Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Memorial Bead: Lucy, Olivia & Kramer

I was honored when a dear friend asked me to make a memorial bead as a gift for her dog trainer. The bead was to contain the ashes of three of her beloved Dalmatians: Lucy, Olivia & Kramer.

She requested the bead be heart shaped, about an inch wide with a hole big enough for a ribbon. Blue and green were the color choices but she wanted a little gold heart to decorate the beads to symbolize the color of Olivia's eyes:

Olivia

I just love when a client sends me photos and details about the animal or person who is being memorialized! I knew when I saw Olivia's eyes that Double Helix' Aurae was the color to use!

I have a little photo holder by my torch that will hold 5 pictures and after reading all about these sweet Dals, I placed them on my desk to supervise the work!

Their mom was kind enough to include lots of details about their personalities too! Lucy was a mother to 12 and very talkative!
Lucy

Kramer was a father of 64, a clown and a food thief.


Kramer

But, I have to admit, that Olivia with the gold eyes really touched my heart. Aside from being a drama queen (you Creekhiker readers know I have my own drama queen!),  her mom writes:

Loved being the only dog, going on errands & peanut butter. We understood each other  & loved each other when others didn't.

If you've ever had a dog like that, you, like me are probably shedding a few tears right now! 

The process of making these beads is not always an easy path for a sensitive soul like myself. And, it's never just make a bead and mail it off! I have made as many as four beads in preparation, showing each to the client along the way. I made three this time.

The first attempt, I realized the aurae was too transparent for the background colors:
 So, I made a second small color test using white under the aurae. I left the mandrel in place to show the client so she could understand where the hole was. We decided the colors were right and to make it with a bigger hole.
 So this is the 3rd version with the cremains of the 3 pups. I LOVE how the creamains reacted with the reduction of the aurae and turned gold... Olivia's eyes showing off!!

It was an honor getting to know these pups and their mom!

10 comments:

vintagebyrachel said...

Amazing !!! Amazing Bead :) The story is Very touching. Its so beautiful when you get to work and hear this kind of lovely stories ... XO Rachel

Unknown said...

How touching. That must be such a special treasure for the owner to keep.

Unknown said...

How touching. That must be such a special treasure for the owner to keep.

nangatesdesigns said...

What a special request. The end result is lovely.

petitehermine said...

Aww, that is so sweet. That's a great way to remember those special dogs :)

Unknown said...

WOW! What a perfect way to remember such a beloved pet. I love the finished heart...though i will say that I didn't mind the first one either...it had intrigue!

MagicByLeah said...

Wow what a touching story, those dalmations are precious and you did an awesome job capturing their essence, especially Olivia's gold eyes, in the memorial bead

Linda B said...

The bead came out so beautiful, great custom item. I'm sure it's a terrific keepsake.

Cyndy said...

The memorial bead with Lucy, Kramer & Olivia's cremains is so much more beautiful than I could ever have imagined. It is so special and I love having them close to my heart. You are truly a very talented artist and I appreciate the care you took making the bead for me. I'm eternally grateful!

CreekHiker / HollysFolly said...

Cyndy, SOOO glad you love it! It was an honor!