In this blog I will present commented discussions on the advantages and disadvantages of various art resins; discuss how to prepare flowers for use with resin and which flowers have worked best/not worked for me. I will be presenting interviews and discussions with other pressed flower and resin artists. I will have a "tip of the day" section.

I'm hoping that lots of you contribute; comments, arguments and disagreements are always welcome. Resin is such a complex medium that we all have something to learn. Besides, tweaks and even new resin products are coming out all the time.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Such Beautiful Jewelry!

There are getting to be quite a few resin/pressed flower jewelry artists, lately, while two years ago we were a rare breed.  I'm always delighted to find a new (to me) artist whose work stands out.  Today I would like to introduce June Moore, from England. She started out with resin and pressed flowers in such a romantic way!   June has a shop on ETSY, http://www.etsy.com/shop/NaturalPrettyThings



How did you get started with pressing flowers and working with resin?

 I always liked pressing flowers. I also always liked the idea of delicate things suspended in transparent matters, be it water, ice or air. My old journals are full of pressed flowers but I had no knowledge of real flower resin jewellery till October 2011. One day my husband and I took our baby daughter to a national trust park and I was just browsing in the souvenir shop when I found this gorgeous necklace with a tiny rose embedded in a glass-like setting. I was instantly hooked, and the research hence began. Night after night I learned about what resin jewellery is and how to make them. My first attempt was my wedding day rose, which was a surprising success. The obsession started and I simply cannot stop. My husband bought that necklace for me as our wedding anniversary gift. That was the beginning of everything.


What are some challenges you've encountered and how have you met them?

 I have learned through disasters. I have made a piece so full of bubbles you can't see what's inside. I have measured wrongly and didn't used enough hardener so a piece ended up rubbery! I have touched my pieces too early and impatiently and left them permanently damaged with my finger prints. I have even scratched the bottom of a mould and left it unusable.....anything you name it, I have done it wrong. But I have made some pieces that made me smile and think: wow, I can't believe I made this. And it kept me going.


What advice do you have for newbies to this art?

 Beginners, please remember to be patient and follow the instructions strictly. If it says on the bottle mix two parts equally then do so, don't add a couple of more drops of hardener just to be sure. Use a brand new measuring cup every time to avoid wasting your time and your precious resin. Invest in good moulds and save lots of time. Be adventurous and try different styles, eventually you will shape your own. And last but not least, be prepared to make mistakes. We all do and we all learn something from them. You will make something better next time!


What are your plans for the future?
 I am only an amateur jewellery maker and I don't think my stuff can be called art. I look forward to trying new settings for my jewellery. I started off making resin-only pieces, that is without any metal settings or coloured background. I am experimenting with more colours and styles of settings. I love vintage, Victorian style so that will be my new direction. But I can't say I will stick to one style because I get bored easily! If you look at my shop you will notice there isn't consistency in my designs. I jump from one style to another. I don't know whether this is good or bad, only time will tell!


Thank you very much for the interview. I am very honoured. Good luck with your creations!
June




A tip of the day: (or month, as it may be!) If you have to correct errors with the resin (i.e. bubbles, uneven spots, spills over the edges or on the back, get to them within 24 hours, before the resin has had a chance to fully cure, and they are MUCH easier to correct. For instance, I'm always slightly overfilling settings so some slops over the edges onto the surrounding decorative part, or the back. If I get to it early I can almost always pry it off in one piece with a scalpel. If I wait, the whole thing is usually ruined.  The setting gets scratched with everything I try ;  concentrated acetone  discolors most settings but polish remover isn't strong enough after 24-48 hours to remove drips.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog.  I welcome comments, corrections and suggestions.  Chris

14 comments:

  1. Hi June. I loved reading about your art form and seeing your lovely works. Yes, they truly are art and you shouldn't be so modest! Thank you Chris for another great interview, and best to you in retirement. Barbara Hallman

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  2. Thank you Barbara! And a big thank you to Chris for running this blog for us - a still rare breed :)

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  3. June, your work is beautiful. I would love to learn more about using resins to create jewelry but don't know where to start.

    Chris, thanks for sharing this intervieew.

    Betty

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  4. Hi Betty,

    Sorry to reply late. I think you can find lots of tutorials online. Just google 'how to make resin jewelry' and lots of tutorials and videos will come up. I taught myself this way. Also look at others work and experiment with your materials, you can learn so much from experimenting! Hope this helps!

    June

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  5. Hello Chris, I am very sorry to intrude on this comment stream, for although I do find this artwork beautiful, I am writing for another purpose. I have been struggling to find anyone who can embed small items for display purposes. I live in Northern California and am working on a wildlife outreach project and have been totally unable to find someone to carry out such custom work. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Again, sorry for the intrusion, and all of the work I have seen is very beautiful. Thank you, Chris cjwest1@yahoo.com

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  6. Chris, this is beautiful work! i'm so impressed with all this things and hopefully can do such good things too. i'm working on plants, and now patiently learned on how to preserve mine in resin.

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  7. Good luck! Resin takes such patience!

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  8. Such Beautiful Jewelry! is really so wonderful post sharing so impressive jewelry designs and too impressive contents.



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  9. Wow! these all designs are very impressive and love to see here. I would like to share this blog with all I know them. you had done fabulous job.

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  10. Yeah! It is really impressive blog having so wonderful posts. I had read many of the blogs but it is one of the fabulous post. I can say that these all jewelry is very nice.

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  11. Yeah It is really wonderful moment to have this blog. I will say that it is more interesting and informative that n other posts I read.


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  12. Really nice resin art jewelry pieces you have there. Thank you for sharing. Came across a blog which also share interesting ways to repurpose flowers. You might wanna check it out too. http://eachaplant.com/index.php/our-blog/4-5-ways-to-recycle-cut-flowers

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  13. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  14. I just read your blog post on flowers and I have to say, it was really good! Your writing style is engaging and informative, and I really enjoyed learning about the diverse and fascinating world of flowers. The way you highlighted the importance and beauty of flowers really made me appreciate them even more. Keep up the great work!

    maysfreshflowers.com.au

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