Category Archives: earrings

Valentine Earrings for Mama

Valentine Earrings for Mama
Valentine Earrings for Mama

I’ve posted this on facebook, but not here, I don’t think. My mother has lung cancer. She’s beat cancer twice before, both uterine and breast cancers. I like to think she can do it again, but she turned 80 in August, and that makes it harder this time.

She’s had radiation, and did well with that, but a recent bout of bronchitis had me pretty scared. An antibiotic and prednisone has her back on her feetĀ AND behind the wheel, I’m happy to report.

There’ve beenĀ lots of other family illnesses to deal with lately, too. Needless to say, I’ve not done much crafting.

I AM trying to do special things for my mom, though. Yesterday, I took her a red velvet cake from Harris Teeter in Charlotte. When she was helping me keep PJ, my grandson, there, we scoured the city for red velvet cake and cupcakes. We decided we like the ones at the Harris Teeter the best of all! Their cream cheese frosting is not cloyingly sweet or fake tasting, and they’re topped with white chocolate curls instead of the usual red velvet crumbs.

In any event, I found these Swarovski crystal hearts at Fire Mountain Gems. They’re called “Wild Hearts,” and the color is light Siam. Other shades of pink and red were sold out, but that’s okay. I noticed not long ago that Mama doesn’t have any red earrings, and I wanted a pure red, anyway.

They are sold in pairs, and I bought two pairs. That was a good thing, because if you put too much pressure on them while you’re wrapping your head pin, they’ll split. I don’t want broken heart earrings! It’s also easy to take a chunk out of the top of the heart while you’re wrapping. These two survived, thankfully. My wire wrapping needs much practice, but I’m pretty pleased with the results. I hope Mama will be, too!

Loot from the show!

Loot from the show!
Loot from the show!

This is not nearly as big a haul as last year, but I had to have the buttons and they weren’t cheap! I’m very excited about the Transfer Artist Paper which claims that you can transfer prints from your computer to almost any medium! The paper and the fabric are from Judy Lea Enterprises. Judy will be opening a brick and morter shop in downtown Concord, NC, this summer! The threads are from YLI, and the earrings are by Susan Edmonson. I think they’ll match my vintage looking necklace from Vanessa at Beadlush. (Someday, I’ve got to tell you about that store!) I met lots of terrific, creative people and got links to their websites. I’ll have to share those sometime, too.

Easy Earrings!

Easy Earrings!
Easy Earrings!

My friend, Beth, and I love marquisite jewelry. When I found these drops on the clearance rack at Michael’s, I immediately grabbed them up. I found the wire findings on clearance, too, I have $4.98 in both pairs. The drops are Madame Delphine by Blue Moon Beads. The findings are Luna Nuova.

Beth is taller and likes her earrings a little longer than I do, so I added a couple of jump rings to hers. E-A-S-Y!

I needed earrings

I needed earrings
I needed earrings

I wish I could say I made this beautiful Colombian emerald necklace, but it was a Christmas gift from my husband a couple of years ago. I didn’t like the earrings that went with it, so he didn’t purchase them.

When JTV recently had a sale on Colombian emeralds, I ordered this pair and some sterling silver “Gemtite” settings. The settings worked just like the “Snaptites” I’ve used before. Within seconds, I had earrings to go with my necklace! Total cost: About $40.00!