Copper Creations

I've been creating alot of jewelry with copper lately. And there is an added bonus...Copper is thought to be strongly helpful to those suffering from arthritis. A pain-reliever, soother and conductor of healing energies. Because copper is so malleable, it lends itself to many creative designs. I've been hammering, wire-wrapping, oxidizing, punching, filing, bending.....

More to come!

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...WHOA Horse Gifts...

Dale Ann of De La Renaissance put together a lovely treasury featuring beautiful gifts for the horse lover from the Etsy Team of Whoa Horse Artists Group! She was so kind to include my Black Onyx and Sterling Silver bracelet with a Vintage gold horse head box clasp.

I do hope you are able to drop by and take a look. Leaving a comment & clicking on any or all 16 of the items will help the treasury move up in the lists to a better visible position.

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At A Glance treasury

Thank you Liz of LizsWares for featuring my Twilight Bracelet in your treasury! A peak at the creations of a few members of the EtsyBloggers Team! (Blue and green color theme).

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Tutorial: Aging jewelry with liver of sulfer

Here is a little tutorial on how to artificially age sterling silver or copper jewelry. You will need two glass bowls, a chip or two of Liver of Sulphur, baking soda, a plastic fork or piece of scrap wire, and some paper towels. Do this outside because it stinks like rotten eggs.

Liver of Sulphur is a mixture of potassium sulfides which have traditionally been used to darken or 'antique' silver and bronzes. This is usually called 'oxidizing' the surface though it has nothing to do with oxygen, what is really happening is that sulfur is reacting with the surface to produce the grays and blacks. Liver of Sulphur decomposes with exposure to light and air and so should be kept in a dark bottle that is sealed tightly.

Step 1: Liver of Sulphur comes in chips. Take a small chip and dissolve it in very hot water. I typically make the water about as hot as a cup of coffee (very hot, but not boiling). Pour tepid water in the other bowl. Wait until the Liver of Sulphur chip dissolves. I stir it around as it is dissolving.

Step 2: I usually use a plastic fork to dip the jewelry pieces into the mixture or you can make a make a “hook” out of scrap wire to protect your fingers from the Liver of Sulphur. After a
few seconds you will see the jewelry turn dark. This solution creates colors as dark as night or as beautiful as an iridescent rainbow. And they range from subtle gold to magenta, purple, and everything in between.

Step 3: After it reaches the level of darkness that you want, pull your jewelry out and rinse it in
the clear warm water to retard developing. Pat it dry with a paper towel. Repeat this progression until you reach the desired color. Finally, rinse the piece in soapy water with diluted baking soda to remove any LOS residue that may continue to develop. (Please note: do not rub the piece with a soapy baking soda paste or a thick mixture, as abrasiveness will remove patina.) You can vary the basic process as long as you latch onto the concept that heat speeds color development and cold water retards it.

Step 4: Lightly buff the entire surface of the metal with 0000 steel wool. You’ll notice that the surface is getting shiny again, while the nooks and crannies stay dark. Make sure you go over your entire piece thoroughly, including the back of the piece as well as the insides of bails and ring shanks.

Step 5: Use a jeweler's polishing cloth to clean your polished jewelry and make it shine. Nothing brings out beautiful wraps and weaves better than aging and polishing!

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Peter Atkins Helmet Cam - Take a Thrilling Ride!

A 3* Cross-country ride thanks to Peter Atkins helmet-cam at Red Hills Horse Trials, riding HenryJota Hampton (HJ Hampton). Love the horse's ears!



Unbelievable how brave and confident both horse and rider are! Many of those jumps are so skinny...and scary!

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Creating a positive atmosphere brings peace

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Stable Spotlight: Stillpoint Farm

There are many, many beautiful barns in Wellington, but I am going to spotlight Stillpoint because my friend works there and keeps her horses there. 4394 South Shore Blvd. Wellington, Florida 33414.

Dressage stars Robert Dover, Lisa Wilcox, "Tuny" Page, and Oded Shimoni all train at Stillpoint Farm

Stillpoint was built eight years ago by Arlene “Tuny” and David Page. Tuny was 2006 World Cup Finals competitor for the U.S. and a trainer and competitor. It is also the year-round base for U.S. Olympian Lisa Wilcox, Israeli WEG competitor Oded Shimoni and others. Robert Dover, a six-time Olympian for the United States who was named Technical Coach Advisor to Dressage Canada this year, is based at Stillpoint Farm.

Stillpoint Farm is on 10 acres (4 ha) with 34 permanent and up to 20 portable stalls, and full-sized indoor and outdoor training arenas.

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April Birthstones: Diamond, Opal, and Sapphire

If you were born in the month of April, certain gem stones have more vibration power for you because they are associated with the time of your birth. There are numerous traditions that have been developed over the centuries that connect a particular gemstone to your birth month.

Tiny Pearls with Marquis Shaped Faceted White Topaz Dangle set in Sterling Bezel $30

Diamond (modern, traditional, Ayurvedic) : The Diamond is a category unto itself. The world's most popular gemstone and the world's hardest material make sparkling, brilliant and timeless. Diamonds are a wonder of nature. Their cold sparkling fire has held us spell-bound for centuries, inspiring rich passionate myths of romance, intrigue, power, greed, and magic. Ancient Hindus, finding diamonds washed out of the ground after thunderstorms, believed they were created by bolts of lightning.

Shimmering Tide Bracelet - Swarovski Crystals & Sterling Silver Bangle $70

Sapphire: (Ancient Arabic, Hebrew, Italian, Roman, and Russian April Birthstone) Sun Sign (Star Sign) - Taurus. The sapphire is most often linked to qualities of loyalty, faithfulness and honesty.

Cool Water Bracelet $40

Opal: Mystical April Birthstone. Opals symbolized hope, good luck, happiness and truth. Opal lore reveals that many feel that this gem can improve insight into the future as well as improve your eyesight when you wear it. Many also believe in the lore that opal gems will help others see your inner beauty as your patience and confidence is heightening when wearing opal gemstones.

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Happy Easter!

'Twas Easter-Sunday. The full-blossomed trees
Filled all the air with fragrance and with joy.
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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Korean BBQ

Korean barbecue, or gogi gui, refers to the Korean method of grilling beef, pork, chicken, or other types of meat at the table on grills that are built into the center of the table itself. We wanted to try something new and different today, so we decided to venture out into Koreatown today and try Korean BBQ. We went to Soowon Galbi Korean BBQ which is tucked away in a plaza of a seedy part of town, but it is modern, clean, and very nice once you get inside.


As a first time Korean BBQer, I really didn't really know what to expect. We opened the menu and had no idea what to order. We asked the waitress and she spoke no english. She sent over another waitress who also had no idea what we were asking. Ok...so we decided on the two person combo which included 3 types of meat; marinated chicken, thin slices of unmarinated beef and pure unadulterated pork belly (similar to uncured bacon), and a bottle of soju. First, they bring you out a bowl of their house salad, and it's bottemless, so you can get more if you want. The lettus is also used in the little burrito wraps explained below.

Then they bring you out lot of these little dishes of different vegetables... kimchee (the floppy looking napa cabbage with the fiery red sauce), Oi kimchi (cucumbers that have been pickled in the same spicy chile paste) , bean sprouts, sweet potatoes, etc. Apparently, panchan (banchan) are side dishes that are standard with every Korean meal. They were all pretty good, but there was one in particular that I really liked and have NO idea what it was. Crunchy white seaweed? Or some kind of noodle?

They bring you a bunch of different dipping sauces, and the waitress did point out (literally) that the course salt/sesame oil dipping sauce (gireumjang) is for the pork, the gochujang (hot pepper paste) is to be put on the rice paper to make mini Korean burritos, and the soy-based sauce with and jalapenos for the brisket. A popular way of eating Korean barbecue is to wrap the meat with rice papers or thinly sliced daikon and add condiments. Yummy!

The waitress then comes over and starts cooking up the meat on the grill. If you order two or more different types of meat and even if both plates of raw meat come together to the table they don't mix the two on the same grill top. They bring a new clean grill top for each type of meat. Can't wait to go back!

course salt/sesame oil dipping sauce (gireumjang)

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