A couple of new ones

[Raqy]

Hi all!
I took a few days off.  It was so nice.  I got to do some of my favorite things like cab and wrap and shop.. So its off to work again to make up for all the fun.  I could almost cry.  :)
Oh well Here a couple of wraps I finished.  I tried something a lil different so let me know what you think, please. 

So the first one is Mexican fire agate and a lil opal, this is the one that makes me hmm, reminds me of a tadpole. lol The 2nd is peridot.  The 2nd pic was taken on iphone and also edited on the phone.  I like the mirror effect, I tried the mirror effect on my puter and it was a bit difficult.  On the phone its one clik amazing..
Thanks for taking the time to look and hope all is well with you.

[akansan]

I absolutely love what you've done here.  Both of them are terrific - love, love, love the tails!

[Bluesssman]

They are beautiful! You have got great patience and it shows...


Gary

[akansan]

Hey Raqy - I just peaked at your Etsy shop.  I absolutely love the combined 'smithing and weaving you did on this amethyst piece!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=26150007&show_panel=true

[Taogem]

Stunning as always Raqy !

I have just recently started seeing these freeform wraps.. All of them I have seen have been wrapped with silver. Until today, I saw some done in copper wire..

Any hoo.... Beautiful work..

Like Gary said.. You have some great patience !

[Raqy]

Thanks for the kind words everyone! I was a lil worried about the tadpole but its growing on me.  I may have to wear it to work to see peoples reactions. 
Akansan, I still like to set a stone and then weave around it.  Its easier to secure the stone.  The small opal is set actually.  I keep a few set stones around in case I find a nice place for them in a piece as I wrap.
And yes it takes a lil patience and some sore fingers to boot..

[Mark]

Really nice.  I like how broad the wiring is, I guess between two wires.  My wife has done some beading and has a few pendants i have made with my cabs.  Surprisingly, very few people ever comment on them.  Do you find that to be true?  I can see men not commenting on a woman's jewelry, but I would think that women would notice and comment, but it doesn't seem to happen often.  Is it that we are getting older or are we all getting less and less open with people?  I'm kinda surprised.  I'm shy, but if a woman had a cool pendant, ring, necklace, or something with a stone, I think i would comment on it.  Maybe you guys out west have more opportunities, but other than my wife, I have never seen a woman with any kind of stone jewelry.  I find it strange.  Mark

[Raqy]

Hey Mark,
I work with the public and I get quite a few people who comment on my jewelry and other things. But I try to be really friendly with them too, so they feel at ease. I comment on any piece of jewelry I see that I find interesting too and have made a few friends that like to wire wrap or find rocks.  I have even had a customer and some co workers bring me rocks just because they think the rocks are pretty and I can probably use them.

[Mark]

That's cool.  I think that part of the problem is we seem to be so far behind when it comes to rock jewelry.  I think its a growing trend and may just take longer here, since we have very little in the way of cool rocks around here.  My wife is a substitute teacher or assistant teacher and is also getting to be big in the local art scene with her art quilts and fiber projects.  I would think that at least the artzy types would be interested, but even they don't tend to say much.  She wears something interesting almost every time she goes out of the house and I always ask her if anyone comments or notices and its usually no.  I am really surprised.  Maybe everyone around here is just boring and couldn't care less about anything.   Maybe if I started wearing necklaces and pendants, something would get started.  No, that wouldn't be cool either, I'd probably get in a fight every other day.  I'm just a bit frustrated with the lack of interest in stones around here.  Now kids on the other hand, they love em.  Maybe I should send my daughter to school each day with a new piece of stone jewelry.  Well maybe in a couple of years.  She is just now getting a bit interested in jewelry.  What's it like in other parts of the country, are people interested in stone?  I know there was a big craze for turquoise back in the 70s and 80s or so, but what's it like now?  Mark

[The Polished Pebble]

Mark, jewelry like any other fashion item has it's hot spots. You may just live in an area that hasn't got the "Real Stone" hype yet.

And there are MANY differences in how people interact with each other - from place to place. In some places, it is rude to ask about something someone is wearing - while other places, it is common.

Connie 

[Mark]

Connie, I was wondering about what was considered rude around here and what isn't.   Most of the guys around this area, would be considered rude if they commented on anything and it would be considered hitting on the woman.  On the other hand, I don't think that there are a lot of people who really wear classy jewelry.  Now there are areas around here where its different.  The south half of my county is considered a second home market for New Yorkers who want to get away from the city and out to the country and mountains.  They are rich and you can't touch south county real estate anymore, especially since 9/11.  The rest of the county is blue collar, except for a few companies like mine that is all engineering, and the area around Williams College, one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country and home to another bunch of really wealthy people.  There are also a lot of Artzy types around the northeast, like my wife.  I am a mix of Midwest country boy, CA beach bum, and Heavy Metal loving, Aerospace Engineer with an interest in jewelry.  Still I am surprised with the amount of money and all the Artzy stuff that is really taking off, that not more people are into stone jewelry around here.  Maybe that is my calling to turn the Northeast on to stone jewelry.  Guess I better quit my job and get started.  Mark