Projects List for 2019 (and probably beyond)

Being a person who enjoys lots of hobbies, (some might say 'Jack of All Trades, Master of None' and there may be an element of truth in that, but I like to do different things, depending on my mood) I have many projects in my head that I would like to complete during this year (there may be too many for one year, so this may need to continue into 2020...).  I have written them in my hobbies book, but thought it would be a good idea to share them here too.
Are you sitting comfortably?  Then I'll begin (shades of Listen with Mother...theme music here (Berceuse from Faure's Dolly Suite) - I do remember listening to this, but not until the early 1970s.) After that little meander down memory lane, let's get started.

Sewing

• a proper patchwork quilt (my first ever and a small one to start with)
• a hexagon cushion cover in shades of blue (I have just got some hexagon templates to help with this)
• three more pinafores - denim, stars cord and cat material (which will need lining I think, so that is another challenge)
• stretch fabric tunic dresses (my first attempt at sewing with stretch fabric) 
• using jelly roll strips in some way (yet to be decided)
• Kantha embroidery kit
• four crewel embroidery kits (I seem to have quite a collection of these, but haven't actually got round to starting any of them!)

• mend toys - Panda bear and Gonga (he is the knitted rabbit pictured above in his new clothes). (Both 40+ years old and showing signs of neglect.  Panda bear had holes in him and is literally threadbare in places, but I have darned what I can and patched over the holes.  Poor Gonga also had many holes in him which I started to repair years ago, but got distracted by other things.  He now has new trousers and a new tie.  Both look much smarter and properly cared for now.)

• make a thread catcher basket (actually completed as I had the pieces all cut out, just needed to sew them up.  I do like making these little fabric baskets/boxes.  This is my favourite cats in glasses material, also destined to become a pinafore at some point)

Crafting

• seasonal hare decorations (Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, with appropriate charms and gemstones)

• pompom wreath or two (I have actually started this and am enjoying making the pompoms.  I am also trying to secure the wool threads by stitching around the wool which ties the strands together).  Pompoms are such happy things - even the name sounds happy)
• polymer clay muse/icon figure (this is still forming in my mind, but it has to have jewel colours, silver, wings, positive words, a crown or halo and a serene face.  I am especially inspired by Laurie Mika's work and I have her book, which is lovely. I may start with a 2D plaque, but would like to make a 3D figure at some stage)
• make a canvas with favourite floral papers in a grid of squares
• keep working on current art journal
• begin another art journal
• Christmas leaf wreath using different papers and card

Jewellery

• bracelets with sterling silver spacers, either macrame or knotted cord
• multigem earrings
• multigem bracelet
• multigem kumihimo necklace
• rainbow moonstone bracelet with sterling silver spacers (and matching earrings)
• blue goldstone knotted/macrame necklace

There will also be gardening this year, naturally, and reading.  There will also be card making too. Looking at the list, perhaps it may be a little ambitious (!).  Still, it's always good to have things to aim for. I will post my progress now and again and see how I get on.

I have also tried to increase my creativity so that I am doing something every day, even though it might only be something small, like sewing a button on, or wrapping wool to make a pom pom.  I can watch the TV and still be making/doing/thinking about creative projects and I am really enjoying that.

This week...singing, tulips and bracelets

This week, I have been taking part in a vocal workshop at a local village hall, which was great fun and from which I learnt a lot about the technical side of singing and performing. The workshop was run by Tsavocal and involved singing three songs from Les Miserables - 'Do you hear the people sing?', 'I dreamed a dream' and 'Bring him home' (none of which are that easy to sing).  It helped that I knew the songs, but it was all done by ear and was a lovely way to spend a couple of hours.  I used to sing a lot; I was in a church choir for fourteen years and also joined a Gilbert and Sullivan Society for a few years, but hadn't done any 'proper' singing for ages, so it was lovely to be able to sing again (without worrying that I was annoying the neighbours!)
In other news, this week I have still been enjoying my tulips as the new Ballerina tulips I planted last autumn are flowering now.

 They are so pretty...

 ...even after the rain and hail we've had this week.

 This rogue fringed tulip which I didn't plant, which came up for a few years, then disappeared and then came up again has flowered this year too and is a welcome addition to the spring garden.

Tulip Ronaldo and Princess Irene are still flowering away and I am wondering whether next year I should plant each variety separately as well as some together...now there's a thought.

I have also found a bracelet pattern which  I am going to try to make - a wrapped bracelet using Tila beads which are flat squares.

Photo from Jewellery Maker

These wrapped bracelets were made by Jo Barclay-Loggie and were featured on Jewellery Maker this week, which is what fired my interest.  Watch this space.

Reassessing...

Before I continue with my post, I would just like to say how saddened I was about what happened in London yesterday.  We should be very proud of the emergency services, as well as all the people who did their best to help the injured.  In the midst of horror, there is good.

*****

It seems a little inappropriate to continue with a post about jewellery, but I had planned to do that today, so I shall carry on as normal.  I have been making (well, constructing) jewellery for a few years now and have enjoyed learning new skills such as macrame, kumihimo and using polymer clay. Initially, I made jewellery using larger sizes of bead/gemstones, around 10mm or 12mm.  However, as time has gone on, I have reassessed what I like and realised that I actually prefer smaller stones/beads, so I have been making a few simple elasticated bracelets for myself using those smaller stones.  Above is a beryl bracelet, in pastel shades, using 6mm gemstones with sterling silver spacer beads.

Then there is a Burmese jadeite 6mm bracelet, again using sterling silver spacers. Simple, but pretty and very easy to wear.

I was looking at some bracelet designs on the internet (as you do) and saw one made with memory wire and seed beads,  I didn't think I was that keen on seed beads (as I had become a bit of a gemstone snob - only the real thing, thank you) but when I searched some of the bead shops, I was impressed by the colours and prices. So, I placed an order and made up a couple of bracelets in my favourite colours.  I am really pleased with how they have turned out.

They are easy to wear - you just coil the memory wire around your wrist - and there they sit.  I made some little charms just to finish off the ends nicely.  The one above is my favourite as it looks like a stacker bracelet when it is on, but is all one piece in reality.  I have since order more seed beads, and feel that several more of these bracelets will be created very soon!

Cakes and Makes

I picked the last few blueberries from my plants this year and decided to make little cakes with them, however, there weren't quite enough.  I found half a bag of chocolate chips and added them in too.

Great result!  The cakes were yummy and the blueberries and chocolate worked well together.  (There were originally twelve cakes, but Chris and I both felt we should test them before I posted about them, hence just nine in the photo!)

 I have been making some really simple stretchy bracelets recently too.  These are the blue goldstone (glass with copper in it to give the beautiful sparkle) bracelets which were the start of my jewellery making obsession.  They were just too big in their original form, so finally, I have sorted them out and can now wear them.

 I bought this bracelet from a craft fair and it was originally on beading thread with a clasp.  I had re-strung it so that it fitted, but didn't wear it that often.  I decided to elasticate it so that it was easy to get on and off and I hope I'll wear it much more.

Finally, blue shell carved flowers and shell pearls - pretty and summery.  I think that more elasticated bracelets may well be made in the future.

Latest bracelets

Here's the latest bracelets I have made - for a colleague's birthday.  She likes black and white, hence the choice of monochrome!  Above is a macrame bracelet using striped agate, rutile quartz and crackled quartz.

This is my second memory wire bracelet and I used black rutile quartz chips, black agate bicones, white pearls and silver pearls.  I am enjoying using memory wire as you don't need any findings and it is quite a meditative experience to thread the chips on.  My colleague was really pleased with the jewellery and said the the memory wire bracelet would be a 'going out' one!

Jewellery round-up

 As I have made a few pieces of jewellery in the run up to Christmas, I thought I'd create some montages for your perusal.  From the top: a polymer clay and macrame bracelet, made for someone called Robert (you probably realised that!), to replace one his girlfriend had bought him from Turkey and which he'd subsequently lost.  Chris made the polymer clay beads (very cleverly) and I added the macrame.  Next is a bracelet that I made for my best friend in Canada, using Botswana Agate and labradorite.  Under that is one I made for her daughter, our god-daughter, using pink banded agate and black rutile quartz.  The brightly coloured one was for a colleague at work's son, who just wanted bright colours but no beads.

The next photo montage shows a Tiger's Eye bracelet made for a friend who is visiting from London, and then the two finished polymer clay pendants, one with a glitter bead, made for Mum.  The final photo shows a red wood bead bracelet set to a friend who lives in South Africa.

I also made a little something for me, using polymer clay and glitter. I was SO excited to find that there was a special glitter that could be used with the clay and couldn't wait to receive it and start playing.  The beads were made out of scrap clay and then rolled in the glitter, baked and then varnished (so that the glitter will stay where I want it to).  I made the earrings to match and wore them on Christmas Day (and I love them!).  I predict that glitter will feature quite a lot in the jewellery I make in 2013.  Here's to another creative year ahead.

Latest Jewellery

Here is the latest jewellery I have been making, for my work colleague, Leanne's birthday, last week.  She likes dramatic jewellery, so this gave me a challenge for my polymer clay.  I made a large pendant on wire, and two bracelets.



Above is a close up of the pendant, made using polymer clay in black, white, red glitter and silver.  As you can see, I had fun using the extruder tool again!

 I then made some polymer clay beads using the same colours and made them into a macrame bracelet.

 I told Leanne that this was a complete original because no-one in the world would have one exactly the same.  I wouldn't even be able to make one exactly the same.  I love that about polymer clay.

The final macrame bracelet is made using black rutilated quartz (also called rutile quartz and apparently the black flecks in the quartz are tourmaline).  Leanne immediately put this one on and wore it for the rest of the day.  I think they were successful gifts.

More macramé

 Here are the latest bracelets, made using gemstones and glass beads.  Above is one made for a friend at work because her daughter 'borrowed' the one I had originally made for her birthday.  I did make one for her daughter too.  It is made using botswana agate and grey agate and the small stones on the ends are zebra jasper.  I found it quite tricky to get the cord through the gemstones as the drill holes were quite small, but found enough for this bracelet. 

The other two here are blue sandstone (back left) which is glass with beautiful sparkles inside it, like the night sky. I think it is made by infusing copper into the glass, but am not sure. It is a beautiful thing though. This is just knotted in between each stone, but I am not sure the cord will be very long lasting. (I may end up taking it apart and making it into a bracelet with beading wire). The one in front is aquamarine and amazonite and has a lovely fresh look to it. The turquoise blue cord works well with the stones, I think. I am really enjoying using macrame in jewellery making. I have now received my clay roller too, so will have another try at polymer clay over the weekend. 

Polymer clay, here I come... and macramé bracelet progress

 I am so excited as I received my polymer clay starter kit in the post today.  There is a box to keep the clay in, two acrylic sheets for shaping, sandpaper for smoothing, a roller for ... rolling, cutters, a black and a white clay block and a pack of very sharp blades. 

 I also ordered a few extras - more clay in purple and blue, some glaze to protect the work and give it a shiny finish and some rather gorgeous looking foils which are applied to the clay and then burnished, and the heat caused makes the foil stick to the clay.  I also have a 'How to' DVD and have watched a couple of the sections this evening when I got home from work.  I am hoping to have a first attempt at the weekend.

Here are my first two macramé bracelets, the one above using waxed cord and the one below using hemp cord, with a variety of wooden beads. I found the finishing off on the knots quite tricky - I used a bit of PVA glue in the hope that it would secure the ends unobtrusively.

I am unsure whether to include one of these in my blog swap, but am thinking I should make another one for that, just in case my swapper happens to see my blog and this ruins the surprise.  I need to keep going and have a go using gemstones and cord next.  I am really enjoying the challenge of learning new jewellery making skills.  Oh, and the PeaceFelt piece has been prepared, so once it is received (probably in October), I'll post a photo of that too.

Latest jewellery creations

 

Here are some of my latest jewellery designs - really, it is a matter of having a play with all the gemstones I have amassed (in a very short time, it has to be said!)  Above is a lapis lazuli bracelet, with a gold heart that Chris found in one of the boxes of beads we have.

 This bracelet has amethyst (my favourite) with labradorite and black jasper.  The patterns on the black jasper are incredible and I am going to make a bracelet just using them.

Finally, a bracelet made with amazonite, turquoise chips and labradorite, and earrings with amazonite and aquamarine.  The loop earrings were a result of me having some beading thread left over from a bracelet and trying a weaving technique.  I am still practising with crimping and have found that the crimping pliers I have are not very effective unless there are a lot of strands to crimp.  For less than about four strands, I use my normal pliers which seem to be working. I am really enjoying making my own jewellery.