TierraCast has recently released a new collection aptly called
Dulce Vida (Spanish for sweet life). What could be sweeter for creative souls but to spend the days of their lives making jewelry? TierraCast makes high quality, lead-free cast pewter charms and components in northern California. Note : they are wholesalers but you can
easily buy their components from various retailers like Fire Mountain Gems.
I received samples from the Dulce Vida collection as well as their latest charm designs for review. I've bought pewter charms for years but none can beat the quality of those from TierraCast. Well designed and well made.
The Dulce Vida collection designs are clearly inspired by nature. They are dark in tone as they have been antiqued in just two tones - antiqued pewter and brass plated pewter. I wonder why they didn't do this collection with antique copper? That metal color would look great too!
What stands out is these pieces are all
double-sided as you can see in the pairs I have laid out below. So you could make reversible jewelry. Or mix and match the designs by simply flipping over the components. I think it was a clever idea to be able to extend your design options in this way.
Some of the components are slightly domed so these may not be suitable for actual reversible designs but the finish on the back will be far more interesting than the plain variety.
The larger components also had raised elements giving these the look of riveted pieces.
I was momentarily perplexed when I saw these. You can guess what they are, right? (Answer below if you don't).
I had fun designing some easy pieces using the Dulce Vida. I simply linked the components together with jump rings.
It is important to pick big enough jump rings so the bracelet is fully articulated. If the ring is too small, the components will overlap as below :
 |
| Ring too small |
As with any design, it is important to "play" with the components. I wanted to add one of TierraCast's newest charms - the Strength and Beauty Collection. These include the Egyptian Eye of Horus, Om symbol, Lotus flower, recovery symbol and so on. Shown below are some of them :
Whenever possible, double up jump rings for extra security. I went with 3 rings purely for looks! Also consider thicker gauge jump rings. These were all 18 G rings. Also note the smaller ring at the bar end of the clasp. That was necessary to enable the bar to go through the other side as the jump rings I was using were a little too big for the toggle interior.
The matching earrings :
My favorite piece from the whole collection was
the Heart charm. Rather than used their double holed connectors, I made this charm into a connector by simply punching an extra hole. If you are a beginner, you will find this simple plier punch a useful tool for expanding design capabilities. I find the
1.8 mm hole puncher more useful than the smaller 1.25 mm one.
Some light filing is necessary to smooth down the metal. You can easily get some inexpensive needle files from your local hardware store.
Both the toggle and the heart charm made this bracelet pretty!
This is definitely my new favorite bracelet to wear! I like my toggle clasp bracelets to just fit rather than be looser (and run a risk of becoming undone).
Those strange components were studs with the posts folded down for shipping! So I took my chain nose pliers and gently straightened the posts to where they should be. I also prefer to
use post backs or ear nuts with a generous surface area. These are more comfortable to wear and you are less likely to drop them when putting on the stud earrings. Been there, done that.
GiveawayIf you'd like to win your very own collection of TierraCast's Dulce Vida components for your jewelry designs, please make a comment below. Make sure you leave contact info below if you do not have an online shop or blog.
Email subscribers need to scroll down the post they receive, click on Share Comment and enter your comment. Pick Name/URL. If you don't have a store or blog, leave the URL blank.
This giveaway is international. Extra entries if you become or are a blog subscriber or follower etc. If you also do shout outs about this giveaway, those will count as additional entries too! Please say so in the comments. (The exception is Facebook - just like/comment on the giveaway status there!!)
It ends in a week's time at
6 pm EST Monday, May 29, 2017. I will pick the winner randomly and announce the results as soon as possible after. So be sure to leave a contact email if you don't have an online link or make sure you come back and check! Otherwise I will redraw in a week. Good luck!
PhotographyI used natural light, my iPhone 6S with the ProCamera app and the Modahaus TS400 tabletop studio for final product photography. The tutorial pictures were taken with the same equipment but with artificial lights in my windowless basement studio. Check out my
How to Photograph Jewelry Webinar .
DisclosureI receive books and products for review. I do receive a small fee for any products purchased through affiliate links which are provided as resource information for readers. This goes towards the support of this blog. The opinions expressed are solely my own. They would be the same whether or not I receive any compensation.
Other TierraCast Tutorials:______________________________
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