Monday, September 12, 2016

Chevron Amethyst & Copper Washer Necklace


Do you like Amethyst?
I love Amethyst especially natural Amethyst or Chevron Amethyst. You might be asking yourself what's the difference?
I love the look of the white with the varying degrees of purple and the chevron like pattern in the stones. I learned that Chevron Amethyst is a combination of Amethyst and White Quartz mixed together in a V - striped or banded pattern. It's even believed by some to have stress relieving qualities. Did you know Amethyst in antiquity was thought to ward off drunkenness?  I think I could feel less stressed wearing a beautiful Chevron Amethyst necklace, how about you?
To make this necklace I chose a Chevron Amethyst coin bead to add to the center of a copper washer.  First I textured the copper washer with a metal stamp.  I also put a couple of extra holes in the copper washer so I could hang something pretty from one side and attach it to the necklace as well.  
After making my pendant I decided to make a matching necklace using small Chevron Amethyst beads and create links using them to help repeat my design.  When I had it all together I antiqued it using Liver of Sulfur then polished each link and surface of copper with super fine steel wool.  After making sure there were no more tiny bits of steel wool I gave it a little added protection with ProtectaClear.  ProtectaClear is my go to when it's time to finish a piece of copper jewelry.  It's a metal sealer that protects a copper finish from oxidizing any further, it also helps prevent the green on the skin from wearing copper that some people experience.    

Today's blog post is part of Clever Chicks link party!