A strange kind of logic

The scene - driving home from the library this afternoon, the boys are sitting in the back of the car.

Me: "Ben, is Jamie awake or asleep?"
Ben: "He's as awake as a pie."
Me:"Ummm...do pies sleep then?"
Ben: "Well, they don't talk"
Me: "So is Jamie asleep then?"
Ben: "He's not talking...but he is awake."

It's a wonder that I've stayed as sane as I have!

Sooz Jewels and Daisychain Extra Clasps!

Sue Doran of Sooz Jewels kindly let me know that she has posted a couple of pictures of bracelets she's made featuring my daisy clasps. I was really chuffed to see what she'd made - beautiful bracelets with her lampwork beads and my handmade clasps! They go really well together. My favourite is the copper combined with her gorgeous beads made from recycled beer bottles - the colours go beautifully together!

 Sue has a stall at the Art & Craft market opposite Trinity College in Cambridge every Saturday, so if you're in the area do go and admire (and buy!) her work!

Jamie and I are off to Ben's class assembly now but my main Daisychain job today is to edit the photos for some new clasps, including a set of limited edition buttons and matching toggle clasp, and to list them on the websites. I'll let you know when they're up!

BTW and Lark Books!

I haven't actually got any pictures of finished jewellery to show you today. It's not that I haven't been making any, it's that the jewellery I've been putting the finishing touches to has to stay under wraps for a little while, so for now you'll have to make do with pictures of parcels waiting to go up to the post office!

The first parcel is for Becky at Beads and Beyond with a couple of magazine projects inside, one using a beautiful poppy heart focal bead by Mindy Macgregor and a pair of wirework earrings. I've got a sketchbook full of possible projects that I'm working my way through. I couldn't make anything while I was in hospital (they might have disapproved of me soldering on the ward) or for a while after I came home, but that didn't stop my brain from designing!

And the second...well, that's flying off to the States, to Lark Books!

I linked to Lark's blog yesterday for the Tutorial Tuesday and mentioned their 30-minute jewellery project books. What I can tell you now is that I've had a project accepted into the 30-minute Bracelets book due out next spring! I am so excited to be part of this book. I love Lark's jewellery books, and the thought that one of my projects is going to be one of the sixty in this new one when so many talented jewellery designers submitted their ideas is unbelievably exciting! It's my first project in a book rather than a magazine - and hopefully not the last!

P.S. The giveaway clasps were posted today too!

Tutorial Tuesday - 30 minute rings

A trio of tutorials today! I love Lark Books - their photography is beautiful, and the books are wonderfully presented. One of their series of jewellery project books is the 30 Minute series - so far there are books on rings, necklaces and earrings, and a bracelet book is also in the pipeline. Each book contains 60 projects, and Lark has just posted pdfs of not one but three of the ring projects here on their blog!

My favourite is Kenneth C. MacBain's project below.

I've started to make my own version, turning it into a pendant. I used 1" discs, the largest that my disc cutter can cut, and didn't want as many holes as the ring has. I'm going to oxidise the pendant and then remove the oxidisation from the outside, but that's going to have to wait until tomorrow. I think that it makes a lovely contrast, and as the inside of the pendant will get tarnished over time and will be difficult to clean I thought I may as well make the colour difference deliberate!

Look! Look!

Because this will probably never happen again! As my family will tell you, I am definitely not green fingered - remember this carrot?! However, I was given quite a few flowers (I can definitely look after those) and plants while I was ill - and not only have I managed to keep these beautiful orchids alive but they're actually thriving!!

BTW

 
It's just about still Wednesday! I took this photo earlier this evening while the sun was setting and the warm evening sun was streaming in through my workshop windows. I'm still getting used to the different light in my new workshop as the windows in the old one faced a different was, but I think that the evening sun is my favourite. I was able to spend an hour or so in the workshop this evening after the boys went to bed and T was watching old episodes of CSI. My main task was to edit the photos for a magazine project, but I managed to start some new toggle clasps and plan out a bracelet using the lampwork beads you can see on my (surprisingly tidy, only tidied up for magazine project photos) desk.

I'm going to be spending a few more evenings in the workshop next week on top of whatever time Jamie gives me during the week as I've got my first show of the year on Saturday 11th, a week on Saturday - eeek! I signed up for it quite late as I wasn't sure that I'd be ready for it, not in terms of stock, but physically feeling ready for it. In the end I decided that if I wasn't careful I'd keep putting it off. I've also got the Winchester Handm@de show coming up in July, and I'd like to do a smaller show before that. The show on the 11th is at the Winchester Discovery Centre. I did one there last October and it was very successful, so hopefully this one will be too!

Daisy Toggle Clasp winners

I had meant to write out people's names on coloured pieces of paper, put them in a basket and ask Ben to pick out the winners for each of the three toggle clasps, but, well, we went out for the day instead - so you'll have to make do with the good old random number generator again instead - sorry! We didn't go anywhere wildly exciting today, but we had fun. T is taking Ben camping for a couple of days starting tomorrow, and we had to run a few errands in town, one of which was to take back a set of waterproofs for Ben that T had bought yesterday as the shop had left the security tag on them. I hate it when they do that! Anyway, to make the trip a bit more exciting we took the train into town instead of driving. I'd love to show you photos of Jamie entranced with the scenes flying past the window on his first train journey, but I'm afraid that taking a five year old and a baby with a pram on a train doesn't leave hands free for taking photos!

So, the toggle giveaways....drum roll please....

The winner of the copper daisy toggle clasp is

Rachel

The winner of the silver daisy toggle clasps is

Lesley (Coburg Crafts)

And the winner of the oxidised silver toggle clasp is

Kat Boyd

The last winner was taken from my newsletter mailing list, and the first two from the comments left on the giveaway post. Ladies, if I have access to your email address I will be emailing you to ask for your address so I can send you your winnings - or you could beat me to it and email me! Thank you everyone for entering! There will be another giveaway later in month.