What kinds of materials do you work with?
I use two very different kinds of materials primarily: Sculpey III, a type of polymer clay, and chainmail made of various different kinds of metals.
Polymer clay is "a sculptable material based on the polymer polyvinyl chloride (PVC)" (from the wikipedia entry on polymer clay.) It is a soft, pliable material that does not air harden, even when left sitting out for weeks or months at a time. It can be baked in a home oven, usually at temperatures between 250-300 degrees Fahrenheit , to "cure" or harden it. Once cured, polymer clay is quite resillient and does not break easily. It can also be painted with acrylic paints, and sealed with a clear, shiny glaze to give it a glossy look.
Chainmail is a technique that involves opening small, individual rings of metal (sometimes called jumprings) using two pairs of pliars, linking the rings together, then closing them to form a connecting chain. It can be used to make small pieces, such as bracelets, necklaces, and earrings (which is what I primarily make), or larger pices, such as pouches, coifs, or even vests or shirts. Chainmail rings come in dozens of different sizes and types of metal. I primarily like to use aluminum, since it is very lightweight and inexpensive, and sterling silver, which is beautiful and very nice to work with. I also use brass, copper, stainless steel, and gold.
Chainmail chains and polymer beads or charms can be used together to make jewelry that is lightweight, inexpensive, and wonderfully fun and whimsical. I also use some small glass or semi-precious beads (called seed beads) and pewter charms to accent my chainmail pieces.

What kind of wire do you use for your earrings?
All of my earwire is hypoallergenic surgical grade stainless steel.

Do you make anything else besides jewelry?
Yes, I can make other small accessories such as key chains, cell phone straps, and bookmarks. Take a look at my gallery for some examples of what I've made. If you have any requests for something specific, please email me!

How do I take care of something I purchased from you?
For polymer clay charms or beads:
To remove fingerprints or smudges, simply take a dry, soft cloth and gently rub the marks off of the piece. All of my clay pieces are glazed so fingerprints should simply wipe off. They should not have to be cleaned or re-glazed. Cured polymer clay is quite resillient; however, care should be taken not to be overly rough with any piece, especially charms with thin pieces attatched (such as metroid fangs, fairy wings, and cactuar limbs.) Should a piece happen to crack, you can apply a thin layer of clear nail polish to seal it shut. Should a piece happen to snap or break, use a very small amount of super glue to glue the pieces back together. Once dry, apply a thin coat of nail polish to the outside of the crack to seal it.
For chainmail:
Most importantly, I do not recommend getting any piece of chainmail wet unless it gets dirty and needs to be washed. None of my pieces will rust; however, it can be hard to properly clean and dry a piece of chainmail jewelry since the links are so small, and soap residue or even hard water residue can form on a piece that is not properly dried. Please remove any pieces of chainmail jewelry that may get wet while washing your hands or bathing, or if you will be working with any substance that could get embedded in the links, such as flour, soil, or clay. I also recommend keeping jewelry in the box that it came in, or another type of closed jewelry container, when not being worn. This will help prevent tarnish.
Chainmail links are pliable and can be bent if enough force is used, especially with softer metals such as aluminum. Please take care not to pull or yank too hard on any chainmail chain. Should a chainmail link become bent, it can be bent back into shape using two small pairs of pliers.

One of my silver/silver-plated pieces has started turning yellow! What happened?
This is what's known as tarnish. Tarnish can happen on just about any of the metals that I work with, although it happens fastest and most often on silver or silver-plated items. If a piece looks slightly discolored, especially if a silver piece is turning yellow or gold in color, it is most likely tarnish. Here's what's happening: The outermost layer of the metal (that is, the part that you can see) is reacting with chemicals in the air, typically sulfur. The sulfur in the air combines with the outer layer of the metal and forms a chemical reaction. The result of the chemical reaction is that the outer later of the metal is chemically altered, and is no longer the same metal that it was originally. In the case of silver, it becomes silver sulfide, which has a yellow-ish color.

Is there any way to remove tarnish?
There are a couple of ways to restore a silver piece that has been tarnished. One way involves stripping the outer layer of the silver (which has been chemically altered by sulfur in the air to form silver sulfide.) The other involves chemically reversing the reaction that created the silver sulfide in the first place. Both are relatively easy to do:
1: Tarnish remover. There are a number of silver tarnish removers that are designed to, literally, remove the tarnish. Tarnish remover will actually strip off the top-most layer of the metal (the layer that has combined with the sulfur in the air to produce the discoloration.) While this does effectively get rid of tarnish, using a tarnish remover multiple times will eventually wear the metal down and could damage it. I DO NOT RECOMMEND USING COMMERCIAL TARNISH REMOVERS AS IT WILL EVENTUALLY DAMAGE YOUR JEWELRY.
2: Reverse the chemical reaction (NOTE: This process is designed to work on silver (although it should work for any metal that tarnishes due to a reaction with sulfur.) If you need help removing tarnish from a non-silver piece, please email me.) It is possible to "remove" tarnish by reversing the chemical reaction, which will not damage or strip any of the silver in the process. What you will need:

• A pan, dish, bowl, or other container that is big enough to completely submerge the tarnish piece in water


• A piece of aluminum foil to cover the bottom of the container


• Baking soda (you will need 1 tablespoon of baking soda per cup of water)


• Water (enough to completely cover the tarnished piece while it is in your container)

First, make sure that the piece you are working with is clean. If it has any dirt or grime on it, rinse it off under warm running water. You can use a drop or two of mild dish soap to clean it, if you have to. Just make sure you rinse it well so there is no soap left on it or in the links before you continue.
Cover the bottom of your container with a piece of aluminum foil and set the tarnished piece directly on top of the foil. Mix enough water and baking soda together so that you can completely cover the tarnished piece with water/baking soda. Use a ratio of 1 tablespoon baking soda to 1 cup water for this (so, if you need 3.5 cups of water to cover your tarnished piece, use 3.5 tablespoons of baking soda.) This will cause the silver sulfide -- the outer layer of your tarnished piece, that is discolored -- to react with the aluminum foil. It will produce a chemical reaction that results in the sulfur atoms in the silver sulfide to bond with the aluminum instead of the silver. The result is that your silver is restored to its natural color, and the aluminum turns into aluminum sulfide instead.
Note that the reaction works best when the water is hot. If you have a tarnished piece that is made entirely out of metal, then you can use boiling water for best results. If you have a tarnished piece that has some beads on it, I would recommend using hot tap water instead of boiling water, as I do not know how much heat all of the beads can withstand. You should start to see results within a few minutes after you cover the tarnished piece in water/baking soda, however, depending on how hot your water is and how tarnished the piece is, you may have to let it soak for several hours or drain the water once it gets cold and make another water/baking soda mixture with hot water and do the process again.
Once your piece is restored, take it out of the water/baking soda mixture and rinse it well under cool running water. Then let it drain on some paper towels and dry it as well as you can.

Is there any way to prevent tarnish?
The best way to prevent tarnish is to handle and wear your pieces often. The oils in your skin will help prevent the sulfur from reaction with the silver. When you're not wearing your jewelry, it's best to keep it in the box that it was sent in, or another jewelry container that is closed and relatively air-tight. A zip-lock bag works well, too. This will not 100% prevent tarnish, as there is still sulfur in the air inside the box or container, but it will slow the process down. When I keep silver links in my jeweler's kit, I have not seen any of them tarnish, even over the course of several months. However, when I leave links out on my desk, they can tarnish in as little as 3-4 weeks.

One of my pieces broke! Help!
Hopefully none of your pieces will ever break. I take extra care to make my charms strong enough to resist normal wear and tear, and the metal I use in my chainmail is very high quality. However, if something does break, please email me and I will try to help you fix it. Otherwise I will repair or replace it for you.

I purchased one of your charms, but how do I attatch it to a necklace/charm bracelet?
All of my charms come with a small aluminum jumpring attatched to them. The jumpring is big enough that it should fit over most chain or strap necklaces, if you simply want a charm necklace. The jumpring also has a small split in it, so it can be opened and closed with two small pairs of pliers. Simply grasp one side of the split with the pliers, and the other side of the split with the other pliers, and twist gently to open the ring. It can then be hooked onto a charm bracelet or key ring, and the jumpring can be closed the same way you opened it.

Do you take commissions?
Absolutely! Please email me and I'd be happy to discuss any commission work with you.

I see a piece in your gallery that I really like, but it's already been sold on your Etsy page. Can you make another one for me?
Possibly. It will depend on if I have the materials available. If I have the same materials, then absolutely. However, I buy a lot of my glass or semi-precious beads at local bead shops so I may only get one or two of a kind, to make a single necklace or pair of earrings. If that's the case, then I may not be able to make the exact same piece over again. However, I can probably substitute something similar in its place. In either case, I would be happy to discuss the options with you.

There's a necklace in your shop that I would like. Can you make a matching bracelet or pair of earrings to go with it?
If I have the right materials to do so, then yes, I can! See the above question for more info.

I live in San Antonio/am passing through San Antonio soon. Can I pick up a piece I purchased from you so I don't have to pay shipping?
Yes, please email me so we can discuss this in more detail.

Do you have a shop front?
At this time, I do not have a physical shop front. I do most of my selling through my Etsy shop. I am planning on attending some art fairs and conventions in 2010 to sell my works more directly (see the Events page for more info.)

What does "sakabatou" mean?
A sakabatou is a reverse-bladed sword, a katana that has its sharp edge on the inside curve rather than the outside. It is the sword that the main character of the anime/manga series Rurouni Kenshin uses.