Seasons of Creativity

 I created a ton of work in the early Spring and made all my deadlines for venues, let it go and put it all on autopilot, leaving the sales and marketing to the experts.

I focused my creativity on my house and yard for the Summer and found it refreshing and invigorating.  It allowed me a different way to express myself using my left brain for construction and repairs, while still using my right brain for the design aspects.

This experience was the perfect balance to my in-studio detail work, almost the complete opposite kind of creativity, working outdoors and physically moving about.  I really enjoyed this and toyed with the idea of quitting the jewelry business all together.  

Later I saw the big picture of creative expression.  Those with many interests (like myself) need to express and experience different things, trying our hand (and stretching our minds) on new projects.  Gardening can be very meditative and exhilarating at the same time.  Building and repairing can use a part of our brain that figures things out, using new tools and testing our dexterity and patience. 

The point being that perhaps different mediums have their season.  Why not, everything else does.  Look at the earth and Mother Nature, nothing is stagnant, it's always moving, changing, renewing. 
This insight has lead me to the conclusion that perhaps nothing really has to end, just change. 
It's also helped me to lighten up and not take things so seriously, it's only art, a means of expressing ourselves.  Having said that however, I would also add that we can't really live without it either, making it or looking at it.  We all need to experience art.

But I digress, I am not a writer, I am a creator of things mostly, so forgive me for rambling.  My hope is to bring other artists some insight into their own process by sharing mine.  Perhaps you are facing similar challenges, asking yourself questions about your own endeavors.  I suggest we relax, calm down, don't take it too seriously and just enjoy the journey.

When I did this I found that as summer wound down I started thinking about the studio again.  Much to my surprise I had some new design ideas flow through me, huh, well that was interesting.  Perhaps all I really needed was a little break from the studio work, some diversity to shake things up, or calm things down, what ever is needed. 

So I for one, will be looking farther ahead from now on, into the next season, the next year, but also staying in the moment of inspiration. 

Happy Creating!

Another New Venue and Exhibit

 May wrapped up to be very successful for J Gray Design!  After installing many new pieces at The Take 5 Art Gallery on Water Street in Port Townsend, I was introduced to the new owners of a beautiful vintage home decor shop in Uptown PT.  Rust & Relics Vintage carries many local artisans and offers vintage home decor as well.  So I am excited to join them there with a small collection of my Stones and Metal jewelry work.

I created these five pieces specifically for Rust & Relics Vintage, all in my signature foldform design.  The earrings are made with sterling silver ear wires.

This month I also applied for this quarter's rotating art exhibit in the next town.  Shelton is 28 miles south but within the same county.  After their jury process and city council approval, I was notified that I had been accepted to showcase my jewelry along with two other artists, from June through August.  They have displayed the pieces inside the glass case.  

All of these pieces were created for this exhibit except the two cuffs which are from my personal collection.

I'm taking a much needed break from the studio in early June but will be back creating some new designs that have been swirling around in my head.  Hopefully the next round of work will make it to the Etsy shop!  

Meanwhile if you are traveling to Port Townsend, WA. this summer, please stop in the new shops and take home a hand crafted jewelry piece from the Pacific Northwest.

New Work and a New Venue

 Last week I had a serendipitous encounter at a Port Townsend Gallery where I made an instant connection with Mara, the owner.  The conversation flowed from art to her background to her plans for the future of the gallery.  Included were plans to bring in jewelry!  This lead the conversation to my work in metal and a quick viewing of my photos.  Please note here artists, you should always have photos of your work on your phone as you never know when you'll need to show them!
She loved the work, invited me to exhibit there and we agreed I'd return in a week.

One week later to the day, I returned with new pieces I'd made especially for the gallery and a few I'd taken from my Etsy shop listings.  This made a well rounded collection and representation of the work I am producing this year in stones and metal.  

This experience is a testament to synchronicity.  Always be ready for the unexpected magic that can happen at any time!  

I met artist friends of Mara's and could see the kinship she had with them that I too felt instantly.  These are my people, artists, kindred souls.  Right away a pair of my earrings sold out of the box.  Mara went to work on plans for a display while I unpacked the items and chatted with shoppers.  I love art appreciators!  

Here are the new items that are now represented in the Take 5 Art Gallery in Port Townsend, WA on Water Street.

Please plan to visit the Take 5 Art Gallery on your next trip to Port Townsend, currently open Thursday through Sunday and 6 days a week come summer.  The gallery is a short walk from the ferry so if you come over from Seattle on the new fast ferry you can come on foot.  Take 5 is the first gallery on the right side of Water street in the Flagship Landing building.

Mara brings her knowledge and expertise from the San Francisco art scene.  Take 5 opened in June of 2021 and has grown into a magical hidden gem of quality art.

Here are some images of the fabulous space that Mara has so lovingly created at Take 5, including big name artists from the west coast and Paris!  

I hope you'll put the gallery on your destination list for the summer of 2022!

Easy Brooches

 This year I'm focusing on cold connections in my stones and metal jewelry.  So the next logical step was to make a brooch.  I worked it out in my mind first, which is how all my ideas start, then on paper if needed.  This time it was more a matter of just doing it to see if all the parts work.

To my delight, they did!  That's the real work, by the way, making sure all the tools and parts are the correct sizes to work together.  In this case it was the metal hole punch, the rivet size and the hole of the pin back.  You'll also need the correct rivet punch.  Next is design.

This first one I made with a wonderfully textured piece of copper from my scrap box that I'd been using for a punch test.  Who knew this would become a finished piece!  I cut it into a square and sanded all of the edges.

cold connection brooch

pin back

The real trick in the design process is placing the pin back so that the rivets add to the design on the front.  Where you place it on the back isn't as important because you can wear a brooch pinned just about anywhere;  sideways, upside down, etc., as long as the weight doesn't change how it hangs.  But these smaller ones are very light weight.

So you can see how I've placed the rivets so the flat end is on the pin back and the decorative, cap end is on the front of the piece.  By the way, these are 4mm compression rivets, manufactured to be hammered into each other.

I also added a tiny domed piece of metal on one of the rivets for design and dimension effect, otherwise it might have looked too flat and uninteresting.  All the odd dents and discoloration of the front of the piece add to the design, making it quite abstract.

The finished piece is only about an inch by an inch and a half, lightweight and versatile for any application, like a scarf, hat or lapel.  

I was so encouraged by how easily the first one came together that I quickly set to making a second one.  I used another piece of recycled metal from a previous design, a little bigger this time.  I liked the domed circle idea so I used it again, only this time it is added after I attached the pin back.

I think the rivets really add to the design of the front.  As I mentioned earlier, that's really the only consideration in designing these is the placement of the pin back in relation to how the rivets will look on the front.

I added the curl for more dimension on the front.

I think this line of jewelry is what I have been waiting for to apply my love for abstract design.  I wanted to paint abstracts for years but couldn't really get the hang of it.  Apparently I was destined for constructing it instead. 

Cold Connection Bezel Setting

 While enjoying the new compression rivets I decided I should try a stone setting.  I never mastered the soldered bezel since I don't have a hot enough torch, but I have seen this method of cold connection bezel before and wanted to try it.

 
This is my first one.  I decided to make the backing abstract and add patina to show off the stone which is an Apple Green Jasper slab.  

The "bezel" is actually a cut piece of copper with four tabs or prongs that hold the stone.  The back is concealed and attaches to the backing piece with rivets. 

 
There's a lot of planning for a project like this!  Honestly, I'm surprised it turned out as well as it did for a first attempt.  The back is quite hidden and the tabs fit the stone quite snug, although I did add a dab of glue to the back of the stone just for an extra measure of security.
The three rivets are done with the flat side on the inside to allow the stone to fit snug against the bezel piece.  

The outer piece is an abstract cut copper sheet.  Both pieces were dunked in liver of sulfur for patina color.  Later I went over them with steel wool and a polishing cloth.

 
I then added a few rivets in copper and bronze just for aesthetics, and the final touch was another rivet at the top that also holds the copper wire loop for stringing. 

(finished photo here)

This was really fun!  I can see more projects like this in my future.  I highly recommend this bezel method for those of you who do not have a hotter torch, or who just prefer a cold connection. 

This finished up nicely!  I added some big bulky chain and it could be worn by anyone, another goal of mine, to be more gender neutral in my designs.

 I used a larger rivet for the top piece that holds the loop.  

More coming on this hardware series as I get more ideas that are creating a theme around the Viking's SheildMaidens.

 

Hardware Jewelry

 Or maybe I should title it "hardwear jewelry".  These new pieces are taking shape but not quickly!  I have searched for recycled copper pieces and spent hours in the local hardware store fitting nuts and bolts together.  I'm sure they think I'm building a space ship for all the time I've spent in the aisle for screws and bolts.

I started laying out pieces that I liked together, then chose the hardware according to size, color and fit.  Eventually I just had to finish something.  I have these new compression rivets too that I've been itching to try, so I added some on the finished pieces, just for looks so far.  Later I can do something more functional with them.

So this piece was finished first.  I love the odd shapes and color contrast between the patina copper background and the bronze front piece.  By the way this one moves!  You can actually move the bronze piece a little either way.  This was my original goal too.  The rivet is ornamental. 
Finished on a bronze chain with handmade clasp.

This piece came a lot quicker because I used recycled copper from my bin of scraps.  I did a foldform line for texture and added a bronze piece with screw and washer with a rivet for a finished look.  Nice bulky chain with handmade clasp.  

Coming next are two more pieces from the recycled scrap that I've hand worked.  I am loving these hardware accents!  Finding the perfect chain is challenging, but worth it.  Best part is that they are gender neutral / unisex pieces. 

Stay tuned!

2022 Creative Projects

 As promised, I am working on two techniques right now.  Starting the year out with coloring metal and incorporating hardware into my designs.

Adding color to metal took some thought and research as I wanted specific results that looked either antiqued or at least had a matte finish.  I am working with Vintaj paints and combining a matte glaze that is also a fixative, perfect.
The colors are simple, basic pink, blue and green and I can make turquoise and purple with them.

Nothing sensational here yet, but it's the direction I want to go and I can see the end results in my head.  Stay tuned!

The other thing I want to create are pendant pieces that have moving parts, or are at least three dimensional to some degree.  This involved selecting screws, nuts and washers that fit with each other both in size and have complementing colors.  However I wanted to take the color to another level, so I torched most of them to an antiqued finish.  I left the black alone as they probably have a paint finish on them.

I also needed to select the appropriate drill bit to get the right hole size.  I'm sticking with just a few parts to start with.  The copper and bronze sheet drill nicely.

I made this prototype pendant with a bronze piece and a copper patina piece.  I added some forging marks for texture and drilled them.  The concept works!  There are two washers between the two metal sheets for the gap and the nut is hidden on the back.  

I'd like to add more to this pendant, so it's in process.  It can hang on chain or leather cord and serve as a unisex / gender neutral necklace.  

This has been fun so far!  I'll be back in a couple weeks with more updates and progress.

 Thanks for reading the blog!