Monday 30 April 2012

New and coming soon!

I've been working on some new ideas recently, inspired by some beautiful handmade lampwork beads I've had for a while, and some new art tiles I found on Etsy.


This was the bracelet I made using an adorable burnt wood tile from J-Lynn Jewels:


Rose Garden Bracelet


I enjoyed matching beads, gemstones and metals with the pretty colours in the heart. It's funny how you start off with an idea in your head, but, as you start putting it together the design sort of takes off by itself. You end up with something a little bit unexpected, but even more pleasing, as it's a bit of a surprise!




I've also just completed some earrings using fabulous handmade lampwork beads by UK artist Shirley Giles from Fyrebirds. They are greenish in shade with an amazing depth and intensity. I think the lovely handmade sterling silver earring wires from Etsy artist Tracy Smith at Cinnamon Jewellery complement them perfectly:


I love the quality and uniqueness of these handmade beads and findings. 


I am also working on some earrings using handmade copper wires from Cinnamon Jewellery, and a project involving these J-Lynn tiles, once I can decide whether to use them separately or all together!






All I need is more hours in the day...!

Wednesday 11 April 2012

Spring: Clean and Trying to be Tidy!

It's been a day of sunshine, showers, and even hail - a typical April day in other words. 


We didn't mind the rain too much on our afternoon walk.







And the rain is good for the garden too






I've been having a bit of a spring clean of my beads today. It always looks awful to start with!






It's taking a long time as I'm trying to be very thorough, but I've also occasionally been distracted by playing around with some new designs!






If you're anything like me, you often have several projects on the go at once, and storing them can be a bit of a problem if you haven't got lots of room.


Today I had the idea of packing up each project in a sealable plastic bag which I can then store in a basket.






I've done one each for bracelets, necklaces and earrings. The great thing is I can now stack the baskets so they take up less room.




This hopefully means they will be easier to find when I want to work on them.


Now, I just need to finish tackling this little lot!