Gorgeous carnelian - Etsy treasury

It's been a beautiful hot sunny day today in Surrey but heartsabustin is thinking of autumn with their stunning selection of jewellery displayed in this Etsy treasury:



They have kindly included my Shades of Orange - Carnelian Coiled Jewel Pendant. Carnelian is such a beautiful gemstone. I love the depth in its colour. I would not have thought to pair it with turquoise but that combination looks amazing in some of the above jewellery. To see more details of the jewellery shown in this treasury just click on the photo.

Coiled Jewel Bangles - sturdier designs

More of my 'Coiled Jewel Bangles' - this time more sturdy as I have made them from stronger thicker sterling silver wire.

Firstly is 'Blue Waves' with wonderful sparkling blue kyanite.


And secondly, 'More Shades of Orange' with different shades of carnelian. This bangle co-ordinates perfectly with my 'Shades of Orange' coiled jewel pendant.


For more pictures and details, please click on the photos.

Silver Wire Fusing

I just got home today from my holiday in Thurlestone, Devon (great time, relaxing, good weather, lovely location, happy families and even a bit of time to make some jewellery - more on that to follow) and waiting at home for me was this book I had ordered from Amazon: 'Silver Wire Fusing' by Liz Jones:

I have been thinking about fusing silver wire since Shay suggested it to me following my post about my first coiled jewel bangle where I was thinking about needing to make my bangle design less flexible.

Liz Jones' book makes the process of fusing fine silver wire look quite simple. I shall just have to see. I have quite a few of the recommended tools and materials but have not got a 'fire brick'. I'm not sure how essential this is - my husband has found a smooth brick from his out house and suggested I use this. Can anyone advise me about this or suggest where in the UK I can source a fire brick quite cheaply?

On vacation - again!

What a lucky girl I am - I'm off on another holiday tomorrow morning. This time the kids and I are off to Devon with lots of my family (4 adults, 7 children). My poor/lucky husband (depending on how you look at it!) is staying at home. As before, I am packing some of my jewellery making tools and materials but I'm not sure how much time I will get to create. I'm also taking my sketchbook so at least I can note down those late night/early morning flashes of ideas.

Fingers crossed for some good weather. See you in a week...

Coiled Jewel Bangle - The Second

Here is version two of my coiled jewel bangle, this time with faceted beads of magical labradorite. This bangle is more sturdy than version one.

My order of thicker wire and 'fine silver' wire (for fusing) has just arrived so I'm going to have a try making bangles with them.

Coiled Jewel Bangle - The First

Following on from my Coiled Jewel Pendants and Coiled Jewel Earrings, I have been working on this Coiled Jewel Bangle. I am calling it 'The First' as I feel it is the first of many...


The design needs a little modification to make the front part of the bangle more sturdy - I think the circle needs to be complete or smaller or I might try thicker wire. Maybe now is the time for some lessons in soldering - I always knew that my journey would lead me there one day but am I ready?


My head is buzzing at the moment with new ideas for different shaped bangles. I love the problem solving process I have to go through to turn my ideas into reality. It is so satisfying when you create something from your own design and it works!

New Listings on Etsy and Folksy

As promised, I have listed some of my recent jewellery pieces in my Etsy and Folksy shop including these pieces:

Purple Swirl Glass Bead & Sterling Silver Flower Pendant - featuring a lovely bead from Kanna Glass Studios and using my Wire Flower design

(NOW SOLD as I was writing this blog post!)

Fluorite Spiral Adorned Sterling Silver Earrings - these are like my Dive In earrings but this time the fluorite has a delicate purple and green colour and is adorned with a hammered spiral.

Blue Swirl Glass Bead & Sterling Silver Teardrop Pendant and Earrings - a repeated design based on my Green Swirl Bead & Sterling Silver Teardrop Pendant and Earrings and featuring more swirl beads from Kanna Glass Studios

Coiled Jewel Pendants and Earrings - A Holiday Project

Regular readers of my blog will recall my recent frustration at losing my motivation and inspiration for jewellery design last time I went on holiday. It took weeks before I felt I was back 'in the zone'. So as I was packing for our 2 week family holiday to Brittany, I decided to take my sketchbook and a few tools and materials. I felt a bit guilty at first as I was 'on holiday' but a few days into the holiday I put down my reading book and picked up my tools.

Inspired by the beautiful coastline we were staying at and feeling nicely relaxed, I really enjoying creating these Coiled Jewel Pendants and co-ordinating Coiled Jewel Earrings.

I will be listing some of these pieces in my Etsy and Folksy shops over the next day or so.