Each month Victoria showcases the artwork of a student from her workshops, videos, and online classes.
2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013
January 2014
Horse Bracelet by Lina Siaudvytyte
“It is amazing, what forms you can get from peace of silver . Good teacher and good tools, that is all what you need.”
Lina is from Lithuania and learned the technique through Victoria’s DVD.
Sterling silver, sapphire
©2013, Lina Siaudvytyte
February 2014
Australia Pendant by Nicole Hanes
After watching the Russian Filigree DVD a light turned on for me last year and I realized that I had been trying to create pieces with the intricacy and delicacy that the Russian Filigree techniques offered, but my pieces seemed to just miss the mark.
This technique brings me peace while I work with it and challenges my engineering side while satisfying my love of ancient artifacts and jewelry.
When I found this Rainbow Labradorite I had intended on mounting it so that the side with the surface mostly covered by iridescent blue would face outwards as the front of the piece. I guess I wasn’t paying attention and when I looked at the finished piece, and realized that the yellow / redish coloring in the stone intended for the back of the piece, looked like a topographical map of Australia surrounded by ocean; a happy accident!
Sterling, fine silver
3 x 1.3 inches & 18″ Hand Knit Chain
©2013, Nicole Hanes
www.rubylane.com/shops/exoticgemdesigns
March 2014
Russian Filigree Pendant by Mary Turner
In 2013, I commenced a two year full time jewellery course. For one of the units we could choose any historical technique to learn, so naturally I chose Russian Filigree, as it gave me the opportunity to put my Filigree DVD to good use. I decided to try out the Russian Filigree technique using only sterling silver, primarily because of my time restrictions and was pleased to see that the technique still worked. The marquis pendant is one of the pieces I submitted for my project and thanks to Victoria’s step by step instructional DVD, I received a distinction for my work. Thanks again, Victoria.
Sterling
2-3/4″ x 1/2″
©2013, Mary Turner
contact: turnersjm@bigpond.com
April 2014
Soteria by Denise Temofeew
High relief Eastern repoussé and one direction single weave chain necklace
I created this amulet-like pendant in order to explore the use of alcohol inks on copper. I needed a design that would allow plenty of places for the color to go, and I liked the idea of allowing myself to stray (Soteria is the Greek goddess of deliverance) from the constraints of my typical way of working. (Who would set a nice druzy in copper? Who would paint on their repoussé work?) The color is painted on in several layers and finished with Renaissance wax.
Sterling silver, fine silver, druzy, colored with alcohol ink
1.5 in. x 2 in., 22 in. chain
©2014, Denise Temofeew, photo by the artist
contact: niseyt@earthlink.net
Soteria by Denise Temofeew
May 2014
Turkish Purple Jade in Filigree by Hawk Phoenix
Back in the 1990’s, I was involved in the antique trade for about 13 years. During that time I operated a small jewelry repair shop inside an antique mall in St. Paul, MN for a couple of years. Although most of what I saw and worked on at the time was costume jewelry, I was exposed to a lot of pieces, from classic old world designs to Art Deco and Art Nouveau. I really felt an odd attraction to the filigree pieces. I didn’t see too many of them, but I started keeping an eye out for them and collected a couple of nice old pieces. Time marched on…
Now, almost 15 years later, I am resurrecting my gem cutting and jewelry design business and stumbled onto Victoria Lansford. What synchronicity! Not only did I see some of the most beautiful filigree work I have ever seen, but now I have learned how to do it too, thanks to Victoria’s inspiration and instructional videos.
These earrings have sterling frames, fine silver and 14K gold filigree with 14K bezel wrapped around the hand cut Turkish purple jade cabochons that I cut from rough about 20 years ago. Dangling from the bottom curls are natural freshwater lavender pearls.
I can’t wait to make the matching pendant for these….
Sterling silver, fine silver, 14k gold, Turkish purple jade, freshwater pearls
1-15/16″ from the top of the frame to the bottom of the pearl x 1″ wide
©2014, Hawk Phoenix, photo by the artist
July 2014
Works in Progress by Students in My Eastern Repoussé Workshop at Metalwerx in 2013
I can’t believe it’s been a year since I taught this workshop! I was recently looking through these photos and thought it would be great to show off how hard this group worked over the 4 days they were with me.
A few extra things to brag about…
Barbara Gross’s magenta cuff bracelet is aluminum. (Yes… yes, you can. The usual aluminum rules apply.)
John Lunn’s amazing dragon is the same size as his repousse pixie, about 1″ in diameter. (I can’t take any credit for John’s repousse. He’s been working professionally in the technique for many years. One of his chased and repousse flutes won a Saul Bell Award.)
Sumner Silverman also carved the center piece for his Tibetan inspired cloud repousse.
These are only a few of Kristina Karlsson’s pieces made during the workshop. (She is a whirlwind of focus and productivity!)
Not only was this class a stellar bunch, I was assisted for the second time at Metalwerx by the one and only Cynthia Eid. Having Cynthia as my TA is like having The Beatles as one’s back up band!
August 2014
Floral Nouveau by Hisako Yamada
Throughout my experience making jewelry, I have been continually drawn toward ornate and delicate designs. Five years ago, this tendency naturally progressed into filigree. Last year I decided to order Victoria’s DVD on Russian Filigree, and through the techniques I learned I was able to begin making my first, rough filigree ring. English is not my first language (I hired an editor to write this—trust me!), and I was able to follow Victoria’s instructions no problem! I’ve been working at those same techniques, and in July 2014 made these wedding rings. The biggest challenge was adding the copper leaves and flowers on top of the sterling silver filigree. There is a delicate balance when soldering on top of filigree—but the result was worth the hard work. Thank you, Victoria, for helping me to learn these invaluable techniques!
Arigatou,
—Hisako
Sterling Silver, copper, amethyst, moonstone
Size 7 moonstone ring; size 8 amethyst ring; bands 12mm at widest point
©2014, Laceworks Jewelry, photo by Dan Kvitka (Dan Kvitka Photography)
September 2014
Polypay Whim 2 by Heather Jones
Polypay is a type of sheep we owned when I was a child. We left the horns natural on the rams and they grew into magnificent spirals.
I love filigree and learn something new during almost every project. It is a very gratifying experience to see the evolution of design and skill every project. (Your videos are worth every penny, as are your classes.)
Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, Agate, Jute, Nylon Ribbon.
©2014, Heather Jones
Metalmorphos by Heather Jones
selectjewelrydesigns@yahoo.com
October 2014
Russian Filigree Neck Piece and Roman Chain Net Dress by Victoria Hall
I am fascinated by historical metalsmithing techniques and traditional forms of jewelry. For this piece I was inspired by the Ancient Egyptian Beaded Net Dress at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I have always been drawn to this piece and wanted to create my own spin on this amazing adornment. Last summer I attended Victoria’s filigree workshop, which invigorated me to create the neck piece for the ensemble. I formed each cell for the filigree to conform to one another, and designed the inner framework lines to flow and connect like the veins of a leaf. The dress that conforms to the neck piece is composed of 85 feet of woven Roman chain. It is interlaced in the front referencing the net pattern of the Egyptian garment. The pieces that I create are a hybrid of cultures and ancient adornments. My work explores my own personal history through the lens of the past. They examine ornamentation of luxury and fashion throughout many cultures and how they would fit in today’s society.
Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, Freshwater Pearls.
©2014, Victoria Hall
victoriaelizabethjewelrydesigns.com
Facebook – victoriaelizabethjewelrydesigns
victoriasjewelrydesign@gmail.com
November 2014
“Cal” by Suzanne M. Dugas
In the month of September (2014) two events occurred which inspired the creation of “Cal”. First, I was a participant in the Russian Filigree Workshop taught by the astonishing Victoria Lansford. Upon returning home, on top of the mail, was the September 2014 issue of New Mexico Magazine. On the cover, in bold announcement, was the upcoming Day of the Dead Celebration (Dia de los Muertos), November 2, 2014 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The skeleton (calacas) and skull (calaveras) are spiritedly connected to this celebration.
Empowered with my new Russian Filigree scholarship and the Day of the Dead honored tradition of celebrating the circle of life, I set about the task of design and constructing a necklace that would pay personal homage to this celebration.
Sterling Silver, Fine Silver, Blue Goldstone
3″ x 1 1/2″
©2014, Suzanne M. Dugas
photo by the artist
December 2014
Eastern Repoussé Aqua Pendant by Claudia Antonie Herr
Spending a wonderful weekend with Victoria at her Eastern Repousse Workshop in Tryon, NC, I became so inspired by this ancient technique. It opened up another door to my creative imagination and I couldn’t wait to start with fabricating a jewelry piece on my work bench. The Aqua Pendant flows from my mermaid’s phantasy world with its playful granulated elements and the pastel-colored blue chalcedony. I added some gold details to give the work a soft and warm finish. It was such a joy to create from a flat sheet of Sterling Silver a puffy, soft and three dimensional jewelry piece. Including the Eastern Repousse Technique to my jewelry making adds a new and different twist to my future jewelry collections.
Sterling Silver, 14 K Gold, 14 K gold filled, Chalcedony on Sterling Silver mesh chain
Dimensions: ca. 85 x 30 mm
©2014, Claudia Herr
photo by the artist
FACEBOOK – Silver Lining Jewelry by Claudia Antonie Herr