Look Ma ... No Thumbnails ....

I've done some dumb things in my life, matter-of-fact I've done a LOT of dumb things in my life. I'm sure I've done enough stupid things that I could dedicate a whole blog to them; "All the stupid, dumb things I've done in my Lifetime Blog".
So what's one more thing to add to the ever growing list ?


I have thin, fragile fingernails and when I do wire work my nails take a beating. I tend to use them as a fulcrum to bend the wire into the "neck" of a loop. After making several wrapped loops using my thumbnail as a bending point I usually end up with a chip or a notch in the middle of the outer edge of my thumbnails. That's not normally a problem until I try to do seed bead work and then the tough nylon beading thread always finds its way into that notch and most of the time it causes the nail edge to split down towards my thumb. Recently, like a couple of days ago, I had this happen and I thought I'd take care of it before it got worse or before it got painful. I've tried bandaides before but they're awkward and it's hard to do bead work with a bandaide wrapped around the tips of ones thumbs. I recalled hearing that some ladies used super glue to help hold a cracked or split nail into place until it grew out but this was a little different since it was right down the middle of my nail. Anyway I devised a plan, I found some gauze and carefully cut it to fit the top part of my thumbnail and then I glued it down with a healthy dowsing of instant glue (Loctite 454) . When it was dry I coated both nails with clear nail polish and thought I was all set. It was the next day as I was washing some dishes that I realized that one of the make shift nail splints had come off in the wash. No problem, I'll just reattach a new one.


The first thing I did was take nail polish remover to remove the clear nail polish and any traces of the old 454 ... OMG ... the upper part of my thumbnails have dissolved. No joke, the glue had etched half way through the nail and I could see and feel a very distinct line where the healthy nail is and where the nail USED to be. Insert very strong curse words here and a whole lot of them !!!


Now instead of a week or two to wait for the split to grow out I will have to wait 2 or 3 months for half of my nail to grow out. Yeah this HAS to rank right up there with some of the dumbest things I've ever done.

Not So "Smart Bargain" Conundrum

My dear blogging buddies, I am turning to you for your advice, suggestions or recommendations.

Recently I placed an order for some jewelry supplies and upon impulse added a few "smart bargains" to my order. Big mistake...be wary and beware of those notorious Bargain Sections ! The price seemed great and from the photos the items looked attractive but photos can be deceptive. When my order arrived I was pleased with most of my merchandise however the "smart bargains" were disappointing. Yes I could just return them but at times the hassle of the return process is not worth the effort for the refund.

So here's my dilemma, the foil and glass pendants that I ordered are not quite the quality that I expected. Several of them are missing the glass coloring and or the silver foil, allowing the stark black backing to show through in certain spots.

Photo above...the black showing through the crackling is expected and a part of the overall desired effect, however the black arch at the bottom of this pendant is not a part of that effect and is unattractive.  It sticks out like a huge zit on a prom queen's nose!

I'm thinking about getting a few large round filigrees to cover the pendant front. The filigree will allow some of the prettier elements of the foil work to show through however these are pretty large rounds of glass, at least 50mm, plus the pendants are domed this means I'd need at least a 60mm round filigree to be able to wrap it securely across the pendant's front and bend it to the back of the pendant all around. Filigrees of this size are not easily found.

Photo above...Here the missing foil is at the top of the of the lower pendant  which isn't bad and might be hidden by the bail.

Another option, other than donating the pendants to Goodwill, is to mount elements to the glass to conceal the flaws. But what adhesive is truly powerful enough to permanently bond a glass bead or metal charm to smooth, hard glass? In the past I've utilized such adhesives as G-S Hypo Cement (which I know will not hold glass to glass), Loctite 454 (it's strong but I'm not sure it's strong enough) and various 2 part epoxies (which seem to vary in their holding capabilities and none have impressed me as being durable enough to hold a metal charm to the surface of a domed glass pendant). I've heard raves about E-6000 but my experience has been less than stellar with it, perhaps the tube I purchased was old? I found E-6000 was rubbery and once it set up it could be easily pulled off of a smooth hard surface, much like rubber cement.

I greatly appreciate any advice or input that you care to share with me.