It's been a long long time since I've posted here. I am quite active on Facebook, so if you would like to see my trees pop on your news feed then like me here:

www.facebook.com/Ethora

I've also been working on my website here:

www.ethora.com

Here are a few of my recent trees. Have a beautiful day!

Eco Friendlier

I am currently working on a line of the eco-friendliest jewelry that I can make at this time. Using wood from fallen branches and cuttings, as well as bits and pieces of vintage scrap, I am finding that not only can I make beautiful pendants but I can also create art with deep symbolism of environmental awareness. I hope that you enjoy look at as much as I enjoy crafting these!

Recycled Sterling Silver & Grapefruit Tree Wood

The wood in this pendant comes from a piece of a grapefruit tree branch that was pruned for the health of the tree. 

 Recycled Sterling Silver & Redbud Tree Wood

The wood in this pendant comes from a piece of a redbud tree branch that fell naturally.

  "Once in a Blue Moon" Vintage Button Tree Pendant

I found this beautiful little vintage button at a second hand shop that is run by our local hospice. So not only is it a ecofriendly tree, it also helped a good charity. I wish that they had more than one of these buttons available, but alas, it was intended to be a "once in a blue moon" tree!

Bakelite Backgammon Tree of Life

Bakelite is an early plastic that was created to resemble tree resin. It was expensive to make, so it stopped being produced in the 1950s. Besides being expensive to produce, another problem is that it does not biodegrade. Bakelite is here to stay with us forever, and it is rather pretty after all, so I figured it might be nice to wrap a tree around some old bakelite game pieces. The tree here is hugging an old bakelite backgammon chip from the 1940s. 

 Bakelite Poker Chip Tree of Life

The tree here is hugging an old bakelite poker chip from the 1940s. Although it looks black most of the time, it is actually a very dark green. The next photo shows what this pendant looks like when help up to the light!

Vintage Wood Backgammon Chip Tree

I found a beautiful set of olf abandoned wood backgammon checkers and just had to wrap trees around them. I do not know how old these are, but I am guessing that they are not too old because they tested negative for lead. Old varnish tends to have lead in it.

 

Local Jade Collected, Not Mined, Using a Biodiesel Helicopter!

The title says it all! I wish that I could get a constant supply of this beautiful ecofriendly and fair trade stone, but I'll take what I can get and be on the lookout for more! 

Have a beautiful day!

~Ethora

Of Treetars & Ukuletrees

Last weekend I picked up my husband's ukulele for the first time and attempted to play it. It was very easy to learn a couple of chords, and within minutes I wrote a silly little song about how easy ukuleles are to play...but I digress.

Inspired by its adorable shape, I decided that I wanted to try to make a ukulele pendant out of wire. As I always do when I want to play with new jewelry ideas, I pulled out my box of copper wire and got to work. What I came up with is the "ukuletree" [see previous blog post for a picture].

I had not planned to put a tree in this instrument...it just came to me as I was trying to figure out how to get the hole in the body gracefully and sturdily. Its as if the tree just grew where it was supposed to be. I reckon that tiny metal ukuleles are made from the "wood" of tiny metal trees. :)

Anyway, the headstock is a little wonky because I was not sure how to end all the wire (the downside of not planning out a new design first), but I was pretty pleased with how it turned out and dubbed it "Ukuletree". Of course, what should follow the ukuletree but the treetar!

Once I finished the copper treetar, I decided I was ready to make a sterling silver one. The final version has a cleaner headstock, and I turned the bail in toward the back of the pendant. The mother of pearl tuning pegs came out pretty straight, and the tree is fairly balanced. The body shape shifted slightly as I was working, but it lends to the overall organic nature of the piece so I am not too worried about it. If/when I choose to create a non-tree guitar, then I will hammer the body more so that it keeps its shape better.

Maybe next time I make a violin with a branchy bow? Maybe try my hand at one of the woodwind instruments (which would be tricky, but oh so literal)? Clarinetree? Hmmm...

Ukuletree!

Today I got the idea to create a "ukuletree" pendant. I used copper wire and tiny mother of pearl beads. I have some ideas to refine this design, but I'm pretty happy with the way this prototype turned out:



Little Bear seems to like it! :)

I am thrilled to announce that three of my tree designs will be featured on the cover of the Uncommon Goods fall catalog! Please visit www.uncommongoods.com to order a copy of this catalog, or to see these trees online.

The trees are:

"Renewal"

"Abundance"

"Seasons"

Have a beautiful day,
Ellen

I've been searching for two years for rainbow moonstone beads like this, and I finally found some - YAY! This is exactly the tree that I have been dreaming about for two years. It feels magical to behold.


This is why moonstone is called moonstone!

The beautiful patina that you see in the tree above is from oxidizing with black salt and hand polishing. This is the first tree pedant that I have oxidized, and I'm loving it! Here is what this tree looked like before being oxidized:


Normally I craft my moon trees with mother of pearl, which is generally not safe to oxidize, but now that I have this wonderful moonstone I do believe I will be using a lot more black salt in the future.

How to Oxidize Silver Using Black Salt:

1. fill an old coffee mug 3/4 with water,
2. microwave until boiling,
3. dump about a tablespoon of black salt into the hot water and stir,
4. dip your clean silver piece/s into the hot solution,
5. keep dipping and soaking until the desired color is achieved,
6. clean and polish your piece.

* Use in a well ventilated and use gloves.

Sweet Dreams,
Ethora

All you need is...


What other words would look nice stuck in a tree?