Okay, these vintage brass lions, circa 1950, are amazing! I had never seen such fine detail or a lovely natural patina like this on stampings before. They did not come with holes and it was quite tricky making them without causing any damage, but I did it!
The lions are very lightweight so in order for them to hang correctly, I added a couple of vintage die-struck, ornate brass rings with a scroll pattern to the top. Under the lions, I centered a pair of my hands-down favorite spikes by Jess Contreras of Humblebeads! These spikes are THE coolest components! I’ve hoarded two pairs of them in my stash for just the right design and I thought these lions were definitely worthy. The spikes are also lightweight so even though the design is substantial they are very comfortable.
Outstanding leopard connectors by KiyoiDesign made of bronze metal clay. Atop are vintage brass “eye connectors” originally intended as hook and eye pieces. Repurposed, I think they make charming jewelry components. Last but not least I added some intense bling of crystals in a shocking turquoise.
Petroglyph Mountain Lions made on thin ceramic shards by Jill Stoffregen of Foxpaws. These lovely components are very light and a little delicate so instead of wire I decided to use wax linen cord. I love mixing fabrics in my designs for a little extra pop of color as well. My accent beads are African glass with hand-forged copper rings by Kay Mallery.
I thought I’d try something a little contemporary and abstract here. I adore these extra-large vintage acrylic hoops (47mm) which are also super lightweight. They have wonderful depth and glow with a striped tribal pattern. It was fantastic that they already had holes drilled and I was easily able to hang a perfect pair of ceramic drops by Petra of TheScorchedEarth. Oversized, dark doubled jump-rings sit on each side of the center charm which lends to the modern feel, almost like a mobile.
I wanted to concentrate on an animal pattern with this pair without adding an actual bead of a big cat. Instead, I used African glass beads in the same hues, then added fabric and messy wire-wrapping. The large discs are enameled and have an amazing golden sheen to them in person. They were made by Anne Gardanne of Gardanne Beads.
For some reason, maybe due to natural lighting changes this time of year, I had a hard time capturing a lot of detail on camera. Looks like I’ll have to adjust my schedule for next time. I had to retake most of the photos a few times. All in all, I’m happy, but ack could have been better!
Thank you for joining me for a little Big Cat inspiration for Journey 7!
With love from, Loralee and her little house panthers!
www.loraleekolton.etsy.com ~ https://www.facebook.com/loraleekolton.jewelry/
