Wooden ones...

Silke ("für große Mädchen") send me next to the casuarina "stuff" (or cones or whatever they are called ^^) little wooden discs. She knows how much I love to play with new stuff!

I wasn't too much into working with wood in the past... and the past means my "before-I-had-a-dremel-time"! So now with a dremel it is a lot of fun! Drilling, sanding, even carving... (but I am still experimenting with the last one)

At first I made earrings. Mh... not really surprising? Nearly everthing what get in my hands turn out to be used as earrings. But to me earrings are the most essential part of jewelery. Without earrings I feel kind of naked. There seems something missing and you would see me shaking my head from time to time because the weight is missing ^^ 

This goes since my ears were pierced (I was about six... seven...?)

I love rings but I don't wear any. I used to but this stoped as soon as I had my first day in the lab. You can't wear gloves and (my kind of ^^) rings. And you also wouldn't risc it working with human pathogenic virus (I assume most people wouldn't risc it ;) ). 

I also love all other kinds of jewerliy... bracelets, crochelets, necklaces... But with everything around your wrists it is the same as with rings.

And necklaces... I just forget... or they don't fit in. 

Of course I try to create a lot of occasions where it is great to wear really a little bit over the top jewelery! I especially loce "le petit jolie" which is all kind of "bling". 

But for everyday life: Earrings! 

The wood is really beautiful! I love the structures and the look!

This is the rough sanded wooden surface...

...and this after a little bit more sanding, using finer sandpaper.

To be more precise: To form the edges I start with a rough sandpaper (80 grit), then going over to 120 - 180 grit and in the end 240 grit. 

When I am using the 240 grit sandpaper I dampening the wood using a wet towel. During this step the open fibre ends of the wood take of the water and swell so with the next sanding step you'll remove them and get an even smoother surface!

Such a little step which makes such a great difference! I was really surprised :)

Yes, still not perfect but so smooth that it is difficult not to touch it all the time ^^ 

In german I woudl call it a "Handschmeichler" which would mean in a direct translation something like "hand charmer". I think the real english word would be more something like a worry or palm stone but somehow "hand charmer" definitly fits more the german meaning of "Handschmeichler". 

At the last step I covered the surface with linseed oil (I used some for eating, whcih was cold-pressed, organic quality without any particles. Okay, this will take longer for curing but there won't be any chemicals in it :) ). I put on several layers until the wood wouldn't "drink" up more of the oil. I removed the rest of the oil, let it dry (the outside will dry very quickly but the curing of the oil inside the wood will take weeks!) and then buffed it. 

The change of colour is also due to the oil but this will change back with the time (and a lot of sun!). For the curing time you should take care that the wood gets a lot of sun and air. Maybe by wearing earrings like this one ^^ As soon as the surface is dry this is possible :) And hey, it is a good reason to get some sun! "I have to sit in the sun! Really! Just to cure my earrings!"

And last but not least a warning about using linseed oil 

(regardless whether it for food or for woodwork):

Never ever through the cloth you were using with the oil in your trash! The oil in the cloth is so fine distributed that there will a lot of oxidation processes take place. Heat will be created during this reaction and can start a fire! Always dry the cloth outside or store them in a closed tin or something similar which cannot burn!