Weekly Workings This Week:

Concept sketch with measurements

This week I've been mainly working on updating the blog organizationally. Keep an eye out for changes that will be starting to appear. ^^ Still working on some lampworking this week and on some kumihimo weaving.

I've decided to take on a couple new projects this last week. The first of which is for a belt of kumihimo weaving. The general idea for the project is to weave 5 strands of round kumihimo, each 1 solid color, into one flat weave to create a belt. This one is going to be in earth tones. Greens and browns. This one is for myself but when it's done and I have an estimate on how long these things will take me to make >.< there will be an option to commission on for yourself.
For those SCAdians out there, wouldn't it just complete the look your going for on your garb to have a custom woven belt or girdle in your choice of colors?

The other project I'm going to be working on in the next few weeks is learning how to do some basic chain mail. I have a concept for a necklace that I really want to do not too long from now that's gonna require some serious chain mailing! Wish me luck!

Also started work on the second try for the trim for a friend of mine.  A flat weave kumihimo out of green, black, and white.

Rowen

A New Introduction

For those of you who caught the Kumihimo tutorial videos, I'm Sondra, Rowen's Mom, Rick's wife and a very occassional contributor to Fire Inspired Creations.

In another world I would love to design jewelry and take photos and teach wonderful crafts that are loads of fun and beautiful every day, but I can't. So since I'm pretty much bedridden most of the time with various disabilities you'll see my occasional contributions to help my daughter's college fund and recoup some of the expense of supply buying. :D

I'm the part of the team that's less precision and more organic. Which is strange for my OCD soul to admit, but that's the way it works when I'm designing jewelry. Most of the crafts I've added to my repertoire lately have something to do with jewelry making or designing or fire.

I'm a lampworker and jewelry designer. I also spend a bit of my time when I can be upright doing medieval illumination.

Nowadays I've picked up kumihimo weaving on the modern foam disk as something portable I can do. I find it satisfying to create something beautiful even if it takes me forever to do it with all my "pain breaks." 

I'm posting pictures here of the first round kumihimo metal braiding I did. These were a matched set for a group that I belong to and I happened to need woven metal in green and gold at the last minute... Low and behold...my first round metal project was almost done! Rowen wanted a necklace out of it for herself. It's surprising how much of the jewelry I make goes to that destination. Hmmm. Well, she lost out this time.

The necklaces were varying colors of green colored (copper) metal woven together. Both had a focus bead of dark emerald green transparent glass added to them and additional chains. The male pendant was in diaper bead shape with my "starry night" pattern wound around the flattened glass about quarter sized and spun. The stringers used to put down the gold pattern were a twisted triplet of gold colored glasses themselves. The female pendant was also wound with the "starry night" pattern. But the shape was left more organic. The female necklace also has added copper pailettes. Excuse the picture quality. They had to be taken quick, with my cell phone.

This weave, like most tighter weaves is a bit stiff, but when bent to fit naturally around the neck these laid beautifully.  The green woven wire portion of the male necklace is about 22", the female necklace about 20".

Quick Bit of News

Just a quick update for those of you who are the least bit interested in all this lampwork stuff we do here.

A really cool bit of news just came across my feed. Ancient lamp-worked bead examples have been found in Siberia. There has never been another find like this! 17 glass beads on a single strand necklace found in the burial mound of a woman the archeologists think might have been a virgin priestess. Her burial site dates all the way back to the 4th century BC! In her time period these 17 beads would have been worth somewhere in the neighborhood of several DOZEN horses!



For the full article follow the link here.

Rowen Prowett
Founder

Updates, Weekly Workings

Hello all! Sorry its been a bit since I've posted. Been trying to adjust to a new term of school and such. But never fear I have been a busy little worker-artisian!

I have finished up an example of what I  can do with the wire kumihimo weave:

This is a choker and earrings that are made out of the wire Kumihimo weave I posted a few weeks ago. I find that it makes some lovely jewelry. This piece I made as a personal piece with a pendant given to me years ago. I can make these using a pendant provided as a focal point or a custom lampwork bead.












I finished up a commission for Liz Holmes:

This is one of the Celtic Star sets that you've been seeing on here. This is fully customized colors and stars. This particular one is a 20 inch long black and green necklace with matching earrings.

Finished up 2 sets of loop earrings that will be under our "For Sale" tab at the top of the page.

This pair is in a green and purple spiral weave. I did another in a green and black spiral weave. Both are for sale currently one of a kind earrings that anyone would want to own! They're available for custom order in your own favorite colors as well! Just send us an email to specify what colors you want.

I've also been doing some bead work. Been on the torch quite a bit the last week. No pics for here just yet but I'm loving the results.There will be some sneak peak pictures on the facebook page at Fire Inspired Creations!

I've been on a bit of a crafty spree lately >.<

Rowen Prowett
Founder