MINERALARTS:

Lepidolite Shisha Mirror

Here’s an experiment with shisha mirror embroidery, since I want to use it in several projects. Instead of the usual glass mirrors, I tried a thinner version cut from a sheet of polished aluminum that was left over from one of our tubular skylight installations. It’s easier to work with than glass, and I can cut it to any size or shape. In the…

ironwing

August 18, 2008

Cats, Needlework, Uncategorized

Three Curved Blades

Finished these three high-carbon steel claw-shaped blades today. The two small ones are SILK CUTTER, 3″ long, wirebrushed as forged and drilled (not polished); CAT CLAW AMULET, 3″ long including copper spiral loop with African bronze bead; edges and holes have a high polish. The large blade is SERPENT’S TOOTH, nearly 7″ long. It was forged some time ago…

ironwing

June 28, 2008

Cats, Iron & Metalwork

Rainbow Bloom

We hiked in Bisbee on Sunday and came across this Arizona Rainbow Cactus (Echinocereus pectinatus var. rigidissimus) in full bloom. These small cacti are common on rocky slopes in desert grassland and oak woodland. They only bloom for a day, and this is only the second time I’ve seen one in full flower. The cactus in…

ironwing

May 28, 2008

Uncategorized

Groundwater Amulet

MORE copper…I bought this picture jasper cabochon because it immediately reminded me of a lens of groundwater under the sand – lots of warm brown iron oxide with just a hint of blue (from reduced iron). I liked the way it was drilled as a bead so it would retain its soft, natural look –…

ironwing

May 15, 2008

Iron & Metalwork

Copper Pod Bell Chain

Forged iron and copper necklaces are my most time-consuming and intricate metalwork projects, but they are spectacular, durable, and fun to wear. This copper chain with pods and cone bells took far longer than I expected, mostly because it requires more polishing than iron. Made entirely of hot-forged and cold-hammered recycled copper wire in various sizes (14, 10,…

ironwing

May 12, 2008

Iron & Metalwork

Nature Book Review #2: The Jepson Desert Manual

Second in an occasional series of natural history book reviews. Books reviewed here can be purchased through Amazon.com by following the links from my Southern Arizona Desert Botany homepage. The Jepson Desert Manual: Vascular Plants of Southeastern California. Bruce G. Baldwin, et. al, editors. 2002, University of California Press, 624 pages, softbound. I bought this book at the Joshua…

ironwing

May 11, 2008

Nature Book Reviews

Fossil Mammoth Ivory Necklace

“LADY OF THE LAKE” Fossil mammoth ivory with blue vivianite stripe, Madagascar “Ocean Wave” picture jasper, Indonesian basalt lava beads, tumbled aquamarine chips, copper tube beads and wire, hot-forged copper curly cone, sterling silver. Custom necklace for a friend. I cut the mammoth ivory to match the stripe on the jasper cabochon. Fastens at the…

ironwing

May 9, 2008

Iron & Metalwork, Uncategorized

Threadcutters and Vulture Medicine

Sometimes the omens appear in clusters. Today a coyote ran across the road in front of me and (oddly) didn’t look back. This week I found three snakeskins, all inaccessible in some way: One hidden under stones (revealed when I was planting agaves), one entwined deep among the daggerlike leaves of a yucca in my yard,…

ironwing

May 6, 2008

Cats, Iron & Metalwork

Nature Book Review #1: The Great Cacti

First in an occasional series of natural history book reviews. Books reviewed here can be purchased through Amazon.com by following the links from my Southern Arizona Desert Botany homepage. THE GREAT CACTI: ETHNOBOTANY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY, by David Yetman, 2007. University of Arizona Press, 297 pages, hardbound. This beautiful book contains photos and descriptions of more than 100 species of giant…

ironwing

May 1, 2008

Nature Book Reviews, Uncategorized

Joshua Trees and Wild Palms

We spent last weekend at Joshua Tree National Park, hiking among the giant yuccas and granite tors and photographing blooming cacti and Mojave wildflowers that were new to me. The park is not grazed, so desert plants are astonishingly abundant, diverse, and healthy: wildflowers, flowering shrubs, cacti, desert trees, and of course the famous giant yuccas. I…

ironwing

April 24, 2008

Nature