacket next time I head for a night out.

Tangling a Bird's Nest

A while ago, I noticed one of my Facebook friends was involved in a "meet-up" group called, "Handmade Enthusiasts."  I checked it out online and joined, seeing that the group met nearby, and explored simple arts and crafts on a weekly basis.  It seemed like just the kind of thing I may enjoy on those evenings I need a little creative jolt.

Last night, I met my fellow craft enthusiasts to make this silver wire and pearl bird's nest necklace.  How cute is that?  There were about 9 women there, chatting about different artistic endeavors they were undertaking, and I loved listening to all the chatter as I bent, wove and crunched 7 feet of silver wire into this delightful little bird's nest.  It was interesting to see everyone else's work -- mine was much looser than many of the artist's nest and most of them chose colored pearls with gold wire.  I'm a silver girl myself and I'm liking what magic happened that evening.  I'd definitely meet with my new "peeps" again.