Featured COVID Project

I "found" restringing projects in my hoard and spent some time this winter on them. So far I have just done straight forward restringing. I have 1 jade and 3 coral necklaces that I will knot between each bead, but I've been putting them off until I feel courageous

Anyway, here are the first batch...

L to R - MOP; plastic and brass; sterling and pearl; sterling bracelet; glass tubes with brass and pearls; at the bottom a Deco necklace with rhinestones and glass beads:


Next, all glass beads, the purple one is a 3-strand bracelet:

 

Beautiful batch, Marie!

 

Wow! You have made Covid lock up a very productive experience. I, on the other hand, have only just become motivated to take up neglected hobbies and projects. Beautiful pieces.

 

I've got very tidy kitchen cupboards. <proud>

 

I feel like a slacker.(LOL)

 

Lovely necklaces!.
Particularly like the deco one in the top photo and the yellow with the drops at the bottom.
I bet the opaque green in the bottom photo will glow under UV, they are very nice.
I can drool over these glass necklaces all day, beautiful beads

 

I agree lovely necklaces.
I too fall into the category of I could have done many productive things, but alas I did not. I too am a slacker

 

Thanks everyone! After a year with only 1 antique show held in our area it's ben good having an ongoing project. Now I have to tackle the knotted necklaces

 

Shame we live too far away (and damn Covid) or we could have a knotting party!

 

Or de-knotting. It's one of my favorite things, sitting around and unscrambling.

 

I'm often tempted by piles of tangled chains just in case there is gold in there

 

Hi,
Love tangled messes of chains. I use talcum powder to loosen them, makes untangling a lot easier.
greg

 

I use a needle or pin, just in case there's enough gold in the tangle to pay for the whole pile. Went to the Ill Will today and they actually had some jewelry. All NWT Target leftovers, clearance stickers and all. I'd rather one of Marie's tangles any old time.

 

I picked up a tangle for fifty pence last year, dealer couldn't be bothered to sort it. Lovely silver and carved coral chain amongst other things.

 

Yep! Those tangles often contain all sorts of goodness. I've gotten vintage sterling chains that way too.

 

Talcum powder sounds like a good idea, I'll try it next time.

I use lead pencils to pick at the knots of tangled chains, and it works fairly well.

 

I use 2 pins.

For a knot in a single chain I put the knotted area in the palm of my hand and swirl my finger on top of it. That loosens the knot and it's easier to pick apart with the pins.

 

Wow! Beautiful pieces! I love the old beads. I have probably 20 strands that need to be restrung. I am not great at doing the ends though, seems like they come undone. Great job!!

 

I bought a (literal) ton of jewelry 3x. They had 150 lb tangles, no joke. Had to cut them apart. They were mostly newer stuff, and I got so tired of it that I just started selling them in large flat rate boxes, 30 lbs or so at a time. I honestly don’t think there was good stuff in them, but who knows.

 

More from my repairs hoard...

A few years ago I bought a repair lot with some old brass chains. One was very long so I separated it in half. I used the chains on the three necklaces on the right.

L to R: Japanese Damascene, the dangle was missing but I'm not convinced the butterfly I used worked, maybe a pearl would be better? Next is a gold filled pin/pendant with a glass disc and rhinestones; below that a garnet pin that was missing a stone; lastly two necklaces using a molded glass drop on the left and a cut and frosted glass drop on the right. The drops I am sure are not at all old but thy look nice with the chains.