Wednesday 26 January 2011

When Cats Collide!

Afternoon to all my lovely followers - it's a bit dismal here today, but I find this forces me to stay inside and make jewellery ;)


As promised I have created a piece of jewellery using my gorgeous 'Tabby' lamp work beads mentioned in my previous post. I really wanted the beads to become the focal point of the piece and started off looking for something in a contrasting colour which would achieve this, but couldn't find anything in my bead stash!


Second thoughts were needed and whilst rummaging I came across some leopardskin round gemstones I've had for a while but never had inspiration to use...




At first I thought these would clash terribly with the Tabby's, but when I put them together I discovered that the similarities complimented each other in a way I never would have thought of!




With the merging of the Tabby and Leopardskin beads I have called this piece 'When Cats Collide'. I love this piece and with all the intricate colours in the beads, it really catches the eye. I also love this picture, I think the colours came out well and the stone (which I found on a walk) feels like it merges in with the piece.

Let me know what you think?

Thanks for reading x

Sunday 23 January 2011

In with the old and in with the new!

Firstly I'd like to say welcome to all my new followers and hope that you enjoy reading my blog :)

I've been digging around again in my archived jewellery that I made last year, and have found some pieces that need to be torn apart completely, some that are salvageable/adaptable, and some that I love and  are perfect for bringing back into the limelight!

So in with the old....


I'm not happy with the picture itself - could not for the life of me work out how to erase the duvet hiding at the back! This is however an old fave of mine made with Tibetan silver, Czech and fabric beads with a sterling silver clasp. I love these fabric beads, and think they look so summery. I think I'll be sourcing some more this year and seeing what else I can come up with!

And in with the new....



I was having a hunt through my woefully inadequate bead stash trying to find inspiration, when I came across these beautiful lamp work beads I bought last year from Bumpy Beads,  they are called 'Tabby' and they really do look like sparkly shiny tabby cats! They are a kind of sand and brown swirly colour with pockets of silver and sparkle in them too.

I have 7 in total, and plan to create something with them this week, so check back to find out if I can do them justice (unlike my dreadful photo!).

Thanks for reading x

Friday 21 January 2011

Off the Mark!

How exciting to have finally gotten round to getting this blog off the ground!

I've been making jewellery now for a couple of years and really enjoy the creative process involved. I hope this blog will become a part of this process by generating new ideas, meeting and making new friends and followers and becoming an outlet to share my makes and mistakes!

This last week I've been rediscovering  the jewellery I made last year which I had packaged up whilst I embarked on some much needed DIY at home. I've never used the web to sell my jewellery, but plan to do this in the future and need to improve my photography skills before this can happen.

A good friend of mine brought me back a beautiful lava stone from her holiday in Mauritius and I plan to use this in some of my photography....


Ok, I know it's a little rough around the edges and the colour of the Swarovski crystal is not done justice - but the stone looks good right?!? lol!

Hopefully with a bit more practice I can improve on the photography - but I will be making more jewellery and will try and use this blog to take you though it as I go.

Thanks for reading and hopefully following! x

Stacey