According to the published comments of the healing powers of Bloodstone (Heliotrope), this stone is an “epic” healer for returning your spirit too its natural state of joy and vitality.  Seems like a good thing in my world, considering it is January and who couldn’t use a good dose of vitality after the holidays…

I just finished cutting and polishing these stones this weekend and am beyond thrilled how they turned out-no pitting, no hidden cracks, and a shine that is so brilliant, it’s a challenge to photograph. The colours are rich and deep, and I think they’ll pair beautifully with Carnelian, which is what I have in mind.  My  Carnelian stash(associated with taking bold action with its hot and fiery spirt) is a darker red than the typical orange hues, so should pick up that deep red in these stones….I hope.

Now to design something…or maybe cut a few more rocks.

I’ve been on a bit of a “ring thing” lately, and this design is an easy one to wear.  Some of the bands were acid etched by hand, others were hand textured with a variety of hammers. Accurate sawing is the key to making these perfect, along with spot-on soldering and lots of luck. Needles to say, they are all perfectly imperfect with the marks of the maker here and there.

A design I just love working with is a silver band, etched or textured, with a gemstone setting.  These faceted stones dance in the light and are certainly attention getters!  The first band has a lab created amethyst, the second is a White Quartz.  I think my very favourite stone at the moment is the Tourmalinated Quartz, which contains the healing properties of two gemstones to create a powerful energy tool.  On this textured ring I added Sterling silver balls.  The fourth ring is a brilliant Ice Blue Topaz

This is one ring style that I wear almost all of the time , and surprisingly enough, have not damaged it, lost the stone or bent the setting.  I love the pure simplicity of it.

These rings are not adjustable so must either be available in the correct wearers’ size or custom made to fit.  For that reason I really like this next design-it’s somewhat adjustable and involves far less work than precise fittings to size..

I’ve used a variety of stones on these bands, including Aventurine, Black Onyx, Labradorite, Garnets and Sodalite.  Additional ones were made with Sterling silver stampings, it’s hard to say which one I like the best-luckily I don’t have to chose ♥

Our community of Creston BC  has a wonderful therapeutic riding program that uses horses as therapists. I’m pleased to help in their on going fun raising efforts and this year chose this pendant to donate.  It’s a Sterling Silver etched medallion with a Sage Amethyst stone.  Sage Amethyst is a healing stone and I cut it specifically because I thought it was appropriate for this particular piece. Taking place on the March 3rd weekend! This was a such fun to make.  The design is by Lexi Erickson, an extraordinary artist and teacher, and this was the result of my taking one of her many courses. We share a common love of rocks and she is a frequent contributor to the Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine, generously sharing her wonderful creations with the world.

The last of a few pieces are finally out the door…the end of 1017!  These are Sterling Silver Ear posts, made from etched sheet metal in a new pattern I just adore.  And in the spirit of cleaning up and purging, I decided to finish off this ring with the stone it’s been waiting forever for- may do more along this design,was a fun piece to do!

According to my  Crystal Bible , the crysoprase stones used in these earrings  “draw out talents and stimulates creativity and promotes hope…”   that just might explain the craziness in my shop lately…I have a large stash of these beautiful stones that just arrived a few weeks ago.  I don’t often see this “lemon” variety, am used to the more green variety.  I love how well the colours work with the Dragon Blood Jasper bead-

The tiny drop charms are Chinese in origin, a nice reminder of my trip there a couple years ago.  The drops are strung together in sterling silver wire and finished with hand crafted sterling ear wires.  Watch for more of this beautiful stone in coming pieces-love how it plays so nice with all the other metals I love to use! These will soon be available for purchase at Legend Logos in Creston BC.

My gorgeous tiny amethyst cabochons arrived today-all the way from India…ordered on February 8th-were here 5 weeks later-Pretty happy with that!  Sure glad I ordered 3, 4 and 5 mm sizes, hoping at least one size would fit this setting…and it did!  Note to self-have the stones ON HAND before designing and cutting out the setting…

Off to the shop tonight to cut some more amethyst cabs -Sage Amethyst to be exact.  Can’t wait to see how they turn out…have some special designs in mind for the shapes I chose-♥♥♥ working with this wonderful stone!

According to one source, silver is indeed a mirror to the soul and is related to the moon and the ebb and flow of the tides – it is fluid, emotional, sensitive and mysterious. It is soothing, calming and purifying. That must be why I like working with it so much in my shop!

This special cuff is headed off to its’ forever home-I will miss it.  The solid silver cuff has been acid etched with one of my most favourite leaf designs, and then enhanced with several silver wire motifs.  Some of those were filled with sterling silver balls-quite the challenge in that soldering process!     Those little suckers travel-all over.                                      

The focal stone is a faceted  Atlantic Black CZ  and the four accent ones are Black Onyx-my newest most favourite rocks! This is a slightly modified design that I’ve taken inspiration from, by the talented Leslie Kail Villarreal, with many thanks for her amazing talent and vision. She is the original creator of this cuff  design.

On to my next project–pretty sure it will involve something with silver–and rocks.