MAKING MIDDLE SISTER DESIGNS
![](http://www.middlesisterdesigns.com/cdn/shop/files/Tangled_mess.heic?v=1694643545&width=1500)
COLLECTION
The creation of my jewelry starts with the collection of recycled strings, usually donated from guitar shops, local musicians, friends and sometimes even my husband.
![](http://www.middlesisterdesigns.com/cdn/shop/files/Degreasing.heic?v=1694643563&width=1500)
SORTING, TRIMMING, CLEANING AND SORTING AGAIN
When receiving a large batch of donated strings, they usually arrive to me in a big dirty, tangled mess. Then begins my filthy (and sometimes painful) task of trimming and sorting. Once sorted by color, I soak small batches in degreaser followed by scrubbing with steel wool. After the strings have dried, I sort them again by color and gauge. Now I’m ready to start thinking about designs.
![](http://www.middlesisterdesigns.com/cdn/shop/files/Cleaned_strings.jpg?v=1694643635&width=1500)
DESIGNING AND CREATING
When I’m at my bench, I spend most of my time recreating my most popular designs, but I do always reserve some time to work on new ones. This can be a time consuming process with a lot of trial and error, but every so often it works and becomes a new and sometimes popular design.