GAZELLE No. 5

THESIS WORK

2012-02-02T16:08:00.000-05:00

YoYo Necklace

Sterling Silver, Found Materials, and Plastic

UPDATE

2012-01-31T18:06:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! It has been a month since my last post and I thought it would be a good time to update you on what is going on. I definitely miss Ring-A-Day, but I do have more time all together to work on more pressing matters.

This semester I have a lot going on. I am continuing my thesis work, curating/organizing a show for GAR Foundation, and teaching a CAD for Jewelry class. I just recently finished selecting the works for the show and now I just have to get some of them framed, install all works at the Foundation's office, and attend the reception. I am so glad I got this opportunity!

I will be having my Thesis review on Tuesday, March 27th at 9:00am. My work will be displayed in the School of Art Gallery in the Art building on Kent State Campus. There are three other grad students that will be showing in this large gallery that same week. Originally I did not want to be part of a group exhibition, but I am definitely seeing the benefits now. The exhibition reception will be Friday, March 30 from 5:00pm to 8:00pm. Please feel free to come! All are welcome!

The Ring-A-Day series will be displayed in the Sculpture gallery the following week. The exhibition reception will be Friday, April 6. I have not decided what time, so please stay tuned! Don't miss this chance to see all 365 rings in one place! :)

I am planning to have postcards made for each show. If you would like to have one mailed to you as a reminder for the show or just to have, please send me your mailing address. My email is tott2@kent.edu

Below are some photos of Thesis Piece #1 (yoyo Necklace)....IN PROGRESS!

Thank you for Reading!!!

RING No. 365

2011-12-31T21:39:00.000-05:00

Well Folks, its finally here, the LAST RING!.....I want to thank all the people who gave me interesting objects, the people who encouraged me along the way, and all of the "readers", and "viewers"!

I stayed in the studio all day working on this baby. While here, I activated my iPhone!!! I have waited years to get one and now I finally have it! Hooray!

Many people have expressed an interest in purchasing a ring or rings for their collection. Upon much contemplation, I have decided to sell them! At first I wanted to keep them all together and perhaps sell them as one collection, or not at all, but I think that it will be much better if many people can have a piece of this achievement. I plan to make a book in the near future that has an image of each ring.

The rings will be part of my thesis and can be viewed by the public in April at my exhibition reception. They are for sale now, but will not be available for pick up until after the show. If you have an interest in a particular ring, please email me.

As far as price goes, they all vary....for instance, there is a ring that is Free, one that is $10, a few in the hundreds, and everything in between! It all depends on the time invested and value of the materials. I am planning to keep a few for my personal collection, but all the rest are up for grabs. Each ring will come with a hand numbered and signed certificate of authenticity and a special box.

Now, I plan to catch up on the rest of my thesis work, and start writing! I have learned so much from this challenge and I will miss it, but it will be nice to concentrate on the other things I need to accomplish before I graduate.

I will update my blog from time to time with images and info on the progress of my thesis work. "Follow" the blog to get detailed information on when my show will be and the other events I will be hosting in conjunction.....

Also, stay tuned for a highly likely RING A DAY 2.0....after I graduate, I hope to continue this fun and interesting challenge!!!!!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Sapphires, and Blue Topaz
Dimensions: 1.25 x .75 x .625 inches

RING No. 364

2011-12-30T23:39:00.003-05:00

I spent the entire day in the studio working on today's ring. I have given the ring the name "Ogretta" in memory of my late grandmother, Ogretta Till. The flowers are reminiscent of the arrangement that was at her memorial service (there wasn't a funeral). The floral arrangement was done by Brenda Harley, my former employer and dear friend. She did a wonderful job!!! In the arrangement, there were various shades of pink flowers in several sizes. It represented my grandmother perfectly. There are four flowers in the ring to represent the four roles I saw her in throughout her life: Wife, Mother, Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother. She excelled in all four! The past seven months have been very rough as I went through the grieving process. (as I have said before, this was the first real loss I have ever had)

I am still not out of the woods yet, but it is definitely much better now.

The flowers are made of fine silver, the bands/stems are made of sterling silver, and there are Pink Tourmalines (the larger stones) and Rubies (the smaller stones) set in the center of each flower. One flower has tiny granules of sterling silver around the set stone.

I vowed to make my grandmother a ring twice (see Ring No. 144 and Ring No. 264), but fear of not making one that was "good enough" by my standards and lack of time most days prevented me from doing so until now. I am very happy with the ring and I think she would love it if she saw it.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Fine Silver, sterling silver, Pink Tourmalines, and Rubies
Dimensions: 1.75 x 1.75 x 1.75 inches

The Making Process:

I drew floral designs on Tracing paper....

..pasted the tracing paper to the metal and cut the flowers out....

then came the soldering....

RING No. 363

2011-12-30T01:40:00.000-05:00

Wow! I just woke up from the best (and longest) nap ever!.....I only got a few hours of sleep last night and not much on the plane. April picked me up from the airport and we went to the Cleveland Museum of Art, MOCA, and then to Little Italy for dinner and dessert! It was a great day! When I returned I was just so tired that I laid down for a bit and the next thing I knew, I was waking up and it was 12:15!...I really needed the rest.....Tonight's ring is simple because I am still a bit tired, but do not fret! Tomorrow and the next day will be way more awesome since I will have most of the day to complete them.

Tonight's ring is made from a little painted wooden cat that came in a big bag of assorted things that Dr. Havice gave me. I found some tacky ribbon and made tonight's ring! I call it "Tacky bow with Cool Cat".

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: ribbon, sterling silver, painted wooden cat
Dimensions: 3.75 x 2.5 x 2.75 inches

RING No. 362

2011-12-29T00:45:00.000-05:00

I spent most of today helping my sister clean and organize her house. We went out for a quick trip....while out we went to the store for organizing containers, exchanged a Christmas gift, and got some yummy frozen yogurt!

Yesterday, Braelynn gave me a purple dolphin. She told me I should make a ring out of if, so today I did! A while back I had an idea about a ring where a dolphin jumps through a hoop and now I finally get to do it! I love serendipity!......I still had a huge bundle of telephone wire, so I used some of it to make the ring and the hoop along with its attachments....I have already packed up all my stuff (my sister is taking me to the airport in less than 3 hrs. so I only had limited tools to work with....I have a photo below that shows them,...

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Rubber dolphin, telephone wire
Dimensions: 2.25 x 3.25 x 1.75 inches

RING No. 361

2011-12-27T22:09:00.000-05:00

Today I woke up early and went to town (Orangeburg) with my mom. While she went to an orthodontist appt. I went to Four Moons Cafe. I later met up with Brenda (former employer) and her son Jordan. My mom and I got to chat and hang out with them for a little bit. It was so nice to see them and catch up.

Today's ring is made of more plastic packaging from my nieces toys.

Thanks for reading! Have a great day!

Materials: Plastic (packaging from a toy)
Dimensions: 3.25 x 1.5 x .75 inches

RING No. 360

2011-12-26T21:33:00.000-05:00

We picked up Braelynn again today so that Susanna could attend a wedding. When we returned to my mom's house, Brae and I played with her "Squinkies" (soft rubber toys that dispense through a gumball-like machine) and then put together some of her awesome new LEGOs....we made a house, two girls, a garden, a fence, a reindeer, a dog, a boat, a car, some flowers, and a sculpture......Some were suggested combinations from the directions, others were our own design :) It was so fun playing with LEGOS! I want to get some of my own so I can build a giant cupcake! hahaha......

I really love Christmas....scented pine cones, giving people gifts, sentimental music, delicious food, bright colors, lights, and so much more.....I don't want it to be over!....

I aquired these vintage jingle bells a year or two ago and have not had the chance to use them....Until now! The package reads "1942" and they are in excellent condition except for the coloring on the Red, Green, and Blue (which is rubbing off). I used some brass wire that my mom gave me and made tonight's ring. I love the way jingle bells sound!.........

Tomorrow I go back to my sister Susanna's in Blythewood...and then I fly out early Thursday morning! I am excited because my good friend April is picking me up and we are going to the Cleveland Museum of Art!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Vintage Jingle Bells, and brass wire
Dimensions: 1.75 x 1.5 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 359

2011-12-26T01:00:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas!

I had a great day with my family.....

Tonight's ring is simple but has an important recommendation....Please Recycle!

This plastic was once packaging for my niece's gifts.....With so much packaging being thrown out during the holidays as new merchandise is purchased, please recycle cardboard, plastic, and other materials if possible! :)

There is a photo of some of the packaging my sister saved for me to make today's ring out of....Also, there is a photo of some of the Christmas cookies my family and I made today!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Repurposed Plastic Packaging
Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1.75 inches

RING No. 358

2011-12-25T01:04:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas!

Well, last night I shot a gun for the first time in my life. I went to a "Turkey Shoot" with my sister and shot at a paper target. I was a bit nervous, but I did it without fear! The object is to get closest (out of a certain number of people that are in a set) to the center of the target and in turn you win a turkey or some other type of meat....I did not do well, hahaha.

My sister made a delicious breakfast this morning and then we spent the first part of the day baking and preparing food to bring over to my grandfather's house to celebrate christmas eve. We had a wonderful time seeing everyone and eating some delicious food! I came back to Grandy's house after that. My mom and I finished wrapping gifts and listened to Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack...It was fun. :)

Tonight's ring is made from some old telephone wire I found in the attic at my mom's house that someone once gave me and a red rhinestone my mom gave to me today.

Materials: telephone wire and rhinestone
Dimensions: 1 x .75 x .5 inch

RING No. 357

2011-12-23T20:41:00.000-05:00

My sister picked me up from Britt's early this morning. We went to her house and then to Goodwill to donate some junk....then I helped with the rest of her Christmas shopping.

Tonight's ring is made from some fluffy pink yarn that I found (she is using it to make Braelynn a blanket).

Thanks for reading, goodnight :)

Materials: yarn
Dimensions: 1.75 x .75 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 356

2011-12-22T22:23:00.000-05:00

Today Braelynn and I woke up and went to Grandy's. My mom made Blueberry pancakes for all of us! They were delicious! Mom, Braelynn, and I later went to Columbia to meet Brittney and Mrs. Janet for lunch at Atlanta Bread Company. After that, Britt and I went to hang out at her house. We had a nice time catching up. Later on, Britt, her husband Clark, and I went to the Mellow Mushroom! I forgot how awesome their pizza was!.....It was a location that I had never been to before.....(Lexington)...The interior was amazing! Also the outside was super cool....lots of found objects and original artwork!....

Now I'm back at Britt's and we are about to watch a movie. I used some wrapping paper that was on my mom's gift from Mrs. Janet and some ribbon, thread, and a staple from Brittney. Thanks guys!

Thanks to Britt for being the hand model for tonight's ring!

Goodnight!

Materials: Paper, staple, ribbon, and thread
Dimensions: 2.75 x 1.5 x 1 inches

RING No. 355

2011-12-21T23:50:00.000-05:00

Tonight we celebrated my sister Sarah Beth's birthday....(was the 18th) I used some of the candles from her birthday cake for tonight's ring. We all got together at Grandy's (Grandy, Mom, Sid, Chris, Sarah, Me, and Braelynn) and had dinner and dessert....Chris and Sarah B brought little Tater, there new puppy with them!....

The string came from Dave (his old yo yo string)...Thanks Dave :)

I'm sitting here with my niece braelynn, we are about to go to bed.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Birthday candles, old yo yo string

Dimensions: 2.5 x .75 x .75 inch

RING No. 354

2011-12-20T21:50:00.000-05:00

Today's ring is made from some old wrinkled Christmas wrapping material.....I think it was a bag or could have been something to wrap around a basket. It makes a lot of noise and is super gaudy. I like it alot. I am pretty tired so I'm going to bed now.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight.

Materials: Old Christmas wrapping material, and plastic
Dimensions: 8.5 x 4.25 x 2.5 inches

RING No. 353

2011-12-20T08:02:00.000-05:00

The only thing about flying home for the holidays that can be frustrating is not having my car. I was dropped off at my moms by Sarah Beth and Chris last night and soon found that the wifi (verizon MiFi) was actually at Grandy's with my mom and Sid......It was almost midnight and everyone was going to bed. I had no car to get back there so I had to wait until mom brought it over just now to post.

Yesterday I woke up (against my will) to Braelynn(my niece) wanting to go play. I could have used a few more hours of sleep!!! Sid cooked breakfast for Mom, Braelynn, and I. It was delicious! Thanks Sid!

They soon departed for Charleston (to celebrate their anniversary) and Braelynn and I hung out at the house until Grandy came and got us. We went to his church with him to see a steeple be put on the roof of the church (the people of the church raised almost $3,000 in memory of my Nanu that went towards purchasing it) After we watched that process, my sister Sarah Beth and her husband Chris came to pick Brae and I up. We went out to their house in Norway and spent time with them. It was super fun. I actually got a nap in as well :).....Chris cooked dinner and it was super yummy! I had Pink Chicken for the first time! I got to see all their peacocks (male and female) and their wonderful dogs (Fiona, Penny, Socks, and Tater!) while I was there. Tater is a chinese hairless! Fiona and Penny are great pyranese, and Socks (my fave) is a mix between Great P. and bird dog.....I also got to play a bit of xbox and make a ring out of some items Chris and Sarah gave me.

Thanks guys!

The ring is made of a painted steel chain, some of SB's old body jewelry, and some rubber attachements. I think it looks like little medieval weapons! hahaha

Thanks for reading, I'm going back to bed before Brae wakes up and wants to play!

Materials: painted steel chain, body jewelry(plastic/surgical steel), and rubber
Dimensions: 2.75 x 1.25 x .375 inches

RING No. 352

2011-12-19T02:05:00.000-05:00

I forgot to mention the other day that the new Muppet movie is wonderful! I suggest you see it!....Dave and I went the other day and we also watched Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas(DVD), Charlie Brown Christmas(DVD), and Mickey's Christmas Carol(VHS)! It was an awesome end to my time in Ohio before leaving for the holidays!

Thanks again to Dave for taking me to the airport!

I arrived in Charlotte last night safe and sound and was picked up by my sister. My flights were all on time, which was awesome. When I left Ohio, there was snow on the ground! But of course it was not like that in the Carolinas!......My first flight was really awesome because as luck would have it, a nice gentleman gave me his First Class seat (He was no longer flying to Atlanta and suggested that I sit there instead of my coach seat). It was super nice! I had more leg room, a complimentary blanket and pillow, and I was offered and provided extra snacks and drinks. I was super comfy and pretty much slept the whole flight.

Today I slept late (at my sisters) and later came to Orangeburg with Susanna and Robert for the annual Till Christmas gathering. (Till is my moms maiden name) I had a wonderful time! I got to see Ginger(cousin) and Frankie's sweet little boy, Chandler. He was a delight! There are two great grandchildren, Braelynn and Chandler. (Braelynn is my sister Susanna's daughter) I had not seen little Chandler since my grandmother's memorial service back in June. He was a newborn then!

This is the first christmas since Nanu's passing. I missed her very much at the party, but there was alot of kindness and love present this year. I think that some of us have grown closer and good things have come out of the loss of my grandma. There were alot of people there tonight and tons of good food. My favorite was my aunt Connie's red velvet cupcakes!!!!!

It was so good seeing all my cousins and catching up with them. After the party, my mom, Brae, and I came back to mom's house and hung out for a bit. I got a chance to unpack and talk with mom about the schedule for the next two weeks.

I am excited for Christmas! I have some awesome gifts to give! I cannot wait to see the look on my family members faces when they see the goodies I searched for/made for them. This is literally my favorite part of christmas, is giving special gifts to the special people I care about. With the over commercialization of the holidays, I have grown more and more interested in either handcrafting gifts or searching long and hard for that special something to give, something that they will use/love/cherish for years. I used to LOVE going shopping for people, but anymore I enjoy getting on ebay, etsy, or just getting into my studio to find/create something really unique/special. Something else I have been trying to do more and more is customization....for instance, I purchased a scarf for someone (on clearance) but to make it all the more awesome, I am hand embroidering their initials on it!....I found an awesome yo-yo for Dave and then engraved his nickname on it!.....I urge you to customize things! It can be very easy to embroider, paint, engrave/score, or mark(with sharpie) on a simple object to elevate it to another level of cool!

Ok, enough of my rambling.....Tonight's ring is made from some foam that my mom gave me, some old sequins, markers, and silver thread. I made a crafty Christmas tree ring! The sequins are meant to resemble ornaments and a star. On the back of the ring it reads "Till Christmas 2011". The little silver dots from the sewing of the sequins resemble little lights. I had a wonderful time today and so I needed to commemorate it! I am so thankful for my wonderful family! How lucky am I!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: foam, sequins, marker, and metallic thread
Dimensions: 4 x 2.5 x .125 inches

RING No. 351

2011-12-17T14:37:00.000-05:00

I am about ready to fly down south soon! Plane departs at 5:50 (later than I thought). It has been snowing here in Ohio this morning and I hope the flights all take off on time!

Today's ring is made from vintage keys that have been cut and shined, The chain was found and there are brass jump rings. I still have a lot to do before I leave, so it was a quick ring again today.

Thanks for reading! Have a Nice Day! :)

Materials: Old keys, found Chain, and Brass
Dimensions:

RING No. 350

2011-12-16T22:24:00.001-05:00

Christmas in the Jungle!

"Oh Christmas Frogs, Oh Christmas Frogs, how lovely are thy webbed feet!"

Here we have a few Merry Christmas Frogs along with some beads and a jingle bell. Thanks to Dr. Havice for the jingle bell and the frogs! (they used to be earrings) and thanks to Sam Di Tamoso for the green beads!

I'm sitting here in my studio with April and we are laughing about silly and serious things. I am so glad she came into town and decided to visit with me a bit!

It has been a long week and a long day....I am pretty tired....tomorrow I fly out of Akron, I am super pumped!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: found plastic, found chain, jingle bell, and sterling silver
Dimensions: 3 x 3 x .5 inches

RING No. 349

2011-12-15T23:39:00.000-05:00

A quick ring for a fast paced day.....

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Leather
Dimensions: 2 x 1.25 x .5 inch

RING No. 348

2011-12-15T01:42:00.000-05:00

Just finished grading and photographing my students work. I am ready to go to sleep! It has been a long day....I got to school at 10am for our critique and I have been at school ever since except for a short break to go get my laptop from home. I will be so glad when tomorrow is over. My students have their critique tomorrow afternoon. Then I will finally be able to relax! I hope to go dancing this weekend! :)

I call this ring "Burden".

I'm pretty sure my mom gave this balloon to me. It is turned inside-out....the other side reads "Rite Aid"..Thanks mom!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: latex balloon, plastic
Dimensions: 4 x 2 x 2 inches

RING No. 347

2011-12-13T23:51:00.000-05:00

Tonight's ring is made from a found plastic bead and steel wire.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Steel wire, found bead
Dimensions: 3.25 x 1.5 x .5 inches

RING No. 346

2011-12-13T00:56:00.000-05:00

Today was a wonderful day!

I went to bed early last night and woke up this morning earlier than usual. I came to school and summed up my Co-Op duties from the Jewelry Sale we just wrapped up on Friday. I wrote checks and then went to make a deposit. After that I met quickly with a student and then went home. I had some really cool packages come in the mail today! ....Christmas gifts and such! I spent most of the day working on finishing my paper for Art History. I finally finished! After I was done I came into the studio to make a ring and work on a few other things.

Today's ring is made from found plastic, pearls (from a necklace that was given to me long ago), and sterling silver.

Materials: Sterling silver, pearls, found plastic
Dimensions: 1 x 1 x .625 inch

RING No. 345

2011-12-11T21:38:00.000-05:00

Today I went with Dave to decorate cookies with his family. We decorated so many cookies with various colored icings and sprinkles and such. His family was friendly and very welcoming. A few of us walked out to the Lake and it was beautiful. I had a great time!Also, the sun was shining today which was awesome. I came back and went to the studio (My students work was due today) and cleaned my studio, did some work, and made this ring.

The aluminum part at the top is made from lids of yogurt and applesauce. The gray plastic part is some found plastic, and the bottom is steel wire that someone gave me a long while ago (a giant spool)

Materials: found plastic, steel, repurposed aluminum (lids from yogurt and apple sauce), and thread
Dimensions: 2.25 x 2 x 2.5 inches

RING No. 344

2011-12-11T02:36:00.000-05:00

Today I did a few things around my house, worked in the studio, watched a movie/ate dinner with Dave, and made tonight's ring.

A few weeks back Dr. Havice gave me a bag of goodies to use in my work. I haven't gone through all of it yet, but I did look through a few boxes and I found this vintage painted wooden parrot. (It used to be an earring)

I attached sterling silver wire to him and voila! The "Pet Parrot Ring"!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Found object, sterling silver
Dimensions: 2 x 1.25 x .5 inches

RING No. 343

2011-12-10T02:12:00.000-05:00

Today was a long day. I am incredibly tired. Tonight's ring is made from a piece of the screen from an old ipod that April gave me. Thanks Apey! :) I call it the double vision ring because when you hold it just right, you can see double! I have tried to illustrate it with the pictures below.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: found plastic, monofilament, and piece of an LCD screen (ipod)
Dimensions: 2.5 x 1 x .125 inch

RING No. 342

2011-12-08T22:45:00.000-05:00

Today was the last day of class! I know my students are excited as well! We will still be casting for the next few days so that they can finish their projects. I am casting something of mine tonight with them! I cannot wait to see it come out! I made three charms out of wax and will be casting them in sterling silver. I plan to put them on my charm bracelet.

I have been hearing about many awesome opportunities! I wish I could try and participate in everything, but saying no is a good idea sometimes. More details on the specific opportunities later!

We just finished casting and now I'm about to head home to work on finishing my research paper that is due tomorrow at noon. Wish me luck!

Tonight's ring is made from scraps of acrylic that Danielle gave me last semester. She had fan parts laser cut and then assembled them. The leftover scraps (that were cut out by the laser) are fitted snugly inside a rubber piece that came on a pen. It is made into a ring with a rubber band.

I cannot wait until this paper is done! I can finally have more time to make rings and to work on my thesis work!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Plastic scraps, found rubber, rubber band
Dimensions: 2.5 x 1.25 x .5 inches

RING No. 341

2011-12-07T22:34:00.002-05:00

Today I gave a presentation about my work for the other grads and Kathleen. We prepare and execute these presentations each semester so that when we have completed our MFA, we are prepared to give professional, timely, and efficiently edited artist lectures/talks. I find them very beneficial and I am so fortunate to be a part of a program that prepares me for "the real world". I still have a lot of work to do on creating the "perfect presentation", but as a professor once said (referring to an artist statement, but the same can be true of a presentation) "It is something that is always a work in progress...things will change in your work, and you learn to edit out items so that only the pertinent information remains". I am sure I butchered that quote, but it was a while ago that I heard it and I am sure you get the point.

After the presentation, we came back to the studio to discuss our readings, then I did a few things around the studio and went to the GSS meeting. They served a yummy lunch and I actually got to speak to the senate on behalf of the committee I helped to start. It was a very interesting and thought provoking meeting today with topics and items of business that had me steady jotting down notes. After the meeting, I went back to the studio and then home. I have a research paper due on Friday and still have a good bit of work to do. I worked for a while and then came back to the studio to make my ring and help my students with their casting.

Ring No. 341, "Serres on Love", is simple (because of time constraints) but represents something very important that stuck in my head from the reading I did for Art History Class (Land & Environmental Art) that was discussed on Monday. The excerpts that I am quoting below comes from Natural Contract by Michel Serres. Serres(French) was a philosopher and author. The writing is all about how we should have a "Natural Contract" so as to preserve the earth instead of destroying it. Throughout the semester we read many different things most all of which had to do with Ecology. I found it to be very eye-opening and refreshing.

Ring No. 341 is formed into one of the simplest shapes there is, a heart. It is meant to illustrate how easy (even as hard as it may seem to love certain people) it is to show and give love to everyone and everything (after all, Its free to Love!).....

"Without love, there are no ties or alliances. Here, finally, are the two double laws. Love one another, this is our first law. For two thousand years, this is the only one that has been able to help us avoid, at least for a few moments, hell on earth. This contractual obligation is divided into a local law asking us to love our neighbors and a global law requiring us to love at least humanity, if we do not believe in a God. It is impossible to separate the two precepts, under penalty of hatred. Loving only one's neighbors or one's own kind leads to the team, the sect, to gangsterism and racism; loving men as a group, while exploiting one's neighbors and kin, is the typical hypocrisy of preachy moralists. This first law remains silent about mountains and lakes for it speaks to men about men as if there were no world. Here then is the second law, which asks us to love the world. This contractual obligation is divided into the old local law that attaches us to the ground where our ancestors lie, and a new global law that no legislator, as far as I know, has written, which requires of us the universal love of the physical Earth. It is impossible to separate the two precepts, under penalty of hatred. Loving the whole Earth while laying waste the neighboring landscape, this is the typical hypocrisy of moralists who restrict the law to men and to language, which men alone use and master; loving only one's own land leads to inexpiable wars caused by the passions of belonging."

"There is nothing real but love, and no other law." - Michel Serres

I challenge you to Love! :)

Thank you for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Sterling Silver
Dimensions: 1.25 x 1.5 x .03125 inch

RING No. 340

2011-12-06T23:43:00.000-05:00

Today I taught class, met with a student, went to the library, came home to eat dinner, and then went into the studio to make today's ring. I present to you the "Brush-On Metallic Ring" kit. It creates a temporary ring but since a little bit of powder goes a long way, many many more rings exist in this kit!

I made the "kit" out of an old paintbrush, two plastic containers, (one of which came from Janice Mueller, the other came from Metalliferous in New York) and some metallic powder I acquired a few semesters ago.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: paintbrush, metallic powder, plastic containers
Dimensions: metallic box-1.75 x 1.75 x .75 inches, brush- 1.5 x .1875 x .1875 inches,
clear container - 1.5 x 1 x .5 inches

RING No. 339

2011-12-05T21:04:00.000-05:00

On this oh-so-rainy-day I slept in (because of a benadryl!) and then went to do laundry....I also did laundry yesterday (Have not done laundry in about 5 weeks because of moving and something supposedly being wrong with the washer at my old place) I am almost done with all of it! I think I need maybe one more trip to the laundromat and then a few hand-washing sessions at my house (for delicates!) and I will have tons of clean clothes!!!!! I cannot wait!

I was sure that I would be the only one doing laundry on When I was at the laundromat but while I was there, I saw 2 other people, which I actually knew! I love the Kent Laundromat so much! It is clean place, employs friendly people, is affordable, and they have their dryers turned up (which means it takes less quarters to dry your clothes). Much Much better than the popular Laundry 101.

After Laundry, I did some reading for art history, ate a bite, and put away some clothes. I then made my way to art history. Today was our last class! Now I just have to complete my Research Paper and turn it in Friday!

Today in my Art History class we watched a YouTube video discussing String Theory (was also the topic of some of the readings we did for class). When I got back to my studio I was looking around for inspiration and immediately saw a small piece of glass that I had formed 2 years ago when I took Flameworking. It looked exactly like some of the illustrations of String Theory that I saw today. I found a metal wire piece that my mom had given me a while back (was part of a cheap wind chime from the dollar store I believe) and made a ring to hold the glass "String" from so that it would vibrate like the strings mentioned in String Theory.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Glass and Metal Wire
Dimensions: 3.75 x 2 x 2.25 inches

RING No. 338

2011-12-04T22:22:00.000-05:00

This morning I went to church and then to breakfast with Dave's Mom Deb. It was a nice start to the day. After breakfast I went to the laundromat to wash several loads of clothes. I then went to the studio and then home to take a long nap. When I woke up I went to grab dinner with Dave and then came back to the studio.

Tonight's ring is made out of string that came from bags of tea. I call it the "Natural Tassel Ring". The tassels are reminiscent of a scene from Robin Hood that I love. I recently watched that movie with April Bachtel over Thanksgiving break. It was awesome!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: String
Dimensions: 2.25 x 2 x .25 inches

RING No. 337

2011-12-04T02:24:00.000-05:00

"Plastic Bar with Mohawk" Ring.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Plastic, textile remanent
Dimensions: 3.25 x 1.75 x .75 inches

RING No. 336

2011-12-03T00:59:00.001-05:00

Today I woke up very early and went to Akron with Dr. Havice for a meeting with the GAR representative concerning the curating I will be doing for their establishment. It was a great meeting and I am very excited! After I got back, I worked in the studio, took an hour nap at my desk, worked some more until it was time for our seminar meeting (had been rescheduled, usually is Wed. morning). After the Seminar meeting, I got changed into some spiffy clothes and went to set up for the Jewelry Sale. I worked the sale throughout the BFA shows that were going on. I also got to peruse the shows at intervals as well as snack on great gallery food and drink. I got to see so many people I don't usually get to see or haven't seen for quite a while! It was high energy awesomeness! After the sale was over I went to Rays to meet the Grads and Kathleen for a bit. I then went home and washed my face and took a nap. It was just what I needed! Now I am back at the studio and just programmed the kiln for my students' burnout (for casting).

Cheers to all my friends that had their show tonight!! Natalie, Dana, Cheri, Melissa, and April....Congrats Ladies! Tonights ring is for them!....It is made out of a plastic rendition of a Guiness that was originally on some green mardi gras beads (for St. Pats I think). Someone gave it to me a while back but I cannot remember who exactly. The first photo below is of the piece before I made it into a ring.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight

Materials: found object (plastic)
Dimensions: 2.25 x 1.25 x .125 inches

RING No. 335

2011-12-01T23:34:00.000-05:00

I came to school this morning at 10am to prepare for the demo that I was giving to my class at 11. Class went well and I had just enough time to show everything. After class I worked in the studio for quite a while and then took a break to go get some coffee. When I got back I worked for a bit more and then helped my students with casting. It went pretty well! After that, I worked in the studio for a few more hours making some things for the Jewelry Sale that will be going on during tomorrow night's show opening at the main gallery in the Art Building. I got some really cool stuff made! I then made tonight's ring and I am about to go home now. I have been at school 13.5 hrs. (minus coffee break)....its time to leave!

Early tomorrow morning I am going to Akron with Dr. Havice for a meeting concerning the GAR foundation. I have been selected to curate a show for them! I am super excited! I believe I would start in January. What a great opportunity!

Tonight's ring is the "Mass of Chain" or "Massive Chain" Ring.....(the two names sound alike hahaha)
It is made from found objects (chains) and nickel silver jump rings that I formed myself from wire.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Found Chains, Nickel Silver
Dimensions: 2.25 x 1.25 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 334

2011-12-01T01:52:00.000-05:00

Last night I was about to go to bed, when I realized I hadn't finished a flyer that I was supposed to email that day to someone from GSS. So, I got out of bed and started working on it. (watched She-Ra on Qubo while I did!)....I later realized that I had left the sheet with some of the specs to be listed on the flyer at the studio....so I had to get out of my comfy warm house and go out into the cold to the studio....Needless to say, I finished it and came home to go to bed, but it was not until 3:30 am!...This leads me to today's post:

I allowed myself to sleep in this morning. I felt that it was warranted and needed. It was fantastic!

I woke up and did a few things around my house, checked my mail (got some cool pkgs!) and then walked to school. Shortly after I got here, I went over to the art bldg to check on the sale and check my mailbox. While I was there I decided to go see the BFA show that had just been installed the day before. There were 2 Glass students, 2 Jewelry/Metals, 1 Sculpture, and 1 Painting on display. When I saw the first part of the exhibit (Cheri Fisher - Jewelry/Metals) I was ver impressed. I hadn't seen what all she was working on this semester, so it was new and fresh to me. There were 5 mannequins with a different and varied neckpiece on each. I observed each of them (front and back) and then proceeded to read her statement. I instantly became emotional. Her 5 pieces were about the 5 stages of grief. As many of you may know, my grandmother passed away in late May and I have been dealing with these stages. I went back over to the work to take a second look and I could not hold back the tears. There before me stood tangible representations of the things i had been dealing with for the past 6 months. It was eerie and helpful at the same time. Eerie because I never thought I would be able to "See" grief. Helpful because I was able to relate my feelings to something that was real, beautiful, and close to my heart (Art/Jewelry).

While at the Gallery, I also viewed the work of some of my friends: Melissa Oeffner (Jewelry/Metals), Dana Zarick (Glass), and April Dunn (Glass). Their work was awesome!

I do not know the other two artists personally (Hannah-Painting, and Skyla-Sculpture), but I encourage you to visit the Show because all the work was really great. (opening is on Friday)

I worked for a while in the studio and then took a coffee break to walk to Starbucks. I got coffee for myself and for Dave, then took it to him at Tontos. I got a tasty burrito while I was there! I then walked back to school and worked for a minute or two then prepared to help my students with their casting. There were 13 flasks being cast (8 people in all) so needless to say it was a busy time. I spent the next 2 hrs. helping them (did not plan for it to take that long but we had a few hangups and problems).

I worked in the studio until just now (2am).....Since I have been at the studio since 4:30pm (almost 10 hrs!) I think I'll go home now...I am pretty tired

Tonight's ring is made from found plastic objects (Thanks Kathleen!) and Sterling silver. I call it the "Orange Pear Ring". The little green leave and orange pears move back and forth when you shake your hand! I wondered if Orange Pears existed, and with a quick google search, I have come to the conclusion that these pears represent Bosc Pears, which are orangish-brown in color. :)

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Plastic and Sterling silver
Dimensions: 1.75 x 1.5 x .25 inches

RING No. 333

2011-11-30T00:00:00.000-05:00

I am about to head home from the studio. I have been at school since 11am...so I am pretty tired. After getting only 6 hrs. of sleep last night it is a miracle no coffee or naps were required to make it through the day. I taught class this morning and then worked in my studio for the rest of the day. I still have to finish designing a flyer for GSS (Graduate Student Senate). We are having a design competition for a logo and or motto for our organization. I am the senator that represents the art department grads.

Tonight's ring is made from a static cling sticker (once read "Student Driver") that Don King gave me. Thanks so much Don! I used aluminum, plastic, and grommets from the studio to complete the ring.

Materials: Plastic, Aluminum, Static Cling Sticker, and Grommets(aluminum)
Dimensions: 4 x 3.25 x 2.75 inches

RING No. 332

2011-11-29T02:00:00.000-05:00

Wow, what a long day. I am finally about to go home after being here at the studio for almost 13 hours. It would be nice to stay and work a bit longer because I am extremely behind, but I need to get some rest so that I will not oversleep tomorrow. It may be raining during the walk home, but I have no fear, because of my Hunter Wellington boots! :)

Tomorrow I am demonstrating casting for the remainder of my class along with demonstrating rubber molding to the entire class. Twill be another long but productive day tomorrow. This week I am trying to get better at my time management. I really have a lot that I need to accomplish this week including a research paper for Art History. I hope to squeeze in some time at the gym :)

There are 4 more days of the Jewelry Sale Left! I hope I can sell some things!

Yesterday I mentioned buying holiday gifts on Etsy, but I also want to emphasize Ebay as well as Thrift stores! Ebay is awesome, and also is supporting small business owners as well as people like you and me who may be selling their unwanted belongings to make a bit of extra cash. Thrift stores often use their money to help the community or a certain non profit organization. You can find antique and vintage goods at low prices and give a unique gift for the ones you love. I am trying to buy my holiday gifts on Etsy and Ebay this year. (Last year I handmade gifts and bought at thrift stores and on ebay)

Tonight's ring is a set of two monsters (made from plastic drippings left over from when I poured plastic for my yo yo.) wrapped in steel wire. I call it "Short Monster, Tall Monster".

Thanks for reading, Goodnight or should I say Good morning :)

Materials: Plastic, Steel, and Acrylic paint
Dimensions: 1.75 x 1.5 x .75 inches

RING No. 331

2011-11-28T02:52:00.000-05:00

Today Dave and I went to Cleveland. We visited the Cleveland Yo Yo Club, Star Pop, Tower City, Big Fun, and Tommy's (for dinner). I had a really nice time. It was good to get out of Kent for a while and spend time with him. :)

Tonight's ring is the Go Green! ring. All the objects that make up the ring were found or discarded objects collected by myself or acquired from friends. I encourage everyone to try and be GREENER in their everyday lives. Thank you to the people that contributed items that went into making this ring! (Noreen, Dave, April, and Kathleen)

Here are some things you can do:
Buy local Groceries
Reuse Bags
Fix Water Leaks
Share Car Rides
Turn off Lights when you are not using them
Compost
Choose to walk
Ride a bike
RECYCLE!
Reduce waste!
Reuse!
Repurpose!
Use Public Transportation
Maintain Tire Pressure
Use Efficient Light Bulbs
Insulate your home
Adjust your thermostat
Plant Trees

I also want to encourage you to buy handmade gifts this year! Check out www.etsy.com for wonderful things for your whole family! Support Artists and makers instead of wealthy corporations!

Materials: Found and discarded objects, Plastic, aluminum, and string
Dimensions: 3.25 x 2.25 x .5 inches

RING No. 330

2011-11-27T00:44:00.000-05:00

I spent today in the studio working....I then went to have dinner with Dave and his family. We went to Longhorn. It was delicious. I came back to the studio and made this simple ring with interchangeable primary color pegs. Thanks to Noreen Miller for the pegs.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Found plastic
Dimensions: 1.75 x 1 x 1 inch

RING No. 329

2011-11-26T01:16:00.000-05:00

Today I woke up and went to the studio. I worked for a while until April came to visit. We went to my house and ate some dinner and watched Robin Hood! It was awesome! We then went back to the studio so I could make tonight's ring. Since today was Black Friday, I decided to make a ring about it!.....I cut letters from soda can tabs and attached them onto a rubber ring with Aluminum jump rings. I also put a little plastic black cat on the ring to.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Aluminum, Rubber, and Plastic
Dimensions: 3 x 3 x .25 inches

RING No. 328

2011-11-24T23:09:00.000-05:00

Today I had thanksgiving with Dave and his mom. She made the most delicious food! We had turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, gravy, rolls, red grapes, and two kinds of pie (blackberry and pumpkin).

Tonight's ring is made from wood that I cut out and then colored with Prismacolor Pencils.

Thanks for reading and Happy Thanksgiving!

Materials: Wood, Prismacolor Colored Pencils
Dimensions: 5.5 x 4.5 x .25 inches

RING No. 327

2011-11-23T23:52:00.000-05:00

Today's ring is made of found plastic rings.

I decided to stay in Ohio for Thanksgiving break. I have a good bit of studio work/Art history research paper to do. I miss my family and wish I could see them this week, however I am going to eat thanksgiving dinner with Dave and his mom tomorrow and that is pretty exciting!

Thanks for reading, Goodnight.

Materials: Found plastic
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.5 x .5 inches

RING No. 326

2011-11-23T00:40:00.001-05:00

The Golden Bacon Ring.

I cut a bacon shape from Ebony (wood) and painted it with gesso. Then I painted bacon meat colors and then a coat of gold. It is set in sterling silver.

Materials: Wood, Paint, Sterling Silver
Dimensions: 2 x 1 x .5 inches

RING No. 325

2011-11-22T02:12:00.000-05:00

Today I finished watching the rest of Inconvenient truth (I fell asleep last night), took a nap, did some reading for my art history class, met with Emma for our RTR project, worked in the studio, went to class, carved/sculpted some wax, and then invested the wax carving.

Tonight's ring is made from copper. I hammered, cut, filed, and sanded it.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Copper
Dimensions: 2.5 x 1.5 x .125 inches

RING No. 324

2011-11-21T01:22:00.000-05:00

The weather was kind of blah today, so I was glad to be inside. :)

I worked in the studio, cast with Cam and Jess, graded my students work, went to my old apartment with Dave to move out the remaining 3 items (Bike, Table, and TV), watched an Inconvenient Truth (For my Land and Environmental Art History Class), took a short nap, and made today's ring.

Tonight's ring is made from a casting of cork in plastic. The band is a thick monofilament.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Cork, Plastic, and monofilament
Dimensions: 1.25 x 1.25 x 1.5 inches

RING No. 323

2011-11-19T23:44:00.000-05:00

Today I worked in the studio and then spent some time with Dave (put together a Where's Waldo puzzle/set up my TV/digital converter/antennae, and ate dinner). Later i came back to the studio and worked on my thesis goodies and made today's ring. I created this ring with steel wire and melted plastic.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Steel and Melted plastic
Dimensions: 4 x 1.25 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 322

2011-11-18T23:59:00.000-05:00

Today I slept in and then went to the studio. I have been here ever since. I cleaned my studio space, worked on my thesis work, took a short break to walk to the next building for Steve's show (Which was awesome by the way!), invested my ring model with Jess and Cam, made a Birthday gift for a friend, and made today's ring.

A few days ago, I took apart a necklace that I made last year. The tiny silver pieces in tonight's ring came from that necklace. I connected them together with brass wire.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Sterling silver and Brass
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.5 x .5 inch

RING No. 321

2011-11-18T01:34:00.000-05:00

Today was a busy day......I taught class this morning, then met with a potential grad, had some delicious Guys Pizza/Salad for lunch, worked in the studio, went to the Small Works Opening at the Downtown Gallery, Got some yummy eats from Taco Tantos (Thanks Dave!) Cleaned up my house a bit, and then went back to the studio.

Tonight's ring is made of copper. The little pieces move about and it makes this ring super fun!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Copper and patina
Dimensions: 2.25 x 1.75 x .3125 inches

RING No. 319

2011-11-16T01:04:00.000-05:00

Today I overslept again :(......I woke up in the nick of time though! but did not get to do the things I intended to do before my class (I teach at 11:00am and I woke at 10:30) Thanksgiving Break cannot come soon enough...I really need a full night of sleep. Today in class I demonstrated Spruing and Investing.....I think it went pretty welll. After class I did a few things around the studio and then gave a brief talk to her Alternative Materials Class about polishing plastic. After that I did a few more things in the studio and walked home (Charlie Brown style) to take a nap. I was happy to see that my Andy Warhol book had come in the mail! I laid down for what turned into a 3.5 hour nap....when I awoke I finished the reading for tomorrow morning's seminar meeting. It was pretty interesting and I am looking forward to discussing it. I then went to the studio and Graded my students work, took care of some online stuff, and did my Treasury duties for the Co-Op Sale.....We did much better today than yesterday.....(Yesterday we were put in the upstairs of the Student Center instead of downstairs and it was very detrimental to our sales. Today's total sales were 5 times what yesterday's were. And today we were in the Art Building, which doesn't get half the traffic the Student Center(downstairs) does.

After all that, I made a ring and now I'm home.....I hope I can sleep. That nap was much needed but I fear I may not fall asleep well...

I am planning to wake up and go to the gym early in the morning. I haven't worked out in almost a year. It is time to change that.

Tonight's ring is a Bead Collection....The first bead on the string I have had since I was a little girl, the second bead I made from old gift cards and credit cards back in 2007 i think, and the last bead is one that I acquired when i was a teenager. I am now ready to part with some of my awesome beads! They are strung on a yo yo string that broke off my vintage Duncan Butterfly when I let Brice Forman play with it once.

Materials: yo yo string, glass beads, repurposed plastic bead with sterling silver tube rivet
Dimensions: 5 x .75 x .75 inches

RING No. 318

2011-11-15T02:14:00.000-05:00

This post is long, but I had an even longer day and I need to vent. :) Today began with a bit of a rough start......I was supposed to wake up early and go to the Credit Union to get change for the Jewelry Sale, but I overslept my several alarms (stayed up way too late last night working in the studio). I woke to a call from Kim letting me know they couldn't get into the Grad studio to get the Jewelry for the Sale......I went to let them in and while they were loading up I went to get the money. Then I realized they had no receipt books...So I went to get some of those.....Finally I got home and intended to take a brief nap before I had to meet with Kathleen....I checked my mailbox and saw that I had 2 pkgs that needed to be picked up at the Post Office. I immediately went to get them (Last week a pkg was returned to the sender because I did not pick it up in time :(.... ). When I got back home I slept for about an hour and then walked to school. I met Kathleen and we discussed the casting that I will be doing with my class this week. After we met, she gave me a ride to Wordsmith's so I could get copies made of the handouts for my class demos this week. After Wordsmith's I returned to the studio to finish the readings for my Art History class. Mr. Brian Sullivan (School of Art Technician and all around awesome person) was in our studio fixing the electroformer.......after he was done, he helped me get my computer to connect to our secure and fast WIFI network. (I had been having problems connecting and in turn had to use the guest network which was not as good) Thank you Brian! I went to class for a few hours and then came back to the studio.....I then ate the rest of my (full size) (I also have minis) gummi bears......After that tiny treat I fulfilled my duties as Treasurer (counting our income after each day of the sale and making sure inventory/totals are properly recorded along with getting paperwork/change ready for the next sale day) I then finished carving one of my wax ring models. After carving, I sprued one and invested it. (google these casting terms if you are curious!)....I then made today's ring and carved two more ring models. I am super tired, but I got a lot done today.

Thanks to Kathleen for the little plastic Hippo

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Plastic and Aluminum
Dimensions: 3 x 1.75 x 1 inches

Who am I? Well, I have been thinking about this today......I am many things........Student, Teacher, Senator, Treasurer, Member, Daughter, Sister, Aunt, Granddaughter, Girlfriend, Close Friend, Friend, Acquaintance, and Stranger.....Who are you?

RING No. 317

2011-11-14T02:32:00.001-05:00

What a long day......Most of which was spent at the studio. I am super tired.

Thanks to my dad for sending me the plastic piece (was much larger, I cut it down) to me in the mail a while back.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Brass and plastic
Dimensions: 1.25 x 1.5 x .375 inches

RING No. 316

2011-11-13T00:35:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Adam K. for giving me the clear acetate film stuff (from library). There are tiny photos and tons of text if you look closely! I call tonight's ring the "transparent city".

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Acetate, Cork, and Steel
Dimensions: 3 x 2.25 x .75 inches

RING No. 315

2011-11-11T23:58:00.000-05:00

Tonight's ring is made from my old Express sweater. It is a jumping pink dolphin! His name is PD....for Pinky Dolphy. I love pink dolphins! They really exist! Google them!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Hamburgers!

Materials: Old sweater, thread, and fluffy stuff
Dimensions: 2.25 x 2.75 x .5 inches

RING No. 314

2011-11-10T23:33:00.000-05:00

Today's ring is made of a stone that Jess found at Lake Erie and gave to me along with some retired yo yo string that Dave gave to me. Thanks guys!

Materials: Stone and yo yo string
Dimensions: 1.25 x 1 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 313

2011-11-09T21:19:00.001-05:00

Today I kind of woke up on the wrong side of the bed.....BUT......that quickly turned around! I am very thankful for all the kind, thoughtful people who I call friends (and some acquaintances).....They really brightened my day today! Here are some of them: April, My mom, Kathleen, Steve, Brian, Jess, Danielle, John, Aaron, Lauren, and Dana,.....Thanks Guys!!! And thanks to all the people who I will see later tonight: Katie, Cam, Kristel, Joanna, and many more! I know you guys will lift my spirits even more!

I went to school this morning, met with Kathleen, worked diligently on my thesis work, went to a committee meeting for GSS, visited the ceramics studio, visited the textiles studio, went back to my studio and proceeded to work until just now when I came home. It was a busy day, but well worth it!

Also, the weather was really nice today. It was a perfect cool temperature and the leaves were rustling as I walked home tonight. The moon shone bright through the low lying clouds. It was a spectacular walk home.

So tomorrow I am going to enter some of my bracelets into the Small works show....wish me luck!....Also I am continuing working with my class and their wax working....(pretty exciting!) I am going to make a ring or 2 or 3 right along with them..... :)

As I am typing, I am thinking about how God really does answer prayers....for the past few months, I had been praying about a specific thing(personal, or else I'd share)....and I had really been concentrating on thinking positive about it and not letting it get me too far down. And lo and behold, it was resolved, and when I least expected it....I know many people are skeptical about the power of prayer, but I ask you, what do you have to lose? a few moments of your time to think/talk about what is bothering you? A very small price to pay to receive a solution to a problem/peace of mind......I for one know that I could spend a little less time doing some of the things I do day in and day out......I urge you to try it sometime :).

Tonight's ring is made from a Deer Antler....I acquired it from one of Erica Raby's students (after I had spoken to her Art Appreciation class) The gentleman (I will find out his name and update this post to thank him) told me after my presentation that he wanted to donate to my ring a day project and I said "Of Course!"...So a while back, Erica brought me a bag of antlers from him.....He is a hunter. Thank you kind sir!!!

Thanks for reading,
Goodnight!

Materials: Deer Antler
Dimensions: .75 x .75 x .125 inch

RING No. 312

2011-11-09T00:23:00.000-05:00

Hello to all the readers and checkers out there! I am pleased to inform you that the wax carving/working demo I did for my students today went well. I am pretty excited about this last part of the semester! I am pleasantly surprised because I was actually not looking forward to casting. :) I am slowly getting things unpacked. One more week and my apartment will be super spiffy! Only a few more days till the entries are due for the Small works show! I have to figure out what to enter.......Today I did the Jamaican Flag Yo Yo trick for an actual Jamaican! Her name is Danielle and she is a fellow grad student. I cannot wait until the weekend, I hope to actually get outside and enjoy the weather!

A big shout out to Steve P! Good luck with your Thesis Review tomorrow!

Today's ring is made from scrap silver. I fused the various pieces together and then filed out more of a circular opening.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight.

Materials: Sterling Silver and Fine Silver
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1 x .25 inches

RING No. 311

2011-11-08T00:38:00.000-05:00

Today was an extremely busy day. I am super tired and glad its over.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Rusted Steel and Aluminum foil (candy wrappers and yogurt containers lids)
Dimensions: 1.125 x 1 x .25 inches

RING No. 310

2011-11-07T00:22:00.000-05:00

It was beautiful weather again today........I slept late, put together an organizer/shelf unit for my bathroom, worked in the studio for about 6 hours, hung out with Dave for a bit, and ate pizza with Cam.

Tonight's ring is the "Golden Swing". It really works too!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Wood, Brass, and found gold tone chain
Dimensions: 2.5 x 1.25 x .375 inches

RING No. 309

2011-11-05T23:44:00.000-04:00

The weather outside today was beautiful. I met Kathleen this morning and went over things for my classes next week, went to an appointment, worked in the studio, went grocery shopping, Learned a few new Yo Yo tricks and watched a bit of TV with Dave, donated a bunch of stuff to Goodwill, and organized my apartment. What a great day, but I am pretty tired.
Thanks for reading!

Materials: Buckeye
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.25 x .75 inches

RING No. 308

2011-11-05T00:45:00.000-04:00

Today I went to Pittsburgh for the first time with Kathleen, Lori, Danielle, and Jess. It was super fun! we first went to the Mattress Factory and then to eat lunch at an amazing place called Wilson's Barbeque.....i had some amazing ribs and macaroni salad. Then we went to the Warhol....I saw the work of many artists but the most notable to me was the work of ALEX ROSS as well as work by ANDY WARHOL. I was blown away. I hope to go back again soon because I could have stayed there all day.....I picked up some goodies on the streets as we walked around, but I did not have time to compile them into a ring, perhaps tomorrow!....Tonight's ring is made from a piece of rusted steel. I call it the "Tetanus Ring" or the "Rusted Halo"....so wear if you dare......

I have been unpacking my apartment for the rest of the day...I missed out on three things today which makes me disappointed but I got a lot done at my apartment when I returned from P-Burg.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Rusted steel
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.375 x .0625 inch

RING No. 307

2011-11-04T00:53:00.000-04:00

This morning my class had their critique. After we were done, I took a little nap. Then I proceeded to unpack for quite a while. I got a good bit done, but my tiny (but lovely) apartment is still covered with things that need to find their place. Overall this was a nice day (besides needing more sleep). I am pretty excited because we are taking a field trip tomorrow to Pittsburgh. I have never been before.

Tonight's ring is made from an old aluminum hair clip. I formed it around a ring mandrel to get the curved spots for fingers to fit into.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight.

Materials: Found Aluminum Hair Clip
Dimensions: 3.5 x .75 x .5 inches

RING No. 306

2011-11-03T06:29:00.000-04:00

Today I went to a GSS (Graduate Student Senate) Meeting (I represent Grads in the School of Art). It was a very interesting meeting and some heated discussion topics arose. I am now the head of a committee! More on that at a later date...

I worked in the studio cleaning up a bit and then went home to finish packing and moving my stuff. I have been moving ever since 8:30 (off and on) I took a short break to eat and another to go check on my students (Their projects are due tomorrow morning). I haven't slept yet and I am so tired and worn out. I have been up these many flights of stairs at my old and new place way too many times. And to top it off, the cat at my old place (Weird-o-Cat as I call him) peed all over some of my stuff, so it put me a little more behind. Needless to say, I am pretty frustrated. I had not planned to move until I am done with my degree in May, but I was forced to do otherwise.

Anywho, I made a simple ring tonight and probably will continue to do so because I am tremendously behind and will be busy for quite a while.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight or should I say, Good MORNING

Materials: Plastic and Steel
Dimensions: 2.25 x 1 x .75 inches

RING No. 305

2011-11-02T01:03:00.000-04:00

Today was a long but overall great day. I woke up at 7ish and started packing up my stuff...then I went to meet Kim to make copies of the Co-Op sale flyers, then I taught class, then went to pick up the Uhaul van and met Dave to begin the moving process. We worked for almost 4 hours! Thank you so much Dave! I just have a few more hours of moving to do tomorrow (hopefully!) Later on we went out to eat at El Camps and it was delicious!

Tonight's ring is made from a part of a mechanism that was in a Yo Yo belonging to Dave. It was broken so I salvaged it and I finally got to use it. I used a found screw and nut as well as found wire to complete the ring.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Metal and Plastic

Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.25 x .75 inches

RING No. 304

2011-11-01T00:11:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween Bat Ring. Made from a plastic bat that I cannot for the life of me remember where it came from. If you gave it to me, please come forward and let me know. I wrapped black coated wire around a gear that I got when I was at Winthrop University years ago.

I feel pretty sick right now. Achy all over and such. I just wanna sleep it off but I cannot seem to fall asleep. I did my presentation today and gave the wedding band commission to the commissioner. I wish I could have worked in the studio, but I just felt to yucky.

Thanks for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Plastic Bat, Coated wire, and Metal Gear
Dimensions: 5.5 x 2.5 x 1 inches

RING No. 303

2011-10-31T01:10:00.000-04:00

Today I skyped with my mom. Then I went to the park and read for a little while. It was kind of chilly but I had a cozy blanket. When the sun started to go behind the trees, I went home to finish reading. I took a small nap and then went to see Dave for a short while. We put together an awesome Vintage Ghostbusters puzzle and had a snack. I then went to the studio to make tonight's ring. I am super tired and a bit overwhelmed by all the things I have to do this week. Let's see...I have a presentation tomorrow, I have to finish the October yo yo piece for my thesis by tomorrow, move out of my apartment in the next 2 days, grade my students work, attend a few meetings (one of which I have to do a bit of reading for.), prepare for the next set of demos for the class I am teaching, along with starting the new November piece and a few more things I am probably forgetting to ad to the list of things to do. Ahhh! Stress......However, I just remembered that at the end of the week our seminar group is taking an art field trip to Pittsburgh. I have never been so I am pretty excited. If I can just make it through the week, then the weekend should be pretty relaxing and fun.

Tonight's ring is the Acorn ring. My dad gave me the little metal piece that reads "ACORN"...I found the cap on the ground outside of the studio.....the ceramic bead was made by me out of clay from around my grandfather's pond (down the road from his farm), I think the black coated wire came from Sid. Thanks guys!

This ring is fitting for my life in Kent because there are tons of Acorns and tons of squirrels.

Thanks for reading,
Goodnight

Materials: Found metal object, coated wire, acorn cap, handmade ceramic bead, and sterling silver
Dimensions: .75 x .5 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 302

2011-10-29T22:50:00.001-04:00

Today was a good day. It was perfect weather outside! I went and met with my new landlord this morning and picked up the key! I worked in the studio for a while and then ran some errands and at dinner/watched some TV with Dave.

Tonight's ring is made from a found metal object that Billy gave me. I put a coating of wax on the inside and now the ring resembles a waxing crescent moon, waxing gibbons moon, or a waning gibbons moon.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Found Metal object (Brass and Steel) and Wax
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.5 x .375 inches

RING No. 301

2011-10-29T00:33:00.000-04:00

Today I met a student at school for a demonstration, gave a presentation for the annual Grad Gathering, and worked on today's ring. I got a little nap in today, which was very helpful. Today's ring is a Flying Pet Pteranodon Ring. He is yellow and is made of rubber. I made a humane harness for him out of an old Yo Yo string that broke a week ago. It detaches from the leash with some metal findings I acquired a while back. There is a stability bar made out of sterling silver and an aluminum tube that functions to hold the string knot. Thanks again to Noreen Miller for the rubber dinosaur (other was steggy)

Thanks for visiting! Goodnight!

Materials: Rubber Dinosaur, Yo-Yo string (was broken), Found metal findings, sterling silver wire, and aluminum tubing
Dimensions: 11.5 x 2.5 x 1.5 inches

RING No. 300

2011-10-27T21:31:00.000-04:00

Today was a long day. I was at school for ten hours. I taught class, worked on my silver box, went to a Co-Op meeting, and made my ring.

Tonight's ring is a bubble blowing ring! I have been wanting to make one for a while and today when I saw Kathleen she gave me the little orange piece! I was super excited!.....The ring has a container of Orange scented bubble solution with it!

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Sterling Silver and Plastic
Dimensions: 3.75 x 1 x .5 inches

RING No. 299

2011-10-26T23:05:00.000-04:00

I could have slept 3 more hours this morning, but I had to wake up for seminar. Surprisingly, I made it through the entire day WITHOUT a nap! I did have an iced coffee (light on the sugar and sans whip cream!) though, which probably helped. It was a very productive day! I finished the wedding band commission (except for final polishing which I intend to do tomorrow), worked on my thesis piece for the month of October (I'm making a Sweet silver box that will hold yo yo string and wax), made a ring, did some cleaning, and stopped by the glass studio.

I mentioned a few posts back that I recieved a package from my dad. Well, tonight's ring is made from a piece of wood that was in the pkg. He was renovating a house and found a knot in some wood that he was tearing out. Well, the knot had a hole in it so he saved it for me! The piece of wood was about 4 inches in diameter, so obviously I cut a good bit off. I filed and sanded it until I got the desired shape. I sealed it with some paste wax and Voila! Now it is a two finger (or one finger for someone with larger fingers) wooden ring!

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Wood
Dimensions: 2 x 2 x .75 inches

RING No. 298

2011-10-25T23:59:00.001-04:00

I taught class and worked in the studio for the first part of the day. Then Dave and I went to pick out pumpkins at a nearby farm. We carved them and it was super fun! We put candles inside and took photos of them in the dark! I will post some photos tomorrow hopefully. After that we started putting together a Peanuts puzzle with Linus, Sally, and tons of pumpkins on it (along with Snoopy's shadow) I can't wait to finish it! We got a little more than half way. I went to work in the studio for a while after that. I am pretty tired, but I still have some reading to do for tomorrow morning's seminar meeting.

Tonight's ring is simple but special to me. Noreen Miller gave me a few bags of goodies a few weeks ago. In one of the bags was this blue rubber stegosaurus. I was super excited when I got it, because I wanted to make a ring out of it. Also, because Dave loves Dinosaurs! :).....So I found a simple way to make it into a ring (with monofilament and crimp beads) so that it looks like the Dino just stopped to rest on your fingers! Hehehe....Old Steggy. It makes me think of this necklace I made for Dave, it has a tiny steg hanging from a ball chain.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Rubber Stegosaurus, Monofilament, Silver Crimp Beads
Dimensions: 2.5 x 2 x .5 inches

RING No. 297

2011-10-24T23:29:00.000-04:00

Today's ring is made of found bubble wrap, plastic, and thread. It is a jellyfish! :)

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Bubble wrap, found plastic, thread, and hot glue
Dimensions: 9 x 2 x 2 inches

RING No. 296

2011-10-23T21:19:00.000-04:00

I worked in the studio today, Yo-Yo-ed with Dave, and packed/sorted up a bunch of stuff for my upcoming move to a new apartment. It was nice outside and I kind of wish I could have spent some time outdoors.

Today's ring is made of found objects. I call it "Goldish Things"....this is the counterpart to Ring No. 290......"Silvery Stuff". :)

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Found Objects (Key, Computer parts, vintage pin, safety pins, and earring parts)
Dimensions: 1.5 x 2 x .25 inches

RING No. 295

2011-10-22T22:27:00.000-04:00

Tonight's ring is made from some rubber that Danielle gave me. Thanks Danielle. I created the ring and setting from sterling silver and set the tangled mess of rubber inside. I wanted to call it "Captured Slime" but I think I am changing it to "Seaweed"

Today was a nice day. I worked in the studio and got a chance to hang out with Dave. The weather was absolutely wonderful. Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Rubber (Dragon Skin) and Sterling Silver
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.25 x .75 inches

RING No. 294

2011-10-21T20:49:00.001-04:00

Me and my mom checked out of the hotel this morning and then ran a few errands and went on our journey to find interesting things on the way to the airport...we went through several towns such as Hartville, Cairo, Plain, North Canton, Canton, and Massillon. We had a great time stopping at thrift stores and a great Old fashioned restaurant called "Susanna's" (which is also my sisters name, hence the reason we noticed it and stopped)....It was really delicious! We got some really good deals and some awesome goodies along the way. I dropped my mom off a little before 5 (she barely got there in time for her flight!) and came back to kent. I had a great time with my mom this week. I will miss her very much. I am however excited to spend some time with my boyfriend, David (If you're reading, I've missed you Dave!). I am also excited to pack all my stuff up to prepare for moving! Yay! Thanks mom for helping me find a place and get some stuff done! :)

Thanks for reading! Goodnight to you all! :)

Materials: Yellow Acetate
Dimensions: 1.75 x 1.5 x .5 inches

RING No. 293

2011-10-20T20:12:00.001-04:00

Went to the studio this morning with my mom and then taught class. Went for a quick shopping trip for a few necessities for my new apt., then worked on some flyers for the Jewelry Sale and attended the meeting (which got pretty heated on the subject of whether or not we should accept Pay Pal at the sale this year). Usually we just take Cash or Check. After the meeting, my mom picked me up and we came back to the hotel. She went to Jubilee doughnuts today and I got to eat some when I got in! They are so delicious. Definitely the best doughnuts I have had since I moved to Ohio!.....We had reheated Thai and started watching the Goonies. It is one of my all time favorite movies!.....I am pretty excited about tomorrow. My mom and I are going to drive around Amish Country and try and visit a few thrift stores. After that I will take her to the airport so she can start the journey home to South Carolina. I have had fun with her the past week!

Tonight's ring is made from a bearing that my grandfather (Grandy) gave me the last time I was home for a visit. He uses them as tractor parts and in other machinery around the farm. It was heavily rusted, but I thoroughly sanded the inside so that there is no rust touching the finger. The other day, Danielle gave me some rubber that she had as scrap when finishing her piece with dragon skin (type of rubber). I cut it into pieces and wrapped one around the outside of the bearing. Thanks for the rubber Danielle! PS: The bearing still works perfectly and the ring can turn and spin if you push it!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Rusted Ball Bearing, Rubber
Dimensions:

Here is a sneak peak of the flyers I designed for the Sale. Not sure if they'll be chosen or not, but we'll see!....I still have to put in the Date/Time/Place, but that is a last minute thing. :)

RING No. 292

2011-10-19T21:22:00.000-04:00

This morning I took my car to the shop and Natalie gave me a ride to school. Thanks again Nat P!...I worked in the studio from 8:45am until 6pm...It was a long day, but I got a lot done!.....I met with my professor to talk about my thesis work, fixed a bunch of jewelry for my mom, made my ring for today, and jotted down some ideas. I got a ride from Kathleen to go get my car and ended up waiting for a little over an hour for them to finish. Thanks Kathleen! I paid an arm and a leg tonight when I got the car back, but I guess it had to be done. One good thing is that I snagged some little rubber Goodyear blimps in various colors. Look for a ring made of them soon!.....I came back to the hotel and picked up my mom and we went to Taco Tontos. Dave made us the most delicious food! Thanks Dave!......We then went to Katie's Korner for ice cream, I got Strawberry Cheesecake! It was the first time I tried that flavor and it was so yummy!.....Then we stopped by my house and I found that I had a package! It was sent from my stepdad....(Thanks Mr. Sid!) it was the cake my mom baked for me but forgot to bring on the plane! It's my late birthday(coffee) cake! My mom bakes a lot of awesome things but her coffee cake is my favorite!....Now we are relaxing in the Hotel...I am pretty tired.

Tonight's ring is a baby penguin with a top hat. A while back when I was bummed about something, Dave used that phrase and it really cheered me up! I refer back to those words often and it makes me smile. I knew I was going to make a ring about it someday and today was the day! I haven't figured out what his name should be,......I wanna ask Dave his opinion...Isn't the penguin cute though? :)

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Copper, and patina
Dimensions: .875 x .75 x .75 inch

RING No. 291

2011-10-18T22:00:00.000-04:00

Today I taught class, worked in the studio, and went to look at a potential place to live. I found an awesome place that is perfect for me! I am so excited!.....After that, me and Mom came back to the hotel and Dave picked us up and we went to Thai Gourmet. It was super delicious. We had a really nice time!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, and Coral Beads
Dimensions: 1.25 x .75 x .25 inches

RING No. 290

2011-10-17T22:08:00.000-04:00

Today I woke up early and had breakfast with my mom at the hotel.....I had a bunch of reading today before Art History and so I pretty much sat in the hotel room and read...some of the writings were really interesting..My mom and I got to discuss some of the topics, a few of which she could relate to because of her background in Nursing/Nutrition, Etc.....I went to class and then to the studio...now I'm watching Craft in America on TV with my mom. Its awesome! ....I'm hoping me and my mom can look for places in the next few days for me to move to.

Tonight's ring is called "Silvery Stuff".....Just a bunch of silvery things on a silvery chain.....Thanks to April Bachtel, my mom, Lori Gipson, and Sarah Beth for some of the objects dangling from the ring!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Found metal items
Dimensions: 2.25 x 2.5 x .25 inches

RING No. 289

2011-10-16T20:13:00.000-04:00

Tonight's ring is a Dinosaur ring made from found aluminum pieces. I mentioned the package my dad sent me the other day....well there were some aluminum pull tabs in it and I used one for today's ring. I have a picture below of the tab in its original state. I thought the shape of the tab looked like a brontosaurus so I cut it out! I riveted it (with an aluminum tube rivet) to a ring that I acquired from a box of junk in our studio. I'm about to eat some pizza with Dave, do some puzzles, and watch some football. My mom flies in tonight at midnight! Hooray! She is staying for 5 days. It will be nice to have her here.

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Aluminum
Dimensions: 2 x 1.25 x .125 inch

RING No. 288

2011-10-15T22:18:00.000-04:00

Tonight's ring is called "Brownie" and for obvious reasons. Before I moved to Ohio, Brownie meant only one thing to me......I have illustrated it below....

But since I have been in Ohio, I have learned that it also has another meaning.....The Cleveland Browns Mascot as pictured below.......

The other day I recieved a package in the mail from my dad. It had lots of goodies in it to make rings out of. There was a broken pair of eyeglasses and I used one of the lenses in tonight's ring. There was also a sticker on a bag that read BROWNIE. I am sure it probably came on some goodies he bought (my stepmom and Dad love chocolate). Thanks Dad and Kerry!

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Eyeglass Lens, sticker, and Sterling Silver
Dimensions: 2 x 1.25 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 287

2011-10-15T00:45:00.001-04:00

Moveable Resistor Ring! The bottom photo kind of reminds me of a folding chair. :)

Materials: Resistors
Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1 inch

RING No. 286

2011-10-13T22:12:00.000-04:00

Today was a super long day....I went to school this morning to teach class, then met with the potential grad student, Zach (each current grad meets with the potentials to chat about what grad life/curriculum is like), then made my ring for today and worked on a commission that is due for a fitting tomorrow. After that, I went over to see the Ohio Designer Craftsmen show in the Main Gallery. It was awesome! I especially liked the work of Nick Althoff. He had two pieces in the show, and it was the first time I had ever seen his work. It was amazing! Then I went to hear an artist lecture (Matthew Cummings). After that we all went to Ray's for dinner. What a day!

Today's ring is made from a little found object (string and plastic) that Dave gave me. Thanks Dave! It reads CLASSIC. I am thinking it came off of a shirt or something. I set it in Sterling Silver.

Thanks for reading!

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Sterling Silver and found object
Dimensions: 2 x .75 x .25 inches

RING No. 285

2011-10-12T23:13:00.000-04:00

Today's ring is the Delicate Drizzle Fo Shizzle ring. It rained pretty much all day, so I decided to make a ring for it! Just got back from the studio.....Went to Taco Tontos with Lori, Jess, and Zach. I had an amazing burrito made by Dave.....Attention all people in Kent! Go to Taco Tontos to eat! and TIP WELL. :)

It was a pretty good day, started out by waking up at 7:30 to finish reading the chapter for this morning's weekly seminar meeting, then went to school and stayed there all day. I am pretty tired. I just wanna say Congratulations to Joanna Donchatz! She passed her 20Hr review today! Hooray!

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Sterling silver and Fine silver
Dimensions: 2.25 x 2.75 x 1 inches

RING No. 284

2011-10-11T18:45:00.002-04:00

Today was a surprisingly good day. I didn't get much sleep last night and I went to school at 7:30am, so I was a bit grouchy at first. But I soon livened up, finished prepping for my demos, and taught class. I made a Sister Hook today! It was the first one ever! I was super stoked!...I made it out of copper because it was a sample used in the one of the demos I did today, but I want to make more in silver for my work. They are strong clasps and very delicate and beautiful. We had our first Co-Op meeting today. It got me excited to design a flyer (I always love making them every year) for our upcoming Jewelry Sale as well as pumping me up to start making a stockpile of items to sell. We have less than a month before work is due! This is going to be a busy month....working on my Thesis piece for October, Ring a day (which is now counting for my thesis! Hooray), and making work for the sale. Also, I am working on a commissioned wedding band for a groom. Busy Busy Busy.

Today's ring is made of a pink plastic flamingo that I cut off of a stick (for drinks). My boyfriend, Dave gave it to me. Thanks Dave!!!....The Flamingo is attached onto a pink piece of plastic that was a clip for my first MP3 player. I think it was a Sansa or something. Needless to say, I got my succession of ipods after that and never looked back. I riveted the two pink pieces together with sterling silver tube.

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Found Plastic and sterling silver
Dimensions: 2.125 x 1.25 x .25 inches

RING No. 283

2011-10-10T22:14:00.001-04:00

Tonight's ring is the Simple Game Ring II......If you recall Ring No. 269.....Its a sort of Rubber YoYo....The object of the game is to bounce the ball off your hand repeatedly (much like paddleball but your hand acts as the paddle)....My niece Braelynn gave me the rubber string (it was an entire necklace for stringing silly bands as charms) and I am pretty sure the rubber ball came from her too.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Rubber ball and Rubber string
Dimensions: 6.25 x 1 x 1 inches

RING No. 282

2011-10-09T22:18:00.000-04:00

April Bachtel sent me a grand birthday package a few weeks ago....I am finally getting around to using some of the found objects she sent me! Tonight's ring is made of coated wire that I am assuming came in some sort of retail packaging. I created a handbag ring for all the handbag lovin' ladies out there. Thanks for the goodies April! :)

Today was a good day. I worked in the studio Early in the day as well as at night. I took a short break to go play football and Yo Yo with Dave. I just couldn't stay inside all day with it being such nice weather out. While at the studio, I finished the Yo Yo that I was making! And get this, it works!.....I got it to sleep (the spinner) and I also did 2 tricks (Rock the Baby and Forward Pass). Hooray!

Thanks for reading!

Goodnight!

Materials: Coated wire
Dimensions: 2 x 1.25 x .75 inches

RING No. 281

2011-10-09T01:10:00.000-04:00

I overslept this morning, which caused the day to start rather hectic. However, it soon got much much better! I worked in the studio and then went to hang out with Dave. We went to Toys R Us and then to eat and watch a movie. After that, I went to the studio for a few more hours and worked.

While Dave was checking out at Toys R Us, I was looking at the 50 cent machines. I found one with little animal erasers! I got the Panda! :) I was very excited.....Dave also got a panda from the machine! I made a ring for him to sit on and put some grass inside. I call it "Panda in the Grass".

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Panda Eraser, Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, Copper, and found object (grass)
Dimensions: 2 x 1.25 x 1.25 inches

RING No. 280

2011-10-07T21:33:00.000-04:00

Today I went to Cleveland with Kathleen, Lori, and Jess. We had a great time. First on our field trip was the camera store. I ended up getting a new camera (used but way better than my current one) for the purposes of shooting my work. I got an amazing deal! We then went to House of Plastics!......I was intending to order some vitrines to cover my work at my next show, but they were extremely expensive and I think I have decided not to do it. But I did see some awesome plastic findings and I bought about $5 worth! Tonight's ring is made of one of the little plastic goodies I bought! There were these little discs that Jess pointed out to me. Thanks Jess!.....We then went to Gallucci's for lunch and shopping. Gallucci's is an Italian market in Cleveland. Then we came back and I went straight to the studio.

Tonight's ring is made of sterling silver, copper, a plastic disc, and some paper that I accidentally spilled water on a while back. I had written some things down on graph paper with my favorite pen (fountain pen) and my favorite blue....(Midway Blue).....and then spilled water on it. I thought the pattern made by the spill was kind of cool, so I kept it.

I am getting better and better at yo-yo-ing......you see, I was quite terrible at first, and I still only know 1 and a half tricks.......but when I walk to and from school I use that time to practice. I am understanding the technique more and more. Some one asked me the other day if I was the Yo Yo Queen...I replied, "Ha, No!....but I will be!" hahaha :)

Anywho, Thanks for reading!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Copper, Paper, and Plastic
Dimensions:1.25 x 1.25 x .875 inch

RING No. 279

2011-10-06T23:27:00.001-04:00

The weather today was pretty remarkable. As I walked home this afternoon for a much needed nap, and as I walked in the sunshine and felt the light breeze, I couldn't help but smile.

I have been working on my thesis work and keeping a journal of my progress everyday.....Also, I have been playing with my YoYos on my walks to and from school, and writing a few haikus here and there. They aren't very good, but still they are haikus! Ha!

Tonight's ring is made of sterling silver, found brass, and found plastic. It makes a unique sound when you shake it. It kind of goes like this: chick-a-chick-a-chick-----a------CHICK!......Yes, I shake one last time at the end. Gotta go out with a bang, you know.

Tomorrow, I am going to Cleveland with Kathleen to visit HOP! (House of Plastics)....and I think we are going to make a stop at Gallucci's and Trader Joes. Needless to say, tomorrow is going to be a good day. Getting out of Kent for a bit is going to be nice.

Thank you for reading!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Brass, and Plastic
Dimensions: 2.5 x 1.5 x 1 inches

RING No. 278

2011-10-05T21:32:00.000-04:00

I was very glad to see the sun out today. It brightened my spirits and needless to say, today was much better than yesterday. I can only hope that things continue to get better and better. I was at the studio for 11 hours today and I am utterly exhausted, mentally and physically. I worked on my yo-yo again today and also made a Krabby Patty. I will share photos when they are done.

Tonight's ring is made from resistors that Kathleen gave me. Thanks Kathleen!

Thank you for visiting. Goodnight!

Materials: Resistors
Dimensions: 1 x 1 x .5 inch

RING No. 277

2011-10-04T19:50:00.005-04:00

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
If I shall die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take.

Thank you for reading, Goodnight.

Materials: Plastic
Dimensions: .75 x .75 x .125 inch

RING No. 276

2011-10-04T00:40:00.001-04:00

Today I watched Waste Land. I recommend that everyone see this documentary. It was moving and inspirational. It was required for my art class, but I thoroughly enjoyed watching it. So, I just found out that the gallery is reserved for my show! It will be in early April!......I got some yo-yos in the mail today! I was super excited......one is a Volkswagen YoYo, and one is a 1972 Duncan Velvet, and the other is a 1994 Duncan Glow in the Dark Imperial. Yippee! I waxed the strings already and we are getting along swimmingly! All in all it was a good day, aside from feeling kind of yucky (sinus/allergy because of this weather)......I love having an excuse to wear my Wellies! It has been gray/cloudy/rainy for a few days now....Hopefully the sun will come out soon though.

Today's ring is made from some of the plastic that was left over (drippings) from casting my yo-yo the other day. I am working on making a Yo Yo for my thesis work! :) .....I cut, filed, sanded, and drilled the plastic scraps. I then sewed them together with white thread. I am so tired. Goodnight and Thanks for reading!

Materials: Plastic and Thread
Dimensions: 1.25 x 1.5 x .5 inches

RING No. 275

2011-10-02T23:40:00.001-04:00

I went to church this morning and then worked for the rest of the day at the studio. I am super excited about my thesis work and it is coming along well. I cannot wait to share it with you all!.......While at church, a certain passage struck me. The topic of the sermon was Pain and the words of the verse were quite serendipitous and aligned with my recent situation. It touched on Grief (the loss of my grandmother, whom I was very close to), Joy (which I have been pondering lately in comparison to the idea of "happiness"), and the Refinement of Gold (which relates to my striving for perfection as well as my school career as a metalsmith/artist). It was the perfect thing for me to hear today. I left the building feeling uplifted and encouraged. Here are the verses:

1 Peter 1: 6-9 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are recieving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Today's ring is made from a computer part/printer part that I am pretty sure my stepdad Sid gave me. I set it in Silver and Fine silver.

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, Computer part
Dimensions: 1.625 x .375 x 1 inch

RING No. 274

2011-10-01T23:46:00.000-04:00

Today I spent most of my time in the studio preparing for next week's class demonstrations and working on my Thesis project. I poured some plastic in hopes of attaining the exact color for the YoYo I am making. I poured into multiple molds and one I bent into a horseshoe shape when it was hard enough to handle but still quite soft (just to see if it would hold its shape until completely hard)...I let the plastic cure while I went out to eat with Dave and his fam...I had a great time with them and when I returned I instantly saw tonight's ring in the sample! I did not achieve the exact color I wanted, but it was close, so I know exactly how to mix it tomorrow to get it spot on.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Plastic
Dimensions: 1.5 x 1 x .375 inches

RING No. 273

2011-09-30T18:32:00.000-04:00

Today's ring is called the "Favorite Color Ring" because the blue foam is one of my favorite colors, a form of Robin's Egg Blue. My niece gave me a bunch of foam last time I was down in South Carolina.... I set the little foamy in sterling silver.

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Sterling Silver and Foam
Dimensions: .75 x 1.25 x .5 inches

RING No. 272

2011-09-29T21:56:00.005-04:00

It is easy to take things for granted, especially intangible and invisible things. I have realized that I sometimes do this without even knowing. We often learn something new everyday, whether it be about the world, other people, places, or things. Personally, I learn about myself more everyday(In addition to many things). What makes me tick. What I really want out of life...etc...It is kind of sad that we only know ourselves fully so late in life, but I suppose that is how it goes.

Today's ring is invisible. Only a price tag exists. (the rings will be for sale at the end of the year) (Price Tag made of found paper, ink, and silk thread) I did this to illustrate that sometimes the most important things in life are priceless and intangible. For example: Friendship, Love, and Time. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy the tangible things such as hugs, kisses, high fives, etc......but I think the intangible ones just don't get enough credit. I know I haven't always put as much value as I should into them. I sometimes find myself doubting things if I cannot see and feel them constantly. This is why faith and hope are so very important. I have learned this today. I knew it before now, but sometimes we need to realize how real these truths are. I was going title the ring "The I don't feel like making a Ring today" ring. But I think Invisible/Intangible Ring is much better. I pretty much just did not want to make a ring today....at all. whatsoever. point blank.....Mostly because I am not feeling well and I just have no energy. But also because my mind is all over the place.....there have been days that I didn't feel like making anything, but I pushed through it. This day was by far the worst.

Today was a pretty stressful, sad, and overwhelming day. After class, I came home and read for a while in bed, took a nap, and then sat in quiet reflection. I had a skype date with my mom scheduled after that, and was it ever the right time. I skyped for quite a while with her and it was so nice to hear a familiar friendly voice from home. I love it when my mom makes me laugh. She knows me better than anyone and I am so glad she is my mom.

PS: on a side random note.....I have recently found much enjoyment and satisfaction in YoYos...I encourage you to get a YoYo and start playing today. It is a nice thing to do when you are walking home from the studio, and as Katie Fisher said, it is a "Good Wholesome Activity"...I think I quoted that right....it was a few days ago.

Thank you for reading, Goodnight

Materials: Time and Love
Dimensions: Infinite

Boo

RING No. 271

2011-09-28T20:09:00.000-04:00

Today's ring is a fish made from aluminum. Sid gave me the aluminum fish. It had letters stamped on it and the fish was whole. I cut a hole in it and created a hammer texture to resemble scales and fins.

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Aluminum

Dimensions: 2 x .75 x .0625 inches

RING No. 270

2011-09-28T00:06:00.001-04:00

Today's ring(s) are made from twine. Thank you to Nick Vance for the 5ft of twine used to make them!

I call them Fraternal Twin Twine rings...

Thanks for reading, Goodnight!

Materials: Twine
Dimensions: 1.75 1.25 x .5 inches and 2 x 1 x .5 inches

RING No. 269

2011-09-26T23:46:00.000-04:00

Tonight's ring is a simple game ring....Inspired by a little game my niece showed me a while back while we were skyping. You simply have to get the little ball at the end of the string inside the red cup! What fun!

Thanks for reading! Goodnight!

Materials: Found Plastic pieces and Tea bag string
Dimensions: 4 x 1.5 x 1.5 inches (with string extended) 1.75 x 1.5 x 1.5 inches (without string extended)

RING No. 268

2011-09-25T22:59:00.000-04:00

Today was a long day at the studio. Preparing for Tuesday's class demonstrations, creating a paper project, and making today's ring....Glad it is finally over!

Tonight's ring is a double setting! First we have a Topaz tube set in the top Upside down. Then we have a bezel set Brass cap previously used for rubber mold making.

Materials: Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, Topaz, and Brass
Dimensions: 1.125 x .75 x .625 inches

RING No. 267

2011-09-25T00:30:00.002-04:00

Tonight's ring is called the Tightrope ring because it resembles a tightrope.

Thanks for reading!

Materials: Steel and Silver Wire
Dimensions: 6.5 x 2.25 x .0625 inches