Jungle drums...

"Felinae Persia Suite" 

 (Necklace & Earrings Set)   Price: $90.00

 

Got some absolutely gorgeous Leopard Jasper amidst the haul from Lisa that I've been dying to use. The hold up was how to suspend the 'donut' in the focal. Several days of trying different things, broken bits and other oddities from my miscellaneous gold bits box, I finally found a solution that worked and felt solid enough to continue. This was a toughie. Lots of cussing, dropping things, and constructing and deconstructing the bloody thing. T'was a simple plan...at least to begin with. After that it got even more interesting. Leopard Skin Jasper, black dyed Jasper, and the round black stone is Onyx. Various gold tones. Not sure if it is giving off early ancient Egyptian vibes, Ancient Nubian, or just Wakanda wannabe feels.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The bling work table during the creation process. Just a note though, had a tough time cleaning some of the beads. There were mold smells on some and smoke on others. 

 

When after several sessions of spritzing stone beads to get rid of the mold or smoke smells, I soaked those suckers in pure vodka when the vodka mist isn't intense enough. Rinsed with warm water and Dawn dish detergent, rinse again with clear water. Dry on paper towel. Success!!!! Mostly. They're still stone, still smells a bit like stone no matter how shiny. LOL Gotta be careful with this process with the more fancier stones, though. Don't want to take the polish and shine off. The test stones were Leopard Jasper...which I long wanted to experiment with using black and gold elements. Ahem. Well, the vodka did a marginal job, so late the same night, I sank the beads into a cup of baking soda, and the next morning there was still a distinct, but faint whiff of mold. Bob bought me a bottle of Ethyl based rubbing alcohol and after soaking for 20 minutes, IT WORKED!!!! ETHYL ALCOHOL FOR THE WIN!!! Thank you so much, Lisa. Now I can not only process the rest of the many beads, but also the smoke affected things as well. 

 

Anyway, thanks for stopping by. There's always more to come. 
Cheers,

Marianne