Wild Wood Necklace

 

This is the necklace to go with my Wild Wood Bracelet.
Click on the image below to see details for the bracelet.

Necklaces and bracelets in this style are available for commission. Colour scheme can be to your requirements. Please contact me for pricing (click on the contact button in the top right-hand corner to send me an e-mail). I don't bite... :-)

Spring in Paris Earrings and Black Rose Deco set

 Here's a new spectacle chain (commissioned) in black with a flower again and lots and lots of different beads, including some fabric covered Kimono beads and a crochet covered bead.

Here are the matching earrings for the Spring in Paris spectacle chain (or for the Spring in Paris necklace) and the Black Rose Deco spectacle chain. You can commission your own set for £45 either with a spectacle chain or with a necklace. A bracelet can be matched to it by request. Please enquire/order by clicking on the contact button at the top right and sending me a detail with your requirements. 

To see the necklace design see the Spring in Paris necklace at the bottom.

 

The earrings are very light weight, set onto a verdigrised filigree and with earring hooks in silver plate and specifically designed to make the flowers sit perfectly.

It's the Season....

... to be busy.

Here are just some of the Christmas presents I made this year. I was so busy, I didn't manage to take pictures of all of them...

Emerald Green Butterfly Necklace:

Cobalt Blue Butterfly Necklace:

Feather Black and White Necklace:

Ivy Leather Cuff Bracelet:

Purple Leather Cuff Bracelet:

Safari Flower Brooch:

This, strictly speaking, wasn't a Christmas but a birthday present for a special friend. :-)

 

I also made three hats, a scarf, some arm warmers... and painted a sunflower on canvas for Steve. I'll be showing some pictures of that soon... once I catch a sunny day, rather than this dreary winter rain. Hopefully my second excursion into the world of painting on canvas will be done by then too, so I can show you both.

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and got nice presents, I did. :-)

Jewellery Party Specials - Part 2

I have a jewellery, knitwear and accessories party this Thursday evening, 26th November.


Here are some more specials:


Lovely Flower Brooches

African Fabric and Lace Brooches

A mix of African fabric (polka dots and flowers, in the colours of Delft porcelain), glittery blue and cream net fabric, organza and (vintage) lace. Decorated with buttons and beads, some of which are also vintage.

 

Vintage Fabric and Silk Flower Brooches

This one is made from a wonderful brightly coloured vintage fabric, some turquoise shimmery, silky fabric, turquoise net fabric and burgundy organza. A turquoise button and a few blue beads are added for decoration.

This one is made from a different, brightly coloured vintage fabric, pink satin, burgundy dupioni silk and burgundy net fabric. The brooch has been decorated with a vintage bead, a flower button and some sequins.

Fake Fur and Leather Brooch

Black leather, one petal layer with the smooth side up and one with the suede side up, black net fabric, a layer of fake fur and a layer of organza, decorated with vintage beads.

Prices for the brooches depend on the material and the amount of detail, but start at about £8. If you'd like to reserve any of the items, send me a quick e-mail or leave a comment.

Due to a harddisk crash earlier this year, I have lost lots of e-mail addresses, so if you didn't get an invitation, it's not because I didn't want to invite you, but because I couldn't! If you'd like an invitation, please leave a comment with your e-mail address or send me an e-mail and I'll send you the details. If you live in Cambridge or the surrounding area and would like to come, just leave a comment with your e-mail address. And don't worry, your details won't be plastered all over the net, I moderate my comments and will just take the details and then remove the comment.

Jewellery Party Special - Summer In Nice

A while back, when I made Spring in Paris, Alison asked me when I am going to make a 'Summer in Nice' necklace. Well, here it is. :-)

Summer In Nice

Blues, from watery turquoise to deep teal blue:

I have used the most wonderful recycled glass beads, mostly from the African Fabric Shop, which have the most beautiful texture and colours. They almost look like sea glass. There's some info about them here.

I've combined the lovely beads with some ribbed gunmetal beads and matte black findings.

The pretty organza and taffeta flower sits on a vintage filigree that has been painted and 'be-glittered' by me and then covered in special varnish.

Here are some close-ups of the beautiful beads. The beads graduate in colour and size along the necklace.

Next to the flower is a little dangle with a dragonfly, again painted and 'be-glittered', a little altered lock and a row of teal glass pearls. Each of the little 'dangles' hangs from a different chain.

The main chain is the most beautiful deep blue (enameled) with a lovely texture and weight.

The necklace can be worn round your neck long, or you can wrap it round twice. It has a clasp which makes adjusting it much easier.

The necklace will be for sale tomorrow at the jewellery party. If it doesn't sell.... I might just keep it. :-)

Water Lily Brooch - Present

This is yet another flower design - even more petals (not layers):

Water Lily Brooch

This is a present for my friend Liz whose birthday it is tomorrow. :-) It is here presented with my gorgeous teal silk scarf.


The picture below shows the colours better as it's the only one I managed to take without a flash. I've used teal taffeta, dark green, turquoise and fluorescent green crystal organza and blue and pale mint tulle. The centre is a teal button adorned with teeny tiny pearlescent Miyuki drop beads.

The brooch is about 9 cm (3.5") in diameter but very light and will look good worn casually or elegant.
This is the third of my designs.

Currently available:

• Poppy design
• Peony design
• Water Lily design

in a large range of colours and sizes either as hair barrettes, hair clips or brooches. Contact me for a custom design. Prices vary depending on design and size.

Gift Flowers - Flowers in Your Hair Campaign

More flowers in your hair - this time presents:

Stacie's Pink Sorbet Flower

It was Stacie's 21st birthday on Friday, 13th March and to make her day I sent her one of my flowers to go with her new top. You can see a picture of Stacie wearing both here. Doesn't she look lovely?



Lots of layers of bubblegum pink, raspberry red and fluorescent pink organza, pink tulle, a clear flower button in the centre adorned with fluorescent pink faceted beads.




The flower sits on a small hair barrette that has been covered in a red velvet and a white satin ribbon, which has an edging of teeny cut out flowers.




Caroline's Cornflower Blue Flower:


Organza in shades of black, pale blue, cobalt blue and turquoise are layered with tulle in cornflower blue.


The centre is made up from a button in turquoise blue with lovely frosted Miyuki drops in turquoise blue.


Order your own flower...
... next to come a flower in the colours of a black forest gateaux and one in red and pinks to go with my new shawl (see below) . :-)

News:

I am working on knitting a pseudo shibori shawl a pattern by Laura Irwin in fuchsia Rowan Kidsilk Spray.

Lover's Kiss Necklace and Twilight Series Review

A book review and a necklace may seem an odd connection, but read on and you'll see why...

Below is my latest necklace - and it's MINE - so don't get your hopes up. It's a prototype where I try out a new technique (or in this case several) and I need to wear it to make sure it works or if I need to modify the design to make it work. I am pleased to say it DOES work and it's great fun, although I am intending to make one little change. It needs a clasp after all, despite it's length as I prefer to be able to wrap it round twice if I feel like it. :-)

Below is a picture of the necklace in natural light. I wanted to show off the beautiful colours of the cherry and raspberry quartz, coral and the organza and tulle I used.


The picture below is the necklace wrapped round twice and with flash.


Most of the findings and makings are copper, although the filigree is antiqued brass. I oxidised the copper including the chain to 'harmonise' the colours.

Below you can see two of the different strawberry quartz beads I used plus one of the coral beads.


Each of the little organza flowers has been made separately from a layer of gold and wine red organza with a layer of burgundy tulle at the bottom. Holding everything in place are dark red Magatama drop beads and raspberry red seed beads. The flower sits on a vintage copper daisy bead cap. The flower is then sewn onto the brass filigree with a Magatama bead at the back to provide a weight to keep it straight when worn, and because this makes it look pretty even if it flips over.


Below you can see the third type of quartz beads, these are smooth in contrast to the micro facets of the other two quartz beads. I've used two types of chain - one a vintage Greek key design, the other a plain design.


So, here's where the Twilight series comes into this... I've just finished reading the series and it must have still been on my mind when I named the necklace - an extremely soppy name for me....

The series is about a girl who falls in love for the first time and her intended turns out to be a vampire. That's the gist of it. There's of course far more to it, but I don't want to spoil the fun.

Although the book is intended for young adults, it was a really good read. Each of the books is a page turner and I enjoyed reading them, although there were times when I wanted to shake some sense into the main character, however, in the end it turned out all right. :-)

The thing I thought was depicted particularly well was this feeling of first love, the confusion, the joy and the sheer bloodymindedness, which brings me back to my necklace. The lovely colours of the strawberry quartz - the soft pink of the large one, the golden hued and soft pink blush of the medium quartz, the romantic pink of the small, smooth beads and the deep intense red of the coral together - for me at least - show the facets of first love really well. The same colours are picked out in the organza and framed by the copper and brass.

I could have named the necklace Twilight after the first book in the series, but I'd just named a bracelet 'Forever Twilight' so it didn't feel right and 'Lover's Kiss' reminded me of a description of a kiss in the books.

So there you are. :-)