Copper Leaf Bail For Necklace

    I started making things when I was a child. My mom was a sewer. She sewed our clothes and sewed for neighbors who wanted clothes made for special occasions. I always wanted to "help" her with her sewing, so she taught me to sew for myself. By the time I was 11 I started making my own clothes from my own patterns. My mom was not a hoverer and would let me decide what to make and pick out the fabric. I made mistakes and learned a lot.

    In my later teens I started making leather purses and my mom would sell some of them to women she worked with. I learned how to knit to make my own sweaters and I crocheted afghans and made gifts for family and friends.

    When we bought some horses I learned how to make leather bridles, reins and halters. Then I heard about Biothane and started making horse tack from it and sold a lot of custom bridles and halters online.

    When my neighbor started his own medical device company he needed someone who knew how to sew, so I went to work for him for several years. I trained and supervised the sewers and worked in R&D developing new products. When the company was sold to a huge corporation it was time for me to move on, creativity and big business don't seem to work well together.

    It was at this time that I decided to do what I'd wanted to do for years, make jewelry. I started out with copper because it's easy to get and inexpensive. I thought I'd practice with copper and then move on to sterling silver once I got good at it. The more I worked with copper the more I appreciated how beautiful it is and silver seemed kind of boring in comparison. I tried wire wrapping first because it seemed easier than trying to shape copper sheet. After awhile wrapping wire started to feel tedious and repetitive so I decided to get out my torch and hammers and try shaping copper sheet instead. I watched a few YouTube videos to get an idea of how to start. Once I got going I realized this was what I really enjoyed. Who knew heating copper to a cherry red and beating it with a hammer could be so much fun! 

    Since I enjoy making the components for jewelry more than assembling the pieces to make a finished piece, I'm selling the bead caps, coiled beads, links, bails and chains so others can design their own. I hope you enjoy browsing through my shop. If you have any questions, just ask.