Last month I took a resin jewelry class at my local bead shop. I’ve played with resin in the past but almost always had problems with bubbles. Although I’ve had limited experience with resin using it in your art or jewelry seems to offer plenty of creative possibilities. I love the look of domed bezels that can seal almost anything you can think of. This is one piece I worked on. Sealed the patterned paper into the bezel, poured some BUBBLE-LESS resin into it, added some seed beads and waited for it to harden. At home, I had some oxidized copper chain and strung it through the bezel. The bezel is about 25mm—larger than I’m used to working with, but I like it! I’ve worn it many times and have received a few compliments. I’m hoping to have some similarly looking necklaces in my shop soon!
About sheelaj
Resin jewelry
Hand made bowls!
Hand made bowls! Thrown on a wheel! I finally did it. I’ve been drawn to ceramics for years—loved the idea of getting my hands into clay and creating something functional out of the clay mass that sits on a wheel. I found a very affordable ceramics studio run by a nearby city. I’ve been going for a few weeks now and am loving it. Instead of formal classes, there is open studio time on Monday nights. The leader provides some instruction but a lot is left for playing and learning by oneself.
These are the first few bowls I made. I have a couple of plates waiting to be glazed and a few more bowls! Me thinks that one can never have enough hand made bowls!
The purple bowl is for my daughter who has loved the color purple ever since she could name them. The pooling of the glaze at the bottom and swirl created as a result was purely accidental.
Lotus flower necklace
From here…
to here. My newest addition. An illustration of the lotus flower sealed behind resin and strung with some colorful glass seed beads. It can be found here in my shop.
Ganesh in the garden
Over the weekend I went to a nearby garden nursery to look for a more appropriate pot for the Boston fern that sits on my bedside table. At the nursery, I saw this statue of Ganesh that has a lovely image of him—calm and peaceful. 
After work today I went back to the nursery and snatched him up. I’m trying to find a good spot for him in front of our house. This is how he looked after I found a pedestal for him. It’s a work in progress. He is only 17″ tall and I’ll be working on propping him up a bit higher and making his surroundings more lush and colorful. Ganesh is most probably one of the more loved gods in India. He is the remover of obstacles and the god of wealth. To see his image is always a reminder to me of the benevolence of people and nature.
Ring
Oh joy! I just spent about 3 hours at my work table, experimenting with copper sheet and rings! Yes….joy! I haven’t had time to sit in front of supplies and experiment in what seems like a long while. Busy with the family, the household and weekends packed with activities. So here is my first go at creating a very simple design. I textured the ring with a flower pattern and hand stamped a few letters on it. The text can be customized or be left off altogether. I plan on introducing the design in sterling silver soon.
Little Farm
It is a short 15 minute drive from our home to Little Farm in Tilden Park in the East Bay hills. This is a fun place as you get to feed the cows, goats, sheep, ducks and chickens, and stroke a bunny or two. We’ve been going for several years and I never tire of it. In the span of 15 minutes, we drive through busy streets past our favorite eateries and cafes, up into the hills and winding roads into this small area of land that has been the home of Little Farm since 1955.
School!
I always feel like a failed mother when milestones in my kids’ lives fly by me without a record of it. When I don’t have the presence of mind to grab the camera or like this morning, rushing with my daughter to her school on her first day of 2nd grade a few minutes late and not having the time to take decent photos. Yes, I had my iphone but no, I didn’t have the time to take a milestone-y kinda shot. Damn it…failed yet again. I did attempt to take photos of her on the playground when I picked her up. Here she is playing with her brother. 
Doesn’t say anything about 2nd grade but at least I TOOK a photo of her on the first day of 2nd grade!
New necklace
Just finished creating this design this evening—a hand stamped and personalized necklace. The sterling silver leaf-shaped charm has the initial of my son. I’ll be adding another leaf to this cluster of charms with my daughter’s initial on it. The attraction of hand stamping is that you can stamp text and names of your choice. This design and many others in my shop make perfect gifts for mamas (and papas!)—each one is unique. Oh, and that is a sterling silver tree of life charm. I wrapped a peridot gemstone bead for a bit of color!
Necklaces and more
My shop is filled with mainly necklaces but I do have a few earrings. This pair is my most recent design. For readers unfamiliar with that symbol smack in the middle of the discs, it is the symbol for Om. How do I explain the meaning of Om? I needed help from Wikipedia. Lets just simplify and say that Om is the sound of the vibration of the universe. I heard Om recited by my parents a gazillion times while growing up—I always associated it with my religion and prayers. When I took up yoga more than a decade ago, I started hearing it during some of the classes. Odd, I thought—Om belongs in my home with my parents or in the mandir. 
I’m over the oddness now. I’m here in California, in a city by the bay. I haven’t managed to replicate some of my childhood experiences for my kids to enjoy. And I have a feeling I won’t be getting to this one anytime soon.