Elf Ear Jewelry

An important aspect of creativity is being willing to take a chance and try something new. As someone who relies on my craft of working with sterling silver, mixed metals and set gemstones for my livelihood, my creativity is often limited by what I am reasonably sure will sell, well.... at least someday. But I really enjoy thinking outside the box, and it is important for me to sometimes make things without knowing what the end result will be. Some of my more playful creations are an Elven looking type of upper ear jewelry.

The pair of peridot and sterling silver elf ears pictured above, is one of my first attempts at elf ear jewelry . They are beautiful on someone young, delicate and with a fair complexion, but I don't find them very comfortable, and I am no longer young or delicate. My ears are really sensitive and even a snug pair of reading glasses makes my head hurt after a few hours. Unfortunately these elf ears have the same effect in about ½ the time. When I made them sterling silver was a lot less expensive then it is now, and as a result of the rise in the cost of materials, these elf ears have become one of my most impractical creations.

I may modify these into a necklace or something more likely to sell..

But they are still pretty, and an interesting idea!

I have been working to modify this basic idea, and create something that is more comfortable and less expensive.

I came up with a design that seems to put a lot less pressure on the sensitive parts of my ear while at the same time clinging securely. I have made these newer Elf Ears or Upper Ear Leaf Ornaments out of copper to reduce the expense, and I like the leaves as they seem more subtly suggestive.

Single Copper and Bronze Elf Ear Leaf Upper Ear Ornaments With set Amber and Garnets
 This can be found in my Etsy shop.

This pair of copper Elf Ears is a variation of the pattern I used to create the pair that is sterling silver and peridot. They don''t  put as much pressure on my ears and the use of copper and bronze instead of silver makes them less expensive. they are set with glowing red orange hessonite garnets. This pair is no longer available, but I may make some along a similar style.

I will never be able to make more than a few pairs a year as they are quite labor intensive, but I have given someone in the Netherlands permission to use this design, to make more of these.

And my personal favorite are these simple single copper and bronze elf ear upper ear leaf ornaments.

These or similar ear ornaments are available through the ear cuff ear wrap section of on my Etsy shop, for $30.00.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ElfinWorks?section_id=11654137

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These look good on men too...

I will keep playing with this idea.

I hope you enjoyed your visit !