Blog Hop

Ok, I know I have been a bit slack over the last few months!  What can I say?  I have been busy.  Actually I have, what with producing orders for my stockists and taking some time out to develop some ideas for new designs, I have had lots to do.  Any way, it is very timely that I have had a nomination from Inky Linky to take part in this Blog Hop, to spur me into a new blog post.  Liz is a very talented jeweller and print maker who creates lovely characterful, atmospheric pieces and you can see her blog entry here.

So the idea is that creative designer maker types like ourselves answer just four questions about what it is that we do and a little bit about how.  

So, to the questions.

What am I working on?

At this time of year I tend to work on what ever needs restocking!  It is the time of year when things go a tad mad.  However, in between fulfilling orders and keeping on top of stock levels I have smuggled in some new design ideas that incorporate some of my ink paintings that I created a month or so ago.  

Recent additions

I have also been playing with an idea I had a long while ago, the use of copper washers in my work.  It comes from my love of the copper colour and how it sets off certain colour combinations.  I have been using a range of metal findings and washers in my cuff link ranges but not yet branched out into the larger pieces.

Bronze cuff links

 So I have a big industrial pack of lovely shiny washers of every possible size and I have been trying them out in some of my designs, I rather like them.

Copper washer range 

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

There are many resin jewellers out there but I suppose what makes my work unique to me is the fact that I use my own photography and art work in them.  My work is recognisable for it's colour and intricate detailing (I use tiny seed beads which need to be added to the designs with a pin!) as well as a strong link to my biological background (many of my paintings are reminiscent of cellular structures).  The comments I have had many times from different people are that my pieces are tiny artworks in themselves, as well as comments on how good my eyesight must be! 

Selene brooch

Why do I do what I do?

I absolutely love what I do and I realise I am extremely lucky to be able to pursue my dream career.  Before this I was a primary school teacher, another job I loved, but it didn't give me the freedom I needed to be with my young family.  So this idea came about - maybe I could make a living from my creativity?  I have always been creative, I have used many media and created a range of artwork either through my educational life or through my own interests.  I had been dabbling in creating jewellery, I taught myself how to work with resin and when push came to shove I took the step to try and make a business out of what I was doing.
  
Over the last few years I have built up my business, honing my ideas, whittling out the things that I may enjoy doing but are not good business sense to sell and I have come round to a more secure identity as a result.  I have grown in confidence and what is more, every day is different.  I have met all sorts of interesting and like minded people and have gained some great friends who understand what it is like to be creative.  Even more astonishingly (to me) it appears that I am creating something that others like enough to buy and so my little business is branching out and I am now stocked in 16 galleries and gift shops around the UK.   I have a real sense of achievement in what I have built up so far, that is why I do what I do.  

How does my process work? 

The creative process can be quite lengthy in my case.  I can have an inkling of an idea months before it turns into anything concrete but I enjoy kicking it about in the back of my head until it is ready to come out.  Sometimes however they may simply spill out onto the page without me really knowing where they have come from!  Most of my ideas are triggered from my background in Applied Biology, I love the microscopic aspect, the hidden world.  Many of my larger canvases are loosely based on cellular structures.  

Xylem

I also love natural forms whether they be tightly wound fronds on a fern or the plumage on a guinea fowl.  I don't go far without my camera which I use to photograph little treasures that I come across.  All these aspects of my interests, once manifesting themselves first in a painting or in a photograph make their way in a cut down form to the back of my pendants.  There they are embellished with tiny seed beads which are finally encased in a dome of resin.    

Organised chaos!

The resin takes up to two days to harden but I love the effect it gives of a lens magnifying the detail. 

Rosa brooch

And there you have it, a little insight to my world and the way that I work.

So thank you Liz for my nomination and now it is my turn to nominate two fellow makers.  My first nominee is Bec Gilray of Do You Punctuate?  Bec is a maker of letterpress printed cards that are both exquisite and at times rather rude!  She has a fabulous sense of humour and her recent profanity ranges are flying off the shelves!

My second nominee is Becky Moore from Becky Moore Handbags.  Becky's bags are lovely (I am a proud owner of one), practical stylish creations made in lovely combinations of wool, velvet and linen finished off with her trade mark spiral design.