This past week I made oodles of custom jewelry designs in polymer clay. Much to my delight, everyone and her sister and brother seemed to need a Magic Zoo custom design!
This is something I don’t complain about. Besides, it’s a good excuse to get my husband to help with the meals so I can devote my time to being inspired by so many beautiful animal photographs!
I think it is very sweet to honor a beloved pet “gone over the rainbow bridge” with a one-of-a-kind pendant, pair of earrings or pin. In the years ahead you have this little memento to remind you of your days together.
And of course celebrating the joyful life you have with a current pet by ordering a custom design based on his or her photo is almost magical. Think about how it can aid you when you just need to brag about them!
So…I was pretty darned busy this past week, creating custom jewelry while gazing out at our beautiful Manzano Mountain range from my upstairs studio window.
Great photos to work from
Capturing the personality of someone’s pet is a task I don’t take lightly. I know first-hand how dear our companion animals are to us, and I sometimes make a design over and over several times before I’m satisfied that I was able to do just that.
By the way, a beautifully clear photograph goes a long way towards aiding this artist!
But life being what it is, occasionally I have to work from a blurry, tiny or otherwise impossible-to-see photograph. Sometimes, in the case of a pet who has died, that is all there is. Then I have to use a bit of imagination, and still create something that somehow taps into the basic personality of that dog, cat, bird, lizard, rabbit, etc.
It is a skill I have developed over the years, and it has been hard-won!
Is there a pet or wild animal that means something special to you?
Not all custom designs I’m asked to create represent domestic animals. There are people (maybe you are one of them?) who adore a specific wild animal. Over the years I have created custom jewelry representing an aardvark, an anteater, a turkey vulture, a songbird, a lemur, an ibis and even a T-Rex! Over my 30 plus years of making jewelry, there were many more unusual requests, but these are the ones that come to mind immediately. They have all been a challenge and a joy. I have photos of some, but not all of them. I wish I’d photographed them all!
If you have been looking in vain for a piece of jewelry that represents the animal you love, contact me! I will be more than happy to work with you and make you something you will adore. Just email me merry@themagiczoo.com and we can get started!
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