Amongst all the other holiday hoopla, Larkin had a quiet 16th birthday on Dec. 24! A brand new drill press has been tested on wood, but this week has been a wee bit chilly to get it set up with water to drill stone. Hopefully it shall fulfill it's destiny soon-- we're looking forward to seeing what this kid creates in the new year!
fun
Owl Be Seeing You
fun, process, product, venuesCommentLarkin is still super busy over at the Royaboya Handmade Bazaar-- there's still time to join us over there! This sweet little owl is a new addition-- it popped out unexpectedly when Larkin was stocking up on honeysuckle earrings!
Convinced Yet?
venues, product, funCommentWe're pulling out all the stops to convince you to join us at the Royaboya Handmade Bazaar! These earrings y'all enjoyed so much will be available exclusively over there until the end of the bazaar in about a week, now in either copper or silver. Idle Talons is a featured vendor on Monday and Larkin will be going live!
And Now For Something Completely Different...
musings, process, product, funCommentThese earrings are Larkin's most entertaining commission to date! I would pay good money to have a recording of Larkin's younger brother's double-take when he first spotted them "wait... are those...?!" And all the design conversations we usually have about commissions took on a whole new level of culturally-induced hilarity: "so... is it fun if the nipples move-- even if it's possible for them to end up over one shoulder-- or should I solder them in place?" After consulting with the customer, nipple mobility was the clear winner. I was preemptively banned from ever owning a pair due to the likelihood I would present myself ear-first to people I don't know very well and ask them if they want to play with my nipples. In all seriousness, they're a beautiful celebration of the female form. [inside voice: BOOBIES!]
Ghosts In The Wire
fun, process, venuesCommentLarkin was working on some copper-veined leaves, and this little (fawn? dog? donkey?) popped out! The ears are the shape Larkin makes to tie off the veins on the backs of the leaves.
Larkin is stocking up for a week-long on-line bazaar extravaganza coming up at the end of the month-- more details on some exclusive Idle Talons deals for that event soon!
Happy Halloween!
funCommentCan you tell Larkin’s jack-o’-lantern was carved by a wire wrapper?
Exclusive Offer For Facebook Fans
venues, product, process, musings, funCommentIf you haven’t followed Idle Talons over on Facebook, now is a great time to start! Larkin caught the pumpkin-spice-and-everything-nice autumn bug and designed these sweet little (almost exactly quarter-sized) charms! These perfectly plump pumpkins feature textured stems with curly vines and will come on an 18" cord for $18 shipped to the U.S. They can also be made into earrings for $33 shipped. Join us on Facebook to get your pumpkin on! It's finally starting to feel like fall, y'all!
Copper Foxes
product, process, musings, funCommentLarkin designed these copper foxes* as an addition to a wire-wrapped pendant, but they are so charming we couldn’t resist offering them on their own! Each fox is hand-formed from copper wire and lead-free copper solder, pickled in an acidic solution to rid them of torch scorch (self-directed jewelry learning often results in less-than-official terminology), polished of any remaining residue, dipped in liver of sulphur to oxidize, then polished one last time. They have a ton of personality and eminently boopable snouts!
*Some viewers may see these as coyote pups. Idle Talons hereby acknowledges your right to interpret art however you wish, but insists that in this case you are wrong. 😉🤣🦊
Fun With Packaging
fun, process, productCommentLarkin was gifted a batch of leopard print jewelry boxes, and we decided to turn them into something a little more on-brand for Idle Talons. ;) From now on, higher ticket items will arrive in fun, hand-painted dragon themed boxes! 🐉
Cloaked In Mystery
fun, process, musingsCommentLarkin spent the last few days making this cloak, complete with hand-crafted copper cloak-pin, feline photo shoot assistance, and all the flap-tastic twirls! So... how anachronistic is the Idle Talons fan base-- should Larkin design a line of cloak/shawl pins?
(And, Yes! I *do* constantly think Larkin's going to correct my sloppy use of The Force or break out into Benedictine chants, thanks for asking. 😉)
Facebook Raffle!
product, process, fun, venuesCommentLarkin is offering the chance to win this gorgeous piece over on Facebook— if you’re not already a follower there, this would be a great time to start!
1) $10 buys you a single entry for a 1 in 15 chance of winning the piece. (Available for U.S. and international entries)
2) $15 buys you a single entry for a 1 in 15 chance of winning the piece AND a small handmade trinket so you're guaranteed happy mail even if you're not the big winner. (Available for U.S. entries only)
There are ONLY 15 TICKETS AVAILABLE-- first come, first served! To enter, and for more details, please see the Facebook post at www.Facebook.com/Idle.Talons
A Day In The Life
musings, process, funCommentToday is a bead-doodling, design-sketching, cab-drooling, family-card-playing kind of day. Happy Saturday!
Idle Talons Was Here
fun, process, musingsCommentLarkin finished work on this approximately head-sized Gallifreyan wall hanging today! This piece embodies a whack-ton of soldering (I'm pretty sure that's the official term), circles and straight lines (two of Larkin's least favorite things to make) so it was truly a labor of love! Larkin chose to leave the copper natural rather than oxidizing and polishing it. Just in case your Gallifreyan is a wee bit rusty, this self-referentially proclaims "Idle Talons made this." Recursive much?
Silver Ribbon Earrings
fun, productCommentThese unostentatious, flowing earrings are made from a single piece of 20 gauge silver wire, with paddled front and hook incorporated into the design. For those days when less is more!
Thanks to Larkin’s “little” brother, Finn, for his patience and willingness to be a jewelry model!
A Sweet Story
fun, musingsCommentWhen you give a wire wrapper a licorice rope...
... they may turn it into chain mail and doodles. ;)
Lapis Planet
fun, process, productCommentLarkin cut and polished this gleaming blue cabochon from a small slab of lapis lazuli gifted from a fellow rockhound at the rock shop. Wrapped in gleaming argentium silver rings that match shining flecks in the stone, this piece is truly stellar! (See what I did there?)
Just for fun, the second picture is a visual pun representing a well-known song title... can you guess it?
See You Later, Alligator
fun, process, productCommentMonkeys, alligators, and a fancy new haircut (finally) happening today!
Elemental Snacks
fun, musingsCommentAh, procrastination. Larkin took a bit of a break from preparing for market season (first market is in less than 1.5 weeks! Yikes!) and baked the periodic table of cupcakes. Especially of interest, of course, are copper and silver.
Fabulously Festive Festoon
fun, process, productCommentLarkin made this piece as a prototype for a new commission-- always nice to try a new design in copper before committing to silver! The drop cab is poppy jasper, with coordinating beads in orange and yellow/green jasper. The scrollwork is so graceful, and a little research revealed that this style of necklace, wirework connected to cord or chain at two points, is called a festoon. So you are hereby invited to festoon yourself with this festoon!
Necklace of Power!
fun, musings, process, productCommentLarkin crafted the many-sided dice used while playing Dungeons and Dragons from beads and joined them in this imposing necklace. It was probably too time-consuming to become a regular Idle Talons product, but there will no longer be any question who is DM at our house! Sure to be a critical hit with any D&D fan…
