Boxes & a Gift

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 Hi Everyone

 Over this week I have been making some boxes to give my Christmas gifts in, I think they are bright and fun but can also be used for passing on during the year to come.

 I have also made a necklace for my friend who needed something special for a special party outfit.  I am very pleased with the outcome and so was my friend.

 There will be no post next week as I am taking time off between Christmas and New Year - so I will hopefully see you in 2021 for a better time.  As always I look forward to hear what you are making.

 Jo x

Never enough Bling

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 Hi Everyone

This week feels calmer already as I have finished decorating my house and all of my outstanding commissions! I can now settle into tackling some unfinished projects and also experimenting with new ideas.

Over the last week I have completed a very blingy suite of necklace and ear rings for that special party or night out.  It is made from dark grey baroque drop shell pearls with black crystal disco balls.  The finished jewellery is simply stunning and I just love them.

Enjoy the run up to Christmas; I would love to hear what you think of my creations and what you are making.

 Jo x

Cards & Cutlery

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 Good morning

 This weekend I attended my last Christmas fair for 2020, and the craft fairs on the Isle of Man don’t start again until March 2021.  For me, it’s a welcome break because this is the time when I try out new things and check on older stock.  I will, however, keep posting over that time, and hope you continue to read and enjoy my posts.

 This week I made the last of my Christmas items for the year: some cards to be coloured in and also some utensil holders for the holiday season.  Both of these were fairly quick and a lot of fun to do.

 I would very much like to hear what you think of my creations and what you are making.

 Jo x

Small Wool Christmas Trees

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 Hi everyone

 Well, let me tell you that the Christmas fairs on the Isle of Man this year are being very well attended and people really are buying local, which is great for me. So, if you are attending any local fairs, then thank you.

 Over the last week I have been having fun making baby Christmas trees from styrofoam cones and wool.  I then decorate them as the whim takes me and they are great fun for putting in the window, or on your desk at work.

 I would very much like to hear what you think of my makes and what you are making.

 Jo x

 

Christmas Baubles Small

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Good morning everyone

 I attended two Christmas fairs last weekend and, if you attended either, thank you and I hope you found something to take home. 

 I enjoyed making the large half baubles last week so much that I made a larger selection of smaller half baubles this week.  Again, they are made up of multiple layers - a very different look, I love them and hope that you will too.

 Please let me know what you think and what you are making in the lead up to Christmas.

 Jo x

Christmas Half Baubles Large

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 Good morning everyone

 I had my first Christmas fair of the year last Saturday and it was so much fun. 

 I finished my large half baubles in time for this outing, they were lots of fun to make and were received very well.  They are made up of multiple layers and I included some plastic gems so that they would have some movement and sound when they are on the tree.

 I hope that you like them as much as I do, so I am now making some smaller ones in a different style.

 Please let me know what you think and what you are making in the lead up to Christmas.

 Jo x

Ipod & Spanner Art

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Hi morning

 My partner in craft, Fuzzy Designs has been creating and these are a couple of his latest creations & his ramblings.

 You don’t have to spend much time listening to people who restore old vehicles before the subject of roadside repairs comes up. Apparently, almost any problem could be solved in a matter of minutes with whatever was lying around – the truth, needless to say, was often a lot less straightforward.

 However, I thought it might be fun to take these tales at face value and repurpose a set of old spanners that were cluttering up the “one day” pile. So, The Complete British Motorcycle Toolkit was born! If it can’t be fixed with these three spanners then it’s probably beyond help!

 Another item in the “one day” pile was a dead iPod. This was something of an annoyance to me as it had been deliberately designed by Apple to be extremely difficult to repair (earlier versions were relatively simple to open up) but, even when broken, I thought it was still a nice looking thing – but what to do with it? Some lateral thinking made me wonder about how an iPod “dies” and, if it was shot, would it bleed music? Of course it would! So, some “bullet” holes were strategically drilled, some musical “blood” added and another project is finished!   

 Enjoy the run up to Christmas.

 Jo x

Halloween (Hop-Tu-Naa)

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 Good morning

 With Halloween (or Hop-Tu-Naa here on the Isle of Man) in just under a week I have made another set of jewellery, and it is super sparkly. I have used black obsidian and rainbow coated, crackled white quartz with a Swarovski crystal AB skull.  This suite is just simple threading but it is the gemstones that make it something special, so if you are going to a party this is the jewellery for you to make a splash!

 I would love to hear what you are making and, of course, to hear your thoughts on my makes.

 Jo x

Wrapped Cabochon

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 Hi All

 Over the last little while I have been working on a lovely bi-colour prehnite cabochon which I have set with peridot and yellow tiger’s eye.  It has taken me many tries to end up with a caged stone that I am happy with, but I think it is worth it.

 I would love to hear what you are making and, of course, to hear your thoughts on my makes.

 Jo x

Halloween (Hop-Tu-NAA)

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 Good morning everyone

 Well, it’s getting very close to Halloween or, as we say on the Isle of Man, Hop-Tu-Naa.  Looking through my stash I came across some gemstone skulls and so the following jewellery was made.

 The first set is made from clear Quartz carved skulls with black Agate and clear Quartz on black beading thread.  Set number two is black Agate carved skulls with black and white Fire Agate and black Quartzite. Both necklace and ear rings are simple in design but the gem stones are truly lovely and that’s what makes them so dramatic.

 I would love to hear what you are making and, of course, to hear your thoughts on my makes.

 Jo x

GRUESOME OR FUN – YOU DECIDE!

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 This week we have an offshoot of Spanner Art – Saw Art!

 These are hardly an original idea, they seem to be a fixture in a lot of tattoo shops and gyms these days, but as I had a couple of old saws cluttering up the garage I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for some upcycling.

 Cleaning the years of accumulated rust, dust and muck off the blades did take a long time but there wasn’t really any other option as the paint needs a really clean surface to stick to.

 Once they were all cleaned up, I took a paper template of each blade to rough out the designs before applying the paint – the long tapered blade was a challenge to make sure the lettering was legible but still evenly spaced along the blade.

 Overall? A definite improvement on having two rusty bits of junk that would never be used again!

 Please let me know what you think?

 JO x    

Summer Simplicity

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Hi, and welcome to Autumn!

 Although the weather is on the turn, I am still in a summer state of mind and this week I have just been having some fun.

 I unearthed some charms from my stash and also purchased some new ones – Pineapples. They come in both silver and gold and I have enamelled the tops in green to give them a more realistic look, and they are fab.

 Using some other charms I made simple bracelets which I think are very pretty. The bracelets are themed, the first is all about the sea – star fish and shells; while the second is origami animals – elephants, rabbits and swans.

 It would be great to know what you are making and, of course, your thoughts on my makes.

 Jo x

Christmas Candy Canes

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Good morning

 Over this last week I have been signing up for all the Christmas Fairs that I will be participating in this year – hopefully!

 So, I was thinking that I need to get started on making some Christmas goodies. With that in mind, I have made some candy cane baubles and I am very pleased with them.  They are simple but effective as I am starting slow and building up to more elaborate ideas.

 If you are starting to think about Christmas, I would like to know what you are thinking of.

 Jo x

Simple Knotting

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Hi Everyone

 Last week has been all about The Knot for me.  I had a special friend having a big birthday so I made a choker for her using a mix of banana yarn and silk with beautiful pale grey cultured pearls.  The yarn is knotted and the pearls are sewn into the knots.

 The second piece is a long necklace made from recycled sari silk which has been knotted to incorporate chunks of mookite with a lovely donut at the bottom.  

 I hope you like these pieces as much as I do, I think they show two very different styles of using simple knots.  I would like to know what you think, and what you are making in your crafty world.

 Jo x

Line Paintings

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 Hi Everyone Fuzzy Designs are back

 I was looking through my old projects and came across some line paintings of animals and wondered if it might be possible to apply the same technique to other subjects?

 After considering a number of options, I decided to go for motorcycle engines – a subject that is always popular here on the Isle of Man! The first issue was what materials to use and it did take quite a lot of experimentation to settle on acrylic paint pens for the engines themselves – everything else wasn’t opaque enough or didn’t give consistent lines – and spray cans for the backing.

 Next issue was how much to take away from the basic design of the engine and still leave a shape which was recognisable (at least to people who know their engines!). I must have got that about right because, when they had their first public airing at a show last week, people were able to correctly identify each engine (one clever chap getting all six right!). Overall, I’m quite pleased with the results and it shows that a bit of lateral thinking never hurts where crafting is concerned.

 Jo x