Hi Everyone
Gosh, would you believe I am elbow deep in preparation for my Christmas Fairs which start in only 2 weeks’ time. So, having rolled up my sleeves I have been making ear rings that are so comfortable to wear, look great and fun to make.
So have a look and let me know what you think.
Jo x
Good morning
I guess Autumn is definitely here, and the rain and cold have certainly come to call, but cheer up! Halloween is just around the corner and I have been having fun playing with ideas for this wonderful event.
I have been making pumpkins which I can illuminate with battery tea lights and I am so happy with them - they deserve to be seen, so here they are for you to admire.
I have made four pumpkins in total which have witches, cats, sunflowers and pumpkins as motifs. They have turned out much better than I thought they would and I have had so much fun creating them. I hope you love them and if you want to make them too. You can find the patterns on Lori Witlock’s site as follows: https://shop.loriwhitlock.com/
Jo x
Hello
I have been thinking about
my love of pearls and not using them in a traditional way and, over the last
little while, I have been playing with two designs which I think are both fun
and beautiful.
The first is simple in the classic style, but with a bit of fun. I have used small cubes of lavender amethyst and one lavender cultured pearl to give a stylish and special necklace, with ear rings to match.
The second design is very modern, using gold thread with four large cultured freshwater pearls, with a moving gold plated sterling silver clasp, which allows the pearls to be arranged according to the wearer’s wishes.
I hope you enjoy both the designs and the last of the summer weather!
Jo x
Good morning
We have had a great sunny weekend,
I just hope it isn’t the last one for the year!
Over the last little while I
have been making an assortment of ear rings for the display hoops I use at
shows and fairs.
The first are haematite
crosses - very plain but pretty. Then a couple of pairs of threader ear rings,
fun and colourful!
Once added to the collection of ear rings already on the hoops they look great.
Let me know what you think,
and what you are making.
Jo x
Hi Everyone
Over the last few weeks I
have purchased some 925 SS ring shanks, which require 3mm cabochons to be set
into them. I have not done this sort of
work before and I have truly had a lot of fun learning how to do it
efficiently. With the help of many YouTube videos, and some advice from
friends, it was a most enjoyable experience and I would gladly do it again.
My pre-formed ring shanks
are a selection of animals and they are really pretty and look great on the
hand.
Let me know what you think and what you are making.
Jo x
Good morning
This is my first coherent day after the Royal Agricultural Show on the Isle of Man. The show was long but fun and very well attended, so if you dropped in to see my stall then I hope you found something you liked and enjoyed exploring the event.
Last week, prior to the show, I was busy making lots of last minute jewellery - so here are a couple of items for you to see. The first is a suite of jewellery made from turquoise chips and round red striped agate. The necklace has a front fastening, the bracelet is elasticated and the ear rings are long drops.
The second is a knotted necklace made from repurposed ceramic beads (which remind me of barley twist sweets from my childhood) in a very Chinese green. With this in mind I have used a thick red sparkly thread to knot and they look great.
I hope you are enjoying the sun and feel free to let me know what you are making.
Jo x
Hi Everyone
Getting ready to attend the
Southern Agricultural Show on the Isle of Man is my first major craft event of
the year and it is always a little fraught.
It was held last weekend and it all went very well with good attendance and a lot of fun, although exhausting as well.
I have made some necklace threesomes
and I hope you like them - they are fun and great for summer. The first is hearts on 925 SS chain made of Rose
Quartz, labradorite and Amazonite.
The second trio are donuts, also on 925 SS chains, and they are Jadeite, Labradorite and Lapis Lazuli.
The third trio are squares on
Suedette Cord; they are Rose Quartz, Lapis Lazuli and Mookite.
I hope you like these necklaces as much as I do.
Jo x
Good morning everyone
I have had a run of end of school year fairs recently, so I have been spending my time making a nice variety of jewellery which I hope will catch the students’ eyes.
Therefore for your perusal I have the following:
Cat Sliders Bracelets
Star Macramé Sliders Bracelets
Agate and Shell Pearl
Elastic Bracelets
Enamel Cat Necklaces
They seem to be selling well and it would be great to hear what you think.
Jo x
Hi Everyone
I have been looking to create some modern pearl jewellery and came across a strand of the most beautiful graduated, square sliced pale pink/white opal. I decided to keep this piece really simple with just threading and one 10mm white cultured freshwater pearl.
This necklace has turned out
so lovely and to my joy it has been sold already, and I so enjoyed that some
else fell in love with it too.
Do let me know what you think of my creations.
Jo x
Good morning
I have had some enquiries from clients on my craft stall for Chakra jewellery. So, looking into my stash I found some fun things to make.
The first find was two, silver plated, round, eight spaced cup bezels. I know that the chakra only uses seven gemstones but I have added a clear crystal (the master healer stone) at the top of the bezel and I think that it only enhances the necklace. I hope you will like the finished items as I like them very much.
The second find was a 925 SS chakra bracelet which needed to have the cabochons set and then properly finished off. This was so much fun to make and I loved wearing it myself (for research, to ensure it was well made!).
I am hoping that the weather is on the way for Summer – at last, so enjoy your crafting.
Jo x
Morning everyone
It is TT Racing this week on the Isle of Man, so I am very busy having fun and not much time to make.
In my stash I have had some pre-cast items for some time which need a gemstone set into them. They are all Sterling Silver and I am hoping they
are the first step to creating my own designs.
I started with some studs using 4mm cabochons in various stones, and then some freshwater cultured pearl studs. Lastly, more pearl ear rings but these were more challenging with complicated findings.
I have enjoyed making all of these ear rings and they have certainly taught me some new skills.
I hope you like them too.
Jo x
Morning
I have been using some of the gemstone hearts which I have had in my stash for some time.
I started with rosary linked
black rutilated quartz and then I added pretty black rutilated hearts suspended
with silver plated wire - and ear rings to match.
I also used rosary linked small rose quartz and one rose quartz heart, hanging from the centre - also with matching ear rings.
I hope you like them too.
Jo x
Good Morning
Finally it is feeling like spring and so I have made hair garlands. Hey, they make me feel young and free and I can’t wait for music festivals or going camping and spending lots of time in the sun!
Hi, Morning
Life has become quite busy so, unfortunately, I will only have time to post every two weeks from now on - I hope that you will continue to support this blog.
I have made a necklace and
ear rings which are so fresh and pretty that it feels like spring and never
fails to make me smile when I put them on.
It is made from apple green chalcedony with multi-coloured quartz that is just perfect for this design.
Let me know what you think of my makes and what you are making.
Jo x
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Good morning
With the fair in mind I made some rabbit canisters by covering two tins, and filling them with chicken size chocolate eggs. The tins are the perfect size to become pencil boxes or just fun keep sakes once the eggs are eaten!
I really hope you enjoy my
rabbits.
Jo x
Happy Spring
Over the last week I have been having a bracelet frenzy and it has been a lot of fun with quick makes in three styles.
The first is cube gemstones in 10mm and a variety of colours on a leather cord with a slider knot, easy to wear and perfect for men’s gifts.
The second design also has leather cord with a slider knot but this time they have gemstone donuts which are just pure fun.
Third is just so cute and pretty, including an enamel flower with shell pearls on cord sliders which are so easy and comfortable to wear.
I hope you like these makes for spring fun.
Jo x
Hi, good morning.
I can’t believe that last Saturday was my first craft fair of the year! So, with Easter now just around the corner, I have made some quick seasonal goodies. They are very cute lolly pop holders in a few different designs that I liked and were so much fun to make.
I hope you enjoy them.
Jo x
Morning
Gosh, I don’t know what has happened to my life but it is far too busy! So this week I have made a threaded necklace and ear rings, and it has turned out so pretty that I love it.
It uses coated blue and clear quartz, that are really nice slices, accompanied by Silver Heamatite Stars. The end result is very satisfying and looks so pretty on.
Jo x
Good Morning
What mixed up weather we are having, but both yesterday and today are glorious so I plan to make the most of it and I hope that you do as well.
I know that Alhambra style jewellery is an old classic but still in demand at the moment. Having secured some gemstones in the correct cut, I have made my version of the Van Cleef classic in Lapis Lazuli with silver, and also in Black Obsidian with gold.
I love this simple design which can be worn to any occasion.
Jo x
Hi Everyone
As this is my time of year for
trying new things, this week I have been making, and re-making, a choker made
using elastic with blue/goldstone.
I saw this technique on YouTube and was very unsure about it, but I wanted to try it so, once I decided on my design and after maybe three or four false starts, I was really happy with the finished result.
I gave it to a friend to try
out as she wears chokers all the time and liked it so much it now belongs to
her and I am pretty pleased with that!
Enjoy the sun if it happens to appear in your part of the world.
Jo x
Morning
I don’t know about you but
January and February are the months when I take the time to go through all my
stock and check I still like my items and that they don’t need any cleaning or
adjusting. I am glad to say I have just
finished it all, except my pearl selection, and I have taken a break.
In my break I have made this pretty necklace and ear rings using gold box chain and orange dyed quartz bars of the loveliest colour. I think that they are great for summer and will make you smile and enjoy them.
Jo x
Good Morning
It is definitely that part of winter when we all seem to be getting colds which just tire you out. I have been suffering for the last week or so and am sorry that I didn’t manage to get a post up for last week.
So, this week I am showing
you a pretty suite made from pale orange shell in a number of shapes, the most
stunning of which is the carved flowers.
These beads really glow against the skin and, being so light, are just
perfect to wear over the spring and summer.
I hope you are all enjoying your crafting and I would love to hear what you think of my makes.
Jo x
Hi Everyone
My goodness it is very cold at the moment! However, the good part is staying inside and doing craft projects. I have been spending some time thinking about new ideas and trying to write them down, who knows if they will be successful?
I have made a full suite of jewellery this last week and it all started with the silver findings that I found in my stash. Teaming them with some pretty amazonite I think has made jewellery full of movement and spring colour.
I really hope you like it, so do let me have your feedback.
Jo x
Good morning and Happy New
Year
I hope that you all have had a restful and fun holiday season, I enjoyed mine but am now ready to get back to work.
In the last week I have made the most beautiful necklace that I have had in the back of my mind for a while now.
I have used Amazonite rectangular slabs with two sizes of white cultured pearls. The pearls are used in either groups of three or five and the look is very full and decadent. This necklace just feels so lovely to wear - you definitely know you have it on and makes you stand straighter.
Jo x
