Mariner's Wish: Sea Glass!

My first foray into the world of wiring sea glass.  I found these pieces of sea glass on the shores of the island of Kauai here in Hawaii. Along with the brown glass, this pair of earrings features cowry shells and turquoise coins.

Front of Earrings, with wire curl

Back of earrings, with wiring crossed

I have other pieces of brown, white and green sea glass that I'm looking forward to using in more earrings soon!  :) 

Lime Margarita and Anemone Dream

Keauhou residents

Lime Margarita

Anemone Dream

Kona Sunset, June 2013

April Update

I've officially sold six pairs of earrings, one pair on Etsy and five locally!  ^__^ 

Prices of these pairs range from $10 to $20, and include the pairs called Water Wheels, Botswana Doubledecker, Rainbow Tiers, Onyx Dangles, Jupiter Leaves and Jasper Ice Cream.

I'm really excited to share my hobby with others, and love feedback on color combinations, shapes and the materials I use.  As I'm making more pairs, I find myself using some beads more often, such as the tiny sterling silver round beads, which add a bit of light and sparkle. Wooden beads are great, adding a bit of calm without the weight of a darker stone.

I'm looking forward to soon going to a farmer's market here in Honolulu to see how I could sell my earrings at a booth.  This may involve leaving work early during the week, or getting up early on a weekend depending on which market I try.

I've made a few pair this weekend and they're a bit darker than my earlier earrings. Tiger jasper and snowflake blue goldstone are featured in these pairs. Hope you like them!  :D

Midnight Whispers (Tiger Jasper)

Hookah Magic (Snowflake blue goldstone)

Hookah Magic 

Combining Beads & Some Inspiration

Designing earrings can be difficult, since when you see beads laying in their boxes or on the table, they can look totally different once they're put on a wire.  It depends on their size, where their holes are located for the wire and how they balance.  

Here is an example: 

Loose beads on the table

Once they're stacked on a headpin, they look a bit different!

And the finished product: Waikiki Bungalows, available on my Etsy page

 Below are a few different beads I have. Sometimes just looking at them and combining them in different patterns is a great source of inspiration. 

Shells and assorted wooden beads

Freshwater pearls

At other times, I need some inspiration from the natural beauty around me. 

Kailua beach, Oahu Jan. 2013

Kapiolani Park and Waikiki, from Diamond Head, Feb. 2013

 Appreciating the beauty around you helps when you're trying to be creative and design something beautiful yourself.  ^__^