Grey Skies

Well, the gloomy grey skies have conspired to keep me indoors this week. Although, true to the saying "Every cloud has a silver lining", this has meant that I finally sanded all my polymer clay lentil beads and can now start putting them into some actual jewellery. I managed to reward myself for all that work by making a couple of pieces and one is pictured below.


And there are other benefits. The on and off again sunshine and rain has made my garden go wild and, as long as none of us get swallowed by the knee high lawn and I continue to ignore the weeds elbowing their way in between the "proper" plants, I can smile every time I look out the window. The "Dig In" seeds (www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/digin) I managed to plant last month are growing well on my windowsill and I hope to get them out into the garden later this month. I'll certainly need to move the french beans before they get much more triffid-like. A little bit of clear weather will likely prompt a gardening frenzy and then I can leave it all to itself again for another wee while.

Speaking of time, there's not that much of it left until the summer holidays when, for six weeks, work takes a back seat to being a mum. Which means that I really should be filling every moment until then with getting as much done as possible. Ahhh, but all work and no play makes Jo a dull girl - so there might just have to be a little bit of fun in there somewhere, cue more experiments in polymer clay!

Display Dilemma

I rarely do craft stalls and space can vary for home parties so I have yet to come up with a definitive display solution for my jewellery. Late last week, with a booking for the Friday, I had my usual mad scramble to organise something to hang things on.

My husband had kindly found me some second hand lever arch files which we thought would be strong enough to make a stand from, and he had removed the metal insides, but by Thursday I still had no real plan and was desperately searching the Internet for inspiration. I had considered making a kind of pillowslip covering but then realised the weight of the jewellery would make the fabric sag, unless is was rather stiff and very tight. I did manage to glue two of the files together to make a 3 fold structure but was still struggling with how to make it look pretty and fit for purpose. Friday morning dawned and I finally made some progress by stapling faux suede onto the front side, finding a matching ribbon in my stash and choosing a small selection of colour co-ordinated buttons for decoration. The two things I was missing were time and some very wide ribbon to finish off the edge. My husband came to the rescue in the ribbon department - braving a local craft shop with only the name of the colour and the instruction to get ribbon "as wide as they have". The rest of the day was spent madly stapling and gluing (and then crossing my fingers that the glue would dry in time for the evening).



And there we have the not-quite finished product - it's not bad if you only look at it from the front and it certainly did it's job on the night but there is some finishing off to do and it doesn't actually fold up like I had hoped. I have more of the files so, with a bit of tinkering, hopefully I can come up with another display that is not such a rush job and does actually fold up for transport.

When Not in Rome

In preparation for being Roman tomorrow at Archaeolink Prehistory Park, I have spent the last few hours whipping up some suitable jewellery. In case any historians, archaeologists or other knowledgeable parties stumble across this blog, these items are not attempting to be authentic reproductions as, at the very least, I admit to having used modern materials and tools, they are merely inspired by ancient Roman jewellery.

I have spent some time pouring over photos of real archaeological jewellery finds to get a feel for the style and techniques used. There is plenty to choose from but it seemed best to start with something relatively simple, particularly as my Roman persona is not a noble woman in Rome but a merchant woman in the far flung province of Britain. The photo that follows shows necklace, earrings, cuff bracelet and ring made with brass wire and carnelian chips. There is also a copper wire hairpin that I forgot to include. After a little more practice I hope to make some similar items for sale.


My future plans certainly include one day having the equipment, materials and skills to produce truly authentic pieces but, for now, I will have to satisfy myself with these Romanesque examples.

Eye of the Storm

Well there's another week gone while I wasn't looking. I'm sure it shouldn't be allowed to do that.

Doesn't it sometimes seem like you are caught up in a whirlwind of activity that just seems to be taking you round in circles? This week seems to have left me still dizzy and without that much to show for it. At least I have made a number of new pieces of jewellery with my polymer clay beads, that I just need to find time to photograph properly (but here's a sneak peek at three of them).



I also think I'm ready to start sewing Roman clothing for my family's roles in the Ninth Legion (http://www.ninthlegion.co.uk/) and I have compiled a list of accoutrements I'd either like to buy or make myself (some more new skills to add to my To Do List). At some future date, photos of the ensembles are sure to appear here.

Well, I think the eye of the storm is passing so it's back to the twister for me.

Fabulous Fabric

After a two week break it's back to my Sunday feature spot and time for some local loveliness. Aileen Clarke is based in Fife, Scotland and makes beautiful textile art and jewellery.


I really love these cuff bracelets (hope hubby is paying attention) in those incredible colours and with so much detail. But, if jewellery is not your thing, Aileen also does bookmarks (for those who would never participate in the sacrilege that is folding down the corner of a page), cards and art for your walls. Something for everyone, really. I really don't think I need to say more because these lovely things speak for themselves.


To see more go to www.AileenClarkeCrafts.com or http://www.etsy.com/shop/aileenclarkecrafts

Double Duty

I'm in a quandary. I can't decide which of two things I want to talk about today. But as this is my blog, for once I don't have to struggle with my eternal indecisiveness because I can do both.

Probably most importantly, I made my first piece of jewellery with my own beads. Technically, this is actually the second piece (as I already made a gift for a friend) but it is certainly the first commercial piece. Now that I've opened the can of worms further pieces should be forthcoming. This also has an added advantage - it's the only way I'm going to be able to let go of the beads. I've included a sneaky peek picture below (the bracelet will now go in my photography box for official shots later in the month).

More excitingly, my second mention is that I made my own lip balm. Not rocket science, I know, but I'm pleased. My son likes it too - in fact, he wants to take it to school for show and tell next week, although I have my doubts about how exciting this will be for his classmates. Maybe this will encourage me to start making more of my own body products - I've always wanted to try bath bombs, I'm fussy about face cream and I've had soap making ingredients in my craft cupboard for at least a year. I knew that list of jobs as long as my arm was getting way to short!

On a final note, my fan page giveaway gets drawn today (as soon as I can accost some passerby and get them to stick their hand in a hat!).