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Floating in glorious color.
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Interview with Sheryl from Jochris12
[hLeah]
Sheryl from the Jochris12 jewelry store on Etsy creates amazing glass pendants, earrings and more. As a kid she was quiet but very creative and it shows in her work. On any average day you’ll find her walking around in jeans and a sweatshirt, and of course, Jochris12 Jewelry.
How long have you been working with glass? How did you get started?
I guess I have always had a love affair with glass. I have collected glass since I was a small girl. I started fusing glass in 2000 and started making fused glass jewelry in 2002. I had watched a program on tv on fusing glass and instantly knew it would be a passion for me. I am completely self taught. I have read lots and lots of books and learned lots from my mistakes.
I love the Color Explosion pieces. How do you come up with the color combinations? How are they made?
The Color Explosion pieces are made in many different steps. All the little pieces in each piece are fused separately and after they are fused I put together the pendants. I just put them together in such a way that appeals to my eye and hopefully the customers eye too. After they are put together they will be fused again. Then cold worked to shape and then back in the kiln for a fire polish.
Where do you come up with your ideas for new pieces?
Ideas come to me no matter what I am doing. Sometimes shopping I will see color combinations and then sometimes I wake in the night and I have to write down a idea. My creative mind never sleeps.
How long does it take to make a piece? Can you explain the process in simple-ish terms?
The fusing process depends on what fusing technique you are doing. You might just be doing a tack fuse that will just take one fusing and grinding to shape and then another fire polishing. Some of the more advanced pieces will take a minimum of 4 firings and sometimes more. I can sometimes work on a piece for weeks and then sometimes everything will come together and not take very long. I just love every minute of this process. This is when I am at my happiest.
Is the process different for the pendants with butterflies, birds and flowers on them?
The fusing process for the pendants that you see the images on starts out the same as any other pendant. After that has been completed the image will be fused into the glass. The images are then a part of the glass.
Do you do any other types of crafts/art?
I have always had a project of some kind going. I love to crochet and knit; those are my favorites next to glass. I have probably tried everything from cake decorating to scrapbooking, but I am totally in love with glass.
Tell me more about you?
I don’t know if I have a favorite color, but I am sure you can tell I love color of all kind. I guess if I had to pick one it would be in the green family. I love my morning coffee. My favorite cereal is cheerios.
Alison Hoagland
These jewels of glasses are just wonderful.
Alison Hoagland: What intrigues me most about working in hot glass is the process of transformation. From the moment I dip into the furnace full of hot molten glass there is a small window of opportunity to blow, shape and coax the glass into a conceptualized form. Whether I am making a simple ball shape or a more complex vessel form, I am ever challenged by the immediate need for intense focus and attention. It is this challenge that continually captivates my imagination for self-expression in color and form. For me, blowing glass is the ultimate metaphor for transformation and it is this process which brings me immense satisfaction.
Jewelry that Pops from Poppi
Jewelry artist Dawn Benedetto calls her colorful line of jewelry her “fun and clever alter ego.” The petal ring, the signature Poppi product, is made from glass and sterling silver, and is literally a burst of color that refuses to be ignored. Poppi rings are sure to turn any wallflower into the belle of the ball.
In addition to the explosive petal rings, Dawn uses the same technique to create bracelets, earrings, and necklaces. Whether you choose the rounded, “roe” beads or the sharper, “flake” beads that make the petal rings, your Poppi jewelry is definitely going to pop.
Dawn began her life as a jewelry artist at the tender age of fourteen. Although she ironically does not wear much jewelry, it has been the focal point of her creative endeavors. Her portfolio that got her into college was mostly jewelry. Even though she also studied ceramics, sculpture, crafts, art history, and a host of other topics that intrigued her, most of her time in school was spent on jewelry. Her first job out of school was teaching other people how to make jewelry…you might say she’s an expert!
Although the brightly colored glass rings are now her most popular items, Dawn still works with her first love, silver and gold metal work. She began her career as a metalsmith, and still creates one-of-a-kind rings in gold and silver, as well as teaches metalworking classes.
The splashy and colorful Poppi line was born in 2000, when Dawn came up with the design for the petal ring, which instantly became a hit. Customers love them not only because of the enticing color and eye-catching design, but also because they miraculously fit pretty much anybody.
The Poppi line has since expanded to include vintage lucite jewelry, which is just as colorful and fun as the original petal rings, but with a slightly more retro feel to them. These are perfect for collectors, since production on this type of lucite was halted in the 1980s.
Dawn has been making jewelry for most of her life, and she still loves every bit of the process. From the design stage down to each minute phase of production, she’s unable to choose a favorite part, because she loves all of it!
Although her business has expanded to the point of needing several staff members to help with production and business management, you can still find Dawn in her studio making pretty things nearly every day.
Visit Dawn in her Torpedo Factory studio to see her at work, or find her jewelry in a number of local and national retail locations. Her colorful glass and lucite work is also available online at www.poppishop.com.
k. o’brien jewelry
I’m loving these simple, clean rings by k. o’brien jewelry. I especially appreciate how she squares the ring bands so the large stones don’t twirl around on your finger. Such attention to detail is remarkable.
k. o’brien: I received my BFA in Jewelry and Metals from the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. During my training I came to realize that I love making jewelry from sterling and fine silver and adding color to my pieces with enamel. I am enamored with the problem solving of making adornments as well as the ability to be able to manipulate metal into the form that I want it to become by hammering and bending it.
During my undergraduate education I also came to realize that my other passions are textiles, bookbinding and paper arts. No matter what the medium is I am always influenced by nature. Its patterns, colors, beauty, forms and rebirth always find a way into my work.
My jewelry is influenced heavily on nature and the Art Nouveau movement. I love to play with textures on metal and seeing how different techniques pick up reflections of color and light. I prefer to make one of a kind pieces, playing around with piece after piece leaving some ideas behind and taking other ideas along to blend with the new.
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