This is what made me...

This is what made me.....

pull out my hair-

yell at the cat-

throw an apple against the wall-

eat about 25 marchmallows straight from the bag-

But in the end.....IT WAS WORTH IT!!!!!

All in a days Work

So... it seems I can no longer move photos around n my blog! They all sit on top refusing to budge! My love/hate affair with technology is leaning more towards hate on a permanent basis lately!!

But, all of the above are from todays work- just one of those productive days and I am happy with everything- except for my hair- but that is a different story altogether.

The long pendant with gems is my absolute fav- wore it last night and just love it- it is like a long string of jelly beans- I almost want to take a bite out of it!

Todays ends the endless- it seems- string of holidays here. The whole month of September has been hell! And if one more person says "Hag sameach" (happy holidays) to me- I will probably inflict bodily harm- not that I am the Israeli version of Scrooge, but ENOUGH! back to school PLEASE! back to work PLEASE!!! Just get life back to normal!!!!!!!

And while I am on the complaining subject- the heat can knock it off also. It is October, for gods sake, and it is 36 degrees (100F) today and tomorrow! I have leather boots crying my my closet- sweaters who bought bus tickets out of here!!! A cloud- just to see a cloud would be s lovely!!!

And on that note, my friends, signing off to search for clouds...

back to metal

I forgot how much I love working with metal- just metal- dont get me wrong- I adore stones- they are like candy to me- I cant get enough- but something about working just with metal- you can beat the hell out of it- it doesnt chip- break- or crack- it doesnt fly off the workbench and dissapear into thin air. It just is what it is!

Pliable- even though it doesnt seem like it should be- shining up even after it looks like hell- forgiving in all manners- except when i melt gold- other than that...

Today I went back to metal and tried a new idea I was thinking up in bed early this morning. In place of stone, I would make cabs from etched metal and then set them like stones in bezels.

Came out super cool- rustic and earthy- just the way I like it!

Continuing on with metal...

I would love t o show you the rest, but this blog doesnt want to cooperate with my pics- so for now...

The 25 Hour Ring

There are somethings that just dont work. They seem like they will- but at the last minute they play that nasty trick on you, and all goes south. Its like the souffle rising perfectly high and then deflating as you walk past the oven with heavy footsteps.

This ring- this tortuous- irritating ring from hell- was my souffle for the past 2 days- but in the end it rose... high and puffy, just waiting for a splash of ganache.. (no rhyme intended here). I kept my patience- I didnt throw it across the room- as I have been known to do- I didnt curse out the cats- I behaved myself and did it over and over- trying to find a solution.

The stone is beyond amazingly cool- it is a pale yellow and clear quartz with floating dendrites that look like miniture ferns caught under glass. Its problem was the angle that the edges were cut- a normal bezel wouldnt do the trick- not sure what did in the end- but it was a happy ending!!

I am really happy wth the results- sort of like antique meets- well, I have no clue- I just like it!

Now on to more supercool stones- this amazing rock is a plume agate- looks like layers upon layers of weird mountains underneath a cloud filled sky. Like I would imagine Mars to look like- if it were with atmosphere- as for some reason all sci fi movies like to assume.

And onto a classic, but always a favorite of mine- a big fat juicy checkerboard garnet. This ring took more muscle work than I have used in AGES! the base that the bezel is sitting on is solid sterling, that I felt the need to carve- not from wax first- carve the metal itself- exhausting- and then after I put the whole ring together, I noticed a small hole in the bezel- so I reheated it and took off the bezel- thus overheating the base and melting it- So... I carved another one- until my muscles were screaming- all this to avoid workmen in my house (bathroom renovations- but that is a different story!).

In the end, this ring kicks ass- it is a heavy, textured silver with a gorgeous red stone- looks like something that fell off a Spanish Galleon.

And I should never underestimate the OMG factor in Morgan Hill Poppy jasper- First of all, I love the name- which is a totally legitimate reason to use a stone- really-

And last but not least- a hybrid of a snowflake and a flower with a gorbeous citrine in the middle

So, one more day until my house full of workers go away- they have been with me for a week- each day bringing with them more destruction and mess- hopefully bu tomorrow, I can begin to organize- and not have to greet them at the door at 6:45 a.m.- WTF? What kind of contractors are so punctual- its making me nuts!! :)

Until next time...

Mara xo

This is my Muse

This is my muse...

It is not the memory of some long forgotten teacher

It is not an inspirational mentor I once had

It is mearly a ring

But, oh, what a ring!



It was dug out of the ground by my husband and given to me


It is about 1,800 years old


And I give it many different stories...


Maybe it was made by a jeweler, way back when, who was trying to find the perfect gift to give his betrothed. She wore it everyday after for the rest of their lives.



Maybe is was used as part of a dowry needed for the hand of some lovely girl at the hand of a less fortunate tradesman.


Maybe it was used as a bribe to keep some sinful secret hush hush

Maybe it was given to a daughter as a loving gift from a father
who had made it with his own two hands




I have an endless pool of ideas on this ring

All I know is when I wear it, I am wearing the same ring
that was in the hands of the jeweler who made it eons ago


and I feel a sense of historical comraderie


It gives me ideas when they arent always there.


It reminds me of why I love doing what I do


It makes me smile when I am frustrated


It helps me accomplish what can sometimes seem impossible

And that it the best you can ask from a muse

a ring for every finger

Well, at least every finger on one hand- couldnt make 10 rings today without pulling out too much hair- so 5 it is...

I can tell I am entering a ring phase- don't know why it happens, but it does.

And now onto serious matters. What if you were to change yourself completely. Step out of your self completely. Like joining the witness protection program.

What would you become? I have been thinking about this today while I was deep in ring production and my music ran out and I was too lazy to switch discs. There are so many possibilities in the world that are just not me:

1. I will start to grow organic veggies, weave my own shoes and learn to play the lute. My nic name will be Sasha and I will smile at people even when they cut in front of me in the bank.

2. I will finally get a sensible haircut for "my age" and get my tatoos lazered off. I will clip coupons and always carry hand sanitizer and cereal bars in my tote. I will always have a "tote" versus a handbag and I will always be in bed by 11:00

3. I will become permanently cranky and start pushing my way in front at the bank. I will wear half length stocking even with skirts and eat oatmeal every day and possible Metamucil. My hair will go way to silvery and i will wear clip on earrings. i might acquire another cat or two. My kids will start calling me Ma'am.

4. I will start wearing cothes about 2 generations younger than I should, but my legs let me get away with it. I will wear too much eyeliner and make purring noises at young boys. Enough said!

But these are just options.....

Mara xo

on a roll...

Today was like a little jewelrt factory took over my hands. Some days, everything just works out- some days, all I do for hours is break saw blades. Luckily today was the first of those options.

Worked a long time on this scorpian. Dont know why I had to make it, but I woke up and just had to do it- I have no natural affinity to scorpians- or anything that crawls for that matter- but I HAD to make a scorpian- I am quite happy with the results- 36 little pieces later and many many hours of engineering:

Hope there are some scorpian lovers out there...

Here's a few more baubles I made today:

Hope this astreak continues tomorrow. Also, a big shop update tomorrow!