reflection 14

As finals are approaching Ive been catching up on a lot of work and studying. I figured for my Etsy shop I can start putting my wife jewelry up for sale and the tie dye shirts I make. I'm still worrying about how the delivery works out and I have yet to figure it out. I hope its not too expensive because then I'll never break even. Im still making more pendants and tracking down enough string or thin rope to use as the necklace. I've learned so much making this jewelry, especially patience so I'm taking my time making each piece.

Reflection 13

This week I've been really behind on my work but I'm catching up a week at a time. I'm making new jewelry this week and next week so that I can present for our twenty percent presentations and also for my Etsy shop. I'm focused on making 3 pendants and 3 of the different types of rings I learned about in the past few months. I bought new wire and after I finish the first roll I bought I'll work on using the new one. A few people have asked me about selling them a necklace and rings so I'm thinking if I make this Etsy shop I can actually find customers! I'm still nervous about committing but when I have enough jewelry made I'll be ready to put them online and for sale.

Reflection 12

I've made my Etsy shop and my shop name is CarolinaWires. I'm excited to start advertising the jewelry I'm making but if I put up an item I need to pay a fee for doing just that. Im not sure if I want to pay money, even though its a few cents, but I want to have enough rings and necklaces in inventory before I put anything for sale online. Also I'm working out prices an what I'd need to charge to break even. I've been looking at other shops and comparing prices with others to make sure I'm not overcharging or under charging for my jewelry. I'm also researching how the delivery process is and if I need to pay extra for distance or anything like that.

Reflection 11

So as the year is quickly ending I've been getting a lot of work and not enough time to work on making jewelry. Unfortunately I haven't been able to make any new jewelry due to the lack of free time. Also I'm low on wire so I need to head to AC Moore and buy different sized gauged wire and any beads if they have some. The jewelry I'm going to make needs to be perfect because that is the jewelry I'll be advertising on my Etsy and hopefully selling to whoever is interested. As soon as I can I should be going to AC Moore and buying the wire I need and then focusing extra hard on technique and designs.

Reflection 10

So after speaking to my teacher I discovered Etsy can be an option for my selling issue, Etsy is an online selling website much like eBay and includes merchandise that is handmade, sold by people just like me! I did some research and decided to make an account with the website to see how soon I will be able to put some of my jewelry online. According to the site, in order to start my own"shop" I have to pay .20 cents for every item I place for sale and then once these are sold 3.5% of the profit goes to the website. After reading these conditions I realized 1) I'm going to be spending more money in order  for these products to even go on sale 2) I'm not going to be earning the full percentage of the profit. I have yet to place anything for sale because I have to look over my options and my budget. So far however Etsy is looking like a good option.

Reflection 9

I'm unfortunately a week behind on my reflections and so this tells me I haven't been focused on my task like I should be. The start of this project excited me and of course I still love making the jewelry but I'm not quite sure what to do next. I've been continuously practicing on my free time and although it has been a hard and slightly costly journey I'm still glad I chose this as my twenty percent project. Getting my items to be sold has been a harder challenge than I imagined. I have been making some rings and other small things for some family members and a friend or two but I would never ask them for money so my "business" has yet to take off. I'm still going to have to figure out to fix this problem but for the mean time I'm still making some small pendants.

Reflection 8

This week I didn't work on my twenty percent project like I hoped to. I couldn't head out to a lot of stores for the necklace string I'm looking for but that's once again because of the lack of rides. Sad to say I've actually been drawing more then I've been making jewelry but both activities are equally amazing. I haven't been using too much wire because I'm almost out of the wire roll I bought when I first started so I have to make my final trip to AC Moore this weekend. After I get some wire and the string I should be ready to sell some jewelry!

Reflection 7

This week I continued working on wire wrapping different stones, and glass for pendants. It's getting much easier to maneuver the wire around the stones I've been getting and I'm hoping to start making some designs not just simple wrapping. I need to buy thick string to use as the necklace and then I'll be ready to start making them for other people! I'm still having issue finding enough stones or glass material to use for the necklaces but I'm going to look at different craft stores this week and see what I can find.

Reflection 6

This week I can say was a huge success! I was completely wrong about needing better wire and specific rocks to make some pendants. After intently watching more YouTube videos I realized for these types of pendants thinner wire is prefered and although you can make better designs with real jewlery rocks, you can also make wonderful pendants with your everday beach glass or rocks around your house. The picture above are my first 3 attempts at wire wrapping rocks I had around my house. I tried different styles on each one but I realized there isn't just one speficic way to make these pendants because since they're handmade they'll always come out differently anyway.  The hardest part about this task was making sure the wire was securely around the rock so that the rock wouldn't just simply fall off from the necklace as I'm wearing it. Making these dont require as much wire as a bracelete would and I think these are so much more fashionable! I'm hoping to keep practicing so that after I buy some string to put through the pendants I'll have necklaces I can start selling!

Reflection 5

So for the pendants I'm going to want to do I am going to need durable wire and stones. The wire I know I can buy at A.C Moore for a few dollars but finding good sized stones is the biggest problem. From the research I've done the stone should be a little bigger than a quarter and to make the pendant easier the rock should have a whole already so the wire can pass through the secure it in place. I've checked A.C Moore, along with other stores like Walmart but I haven't been able to find any. I know I can buy some online but that will definitely not help my budget. Since I was unable to make the necklaces I want, instead I looked at a tutorial on how to make simple bracelets and made one for my sister using wire and some beads around the house. Bracelets are much easier and convenient but they use way more wire than anything else.

Reflection 4

I'm happy to announce that I found the pliers I thought I had lost forever! As soon as I found  them it's safe to say I did a lot of practicing this week. The wire I bought to practice on is a 20 gauge wire so it's very malleable and some would say "cheap" but it's been so helpful these past few days. After making dozens of small simple rings I stepped up to larger more complex designs. The picture below shows a ring of an EKG line, I thought the idea was adorable and it was super easy to do. I then moved on from rings and finally did my first pendant! The picture on the right is a Fleur de Lis Pendant. I found a video on YouTube which was about 14 minutes long and surprisingly enough it wasn't very difficult and I finished fairly quickly. The pendant can be connected to any necklace or string and I'm hoping to concentrate more on pendants and more complex rings this week. I'm finding it easier to move the wire the way I need it to so the only thing I need to improve on now is the type of wire I'm using. I plan on buying a thicker/stronger wire this week to make legit jewelry that I can hopefully start selling and giving away in a few weeks.

Reflection 3

Another failed week for my quest to make amazing jewelry. So as I said last reflection I lost the pair of pliers that I bought specifically for wiring manipulation and enough though I was hoping to buy them this week I failed to do so. If I was frustrated before I am now beyond annoyed and disappointed in myself. The main problem is that A.C Moore is way too far to walk to but because I have no other means of transportation other than my parents, who didn't wish to take me this week, I'm once again stuck. I'm now 2 weeks behind and low on money to buy my pliers and more wire when I actually go to A.C Moore. My vision for my final project is so close because I know I can get there however I underestimated the amount of materials I needed and how each one is super important for this process.

Reflection 2

This week was a really big set back for me for 2 reasons, the first being I lost my pliers and the second being I haven't been managing my time efficiently. I don't know how I could have misplaced my pliers since I haven't left the house with them but they're no where to be found! Those specific pliers costed me about $9 and they were a 3 in 1 set which allowed me to manipulate the wire super easily. I looked for my pliers all week but came out unsuccessful which now sets me back $9 and a week of practice lost. I was hoping by the end of March to have gotten good at making rings so if I can go back to A.C Moore sometime this week I should be able to get back on schedule. Now managing my time has been a big issue because instead of buying new pliers this week, which I could have done, I distracted myself and got lazy. I'm frustrated at myself for not advancing but I'm hoping the up coming week I'll be back on track and motivated again. I'm still checking out new videos on YouTube and saving them for future practices and I know once I get my new pliers I'll get re-focused and ready to go! I love seeing so many different bracelets and necklaces around the malls and stores I go to that I know with practice and more concentration I can get to my goal.

Reflection 1

As a beginner I've been focusing on finding basic techniques and materials for learning how to shape wire. My first step was paying a visit to A.C Moore and buying the easiest wire to work with. However, when I got there I was faced with dozens of different sizes and colors of wires and I had no idea which one to choose. I took a lucky guess and bought a roll of 20 gauge copper wire for about $4.00 and a pair of amazing pliers. When I got home I did a bunch of research about the different gauges of wire and according to Google I actually picked a good size for beginners. I set my sites on learning how to make simple rings which I've read is the best place to start. I realized making rings wasn't as easy as YouTube said it would be and it took several tries to get a good looking ring using only a simple design. The biggest problem is learning how to manipulate the wire without mistakenly bending other parts which are suppose to be straight because once the wire is bent it will never look straight again. I've been looking at certain YouTube channels like Gregory Steele and JewelryLessonVideos.com which have been a huge help. I want to focus on making rings these next few weeks and hopefully when I feel ready I'll start with bracelets.

 The picture below shows the first roll of wire I bought  along with a few of the rings I've made.

2nd Semester Proposal

My 20 % Time Project is going to be making wire jewelry. When I went to Colombia I met a lot of people who made their living off of selling their handmade jewelry made of wires, stones, and beads which really inspired me try and so the same. My final goal/accomplishment will be to learn how to make different intricate  styled pendants, bracelets, and rings.  To be successful this semester I'm going to have to do a huge amount of research on the specific materials and tools I'll need. I also am going to have to constantly practice the different techniques and designs of how to manipulate the wires which will be the most difficult part of my project. However, I'm sure it's going to be easy finding information and tutorials all over the internet that can teach me. My project can be done both in and outside of the classroom because my materials can be brought to and from school easily.

Reflection 15

This week I've been focusing on my final drawing for our project. The first portrait i did on the character Walter White came out with way too many flaws but of course this was a practice run. With the new larger canvas i bought last week i started my second and hopefully final attempt at this portrait. So far I've gotten all the outline done and i need to start adding all the little details and shading. One difficulty I've ran into is the new canvas I bought. When i bought the board I made sure it was for all medias (so pencil included) but the texture is rough and the pencil doesn't go smoothly on the canvas. It hasn't ruined my drawing but it has made it more difficult to work with. By Friday i should be done and I cant wait too how it turns out!

Reflection 14

So once again I'm late from last weeks reflection but I'm catching up. Last week I was finally able to buy the big  canvas I needed for my last drawing for this Twenty Percent project. Along with the canvas I bought 2 new drawing pencils, one for darker shading and a white pencil for better highlighting. I started my drawing and as I'm comparing it to the first one I did, the small changes I'm making is improving my final portrait a ton! The first drawing of Walter White really taught me what I should fix and what I should shade more. The drawing Im working on now is coming out just how I want it t so far, I'm really excited to see how it'll look when I finish. I'm taking my time with this one but I'm 110% sure I've timed everything perfectly and I'll be finished by the time our project is due.

Reflection 13

I'm a little late on my post for last week because I was in Colombia for vacation. While over there I wasnt able to draw or practice on my final project for 20% percent but it did give me time to think. I've scheduled the time and gave myself certain check point that ill reach up for my drawing until the 16th. I was also inspired by a lot of the artisans there are in Colombia. All over the place there are artists, singers, craftsman, and a whole bunch of people selling their work. What especially caught my eye were the ones who sold handmade jewelry with intricate designs and metals. After seeing so many different artists I got really excited about my work and about the next project I'll do for the next half of the year

Reflection 12

So I finally finished my drawing of Walter White using pencil. This is my first real portrait drawing and I learned a lot of what I need to improve on from this first drawing. For starters his eyes aren't proportional to the rest of his head and the shading on his beard doesn't have the right lighting. After seeing all the pros and cons to my drawing I'm so much more focused on getting the next time almost perfect and then hopefully I can be able to draw it on a bigger canvas. If i compare my drawings from the beginning of this project to up until now I feel I've improved not only in techniques but in creating ideas. I can look at a picture try and draw it but also add some of my own character to bring it some life. I know that even after the project is finished I'm going to continue drawing and I'm glad I decided to pick drawing because I found something I feel I'm good at and actually love to do.

Reflection 11

This week I successfully got back to drawing again. I sketched out a few quick things and decided to draw a big portrait for my final 20% project assignment. I'm going to be drawing Walter White, a fictional character from a TV show. Right now I'm working on it in my sketch book and after  2 or 3 times perfecting the shading, shape, and texture I'm hoping to draw my final one on bigger canvas paper. I'll have to buy this next week or maybe in the beginning of January because I still have to practice and perfect the sketches. I checked out a lot of how to draw portraits on YouTube and it's looking really difficult but I'm 90% sure I can get it down by the presentation dates!