Getting results: Paul Bishop – part 2

Paul Bishop had so much news that I had to split his answer into two parts!  It’s really not his fault: fact is, he is responding to two different Questions of the Month, and it was all good stuff that I felt I needed to share

Here are the pieces that Paul felt were the best things he made this summer, and an explanation of why the second piece is so special.  Remember as you read this, Paul works on his jewelry business part time.

Tigress

The design uses 12, 6 and 4 mm tiger-eye rounds, with pewter bead caps,
silver-plated findings and 7 strand silver nylon-coated beading wire. The
bead caps were the component I worked around to make it, not the beads.

Rhys

As soon as I learned the technique to make these in February, I bought supplies to make 5. They sold within two days, to people who were coming to our apartment for my husband’s music lessons. While waiting for his lesson to start, one student watched me create the base harness for a sodalite heart. When his lesson was over, he bought the finished version, completed only two minutes prior! I bought more supplies and made them in batches of ten. The first 30 sold within two weeks.

Unfortunately, for that reviewer [at a fair that turned Paul down for a booth], he couldn’t be convinced that anyone would buy them although they continue to sell and are examined with great interest anytime they are on display.

The finished designs are 1 inch wide and less than 2 inches tall. The design wire is soft, square 22 gauge, and the wrapping wire is 1/2 hard, 1/2 round 20 gauge. The bail is built into the wire on the back and while discreet, can accommodate almost any chain or hanging material whose clasp will fit through. They are usually sold without a chain, as people want to provide their own. I think these work best with a fine chain, no thicker than the wire. The supply source creates hearts in sodalite, rhyolite, rose quartz, rhodonite (shown above), amethyst, crazy lace agate, chinese jade and tiger-eye

Many people are anticipating the next round, which will be done in gold wire.