A sweet little mushroom family portrait!
Larkin formed the mushroom caps from copper and they can be kept polished bright or left to develop a natural patina over time.
The mushroom stems and veils/skirts (I learned these are called annuli!), and the frame are all shaped from argentium silver.
These little guys have so much personality! 🍄💕
Larkin's next event! If you're in the north end of the valley, Larkin doesn't get out that way too often so this is a good chance to check out the Idle Talons booth in person! The event benefits an organization that supports local kids in the foster system.
They got the name a bit wrong in the graphic, but we are enjoying imagining what kind of idol might sport talons... ;)
Larkin has a busy month coming up! One very exciting upcoming event is a workshop with Nicole Ringgold Jewelry Designs!
Many of you know that Larkin has been entirely self- (and YouTube 🤣) taught. When they first saw Ringgold's work a couple of years ago, they were immediately struck by her nature-inspired designs (I believe Larkin referred to them as "the big kid version of the work I'm trying to do" 😆). But hoo boy, they are not alone-- Ringgold's workshops fill up fast! Last year, Emile (Larkin's dad) was seriously on top of it and signed Larkin up for a workshop the morning openings were announced and next week the time has finally come!
Larkin is super excited for the format of the workshop-- unlike most classes where everyone works on a version of the same project, after demonstrations Ringgold encourages everyone to play with the equipment and techniques in whatever way best suits their style. Larkin is super excited to get their hands on more professional jeweler's tools and will probably come home with a loooong wish list. ;)
Emile and Larkin are making a whole trip out of it, visiting some rockhounding sites on the way, so hopefully Larkin will return with a head full of new ideas and pockets full of rocks.
I'll leave you with this image of the first (very nature-inspired) piece with which Larkin had a truly hard time parting ways. It went home with a wonderful repeat customer in the first few minutes of its market debut this month.
Larkin's latest portal looks like it leads straight into the Octopus's Garden!
Larkin cut this cabochon from a plume agate stone with striking red and yellow markings and two sparkling druzy pockets. The agate agate material means the cabochon is quite translucent when back-lit.
Tube coral stretches up from the bottom left of the solid silver frame, each tip painstakingly drilled to appear hollow and accented by a column of bubbles rising to the bail. Another coral plant on the right completes the front of the frame.
... Which brings us to the back, and a new element Larkin designed that I hope to be seeing again soon! Larkin sculpted a graceful row of pneumatocysts, the buoyant bubbles that keep kelp floating at the surface of the ocean.
This piece has a very dynamic, flowing feel for something made from cold, hard silver and stone!
One of Larkin's market customers brought in one of their favorite earrings that had lost its mate wondering if Larkin might be able to make a new match. The job was a bit tricky since the original wire had thinned and changed shape over time as it was worn. Here is the finished pair, with Larkin's replacement on the right!
Larkin is adding to their hair pin designs, with visions of similar designs as tie pins, hair clips, and cloak/shawl pins coming soon!
These are both designed in the bobby pin style, with the framing wire bent and shaped into waves for greater staying power.
Solid silver hair pins can be used alone for a small amount of hair (they will hold slightly more than a bobby pin and less than most barrettes) or added as decoration to a hair tie.
After losing a battle with kelp (silver kelp... more on that soon!), Larkin needed to switch gears for a bit and designed this super sweet, solid silver hair pin!
Larkin hand-shaped the ivy leaves from sheet metal and attached them to a beefy 12 gauge wire. They bent and shaped the wire into waves like a bobby pin for greater staying power, and balled the end for comfort.
This pin can be used alone for a small amount of hair (it will hold slightly more than a bobby pin and less than most barrettes) or added as decoration to a hair tie.
Here, Larkin's dad gamely demonstrates that, while this hair decoration is very versatile, it is not suitable for *all* hair types. 🤣
The hair pin measures 5.0 cm long and 2.4 cm at its widest point.
Larkin's latest piece is more of a figurative portal than a literal doorway, but it certainly transports you to the summertime banks of a pond under starry skies!
Larkin cut this cabochon from a piece of serpentine found by our family here in southern Oregon-- we thought it might be some of the gemmier applegate jade, but it turned out to be what we've been calling slightly "undercooked." Regardless, it's a beautiful, deep green stone with shiny flecks of magnetite.
Larkin framed the front with intricate, hand-shaped silver cattails, while the back includes a dragonfly resting for a moment on a twig. The mood of the piece is neatly complemented by a silver moon on the handmade bail.
While the cattails and leaves are not dangerously sharp, this piece *is* spiky and delicate! Care should be taken not to snag those lovely long leaves during wear.
Larkin cut this cabochon from a piece of petrified wood found by our family near our home in southern Oregon. They left the front raw to highlight all the glorious woody texture while polishing the sides and back smooth and shiny. The rough front naturally left some gaps in the frame, which allowed Larkin space to add extra mushrooms and creeping ivy vines. A natural druzy seam is just barely visible making its way from the bottom ivy leaf on the left to the top mushroom cap on the right.
Larkin equipped this magical portal with a tiny handle and a matching bail of hammered sheet metal adorned with a tiny ivy sprig.
And... can we talk about that back for just a second? (Who am I kidding, I'm gonna! 😅) This kind of sculptural technique is brand new to Larkin as well as this piece!
The following photo of the back shows the twig Larkin used for inspiration, resulting in a fantastically realistic solid silver twig that neatly complements the roughness of the front of the stone.
This piece has such fantastically fine detail, it's hard to remember just how small it is! Larkin's grandparents always remark on the dainty size of Larkin's work when they see it in person after seeing it in photos, enlarged on their computer and phone screens. That quarter is about as wide as this piece! The frame and all sculptural elements are hand-fashioned from solid argentium silver that has been oxidized to highlight its dimensionality and polished.
Larkin has a series of these magical portals on the go, and the first is done!
This petrified wood doorway was cut from a stone found by our family near our home in southern Oregon. Petrified wood is so fun-- you never know what you might find when you cut into a piece! The stone and slab in the photos are part of the same piece of petrified wood as this finished cabochon.
We think the distinctive curly markings in this wood's grain were formed due to compression during mineralization. Here, I've circled a small vein of remarkably clear agate at the base of the cabochon.
Larkin's frame on this piece has a distinctly Tolkien-esque vibe, bringing to mind the wood elves of Mirkwood! Hand shaped leafing vines, a cluster of mushrooms, and the tree on the back are topped off with a matching custom bail. The silver is polished and sooooo shiny!
Larkin was looking to stone for inspiration this morning and got these cut and polished before the heat of the day. The white background is indoor lighting to get a better look at the patterns in the stones, while the outdoor lighting shot shows their color and shininess a bit better. The two reddish cabs are moss agate-- the arch has some amazing druzy pockets. The hanging water droplet is applegate jade/bowenite with a really interesting seam filled with a shiny chatoyant mineral across one corner. The other two are serpentine with some pretty amazing colors and patterns.
Looks like we have some magic portals to look forward to!
Mushrooms! In ring form! Larkin has some design changes in mind before this ring is officially offered, but this prototype shows where they're headed. If you happen to wear an 8.25 ring and think this silver one looks like it might be yours, hit us up! I bet Larkin will cut you a deal. ;)
Larkin forms the base of these gleaming earrings from a rectangle of hefty 20 gauge sheet metal, hammered to appear like a brick or stone base for the vining ivy. They then painstakingly texture, hand cut, vein and shape each leaf from silver. Each earring is topped with a hand-shaped 20 gauge silver ear wire.
The copper background is untreated and can be kept polished bright or allowed to develop a natural patina. The silver has been oxidized to highlight texture, then hand polished.
Each earring measures about 3.5 cm from the top of the ear wire to the tip of the lowest ivy leaf and and just over 1 cm at its widest point.
Ivy is often thought to symbolize strength (if you've ever tried to discourage ivy, you know why!), fidelity (it gets very attached!), and vitality. Bottom line: you can display your mettle with this gorgeously shaped metal. ;)
This shiny new moon ring is flying off to Michigan tomorrow to be part of someone’s 40th birthday celebration!
In other news, Larkin has added a sort of handshake-guarantee to their work! This is what they added to the Jewelry Care page:
My goal is to make beautiful, sturdy jewelry that will last a lifetime! Please contact me if you have any issues during normal daily wear.
I am happy to help maintain all Idle Talons work after it has been sold! Please contact me if you would like a something professionally cleaned and polished. Price will depend on the job— ranging from the price of postage for wire-only pieces, to a bit more for stone settings.
Sometimes tragedy strikes! If you accidentally slam your favorite pendant in a car door, or a pair of earrings gets bent out of shape when they were mistakenly put through the laundry cycle, contact me! Again, price will vary depending on the job, but I may be able to repair the damage. Include a picture of the piece in question so I can get a good idea of what might be required.
And if you lose a single earring? I will absolutely make you another single to match the remainder for half the price of a pair!
I truly want every customer to be happy with their purchase, so please don’t hesitate to contact me at idle.talons@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns!
It's first Tuesday! Some see Larkin and all the other vendors at Rogue Valley Growers & Crafters Market today in Ashland until 1:30! (They're the one under all that hair... 🤣)
I realize I buried the lead on yesterday's post-- if you missed it and like seeing the process that goes into Larkin's work, check it out! If you don't want to wade through 20+ photos to the finished piece, these are for you. ;) Larkin's uncle thought it would make a fantastic superhero emblem. He's not wrong! (That's Larkin hiding behind him trying to position the piece in the proper superhero position🤣)
I am still at the coast, avoiding the heat wave currently blasting the Idle Talons home studio, but Larkin has been sending me progress photos so I don't feel quite so out of touch. I thought y'all might enjoy a start-to-finish glimpse into what goes into one of Larkin's pieces as much as I do!
Spoiler: Larkin was going for dragon-worshipping-the-sun vibes.
First step after coming up with a concept: deciding on size! Larkin cut some wing templates out of cardboard to help with the decision.
The middle size seems Just Right. Bonus glimpse of grubby teen jeweler paws.
Another cardboard template, this time a sunburst!
For this kind of detailed work, Larkin cuts the template out of sticker paper so it can be applied to the metal and used as a cutting guide. Here you can also see all the pilot holes they drilled through the metal so their saw has a starting point.
40 minutes of painstaking cutting later, and the sunburst is all cut out!
Hand polishing/grinding gets all the little burrs and sharp spots out of the cut-out so its edges are rounded and smooth.
Last check with templates before committing silver!
Silver wings! Cut out and textured.
Adding spines to the wings. Every little connection point and detail is another opportunity for the torch to cause the metal to slump which would require starting the whole process over.
Details are starting to come together!
This piece got a full rainbow finish after first heat!
The back of a wing after torchwork. The scorching is such a neat effect-- it's too bad it won't stand up to smoothing/polishing.
Veining is all done-- now for more details!
The tip of each "finger" gets a hand-sculpted talon. You can see the top one is the only complete one in this photo.
Talons and tails are cut, shaped, and ready for soldering!
Copper sunburst, talons and tails are all in place. Just need to add some attachment points for a cord on the back.
Pickled (Larkin uses a hot citric acid bath) and cleaned/tumbled to remove the torch scorch. A bit of hand-polishing and it will be done!
Taaaaaadaaaaaaah!
A quarter for scale and cord attached through hidden bails to show how it will hang!
More prepping for in-person markets is occupying Larkin in the Idle Talons studio this week. There's something very satisfying about photos of batchwork... these not-yet-earrings make me want a tiny hand-blown glass vase in which to arrange them! It's always fun to see them next to their shiny, finished counterparts.
Apparently a still group of dragonflies is called a static swarm, as opposed to a migratory swarm if they're on the move. This swarm will be moving along soon! ;)
It still blows me away that these charred, dull-looking bits of metal turn out so delightfully shiny after pickling and polishing!
These beaded rainbow spirals were brought out of retirement at the request of someone who attended last month's pride event. Larkin doesn't do a lot of beadwork these days but enjoys re-visiting it now and then! These colorful bangles were sent off to their new home today.
… And I hear rumors of a morning glory vine ring on Larkin's workbench-- hopefully we'll see it soon!