Step with me into another realm ...

For once, this post has nothing to do with wirework, jewellery making, colour, or any of the other things involved with my main obsession - although it does affect it indirectly, in the form of occasional inspiration.

Like many people, my first love has always been books.  Specifically, reading fiction - tales spun from someone else's imagination, and crafted into a story with passion and skill.  From the moment I first learned to read, books have provided a way into a fantastic realm, occasionally a way to escape from every day life, and - often without realising it at the time - a way to learn.

That delicious joy of curling up in the warm on a cold, rainy Sunday, with what is basically a pile of paper and ink, and allowing it to transport you to somewhere you have never been before - or perhaps, somewhere you have been and are keen to revisit - is for me, without equal.  When I find a new author whose writing sucks me in and makes me feel, it's a two-fold pleasure, because not only do I have their current work to savour, there is always the likelihood that there will be more to come.  Or if there is no anticipation of new work, there's often a back-list to search out and devour.

For me, the most important part of a novel is the characters.  The plot is important - after all, you haven't really got a story without one - but if the writer can't make me believe in the characters, laugh when they laugh, cry when they cry, then for me they've failed.  But when they succeed - oh my, they've got me for life!  (At least when it comes to re-reading - I will freely admit I have abandoned authors when they've lost me along the way somehow.)

So what I would really like to know is what is your favourite novel/series?  Don't be shy - I'm no snob when it comes to reading (or music).  If it has value to you, then it's worthy.  My favourite books have been The Wraeththu trilogy by Storm Constantine since I was a teenager - I fell in love with the characters and I've never fallen out of love with them.  The books are fantasies set in a post-apocalyptic world and they are all character-driven, with a central love story running through all three.  The characters get their share of heartbreak and joy, and as a reader, so do I.

So please share with me the book(s) that you'd have to take to that fictional desert island - I am always looking to be sucked into another realm ... :)


Credits for royalty free photos:

Books Isolated by Supertrooper
Without Fear by Jennifer Ellison
Forests in Danger by xedos4

On the Beauty of our Fair Isle ...

As anyone who follows my Facebook page will know, I've just got back from a long weekend in Suffolk.  And the thing that always strikes me during our infrequent trips around the country, is how much outstanding beauty there really is in this fair isle.  And how little of it I've seen so far.  I still haven't made it to Scotland or Ireland (oh, the shame!), although I have seen some of the beauty that is Wales.

You may (!) know that I'm an absolute sea shore addict - if I don't see the sea for many months at a time, I start getting terrible withdrawal symptoms and having dreams that I'm swimming in it ... ;)

But it's not just the paddling and the fresh air of the seaside that make me happy - I love, love, love trees (you'd never guess, right?) and leaves and mushrooms and the sky ... I could go on, but you're probably already yawning!

And it isn't just nature that draws me - I'm a sucker for historical buildings, particularly castles, abbeys and priories, where I can stand in the middle of the ruins, imagining the history happening all around me.

Suffolk in October is beautiful - torrential rain and all.  We saw so much fungi (does anyone else get excited by toadstools?  We have a LOT of pictures ..! ) and the heathland was all colourful and glistening.  There was an abundance of acorns crunching underfoot and the cider smell of the tiny apples that were scattered around the trees.

All of this adds up to the best inspiration for jewellery-making I could possibly ask for.  I love this country, and while there are many places in the world I would love to see (and many that I never will), I am truly grateful for the beauty that is not far from my doorstep.

And I got to paddle (in the pouring rain) on my birthday, then eat an ice cream in a very steamed-up car - does it get any better than that?  No, it most certainly doesn't! :)

I Can See a Rainbow ...

Colour is a funny thing.  Different colours - even different shades of one colour - provoke very different, often passionate responses in people.  Take me for example.  Before I discovered an addiction attraction to a rainbow of jewel tones, it was pretty much all about black for me.  Yes, green was my favourite colour, even back then - it's hard to dislike the colour of grass and trees, after all - but I was very unadventurous with colour.  If I could find an item of black clothing - and accent it with some silver jewellery - that was good enough for me.

Then I discovered beads.  And a whole new appreciation of colour pretty much swamped me.  I still tended to stick to schemes in different shades of the same colour to start with, but suddenly I was a fan of vibrant colour!  Then of course, I discovered coloured wire, and that was it.  With so many shades, and so many, MANY shades of seed beads to pair it with, I was like a kid in a sweet shop.  And I still am.  My bracelets have become far more adventurous, colour-wise, and I actually need the 'fix' of a colourful wire pendant when I've been working on monochrome ones for a while.

The only thing that has endured is that I still love green.  And while I'll never fall out of love with that sludgy olive green that was really the only colour I liked in my teens and twenties, I have a tendency to select something a little zingier these days - like my jewellery gift boxes ... ;)

Has anyone else discovered a passion for colour they never knew they had?  What is your absolute favourite? :)

Hopes and Dreams ...

I have been giving a lot of thought recently to my hopes and dreams - where I would like to be in the (near) future, and what I would like to be doing with my life.  It suddenly hit me last year - probably triggered by hitting the dreaded Big Four Oh - that certain aspects of my life were not bringing me happiness, and that time may be running out to change that.  All I wanted was to find my own fairy door and step through it into a simpler, magical realm.

One of the main reasons for this is that, for various reasons, that most precious of things - time - seems to be about as common as hen's teeth for me right now.  I work full-time, do my self-employed hubby's accounts, my own accounts and, of course, pour everything that's left into my jewellery business.  There was a point last year when I considered dropping the jewellery altogether, but I couldn't quite bring myself to do it.  Primarily because I love doing it, and because it makes some of the other stuff bearable!

I've never been the sort of person who sets goals for myself and then beats myself up when I don't reach them, but I have been giving some thought to the things I would really like to do with/have in my life.  It goes without saying that health and the people who matter to me are more important than any of these, but here, in no particular order, is my (fairly humble) list:

• Work full-time at the jewellery business
• Own a dog
• Live somewhere that is in walking distance of the countryside
• Do all the above, and still have enough money to visit the sea every now and again 

See, when I write it down, it looks achievable, but isn't it strange how things that some people take for granted often seem quite beyond our reach?  I may never achieve these modest dreams, but perhaps many others dream of owning their own house, having full-time employment so that they can pay their bills, and having a significant other who loves them.  So, on balance, I consider myself lucky to be where I am right now.  At some point, I will have to sort out this time issue - there really is only so much of me to go round! - but my life could be so much worse.  And if I can't just pop out of my front door and go for a walk in the woods, I can reach for the wire and 'draw' myself a wood, and that's pretty cool, huh?

So what are everyone else's dreams?  I'd love to know.  It's important to have them, but equally important to be grateful for what we have, I know.  :)

We have a winner!

Firstly, I would like to say thank you for all the truly lovely comments you have all left on my blog over the last week.  I wish you could all win!  Here is the hat I always use for my giveaways - looking a bit worse-for-wear after being shoved in a cupboard since the last one! ;)

The winning slip of paper is always chosen by my hubby - who has no interest in who wins, and is still muttering that he should be paid for doing this 'job'.  There is no cheating!  In the past I've had one winner from Germany, one from America and one from the UK, so everyone is truly eligible to win. :)

He's just had a really good rummage around in the hat - with well over 100 entries, there was plenty to rummage through.  I know you're all itching to know who's won, so without further ado, the winner is ... Kyley Nevard!  Well done, Kyley - if you could let me have your address (pm through Facebook is fine)  I will get it packed up ready to send.  Thank you SO much to all who entered! xxx

Summer is here - and so is my giveaway (closed 14th July) ...

Helloooo ... is anyone still there?  My goodness, has it really been over a year since I last blogged? Naughty Weeze!  It's another summer now, and a bit hotter than the last one at the moment!  And it's long past time to resurrect my poor, neglected blog. ;)

Very unusually, I'm writing this on my laptop, which means it's taking twice as long as I keep hitting the mouse pad with the heels of my hands and inadvertently deleting whole lines!  It's just too hot to use the pc upstairs, so I'm lurking in a darkened room, fortifying myself with homemade ice cream soda and listening with half an ear to the tennis, hoping Murray wins ...

So, what's been happening in my year of blog silence?  Well, I've been pouring my energy into my Etsy shop - which I have filled with lots of lovely handmade findings as well as all my latest jewellery creations - and my Facebook page, created two wirework tutorials, made many custom items for some truly lovely people, turned 40 (eek!) and still managed to work a full-time day job without (quite) cracking up. :)

And in the last few days, I have reached 1000 likers on my Facebook page - this may not sound such a huge number on the grand scale of things, but when I think that over ONE THOUSAND people have taken the time to visit my page and click that Like button (hopefully because they do genuinely like it), I'm quite humbled.  To me it is a big deal.

So, to say a big fat THANK YOU with squirty cream, cherries and chocolate sprinkles on top, I'm going to be giving away the following summery necklace, which I have just finished making especially for this purpose.

And all you have to do to be entered into the draw, is leave a comment here WITH YOUR NAME in it.  I will be closing the draw at 1pm GMT next Sunday the 14th July and announcing the winner as soon as they have been chosen.  As is traditional with my giveaways, all the names will go into my straw hat, and the winner will be chosen by my long-suffering hubby.  This is open to all my likers, wherever in the world you are, but please only enter if you have liked my Facebook page or you follow my blog, as this particular giveaway is meant to be a thank you for following me, and not leaving my ramblings to echo lost and unheard ... :)

*Please note - your comments need to be moderated before they will show (a measure I had to take because of spam) - but they will show, fear not!*

Memories of the sea ...

Way back when I returned from holiday (which seems like months ago!), I was filled with inspiration after spending time by my favourite element - the sea.  I made this Ocean Wave pendant in response to the latest Wire Goddess challenge on Etsy:

And, because I recently promised myself I wasn't going to assume I couldn't do something, I turned an idle sketch of Neptune into this slightly mad ocean-themed pendant:

I also decided to make an underwater pendant for myself, for a change:

The voting is now open for the Wire Goddess Challenge - Splendor of The Sea.  Please pop over and cast your vote - all votes are welcome! www.surveymonkey.com/s/V2QS8GL

I'll be working on my blog more in the coming weeks, and will try and share more about my techniques and inspiration - time has run away with me recently, as usual! :)