Birthday Present for Jennifer

I made this bracelet a while back using some of Bev's glorious Lampies. I teamed the Lampies with Stering Silver and Swarovski crysals that are half silver and half crystal. They really give a glam look to the whole piece. The beads were actually commissioned for a customer who then changed her mind and wanted one of my gorgeous green lampie bracelets also made with Bev's beads.

Thought the black and silver plum beads made a great winter piece, so as its my sister-in-laws birthday in a couple of days time, she has scored it as her birthday present along with a set of sterling silver, grey and black toned earrings.

Lime

On the weekend I decided to go shopping for a new handbag and wallet. I really wanted a new Lime Green wallet. Lime green it one of my fav colours and I destest dreary Black and Brown wallets. If you own a green wallet it is said that your wallet will always have money in it. Might be an olde wives tale, but so far my trusty battered lime green Oroton wallet has never let me down.

Would you believe after weeks of searching and having almost given up ever finding a new green wallet I found three in one shop and yep I secured all three of them, mainly because I couldn't choose between them.....lol. All were gorgeous.

One is oversized in Lime Patent faux Croc skin with two silver buckles on the front. I think this one is probably my fav, the second one is plain faux ostrich in pale apple and the third is a dark forest green with a really neat looking clasp. All are different designs as well I think I've found my fav bargain shop for bags and wallets.

As my birthday is coming up, I also scored a wonderful Fossil brand summer handbag from hubby, reduced from $259.00 to $49.95. I'm in heaven.

So if you're visiting the Gold Coast, make sure you visit Harbourtown at Helensvale, as most of the shops are having a great summer clearance sale at present.

Having bought all those wallets inspired this piece of Jewellery which contains dyed freshwater pearls in Lime of course, Swarovski Crystals in Montana, Ernite and Peridot which pick up the colours in the beautiful Lampwork bead by Bev Butler from the NSW north coast. The clasp and bead caps are all sterling silver.

My Fun Froggy Pendant Project

Pick yourself up a copy of the latest(Dec 07) Australian Beading Magazine and have a go at my fun Froggy Pendant project. You'll be twisting wire in no time and probably get as addicted as I am. You can adapt this technique to any type of large focal bead. This is another of Sabine E Wilkins Beads... Have fun!!

My Xmas Present to Me.... hehe

That the good thing about being able to make jewellery, one can reward oneself anytime and as often as possible...lol. Amazingly, I don't make that much jewellery for myself. I've have however been eyeing this bracelet off for a few months now and since its not sold, I'm claiming it as mine, 'cause I adore green and I just love these lampwork beads. Oh, the earrings I made this morning out of the two remaining beads I had in stock, so now I have a matching set. (I've sold a few of these bracelets in the past year some in different colours, red, black, pink, and two in green similar to this....sssshh, don't tell anyone....) So that leaves three in stock, one blue and white, one black with pink roses and green leaves and last but not least one in black and silver.
Here's what's left, if you want one get in quick!!

Some pieces for Moi

Here a few things I've whipped up for myself recently. These are my fav earrings of the moment. The Lampies came from the USA and I've teamed them with my favourite Swarovski crytals in tones of Green.

All these amazing colours reminded of the tones found in the ocean in the tropical north.

I also have some gold tone Lampies in the same style and waiting for inspiration to hit.

The next set I whipped up to wear to a concert this weekend. My outfit is a Black and Cream pattern knee length dress that I plan to wear over black pants. I named this set "Redee or Not".

The Red lampies are from another of my friends Bev Butler from northern New South Wales. I teamed them with Black and Red 5000 Swarovski Crystals, beaten artistic wire and Sterling silver chain.

I adore the earrings, the hooks came from the USA.

Here's another pair of my favourites. I made these to go with a jungle print top that I often wear with Jeans.

These are glass, teamed with Swarovski Crystals. The hooks are 925 silver.

A recent commission

A little while back my friend Simone, the theatre director, asked me to put together a piece of jewellery for Harmony, the musical director, of a play she was working on.

The brief was for something "Purple". Now I love customers who give me one worded briefs, it does tend to make the design process relatively easy. I thought about it for a while, all sorts of musical ideas had popped into my head, but I decided that a necklace wasn't where I wanted to go and that a bracelet would be better.

I contacted my Lampworker friend Sabine in Sydney and asked if she would make some purple beads for me. I didn't give her a brief, just told her my ideas for the bracelet and left it at that.

Here's a pic of the beads Sabine sent me.

The musical Simone and Harmony were working on was "Cats" plus the gift was to be for Harmony's 30th birthday. My idea was for a charm bracelet incorporating the above beads, sterling silver musical charms, the letter H - for Harmony, a crown for the Queen of music, a comedy and tragedy mask, a cat, and bunches of swarovski crystals in matching tones. Each bead was individually wrapped with sterling daisy spacers and joined with Snapeez, my fav jump rings, a girl can do with a never ending supply of those.

Here's the finished bracelet. Harmony loved it.

On the subject of Frogs

Know anyone who has an obsession with Frogs? Well me for one. A lovely lampworker friend of mine by the name of Sabine E Wilkins of Sydney, Australia, made these froggie beads for me.

A whirl or two of wire, a couple of glitzening Swarovski Bicones and ta da....this is what I came up with.

The Green one is mine, the Teal and Blue one was grabbed by my friend Simone who is a musical theatre director and loves unusal jewellery.

Check out more of Sabine's Lampwork at http://www.freewebs.com/sabinewilkins/