Larkin's latest wrap, spring flowers edition! This purchased moonstone cab has a gorgeous blue-green-peach flash and is framed in argentium silver with a combo of weaving and fusing. The tail curls are hammered and gleaming. Perfect for spring!
Pictured (in order) with: grape hyacinth, rosemary, shooting stars, and houndstongue. This wrap will be making it's debut next Friday at the Royaboya Handmade Bazaar!
Larkin got distracted while making eensy weensy mushrooms and turned out a few of these merely eensy mushrooms. Each is sculpted from solid copper and are heavier than you might expect from their diminutive size!
These sweet fungus dangles will be available starting next Friday at the Royaboya Handmade Bazaar!
Larkin cut this cheerfully asymmetric cab from a grey-blue-green-with-a-bit-of-yellow-at-that-one-edge jasper stone we found near the coast. Swirly on one side and whispy on the other, Larkin mirrored the feel of the stone with the copper wire of its wrap. Measures 6.4 cm long and 2.6 cm at its widest point.
This piece will make its debut at the Royaboya Handmade Bazaar, coming up at the end of the month!
Now that Larkin has shaken out yesterday's clothes, found the missing cab, and tied it in, I'm happy to present this latest wrap! Larkin cut this cabochon from applegate jade, probably our favorite local rock! The first picture is with the rough stone from which it was cut, the second picture of the back shows the cut side of the stone.
The higher "gemstone quality" applegate jade is a very dark green with black speckles, but our family unanimously prefers these kinds of pieces with more shades of green and different materials making interesting patterns in the stone. It shares two of the most fun and defining features of applegate jade; it's translucent when backlit and will attract a magnet!
The sunlit picture with dandelions shows how the stone's patterning really pops in the sun, even as it blows out the argentium silver scrollwork.
It is really starting to feel like Spring here in southern Oregon! Tomorrow is Larkin's next market day at Rogue Valley Growers & Crafters Market and it promises to be beeeyootiful! Come see Idle Talons at the Ashland Armory from 8:30-1:30. :)
Larkin created this piece for someone wanting rich, earthy colors in a copper wrap. The gorgeous marquise-cut cabochon is applegate jade, and includes the full range of materials that stone offers, from the sandy-looking rind to the deep green, translucent interior. It still blows us away that we can find rocks like this near our home!
Larkin wrapped this gorgeous purchased blue-flash moonstone cab in argentium silver. This design feels so magical! It will be offered first at the Idle Talons/ Dancing Beads show next week, so be sure to tune in at 7pm (Pacific time) on Tuesday if you need a little more of this kind of fanciful whimsy in your life!
Fun news! Local bead shop Dancing Beads has made an amazing pandemic pivot over the last year, offering classes via zoom as well as amazing offerings through live shows on Facebook-- goods can be picked up at their local storefront or shipped. Mark your calendars, because their show on Mar. 22 will feature Idle Talons!
We anticipate that this audience will be a little different since many Dancing Beads fans make their own jewelry. Larkin is stocking up on wire charms and drilled cabs that can be incorporated into the work of others, as well as some of the finished pieces usually featured here. It will be a fun opportunity to see Idle Talons pieces in video!
So follow Dancing Beads and tune in at 7pm Mar. 22 to see Larkin and Carol talk shop and present some fun Idle Talons inventory!
Multi-tasking in action! We briefly moved Larkin's genie set-up into the kitchen to more easily make adjustments to improve its ergonomic design. After lots of machine height shimming, wrist-rest bumper experimentation, and creative seat height adjustment, we believe we've found a set-up that minimizes shoulder/neck/back/elbow fatigue. Now all we need is to build a workbench the right height outside. And a proper-height stool (no, the footstool + folding chair is not the final set-up). Okay, and maybe a well-insulated workshop with big windows and a heater... but one improvement at a time!
In the midst of all these adjustments, Larkin turned out some new cabs... with an obviously biased color palette. The top row is two round applegate jade cabs (the larger one! *swoon*) and a blue/green chert destined to be a leaf pendant. The chert has a distinctive band through its center that is almost purple. The bottom row is an applegate jade marquise cab, a double-sided applegate jade cab with a hole for a cord drilled sideways through the tip, and a serpentine cab that Larkin plans on making into a leaf.
Larkin had a request for silver rhinoceros statement earrings, and this copper prototype turned out pretty sweet! The metal pictured is still scorched from torch work, so the final product will be much more uniformly shiny. Any other rhino fans here? This makes me wonder if other animals would translate to wire as well...
Larkin is SO EXCITED to be returning to in-person markets at Rogue Valley Growers & Crafters Market this season! As in 2019, Idle Talons will be at the Ashland Armory every first Tuesday of the month from 8:30 am - 1:30 pm starting <eep!> next week. Our family did a bit of soul searching regarding safety, but RVGCM is an outdoor market and has a dedicated social distancing officer. Our experience as shoppers last year made us pretty comfortable with the level of masking and social distancing accomplished by this amazing group of organizers and vendors.
Today has been all about populating Larkin's product board-- we're loving how the cards with printing and the logo up the professional feel! First markets are always a little chilly and slow-- if you're local stop by and say hi next Tuesday!
Today's wire doodle, inspired by the watery feel of Larkin's latest wrap! This is about the size of a quarter, constructed from copper wire and copper solder. A magical little porthole!
Fresh out of the polisher, here is Larkin's latest piece! This is another cab Larkin cut from a blue-green chert we found in Humboldt, CA. The top line of silver across the face follows a sparkling vein of quartz. The whole piece has a very flowy, watery feel-- Larkin played with making some bubbles on the back and liked the effect so much there may be some stand-alone bubble earrings in the works! Wrapped in argentium silver and polished bright.
Larkin couldn't resist buying a slab of this rose quartz! The good folks at the rock shop affectionately called it "lavender quartz" due to its uncharacteristic blue-ish hue. Larkin cut and polished the round cabochon and wrapped it in copper wire, accented with argentium silver roses and leaves.
Larkin is ready to offer these vining rose chains in both bracelet and choker lengths! The prototype was made in copper and, unfortunately, turned our hapless wear tester <ahem, I mean dear friend> green in mere hours. So these are solid argentium silver in two styles: one with bright roses and dark, oxidized vines and one with dark, oxidized roses and bright silver vines.
Larkin's Uncle Felix thought the chokers were beautiful, but might live up to their name... so we did a little safety testing, too. Luckily, the links will come apart if pulled with enough force before injuring the wearer. That said, we don't recommend the chokers for children.
Larkin has officially wrapped up (so to speak) the last Idle Talons commission from the Royaboya Bazaar! This customer liked the leaves... but wanted more! Larkin strung them up on a branch in the same hybrid wrap/solder style as the stems. This lovely blue-green chert is definitely a favorite.
A customer at Larkin's last bazaar loved a wrap that had already sold, so they commissioned Larkin to recreate this magical moonstone piece wrapped in argentium silver. The first photo captures the flash of the moonstone, but the piece is slightly foreshortened. The second photo is a better representation of its finished proportions. Off to its new home!
These hand-shaped roses really seem to have set Larkin's gears turning recently! This choker prototype is currently in the wear-testing phase. Each iteration of the rose and leaf pattern is made individually and then joined, so it could easily be adapted into a chain-style bracelet as well. Larkin completed the design with a custom clasp. These roses are bright copper with oxidized copper leaves, but it would be very striking with various combinations of silver elements as well!
<Whew!> Larkin and the Idle Talon minions needed a bit of a break after last weekend's extremely fun and successful bazaar! Larkin came up with these sweet little heart charms as raffle prizes-- pretty perfect for a certain upcoming holiday! ;) Each heart is constructed from a single wire, with a dot of solder at the join for reinforcement.
A mermaid tail seems especially appropriate for this wrap on a purchased fossilized coral cabochon! Larkin's copper wrap is perfectly evocative of ocean waves and finned friends-- a lovely blend of whimsical and elegant. This piece will make its debut on Friday at the Royaboya Handmade Bazaar-- hope to see you there!
