November Rosaries

I finally finished up all the rosaries I had on deck for the Day of All Souls. Over all, I'm pretty pleased with them, except maybe the carnelian one (the orange one) I may restring it with closer spacing so that it feels more like a rosary and less like a string of beads. This was a good exercise for me, since I feel like I had to push to come up with components. I also tried several stringing variations, and I think I came up with the one I like the best.

Andalusite Cross

So I FINALLY sat down and made myself start the enamels for John. They're going to be double sided champleve, with an andalusite cross (see above) on the front and a mosaic type deal on the back. We saw mosaics just about every where we went in Italy, but for some reason the ones we saw in Rome stick with me the most. I took a bunch of pictures of the mosaic floors in the Vatican, and Marissa and I totally had this moment with one of the mosaic walls in the Borghese.

So I'm etching the crosses on the fronts first (in the acid as we speak!), then I'll pierce out my shapes, re-resist everything and etch the mosaic squares in the back. I'm a little concerned about colors though, because I'm not sure if these pinky andalusites go with the rest of the componants (smoky quartz, tiger iron, and limestone). I think I just have to make sure I stay closer to the beige/brown side, or go with a deeper sort or pink/red to go with the tiger iron.

Anyways, I'll figure it out. I'm just glad they're started.

Process Shot of the Week

Mark
petrified wood, picture jasper, vitreous enamel, china paints, found snail shells, silk

The first rosary I posted was Matthew. I suppose I should have mentioned that. Next up is Luke, then John. You get the idea.

I should also mention that I know that the rosary is suppose to have sets of ten beads and that these only have seven. They're not for actually praying the rosary, hence the number change on my part.

Process Shot of the Week

I finished the first of my rosaries for my Italy credits. I don't think rosaries are supposed to be sexy, but this one is. 24k baby!

Process Shot of the Week

So I'm making a series of rosaries for my Italy credits. This isn't one of them. After finding homes for the two rosaries I bought in Italy, I decided that I needed one in every room of the apartment. Don't ask me why. Hopefully, it won't throw off the feng-shui.

I've been hanging on to these shell beads for nearly a year and decided to pair them with these sweet little understated aquamarines and made myself a practice rosary.

Then I went to the book store and picked up a cheap copy of the Bhagavad-Gita.