new in the shop

Saturday we took the day off, loaded Lucy in the car and trekked over to the battlefields at Yorktown, where we walked Surrender Trail, where Rochambeau and Washington had their respective camps very close to each other. This trail was five miles and Lucy in her advanced age did wonderfully well, better, I think, than did we. Michael and I used to live very close to this area early in our marriage and before, and we walked this trail several times a week, so it was a wonderful day and made all the more due to the complete lack of litter, bottles, trash, cigarette butts and other refuse so commonly seen on "scenic" trails. The US Park Service does a fabulous job with Yorktown, so head out and hike some well maintained areas if you are nearby or passing through. Once we finished this trail, we put Lucy in the car to rest and walked another five by ourselves. It was great fun to get some good exercise for a change, away from the city, breathing fresh air by the York River. Beautiful!

All the historic markers recounting Rochambeau and his assistance to Washington in the Revolutionary War made me itch to etch something French. So I cut the above piece of copper with a jeweler's saw into a coin shape and etched both sides with a lovely flowing French script. It is a very rich pendant and looks quite old. It is thin and weathered, much as a coin would be if found from centuries ago. Look for it now available in my etsy shop www.jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.

Other items now available for sale in my shop... etched copper charm earrings with whimsical shaped earwires and free floating drilled river pebbles.

The French influence again... etched on both sides.

On to another continent- etched Kanji characters on copper with patina.


And smaller Japanese kanji characters etched onto copper with rich antique patina.

My big kitty Mango is snoring next to me, Lucy is bugging me to go to bed, Michael is already off in dreamland, and the king size is calling my name for a six a.m. wakeup. Time to nod off...

100 sales!

Well, I know for alot of Etsy sellers out there, it's not alot but to me it's HUGE.  I made my 100th sale on Etsy today!  Yay!  I appreciate the business so much and enjoy creating my wares.  Thank you, everyone!

new etchings on etsy shop

I spent the last two days filling more orders for etchings. I'm grateful for the business. Today I also worked on some new designs, seen here. Japanese name hanko with poem above, etching on copper with fine antique patina.

Asian stork at pond, copper etching with antique patina. For added interest, I put double holes at top center.

A little whimsical bird, copper etching with texture and patina. Top center and bottom center holes.

Asian stork at pond, brass etching on slightly lighter weight metal than the copper version. Same double center drilled holes at top and one center bottom.

And finally, a brass version of the letting go lao tzu connector bar. Again, lighter weight metal than the copper version.

Lucy the dog is itching for a nice walk in the cold weather and even after three days off from work the grocery store is still calling my name tonight. I had fun making up these new etchings today. My cleaning is neglected, clothes not ironed for work tomorrow and dishes in the sink but I feel good anyway. All the above now listed and for sale in my etsy shop www.jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.

Real Quick

Real quick. I flew on down to Yorktown early this morning to stock Lucy up on prescription dog food. She also had a quick checkup to look at a lump on her stomach. Thankfully she got the all clear and she was very ready to head home. We drove the Colonial Parkway, pit-stopped at the bead shop in Williamsburg where I couldn't resist some new large Swarofski crystal beads. And since the yarn shop was right there, well, it would have been rude not to have stopped in to say hi. And rubber stamp shop is a skip up the road, on the way back to 64 west and home, I had to say hello to the good folks there. Starbucks called my name, too. Hey, Happy Valentine's Day to me, you know? Lest anyone think I am a fibber from my post yesterday, all this was accomplished before noon and I was on my way back to the salt mines, where I am currently rubbing out metals for etching preparation.

The photo above is of some beads I made recently, just some whimsical one of a kinds from leftover scraps. I love the swirls and stripes on them. For a closer look, check out www.jenniferstumpf.etsy.com

Back to work, now. Happy Valentine's Day!

a fiendish weekend in progress...

I have no photos today! But just a heads up to anyone of you out there who ordered the BeadStyle pendant or versions of it from me on etsy.  I am working like a fiend, although with mindful care so your piece is beautiful, to get orders created, completed and mailed over the weekend, so the last batch since february 11 will go out tomorrow evening.  unfortunately for the mail, monday is a holiday.  fortunately for me, monday is a holiday so i have more time to make things and experiment with new designs.  in advance, i thank everyone who is waiting for their patience!  

pictures soon, i promise!  

French Script Etched Brass Pendants

A version of the BeadStyle magazine French Script Pendant is now available for purchase in my etsy shop www.jenniferstumpf.etsy.com in a rich high sheen brass. The etchings really POP in brass and it's also a bit lighter weight than the copper version.


Also I finally made it home from work at sunset today and managed to snap a few lovely outside shots of the BeadStyle magazine etched copper pendant. The patina really varies on these pieces and I was really pleased with how the last batch turned out. I've listed four new photos on this piece.

Still at work on the tree etching. I doused it in patina several times last night and polished, polished, polished, trying to get exactly the right dark and light spaces inbetween limb and sky. Since I worked on pendant orders until 3 a.m. last night (oh yes...) and slept for two hours before getting ready for work, I am taking tonight off from all creative pursuits and am vegging in front of the television with some DVD's (Atonement & Vicky Cristina Barcelona), tomato soup and crackers, diet coke and a warm comforter.

I'll get back to my other list tomorrow evening...

If nothing else, a pretty view...

Florence, Italy. *sigh* Isn't it beautiful? 7 January, 2009. I can still feel myself standing there, right in this moment....

Since the entire weekend was swallowed up by errands, cleaning, laundry, animals, more errands and yet more jewelry orders, I had not a moment to create anything new in the way of jewelry to post, although along with a stack of prepared pendants, there are new and lovely things coming that just need doused with acid and a little rub, and presto, voila! Etchings a-new.... coming soon although not as soon as I would have liked.

Tomorrow I am back in my office, which is not such a bad thing. In this economy, I drag myself up and out of bed at 5:30 and am glad for it.