Shapinsay

Last week I spent four days on Shapinsay - a little island in Orkney. From there I took home a few stones and shells with me to have some new photo backrounds for my jewellery. Last night I was making a pair of earrings thinking of the island unusual bleek landscape and then I remembered the flowers, the shells, the stones...and all the subtle colours one could see when only one would stop and look really close. Look at these little earrings - it's Shapinsay in a miniature.

 

Sleeping Beauty Turquoise, Garnet, Yellow Sapphire, Aquamarine, Sterling and Fine Silver

Morning Dew

Just finished editing photos of my latest earrings. They are a commissioned gift for a girl so I arranged bright colours in a simple little design :)

Last minute pin

Remember that super soft and light vest I was working on in the last few days? I managed to finish it just in time to wear it today at the International Women's Day in Merkinch Community Centre. The vest was  ready only yesterday before midnight when I realised I needed a brooch or a pin to wear it with. So, I dug through my gem stash and found this beautifully leaf-shaped Carnelian bead, just right in size and colour! It was already late and I was in a bit of a hurry still packing my jewellery for the event so... 20cm of Sterling Silver wire and 10 minutes later the pin was ready, oxidised and buffed. And it looked great today :)

Two projects

This week I've been busy with two wearable crochet projects. One I'm making for myself: it will be a new vest made in the softest and lightest kid mohair you can imagine. The other one will be a bracelet and it's made in Fine Silver. I'm only not sure what gems I'll add to it. 

I like the difference in sizes between my two crochet hooks :)

Back from holiday

I just came back from short holidays and realised I hadn't written here for long time! So, to make up for all that peace and quiet, I present you my newest ring, fresh from the workshop, just finished. A big, organic coctail ring, something for a confident woman :)

Thunder In a Jar of Honey with rough natural Amber nugget and two Blue Sapphires. All metal is Sterling Silver. It will be listed soon.

I have some more pieces I haven't mentioned them here yet and I will write about them soon. I promiss!

Sleepless nights

Sometimes I can't sleep. I like then to get up in the middle of the night and watch the world from our livingroom window. Sometimes I see magic, like the orange Moon rising over Cromarty Firth on a perfectly cobalt blue sky. Other nights I would stay long in my studio designing or creating new piece of jewellery, like the last earrings. The shape was inspired by the Art Nouveau and the colour palette by that rising Moon and that night sky... I call them Sleepless Night :)

Joy of the Season

Last year I made three or four rings in a certain style and I called them Rings Of Joy for I was very happy creating them. Picking the different little stones of all the vibrant colours, matching them in sets, then playing with the wire wrapping bands - I enjoyed every single moment of the process. I think it was the joy of Christmas one can start experiencing in December that made my Muse to follow that design again. The first one came up in - surprise, surprise! - in a green and burgundy combination.The second one - sweet like the icing on English Christmas cake. The third one - blue and golden like the blue and clear sky I enjoyed today when I went for a walk in the fields. I don't have names for them yet...

Working on the water

My work on The Elements collection continues. I was working on the Water element thinking how much I really love this technique and how I used to enjoy doing it when I was a girl. This activity with the repeating moves, the concentration and then the pride when you see a finished pillow case, table cloth or a jumper... Working with silver wire is a little bit harder and more painful (fingers ache!) than working with soft yarns but it's rewarding as well so there is more jewels coming soon!

The Equilibrist

Inspiration for this pendant was a song written and performed by a Polish artist Grzegorz Turnau "Linoskoczek" - "Equilibrist" or "Rope-Dancer" (you can listen to it here).

Natural Baltic Amber Nugget was wrapped in to a delicate Sterling Silver frame to look like it was dancing and balancing in the air on an invisible line. Blue shades of Lapis Lazuli and royal blue of the satin cord bring the image of clear sky one can see above the performing acrobat. One grey Labradorite smooth drop flashes with yellow and blue like the sun-rays that dazzle ones eyes.

The pendant was heavily oxidised and then hand polished to shine. The chain is embelished with two Lapis Lazuli beads and one natural Baltic Amber little bead.