lesley's jewellery blog

Hmmmmm

2010-08-09T08:39:00.003+01:00

Well, another month has gone by with no blog! What am I like? No, don't answer that, please.

And, I don't really have time to blog now... the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta starts on Thursday and runs for four days, so I need as much stock as possible... busy, busy, busy!

I will try and pop in and give you some updates and occasional photos, but realistically, I think it's going to be September before I get back to regular blogs.

Lots of big things coming up - Tom's A level results, Martha's GCSE results, my brother visiting from Brazil, a camping holiday in Devon plus all the usual goings-on that seem to fill every waking moment.

I hope you are all having a lovely summer.

Much love to all,
xx

Excuses, excuses...

2010-07-09T08:49:00.002+01:00

Been sooooo long since I blogged because:

- I have been mega busy
- Got very caught up in A levels and GCSEs
- My mojo took a long holiday
- Didn't have anything very interesting to tell you
- Spent too long on Facebook and Twitter
- Been doing lots of selling events
- Just not felt like it

All of these excuses have some truth in them, but mainly they are just that - excuses.

Sorry.

Will try to do better. May even be back later today!

Much love to all.
xx

Spikes!

2010-05-02T08:59:00.005+01:00

You'll see there's a definite theme to the pieces I've been making this week... ceramic and spiky!

I've been lusting after these colourful ceramic washers for a month or so. I've been using the silvered ones in my designs for a while, but these coloured ones are so vibrant, I couldn't wait to get my hands on them.

Here's the purple and blue mottled ones with some silver washers and the spikes. These give the necklace real drama and look fabulous on.

The back of the necklace is leather and the sterling silver fastening is on the side.

This next one uses the same design, but with the blue and turquoise beads.

This one uses just the smaller washers - along with the silver - in the really, really bright colours. Fabulous for holidays. I do wish I'd made these before we went away!!

And then, lastly for today, a different look where I've used the spikes with lampwork beads by Tania Grey of Tan, Of Course and freshwater pearls.

I have made a whole batch of lampwork pendants, wine bottle stoppers, bottle openers and letter openers too this week, but haven't had chance to photograph them. Hopefully, I can show them to you next posting.

Tomorrow (Monday) Sarah and I are selling at the North Somerset Show. This is our local agricultural show and very popular. We've not done this one before, so fingers crossed that the sun comes out (it's pouring down with rain as I type) and there's hoards of visitors - and some of them want to buy some jewellery! Will let you know.

On the family front, Tom's exams last week were all 'OK' or 'Not bad' - so that sounds hopeful!

Martha's prize giving on Thursday was a nice event, celebrating the successes of the school. The guest speaker was the Olympic gold-winning athlete, Jason Gardener, who was a great speaker and his recounting of the 100 metre relay race when he won gold was totally gripping so that we all felt we'd run it with him and had tears in our eyes as the National Anthem played as we stood on the rostrum...
Martha's prize was for Excellent Attitude... yes, you can imagine the comments from all the parents of teenagers who'd won a prize for Attitude...

We had a lovely time yesterday afternoon and evening when some of Brian's family came over. I say 'some' of them... we were twelve to sit down for dinner. We did the calculations and if ALL of his family had come, it would have been 31 people!! He's one of nine - and then with husbands, wives, partners, children... it's a crowd and a half.

Hope you're having a great weekend - and enjoy the Bank Holiday if it's happening wherever you are!

Take care, all.

Much love
xx

Sadness and Sunshine

2010-04-25T08:43:00.014+01:00

I'd like to thank everyone who sent message of support and love after my last posting. Sadly, my mother-in-law passed away in the early hours of Easter Sunday. Rest in peace, Pat.

It might seem very strange, then, that we went on holiday the next day. But this was done after consultation and with the blessing of the rest of the family and safe in the knowledge that the funeral wouldn't be until after our return.

So on Easter Monday we left for Corfu. Despite the circumstances we had a wonderful holiday. The villa was superb and the views from its terrace were just amazing:

The hills opposite are Albania and the ones in the far distance are in mainland Greece. The weather was perfect for us - in the mid to high twenties. We spent lots of time reading and lying in the sun. Brian and Martha braved the pool - in their wetsuits!

It was freeeeeezing! Eventually they did go in with just their bathers, but Tom and I only managed to get in up to our ankles...

We did some sightseeing - in Corfu Town and we toured most of the rest of the island which I can report was beautiful... but closed! Their season doesn't really start until 1st May, so most tavernas and shops were either completely shut or were sprucing themselves up for May.

This is taken from the Old Fort in Corfu Town.

Brian at Agni Bay, If you look above Brian's head you can see two villas nestled into the hillside. The upper one is 'our' villa... well it was ours for a week!

The jetty at Agni Bay. In the summer months they rent out boats from Agni so I imagine the bay is teeming with people and boats. In April there was just us and a couple of chaps repairing another jetty. I know which I prefer. And yes, the sea really was those incredible colours.

Martha, me and Tom at Paleokastritsa which is on the other side of the island to where we were staying. It's a fabulous resort and one where there were a couple of tavernas open! Coffee and baclava... YUM!! The co-ordination of our outfits (including Tom's socks) was purely co-incidental!

Refreshed and relaxed we returned home just two days before the volcanic ash closed British airspace. Thank goodness. However, Brian's sister, Eileen, was stranded in New York and missed their mother's funeral which took place on Monday. Through the miracle of the internet, Eileen was able to see and hear the service, but obviously was without the support of her siblings, friends and family. And, a week on, she's still not home.

And so to jewellery. We had a fantastic market at Nailsea last weekend. The sunshine put everyone in a good - and jewellery buying - mood! It left my stock a bit depleted so I've been busy replenishing. There's still loads to photograph - and some, I know, won't get snapped, but here's a small selection of what's new. You'll notice that the colours and the names of the pieces have been influenced by our holidays...

This one features lampwork glass by Tania Grey of Tan, of course, along with freshwater pearls, Swarovski Crystals and Sterling Silver.

The next two have lampwork by Ellie Welch of Stardust and Dreams.

This week we have one of our offices and then on May Day Bank Holiday Monday we're selling at the North Somerset Show. We've not done this event before and we're really looking forward to it. Do come and find us in the craft marquee if you're visiting the show.

Also this week, it's school prize-giving for Martha, when we'll find out what she has won a prize for! We're all intrigued.

Tom has got two Chemistry practicals and then two papers about the practicals. This is the start of a big couple of months for Tom. He's got to get all A grades in his A levels in order to be able to take his place at Oxford. It's such a lot pressure for him, but so far, he's taking it in his stride...

OK, time to go and enjoy some more of this wonderful weather we're having. Hope it's as beautiful where you are.

Take care, everyone.

Much love
xx

Cheltenham and Chums

2010-04-02T09:50:00.006+01:00

Last weekend I met up with lovely, lovely chums at Cheltenham Bead Fair. We all congregated around Julie Fountain's Lush Lampwork stall and went off on various forays to buy beads, cabochons, meet other beadery friends and feed and water ourselves.

Here's a link to a photograph of some of us: photo courtesy of Nia

I didn't buy too much... just a few beads and a few cabochons for more rings and pendants. I did buy some fabulous glass beads from Celia on the Jencel stall and couldn't wait to get home and get making:

Yesterday we were selling in one of our offices, and I'm happy to report that all, bar one, of these were sold. Guess what I'll be making more of today?

I also bought some more enamelled ceramic beads - I love them:

In both these sets, I've teamed the beads with Sterling Silver and Troubled Water also features Swarovski Crystals which pick up the oil colours beautifully.

Also this week I have been working on a commission for some pearl and vermeil (sterling silver covered in a layer of 24ct gold) earrings. These were my first pair:

which the customer liked, but wanted rounder pearls and longer chains, so:

which she loved. Another happy customer. :-)

Recently I have been using these stretch bracelets to attach my magatamas to. I'm still making the more traditional chain maille ones, but these are great for anyone buying a gift as they are not so size dependant.

At events, I do alter bracelets to fit, but if the customer is buying for someone else then that can present a sizing problem. Of course, rings are even more tricky... a matter of a fraction of a millimetre can be the difference between fitting and not fitting.

This necklace I made a little while ago, but hadn't photographed it. I bought the shells at Spring Fair. Shells, I hear you ask, what shells? Click on the photo to see it larger and you'll discover the teeny tiny shells. Aren't they lovely... but can you imagine having to make the holes in those?

This weekend, Sarah and I are selling at a two day craft fair in Wells Town Hall. It's a BIG one with over 80 stalls. Should be fun!

What news on the home front?

Martha is to be awarded a prize at the annual school prize giving. We don't know what for, but hey, a prize is a prize. Well done, my lovely girl.

Tom is making a good start on his revision for his A levels this summer. Hopefully over the Easter holidays he'll really get into it and go into the exams feeling confident.

Brian went walking on the south coast last weekend with some of his friends from football... 19 miles, they went!! He was totally wasted when he got home!

After the craft fair at Wells, we are away for a few days... so I'll catch up with you when I return.

Lastly, please send prayers and good thoughts for my mother-in-law who is very poorly.

Have a great long weekend, All.

Much love and hugs,
xx

You can't always make what you want...

2010-03-19T18:39:00.006Z

... But if you try sometimes you might find
You make what you need...

(With apologies to the Rolling Stones for altering their words slightly...)

All week I've been trying to get to do more of my silver, but it just didn't happen (apart from two hours in my class). But I did do my accounts (all up to date!), made some things for the website and finished a commission.

First of all, here's a photograph of Tom manning our stall at last week's market in Weston-super-Mare.

It wasn't the most successful event, but hopefully it will build as people get used to us being there. As you can see we had a lovely bread stall behind us - and over to the right where you can see a person in a red and white coat, that was the hog roast! Wonderful smells all morning... and all I had was an unripe banana. I'm being SO good at the moment... can you see my halo from where you are?

Here's some of the things that got made/onto the website this week:

Some spectacle chains. This is why most people come to my website, so I try to keep a reasonable stock on the page. I think I added 10 this week!

And then I made some wine charms... these go well at the markets.

My friend, Lynne, asked me to make a handbag charm/keyring and mobile phone charm for her sister. Here's one in blues:

And I also made one in pinks and purples, so she had a choice:

And, good news, she liked them both... so she had them both! What a lovely customer!

And that's the lesson for today... You can't always make what YOU want... you have to make what YOUR CUSTOMER wants. No point in having masses of stock if it's not the sort of thing you can sell from your website or at your venues... and if you know what your customers ARE looking for, then that's what you need to make.

OK, I didn't get to make what I wanted - but that didn't stop me enjoying making the things I did make. And hopefully, next week there will be time for more silver.

My rings and pendant that I showed you last time have gone off to be hallmarked - how exciting. I'll show you when I get them back.

Tomorrow, our regular monthly craft market in Nailsea starts up again after a break for January and February. It will be nice to be back, we have some really lovely regular customers there. And, in honour of St Patrick's day this week, we're having some young Irish dancers performing. Should be fun.

Not too much to report on the home front this week. My kitchen is currently full of teenagers discussing Biology! They're setting themselves up some revision sessions in preparation for the A2 exams in May/June. They're doing the heart and respiration today.

Right, I'm off to my book club in a minute, we've been reading The White Tiger. An interesting read. Have you read it? What did you think?

Have a great weekend, everyone. Take care and have fun.

Much love to all,

Lesley
xx

Setting the Scene...

2010-03-12T15:03:00.004Z

This week there has been a lot of setting going on... stone setting that is. Here's what I've been up to:

For those that don't know, stone setting is quite a tricky business... First you make the bezel (the bit that goes round the stone) - this has to be a good fit, you cut it to length then solder it to make it into a continuous piece. Then you solder the bezel to the back plate and then spend hours filing and sanding to get the bezel and back plate to be flush. Then you attach the bail or the ring or whatever you need to make it into a functional piece of jewellery and then, and only then, you put in the stone and rub the bezel over the edge of the stone to hold it in place. Phew! You can see why it's taken so long for me to make these pieces!

I'm really pleased with them. The rings won't be on the website for a little while as they are going off to be hallmarked (my first hallmarked items! - very posh!).

Talking of posh, I've also completed a commission this week for a spectacle chain, bracelet and earrings set... but this was no ordinary set. Have a look:

Yes, lots of freshwater pearls and loads and loads of Swarovski Crystals. Very, very twinkly!

This one was the one the customer went for, the one below was my first attempt which wasn't quite right. The spectacle chain and the bracelet will be on the website shortly.

On the home front, Martha got excellent results in the GCSE modules she took in January. Tom didn't do quite as well as he hoped, but hopefully this will encourage him to work really hard for the summer exams.

I heard this week that a friend had died from a brain tumour. She was way too young and full of life to be taken. A beautiful, vivacious lady with whom I shared many, many laughs. Rest in peace, Polly.

Tomorrow is the first of the new craft markets in Weston Super Mare. I'm doing that one with Brian and Tom while Sarah is doing another event in Nailsea. This is one of the very few times that we've split our stock and done separate events. Fingers crossed it will work out well!

Then straight after the market, we're up to Leicester for the rest of the weekend. Out with friends on Saturday night and then with my mum, brother and sister-in-law for Chinese on Sunday lunchtime to celebrate Mothering Sunday. If you are celebrating, I hope you have fun!

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Much love to all.
xx

Party, party, party...

2010-03-05T12:58:00.004Z

So how are you all? Hope you're well and happy.

Well, the big news it that I'm now the mother of an 18 year old! Tom's birthday on 20th February was wonderful. We took him to the pub at lunchtime to buy his first legal round of drinks and then in the evening we had a big family party. It was great fun.

Here he is cutting his cake.
Also in this picture are Sarah, who is my partner in crime when selling jewellery, my fabulous hubby and my lovely, lovely Mum.

On the jewellery front, I've been hard at work finishing my project for my jewellery course. Here it is:
The basket is brass with copper foil woven in and out of it, the handle and rim are copper and the bail (more of that in a minute) is brass and copper. The necklet is silk.

This is the reverse - a piece of shiny brass.

The bail was the bit that caused me most headaches. I wanted to try making one of these woven bails, but, boy, are they fiddly!

Here are my attempts to get it looking neat...
The first attempt I made (somewhat foolishly) in Sterling Silver, I then switched to copper and then the final one is brass and copper.
To make them you form a skeleton of wire and then wrap hair thin wire round, in and out, round, in and out, to form the weaving. I'm glad I persevered and hope to make some more, I do think they're attractive.

It's been a busy couple of weeks with sales in offices, a great party last night and trying to build up stock. But I've loved every minute.

Right, that's it for now. Short and sweet just to keep you up to date. Will hopefully be back soon with more things to show you.

Take care, all, and have a great weekend.

Much love
xx

Anyone who had a heart...

2010-02-11T17:19:00.006Z

This was my haul from the Chepstow Bead Fair at the end of January - and as you'll see, there were quite a few hearts! The lampwork ones are by my lovely mate, Julie of Lush Lampwork. The bright coloured ones are fossil beads - not quite sure what they are fossils of, but that's what it said on the label!

Since then I have also been to the Spring Fair at the NEC and bought a 'few' more beads, but they are already in the process of being turned into lovely things, so you'll have to wait to see those!

Here's what happened to some of my Chepstow beads... These are all Sterling Silver earrings:

These three feature little porcelain hearts that I fell for in a big way! I love the mottled colours.

And these three are enamelled ceramic beads - aren't they gorgeous? I've got some more of these, so expect to see a few more yet!

I have got some more things to show you, but haven't got round to the photographs yet. Hope to get to them soon!

And I must get on and use some of the lovely beads I've bought over the last couple of weeks - not to mention the hundreds that I've already got! So many beads, so little time.

And I've got to finish my project for my evening class soon. I've done the (more interesting) practical part, now I've 'just' got to do the write-up. I'll post up a picture of what I've made in the next post.

On the home front: Tom is away on a field trip this week. He's on Exmoor. Don't envy him at all, it's bloomin' freezing! The house is very quiet without him. He's due back tomorrow. And then it'll be just over a week until he's 18. Still trying to get my head around that one.

Martha is on cloud 9 at the moment as she's going on a school trip to Barcelona. Now that one I am envious of. Barcelona is top of my 'places I really want to go' list.

Happy birthday, Dad. Love and miss you, every day.

Take care, everyone. Keep warm!

Much love,

Lesley
xx

A New A-Brooch...

2010-02-01T10:15:00.006Z

Hi there,

How are you all doing? It's bright but oh-so-cold here!

This week is all about brooches. These first three, available on the website, I have made with Sterling Silver wire and hand-made lampwork beads in different shades. I have made these before - and always wear one on my favourite pink cardigan, but these designs are a little more 'out there ' - I've been a bit more experimental with the flow of the silver. And I'm pleased with how they turned out.

And just in case you're trying to remember who sang 'Autumn Almanac' it was The Kinks... really showing my age there!!

This next brooch is based on a kilt pin. It was commission by my lovely chum, Anne, as a present for her mother-in-law.

The beads include Labradorite, Fluorite, Iolite, Botswana Agate, Sodalite, Blue Lace Agate, Swarovski Crystals and a generous sprinkling of Freshwater Pearls.

I spent a lovely day yesterday with Julie of Lush Lampwork at Chepstow Bead Fair. I have to admit I did buy a 'few' beads, but not too many as we're off to Spring Fair at the NEC next week and I know there will be oodles of temptation there. I will photograph my haul from yesterday and let you see just how restrained I was.

If you have some time to spare (and be warned, you could be there a while), hop over to the Ring a Day Group on Flickr. There you'll find a bunch of jewellery designers who have pledged to make a ring every day FOR A YEAR! I kid you not. In order to fulfil their promise they sometimes have to resort to a ring made from an elastic band or an old bus ticket, but most days they are producing the most fantastic jewellery. I'm totally hooked on seeing what they've made every day. I admire their tenactity and their skill.

On the home front, Tom is off for an interview at Birmingham University on Wednesday, so we all wish him luck. We're in the process of sorting out a 'do' for him for his 18th in a couple of weeks. Where did that time go? Answers on a postcard...

OK, time to get washed and dressed (why is working in your pjs SO much better?) and get on with making something lovely with my beads from yesterday. Our first office sale is on Friday and we're hoping to remind some of the men that Valentine's Day is not far off!

Take care, all.

Much love,

Lesley
xx

Recyling, Repurposing and Re...er... Sunshining!

2010-01-22T19:21:00.007Z

I've been waiting a couple of days to show you this... the light has just been awful here, so dull, but I couldn't wait any longer. Look at this!

Can you guess what it is? It's a cabochon of Fordite, a remarkable and rare material. It is solidified car paint from the Ford plant at Dagenham. Can you believe it? When the paint shops were closed there was a huge build up of paint on the walls and floors and it was found that this compacted material could be cut, shaped and polished like a stone. The colours and patterns are just fabulous.

I have set the cabochon in Sterling Silver.

So, that's the repurposing, here's the recycling:

These lovely lampwork beads by Tania Grey, of Tan, Of Course, were made into another set, but I wasn't happy with it, so that was taken apart and I've made this new one. The lovely Swarovski pearls compliment the lampwork beautifully.

I've added a few new spectacle chains to the website today too, here are two of them.

And last, but certainly not least, my love and thanks go to Maz Simpson of Amari gems (do pop over and have a look at her blog: here - she makes the most amazing jewellery) who has given me the Sunshine Award. This has really brightened my day, which outside was cold, wet and misty with low lying cloud.

The rules for accepting the Sunshine award

~ Put the logo on your blog or within your post

~ Pass the award onto 12 bloggers ~

~ Link the nominees within your post ~

~ Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

~ Share the love and link to the person from whom you received this award.

My nomiated award winners are:
(please do go and visit their blogs, they're all really interesting)

Beady Pool
Behind the Scenes at Jewelry Tales
Chameleon Designs
ChatElaine Jewellery
Cristina's Jewelry
Eve's Gems
Fired with Imagination
Kiamyka - Now and Then
Little Castle Designs
Lush Blogs
Made by AnnaK
The Makings of Beads by Clare Scott

OK, that's it for now.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Much love,

Lesley
xx

Brrrrrrrrr!

2010-01-15T19:53:00.006Z

Blimey, wasn't it cold!!!

Hope you've all survived the snow, ice and fog! The snow here has now all melted and I can't say I'm sorry to see the back of it. It has made getting around very difficult and I've been going a little stir crazy!

And it was SO cold! My workshop is in a single story extension at the back of the house and although it has a central heating radiator, it was just too cold to work in there. I moved my computer onto the dining room table and I've been catching up with admin and stuff all week. However, a new oil-filled radiator was delivered this afternoon and hopefully that will mean I really get down to work next week.

I do have some photographs for you. These are things that were made before Christmas but which I didn't have time to photograph or get onto the website. They will be available on the website by Monday.

First up is a ring. I love rings and hope to be making lots more.
This one features a squiggle of hammered silver and then a plain band at the back. Two of my very favourite people already have one of these... you know who you are!

There are some new squiggle pendants too, this one I really like... well, of course, I like all of them, but some shout louder than others!

This rather dramatic set features some black agate beads which have these circle on them.

They're rather lovely, aren't they? This is a real statement necklace and so I've used some very special Sterling Silver beads which are mini-masterpieces in their own right!

I love turquoise and especially when it's teamed with silver. Cerrillos is the name of a town in New Mexico where they still mine turquoise.

Amazonite is the stone here and it's such a gorgeous colour. I find it very calming.

There are some other sets too, but I'll let you see those when they're loaded.

Several people have asked about the reunion with my brother back in July... It was just wonderful. Emotional, of course, but totally joyous. And, even better, he's promised to come again... soon! I can't wait. Here's a photo of us all...

From the left, my youngest brother, Martha - my daughter, me, Tom - my son, my sister-in-law, my Brazilian sister-in-law, my lovely, lovely Mum, my long lost brother and his daughter.

Right, I'm about done for this week. Time to put the feet up, order the Chinese and open the wine. I hope you all have a great weekend and I'll see you next week.

Take care,

Lesley
xx

Happy New Year!

2010-01-08T15:35:00.002Z

How was your Christmas? Seems ages ago already, doesn't it? We had a lovely time, just the four of us for the actual day, then over to Cardiff to see Brian's family on Boxing Day. Then two days moving furniture - swapping the spare room and Brian's office. It was a lot of work (and a visit to the chiropractor for me!), but very worthwhile.

Mum and my bro and his wife came down on the Tuesday and then Mum stayed until yesterday. It was lovely to have her here, as always... especially as she's a dab hand with the beading!

Our New Year's Eve party was fun with loads of family and friends to help us celebrate.

The kids only went back to school/college for two days and then had two days off for the snow... and then back to school again today. More snow is forecast for Sunday/Monday, so there may be more snow days to come.

This week I've been catching up with the accounts... boring! So no new jewellery. Next week, I shall be getting my nose back to the grindstone and so I'll hopefully have loads to show you.

The BIG news, from just before Christmas, is that Tom has got a place at Trinity College, Oxford to study medicine. There aren't words to describe how proud we are of him. Of course, he still has to get the grades, but I know he can do it.

Hope you're surviving OK with the weather, wherever you are.

Much love to all,

Lesley
xx

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T15:23:00.001Z

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Having abandoned you for half the year, I can only promise that 2010 will be different.

With much love to all,

Lesley
xx

Family and Friends

2009-07-11T10:31:00.005+01:00

Oops! Where did that month go? Sorry, blog readers for neglecting you for so long.

So, what's been happening... Well, there's BIG family news... which I'll tell you about at the end. What a tease!

Sarah and I have done loads of events and most of them were pretty good... in fact, some were excellent! We've got a busy few weeks ahead of us too. Portishead Flower Show, Publow Garden Fete and Bristol Balloon Fiesta! And our monthly appearance at Nailsea Craft Market which is proving to be a super event. On top of all that we have our office selling days which are so enjoyable.

So, it's been heads down working hard for the last few weeks - and for the next few weeks too.

New jewellery... Here we go with a small selection:

The first one is a pendant made with sterling silver wire, which I have shaped, soldered and then hammered to give a 3-D effect... then hung a wonderfully marked ocean jasper bead in the centre.

The next one I made using the same process but filled the centre with squiggles.

For this next one, I hammered the base plate - with one of my lovely new hammers - and then soldered the coils of wire onto the front. Then the whole thing - including the chain - was dipped into Liver of Sulphur to oxidise it - turn it black. I then polished it so that the blackness was removed or lightened on the highlights. I was thinking of ferns... but having consulted pictures of ferns (after I finished it) I find that they curl in the opposite direction! Hey ho, artistic license.

A lady at one of the offices asked me to make an amber necklace for her mum. I didn't have any amber... what a great excuse to go shopping... It's actually quite difficult to find suppliers and in the end, these beads came from Hong Kong! I love the different colours. Here I have teamed the amber with Vermeil (Sterling Silver with a layer of 24 carat gold) and I'm pleased with the results. I'm going to make some other styles - some with Sterling Silver - which I'll try to show you... soon!

What else has been happening... Martha took her grade 1 keyboard exam. I could hear some of it from outside the room and it sounded fine... so fingers crossed, she did OK.

Tom and I have been looking around universities. We had a day at Birmingham Uni and enjoyed that and then we went to Oxford. It must have been the hottest day of the year... we were melting. But, what a great day. We went inside many of the colleges and it was like we'd visited five or six stately homes. Fabulous. Tom loved it... so 'all' he has to do now is get in!! Of course, competition is fierce for places, but he's going to give it his best shot.

Is that the big news? No.

I had my birthday. It was wonderful. We had a barbecue on the Sunday and loads of friends - and my mum - came over and we had a great time. On the Monday - my actual birthday - we went to Bristol Museum and saw the Banksy exhibit. It's just fantastic. I loved it. Do go and see it if you get the chance.

Is that the big news? No.

I had a super night out with chums at Chepstow races. I didn't win anything! But, it was great fun. We had a delicious picnic in the car park (well on a grassy bank at the side of the car park) afterwards and ate cheese and biscuits in the mini bus on the way home.

Is that it? No.

My lovely mum will be having her birthday soon. She'll be 80. But, you'd never believe it. She doesn't look her age - and, thankfully, I inherited those genes and I'm told I don't look my age either. She's pretty sprightly for her age too. Love you, Mum.

Is that the news? No, but close.

OK, I give in. The news is related to Mum's birthday. My brother, four years younger than me, emigrated to Brazil in 1979. And he's never been back to the UK since... and none of us have ever been over there. BUT, he's coming for Mum's birthday. So, I'll be seeing my brother for the first time in 30 years... next Friday! And I can't wait. He's bringing his wife, Kelle, who we haven't met before - and who doesn't speak English - so that's going to be fun. His daughter, Patricia, is coming too. We have met her before... remember me blogging about it? Here. It's going to be just amazing.

See, I told you it was BIG!

Right, better get washed and dressed and get on with the weekend.

Take care, All, and much love to each and every one of you.
XX

Silk, stoppers and squiggles

2009-06-09T19:58:00.010+01:00

Here's our stall set up for the craft and gift fair in the Broadmead Mall, in Bristol on Saturday. That's Sarah talking to the daughter of another stall holder. You can see that the fair took up a good area in the shopping centre. However, sales were really poor. People just didn't stop to look at what was on offer. Which was a real shame, because there were some wonderful things (and not just on our stall!).

This is the middle of our table - and I just wanted to show you these new canvases that Sarah has made - aren't they fabulous!

Onto Sunday and our table at Bowood Dog Show and Country Fair. You'll see that with a smaller area we couldn't take the canvases with us. We did quite well at Bowood. But spent almost as much as we made on lovely goodies from other stall holders! Hey ho.

Onto some jewellery. Actually managed to get outside to take some pics today.

First up is a set made with Chrysocolla - which is a new favourite for me. Wonderful colours.

The next few are a new design. Beads are threaded onto dyed silk ribbon ((by Diane Turton of Sowzere Designs) and the ends of the ribbon are then threaded through a matching bead and knotted. This means it can be slipped over the head and then the bead moved up so the necklace is the correct length. (Thanks to my lovely mate, Julie Fountain, for this wonderful idea... which I have shamelessly pinched!) I've been wanting some of these ribbons for the longest time, but always seemed to miss them on Diane's website. Once I got my hands on some, I couldn't wait to make them into something lovely. I just love the colours.

The first one has beads by Clare Scott and the ribbon is threaded through a large-holed Sterling Silver bead and then back through the bead.
These beads are also by Clare and again I've used the Sterling Silver beads.

The beads in this next one are by Julie Fountain of Lush Lampwork and I've knotted the silk between the beads.

A similar method using more of Julie's wonderful beads.

As Father's Day is approaching and we've got Nailsea Craft Market the day before, I thought I'd better make something suitable for men. So, here are some bottle stoppers onto which I've added lampwork beads. The beads are by various artists including Julie Fountain and Clare Scott.

And lastly some new Sterling Silver Squiggles. Two textured, one not.

Not much else to report - having been out selling all weekend, there wasn't time to get up to much! However, we don't have any more events now until 20th, so I've promised myself some time with the silver - watch this space for the results.

Take care, all, and I'll be back soon.

Much love
xx

A quick hello!

2009-06-05T08:41:00.002+01:00

Just wanted to run past you with a quick wave!

Mega busy at the moment - this week we've already had two office sales - one not so good, one absolutely brilliant (go figure!) and then tonight we're setting up to sell in the big shopping centre in the centre of Bristol and then on Sunday we'll be up at the crack of sparrows' to go to Bowood Dog Show and Country Fair. Should be a great weeekend.

Monday, I think I'm going to stay in bed all day...

Family news: Tom is in the middle of his AS levels and they seem to be going OK. Martha is in the finals of a poetry slam at the end of June and has to perform at the Old Vic! She's very excited about that.

As for me I've been beading, silversmithing, beading and, oh yes, beading. Talking of which, I'd better get my nose back on that grindstone. Things are a bit calmer over the next two weeks - beading-wise - although I do have my birthday to think about - it's on the 15th in case you feel the need to dash out and buy me an present ;-) So, hopefully, I'll be back soon with some photos. There's loads to show you, just no time to get it all photographed.

I hope you're all enjoying the sunshine and taking care of yourselves.

Much love and hugs.
xx

Guess who's got new hammers!

2009-05-22T18:14:00.004+01:00

They've come all the way from America and I love them!

There are actually two hammers with four different textures. The first one has wide ridges and gives this ripple effect:

The next one - and my favourite - has raised circles which give this lovely texture which reminds me of fabric.
Narrow ridges give this tree bark - or pouring rain effect.
The fourth one has little squares which give an effect like basket weave.
These are really sample pieces - just to see what the effects would be. I'm excited now to use them in more complex designs. Watch this space!
At last I've used one of my etched pieces (blogged about here). This reminds me of a tattoo - hence its name, Love Lies Bleeding.

And lastly, a new shaggy loop bracelet. This one is made with copper rings and glass magatamas in greens and purples and is called Lavender Garden.

Sarah and I are off to Devizes tomorrow to sell at a Craft Fair.

I hope you have a great bank holiday weekend and that the sun shines on us all.

Much love,
xx

Tagged!

2009-05-15T19:00:00.004+01:00

I have been tagged by Kelly, so here's some facts about me:

8 Things I am looking Forward to.....

The next Harry Potter film. It should coincide with Martha's birthday.
The summer - let's hope it's better than the last two years.
My birthday. I love birthdays and don't have any hang-ups about my age.
Selling at the Bristol Balloon Fiesta. It's going to be a mad four days - but it'll be great fun!
My chum, Mike, arriving for the weekend in a couple of hours.
Finishing doing up our house. We've still got loads of rooms to go, but the ones we've done are wonderful. I'm waiting for the whole house to look as good.
The next two episodes of ER. I can't believe it's finishing. I love it. I was a great Dr Green fan, but still watch every week. I blubbed for England after this week's ending with Neela going off to be with Ray.
My hubby being 50 next year. Not because he'll have reached that milestone, but because there will be a party and I'm a party animal. I LOVE to dance!

8 Things I Did Yesterday...

Had my beady chums over.
Watched ER.
Put a plaster on Brian's head when he came home injured from basketball.
Cuddled all my family. We're very big on cuddling.
Talked to Mike.
Made some jewellery.
Read my book club book. The one I should have finished weeks ago. There's another one I'm supposed to read before 5th June!
Ordered some findings. It's always more exciting to order beads, but without the findings I can't make them into anything!

8 Things I Wish I Could Do....

Eat what I want without having to worry about my weight.
Have more than 24 hours in a day.
Enjoy housework... as it is I hate it. There's always something much more interesting to do.
Swim better. I do a slow breast stroke but I don't really enjoy being in the water.
Gymnastics. I love to watch them and wonder what it must feel like.
Give my lovely, lovely friend, Sarah, the use of her hand back again.
Have my dad back.
Whistle with my fingers in my mouth.

8 Shows I Watch....

ER
Heroes
Desperate Housewives
Neighbours
The Mentalist
Lark Rise to Candleford - can't wait for the next series
Coast
Match of the Day!

Those are my 8's. My turn to tag....YOU! Come on, you know you want to! Here's the rules, just in case you want to follow them:
1) Mention the name of the person who tagged you.
2) Do the lists of 8.
3) Tag 8 bloggers of your choice.
4) Let them know that they have been tagged!

I'm not going to tag individual bloggers - as most of the ones I'd tag have already been done. So, if you'd like to answer these questions in your blog, leave a comment and I'll put a list at the end here.

Eve has taken up the tag challenge.

Much love and information,

Jewellery Catch-Up

2009-05-13T09:39:00.007+01:00

Phew! So, North Somerset Arts Week is over for another two years. I don't know how long it's going to take for me to recover - I'm SO tired. Tired but very happy. We had 400 visitors through the door (and trampling on Sarah's cream carpet) and they were all very complimentary and lots of them purchased from us which was fantastic considering how much choice there was - over 100 venues!

It's an age since I showed you any jewellery - some that was made has already sold - and lots of it I didn't get time to photograph. But, there's still plenty for you to see:

I've made quite a lot of this type of set, using lampwork beads from different artisans. Both of these feature beads by Tania Grey of Tan, Of Course. They are threaded onto leather with Sterling Silver beads and all the fittings are Sterling.
Continuing with lampwork, these wonderful etched beads are by Suzy Hannabuss of Moonlight Beads - aren't they great? I've teamed them with lots of Sterling Silver, including my favourite mirror ball beads, so this set has great twinkle.
I love this design so much, I've made it with three different coloured beads. The main part is made with top-drilled ivory pearls which give this lovely patten and then coloured pearls to add a zing.
One of my favourite stones - Picasso Jasper. I've put Sterling silver between the rondelles in this one to lighten it... I know from experience just how heavy these necklaces can be!
Another favourite - Spiderweb Agate - here coupled with Black Onyx and Sterling Silver.
And this is Feldspar - which is a new stone to me. I really like the veining on it though, so I think I'll be using it again. Here I've used it with Black Onyx and some lovely Sterling Silver rectangles to echo the shape of the feldspar.
And last, but not least, this marriage of turquoise and silver, which is a favourite combination. I've used both chips and rondelles here with Sterling leaves at the front of the necklace and textured tubes at the back. It comes with a choice of earrings because I couldn't make up my mind...

So, that's a quick selection of what I've been up to. I'll be back with some more soon.

Take care, all.

Much love.
xx

North Somserset Arts Week - a virtual tour of venue 73

2009-05-07T20:01:00.006+01:00

Our welcome table with a few examples of the work on offer and our visitors book.

Firstly our felt artist: Sarah Quick with a super picture and some cards.
More of Sarah's felt including the cake shaped pin cushions which have been selling like... well, hot cakes!
Bags, hats and bangles in felt on the right and framed photographs by Denise Thomas on the left.
Denise Thomas's main display of photographs of all sizes. Many are local to North Somerset.
Fabulous fused glass by Sarah Aumayer of Mydsomer Studio.
Jewellery by yours truly and fused glass by Sarah Aumayer. If you study the photograph on the middle shelf you'll see that it's Julie Fountain of Lush Lampwork, pictured doing her thing!
Corner jewellery display. The bottom shelf and the mirror show off my Sterling silver squiggles. And yes, I have replenished the second shelf!
The main jewellery display. We're really pleased with the way this turned out. The glass shelves are taken from my cupboard, the supports are gift wrapped breeze blocks and bricks. The mirrors are all from IKEA.

Display of earrings and chain maille bracelets and watches. White shelves curtesy of IKEA... what would we do without them?
We're offering tea and coffee... would you care for a cup?

Toys and books to amuse our tiny visitors and discourage them from playing with the displays!
More fused glass by Sarah Aumayer.
And on your way out a last display of fused glass.

Please do sign our visitors' book and thank you for coming.

If you're in the area and would like to see it all in person - we're in Lower Langford - just off A38, near Churchill. And we're open 10-6 until Sunday.

Much love.
xx

End of the Road...

2009-05-07T19:48:00.004+01:00

Sorry it's taken a while to finish up the blog about our trip to the USA. As soon as we got back I was headlong into the preparations for Arts Week... see next post.

The last full day in San Francisco saw us in China Town: even the lampposts are in tune!

I saw this lady on the cable car and thought she looked so wonderful I had to secretly take her photo.

And then to Alcatraz. It's a fascinating place and there is an excellent self guided tour.

Then all too soon it was time to come home. The bitter pill was sweetened by the fact that we got bumped up to Business Class! Talk about how the other half live. It was marvellous.

I can't believe that we were there this time a month ago. It was a superb trip - one that we'll all remember for the rest of our lives.

Hope you enjoyed coming along with us!

Much love
xx

San Francisco

2009-04-16T15:24:00.004+01:00

Couldn't resist getting a photo of Martha next to 'her' boat!

I love the cable cars. I've been to SF once before and bought a Christmas Tree ornament in the shape of a cable car. Each Christmas I relive the joy of travelling on them. So, it was wonderful to be able to share the experience with Brian and the children, who love it as much as me.
We've bought a three day pass so that we can hop on and off them (and the trolley buses) as much as we like and we're taking full advantage.

This is the view from our hotel window. The road is California and the cable cars run up and down there.
Yesterday we went to Muir woods, just outside San Francisco. It is home to the oldest Redwood forest. The trees are SO tall, some of them are over 1000 years old.

Everywhere you look there is a tree taller than the one you saw before. A very beautiful place.

It look ages to find this road. We could see people on it, but couldn't get to it. I'm glad we persisted, the view of the Golden Gate Bridge was fantastic.

Today we are off to Alcatraz! And a walk around Chinatown. Then it'll be packing the cases ready to come home tomorrow. It feels like we been away for about a month. It will be sad to leave, but I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed...

I hope to be able to update you one more time before we fly home. If not, you'll have to wait until I've got over the jet lag... And then I should be back to the jewellery! I've not bought a single bead... yet...

Take care, all.

Much love.
xx

The looooooooooong drive north

2009-04-15T17:16:00.005+01:00

We knew it was going to be a long drive from Las Vegas to Yosemite...

We looked it up on the sat nav (we have become so reliant on Jane, as we call her, that we only have a very small map of the west coast. She's not let us down yet.) and Jane said that it would take 9.5 hours if we went the whole way on the freeways/interstate highways and 12 hours if we went on smaller roads through the national parks. We took a vote and decided to go the pretty way.

We said a fond farewell to Las Vegas and set off. All went well and we passed through amazing, amazing scenery:

We even stopped off to find an ATM and found ourselves on Route 66...
But when we got up to the place where we should turn left to go over the mountains and into Yosemite, the pass was closed. We pulled into a petrol station and were told that the pass would be closed for the next couple of months! We couldn't wait that long...

The second pass was also closed, so as we'd already been on the road for 9 hours, we decided to go onto Lake Tahoe which was the next big place and the pass over the mountains from there was open.

Although we were sad to miss Yosemite, Lake Tahoe ran it a pretty good second. When I've heard people say on the TV and in films that they were going to Lake Tahoe, I'd never imagined that it was high, high up in the mountains and that it was a ski resort as well. It is a huge lake - 72 miles round - and it's stunning.

So, the above two pictures were taken within moments of each other. The one with me reading the paper (I'll explain in a minute) you can see the blinding sun on the mountains... and then the one with the three of us is looking in the other direction where there was a snow blizzard! There are mountains in amongst all that gloom.

The paper... Jim (back in Colorado - which seems like weeks ago to us now) publishes several papers and magazines for his area. The free daily paper is the Summit Daily and they publish occasional pictures of people reading the paper in unlikely settings. So, we've taken this copy around with us, photographing ourselves reading it in front of all the sights we've seen. Will let you know if we make it into the paper!

Did you have Dead Fly Cemetery when you were at school? It was a pudding with loads of currants - I didn't like it. But here's our version - the front of the car...

And then it was time to drive down the other side of the mountain and more gorgeous scenery. If you're ever short of a photo of mountains, we're the guys to see, we've got hundreds...

OK, so now we're in San Francisco and the last phase of the holiday. It's super sunny, but very windy.

It feels like we've been away for months, not a week and a bit.

Right, must get in the shower and get on with the day.

Much love to all,
xx

Easter in Las Vegas...

2009-04-15T06:27:00.009+01:00

... isn't like in any other place...

It started when we were walking back to the hotel on Saturday night when several police cars went screeching by with their sirens wailing. Then as we got nearer we saw a police helicopter circling. But then we realised it was circling our hotel!

Must admit to being rather wary. But as we got nearer, the helicopter wheeled away and shone its search beam elsewhere. Phew! Or at least I thought it was Phew... We went to bed and I read for a while, but when I turned off the light, I could see flashing lights. There were several police cars parked in the car park at the back of the hotel and then the helicopter returned. I eventually fell asleep, but I was still uneasy.

The next thing I knew there was someone banging on the room door. Being the coward that I am, I woke Brian up. It was 6 o'clock. He answered the door to two policemen! They said they'd had a report of a disturbance and was he OK. Brian assured them that he was. So then they asked if his family was OK.

We never found out what it was all about, but it was worrying for a while.

THEN, on Sunday morning, I looked out of the window to find a jet plane writing in the sky! The writing was done with the jet stream. Goodness knows how high up it was - I couldn't see the plane when the stream was turned off. I didn't get a very good picture... but eventually the message said, Jesus 'heart' U.

On Sunday, our original plan was to go to the Grand Canyon. However when we put it into the Sat Nav, she said it would take four and a half hours each way. Given that we were going to do a very long drive on Monday, we decided to miss it. So, it remains top of my 'Places I want to go to' list where it has been for a very long time. However we did fly over it when we were going from Denver to LA, so here it is from 30,000 feet!!
So instead we went to Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. And it was a great trip. Here's the Dam taken from the Lake.
One of the best things for me was that the boat we took on the lake was paddlesteamer. I've always wanted to go on a steamer. When Mum and I came to America about 20 years ago we tried to go on one on the Mississippi, but the river was frozen and the boats frozen into it! So, this was a dream come true for me.

Here's the view of the lake from the dam. There's a long long traffic jam to cross the dam. So they are building a new road and a bridge...
... I'm kinda glad we visited before they finished it. Yikes!!
OK, that's got you up to Sunday. I'll try and catch you up a couple more days tomorrow.

Take care, all.

Much love
xx

Bright lights and sore feet

2009-04-12T02:52:00.006+01:00

OK, we're now in Las Vegas... after a long, long drive through the desert from Los Angeles. This shot is of the New York, New York hotel. You can just about see the huge rollercoaster that runs around the hotel - even through the casino - and reaches up to 65 mph. And no, I won't be trying it!
Lovely metalwork.

The hotel on the left that looks like it's made of Lego is the Excalibur. We've not been in there yet.

This is the front of the Paris Hotel - and a half size replica of the Eiffel Tower.
The attention to detail in these themed hotels is just amazing - like this replica of the Arc d'Triumph at the Paris Hotel. And just look at all the detail in the metalwork of the canopy.

We were taking a breather on some benches here. We've walked MILES and MILES! My feet are so sore...
The reception of the Paris Hotel. The whole place just twinkled and twinkled.
If you thought the Paris Hotel was something, you should see the Venetian... all the sights of Venice boiled down to the front of the hotel. I took the photograph from a great replica of the Doge's Palace. Inside the hotel the shopping mall has a false sky... And there are more gondolas and gondaliers inside too.

This shot is for my brother. He just loved American trucks when he was younger. They are all so well looked after, the chrome has a polish that I'd be pleased to get on my jewellery!

There'll be more pics of Vegas soon... as long as my feet recover!

Hope all well with all of you.

Much love
xx

It all lines up

2009-04-10T15:01:00.010+01:00

The beach at Santa Monica... there's miles and miles and miles of sand... and hardly anyone on it.

Palm tree at Santa Monica... they are SO tall and there's loads of them.

We spent the day at the John Paul Getty Centre... or Center as they spell it here. What a fabulous place.

This is in the central plaza. I did an architecture tour while we were at the centre and the guide explained that everything is based on a 30 inch square. So each of those blocks of stone on the building is 30 inches, and the aluminium squares around the windows are 30 inches and the windows are 60 inches. And what makes it so attractive to me is that it all lines up. You can see how the lines between the windows line up exactly with the lines between the aluminium squares and where the aluminium meets the stone in the corner, it lines up, and where the stone meets the floor, the lines between the stones line up with the lines between the blocks on the floor. Very pleasing to the eye.
One of the eateries. We had lunch here and it was excellent - and great value. The whole centre is great value... it's free to get in (my favourite price) - just ten dollars to park the car.

This was one of my favourite piece of art at the Getty. It's Delusions of Grandeur by Rene Magritte. I loved the fact that none of the collection was behind ropes, you can go right up to it and examine it closely... even Van Gogh's Irises, the Monets, Gainsboroughs, Cezannes... you can get close enough to see every brush stroke. And you can photograph it... such an alien concept... so alien that I couldn't bring myself to do it!
I just loved these - located in the central garden. The structures are metal and the bourganvillea grows up through the core and spills out in a froth of flowers at the top.

This is the cactus garden at the south end of the centre and it represents Southern California.

And this is the north end, representing Northern California. You can land your helicopter on the circle at the end. And over to the right is the San Diego Freeway. The only thing I've not liked about LA is driving on the freeway - scary!!! We switched the Sat Nav to take us on the shortest route rather than the quickest and that's kept us off the freeways and finding much more interesting parts of town.

But for us, that's it for LA. Today (Friday) we head for the bright lights of Las Vegas!

Take care, All.

Much love,

What a difference a day makes...

2009-04-09T15:17:00.009+01:00

a day and a two hour flight to California! Our hotel is a snowball's throw from Venice Beach:

We discarded our layers and went down to the beach, stopping off on the way for Brian to enjoy his first ever pint of beer with an orange garnish!!

We walked for a long, long way along the beach, enjoying the sunshine, warmth and the fantastic architecture of the beachfront houses:

Then we walked back to the hotel along the canals that give Venice its name. More stunning houses:

Then yesterday, Wednesday, was our movie day. We started with a tour of Warner Brothers Studios, which was just amazing.

They're in the process of taking down all the sets they have used for ER for the last 15 years... it was really sad.

If you know The Gilmore Girls, you'll recognise Lorelai's house.

And unless you've been on another planet for the last decade, you'll recognise Central Perk from Friend's. Although the series has finished, they have preserved the set as it's one of their most successful shows.

We saw SO much cool stuff that we weren't allowed to photograph... like the museum where they have the costumes from The Matrix, Willy Wonka (although we didn't see Johnny Depp's costume as he has it written into his contract that he keeps all his costumes) and a whole floor of bits from Harry Potter. This includes the Sorting Hat from the first film... and we could be sorted. I'm a Huffelpuff...

It was an amazing tour and we had a super guide called Wes, who was a veritable mine of information.

From the studios we went to investigate the Walk of Fame, stopping off for some lunch in this shopping mall from where you can see the Hollywood sign. All the people on the bridge are taking their photos. I liked it better from here:

Onto the stars. These go on for miles. We saw most of them, but I missed Katherine Hepburn which was the one I really wanted to see. Ah well, next time...

Sam is an excellent second choice.

Near one end of the Walk of Fame is the Chinese Theatre with all the hand and footprints. Martha and I made a bee-line for Johnny Depp. He has very small hands!

From there we went over to Carroll Avenue which you won't have heard of, I'm sure, but it has amazing houses, including this one, which was used as the house where the witches from Charmed lived. This is Martha's favourite programme. It was supposed to be set in San Francisco but was actually filmed in LA.

An amazing day.

We're off to investigate museums today.

Hope you're all behaving!

Much love to all.

Pictures of the Rockies

2009-04-08T05:41:00.005+01:00

Jim and Becky's lovely house. This was taken on Saturday when the weather was not at its best.
The snow was so fine, it was really difficult to make the snowman, but we managed this rather strange looking one.

Jim and Tom about to set off down the mountain. This is Sunday when the weather was improving... Then there was Monday...

All of us taken at Sapphire point. This is a remarkable spot - and apparently is often used for weddings. Left to right: Brian, Becky, Tom, Martha, Me and Jim.

Becky and Martha flopping over backwards to do snow angels.

This is WAY high up in the mountains. There were loads of skiers and snowboarders who were going down the mountain sides - not on runs more like wild skiing. We all got sunburned waiting for two skiers to go down a really steep bit... and had to leave before they plucked up the courage...

One of the wonderful views from Sapphire Point. All the peaks have names, but I can't remember which ones these were.

And lastly, this magazine... the name of which just cracked me up. Only in America...

Will be back with the next installment really soon.

Much love to y'all.
xx

Greetings from the Rocky Mountains...

2009-04-05T17:39:00.002+01:00

Well we made it! Here we are in Dillon, Colorado high in the Rockies. The scenery here is just astounding. Will upload some pictures soon to show you. Huge mountains covered in snow and pine trees. Today the sky is beyond blue and the sun is shining. Yesterday it snowed and snowed and was bitter... but that didn't stop us making a snowman and Martha and I making snow angels.
Today the boys are off skiing and we girls are off to the movies.
Jim and Becky are perfect hosts, they have a gorgeous house - warm and very comfortable - and they are feeding us at every opportunity. I'm sure if I eat one more thing I'm going to explode... not that it will stop me, I suspect...
We're all just about on Mountain time although yesterday we were all a little spaced out. The altitude (we're about 2 miles above sea level here) makes it quite hard to breathe at times.
OK, that's it for now. Hope to be back with photos soon.

Y'all take care now, d'you hear!

Much love to all.
xx

We're off!

2009-04-02T12:12:00.010+01:00

Just grabbing a few minutes, while I drink my coffee, to say hello and goodbye!

We're off on our American adventure tomorrow. First to Dillon, near Denver, to see friends, Jim and Becky. It's FREEZING there at the moment -14 Centigrade as I type!!! BRRRRRR. Admittedly it is the middle of the night, but still... The forecast it that it might go as high as 4 degrees C while we're there. Still sounds jolly cold to me. But Jim and Becky are super people and we know we're going to have a great time with them.

Then we'll be off to California and some sunshine.

My hope is that I'll be able to update the blog with details of the trip and some photos as we go along, so check back and see how we're doing.

On the jewellery front, it's been very hectic since my last posting. Visits to all our offices, a few parties and we had a stall at the new Nailsea Craft Market.

The craft market is running on the same Saturday (3rd in the month) as the Farmers' Market and if the first one is anything to go by, it will be a great addition. We had a fantastic time - sold LOADS and met some lovely people. The next one is on 18th April - the day we get back from hols, so Sarah is doing that one with her daughter.

A few pictures to show you:

The first one uses glass beads which I'd had for a while, then once I found the fire polished faceted ones, I knew just what to put with them. I've named it Rust and Scribble. This one is sold.

The next two features beads by Tania Grey of Tan, of course. I love Tan's little Fritett beads, as she calls them.
This one, I've named Violet Lawn. Tan's beads are a fab mixture of green and purple which I've echoed with freshwater pearls and peridot.
And this one - the necklace sold, but the earrings are still available - is a lovely mix of pinks, khaki and browns. I have used Unakite to bring out the colours.

Once I get back from holiday, it will be nose to the grindstone for me as it will only be two weeks until North Somerset Arts Week... which is actually 10 days.

So, look out for updates about our holidays and take care of yourselves.

Much love to all.
xx

And the winner is...

2009-03-30T23:38:00.001+01:00

Lynne Barrett-Lee!

Many congratulations, Lynne.

xx

LAST CHANCE!

2009-03-30T15:57:00.002+01:00

If you forgot to send in your donation to Comic Relief, why not give your money via my Just Giving website and stand a chance of winning a £20 voucher to spend on jewellery from my website?

The lucky winner will be drawn at 10pm this evening.

A big thank you to those who have already donated and good luck!

I'm sorry I've neglected you over the last couple of weeks, I've been busy, busy, busy! I will try very hard to get back to you before we go off on our hols on Friday.

Much love to all.
xx

Happy Red Nose Day!

2009-03-13T13:08:00.001Z

Hope you're all doing something funny for money!!

Just a quick reminder that if you are donating to Comic Relief, why not do so through my Just Giving website: http://www.justgiving.com/coburgcrafts and be entered into the draw for a £20 voucher to be spent on my website!

Good luck and have fun!

Much love, to all.

Up, Up and Away!!

2009-03-06T08:30:00.006Z

Right, are you sitting comfortably? This could be quite a long one... You've got two weeks of news to catch up on... and there's quite a bit of news!

Firstly, let's show you some of the jewellery that's been produced lately.

This first set is made with Kyanite - a gorgeous subtle blue stone.

My lovely chum - not to mention very talented jeweller, Nia, is a huge fan of Kyanite. So I have named this set after her. Of course, it helps that she has an unusual and pretty name. I might not have been so keen if her name had been... ooo now what can I say without offending anyone? Perhaps you should fill in the blank yourself!

Martha had an in-service day last week and wanted to help me, so she assisted on the design of the following set. I think she did a really good job.
It's a really pretty set made with sky quartz, chalcedony and sodalite. I think it has a real innocence about it and it would make a lovely gift for a first communion or for a bridesmaid.

Martha also helps with the memory wire bracelets. This is one of hers... shown off here by Perky.

The next two are my memory wire bracelets using just one colour and two sizes of seed beads. Firstly one that is the colour of celadon pottery...

and then one using matt purple beads which have an AB coating which means they shine in all different colours.

I bought the seed beads in London... and thereby hangs a tale.

Back before Christmas, I was supposed to meet up with my chums and go for a super lunch in London... but I was struck down by that awful flu that did the rounds and couldn't go. So, it was decided we should have a re-run.

So on 24th February, I actually made it to London... and to THE IVY for lunch!! My dear, it was SO posh. AND guess who was two tables down from me... Bill Nighy! Looking very dishy, it has to be said. So much less craggy than he looks for the parts he plays in films and on TV. Tony Booth (Cherie's dad) was also in there.

There were loads of other people in there who were probably famous, but we didn't know who they were - and certainly masses of folks who thought they were famous, but weren't! Two of my chums are sort of famous - they are both novelists - Lynne Barrett-Lee and Jane Wenham-Jones. And my other friend, Anne, is a budding author and deserves to be famous because she's one of the very nicest people I know. Not to mention that she has great taste in jewellery - that commissioned necklace and kilt pin I mentioned a couple of posts ago were for Anne.

Anyway, when we staggered out of The Ivy at five o'clock (yes, we were in there for lunch!), what should be opposite but the London Bead Shop. So in we plunged... and these seed beads were part of my haul.

Back to the jewellery... and onto chain maille. The first one - Summer Meadow - is made with antique silver rings and a mix of pastel colours of glass magatama beads. The 'antique' refers to the colour of the rings, not that they are old.

This next one is a Byzantine chain with a mix of silver and black plated rings. This one sold, first time out, last night.

And I've been making more watch bracelets. This one is silver with pale purple magatamas. It has a lovely ethereal quality and so I've named it 'Titania Time'.

I've also been making more bookmarks - loads on the website now. Mainly using lampwork beads by the very talented Clare Scott. I bought a huge batch of her 'orphan' beads - ones that - in her opinion - don't have enough soulmates to make a set. But, they are great for stand alone earrings and bookmarks.

I couldn't resist showing you my favourite one - black and red - and being a huge Star Wars fan it just shouted Darth Maul to me as soon as I saw it. And, at last, I got an excuse to use my Star Wars font. You wouldn't believe how long I've waited to have a valid reason.

Right, that's it for the jewellery. I have made more and am gradually putting it on the website, so do have a browse around in there.

Other news on the business front... Sarah and I have been MEGA-busy sorting out the shows for the rest of the year. For those that we are returning too, it's matter of filling in forms, photocopying our insurance and posting it off. But for others, it's a more arduous task... First of all, we have to find them! Hours searching the Internet for mentions of fairs, fayres, fetes, shows etc in our area, trawling through their pages to find costs, restrictions, onto the AA website to calculate mileages and journey times, phoning each other to discuss practicalities and check each other's diary (just in case we've had time to book any family time in amongst all this selling), emailing for forms... then it's back to filling in forms, devising risk assessments for having a stall with really no risk at all, but we have to think of something to put on the form, collating photos of our items and of our stall at other events, writing a cheque for the deposit.... and so it goes on and on.

BUT, whatever it is we're doing, we're doing it right, because....... drum roll here...... we have secured a place in the craft tent at the Bristol Balloon Fiesta!! This is a four day, free event which attracts over half a million visitors! HALF A MILLION! Gawd, I hope they all don't want to buy a necklace!! Can you tell I'm excited by the prospect?? If you are going to the Fiesta, please do drop by and say hello.

And just behind the Fiesta, in the excitement stakes, is the news that we shall be selling our wares in the Broadmead Shopping Mall in Bristol on 6th June. City centre selling! Woohoo.

That's going to be a very busy weekend as the next day, we return to Bowood Dog Show and Summer Fair. Let's hope it's a nice day, but not as hot as last year when we were melting in the marquee.

Other venues to which we're thrilled to be returning are: Publow Garden Party and Portishead Flower Show which was our most successful show last year.

And, next week, I hope to have some very exciting news for those of you in the North Somerset area... watch this space.

Phew! I think that's got you all caught up with jewellery news.

So, what's been happening on the home front?

Well, up there with the excitement of the Balloon Fiesta, is the news that we've booked to go to the States at Easter. We're going to stay with some friends in Denver for a few days (the rest of the family will go skiing... my knees just aren't up to it... that's my excuse!), then on to LA, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Yosemite and San Francisco. It's going to be fantastic. Brian and I have both been to the USA before, but not together. Can't wait. We are taking a laptop with us, so I'm hoping I'll be able to blog about it in real time and show you pics.

Gosh, I told you it was going to be an epic, didn't I?

OK, time for us all to get a coffee and get on with the day.

Have a super weekend, everyone.

Much love to all.
xx

Comic Relief Giveaway

2009-03-05T10:55:00.007Z

Hi All

I'm SO sorry to have neglected you for so long. And this one isn't going to be very long either! I aim to get back to you tomorrow with a long catch up and loads of photos.

But with Comic Relief only just over a week away, I wanted to launch this as soon as possible.

To raise money for my favourite charity, I am giving away a £20 voucher to be spent on anything on my website. You can, of course, add to the money if you chose a more expensive item!!

To enter, just go to my Just Giving page (the money goes directly to Comic Relief) and leave your name and the amount you wish to donate. In the comments box, leave me your email address (so I can get in touch when you win!!) and a joke. Short, silly ones are my favourite!

Here's my all time fave:

What goes 'clip'?

A one legged-horse!

The comments box isn't visible to anyone else, so don't worry about anyone harvesting your email address for spam!

I will put all the names in a hat on 30th March and the first person drawn will get the £20 voucher.

Good luck, everyone!!

Half-Term Happenings

2009-02-21T09:13:00.007Z

Well, it went by in a flash, didn't it?

Lots to show you. Firstly, the gallery wanted some earrings to go with the squiggle pendants I left there last week:

These are hammered just to widen the curves - and to strengthen the metal.

While these are more heavily hammered to give a texture which means that the light bounces in all directions making them very twinkly.

And these are three squiggles soldered together and very lightly hammered for strength. It was a bit of a fiddle working with such small scrolls, but I was pleased with the outcome.

Because these need polishing to bring up the shine - and because it's half-term and therefore no class at college where I use the big polisher - I had to get out my polishing machine. This hasn't been installed (bolted down to the workbench, dust extraction mechanism devised, cowling to prevent polish going everywhere) yet, so I did a bit of a Heath Robinson and put it into a cardboard box to try and contain the bits of polish which fly in all directions. It worked - but the box kept moving with the vibration of the machine. It was all a bit awkward holding the earrings under the polishing mops while holding the whole thing on the workbench with my elbow!

I left the polisher in situ... and obviously Cleo decided to investigate and rub herself up against the mops...
We now have a tortoiseshell and pink cat!!

I've also been working on a commission for my lovely chum, Anne. A long, long necklace (34"):
There are loads of pearls and then sea glass, chalcedony, fluorite, crystals, blue lace agate and amazonite. Part of the necklace is made with chain and little dangles of the semi-precious stones.

And also for Anne, a kilt pin to be worn with a beige cardigan:

This has Tigers Eye, nephrite, poppy jasper, rhyolite, ocean jasper, fancy jasper, moonstone, Botswana agate, smoky quartz and crystals. There is also mix of gold plate and copper.

There were three sets that also got made this week:

Turquoise rondelles with loads of silver.
Gorgeous lampwork by Clare Scott coupled with sea glass, Swarovski Crystals, black onyx and Sterling Silver. I'm pleased to report that Clare really liked it! It's always a bit of a concern that the lampwork artist will be disappointed with what you've done with their beads, so it's great to get positive feedback from them!

Hang on, I hear you cry, that's only two sets... you said there were three. Correct! I didn't get time to photograph the third set before it was sold! It was Amazonite and silver. It was really pretty and I'm hoping to make something using the same beads - in a different pattern - this week, so you'll get to see something like it soon.

Anyway, it sold at our first visit to the HBOS offices in Bristol. Wow, what beautiful offices they are too. We were selling in their vast atrium which is five stories high and has a glass roof, so the light was fantastic. And we sold LOADS! Absolutely brilliant. And really lovely people too. We're booked to go back about once a month for the rest of the year and really looking forward to it.

So that's about it for jewellery.

On the home front, the big news of the week is that Tom turned 17 yesterday. I know I'm biased but I couldn't wish for a better son. He is a kind, thoughtful, clever and gorgeous boy. And I'm terrifically proud of him and all his achievements. Can you tell?

Last weekend we went to a Sweet Sixteen party and the invitation said we should 'Dress to Impress' - so we all donned our poshest togs. Here's the rest of the family as we're about to set off:
And no, there's no picture of me. I'm the photographer in the family and rarely feature in the pictures. Needless to say, I looked absolutely gorgeous!! LOL!!!

So, that's got you call caught up on events at this end.

I hope you've all had a good week, whatever you've been up to. Have a terrific weekend and I'll be back next week with the next exciting installment.

Much love to all.
xx

Lots of news!

2009-02-12T19:53:00.006Z

Remember in the last entry I mentioned a local shop wanting some summer jewellery? Well, I took a selection yesterday and the owner took three sets to try in the shop (including Paddling Pools and Fiesta Summer, shown below) and bought a Shaggy Loop bracelet for herself!

She really liked some of the other items I'd taken, but didn't think they'd be suitable for her shop, so recommended that I try the gallery down the road. I called in and made an appointment for today.

I took my pieces in this afternoon and the owner has kept 10 items to display! TEN!!! She loved the squiggle pendants and has taken practically all my stock, so guess what I'll be doing for the next few days? She also took some with lampwork beads, so some of my favourite lampworkers will be represented in the gallery too.

So, if you happen to be in Clevedon anytime, make for Hill Road (loads of other fabulous shops too - super wool shop and don't mention the handmade chocolate shop!) and find Estuary and Fizz - and seek out my stuff. And, if you'd be so kind, make oooo and aaaahh noises over my bits and bobs!! Thanks.

To catch you up, here are the new squiggles the top two of which are now in Fizz.

The one above is made with three pieces of wire, soldered together and gently hammered.
The one below is four pieces, two long, two short, soldered and rather more heavily hammered!

The next one isn't quite right, hence it not going to the gallery, but it's getting there. This is the path I really want to take - to marry my love of silver and my passion for lampwork beads.

The stunning bead is by the ever-talented Isabelle Anderson. I love Izzy's beads, they're so perfect.

Look out for more of this sort of thing coming soon. Also, there will be some squiggle earrings in the next week or so.

On top of all that excitement, Sarah and I are busy sorting out our shows for the summer. When it's so cold and icy it's hard to imagine how hot and sunny it will be (hopefully) by the time we come to do these shows. I think we deserve a good summer, don't you?

Right, I think I'm going to open a bottle of wine in celebration of a really good couple of days.

Cheers, everyone!

Thinking Summer!

2009-02-06T19:50:00.007Z

A local shop has asked to see some colourful summery sets - so I've been sat here wearing a vest, T-shirt, sweatshirt, thick cardigan, ski socks and my thickest trousers with the halogen heater about three inches away from me, looking out at the snow and trying to think of warm, summer days. Boy, it was hard!!

Here's the results:

These are mainly shell with glass spacers. I do like the beads with the holes - it's a challenge to find something that fits exactly.

These wiggly beads are an old favourite - and give a more delicate look. The coloured beads are shell.

More shell here with some Mother of Pearl.

And lastly a real zinger! The small beads are shell and the large nuggets are dyed agate. I got them at the Chepstow show last Sunday.

These next two use beads that I bought at the NEC on Monday - and aren't part of the summer range!

This one uses Spider Web Agate which I love. The black beads are Onyx and I've used lots of Sterling Silver which sets up a good contrast.

The name is from Lake Tawakoni State Park in Texas where a communal spiders' web measured 200 yards (180 m) across. Entomologists believe it may be the result of social cobweb spiders or of spiders building webs to spread out from one another.

I, for one, definitely won't be visiting there any time soon!

And this one features one of my all-time favourite stones - Picasso Jasper. These flat cylinders are my new favourite shape - so you'll be seeing more of those in various stones.

This last one belongs to a friend who asked me to repair it. Have a guess how old it is?

Well, it has been in her family for over 100 years having been bought back from Africa. It's so modern looking isn't it?

We did pretty well at Clerical Medical on Wednesday and it was great to get back into selling-mode. We have, today, secured another office selling venue - and this is a BIG one in Bristol. We're really chuffed.

Martha got her snow days - no school yesterday or today. Tom was also off. We didn't get too much snow and what we had mostly melted away quickly. We are kept just that little bit warmer by the Bristol Channel. It's always a degree or two higher here than even a couple of miles inland.

Not sure what we're up to this weekend - I think the forecast is for it to be very cold, so maybe we'll just stay in and snuggle up on the sofa. Sounds like a plan to me.

Hope you haven't been too badly affected by the snow.

Have a great weekend and keep warm.

Much love.
xx

Back in harness...

2009-02-04T08:04:00.005Z

Today is our first event since the onslaught of the pre-Christmas selling. We are in at Clerical Medical offices selling in their canteen. We aren't expecting too much in the way of sales, but it will be good to get back into selling mode.

And it will be interesting to see our customers' (many of whom we're getting to know quite well after our visits there last year) reactions to our new ranges that we've been developing during January.

My squiggle pendants are evolving at quite a rate now.

Here's a triple squiggle pendant:

It's fun to make the individual squiggles and play with them until I get an overall shape that I'm happy with - a bit like doing a jigsaw.

For the next one, I thought I'd try to incorporate something else into the squiggles. I had got these hammered domes, so I bent the wire around them and soldered them in place.

I'm pleased with the way it's turned out. I've called it Islands in the Stream... which is an early nod to Comic Relief as Rob Brydon (Bryn) and Ruth Jones (Nessa) from TV’s Gavin & Stacey are duetting on the charity single. It's released on 9th March and Red Nose Day is on 13th.

I'm currently trying to work out a way to raise money through my blog for Comic Relief... watch this space.

Had a super couple of days... Sunday I went to Chepstow Bead Fair to give my mate, Julie Fountain of Lush Lampwork, a hand with her stall. And then on Monday (yes, through all that snow) the two of us went to Spring Fair at the NEC. I bought lots of lovely new Sterling Silver beads and loads of fabulous new beads... which you'll be seeing over the next few weeks. I'm itching to get to them.

But first, I must away and get packed up for today. Wish us luck!

Hope you're all coping with whatever snow you've had - we had quite a lot on Monday night which all disappeared yesterday, but we're forecast a load on Thursday/Friday. Martha has her fingers crossed as she felt hard done by not having a snowday yesterday.

Take care, all, and keep warm.

Much love
xx

Woodstock...

2009-01-29T20:23:00.004Z

So I've been looking at this picture for the last two days and thinking that the shape near the top reminded me of something...

And then tonight, it struck me...

See what I mean?

A really good day...

2009-01-27T18:14:00.003Z

You know how some days, everything just goes to plan... I had one of those yesterday and this is the result...This first one, I am SO excited by. I have, for the longest time, been an Art Nouveau addict and I've tried to express this in my jewellery... and yesterday I finally got it. This piece is three squiggles soldered together. I'm keeping this one for myself, but you will be seeing lots more of this type of thing.

This was the stage before - two squiggles joined together. I love the organic internal shapes that are formed.

This sweet little ring I made using an excellent on-line tutorial from Evan Hollander. Here's the link... http://www.dawnandevan.com/spiral_wire_wrap_ring_tutorial.htm

And this one is a simpler ring, hammered to give texture.

Then, more etching. These were done at college - still waiting to pluck up the courage to try this at home.

These first ones I drew the pattern on with a pen that's used to make printed circuit boards. It doesn't give a crisp design, but I like that. These look like they could be of archealogical interest, don't they? The thing I was trying with these was to get a border - and that worked.

For my next experiment, I pinched a couple of stickers from Martha's card making kit and burnished them onto the silver to make sure they got a firm hold. As you can see, this gives a much sharper outline than the pen. Both of these pairs will be made into stud earrings.

Then one that also used the pen - I really like this one. A pendant, I think...

And this last experiment used strips of address label. I'd read that they could be used as a resist, so thought I'd try it. The paper started to peel off quite quickly once they were in the acid, but obviously the solution was hot and strong enough to have already had an effect.

So, that was yesterday.

Today has been more of a paperwork day, so nothing new to show you. But who knows what tomorrow will bring!

Hope you have had a good day too.

Much love.
xx

Sorry, Mum.

2009-01-23T15:36:00.004Z

How gorgeous is this?

Well, in fact, even more gorgeous in the flesh... as the colours are darker and richer than they seem here.

It's a jacket that I'm knitting for myself for the spring. The yarn is like a thin ribbon - you can see it just by the needle and is mainly merino wool. I can't usually bear to have wool next to my skin, but this is so soft and non-itchy that it'll be fine.

And as it's knitted on 8mm needles it's growing really fast. I only bought it yesterday lunch-time and I'm already three quarters of the way up the back... and I was out at a meeting most of last evening! I should get onto the front tonight - you knit the back and fronts all in one go!

The pattern was in a booklet, so I've got other patterns that I'd like to have a go at - one of which uses some really funky wool and is knitted on 15mm needles! Be like knitting with tree trunks!

Oh and why am I apologising to my mum? Because I hate sewing up my knitting and Mum will get that job. Sorry.

Have a super weekend, everyone. Take care and have fun.

Much love.
xx

Proverbs...

2009-01-21T10:18:00.004Z

Further to my waffling about naming pieces in a previous post, this next set's name was a gift. The lampwork beads are by the ever-talented Julie Fountain of Lush Lampwork and she calls this style 'Rolling Stones'... and as they are a lovely shade of green... this set is called Gathering Moss.

The beads are threaded onto Sterling Silver wire which has been shaped and hammered to give it texture and strength. The pendant is quite big, so it's rather a statement piece. I can't wait to take it out to earn its keep and see the reaction from customers.

This set features one of my favourite stones, multi-rutilated Quartz. The big square piece is just gorgeous as you can see from the picture below.

I love all the little indentations which must be little holes inside the stone and therefore don't get polished with the smooth surface. The round beads are River Stones and compliment the quartz well, I think.

The next one is made with three different shapes of Amethysts and two different shapes of pearls.

The big irregular nuggets on the front are just lovely and lend an organic feel to the necklace. The second lot of Amethysts are irregular ovals and then at the back are some round ones. I love those big pearls, they're pearls with attitude!

This last picture shows a pendant - with a chain made with gold plated and antique copper rings in a Byzantine chain maille weave.
It gives a really fluid chain and compliments the pendant which is glass and gold plated beads on copper wire.

All these are on the website now, along with a huge batch of spectacle chains that I'd promised myself I'd get on there this week. Yes! Something to tick off the ever-growing list!!

Just got back from taking the cat to the vets. It was only her routine innoculations, but she really HATES going to the vets. As I've said before, she's not an affectionate cat. She rarely sits on anyone's lap and really, really doesn't like being picked up. Last year, the vet couldn't get near her and abandoned all hope of checking her teeth, ears, heart etc. This year was a bit better - I held onto her really tightly and she got a clean bill of health. Phew! That's done for another year...

Tom has now finished his first batch of AS exams and feels pretty confident about them. Now Martha has a week of exams. Hopefully these will help her with her decisions about which GCSEs to opt for. Because she has several that she doesn't have any choice about, she, in fact, can only choose two others, so that's quite difficult.

Is it time for a coffee? Thought so. Black, no sugar, please.

Take care and much love to all.
xx

Extremes

2009-01-16T09:33:00.006Z

Whoa, three posts in a week! I'm spoiling you...

I have been at the extremes of my jewellery making spectrum this week. These first three items - although good little earners, don't exactly stretch me.

A memory wire bracelet, commissioned for a young man (8) to give as a birthday present to a young lady he has a soft spot for:

Then two spectacle chains. They continue to be the Google search that brings the majority of people to my website, so I really must get more on there. I practicaly sold out before Christmas!

Then two sets. The first one features lampwork beads by my chum, Suzy Hannabuss. I fell in love with the colours in the focal and even though I'm not usually too keen on 'bumpy' beads, I had to have this one and its accompanying spacers.

It is teamed with some fabulous Thai Hill Tribe beads, loads of Swarovski crystals and sterling silver tubes.

I have named it Tyuratam - the place where Sputnik was launched from in October 1957.

As an aside, I love the mini-adventures I have when naming my pieces. I usually have some sort of idea what I'm going to call something as I'm making it, but I then like to take it off at a slight tangent... which involves delving into the thesaurus, Brewers dictionary of phrase and fable and Google. I know all sorts of facts as a result that I don't suppose I will ever need in my day to day life... but I'm getting pretty good at quizzes!

The last one to show you, showcases the work of the supremely talented Isabelle Anderson. I adore Izzy's beads and have to really sit on my hands not to click and buy way more of her beads. I bought these back in November and already had an idea how I was going to use them, but then had to wait for the Christmas rush and the move to the new workspace to get to it. Then, I ran out of chain and had to wait for that to arrive... But, at last here is Tribal Arcs:

Tribal - because Izzy named the beads 'One Tribe' and the Arcs is pretty self-explanatory. I have hammered the curves of silver to give them texture and strength. I think when you have such wonderful beads to work with, they don't want to be fussed over, but shown in a way that gives the spotlight to the bead in an interesting way.

The same goes for the earrings, which I have simply teamed with a couple of sterling silver beads and dangled from my favourite large kidney earwires.

So, what are you up to this weekend? Now we've got the accounts out of the way, I'm hoping we can have some fun. Maybe the cinema - there seems to a loads of good films out at the moment. Brian mentioned doing a bit of gardening... but that's not exactly my idea of fun!

Hope whatever you're doing, you have fun.

Take care and much love to all. xx

Mother's pride...

2009-01-15T08:30:00.003Z

Just a quick post to let you know that Tom passed his grade 7 keyboard exam... with distinction. I'm so very proud of him.

Also to show you this photograph of Cleo taken on Christmas Day. She loves to get into really tight spaces for a sleep. This box was just big enough for her.

We had Cleo as a rescue cat - in fact, we took her from the person who had originally rescued her as her other cats didn't get on with Cleo. They reckoned she was about 8 then - which was 4 years ago. Where had she been before then? What sort of life had she had? What makes her want to always get into tiny boxes to sleep?

Although she's not an affectionate cat, she isn't aggressive - except if you are on the stairs when she'll try to hook you through the bannisters. Why?

I'll never know the answers to these questions, and I guess it's the same for anyone who has a rescued animal. You just wonder, don't you? And hope that the love they are getting now makes up for any mistreatment in their past.

Come up and see my etching...

2009-01-14T12:50:00.004Z

Woohoo! It's finally warmed up - and I can be in the workshop without the extra heater on... at least for some of the day!

Had to come and show you what I've been up to. We did more etching in my class on Monday and these are the results.

This one is an 'inny' - the letters are lower than the rest of the surface.

I did this one by rubbing on some letter transfers, painting the whole thing with the resist (stuff that stops the other silver being etched) then carefully scratched away the letters.

I was a bit disappointed that this didn't come out very clean - the acid had eaten away at the resist and given it this rustic look. But it's growing on me!

I expect I should have put the resist on thicker and/or not left it in the acid so long.

And this one is an 'outy'. The design is higher than the rest of the metal.

I drew the design onto the silver with a resist pen - and so the acid ate away at everything else. I'm really pleased with this one and think you may see more of this kind of thing... very soon!

I'm gradually gettting all the bits together to be able to do this at home... My mum has dared me to post a picture of myself when I'm all togged up to do it... pink rubber gloves, mask and protective goggles... watch this space!

Much love xx

First items from the new workshop!

2009-01-09T16:05:00.006Z

Do you think it's ever going to warm up? Ever again? I'm so fed up with being cold, aren't you? I've got the new heater in the workshop, and it's a bit warmer but it's still quite cold in here. Hey ho. Remind me of this when I'm moaning about being too hot in the summer, won't you!

Anyway, I've finally got round to making some jewellery! Just a pair of earrings, but it's a start. This is a design I've had in my sketch book for months, just waiting for time to get to it. I'm pleased with how they turned out and will probably make some more.

I have shaped and hammered the curves to give them texture - they really catch the light well. The beads are faceted Amethyst rondelles.

The next two photographs are of a project I did in my silversmithing class. We had to make beads. The first one is copper.

It started life as two squares which I textured with a tiny 0 punch and then domed. I then turned the corners and soldered them together.

The next one was as a result of me not wanting to do what I was told (nothing changes!). The idea was to make a round bead. So, you cut out two circles of silver, dome them and then solder them together. But, my urge was to kick against the norm and so I soldered my hemisphere's back to back to make a sort of egg cup shape.

I incorporated it into this necklace, with Tanzanite coloured Swarovski crystals nestling into the cups. The rest of the necklace is (ready made) sterling silver beads and smaller Tanzanite Swarovski Crystals.

We started on the etching project on Monday - it was very exciting - and I've bought some bits and bobs to have a go at doing some at home too. It's a bit scary as it uses strong chemicals, but I promise I'll be careful!

Hope you've got a lovely weekend planned. We're going to be doing accounts :-( Hey ho, it has to be done.

Whatever you are up to, have fun and keep warm!

Much love xx

Look now... it'll never be this tidy again!

2009-01-05T16:28:00.007Z

I'm in the new workshop! Yippeeeee! Although I can only spend a limited amount of time in here at a go as - despite the new radiator - it's flippin' freezing. I've got another heater which should be arriving tomorrow, so hopefully, I'll be all cosy by the end of the week. I hope so as the weather forecast is for this freeze to continue for a while.

Anyway, here's the computer bit... so that's where I'm sitting typing this! The bear on the shelf was part of one of my Christmas presents from Martha... he came with a bottle of Bucks Fizz and a little box of chocs!

Please ignore the huge stack of filing on the left... I hate filing!

This view shows my lovely cupboard... which is filling up way too quickly!
This is the jewellery bench side of things. Brian has cut a groove all the way round the workbench so that beads and things don't roll off. How clever is that? The meters will be boxed in... there just wasn't time to get that done before I had to move in. And the shelf under the window has got half its tiles... they should be finished off on Wednesday.
Another view of the workbench. This time showing my new bench vice. I've been waiting for this for ages. The little drawers hold my collection of semi-precious beads - all sorted. Some drawers need a label, but I'm getting there. At the near end, where my little torch is, that's where the soldering hearth will be. Soon!
This gorgeous suncatcher is hanging in the little window. You can just see some of the colours in the photo above. It was part of my Christmas present from Lynn (Tinkerbell) on UKBeaders forum. We were paired up to swap presents - and Lynn and I exchanged ours across the Atlantic as Lynn lives in Canada.
Long view on the other side. The interesting 'sculpture' in front of the cupboard is my spinner. It comes in two halves and this is the easiest way to store it. The black tree is nothing to do with it, but I thought it looked good there!
I managed to clear my old room in time for the party... and then no-one used it! Ah well, it got me moving. I've not got everything transferred into the new space yet, there are 'one or two' boxes full of bits and bobs that were pushed into various cupboards on New Year's Eve. I wonder if I'll find them all?

I hope you all had a terrific Christmas and New Year celebrations - whatever form they took. Our party was super - lovely friends, great food (Brian cooked) and a great start to a New Year.

Once all our guests had left, we pulled up the drawbridge and the four of us had a Lord of the Rings marathon. We watched a film a day (the extended versions), snuggled on the sofa, ate chocolate and popcorn and emmersed ourselved in Middle Earth. It was wonderful.

My jewellery class starts up again tonight and we're doing some etching this term. I've never done any of that before and I'm really looking forward to it. Watch this space for the results.

Sarah and I are having our first meeting of 2009 tomorrow to plan out our world domination scheme for the coming year. I think we both realise that we made some good decisions last year, and some not so good ones. But as long as we learn from those mistakes, we're heading in the right direction. All businesses are going to find it hard to grow in a recession, but we'll be trying our best!

I'll catch up with you later in the week. Going for a warm now!

Take care, keep warm and much love. xx

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T10:04:00.004Z

I hope 2009 will bring us all health and happiness.

I don't really do resolutions - I know myself well enough to realise that I'll have broken them by about the 7th January... but I am determined to update this blog more regularly and to try new jewellery making techniques in 2009. Read on... and see if I succeed!!

I am in the middle of moving into the new workshop... and as you can see Cleo is 'helping'...
She's very excited that I'll be just off the kitchen and not up two flights of stairs, when she wants to tell me that she hasn't been fed for 'weeks'...

I'd better get on, actually, because we're having a New Year's party tonight and we've allocated my old room for people to sleep in! So, unless they're going to sleep with their heads on boxes of beads and their feet on my polishing motor, I'd better get the room cleared.

I'll take photos of the new workshop, all finished, on Monday, and let you see it. I can guarantee it will never be that tidy ever again!

Have a splendid evening, whatever you're doing, and a fabulous 2009.

Much love to all.
xx

Happy Christmas, Everyone!

2008-12-24T18:05:00.000Z

Yet another quick note... but this time to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2009.

With all my love,

Lesley
xx

Another quick update...

2008-12-05T20:46:00.003Z

I promise that after Christmas you'll be sick of me updating the blog... but for now, it's another rushed entry. Got events tomorrow, Sunday and Monday morning. Then a party next Thursday and an outdoor (!) event on Friday... and then I'm finished for Christmas!!

So what's new?

Well, the workshop is coming along. Here it is with the funky shaped computer desk, the lovely IKEA cupboard (constructed by Tom) and the start of the workbench. I'm itching to get in there as the light is brilliant, but we're still waiting for the plumber to come and attach the radiator. It's far too cold to work in there at the moment - although it might come in handy as a second fridge over Christmas!!

Watch out!! What do you think of these? The bracelet part is byzantine with knobs on as I call it. They are selling pretty well and I'm enjoying making them. I've also done some in copper which is really pretty.
The rest of these are black sets using Black Agate. As always at this time of year, black is very popular.
The first one incorporated some lovely Sterling rectangles and Swarovski Crystals for a Christmas sparkle.
This is the seond of the Murano pendants in this style. The other one was slightly larger and that set has been sold. I was very excited when I found the glass beads with silver and gold in them and knew instantly that they'd go perfectly with the pendant. So I added in some black agate and Sterling Silver tubes.
The last black one is all black agate with Swarovski Crystals.

I think our decorations might go up this weekend. Tom's very keen to start getting into the festive spirit. I'll let the kids do most of it... but I'm very particular about my tree, so I'll do that - sometime! I'll take a photo when I'm done.

Right, I'm off to put my feet up and gather my energy for selling loads tomorrow (hopefully!).

Take care, All, and have a lovely weekend.

Much love.

Hello.... Goodbye

2008-11-21T09:53:00.000Z

Just a very quick post to give you all a wave...

We're in the middle of a very hectic series of events - five in four days! A Christmas shopping evening last night, an office sale today, a Christmas Fair tonight and then Saturday and Sunday at Berkeley Castle.

We love selling our wares so it's not really any hardship, just tiring.

Hope to have the energy to report back on Monday.

Have a fine weekend, Everyone!

Much love.

Indigo Indulgence

2008-11-11T17:34:00.005Z

As I didn't post any pics of jewellery in my posting of this morning, thought I'd show you a few new things, hot off the press.

All these feature beads by Denise Karan of Indigo Lily. I'm just hooked on Denise's beads at the moment!

First up are some really pretty beads that I've had for a little while. I didn't want the jewellery to turn out too 'girly' so even though I've used more pink, in the form of sea glass, I think picking up the green from Denise's beads has steered it away from the Barbie look. The green is Ruby Fuschite, which also has areas of a gorgeous dark pink which, hopefully, holds the whole thing together.

Then, back to my newest favouritest finding, the add a bead pendant. These beads made me think of wintry Yorkshire moors (although, come to think of it, I've never been on the Yorkshire moors in the winter, so I suppose this is what I think they'd look like!).

And although I've never been swimming in the Caribbean - and I even when I do swim, I don't do underwater... these colours are what I imagine you'd see.

And I love the contrast of the greens in this set.

Right, better get back to it!

More soon...

Totally Floored!

2008-11-11T08:05:00.005Z

Brian and I made really good progress on the new workspace this weekend. We put down the vinyl tiles and got the skirting board on. It's beginning to look really good!

The table leg you can see on the right will form part of the support for the desk (which will be on the left where all the sockets are) or the workbench (on the right), so you can see that those unsightly pipes will be under the bench and so not visible. We are going to put the vinyl tiles on the window sill too, so everything will be wipe clean.
All the stuff on the left, the meters, wires etc will be boxed into a cupboard and so hidden away from sight. And on the right where there's no skirting and you can see pipes jutting out of the wall, that's where the radiator will go - which will have a cover.
The steps turned out rather well - if I say so myself (can you guess that I did them?!). The riser for the top step uses the faux slate that we've got in the kitchen (which is through that door) and then the rest uses the tiles from the floor. We've put non-slip metal edging on each step so that I should be safe going up and down the steps. When this was the kitchen (up until last year) it was always my biggest worry, that I'd slip going down the steps. I did once trip going up and the dinners slid off the plates onto the dining room floor!
If you look closely (but please don't) there is a bit of a gap at the bottom of the steps where the tiles don't meet... we're going to put in a bit of quadrant there. The floor/step junction is quite uneven to difficult so get a good line.

The next two photos - again non-jewellery - I took with my phone last Friday. They are of Millennium Square in Bristol. It was such a gloriously sunny day, everything shone and twinkled and I had to get a shot. Looks more like August than November!
Right, that's it for now. Hopefully there will be jewellery to show you later in the week. We are just about to enter a completely mad couple of weeks with 8 events in 12 days! YIKES! So if you don't hear from me until the end of November, I'll be passed out in the corner from exhaustion...

Take care, All, and much love.

Out of my comfort zone...

2008-11-05T16:59:00.004Z

...with grateful thanks to Tan... Tania Grey of Tan, Of Course.

When I'm blending colours with beads, I'm not too adventurous - keeping things matching and toning... but then, when I have some of Tan's beads, she gives me a sharp boot up the bottom and sends me WAY outside my comfort zone. Her colour combinations are always interesting and they inspire me to put colours together in a more interesting and unusual way.

Take this one for example:

Just look at the fantastic colours in Tan's beads! I found turquoise freshwater pearls and candy jade chips to echo the colours and teamed them with Sterling Silver.

The name of the set comes from the wonderful Burl Ives' song which was part of the soundtrack to my childhood. Remember the chorus?

Oh the buzzin' of the bees
In the cigarette trees
Near the soda water fountain
At the lemonade springs
Where the bluebird sings
On the big rock candy mountain

You can hear Burl sing it here.

These beads are a little more subdued, but still have surprising colours... the soft heather purple, with red and turquoise... translated into a necklace with garnets and glass seed beads.

Purple and green is a favourite colour combination of mine... so these beads always had my name on! Here the beads are Amethyst and Peridot.

Lastly, here's anther shape of bead by Tan. One of her lollipop beads... and what great colours! Here I've made it into a pendant with my new favourite findings.

We had a very fine weekend, lots of eating, drinking and making merry. And, I didn't fare too badly at WW on Tuesday. Think I'd better be good the rest of the week in case it catches up with me!

A quick *wave* to my bro and his missus, who have recently become blog readers!

I cannot let the day pass without saying, "Well done, America!" I'm not a political person, but today I feel we have witnessed history in the making.

Enjoy your fireworks if you are having them... be safe and have a sparkler for me.

Much love to All.

A Plethora of Pendants

2008-10-31T18:37:00.007Z

I've been making quite a few (as you'll see) of these pendants. I've only recently discovered these findings which are great for showing off Lampwork beads. And they should be shown off... each one is hand-made (not by me!) and involves melting glass in a flame while turning the mandrel on which you're making the bead. Then putting on different glass and swirling and shaping and all sorts of complicated and clever stuff.

I just buy them from the artist and put them together with some other beads. The easy bit!

All the beads in these pendants are by Denise Karan of Indigo Lily Lampwork. I love Denise's beads. She's such a busy lady - she's doing a joint honours degree, works permanent nights on Friday/Saturday and Sunday and still finds time to make these gorgeous beads. She's an inspiration!

This next one is still a pendant, but something a little different. I treated myself just before we went away to a new book by Susan Lenart Kazmer called Making Connections: A Handbook of Cold Joins for Jewelers and Mixed-Media Artists. It's a very long winded title, but basically it means joining things together without having to do any soldering.
I've been SO inspired by this book... I've got pages and pages of sketches of things I want to make. Some will have to wait until January - the quiet time - so I can experiment and learn some new techniques, but others I hope you'll be seeing quite soon.
This pendant 'Mellow Fruitfulness' is the first item that I've made using something I've learned from the book. The large Carnelian teardrop hangs from a trapeze made from Sterling Silver, as you can see in the second picture which shows the back. I've then added a froth of Carnelian chips and freshwater pearls. I'm very pleased with how it turned out and will be using the trapeze again in future projects.

Because the pendant is very busy, I went for simplicity in the earrings. Freshwater pearls on elongated Sterling Silver kidney wires.
This next set is called 'Now Pipe Down!'. I've had these fabulous lampwork beads - the work of the supremely talented Isabelle Anderson - for quite a while and they kept nagging me to get something made with them. This is the result. I wanted the beads to be very much centre stage as they are just so beautiful, so I've threaded them with lots of Sterling Silver tubes, round beads and some lovely Stardust beads. Although I've had the design for this set in mind for a long time, I was surprised when the silver sections took on this almost chemical model effect. But I like it! And now I've made something with some of these beads... hopefully, they will 'Pipe Down'.
And lastly, a bracelet. Made with some stunning sea glass beads and Sterling Silver beads. I love sea glass, it's the matte effect, I think. Etched beads have the same look and I love them too.
Well done, on getting to the end of this looooooong post! There was just so much to show you.

On a family note: it was Brian's birthday on Wednesday. He arranged it so he was working from home which meant we could pop to the pub for lunch. And then we went out for an Italian meal in the evening. Doesn't auger well for WW next Tuesday! Especially as we're up to Leicester this weekend to go out for a meal on Saturday night and Sunday lunch! I think I'll be just drinking water on Monday...

Have a lovely weekend, All and take care.

A weekend in The Hamptons

2008-10-27T20:05:00.006Z

Nah, not THAT one... but a very nice boutique hotel in Ilfracombe!
That's it... right in the centre of the photo. A gorgeous (and huge) Victorian villa. We were only having a long weekend away and so we thought we'd treat ourselves to somewhere a bit special. And it was. A fab hotel which I thoroughly recommend. Why not have a browse of their website (and no, I'm not on commission!).

Here's a few pics from the weekend:
I've been besotted with balconies ever since I was quite small, always wanted to own a house with one. I'm very lucky that I do now, it's small and we don't do anything with it, but I'm chuffed as anything anyway. These I thought were just so pretty and delicate looking.

I spotted this man out with his dogs... just image how many plastic bags he must have to take around with him! And then later in the day we spotted another man with just as many!

This is the last section of a four part mosiac to commemorate Jonathan Edwards triple jump successes and in particular his world record jump of 18.29 metres. When you see the distance that he hopped, skipped and jumped it's just astounding.

This name plate was just outside the tapas bar we went to on Saturday night... and, of course, I had to have a photo of it!

The 'cooling towers' are the rather wacky theatre in Ilfracombe... but I took the photo for the fantastic rocks in the foreground.

I saw these chaps out rowing in their boat and thought they must be mad... and then I turned the corner...

and there was another lot of them!

So, I'm all refreshed from a fab time (and LOADS of yummy food... what's that? Yes, of course I had a cream tea. You can't go to Devon and not have one, can you?!) and raring to get back to the beads. Will try very hard to get photos taken to show you this week... and update the website... and do the accounts...

Take care, All, and much love.

I've been tagged!

2008-10-19T18:28:00.003+01:00

Thanks to Caroline of Crafted Gems!

The rules are as follows:

1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by including links to their blogs.

4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs.

So, 7 facts about me...

1. I'm a BIG Bruce Springsteen fan. I've seen him about 10 times now and absolutely love to see him live. The last time was the day before my birthday this year in Cardiff. Gotta love The Boss!

2. I hate feet. Not mine... mine are lovely, pretty and perfectly formed... but anyone else's... YUCK!

3. I cry when I hear Away in a Manger.

4. I used to write fiction for the women's magazines and have been published in Bella, Best, Chat, Woman, Woman's Own, Woman's Realm, Woman's Weekly, My Weekly, Take a Break and Fiction Feast. In fact, I used to run an agency for women's fiction with my gorgeous buddy, Cari, to sell other people's work to the magazines.

5. I hate lettuce. I can see no good reason for it to exist. The same goes for wasps - which I am allergic to.

6. I once made Mick Jagger a cup of tea. My granddad used to work in Birmingham Town Hall as catering manager and when The Stones appeared I went with him and got to meet Mick and the boys (as they were then!).

7. I can whistle with my tongue out. So can Tom. But we've never met anyone else who can do it. Next time you see me in person, ask me to show you. Bet you can't do it!!

So, who to tag:

1. Izzy at Adventures in Glass

2. Liz at Crimson Moon

3. Jo at Daisychain Jewellery

4. Cristina at Cristina's Jewelry

5. Laura at Beads by Laura

6. Maura at Blue Daisy Jewellery

7. Manda at Jewellery Craft

What a week!

2008-10-19T09:40:00.007+01:00

PHEW! It's been a crazy (but wonderfully successful) week here at Coburg Crafts!

Last weekend we held a two day party here which not only gave me a chance to see some of my lovely friends, but also to display every single piece of jewellery and gift items that Sarah and I had available!

Then Wednesday was another really super party at the home of a good friend - so more catching up with friends - and she had great display space so again a great opportunity to show off the range of goods we now have - which is expanding all the time.

And then this weekend we were at Sarah's with all her chums.

I was very delighted on Friday evening when my Murano Mystery (see post below) set was purchased by a lovely man (yes, you read that right!) who, in fact, bought all the Christmas gifts for the ladies in his life from us. Thank you, Kevin!!

So, a great week. In fact, October has been a great month! WhooHoo! And we've got loads of events in November too. I'm going to be very busy trying to keep the stock levels up.

With so much going on, it's been impossible to photograph everything, so you've missed a few lovely things, but here's a couple from the remaining stock that I'd like to show you...

Firstly a few 'stand alone' earrings - no necklace to go with these, just the earrings.

Here's Dainty Dangles - these are the tiniest of tiny pearls - I almost went blind making these!

These pearls are pretty small too... Gossamer Window
Parisian Nights - gorgeous purple pearls on Sterling silver chandeliers
These next two use a new pendant finding that I've just discovered. You can unscrew the top and put on the beads - which means that these wonderful hand-made lampwork beads can take centre stage - where they belong!
First up is Toffee Tornado featuring a gorgeous tube bead by Denise from Indigo Lily.
Next is Midnight Moment with beads by Suzy Hannabus.
This next set is (another) one I'm tempted to keep as I love it. Black onyx teamed with sterling silver beads that are faceted... but not just faceted, but SO faceted that they look - and act - like mirror balls. Just so twinkly!
This dainty set is called Blue Lightening because the labradorite flashes blue. It's a fabulous stone and here it's teamed with sterling silver tubes and rounds.
Progress on the workshop! It's now painted. All white to maximise the light in the room. It's lovely and bright in there. We did make a start on the floor today, but those puddles on concrete could still be felt through the underlay and hardboard, so we're going to have to chip them off. Hopefully it won't take too long and then the floor can go down. Will show you!

Quick update...

2008-10-02T15:04:00.000+01:00

Just got five minutes (while I drink my coffee) to let you know that we got in to be part of North Somerset Arts Week... YeeHah! It's not until next May but I'm already excited!

And just in case you've got your eye on it, What Colourful Teeth You Have, Grandma from the previous post, sold last night. In fact, I could have sold it three times over. Better get on and make some more in that style.

Hope you're all behaving yourselves!

Back to it. Busy couple of days ahead....

2008-09-27T19:50:00.009+01:00

Two whole weeks have flown by! I really don't know where the time goes to.

So, what's new? The workspace doesn't look a lot different to the photo in the last entry, except that the walls have dried out and we've filled the holes etc that needed attention on the other walls. Oh, and we've taken up the tiles from the floor. Next is sanding down the filler and then - maybe - we'll get to the emulsion! Everything always takes so much longer than you think doesn't it?

Mum came to stay the week before last, which was lovely. We made a whole heap of jewellery together and she went off with some to finish off which I should get back on Wednesday. We work well together and, thankfully, have similar taste.

Here's a few bits from the heap!

Firstly, this exciting set:

The focal is Murano glass from the island of Murano just off Venice. I went to Venice for the first time a couple of years ago and just adored it. Would love to go again. Anyway, in the set, I have echoed the colours in the focal with black onyx, gold vermeil and sterling/gold vermeil tubes. I'm really pleased with the way it turned out.

This one features Spiderweb Agate - isn't it just fab?! There's also some black onyx in there too. This had hardly been finished before my mate, Kathy saw it and put her name on it. I was rather hoping to keep it for myself! Hey ho!

This one features a gorgeous bead by another mate, Julie Fountain of Lush Lampwork. I know Julie is a big fan of Smoky Quartz and so that came to mind when I was thinking about what to do with this one. I think it goes really well with the turquoise coloured lampwork, don't you?

This is a really fun necklace - one that Mum helped to string. I've called it 'What Colourful Teeth You Have, Grandma' because the beads reminded me of teeth and from there my mind went straight to Little Red Riding Hood. Sometimes I worry about the wiring in my brain...

And, with an eye on the calendar, I've started to make a few festive items. This shaggy loop bracelet with its gold jumprings and red and green beads just makes me want to sing a few carols and put up some tinsel.

Mind you, I might be best advised to do it now as I know that I'm going to be mega-busy in the run-up to Christmas and might not have the time for festive singing and tinsel decorating when it gets nearer the time!

This last week seems to have been mainly taken up with admin. Hardly any jewellery made at all. I have been putting together an application to take part in North Somerset Arts Week. This meant deciding on a venue, getting together photographs for the brochure, writing blurbs and directions, and it all seemed to take ages. BUT, it has gone off in the post this morning, so fingers crossed we'll get in. Here's the photograph that has been sent off to respresent mine and Sarah's jewellery... must admit to being rather proud of it.

We've got a busy week coming up: a ladies' evening at Nailsea Rugby Club on Wednesday, back to Axa on Friday and Churchill Craft Fair on Saturday. Should be good. Good job Mum and I got such a lot done!

I hope you are managing to get out and enjoy this fabulous Indian summer we're having. A couple of good friends dropped in for lunch today on their way to Cornwall and it was so lovely to be able to eat outside. We seemed to wait all summer for a chance to enjoy our new garden furniture, so I'm really pleased that we got to use it before it gets too cold.

Right, take care all and I'll try and catch you up with happenings next weekend.

Much love to all. xx

I got plastered...

2008-09-12T17:47:00.010+01:00

or rather, my new workspace did!

It's only taken a year to get to this stage... but I'm hopeful that it won't take too much longer before I can get in there and create gorgeousness. Next step is to emulsion the walls and ceiling and then get the plumber in to install the radiator. Watch this space...

So, what's been happening? Well, it took me an age to throw off that cold/cough I picked up in London. A real pain. But, I'm all fit and well now and looking forward to a busy autumn.

Back-tracking to where I left off. Monmouth show was a bit of a disappointment, sales-wise, but there were 20 other stalls selling jewellery! It would seem that the organisers of big fairs don't really care about the mix of crafts in their marquee, as long as everyone has paid their money. Craft fair organisers do, usually, have limits on the numbers of traders selling each craft. A pain as jewellery always fills up first, but it gives the customer a wider selection and the traders don't have so much competition. Still, we did make a profit, which is good news!

At the beginning of September we were back into Clerical Medical and did well, especially as we booked a party from that.

And, of course, the beginning of September means back to school. Martha wasn't best pleased as her school has introduced blazers from this year. I think she looks very smart...

but she decided she looked like a 'dork'.

Tom started his 6th Form College. All very grown-up and responsible.

We did a lovely event on 6th at a local(ish) primary school to help raise funds for their swimming pool. Although the turn-out was low, a high percentage of visitors bought some jewellery which was great. We also helped the funds by buying loads of the second-hand books, Christmas cards, a 'few' cakes and raffle tickets - two of which won great prizes! A good day!!

Monday saw me at the Autumn Fair at the NEC with two of my super beady chums. There was lots of chatting and quite a bit of shopping done!!

Last Wednesday, we had our first visit to sell in the Axa offices. And blimey, what super offices they have! Rolling lawns, a lake, their own branch of WHSmiths, a nail bar, a gym, squash court - fab. Almost made me wish I could have a job there... almost! We did really well and look forward to going back at the beginning of October.

This weekend, my lovely mum is coming to stay and on Sunday, Brian is running in the Bristol half marathon! He's so fit, my hubby! And then Monday is a daytime jewellery party.

So, you see it's all go round here. And, of course, there's been jewellery made:

Golden Oriole: lovely Black and Yellow oval Agates with matte Black Onyx and sterling silver.

A byzantine chain maille set using silver plated and antique copper rings. It took ages, but I really like it... it moves beautifully.
At the Autumn Fair there was a definite trend towards large jewellery, so I bought these lovely - light - wooden beads and teamed them with some ribbed gold plated tubes. I think this will look fab with a chunky knit in the winter, don't you? As I think this one is not for the faint-hearted, I've called it 'Wood You?'

A challenging bead this next focal. A super one by Emma Ralph, but it really didn't want to be made into anything for ages. Finally, it spoke to me and demanded this lovely colour combination of glass pearls. I've named it Hedgerow Treasures as it reminds me of the bounty of autumn.
The next two I made as a commission for my lovely friend, Anne. She only wanted one, but I do like to give customers a choice, if possible. They are double shaggy loop bracelets made with antique gold rings. The first one uses all black beads and the second has a mix called Volcanic Beach. She chose the second one and it's now gone off with Anne to a posh do!

OK, that's got you all caught up with goings on.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend and I'll try to not leave you in the lurch for so long next time!

Much love to all. xx

Cavorting in the Capital

2008-08-27T18:43:00.004+01:00

Well, we abandoned our camping holiday in Devon... after two weeks of solid rain in Ireland the year before last, we're strictly fair weather campers.

So, instead we headed to London for a sight-seeing bonanza. I am luck enough to have two sisters-in-law who live in the metropolis, so accomodation was no problem.

On Saturday we went to the Victoria and Albert Museum. This was top of my list as I was dying to see the new jewellery exhibition. I wasn't disappointed. 3,500 pieces of jewellery covering over 2000 years. To stand not six inches away from jewellery worn by Elizabeth I. So exciting. BUT, my very favourite pieces were in the Art Nouveau section - two absolutely stunning Lalique items. They were SO beautiful I just stood there with tears running down my cheeks... in fact, I'm welling up just thinking about them. If you are in the area, please do go and see the jewellery gallery (entry is FREE!), you won't be disappointed.

Sunday, we went to the Tower of London. More jewels! Although I have to say I found the crown jewels a little gaudy for my taste. It's the mixing of colours and stones. My favourite of the ones on display is Queen Victoria's 'small crown' which is a delicate dome studded with 1,300 diamonds. We were going to the London Dungeon after that, but the tickets were so expensive we decided against it.

Monday saw us the Doctor Who exhibition at Earl's Court. Here's Martha (our big Dr Who fan) with Brian and the Face of Boe.
And the stone angels, from the Blink episode which I think was the scariest one for a long time!
After that we went to the Natural History museum.

Tuesday, we did St Paul's Cathedral and the Museum of London.

Wednesday morning I did a quick flit to the Bead Shop in Covent Garden and then we came home, so we could be back in time for Tom to get his GCSE results (see below). By Friday I had this terrible cold and cough and still feel lousy.

An exhausting but most enjoyable holiday. Here's hoping we get a summer next year and we can get the tent out again!!

Knotting, Paddling and Smiling...

2008-08-26T08:20:00.006+01:00

Have had a truly awful cold this week (I blame that London - full of germs!) and have found looking at the computer screen quite painful... but thankfully have still been able to bead!
Sat in bed and had a go at knotting. I love the drape you get with knotting.

This one I've called the Splish, Splash, Splosh Set, it reminds me of beaches, rockpools and paddling. So, large beads from Lushlampwork and the yellow is Lemon Jade.

And lastly a simple set made with wooden beads, but it really makes me smile when I look at it. Don't you think it would look fab in the winter with a plain black jumper?

I liked the beads so much that I made two memory wire bracelets with them too!

We have a BIG show on Thursday - the Monmouthshire Show - which will be the biggest event we've attended. They're hoping for 20,000 people! YIKES! It's a bit nerve-wracking as the table cost was expensive, but we thought we'd have a go. I'll report back at the end of the week.

My brainy boy...

2008-08-26T08:12:00.004+01:00

There's so much to tell you... so much to catch up on... it's going to take me several posts - probably over several days!

But first, and most importantly, I have to boast about my gorgeous boy. Tom got 8 A* and an A in his GCSEs. This adds to the A* he got last November. He also got an A in his Additional Maths Qualification. We are so very proud of him.

It's not the actual grades - although they are, of course, very impressive - it's the fact that he fulfilled his potential, that is so very pleasing. We are just as thrilled for other friends and family members who got - or exceeded - their predicted grades. I think that's all we can ask of our children, that they do as well as they possibly can - in all things, not just exams.

I hope all of you who have had exams - or exam takers in your family - feel equally proud of the results achieved.

Before the rains came...

2008-08-11T11:19:00.007+01:00

OK, hands up all those of you who forgot to keep your fingers crossed for the weather yesterday!! The garden party was a lovely event - in the garden of a fantastic house - but the weather was lousy. There were odd moments of sunshine, but there must have been about seven different showers - some of which were really heavy.
Luckily someone had lent us a gazebo, but water kept collecting in the roof and then the wind would blow and we'd have a waterfall... which mainly seemed to go down my back! Hey ho. We met some really super people and even sold some jewellery.

I took photos of our stall (before the rains came) and as I think this is our best one yet, I'll show you. Our 'prize winning' stall at Portishead Flower Show was similar to this, but somehow this one tops it in my eyes.

The lower table to the right with the yellow cloth is where we had the tub for the children's jewellery 'lucky rummage'. By the end of the afternoon that cloth was totally soaking as that was the direction the rain came from!

And, I've got round to downloading the photos of the sand sculptures at Weston from my phone. I think these are just fantastic, don't you?

I just love that little penguin behind the rock in the Australia picture - carrying a suitcase - and what you can't really see in the photo is that he's got beads of sweat rolling down his face! TeeHee. And that baby elephant... just SO cute!

OK, had better get back to the beads. We've got a jewellery party tomorrow night, so I'd better make sure everything is dried out by then!

Have a good week, All.

Fritett Fiesta!

2008-08-07T18:02:00.003+01:00

After making the set in the last post, I have become a little addicted (if can you be a 'little' addicted!) to Tan's fritetts...

First one is a set: Dark Cherry Choc Chip where I've teamed the fritetts with Black Onyx faceted rondelles, freshwater pearls and candy jade chips.

Then a medley of earrings:

Autumn Fiesta - with freshwater pearls

Cottage Garden (can't you just see roses hidden amongst a froth of forget-me-knots in these lovely beads?) - with Swarovski Crystals

Jolly Green - with Thai Hill Tribe silver wrapped beads

Pansy Party - with Swarovski Crystals

We had such a lovely time with our friends from Spain... despite the weather being really miserable. We went to Tintern and had a wonderful stroll by the River Wye... and happened upon a bead shop! I honestly didn't know it was there... but as it was, it would have been rude to pass without going in and a 'few' purchases, wouldn't it?!
We also went to the Aquarium in Weston super mare and went to see the sand sculptures, which were fantastic. I've got the photos on my phone, so I'll get them downloaded and show them to you soon. The sad part of that trip was seeing the mangled mess of metal that is left after the big fire on the pier. There really is nothing left.

Of course, as soon as our friends had left yesterday, the sun came out and it's been a pretty nice day today too. Typical!

Keep your fingers crossed that we have this nice weather on Sunday as Sarah and I are selling at a garden party... with only a gazebo for shelter. Yikes!

Hope it's sunny wherever you are and that you have a great weekend.

Much love to all.

Summer Wedding and Mine, All Mine!

2008-08-01T18:39:00.004+01:00

At last, a couple of sets to show you.

Over on the UKBeaders forum, we often swap beads and things - and this first set features some fritetts from Tan, Of Course that came in the post this morning - swapped for a plastic menagerie!
I've teamed Tan's treasures with Swaros, Sterling and freshwater pearls. I'm calling it 'Summer Wedding'.

And this one, I'm calling 'MINE, ALL MINE!'

I got these in exchange for a bracelet from Julie at Lush Lampwork. I just adore these beads. I've threaded them on beading chain, separated by thick closed jump rings and with a Thai Hill Tribe lotus bead on each end. I decided to be adventurous with the earrings and had them non-matching on my favourite earwires. I've already bought a new top specifically to go with this set - in the dusky purple. In fact, I'm wearing it all to a party tonight!

May not be around at the beginning of next week as our fab friends from Spain, Joss, Marina and Baby David, are coming to stay. Will catch up when I can.

Have a great weekend, All.

Prizes, Spinners and Hannibal Lecter...

2008-07-31T09:56:00.003+01:00

OK, let me put your mind at rest... all the stock was still there when we got back to the marquee on Friday. Everything was EXACTLY as we'd left it... PHEW!

The show was great - not hugely financially rewarding, but great nonetheless. Really friendly stall holders, customers and fair organisers. And yummy cakes in the refreshment tent (which might account for the half a pound I put on at WW on Tuesday!).

We did give out loads of leaflets about our parties, so fingers crossed, we might get a booking which would be brill.

We did have some excitement though - all the stalls were in a class for judging - we were in 'Non-horticultural trade stands' - and we came THIRD!! We were thrilled. We got a certificate and everything. Not that it has made us complacent... Sarah and I spend an hour on Monday scrutinising photographs of our stall trying to see ways to improve it. We realise we still have a long way to go - but if we can improve each time we set up, then we're heading in the right direction.

To that end, yesterday we bought a card spinner - a revolving stand like they have in card shops... you know the sort of thing. We're going to use it to display our 'non jewellery' items, like bookmarks, spectacle chains, key rings, mobile phone charms - and some of Sarah's hand-made cards - to get them off the table and create more space for jewellery. We got an absolute bargain off Ebay. God bless Ebay.

And God bless Vistaprint. For anyone who doesn't know them, they are printers - who constantly have great offers - with many items printed for FREE - yes, FREE. You do pay the postage, which is minimal especially if you are prepared to wait a few weeks, but I recommend having a look at their website. I have ordered some postcards which I have designed myself to act as backing for the items to go in the spinner. I'll let you know how they turn out.

Update on George: he's coming along in leaps and bounds (well, he's not exactly leaping and bounding yet, but progress is pretty rapid). On Tuesday, they got him to stand - strapped into a Hannibal Lecter type contraption. He could only take his weight momentarily with his knees locked, but that is great news. When pressed for a timescale for going home, they have said - with a big 'ish' - minimum of two weeks, maximum of four. That has given him great hope and he's striving for the shortest time. He's like to be at home by the time the GCSE results come out on 21st August. Let's all hope that he makes it.

Still no jewellery to show you, but I'm going to be on a big making session this afternoon, so I'll try to get photos done too and then you can see what I've been up to.

Hope to get back to you tomorrow. In the meantime, take care and much love to all.

Happy Birthday, Blog!

2008-07-25T08:52:00.002+01:00

It's a year today since I started my blog! I don't post as often as I would like, but I really enjoy sharing my thoughts, pics and news with you all.

Such a lot has happened in the last year... who knows what the next 12 months will bring!

Still worried about my stock being there at the show when I get there this morning... and it's pouring with rain at the moment... Hey ho.

Much love to all.

Hot, hot, hot!

2008-07-24T19:42:00.004+01:00

Phew! It's baking here today. And guess where I'm going to be for the next two days... yup, in a marquee!! I'm sweating just at the thought of it...

Talking of which, when I was little, I thought the rhyme went:

Horses sweat,
Men propose...

Anyway, it's Portishead Flower Show tomorrow and Saturday. Portishead is the next town to Clevedon, so it's very local. So local, that we have been down today and set up the stand, so that we don't have so much to do tomorrow (when we're selling from 2 to 8). It felt SO strange driving away from the show ground leaving all our precious stock. There is overnight security, but even so, I shall be itching to get back there and check everything is OK. It will be a long day tomorrow as we have to be there from 12 for the 'judging'! And then Saturday is from 10 to 6:30. Think I'm going to be truly cream crackered on Sunday...

Good bit of family news: Tom passed his grade 6 keyboard exam - with distinction. We're very proud of him.

George continues to make progress. When we saw him yesterday, he was completely tube free! Which was great. He is starting to get some movement in his legs now and is having two physio sessions a day. There is talk that he may be able to go home the week after next. Fingers crossed.

Expect it will be next week before I get back to the blog, so have a lovely weekend, everyone, and stay cool!

Love, hugs and kisses to all.

Whoooooosh!

2008-07-18T10:36:00.005+01:00

That's the sound of another week flashing by!

Good news on George. We went to see him yesterday and he could move his arms and wrists... and he'd had some proper food. This progress means that everyone's spirits have lifted. There is still a long way to go, but at least he's heading in the right direction.

On Wednesday we were in Clerical Medical - our 3rd visit. We were rather disappointed with our sales, but it was the week before payday and with the kids breaking up next Friday, I expect lots of our customers were saving for their hols. But we did get a party booking, which is great and lots of lovely comments. We have to think of it as putting down a good base for the autumn/pre-Christmas sales. Fingers crossed!

Not done huge amounts of making this week, so don't have any pics at the moment. I'll try and get some posted up early next week.

We're off to see my lovely mum for the weekend as it's her birthday on Monday. Can't tell you about her present, as I know she's an avid blog reader!

It's also my brother's birthday this weekend - in fact, tomorrow. However we won't be seeing him in person this weekend as he lives in Brazil! Although we do hope to be able to see him on his webcam! Don't you love technology?

Let me tell you a little story about my brother... when he was about three, he wanted to know what an experiment was. My dad said that he'd show him. Dad took us to the top of the garden. Dad told us to flap our arms very hard as the experiment was to see if we could fly.
We all started to flap...
"But, Dad," my trusting brother said, looking at my dad, "when we get up there, where shall we go?"
Bless.

Hope everyone has a fab weekend and I'll see you next week.

Hugs and kisses to all.

I made lampwork beads!!!

2008-07-11T19:38:00.004+01:00

Not been very productive this week with one thing and another.

Firstly, a quick update on George. He is having some new treatment and which seems to be having good results. We're hoping to see him tomorrow morning, so I'll report back then.

Yesterday I had a wonderful day out with my chums, Kathy and Suzy. We went to visit Julie at Lushlampwork
We had such fun - and actually made a few beads!! Here's a pic:

I think the ones I made are the pink/purple one at the front, the amber one at the back and the turquoise/green one at the back on the right. And one of the plain ones.

I can see why people get hooked on this bead making malarkey! It was great fun. But, I'm going to stick with the jewellery and buy my lampwork beads... but I now have an even greater respect for those who make these amazing little works of art.

So here's a set which features the work of one of the best lampwork artists around.
This for my lovely friend, Anne, whose 50th party we are off to tomorrow. The lampwork is by the wonderfully talented Helen Brodt-Savage and I've teamed her beauties with Sterling Silver, Sand Opal Swaros and lovely deep blue pearls.

The second one is made with Tagua beads. I first saw these at Spring Fair and have been itching to get some ever since. A couple of weeks ago a new shop opened in Clevedon, mainly selling gifts, but with a small bead room at the back - and what had they got? Yep, my tagua beads. They are very light - also called Vegetable Ivory - and are the dried seed pod of a tropical rainforest palm tree . They come in a wonderful array of colours and shapes and don't break the bank. You'll be seeing more of these!
Here I've threaded them onto beading chain and teamed them with Thai Silver.

So, tomorrow we're off to see George in the morning, then to Tintern for Anne's party - which should be great fun as she's dusting off the disco that she and her husband, Pete, used to run back in the 70s! I shall be dancing all night to the hits of yesteryear!

I hope you have a great weekend.

Much love to you all.

Update on George

2008-07-08T16:32:00.001+01:00

We have been to see George this afternoon and I'm afraid his condition has worstened. He now can only move his hands and his arms up to his elbows. He is being fed through a tube and they are monitoring his breathing and swallowing.
This, apparently, is the way of this syndrome - it will get worse, then plateau and then begin to get better. Let's all hope the plateau is not too far away for George.
I have told George and his mum that they have people all over the world sending prayers, thoughts and healing. They were very touched and asked me to thank you all.
Please continue to keep George and his family in your thoughts.

Thank you.

As you can imagine, I'm finding it very hard to even think about jewellery at the moment. But I hope I'll have something to show you by the end of the week.

Your prayers and healing vibes, please

2008-07-05T11:33:00.000+01:00

Tom's friend, George, on Thursday night, suddenly lost the use of his legs. He is in Bristol Children's Hospital and at present, they don't know what has happened. An MRI scan hasn't shown any trauma and so they are awaiting tests next week to see if it's viral.

What a difference a week makes... This is George on the left, with Tom and their friend, Cary, last Friday as they were going off to their prom... where they danced the night away.

This Friday George was stuck in a hospital bed, unable to walk and suffering the indignities of not being able to get to the toilet.

Please send your thoughts, prayers and healing vibes to George and his family. We are all praying that he will be fully fit for his 16th birthday in a couple of weeks.

Thank you.

Mostly maille

2008-07-04T20:35:00.003+01:00

I've been doing loads of maille recently - and as I only do it in front of the TV, I must have been watching far too much telly! It's really thanks to the Euro footie and now Wimbledon. Who are you rooting for on Sunday? I'll be shouting for Rafa myself!

This first one is a Y-shaped necklace in antique silver plate and clear AB magatamas - the 'dangle' is double shaggy loop (four bead bearing rings per base ring) and the rest is single (two beady rings per base ring). I really really like this set and think I might have to make one for myself...

The next one is a set that I've made in loads of different colour-ways - here are just two. Silver plated rings with magatamas and toning anodised aluminium rings. The earwires are niobium.

And then onto bracelets... The first one is Byzantine in silver plate and copper. I wan't sure about the combination of metals, but I think it works. I'm currently doing a necklace in the same design.

Then an aluminium and rubber ring bangle. The rubber rings mean that the bracelet is stretchy. These bangles are great fun and always attract attention at parties and shows.

A double shaggy loop bracelet - that is mine, all mine! I so rarely actually make something for myself, but I had to have one of these bracelet and mine is blue, turquoise and clear magatamas. I just love it. And doesn't Perky model it well?

And lastly, just to show that I've not only been mailling - a rose quartz rondelle and hematite bracelet.

On the home front we had Martha's report home tonight and she's got really excellent results and the teachers are all so pleased with her progress. She's gorgeous and a great kid, too.

I hope you all have a good weekend. The forecast for this part of the country is pretty dismal - with a gale warning! And we were hoping to put together our new garden furniture and eat out... ah well, we'll have to wait. If we get it put up, I'll post up a picture... it took us ages to find exactly what we wanted - only for it to be in B&Q all the time!

Love and hugs to all. xx

Jewellery jottings....

2008-07-01T13:04:00.006+01:00

So, a month ago, I promised to bring you news of the big show that we did...

Well, it wasn't our best ever event. Sales were pretty poor, but we did clear the table and petrol costs and made some profit - which was more than some stalls did. The problem was the weather. It was an absolutely fabulous day - gorgeous sunshine - which was lovely for those attending the event, but it meant that it was sweltering inside the craft marquee and people were too hot and bothered to be bothered. People were coming in, feeling the heat, and going straight back out again.

Our stall was in the middle of the tent and we kept asking people around the edge to open up the sides of the marquee to try and get some breeze, but it only gave a bit of relief. Also, because we were so hot, we became lethargic and so didn't engage with the customers in the way that we would normally. A lesson learned... we'll take fans to the next event in a marquee!

However, we had two parties at the end of that week and both of them were a great success. An evening one which broke our previous record for a party and then a daytime one which was a really lovely event... with great food! They restored our faith in our products and overall it was a super week.

We are back at Clerical Medical on 16th and then our next big event is the Portishead (next town to Clevedon) Flower Show - which is a two day event. Well, Friday 12 - 8 and then Saturday 10-6. We're hoping to go down on the Thursday to set up to take the pressure off ourselves for Friday and leave us more energy for the event itself. Will let you know.

Let me have a look what jewellery I've got to show you:

These first four pictures are sets that I've made with Sterling Silver beading chain. I've not used this much before, but I love it and will be certainly using more of it in the future. The chain actually goes through the beads - which can be held in place by using crimps, or as in the case of the black and white striped agate beads, can run freely along the chain. It's great for making earrings too - as I've done with the pink set.
You'll also see here my new favourite earwires. These giant kidney wires are great - and I've made myself a few pairs with these - I love 'em!

I love this set - but sadly if I wear green, I look like I'm going to throw up! It features beautiful pearls - the large green ones at the front and then ivory dancing pearls separated by some green rice pearls. It's fab, isn't it?!
And a slightly more understated green pearl necklace!
I'm all behind with my photographs, so there's lots to show you. I'll get onto it and report back. Been doing loads more chain maille, so I'll let you see that too.

The other thing that's happening on the jewellery front, is that my new workshop (in the old kitchen) is getting closer. The electrician should be coming to do the wiring in the next week or so, and then it'll be on with the plasterboarding and the plastering. Then, hopefully, we can start kitting it out. I can't wait to get installed. I'm itching to do much more with my silversmithing. Watch this space.

Phew! I think I'm all caught up now. Although I'm sure loads of things will occur to me that I should have told you about.

Many apologies, once again, for my lack of posts. Hope this marathon has made up for my absence, in a small way.

I'll try to do better! Four out of ten, more effort required! LOL!

Much love to all.