This little pewter place setting makes a perfect ring, but it didn't start out that way. Originally, I browsed the aisles of my local craft store, searching for something, for anything, that would inspire me.
That's when I found myself looking at the miniatures meant for doll houses.
Doll house miniatures are built to a variety of scales. And you can find just about anything. If it's in your real house, somewhere someone is making it for a doll house. And all of these charming items are available at a fraction of the price of, for example, a real silver place setting.
When I'm just not sure what I want to make, I often find myself wandering the aisle of miniatures, imagining how these items could be adapted to jewelry or collage-work. This weekend, the They Might Be Giants song "Dinner Bell" was stuck in my head. When I saw the tiny plates and knives and forks and spoons, something just clicked.
And now I have a Dinner Bell Ring.
The moral of the story is to wander freely, not just sticking to the supplies that you most commonly use. Sometimes things in your head will just click with the unusual things that you see as you walk around the art/craft supply store!
