Gifts and Wishes 2015

Well gentle readers, it is now time to announce my final confirmed Christmas show of the season.  For the second time, I will be participating in the Coast Collective's Gifts and Wishes show which is a gallery-style show running from November 25 to December 20.  (December 20th is also the Coast Collective's final day in its present location, so if you haven't been out to Havenwood, I recommend you check it out before they move to the Holiday Inn Express on Wale Road.)

I was there on Wednesday, and it's an absolutely gorgeous show this year!  There's a huge variety of stuff, from what's shown in the above poster to pottery, gourd art, metalwork, glass art, watercolour paintings, acrylic paintings, handcrafted bookmarks, art cards, and completely adorable monster stuffies...  I will be there again on Saturday November 28th and on Sunday December 13th.  I'll be bringing home-made pinwheel cookies this Saturday, and if I am feeling ambitious I'll make traditional Bavarian Christmas cookies for my December shift, if baked foods bribery works to get you to swing by.

Baked goods are not what I'm selling, however.  So without further ado, here are some pictures of the jewellery you can find at the gallery show.

For fans of my pearl and seed bead jewellery, I included a couple necklace and bracelet pairs in some favourite colours.

First up is my classic harlequin design, which someone recently pointed out to me could also be called a ying yang design since it has the curves and balance of black and white.  (bracelet $20, necklace $39)

And for those wanting warmer tones, I have the rich caramel pearl and coffee-brown seed bead combo (bracelet $20, necklace $39)

To go with the pearl necklace and bracelet sets, I have some of my freeform coil earrings.

I have a nice winter pairing of silver-plated copper wire and snowy white glass pearls ($20):

I have a silver-plated wire and greyscale ombre set that would go beautifully with the harlequin/ying yang nelckace and bracelet set ($20):

And I have a pair of silver-plated copper wire with lavender miracle beads.  These ones feature smaller/tighter coils.  The miracle beads never quite come out in pictures.  The best one is the second from the top on the left-hand earring.  The beads seem to have a glowing layer around a bead in the inner core.  Or maybe a shadow layer around a glowing inner core.  Anyway, miracle beads have a bit of an optical illusion going, and I love it, but it doesn't photograph.  ($20)

In warmer tones I have an elegant brass wire with creamy white glass pearls for a sense of classic, old-fashioned luxury with a modern twist in design ($20)

And for those liking a bit more colour, I have brass wire with white and caramel glass pearls ($20)

The final pair of freeform coil earrings features copper wire and white glass pearls for those who like to play with a less common metal in their jewellery ($20)

I also have some of my new triple drop earrings at this show.

The first are in silver-plated wire with deep indigo freshwater pearls ($20)

I also have another pair of my lovely and elegant favourites with the rose-coloured freshwater pearl drops and brass wire ($20)

And a pair of my new favourites (I'm allowed to have many many favourites, okay?), the gilttery shooting star design featuring gunmetal wire, hematite stars, and Swarovski crystal bicones:

These ones actually sold on Wednesday, but I'll bring in another pair on Saturday, only with silver-plated wire instead of gunmetal.  I figure these guys are great for holiday-season parties, especially New Years.

And last but not least we have some sea glass.  I realize it's more of a summer thing, but no WhispereDreams collection would be complete without it.  I have included two sets.

The first is silver-plated copper wire on white sea glass with indigo pearls.  (Pendant on black cotton cord $25, earrings $39)

The second features brass wires and pale peachy freshwater pearls.  These earrings are a bit different because they more closely echo the pendant design and have the pearl dangles hanging right against the sea glass instead of above or below.  (pendant on black cotton cord $25, earrings $39)

And there you have it!  If you buy lots, I'll make new things, haha.  Hope to see some of you there either this Saturday the 28th, or on December 13th.  Remember, I am bribing you with cookies!

Good Gracious Gifts in Vernon

I should have posted about this much sooner, but this time of the year is crazy for craftspeople, so I did not.  Sorry, devoted Vernon readers! (Hi Mom!)

I am very pleased to announce that since October I have pieces for sale at Good Gracious Gifts in downtown Vernon.  Assuming they haven't all sold already.  But you should all go check it out anyway, because it is an absolutely beautiful store.

Without further ado, here is the collection I dropped off at Good Gracious:

Remember that you can click to enlarge.  That being said, fear not, there are closeups of each section.

First up a shot of the various glass pearl and seed bead necklaces and bracelets:

It's a collection of my best-loved colours from the cool tones of silver and white, dove and iris, and classic harlequin to the warmer tones of cream and dark gold, and brown and caramel.  There's also the sultry and sophisticated design with crimson pearls and hematite-tone beads, and in bracelets for those who want a splash more colour there's icy blue and white, copper and navy, and gold-core green with violet.

There's also a wide selection of freeform coil earrings that go beautifully with these pearl necklaces and bracelets.  Many of them are in familiar colours, including the greyscale ombre one depicted here:

For people who want earrings that are a bit more delicate, I also dropped off three pairs of my drop earring design.  The first two feature genuine freshwater pearls.

These ones have golden brass wire and beautiful drop-shaped freshwater pearls in a delicate rose.  I completely love this particular combo and made myself some to keep.

The next pair features silver-plated wire and oval-shaped white freshwater pearls for a cool and wintry elegance:

The last pair is a bit different.  It features faceted tiger's eye gemstones on silver plate:

I also dropped off a nice selection of sea glass pieces at Good Gracious.  I won't post pictures of all of them, but I will put up shots of some of my favourites.  All of the pendants I dropped off come with a black cotton cord with a clasp in matching metal so they are ready to wear.

I'll start with the silver-plated ones.  The first one features sweeping smooth lines on a piece of white sea glass:

The next is on a piece of deep brown sea glass and features pairs of crimped lines pinning down paired spirals.  It's pretty different from many of my other designs, and I'm rather fond of it.

The next piece features a cute little clam shell charm in a simple framing wrap on a diamond-shaped piece of sea glass:

I also dropped off some brass pieces.  The first one features a fun curlicue design with four spirals for a more elaborate aesthetic than the previous pieces:

The next features one of those beautiful large starfish charms on a rippling freeform wrap in brass wire on white sea glass:

The final stand-alone sea glass pendant I'll feature here is sweeping lines of copper on white sea glass:

I say stand-alone, because I also dropped off three sets of sea glass pendant and earring combos.

I'll show you the silver-plate on white first.  It also features white freshwater pearls:

The brass set is something new for me because the pendant features a drop with Swarovski crystal bicone and freswater pearl dangling from the bottom just like the earrings:

The copper set is in a more familiar design, featuring indigo freshwater pearls:

Eagle-eyed readers with excellent memories will have noticed and recalled there was also a donut wrap in this collection.  It features gunmetal brass, Swarovski crystal bicones, and glass beads, and is also ready to wear on a black cotton cord:

That's it for jewellery for this post, but I feel I should give a photographic shout-out to my faithful assistant while I finished off these pieces during my visit at my parents' house: Jackie the craft-cat.  There she is helping out by keeping my spot warm:

And here she is helpfully lying down on my supplies and inventory sheet, and keeping a paw ready on my pliers:

Craft Cat is much better than Grumpycat in my opinion.  Shall we make her into an internet sensation?  She certainly deserves some recognition after wanting to bat at my wire and being sternly told that she would have to bat at cotton cord instead since the wire might hurt her.  (Seriously, she was crazy keen on hunting down that wire.  I had to be really careful.)

That's it for today, folks.  I'll post again soon about my final venue for the season.

Gifts for Myself and Others 2015, Nov 20-22

I am thrilled to announce that I am once again participating in the Gifts for Myself and Others Juried Show and Sale of Fine Craft.  (There's actually a short youtube video with pictures of a bunch of the artwork at that link as well as a list of participating artists.)  I won't have my own table this year, but I'll be part of the gallery shoppe, which is a large booth featuring the works of a number of Island Artisans members.  (The video's info is a bit outdated; the cafe and gallery shop are on the main floor.)

Once again, the show is being held at the Leonardo Da Vinci Centre right across the Bay Street bridge.  I got to look around a bit when I dropped off my jewellery this morning, and it looks like it will once again be a fantastic show this year.  In case you missed it in my title, it's this weekend, November 20-22. 

Here's a look at my Gifts for Myself and Others 2015 collection:

Remember you can click on the images to enlarge them.

Here's a picture without the busts blocking the necklaces on the stands:

As you can see, there are a few old favourite designs and some new ones.

Some spiral earring designs make a comeback, with pure as snow white and silver spiral earrings set for strolls through winter wonderlands. $20:

I also have two ombre versions in silver plate.  The first has a white center and gets darker towards the edges for cool sophistication on winter days. $20:

and the second starts dark in the middle and brightens up at the tips like clouds with a silver lining, $20:

New this year I have a design in candy cane red and white for Christmas time delight, $20:

I also have the classic gold and white and gold and caramel and white designs with brass and glass pearls, and the cherry red miracle beads and brass.  New to the golden scale this year is a pair featuring clear amber-coloured beads for a warm honey glow, $20:

I also have a few sea glass pendants at the show, like this one featuring brass wire, a shell charm, and a freshwater pearl.  They're all ready-to-wear on black cotton cords with clasps to match the metal used in their wrap.  $25:

New this year I have a series of triple drop earrings.  These are long and elegant dangling earrings that can be worn to taper towards the face or away from it, depending what flatters your face shape best.

To stick with the golden theme, first up we have a set in brass with pale rose freshwater pearl drops, $20:

Next are some that I think would be perfect for holiday season parties, especially New Years.  They feature silver-plated wire, shiny little hematite stars, and glittering Swarovski crystal bicones.  They'd add the perfect sparkle to any party outfit.

Last in the new lineup of drop style earrings I have some with silver plate, icy blue seed beads and beautiful blue glass beads cut in faceted rectangular prisms.  These would add some fun and colourful sparkle to your look:

And last but not least, since it's in the show and I may never get to see it again, here is yet another picture of my beautiful fringe necklace Treasures of the Deep.

If you make it to the show and enjoy it, drop me a line and let me know.  More news to come soon about my next Christmas season event.

New Pieces at Fort Rodd Hill

It's been a busy and delightful summer.  I've met so many interesting people from all over the world out at Fort Rodd Hill, and I look forward to meeting more. 

I promised I would tell you my schedule, and I have been somewhat remiss, but here are some of my upcoming shifts.  Hope to see you there!  (If you do come visit me, let me know you've seen my blog.  I have no idea if anyone but my mother reads this, haha.)

Coast Collective: August 16
Fort Rodd Hill: August 19 & 28, September 12

I've also made several new pieces for people to check out.  Here are some pictures.

The first is made with a lovely piece of deep green sea glass, and features an elegant wrap of graceful lines and smooth spirals in silver-plated copper.  I know this glass is from the ocean, but this one makes me think of mirror-smooth lakes surrounded by tall trees.

The next is already sold, sadly, because it's one of my new favourites and if it hadn't sold this summer I would have definitely kept it for myself, haha.  It's a large white pendant with silver-plated copper wire in pairs of wiggly lines that echo its wiggly outline and the faint swirls you can see in the glass.

I also did another gunmetal on white piece.  This one is all irregular shapes and was really fun to wrap.

I also did a few new pieces with charms.

The first up features a leaping dolphin over the deep green waters of the pacific, with silver-plated copper wire.

The next is a wiggly freeform wrap of silver-plated copper wire on white sea glass, and features a large starfish charm.  It's also already been sold, sorry.

I've been lucky enough to find more coloured sea glass lately, so here is another piece htat features it.  This one is a rich dark brown colour, a bit pitted, so I wrapped it with silver-plated copper wire in ripples to mimic wavelets ruffling sand, and put a large sand dollar charm on it.

The final silver-plated copper piece features a lovely violet freshwater pearl.

I also did a new piece with brass wire and a light rose freshwater pearl.  The simple lines gently frame the pearl dangle.

I thought this pendant might go nicely with the new pair of earrings I did.  These also feature brass wire and pale rose freshwater pearls, but I added golden Swarovski crystal bicones, which gives them a really elegant touch.

I actually can't take full credit.  One of the artists in residence suggested the golden crystals.  (The artists in residence are really great.  There's one up there each week, and they often do workshops and are always happy to tell you about their medium and style.  It's been really wonderful getting to talk to the ones I've seen during my shifts in the gift shop.)

Here's another picture on a white background so you can see the effect of the colours.

And in case anyone is curious, I've been working on some beading projects lately too.  A few people have commented lately that my pearl necklaces with the white and silver look somewhat bridal, so I thought I'd extend my line of bridal options in those.

Here's the first, which is made with white glass pearls and iris seed beads for a really airy and lacy look.  I don't currently have this on sale anywhere, so just send me a message if you're interested.

And here it is tumbled on glass.

That's it for now, but hopefully I'll have some new pictures ready soon.  I have some exciting earring ideas I'm working on.