A new blog!

A lot has changed since I first started bashing out letters on my Mum's old typewriter - and my typing skills have improved no end too! Unfortunately that first typewriter wasn't a lovely pink one like the one above (from Rainingcatsandfrogs on Etsy if you're interested), but my laptop is a lovely rich shade of red.

The most recent change is a shiny new wordpress blog! I've been working away on it whenever I've had the chance over the last couple of weeks, getting it to look very nearly how I want it - which is why I haven't had time to post on this old blog much recently. I expect that I will make a few more changes while I figure out exactly how wordpress works, although I am very pleased with all the different widgets and plugins I can add in - so much easier than blogger! This blog will stay on line as there are lots of tutorials on there, but I am also going to move most of the tutorials over to wordpress and maybe update some photos on them too so that everything is in one place. 

I hope you'll join me over there - I've got a bit of catching up to do over the next day or so with news of recent classes, new tuition dates and my preparation for the BCTF. You can find me over at http://blog.joannetinleyjewellery.com/blog/

Spinner Rings - the ebook is now live!

The new Spinner Ring ebook is now live on the website! 22 pages, 73 photos taking you step by step through all the materials, equipment and techniques that you need to create your own beautiful spinner rings, with tips on how to get the sizing perfect, instructions on how to create the wavy pattern at the top of the main ring in the book and lots more. I really have tried to make this book the next best thing to having me in the room with you.

It is available here with immediate download after your order is completed, and will be available on etsy soon too. I hope that you enjoy it!

Studio 61

My Woodland Collection is now available at Studio 61, a colourful welcoming gallery up near Matlock in the beautiful Peak District! I do love it up there. My first teaching job was in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, on the Leicestershire/Derbyshire border, and we regularly took students up to the Peak District for Geography field trips and Duke of Edinburgh Award expeditions. The Matlock area really is gorgeous, no matter what the weather!

Studio 61 is owned by Karina Goodman, whose own lovely paintings are on display in galleries up and down the country. You can read more about the gallery here, and as I am one of the featured artists in the gallery this month visit the Studio 61 blog too to find an interview all about me and my work!

Spinner Rings!

Last Saturday was my first workshop of 2014, and a lovely group of ladies came together to forget the wind and rain for a while by hammering and soldering - and making themselves beautiful spinner rings! It is so great having a lovely big room to teach in now. As well as having my own studio in the Sorting Office I've also got access to the Production House - a fantastic space that you can only see half of in the picture below.

I do love making these rings - I love coming up with different combinations of textures and patterns, and I love wearing them too - a very playful piece of jewellery! The ladies worked hard (helped by copious cups of tea and chocolate) and had lots of fun too, and each went home with their very own unique and perfectly fitting spinner ring. Apparently two of them have already had orders from their families for more rings!

The ladies who came along on Saturday were also the first to get copies of my Spinner Ring ebook. I've just got to add in a couple more hints and tips that I realised I'd missed out during Saturday's class and then it will be available on the website for those of you who live a little too far away to come to a class.

The next workshop will be on Saturday 15th March, my Keum Boo workshop. If you haven't come across this beautiful technique yet then take a look here!

Photos, photos everywhere....

My job this morning is to finish editing the final photos for my new Spinner Ring ebook. So far I've whittled it down from over 400 to 92! I want to cover all the steps for making one of these beautiful rings in as much detail as possible and, as they say, a picture really does speak a thousand words. Not that I'd write a thousand words for a step in a jewellery tutorial, no matter how detailed, but you get the idea.

The book will cover all the materials and tools that you need to make a spinner ring, using the one pictured above as the example. There will also be additional variations with explanations of how they are made. It will be published in the first week of February (next week!) and also given to the students at my Spinner Ring workshop on Saturday 1st February - there are still places left on the workshop so if you'd like to come along and get the book, all the materials you need to make your own ring and, of course, me along side you as you make it sign up here!

On their way to Yorkshire....

A quick photo of lovely newly-polished Woodland pendants just before I posted them to Heart Gallery in Hebden Bridge yesterday afternoon. They were accompanied by some Silver Birch bangles and stud earrings (I'm adding those to the website this afternoon!) and some Loveheart earrings too, just in time for Valentine's Day.

Hebden Bridge is a really beautiful market town in West Yorkshire. I've only been up there once years ago - complete with a group of A-Level Geography students we were taking on a field trip! I'm trying to figure out if I can do a bit of detour and call in there on my way back from the British Craft Trade Fair in Harrogate in April. Afterall, what's another hour or so drive when I'm travelling six hours anyway?! But if you are up North do call in - you'll see my work in real life and Alison has a gallery stocked full of beautiful British handcrafted goodies!

The Foxes are released!

 The new Fox pendants are now available on the website - both sitting (or watchful, I preferred that name) and sleeping as requested! I'm really pleased with how they look in silver.

The Watchful Fox has a single bail behind his inquistative head, and I've added two bails behind the Sleeping Fox to make certain that he hangs comfortably on the chain for his nap.

There are 4 days left to use the "foxythankyou" code on the website, so if you'd like to have a Fox of your own you can find them here!