Art Nouveau pendant

Ever since I got the book The Art of Polymer Clay, by Donna Kato, I've been wanting to try making an art nouveau pendant, and my Mackintosh Month seemed as good an excuse as any! I also referred to another lovely book, Art Nouveau Jewelry by Vivienne Becker, which is full of wonderful photographs of art nouveau jewellery.

I used a slightly different technique of making the wings from that described in the book, because I thought it would be quicker, but I think if I was to try it again I would do it the way shown in the book, as the lines would be crisper. I'm also not completely happy with the silver paint - it was not very opaque and did not apply very evenly. However, I'm pleased with this as a first attempt, and will try again in future!

The face was made from a mould that I'd created some years ago from a Japanese doll ornament. I decorated the wings with some beautiful irridescent eyeshadows. I added a freshwater pearl at the top, and arranged the wings to look like a sycamore seed. I had to drill a hole in the pearl, which was quite difficult as it was unevenly shaped and kept moving about in the vice as I tried to drill it!

The necklace is surprisingly light to wear - I had been worried that such a large piece would by uncomfortably heavy, but it isn't.