Laurels by Laurie

Laurels by Laurie is an Etsy shop that sells handmade wreaths. Her wreaths are absolutely amazing. Her one of a kind wreaths come in a variety of colors and styles. I'd have to say that the hearts are my favorites. She has added some new wreaths recently. You should stop by and take a look. Here are some examples of her great work. Make sure to visit her shop to see all of her great wreaths. Click here to go to her shop.

Quartz Wrapped Pendant Necklace

So, I am going to do a little self promotion here. I absolutely love this necklace. I wrapped a 30 x 18 mm pink faceted quartz briolette with silver wire. I then hung it from a silver tone chain. It is 25.5 inches long and closes with a toggle clasp. Ok, so this is a beautiful necklace. Do you know what's awesome about this? It's only $20.00. Yep, that's not a typo 20 bucks.

Ok, self promotion over. Tomorrow I plan on highlighting a fellow Etsian who makes awesome wreaths.

Jewelry Tools Of The Trade: Pliers

In jewelry making there are many different tools that are needed. Today I'm going to tell you about pliers. I believe that pliers are the number one tool for jewelry making. There are different types of pliers needed. They include round-nose pliers, split ring pliers, chain-nose pliers, crimp pliers, and nylon-tipped flat jaw pliers.

Round-nose pliers are tapered and the tip is slim. Both tips are round. You use round-nose pliers to make loops and for shaping curves on wire. I find that I use these pliers the most.

Split ring pliers are just like they sound. They separate split rings. They keep the split ring separated so you can add whatever findings you are using. Shape wise the pliers have a straight tip and a hooked tip. This hook is small so it may fit into the split ring.

Chain-nose pliers are my second most used pliers. They are also referred to as flat-nose pliers. The tips of these pliers are half rounded with the inside being flat. The nose is pretty slim. These pliers can be used for several things. You can make loops, open and close jump rings, close bead tips, flatten crimps and attach the findings you are using. These are very useful.

Crimp pliers are used for closing and securing crimp beads and tubes. The innermost part of the pliers has a groove to warp the bead or tube around the wire. The outer portion is curved to smooth out the bead or tube and make it more presentable. There are different size pliers to go with the different size beads and tubes.

Nylon-tipped flat jawed pliers have a couple uses. They can straighten wire before using it by simply pulling it thru. They are also used for shaping coated wires. This way they aren't marked. They are designed just like they sound. They have a coating of nylon on the tips.

Now you know a little bit more about pliers used in jewelry making. I hope this mini tutorial was helpful.

Welcome!

Thanks for visiting my blog. Since this is my first blog entry I thought I would tell you a little about me. My name is Gabby. I'm a 29 *shivers* year old stay at home mother and wife. I have been married for 8 1/2 years to my wonderful husband Skip. We have 4 amazing little boys named Will, Nikolas, Owen, and Grayson. They are 6, 5, 3 1/2, and 2. Needless to say they keep us quite busy.

I will be going back to school in March. I'm going to get my BA in Applied Psychology. This is a big step for me. I've wanted to go back to school for a while. I was actually a Biology major when I was younger at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, VA. I got married early and we had our first son. Then we had to move out of the area for my husband's job. That resulted in an unfinished degree. I'm very excited to get started again. It's going to be a long and hard journey but I'm up for it.

In my spare time *laughs* I love to make jewelry. I have so many beads, gemstones, and crystals that am running out of room. I started making jewelry after I kept searching ebay for jewelry. I realized that I could make it myself. So, I went to JoAnn (the craft store) and I bought myself a book to teach me the basics. I ordered a starter kit from ebay and then it all took off from there.

In my mind from the beginning I thought I would want to sell the jewelry but was afraid to do so. What if my items weren't pretty? What if people just didn't like it when they got it? What if it broke? But then my husband asked me what I was going to do with all the jewelry. He suggested selling it. Because of his suggestion I went for it. I opened up my Etsy shop. It's still new and I'm still working hard to get my name out there. I'm enjoying it immensely. It's so nice to be able to share it with everyone.

Now you know a little bit about me. I hope you come back to visit often. I'm going to provide tutorials, show off some of my jewelry, spotlight other Etsians and crafters, and so much more!