Three Generations on the Pier...

From left to right: Martha, Patricia, Me and Mum

Just a quick post before everyone else gets up! Posting this so my blog readers in Brazil can see a photo of us all taken yesterday. We were on Clevedon's Victorian pier - and although we didn't have the snow that covered half of the country - it was flippin' freezing!!

And we braved the cold in the evening too, to see a display of fireworks.

Today we're taking Patricia to her first English pub.

Hope to post some more pictures later.

Happy Easter!

I'm sending you all love and hugs (and maybe the odd bit of chocolate) for Easter. I know I'm a day early, but I'm going to be busy tomorrow and probably won't get on here... because...

and here's the excitement I hinted at the other day... tomorrow I'm going to meet my niece - for the first time - and she's 26!!

My brother emigrated to Brazil eons ago (back in the late 70s) and has never returned - not even for a visit. So I have never met his two children, Patricia and Rafael. But Patricia is currently studying in Germany and so has popped over to visit her UK family for the first time. She's with my mum at the moment and has met my other brother and his wife...and then tomorrow, they're coming to stay with us for a few days. We're all very excited!!

I will let you know how it all goes next week and hopefully post up some pics.

Stepping outside my comfort zone

Recently on UK Beaders forum, we were raising some money by taking some of Lynn Davy's stash of fuglies off her hands. Fugly is the term lampworkers use for beads which are... well, let's just say they are 'very' ugly - in their eyes - some of them look pretty good to me!
The one Lynn sent me was WAY outside my comfort zone - with a mix of several bright colours. I was stumped... until I hit on the idea of sending off to my mate, Julie, of Lushlampwork, asking her if she'd etch it for me. This subdued the colours slightly and brought it a bit nearer to my comfort zone.
The bead is so colourful and has swirls and dots that it needed to be strung with something to compliment the colours, but simple as that the eye is not distracted from the focal bead. I chose a selection of seed and 4mm beads which reflected the colour in the bead and strung three strands with some Tibetan silver to break it up:

I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out and I'm sure it did me good to be stretched like this!

Wish I could have been stretched at WW this morning... put on an awful three pounds... Whoops! Ah well, I had a marvellous time putting it on - and now I have to be very very good to try and get it off again. C'est la vie!

We were given our new project at Silversmithing last night and we have to make an item (not necessarily jewellery) using mixed metals. I'm still mulling, not decided what my item might be - or what metals I might mix! Watch this space...

I've got something very exciting happening next weekend (not jewellery related) which I'll tell you about later in the week... but it involves lots of cleaning and tidying (which I hate) so there may not be too much jewellery to show in the next few days.

Super weekend

We went up to Leicester for the weekend and had a really great time. Friday night we went to the beer festival and, by chance, met up with a chum that I'd not seen since his wedding in 1987!! AND he recognised me. Wonderful to know I've not changed that much in 21 years.... ROFL!!

The whole weekend was an eating and drinking fest - brilliant - but am dreading the weigh-in tomorrow... :-( Never mind, it was worth it.


Here's a necklace that I made at the end of last week, but only got round to photographing it today.


The long thin bits are mussel shell 'splinters' and in between the dark red/orange beads are sponge coral. The shell is quite heavy, so I've made the back of the necklace with some leather and put one of those lovely starfish clasps to fasten on the side. To balance that there is a smaller starfish bead on the other side. I love the randomness of this and think it will be a lovely piece to wear on holiday.

Off to my silversmithing class in a moment - at the start of an extension course, so that means a new project! I'll let you know what it is tomorrow and any ideas I have for items to make.

"I beg your pardon...

... I never promised you a rose garden."

I've had that song going round and round in my head this afternoon as I made this bracelet:

Here it is modelled by Martha (her wrists don't have the crinkles that mine have! ROFL!)
The beads in the bracelet are green freshwater keshi pearls and the roses are carved rose quartz. I'm really pleased with it.

I bought both lots of beads at the bead sale this morning - and knew straight away exactly what I wanted to make with them. I love it when that happens. I've got loads of ideas for the rest of the stash too:
From the back: faceted red coral, sponge coral, Moonstone Nuggets, Moonstone buttons, Rose Quartz flowers, green freshwater keshi pearls, same in grey, little Labradorite buttons, Aventurine oval cylinders and drops, black Onyx long rectangles, Kyanite buttons and shell nuggets and buttons. There was also some little Amazonite faceted drops, but they missed out on the photograph somehow.

A lovely haul... but the trouble is - and those of you who frequent bead fairs will know the feeling - I could have bought SO much more! There was such gorgeousness on offer. Ah well, next time!

Martha and I really enjoyed Juno last night... and it was lovely to do something for just the two of us.

But then... the wind! And rain! Last night was the worst yet for this storm. And the sea was WILD... and we don't get much wildness in the sea this far up the Bristol channel. Today the promenade was about a foot deep in seaweed. But with all the noise of the wind (the double glazing was creaking - which was quite scary!) we didn't get much sleep... so I think I'll be tucked up straight after Torchwood tonight.

Hope you've all been OK and not suffered any damage.