Where DID that day go?

If there s one thing that seems consistent right now - it is the speed in which the weeks are seemingly flying by!
A full day devoted entirely to taking, editing & loading photographs to my website seem to have taken a toll on my torch time.

Actually I am rather relieved to have something to show here though, even if it is just to prove that I don't play with nothing but Gaffer Chalcedony each time I sit down to torch.

In the glass I got a while back was some of the CiM "Poi". I had mixed feelings about the results I had seen with this colour as I had also ordered Grape Ape & Plum. I mean how many shades of purple/grape/plums does one need?

I haven't worked the Poi up in a bigger bead yet, perhaps the results will be different. But for now I like the fact that it has a nice earthy tone to it - especially when the Double Helix glass, "Psyche" is used for decoration & fumes the Poi to some extent.

Precious Poi - Accent Bead Set

Precious Poi - Beaded Key

New Look Website

I've been plodding away, with the help of the mailleman, giving my website a mini make-over & a new look homepage. I only wish that changing the look of a room was this easy.

Oh, did I say easy? Given some of the language colouring the air around here, perhaps I should have said 'this quick'. The homepage was completed a couple of days ago, & today I've been working on re-colouring the background for the sidebar buttons. If only I'd known then, what I know now, when I was initially creating those buttons - I wouldn't be having to start from scratch.

New Homepage with a feature on Gaffer 109-Chalcedony.

Doing it in this style, I shall have to periodically change the homepage. Hopefully it will get easier!


I expect that you thought that with the arrival of my new glass - you'd not have to read too much more about the Gaffer Chalcedony. I may have neglected to mention that I have quite a good range of Gaffer colours to try it on yet.
Maybe after work tomorrow ;o)

Recent Loot!

Being productive has it's drawbacks! In between all the stringer control practice & forcing myself to break out of my 'safe zone', I need to find time to individually photograph a lot of these, work out prices & list them.

I also have a lot more that need sorting.

All I can say is thank goodness for a visitor on Wednesday - 4 sets are already sold!

Playing with glass

I have just learned that not all frit sizes are created equal when it comes to pulling & using stringer made from them!

What can have a fabulous reaction when a larger size frit is used - can really turn to custard when a smaller size is used. Still I like the contrasts of the reactions

"Kwasi"

Playing With Pink

Time to break out from the neutrals that I so seem to gravitate towards & take myself out of my comfort zone.
To me this means playing with pink - so I played....





Of course I couldn't stick to the original plan so I played some more...& fumed the poor pink to orange ;o)

Revamped Website Finally!

I've finally gotten somewhere with my website! I've played with font's created logo's & buttons... & even managed to get it all up there so that it displays correctly in all browsers.
I've figured that some web browsers are easier to please than others though!

Now all I have to do is take photo's for the catagory images, that will hopefully work in with the feel that I am after.
If you feel the urge - click on the link to the right & visit the new look FireBird Flamework.

Shameless Self Promotion

I've been working my (not so little) butt off getting my Etsy Store filled. I had fun dying a new batch of silk ribbons, & also on the process dying my left hand.

I am really pleased with the latest batch of silk ribbons, but learned a valuable lesson when playing with some new dyes. These dyes are specifically developed in New Zealand by Hands Ashford for silks & wools.
I have just discovered they are exported world wide because they are so good, however they are also a lot more potent than what I used for my last lot of silk ribbons! Guess who was inattentive with her colourshift ribbons & ended up with almost a whole batch of dark muddy brown silk.

I did say almost!

I asked the maille man for some chainmalle earrings to go with the bracelets in my store - & voila there they were!

A few bead 'specials' complete the current new additions.

A sampling of my new listings on Etsy.

These are a sampling of the listing's I put on our local auction site - most of which had sold by today.

Tomorrow I hope to finish loading goodies onto my website, then it will be time to start all over again!

Which side would you choose?

I've just finished loading beads & descriptions to my Etsy store & my website. What a way to spend a Friday night - whatever happened to the days when I used to go out & socialise on a Friday??

I just thought I'd pop these up here before heading for bed - I honestly can't figure which side of the focal that I like the best!

WoW- just WoW !

"Thor meets Cleopatra"

Jaynez Jewelz

Sometimes you are just cruising along quietly, minding your own business - a bit like playing Poohsticks....when something comes along & blows your particular stick out of the water! In a good way!

A while ago a first time customer bought some beads off of me via an auction site here in New Zealand. Jayne was lovely to deal with - the perfect customer in fact & asked if I had any business cards as she liked to give credit to bead creators when she made a piece. At the time I didn't have any business cards on hand - but I had just placed my very first order for some. I duly sent her a few when they arrived.

She had mentioned that she was going to enter a piece using one of my beads in her creation into a competition. Over time I forgot about this - too busy with my head buried in glass & life in general.... it just slipped my mind.

Friday last week I got an email from the website here that was running the competition - "Beadaholic NZ" . I was a little confused as I had never joined the mailing list there. Of course when I read the email my memory was jogged about the first ever “New Zealand National Creative Jewellery Making & Beading Designer Awards”.

Still confused (it's easy - believe me!) about why I was getting the email I curiously clicked the link to see what the results were & what sort of items had been submitted.

Happily scrolling down the page with gentle sighs of oohhhhh & ahhhhhhh at the beauties displayed .....& that there were those out there that have the patience (& the eyesight) to play with seed beads & such - I suddenly stopped in my tracks & let out a squeal!

OMG there was Jayne's, "Jaynes Jewelz" , lovely set "Thor meets Cleopatra" - did I say lovely? - it is STUNNING, & to be honest the set stopped me before I realised who had made it & what significance it had to me - it's just my kind of thing!

Jayne had indeed given me credit & then some, for the small part my beads played in her piece - but mainly I am so very thrilled for her in that she won the "Creative Merit" prize that she did.

Of course now I know why I got the email too - lol!