What's New

Not much new right now - sent out another batch of press releases. I hope someone finds interest in our product so we can reach people nationally! Mark's been casting away on the silver. He has lots to do!! I'm trying to figure out the time to make new things. I have ideas in my head but haven't had the time to freely and creatively sit down at my jewelry bench.

Just a reminder - this month's jewelry contest drawing is 7/31. If you or someone you know wants to be added to our mailing list we'll add you to our drawing. If you miss the deadline there will be another 8/31! Good luck!

This cactus is out by Luna Lake - pretty extreme cacti with the cold we get.

Luna Lake, Alpine, AZ

Went on a little expedition with the dogs yesterday. Let them go for their run around the lake - they love it! There is some awesome fishing there right now. Met Chad of Silver City, NM - he caught a 23" 6# trout!! Impressive! Then I caught this pretty view of the lake. Sometimes I feel like we live in heaven.

Bisbee Turquoise Jewelry

I'm getting frustrated that I don't have the gold sections of our website complete yet! My goal is to have that finished by the end of August. I will send out an e-mail to let you all know when I'm done. Anyway, Mark has completed some really pretty Bisbee Turquoise Jewelry items - here they are. :) The small one is a High Grade Bisbee Turquoise 18k ring - the larger one is a High Grade Bisbee Turquoise 18k ring with diamonds. All metal is hand wrought.

Casting!

We refurbished our casting machine so Mark has been very busy casting sterling silver!

He's melting the metal in this picture then he lets the machine spin.

Renaissance Wax/Polish

We discovered this great product that I use on my charms. Sterling Silver naturally oxidizes. On top of that I add layers of patina - further oxidizing it. After I get the surface colors I like I remove the top layers creating a relief. After throughly washing in dawn with a brush and steaming clean I let dry in the sun. When completely dry I apply Renaissance Wax to the surface (a little dab will do ya!) and let dry again. This protects the colors I've created and prevents further oxidation. http://www.restorationproduct.com/renwaxinfo.html When we're at our shows I pass on this info to other artists and customers if they're interested. It's a great product that can be used on soooo many surfaces. If you visit their link it tells you more.

After the Rain

Hope you're not getting tired of my pictures of Alpine! We've had a solid week of rain - just stopped yesterday. Mark got this picture of the meadow around 6am. The clouds were still sleeping on the mountain. Received our second web order - yahoo!!! Also sent our our first batch of press releases. It would be so great to be featured in a few national magazines with our jewelry!! Wish us luck!

Summer in Alpine

It's truly Summer in Alpine. We've had our third day of rain. Got up to 58 yesterday - 68 today. Hard to believe just over two years ago we were enduring 100+ degrees in Phoenix. The aggressive Rufus Hummingbirds are back causing excitement on our porches - I'll take pictures soon. The rain is making flowers pop up - we get our "spring" flowers following the summer Monsoon rains so August and September are spectacular! Had a great show in Pinetop at Charley Clark's this past weekend. Met so many great people, had fun and sold lots of jewelry! Not much else new. Hope all's well with you.

Jewelry Drawing Winner

Update...Janis from Prescott claimed her free jewelry item. Her selection was a Tree of Life Charm with a Natural Blue Zircon. Just sent it out today. Hope you enjoy Janis! :) Next drawing is July 31st. If you want to be added to our mailing list or can think of a friend who might be interested please refer them. Thanks and good luck!

Elk in the Meadow

Our neighbor Phil sent us this amazing picture he took of Elk in the meadow behind us. They graze in the meadow every day - 12 to 22 of them! There are daily traffic jams on the road behind us - people in awe of these magnificent creatures! Thanks Phil!

June Jewelry Drawing Winner

We've held our first Jewelry Drawing for those who join our mailing list and Janis Kohn of Prescott is the winner! I've tried to contact her. If we don't hear back by 7/10 we'll be drawing another name out of the hat. I'll keep you posted! Please refer your friends to sign up on our mailing list for the July drawing!