Red Rose

I haven't had as much time as I'd like to work on new ideas recently - the only down side that I can see to being busy with orders, magazine writing and teaching! This week, though, I've been making an effort to set time aside for this, partly because my head is buzzing so much with ideas it hurst, and partly because I've got some Christmas events coming up (including the Southampton University Christmas Fayre - more on this tomorrow).

I've had this first design, Rose Red, planned out in my head for ages. I even had the name sorted, which is very unusual for me! Usually I sketch my ideas out, even roughly, but for some reason I couldn't get this one right on paper. My drawing skills aren't exactly the best out there, but usually I can get down a rough idea at least on paper so it was rather frustrating not to be able to capture this one in a sketch book! It doesn't matter now, though, as it's now come to life! I'm really pleased with how the petals sit together and the organic shape that my hammering has created, and I love the stone that I've set in the middle. It's a rose cut garnet cabachon - it has a flat back like all cabs, but the front has been faceted, and it catches the light beautifully. I can get more of these stones, so this new design is now a made-to-order item on the website.


This next design, aptly named Black Beauty, is a one-off. It's a beautifully glossy black onyz on an oval base that I have textured with (of course!) my favourite hammer. At 30mm by 18mm it's small enough to wear every day, but eye-catching enough for special occasions too.

So, that's what I spent my free time doing this weekend, how about you? I hope that you found time to get to do what you love and relaxes you too! I did drag myself out of the shed for some of the weekend, though. T and I had a cosy evening in front of the fire last night. It was the first time we've had the fire lit since having double glazing fitted at last this spring, and I must admit was because it's lovely and relaxing. We've come a long way since our first winter here with no carpets, drafts everywhere and a broken boiler! We had to turn the heating off las night otherwise the house would have been too warm - this time last year we had so many drafts coming in through the window frames and the inch wide gap under the front door (no amount of draft excluder solved that) that we needed the fire and the heating every night! This morning it was T's turn to have a bit of quiet time to himself getting some jobs done while B and I went to church. I've only started going regularly again since the spring, and I'm so glad I have. B loves going too, and has fallen in love with one of the helpers in the children's room they play in for part of the service!

Tutorial Tuesday - earwires

This Tuesday's tutorial is one from me - how to make your own simple earwires - and it's FREE on my website! I hadn't put a new tutorial on the website for a while as all of the projects that I've written over the last year or so have been destined for magazines, and I thought it was about time I put that right.

I rarely buy earwires any more. I originally starting making my own as I found that it was cheaper than buying them and I did not have to wait for the next delivery or my next trip to the bead shop, but then I realised just how many shapes and sizes I could make and I’ve never looked back! The tutorial shows you how to, obviously, make your own earwires like the ones on the earrings above, and I've also included some information on some fancier designs too. Like the eye loops, wrapped loops and coils tutorial, it's in pdf format, and you can download it here. Have fun!

I'm crying....

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

I've just spent the last half hour or so laughing so much that tears are literally rolling down my cheeks! A friend introduced me to icanhascheezburger this afternoon - I've seen some of the pictures on there before but I hadn't realised that there's a whole blog of them! There's no way on earth that I can narrow it down to my favourite, but considering I have a child and a cat this one struck a chord!

P.S. Tutorial Tuesday coming as soon as I've uploaded some more pictures - I guess I'd better stop laughing at the cats and get on with my list of jobs!

A productive evening!

As shown by the state of my desk! The three pieces you can just about see at the front are currently polishing in the tumbler, and their stones are waiting to be set. Photos soon!

Rippling River

My project in Beads and Beyond this month is a long lampwork necklace. The links that I've used between the beads were inspired by a scrap piece of wire that was sitting in my 'just in case I find a use for it' pot on my desk for months. Now, that's not my scrap pot, even though silver does get pulled back out of there if it just happens to be the perfect length for head pins etc, but my pot of bits and pieces left over from previous experiments. They're too potentially good to put with the scrap but just didn't work out at the time. Anyway, this particular piece of wire had been hammered on both sides with my favourite hammer and been shaped. I found the perfect beads to go with it (beautiful lampwork beads from Caroline at Crafted Gems, and Rippling River was created! I usually find it hard to come up with names for magazine pieces, but this one just had to have a water based name!


There's a bonus project on the Beads and Beyond website too - the earrings above. They're made from one piece of wire and are much quicker and easier to make than they look - perfect for Christmas presents!

Tutorial Tuesday - frothy flower crochet pattern

There are an amazing number of fantastic tutorials out there on blogs. I've got dozens of them saved and I've even found the time to make a few of them, but not nearly as many as I would like. Anyway, I thought it was about time that I linked to more of them on my blog .... so .... welcome to my first Tutorial Tuesday!

The idea is that that every Tuesday (obviously) I'll link to a tutorial or two that has caught my eye, and hopefully show you what I've made using it too. I'll include more tutorials of my own as well as - some showing you jewellery making techniques and some for projects that haven't made their way into magazine articles. The first tutorial is for a gorgeous crochet flower by Ali of Craft Matters - and this is one tutorial that I've actually found time for! I'd actually been looking for something to spice up my plain brown winter coat, and I think that this will work perfectly. I think I'll be making a few more too to decorate presents as inspired by Bugs and Fishes - look at that! Two tutorials for the price of one!

Itchy fingers!

You know that feeling when you've got work to do that you actually do enjoy doing and find very satisfactory but your fingers are itching to do something else instead? Well, my fingers are itching and twitching right now! I've got half a dozen or so orders that I need put the finishing touches to so I can take them up to the post office this afternoon, but I what I really want to go is make a start on at least one of the designs that I sketched out late last night. I will be good and get the orders done first, but hopefully I'll have something else to show you either tonight or tomorrow as well!