Groovy blast from the past

Tags

earrings, jewellery, polymer clay, retro, teacup, vintage

My blog has been a bit quiet while I sort out a backlog of chores at home and excavate my workspace. Part of this process has been getting my jewellery listed online (it’s not entirely logical but I feel like I can’t make new stuff if there is nowhere for my existing things to go). The good news is that I have finally gotten some of my vintage teacup inspired earrings listed in my shop. I made them a few years ago, so here’s a reminder.

I have also finally completed a little tutorial video. It’s just a small tip for sanding your polymer clay when there is wire embedded in it (like for the triangle shaped pieces pictured above in the last row). It’s currently available as a preview for my Patreon subscribers, but I’ll be making it public soon.

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Happy Easter

Tags

earrings, handmade, jewellery, necklace, polymer clay

It’s unlikely I’ll be making an egg this year, however I have changed my window display to some happy yellows. (Please excuse the fuzzy photo and clunky editing.)

I have just listed this jewellery in my online shop, some of the earrings haven’t been available online before now.

Happy Easter!

Hooray!

Tags

earrings, for sale, handmade jewellery, polymer clay, shop

My new shop is finally online! There are many items I haven’t listed yet, but in the meantime here are a few pairs of earrings that I think have not been seen online yet.

Polymer clay and Swarovski crystal bead earrings

Yellow wonky cube bead earrings

Violet flower cane earrings

Please have a look, I’d appreciate any feedback. Thanks 🙂

Going, going…

Tags

British Red Cross, earrings, handmade, jewellery, necklace

Here’s a reminder that my auction to benefit the British Red Cross will be ending tomorrow, Sunday 9th July. The British Red Cross assist people in crisis. Their current appeals include assistance for the people left bereaved, injured and homeless in the Grenfell Tower disaster and those involved in the recent UK terror attacks as well as people suffering from conflicts around the world.

Please have a look at everything available and remember that the proceeds will be going to a good cause. The bids start at only 1 penny so you may get lucky and win a (practically) freebie.

And another thing…

Tags

British Red Cross, Charity Auction, charm, earrings, jewellery, keyring, polymer clay, purple

There are a few more items included in my charity auction that I’d like to talk about. Remember – all proceeds will go to the British Red Cross who are helping people involved in the terrible fire at Grenfell Tower.

Purple earrings by Cate van Alphen

I chose to make these purple beads into chunky earrings because the texture matched the wings of my Angel painting. They look like ceramic, but because they are made from polymer clay they are still light enough to wear as earrings.

Macramé bag charm by Cate van Alphen

This stone bead and macramé handbag charm was one of a pair of earrings, but unlike the purple leaf earrings above I was worried that they were too heavy to wear. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with them because I liked them so I didn’t really want to dismantle them . After making the love charm for the auction, I realised the weight wouldn’t be a problem if it were a bag charm.

Stone key ring by Cate van Alphen

Its partner became a key ring – just to be different.

Purple bead earrings by Cate van Alphen

I chose the next pair of earrings because they were waiting on my desk for new photographs to be taken, and because there can never be too much purple.

Bauble pendant by Cate van Alphen

This red, purple and green pendant goes with the earrings. It’s hollow polymer clay so it’s super light.

Please have a look at my other items and remember that if you do bid it will all be going to a good cause.

 

Forget-me-not again

Tags

British Red Cross, Charity Auction, earrings, pendant, polymer clay

I wrote about forget-me-not jewellery that I made earlier this year. I made another pair of faux soutache earrings which I have included in my charity auction for the British Red Cross. The Red Cross is assisting people affected by terrible incidents like the Manchester bombings and the fire at Grenfell Tower, so I thought the name (forget-me-not) was appropriate.

Forget-me-not earrings by Cate van Alphen

I’ve also included the stunning blue pendant I made as part of the Polymer Clay Adventure virtual retreat. It’s here because the colours matched.

Blue pendant by Cate van Alphen

The auction ends this Sunday, 9th July 2017. I’d love it if you joined in with some bids.

Peace

Tags

Charity Auction, earrings, Egg ornament, peace, polymer clay, white poppy

The British Red Cross is helping those involved in the Grenfell Tower fire. They are also supporting people who have been affected by the recent terror attacks in the UK, and other conflicts around the world. I chose to include this polymer clay egg in my Charity Auction because I made it following a previous terror attack.

Easter Egg by Cate van Alphen

I wrote about this Easter Egg back in 2016. The technique I used to decorate the hollow hen’s egg was a symbol of my wish that after all the injury and grief, beauty could still be found.

White poppy egg stand by Cate van Alphen

I made a matching stand for the egg which is included in the auction. Inside it I etched and painted a white poppy. The white poppy is a symbol of peace that embodies a rejection of killing fellow human beings for whatever reason.

White poppy studs by Cate van Alphen

Because you can’t have too much love and forgiveness, I’ve also included a pair of white poppy studs. They are made from pearlescent polymer clay, which I sculpted by hand onto surgical steel posts.

Earrings by Cate van Alphen

The last pair of earrings, in this blog post, looked a bit lonely waiting in the queue for new photographs. I chose them mainly because the colour matched, but I’m sure they too would appreciate a good home.

The auction will run until Sunday 9th July 2017. All the items are starting at 1p, so you might get yourself a bargain, if not it’s going to a good cause. 😉

Love, hearts, pink and pretty

Tags

art charm, Charity Auction, earrings, heart, love, necklace, pink, polymer clay

I have been horrified watching the events unfold at Grenfell Tower. I felt the need to make something pink and fluffy as a distraction from the dark thoughts in my mind. I kept thinking about the charms made by Brooke Bock that I received in the 2016 Art Charm Swap. In fact this gave me the idea to run a Charity Auction to benefit the British Red Cross.

Charms by Brooke Bock

Here’s the necklace I made specifically for the auction. I paired Brooke’s pendant with some salmon/pink/magenta seed pod beads that I made myself from polymer clay. They are on a baby pink cotton cord with even more pink beads.

Heart necklace by Cate van Alphen

For the Love charm I decided to keep things simple. I added a trigger clasp so it could be used as a handbag charm. I added a dangle of green dyed lava beads. I liked the colour contrast and I thought it was fitting because they have come from fire.

Love charm by Cate van Alphen

I also decided to include these lava bead and wire earrings. They were sitting on my desk waiting for new photos to be taken and I thought since the beads matched they should go too.

Lava bead earrings by Cate van Alphen

Since I couldn’t get enough pink and pretty I added these bead earrings. They are made using very fine vintage beads with tiny rosebud flowers. They are dainty and sugary sweet.

Pink earrings by Cate van Alphen

I do hope you are tempted to bid. The auction ends on Sunday 9th July 2017. Until then, please also share the link.

Thanks!

New Earrings, New Backgrounds

Tags

earrings, handmade jewellery, polymer clay beads

Here are a few pairs of earrings that I have made recently. I’ve also been playing around with the backgrounds in my photos. Please let me know what you think. 🙂

Violet pinstripe barrel bead earrings by Cate van Alphen

Purple flower earrings by Cate van Alphen

Yellow retro bead earrings by Cate van Alphen

Sunset square earrings by Cate van Alphen

Before I forget

Tags

art bead, cabochon, earrings, mica powder, polymer clay

I made another pair of forget-me-not earrings that I kept aside for a separate blog. And here’s why…

Forget-me-not earrings by Cate van Alphen

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I have made a Patreon page. It’s a site for creators to find sponsors in order to spend more energy on creating and less time worrying about how to pay the bills. As part of making my page I clarified some goals for myself: I want to use more art beads (made by other artists) and I want to make more tutorials.

I planned for the earrings above to incorporate both goals. I’ve got the art beads: I made the ivory coloured floral disks from polymer clay and the blue ceramic beads are by Jenny Gholson-Morris. But the tutorial part: not so much.

Making a video tutorial is proving more time-consuming than anticipated – I’m struggling to get footage that is in shot and in focus. Oh, right! This is why I set up the Patreon page in the first place – because at the moment I haven’t got much time for figuring this out. So until I can make a full tutorial, here’s a little tip.

Faux concrete cabochon by Cate van Alphen

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I made this cabochon as a way to use up the scraps from making carved beads. The muse wanted a matt concrete effect. My logical brain tells me this is to contrast with the shiny fragments. I wanted something more interesting so I drew in some scrolls and dots. I thought it still needed some subtle pep so I mixed green iridescent mica powder with a drop of water to paint into the dents. This caused the water (and mica) to puddle in the indentations and not all over the surface of the piece. I did the same thing for the petals of the flowers on the earrings.

I used Perfect Pearls for this technique as it has a built-in resin and I painted it onto uncured polymer clay. It didn’t seem to stick as well when painted onto baked clay.

By the way, if you would like to sponsor me, you can start from $1 a month and change your mind any time you like.