Learning From My Mistakes!

After making the pendant in the previous post I thought it was worth a repeat. It's always good to make something several times. I'm glad I did, too. I discovered a better sequence for my soldering. I used to solder the center silver disc last while holding the pendant by the bail. I knew this could be a problem if I wasn't fast enough with my soldering. Guess what...I wasn't,  and the piece fell apart and I was left holding nothing but the bail in my tweezers and the disc still wasn't soldered in place and my gallery wire broke off!
Since I was forced to basically begin again I could rethink my sequence- which I needed to do! so- Where to put the solder? Initially, I put paste solder along the disc and pushed it in place and soldered it, but since the disc wasn't soldered I had to rethink it. The second time I put the paste solder in the copper piece and then pressed the disc in place. This time, rather than have the paste squish out on top, it went inside the ring, where it needed to be.  This was now my first solder (after soldering in my little heart in the center of the disc). My second solder was the gallery wire and then the bail. MUCH better!!

This is why I try not to get too bent out of shape when things screw up. I might actually learn something from my mistakes!!

Help, I'm a Sponge!

Okay, I have to admit it, at least to myself, I'm a sponge. I mean this only in the degree that my work is influenced by my environment, casual reading, conversations, dreams: you name it, it all creeps into my work. I can't help it.
Here's a for instance. Many of the things I was looking at around Halloween also included images and celebrations of Dia de los Muertos. I also had been looking at the work of Lorena Angulo. I love her work!! We are in some of the same groups on facebook, so I kind of keep tabs on what she is doing. (Lorena, I promise I am not stalking you!!)

I wish I had a side view with the
 decorative silver gallery wire but alas I don't
 and the piece is now winging it's way south to Texas!

I had decided earlier I needed to try out some new, less expensive materials. I bought some copper pipe fittings thinking I might be inspired to do something with them. As I was working I noticed my aesthetic had shifted a bit and realized I was unconsciously thinking about Lorena and her work, which is beautifully entrenched in Mexican culture. Even though the piece I was working on didn't have the same elements of birds and flowers that Lorena's does, I still felt her work helped to inform mine. I like to think of it as inspired by her. I think the pendant turned out pretty cool and I wish I had a side view to show you just how influenced I was!!  None the less, I will continue to explore the design.  

 And thanks Lorena!