Shiny, sparkly, bling!

I have just got some gorgeous new glass called Aurae. It has lots of silver in it, which means it does all sort of lovely things - it turns gold, metallic and sometimes even goes different colours. Thing is, you never know exactly what it's going to do, so it's no good if you like your glass to be predictable...I like to be surprised!

So that's the shine; I have also been using goldstone for that lovely, golden sparkle that combined with the Aurae, makes for some really 'bling' beads. You can find the moon bead and the cool blue bead on ebay now.

Today I have been recycling - not bottles and cardboard and boring stuff like that (although I do that as well!), but silver. My aunt gave me some old sterling silver napkin rings and spoons, so I have been sawing them up to turn into lovely pieces of jewellery. Unfortunately, I haven't managed to finish them, because I broke my drill bit attempting to drill some nickel silver (who knew it was so tough!), but watch this space and I'll post pics as soon as I finish them.

Rainbows...

I love rainbows, they're just magical. This rainbow in the field next to my house inspired me to make these gorgeous 'Harlequin' beads. I've added these and lots of other beads to Ebay, so if you're interested, pop over and have a look.

Finally...new beads!

Now I've finally got my new workshop set up (in the form of a caravan!), I have been busy making loads of beads...and have I missed it! I have made a couple of the old favourites - moon beads. I just love making these, there are so many variations on the theme. All of my moon beads are named after moons in our solar system - this one is called 'Nereid', which is one of Neptune's moons.

I have also tried out a new style...spacey beads. I love these and have just listed them (and a few others) on ebay, so hopefully you'll like them too!

Moongazy

Sometimes I keep a bead for months before it 'tells' me what it wants to become. This is what happened with this moonscape bead. I made it several months ago, but wasn't happy with it until I decided to acid etch it, which has given it a lovely velvety texture. I left the moon shiny, so it really glows! After that, it was just a case of finding the right 'ingredients' to make it into a fabulous piece of jewellery. I've kept it simple, with only a tiny precious emerald bead and a moonstone with a silver star. It just makes me want to go and gaze at the full moon!

You can find this necklace, as well as some bracelets and earrings, on my website.

I'm in the process of messing around with the website, so don't be too surprised if it changes from one hour to the next...

New(ish) necklaces

I made these necklaces a little while ago, but I've only just listed them in my Etsy shop. 'Moon' is made with one of my hourglass shaped moon beads - it's a simple necklace, but with plenty of sparkle and shine. 'Just Peachy' is so summery! Just peach lampwork beads, another of those stunning clear quartz nuggets and lots of silver. I'm sooo tempted to keep this one!