My Radish Earing Story About Luna Lovegood:
Most Harry Potter fans (like me), can not help but fall in love with the fantastical, whimsical, original Luna Lovegood. For me, she is a bit of a role model. Someone who is never afraid to be different. She’s kind, accepting of other’s eccentricities and flamboyant in her personal style.
Right now I am reading the 7th and final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, to the kids. I know, I know it is taking me awhile to finish… it’s a big book to read out loud. BTW if anyone dares to tell me what happens, I will hex you!
Anyway, throughout the Harry Potter book series Luna has worn some extraordinary outfits and costumes. My love of making necklaces and jewelry was ignited with the mention of her radish earrings. She actually called them “dirigible plum” earrings based on an orange radish-type of fruit.
When I was reminded of them again in the 7th book, I said to the kids, “I’ve got to figure out how to make those radish earrings,” and got started on the project the very next day!
Here’s a larger picture of my finished polymer clay creations…
I’ve worn these Luna Lovegood radish earrings on several occasions now. Some people pretend not to notice as if my eccentric jewelry didn’t exist. Some say “Cool!” And some, like my mother, say “Are you wearing radishes on your ears?” To which I reply, “Yes of course” in a way I think Luna would appreciate.
But whenever I wear them, I feel like a bit of a rebel. One-of-a-kind. An original. And sometimes in this great big gigantic world, it feels good to stand out a little!
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Would you wear radishes on your ears? Let me know… Oh and if you are a Luna fan like me, please share your stories about any Lovegood costume and fashion accessories that you have made or worn (shoes, necklaces, outfits, wands, etc.).
I would so make the earings and wear them i am in the middle of making a ravenclaw scarf
I love them! I only know Luna from reading Harry Potter; I’m no expert. But I’d totally wear these earrings. Very cute!
JD, I knew you were a kindred spirit when I read your blog! Especially when I read that you do things for people so they don’t have to. (Very funny things I might add! Can’t read any of your posts without LMAO.)
The concludes with, “The End”. I dare you to hex me. I also like to adorn my body with vegetables. You never know when you might need a snack.
Ernie – I would hex you with my Vegetablium-Stickionus spell but you would probably just eat them!!
We’re done now Heather!!! Woo Hoo, what a great book!!
What now? What could compare to that series? We’ve been reading every night for so long I can’t imagine what we will read now. Harry Potter withdrawl is already settling in!!! Hurry up J.K. Rowling, write us something more!
I love the radish earrings! How have you held out so long on finishing the book? I pre-ordered Book 7 and tried to savor it slowly, but I blasted through it in a weekend. I wanted more! :-)
Those earrings are **squee!** truly adorable. :o)
Lettuce be fair and say everyone from workers bees to the white collard crowd will love these. People won’t turnip their noses at this style!
*Groan* (I couldn’t resist a pun opp like this!)
Hehehehe… You are a clever girl Carolyn! It must be the writer in you.
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I think those are great earrings. I think Luna would approve.
Thank you Nora! Luna’s approval woould make them even more fun!
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Cindy – I love them! I’m glad to find a kindred spirit who isn’t afraid to wear something a little (a lot?) different. Couple of questions. Did you use translucent clay? It’s a beautiful effect. Secondly: how do you prevent the piece from falling off the eye pin? I’ve had some sad experiences where I’ve lost my work when it came off the pin.
Thanks Maria!! Yes there is quite a bit of translucent mixed with 3 different blends of colors (about 1/2). That is why the colors have more depth to them, some light is penetrating the surface. I baked the leaves and the radish separately then assembled them. I glued in the eye pins and the leaves with Krazy Glue.
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To Carolyn B. What creativity. I book marked your blog to read, if I can ever stop reading Cindy’s.
I saw a couple of the HP movies but they got a little scary for me. (awwww) I started to have HP dreams. So far I haven’t conquered the books, but I am going to. I can’t recall who Luna is. Is the character in from the beginning? Even if I don’t know who the character is wouldn’t stop me from wearing the earrings, I like them.
Marianne you should read the books, a lot less scary than the movies! And way better IMHO! Luna is that spacey, dreamy girl who is not afraid to be completely herself… a bit of a hero in my eyes. I just love people who don’t follow the crowd!
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I absolutely love them…I always wanted to make a pair of these earrings but till now I didn´t have any inspiration…now when I know you have made them….I ´ll try to make my owns :) I´ll let you know how it worked out :D
Thank you Jarka! I would love to see how yours turn out!
I did it…today I had nothing to do so I decided to make them and it took me only about 30 minutes :)
I didn´t use clay because it´s quite hard to find it in local stores..but I decided to use thin wire and little glass beads I had at home…
if you want to see them, here´s my blog with the photo…I ´m so happy :P
my.opera.com/jajinka1/blog/2008/11/08/gotcha
They turned out really cute Jarka! Don’t you just love Luna!
Cindy, these radish earrings are the cutest things!
Have you ever thought of sending a copy of them to the actress that played the role of Luna in the movie?
I am sure she would adore them, and wear them…maybe at a premiere, and wouldn’t that be something to see?
I hadn’t really thought of that, but that would be pretty fun to have her walking around with my radish earrings on!
Wow, another person who’s made Luna’s radish earrings! I loved those earrings in the movie, so I had to make my own.
Here they are [they're quite chunky]. I wore them on the day the 6th book was released, they are really fun to wear. They make you feel as crazy as Luna :D
They are wonderful Nathalie – thanks for sharing!!!
how do you make them
Hi Laura, glad you like them! Maybe I’ll do a tute on them sometime. It’s a little too hard to explain here in the comments. Your ravenclaw scarf sounds cool. Are you knitting it?
I was wondering if someone had instruction on how to make these? or if maybe you made more and are selling them? OMG I love them! :) they are JUST what I am looking for, so I either want to buy some or make them! <3 thanks
Hi Becki,
I am so glad to hear that you like these Luna Lovegood Dirigible Plum Earrings! They would be perfect to wear at the final movie this summer, wouldn’t they?
I don’t have a How-To tutorial available, but I could make up a custom set for you… just sent you an email with further details.
Also… check out the link by my name for a sneak peek video I just posted today. In it, I show a cool Harry Potter style Book Bead on a hammered copper bookmark.
i can’t believe how easy you make beads… and these are absolutely perfect for luna… i’ve been making jewelery for about 3 years…but i just can’t seem to befriend clay… do you have any pointers?
@Mathia R: Glad you like the Luna Earrings. Polymer Clay really does allow you to create jewelry designs that you can truly call your own. It is a wonderful and rewarding experience!
The best advice I can give for anyone starting out with polymer clay is to learn the basics well, before jumping into the more advanced projects. Learning the fundamentals on working with polymer clay is not difficult… nor does it have to take a lot of time to master. But I see so many beginners wanting to jump ahead too quick… which often leads to frustration when your projects don’t turn out as planned.
So my question back to you Mathia, is how well would you rank yourself at having a good understanding of the basics? [i.e. conditioning clay, rolling basic bead shapes by hand, piercing the beads, simple cane construction, reducing canes, dealing with finger prints, baking, sanding, buffing, finishing].
@Mathia R: Hi Mathia! I suggest taking Cindy’s Fundamentals course…it’s the best way to get started with clay, and avoid all the “beginner” mistakes often made. Then you’ll be able to make custom beads, pendants, etc. for your jewelry — like no one else has!
@Cindy: Family saw the movie last night — these earrings would’ve been the perfect accessory!