Spring and amazonite

Spring has sprung downunder and so of course it has turned cold. Can’t win, eh!? Nevertheless it really isn’t too chilly and if we got a bit more rain I’m sure things would look lovely and green.

I have the first of my spring shows this weekend – at a private girl’s school a few hours drive away. It is going to necessitate leaving home at 4.30am (EEEK!!!!) and a late night too by the time we drive back. Grandma is on child minding duties and I’m so grateful that she lives nearby and that the children love to stay there!

I’ve been busy making some spring-like creations in preparation for the show – and particularly since I got rather behind in this department with all that reading I was doing last week! Thankfully the muse came and stayed for a decent visit and things went well!

The photo above is a new piece – isn’t the colour just glorious? It’s bright and breezy and to me just says hot, summer days. The wonderful teal-blue gemstone is Peruvian Amazonite. Amazonite varies in colour depending on its source – the stone just called ‘Amazonite’ is a much paler version and the Russian Amazonite is more green. I read a great origin story on Peruvian Amazonite that says the stone was considered a gift from Copacati the Inca goddess of the lake.

One of the reasons I love to read other people’s blogs (yes, I’m slightly addicted) is to see not just what people think, but to get an insight into their world – particularly if they are located far away from me.

One blog I’ve recently found is Yana, who is a decoupage artist in Greece. She recently mentioned a case of varnishing small quantities of items and leaving them on her verandah to dry. Her neighbours are understandably curious and had to ask what she was doing. Fortunately the enquiry led to a sale and Yana is now somewhat disappointed she doesn’t have more nosy neighbours that can see her patio!

A few weeks ago I mentioned Rae Ann’s blog Critical Mass – I just had to laugh at her most recent entry when she relates the story of hanging a shade blind in her house. She sounds a very capable woman, but oh my, things weren’t going her way on this occasion!

I also like to check out what other artisans get up to. There’s something about this piece made by Joella of Always Wired that struck a chord with me – I think it is the almost ‘princess’ nature, sparkly and colourful - something my 8 year old girls would adore … not that they’d be getting close to this valuable item!

OK, better get back to preparing for this show – I seem rather disorganized at the moment!

Till next
Annette