Shows - the trials and tribulations

OK, I think I need to just stop. For a few minutes anyway.

This time of the year is unbelievable - even one of my girls last night asked when my next show was, and the next, and the next and the next.... Her eyes got bigger at each one I mentioned. Luckily they're kept busy at school and when they're home they're playing together, doing piano practice and reading. Lots of reading (I think I gave birth to book worms not children sometimes!). And I have a husband that is flexible enough to look after them (and if he is not available, then, thankfully, there is always Grandma!).

I love doing shows - I love getting out and about and meeting people, sharing my passion for gems and pearls and hopefully brightening people's day with some 'pretty' jewels. Even better when I can extend that happiness by having someone take something they love home.

I have another outing this afternoon - just a small one, in my neighbouring town, Dunedoo, about 45min drive away, for a 'ladies afternoon'.

Last weekend I wended my way to Armidale with my friend Trista in tow (to keep me awake as well as help me at the show) for the TAS fair. We had a wonderful time, met some lovely people and sold some jewels, but, as often happens, there was just too many people selling jewellery for any of us to do really well and the poor people attending the show had glazed eyes at the literally hundreds of strands of necklaces that must have been there. Of course the quality, material and styles varied immensely, but at first glance, all people saw was "more jewellery".

This, I must admit, is one of my pet peeves about doing shows. I realise that these shows are organised by time-poor volunteers, but as organisers they CAN and SHOULD dictate what people can sell. In the case of last week, two stall holders mentioned they sold jewellery amongst a myriad of other things (such as clothes, shoes, homewares etc.) but they displayed mostly jewellery. The result is that the show isn't as successful as it could be - the stall holders don't sell as much as they might if there were less of the same category there, and the attendees get limited variety and boredom sets in early.

Of course, some shows are very well organised in this department and they are usually very successful and enjoyed by everyone. These go on to run year after year and I'm fortunate to be a part of some of them. I noted on the Business Mums Blog a week or so ago that some of the markets/shows in Melbourne do great promotion for their participants too. Ah, sometimes I want to live in a city and get those sort of benefits. But then, I love my peace and quiet and rural life too much!

I also noted on the Busy Mum blog, that she's wishing for summer to hurry up and come. Given the cold weather we keep getting here, I'm wishing for a bit of summer too!

Well, I must dash and put my busy hat back on. I still have to finish packing for my outing this afternoon and I only have an hour and a half left before I leave! Today's photo is of pearls - I've felt a bit 'pearly' the last week or so, so made this strand up a few days ago. Rich dark brown pearls with a peacock sheen, enhanced by the addition of some rhodolite garnet, amethyst, iolite and peridot. Yum!

Till next :)
Annette

Spring jewellery, shopping and entertaining!

Can you believe it’s spring! We’ve had a couple of beautiful warm days when the when the jumper came off, leaving me in a short sleeved shirt and all the doors in the house were open with a lovely warm breeze flowing through. Bliss. Then the next day it turned Cold (with a capital ‘C’!) and then the rain started. Again. Now as I’m married to a farmer, I can’t complain about the rain at all – but it’s staggering how much we’ve had this year in comparison to the last decade! I’ve even slid sideways down my dirt road to the front gate. Please imagine a look of intense concentration as this was happening LOL. Luckily it dries out fast so we're back to cool but sunny weather and driving down the track is just fine!

I’ve been incredibly busy on the jewellery front thus my absence from the blogging world. I’ve finished the spring-summer collection and have been loading it onto the website, so if anyone was checking in on the site, there’s been lots of new things to look at every day. I’m close to finishing now, just in time for my first spring outing at Quirindi Show this weekend on 11 and 12 September. The following week is Merriwa Show on 17-18 September – so a very busy fortnight in store.

Apart from jewellery I’ve also been a ‘gardening fairy’! I was the recipient of this gardening goodness recently having three wonderful girls come and help me prune roses, weed and plant white agapanthus at the front of the house (which has been kept very bare due to the lack of my gardening talent).

Last week it was time to return the favour – three of us attacked one of the other girl’s gardens, digging up and planting a huge circle of agapanthus (purple this time!), pruning lavender and chopping down and removing the debris from four large (15 foot high) shrubs. We did have her husband’s help with the chopping down part though! It’s amazing how much work you can get done in a few hours with a few of you. Another stint as a garden fairy in a couple of week’s time – the rush is on now spring is here.

We had the pleasure of a wonderful lunch with friends on the weekend. It's been so long since we entertained, I had forgotten what a great time we have getting together. I'm almost considering hosting a Christmas or New Years party, but well, we'll see about that when it all gets a bit closer.

I've also enjoyed the pleasure of quite a bit of online shopping in the past week. With both a beach holiday and wedding to attend in the near future and a lack of suitable clothes available in town (I looked!), I took the plunge and must say I'm happy with my purchases. I can see why people love to buy from me too - the buzz when the mailman delivers and then finally trying the goodies on that you were trying to picture and measure if they'd be right is immensely satisfying!!! And all without going to town. It's times like that when it hits home how the WWW has changed our lifestyle.

Today's pic is from the new Under the Sea range, with soothing colours reminiscent of the seashore or with corals and pearls from a mermaid's treasure box! This necklace is made with faceted aqua amazonite and lots of sterling silver - perfect to make a summer statement!

The pre-spring merry-go-round

Life is a merry-go-round at the moment. And that merry-go-round is spinning faster and faster and won't let me off! Even blogging suffered when I couldn't find time to sit down and write here for an hour or so last week.

I've been totally caught up in creating for the past couple of weeks - designs have been flying out of my head and I have to get them down on paper before they flutter away! I've been making as many up as I can but even I have my limitations - too many late nights and overloaded days and I turn into a grumpy mother and wife, regardless of how well the design side is going along!

I still have a few things I want to try but the majority of designs for spring and summer are basically finished. There are summer brights in pink, green, yellow and purple; bold statments in red, orange, black and teal, stunning red-carpet worthy creations in sparkly aqua, straw yellow, lavender, white and icy clear; some solid pieces in earthy tones and some lustrous pearl and paua designs too. Sheesh. No wonder I've been busy!

It can be pretty full on in this pre-season rush to be ready but I guess I make up for it at other times of the year when I wind right back - its just hard to remember those times at the moment! I also want to re-organise my existing pieces into collections in line with the new stock and to change my display quite dramatically according to these collections. Considering my first spring show is less than two weeks away, it might not happen that way unless it's at the last minute (or even while I'm there!)

I'm glad to see, however, that others go through similiar things - we all get busy, don't we and hurry through before some sort of deadline? I love to read Amanda's blog Busy Mum 2010 (aptly titled!) and my life seems positively tame compared to hers!

I've done a bit of a sneak peak on my spring/summer range in the photo above - there are so many new pieces its hard to choose just one to feature this week!

Right, I need to get my nose back to the grindstone!

Till next :)
Annette

Moods and Creativity

I've had a lovely couple of days working on my spring/summer collection. In fact I have the whole week scheduled for nothing else!

Monday I was into the turquoise blues as it was a sunny, bright day. But Tuesday it was raining most of the day - everything was soggy and with the low clouds things were dim. But I put myself in mind of spring rain rather than winter rain and ended up working with the wonderful watery-looking stone, aquamarine. A sneak peak at one of the pieces above!

It's funny how your mood/surroundings will be reflected in what you create. Monday I was trying to get things done in between unexpected visitors, telephone calls and housework. The clear skies and warm breeze did lift my mood (luckily!) from harried to 'getting the job done'. The pieces I created when I eventually got to my bench were consequently also more 'energetic'. Easy to wear, eye catching, low maintenance - I could see people throwing them on as they rushed out the door for a busy day - not thinking about them until it was time for bed after another busy day.

Yesterday, however, with the wet weather settled in, I enjoyed the peace of the constant thrumming of rain on the roof and enjoyed the calm in my quiet, warm studio. When the rain started during the night I started to think about a particular aquamarine strand that had been sitting, patiently waiting for me to have some inspiration about it. I sat down with it in the morning and it all came together beautifully (I just love it when that happens!) Looking back at the day's work, the designs from yesterday are serene and unfussy - someone will put them on with care and thoroughly enjoy them.

I wonder what today will bring?

Can you believe we're well into August already? That means spring is just a couple of weeks away! And now we're well into the second half of the year many people I know have started to do things for Christmas. One girlfriend, incredibly, has already FINISHED her gift buying!!! Incredible. Monique from Your Cheeky Monkey has started on her Christmas crafts. Even I have not been immune - I have already designed and received my Christmas postcards! Considering I left it till the last minute last year and paid a premium for the rush job, I must have learned my lesson! Have you started thinking about the "C" word yet, or are you already in denial?

Till next :)
Annette

Inspiration and Music

Spring is in the air again today with bright blue skies, a light breeze and warm sunshine. Of course, this follows some miserably cold days, wet days and even minor local flooding! I'm again working on my spring/summer collection inspired by the warmth and finding myself drawn to bright, bold colours - pink, blue and purple, citrus colours with saffron yellow and lime and lovely bright and rich reds. Of course, gems DO limit my ability to work with bright colours as they're not really found that way in nature. But I have some plans with one of my favourite stones - icy clear rock crystal quartz which should cool down the hottest summer day!

It IS hard to get inspired though at times and I find a little escape can be great for kicking the inspiration into gear - a drive outside your immediate environs (as I did for the show in Scone last weekend) can be great. I saw countryside, rich in varied shades of green and brown - the paddocks with bright green oat and wheat crops, rich chocolate soil laying fallow, light brown paddocks of old native grasses. Add to that the rushing, turbulent brown creeks after the recent rain and the fresh green grassy banks next to the creeks. It gives you a fresh perspective, as Michelle mentioned recently on her blog.

If you're stuck and can't get out and about though, I also find a good book where you can escape into a different life; a movie where you can live vicariously through the storyline and even music can inject some lift into your step!

Speaking of music, I'm a fan of classical, jazz and the standards as a rule, however I find I'm getting more and more drawn to what I term 'light classical' or 'contemporary classical'. My children's piano teacher describes this sort of music as desert, whereas true classical is the main course! Since I've always had a bit of sweet tooth, this analogy is probably pretty right :)

If you'd like to try out some contemporary classical, do have a listen to
*Ludovico Eindaudi, a classically trained pianist from Italy who is very popular in Europe and the UK for his compositions and concerts. I love his CD "Echoes - The Einaudi Collection" which has a great selection of his work - I find the songs quite uplifting.
*Yiruma, also a classically trained pianist from Korea. His work is quite well known, even if you don't think you know of him, as he has written scores for films. My favourite CD of Yiruma's is "First Love" - just gorgeous music to listen and relax to.

OK, so now I've set you up for listening to some beautiful music, I'd better tell you about today's pic :) This bracelet found a new home in the Scone district ... along with its matching necklace and earrings. Mother of pearl shell in a gorgeous soft mid-blue with sterling silver balls and faceted iolite gems.

Till next :)
Annette

Massive jade boulders, wet weather and thoughts of spring

Do you know how some things happen (almost) in your backyard, but it takes a news story from another region or even country to bring it to your attention? Case in point - the Jade Buddha of Universal Peace. I had no idea that this 8 foot high 4 tonne gem quality 'polar' (nephrite) jade carved statue even existed, let alone an Australian sculptor had a hand in the design, it was blessed by the Dalai Lamai in Sydney and its eventual home be in Bendigo, Victoria!

But there you go - a newspaper article in a Canadian paper alerted me to its existence and I've now discovered more about 'polar' jade as well. I have previously heard of and had some 'BC' Jade from Canada which is a dark translucent green nephrite jade, however in the late 1990s a new find of jade was made near the Yukon border in Canada.

Inspired by its surroundings this find was called 'polar' jade. When tested it was found to be harder than normal nephrite jade and could be polished to a high shine, making it very desirable for jewellery and objects d'art. In 2000 an 18 tonne boulder of 'polar' jade was found and the noted gemmologist, Fred Ward admitted it was the largest gem quality nephrite jade boulder found to date. The planning for the statue started in 2003 and it was finished in 2008 and is valued at a whopping $5 million! The face by the way, has been painted in gold, in the tradition of buddha statues in Tibet and Nepal.

I then went on to discover that a 35 tonne jadeite (not nephrite) boulder from Myanmar was purchased by a Vietnamese businessman who plans to also have it carved into a statue of Buddha that he hopes will be approximately 16 tonnes when completed.

All I can say is WOW - they are two darn big rocks, eh!?

On the home front, it is currently wet. Very wet. I worked at the local saleyards canteen today (the school runs the canteen) and the cows and people were all soaked. Dry old drizabones that looked very stiff, had been dragged out and I'm not sure how much protection they afforded those who were wearing them as I'm pretty sure their waxed finish had well and truly gone LOL.

However we have had some lovely mild sunny days and I started to get all excited about spring and found myself working on my spring collection with lots of lovely bright colours in mother of pearl and freshwater cultured pearls. But naturally the dull weather has made me lose all interest in that. Maybe next week will be sunny again and I can take up where I left it all!

This weekend I have my last outing before spring - at the St. Luke's Fair in Scone, on Saturday from 9.30am to 2.30pm. If you're in the vicinity I'd love to see you there!

Today's pic - well I was sure I had a photo of the BC jade necklace I made once upon a time, but after almost an hour of looking I just can't find it! So, instead here's a pretty necklace - mossy quartz which has, from a distance, a slight lavender tinge is matched with silver and iolite.

Till next :)
Annette

Silence really can be golden!

Peace has returned to the house (well, between the hours of 8.30am and 4pm it has) as the children returned to school this week. The silence truly is golden and there's one thing to be said for the holidays - it has given me a new appreciation of solitude and quiet LOL.

As we settle in for another term at school, the children have to switch from holiday to learning mode (never an easy thing) and unbelievably, as the year is well into its second half, I have to start thinking about my spring/summer collection. Eeek! It's never easy when its cold outside with heavy frosts every morning, frequent rain showers and dull skies. But we have been fortunate to have some days of brilliant blue skies and warm winter sunshine and its not too hard to think of spring then! (But at night I'm gravitating straight back to that fire!!!)

The Connect2Mums 2010 Conference is on at the end of next week. I went last year and had an absolute blast, but timing is off this year with heifers calving left right and centre here on the farm (and therefore needing round the clock watching). But I have sent along a huge box of special things for the goodie bags they're giving to everyone who comes along, and also a prize of an amethyst, rose quartz and silver necklace (pictured above). If you're interested in going to the conference (held in Brisbane) there are still a few places available, so check it out here.

On to other things, my wonderful, talented and go-getter neighbour (she really is - the woman built her own combined chook shed/dog pen, a hanging cradle for her youngest, gardens like there is no tomorrow and cooks the most divine food that makes my mouth water just thinking about it!!! Anyway....) she introduced me to the world of bamboo clothing a couple of years ago. I had never heard of it before then and couldn't believe it could be so soft and luxurious. If you have a little one, or know someone who is having a baby, I can highly recommend these babyjo bamboo wraps from Your Cheeky Monkey. My girls (now 9) still play with their wraps from their babyhood (very good for wrapping up your toys in, as well as putting around your shoulders as a cape or even just wearing as a scarf!) so its a long-term gift, rather than something they'll grow out of and not be used again.

Ah, it had to happen, I've left this too long and the peace has been shattered by the return of the munchkins.... school is over too quickly some days!

Till next :)
Annette

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

Spring jewels and farming life

Another week has rolled around - gosh they seem to go so fast! A combination of more time spent weeding and pruning in the rose garden, co-ordinating a large buy of gems for a group of fellow jewellery designers and keeping the good ship 'family' afloat has just swallowed up the time.

Oh and did I mention Facebook? I've been quite avidly trying to stay away from potential time-drains such Facebook and Twitter as I really spend more time than I have to spare on forums and checking out things online. But I succumbed to the temptation and joined Facebook this week. I still have very vague notions of how it all works, but I have worked out how to put up a personal page and a business page. I'm surprised at the number of friend requests I have had from people who I don't know! And for only being up and running a couple of days I'm surprised with the number of fans my business page has already attracted. BUT I can see time disappearing with continued use, so I'm trying to be sensible. So far. *ahem*

Two blogs that proved interesting reading this week for me were Silver Rose Blog which had an interesting bit on International Friendship Day. What a lovely idea- but I've never heard of it!!! So much for being 'international' ;). The other is Your Cheeky Monkey - Monique does some great work and I know my girls would adore these Tote Bags made out of rescued furnishing fabric!

Onto farming life, I had a request for a picture of the darling little calves that we have dotting our paddocks at the moment, so I have obliged:



They're actually quite difficult to get close to - a little skittish - so photographing them proved more of a challenge than say, the dog ;)



This is our working dog, Patch :) He's a very tall short-haired border collie, with, would you believe by his size - a pedigree? Maybe he had deerhound as one of his ancestors and he's a throwback?

Spring is only a couple of weeks away now so I've started loading the new spring-inspired stock onto my website. Lots of work ahead, but satisfying :) If I can find the time to do it of course!! The picture above is one piece that went up yesterday - a torsade of plump pink-peach freshwater pearls, sparkling rock crystal quartz and lovely big drops of faceted rose quartz. It would look great with a floaty dress in spring or summer or even as a bridal piece.

OK, best be off. That nose has lifted off the grindstone a tad too high and I'd better get it back in place ;) Till next!

Working up to spring and summer brights

I'm feeling all summery. I think the weekend of glorious weather - bright, sunny and mild - after some very cold, grey days. Plus the fact that I managed to spend a good proportion of that spring-like weather outside in the rose garden (weeding - yuk! and pruning - ouch!) may have had an effect. Now that I've recovered from the sore back from bending over and the stiff hands from gripping weeds, of course! A good dose of Vitamin D perhaps?

I'm currently finding myself being drawn to all things bright and cheery - like this gorgeous clutch by TiLT Creations and these pretty earrings by Kandi-o Designs and even this swimsuit that Brittany featured on her blog.

To match my mood, I've pictured some earrings made with natural apple green turquoise with fat white freshwater pearls. A fresh, bright mix, perfect for spring/summer!

I'm ordering new stones for summer designs at the moment and of course I'm being drawn to lime green (variscite, green turquoise, peridot), Aegean blue (Peruvian amazonite, Peruvian blue opal, turquoise, larimar, aquamarine) and some coral pinks too .... I love how colour can affect your mood and outlook.

I'm not the only one loving brights - in the latest jewellery news, I've heard that a very rare 5 carat vivid pink diamond is due to go on sale with Christies Hong Kong office in December and they expect it to reach a "stratospheric" price! Ahh to have that sort of cash lying about. Vivid pink is pretty hard to get in natural gems and the colour of this particular beauty is stunning.

Down on the farm, the heifers are almost finished calving and weeks of checking them three times a day is thankfully going to stop! The calves are terribly cute though :).

Of course, after calving we start thinking of our annual holiday. Yes, I know we've only just had term break, but hey, we can dream! I found a great post on the Tilda Virtual Services blog about surviving the school holidays - darn it, should have read it a month ago ;)

I guess I should get busy and before I know it spring will be here :) Have a great week everyone!

Winter mistaken for spring - but not for long!

I did it, I did it! I spent two whole days in the most disorganised room in the house (see post last week) and it is now pristine! I threw A LOT of stuff out, re-organised and moved things around and I feel so much lighter in myself!

Hubby is really pleased as he finally has his table back in his possession and although he hasn't finished re-organising that little area it is well on its way.

Of course, the rest of the house is suffering somewhat in comparison now...but I think I'll attack that another day.

The weather has turned very icy here - although the skies are a vivid blue and the grass is green due to rain we've had over the last month. So it is easy to lull yourself into a sense of spring from the warmth inside the house - until you go outside of course! Then you feel the wintry bite and retreat inside very quickly.

The springlike looking weather has inspired me to work with a burst of soft, pretty colours so I thought I would share these delicately coloured earrings that are of new jade (serpentine), freshwater pearl and rose quartz.

I found a great group - Unique Women in Business at the by Earth Expressions blog. I love the idea behind this group - it's fantastic to see women banding together to help each other towards success!

Recently, I received the same award from two fellow bloggers - Miriam from Angelshair and Terry from Magicalbeadstalk gave me this:



The rules of the award are:
Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award."

So here are my 15 newly discovered 'lovely' blogs!
thirtysomethingLand
Theta Mom
Mommy Words
5 kids, 2 labs, 1 lizard and a hermit crab
Piece of Cake Decorating
I'm Still Standing
Shabby Chicks
Paris Couture Antiques
My Insanity
Inca Kids, Fair Trade & Sustainable Living
Keeper of the Cheerios
Click Here
The Crazy Suburban Mom
Sweet Serendipity
Witchetty Art

Gosh, that's a list and half!

Cheers for now,
Annette

Scone Roundup

I had a brilliant day at Scone last weekend - the day was fair and bright, the breeze was low and the people numerous! Who could ask for more!? It was great to catch up with some previous clients who I haven't seen for a whole year. And although a little sad, to part with some really gorgeous pieces (like the necklace I featured last week - it went within an hour of opening!) My helper Trista was superb, as usual and I couldn't have done it without her :) Here is a picture of our set up at Scone:



I have my last booked event until spring (for the time being at any rate!) this weekend at the Tamworth Handmade Market in Peel Street on Sunday 17 May. Its always an early morning, having to leave in the cold and dark, however its all fine after set up and the first caffeine hit of the day! I will be helped out by Kasia, a Tamworth girl who makes some pearl jewellery and am planning to catch up with my net-friend Melanie from Armidale who is coming with some of her jewellery! I'm looking forward to the whole day!

I always have time to check out some blogs and found some funny quotes from courtrooms on the EP Designs Blog - they're good for a giggle. And on the Liv'nGood Jewelry Blog there was a great article on successful blogging - well worth checking out with tips for everyone.

Needless to say not much else has been done in between packing, unpacking, finishing orders and running a household and yes, its the dreaded Thursday run-around tomorrow LOL.

A new bracelet, however, is pictured - lustrous pale blue freshwater coin pearl and iolite gemstone two strand bracelet.

Till next :)

Supporting each other ... and a rose quartz charm bracelet!

Supporting fellow businesses and artisans is really important - apart from a networking perspective, supporting them through times of economic doom and gloom is important.

Heather on her blog Heather's Ramblings recently posted on The Stone Soup Challenge. Using the folktale, Stone Soup, as inspiration this movement is encouraging artists and crafters to spend a little each month and purchase from one another.

In the tale Stone Soup, a stranger comes to a starving village and looks for food. He puts a boiling pot on the water and adds a stone, telling everyone he is making stone soup. Gradually, the villagers come forward with ingredients to add to make the soup. The contributions are items that the villagers are hoarding due to their fear of starvation. Each villager only contributes a small amount, but the end result is a soup that feeds everyone.

It's a wonderful example of co-operation and grassroots economic stimulus and I for one have already joined in! Please visit The Stone Soup blog to learn more and spread the love!

Another way to support each other is to network. Through Melissa at the Business Mums Blog I found out about the Business Mums Conference in June which would be a great networking and learning opportunity for those in Victoria.

I had a wonderful time at the Dunedoo Show last week :) I met lots of wonderful people that only live a stone's throw away ... but in a different direction than I usually go! A big thank you to the Show Committee for having me and for already inviting me back to next year's show.

Of course I'm supposed to be finishing off my winter collection working with rich and darker colours ... but creativity leads you on a journey of its own and this week has been no exception with pinks calling to me *sigh*.

So from this creative burst of pink, is the bracelet pictured above. A handmade chain of soft-pink rose quartz faceted discs and argentinium sterling silver (argentinium is tarnish resistant - brilliant stuff!) with little 'charms' of purple amethyst, grass-green peridot, freshwater pearls in white and bright pink and sterling silver charms of flowers, dragonflies and a butterfly. Very spring-like (in autumn - oh well!).

Catch you on the flip side!

Coolah Spring Garden Festival and a tagging game

Well the Coolah Spring Garden Festival was wonderful! I was at the delightful "Pilca Butta" garden and my hosts Ian and Liz were wonderfully accommodating and helpful. Both days were bright and sunny (the second day got a little too warm!), the garden was in full bloom and really couldn't have looked better, and all in attendance had a marvellous time. Here is a pic of my set up on part of the homestead verandah:



I had beautiful old-fashioned lilac and snowball bushes right near my display - can you see them? Here was my view from my 'perch':





Don't you wish you were there!!!!?

Now last week I mentioned I was tagged and given an award :) Firstly, thank you to Commotion from the Ocean of Life for this award!



Now how special is that!!! I love reading this blog - always something different to read about! Thank you so much - I guess that will make me comment some more ;)

Then Olivia from Piktorize tagged me. Do check out Olivia's blog - she has a photo of the week which is often amazing and she honoured me with featuring my ring photo from last week too!

Now the tagging game rules: Share 7 things your readers may not know about you and tag 7 others to do the same thing, then include a link in your blog back to the person who tagged you.

OK, 7 things...(having done this a couple of months ago, this isn't so easy....)

1. My favourite pets have been golden haired dogs. The first one, when I was a little girl, was an Irish Terrier called 'Goldie' and the second, as an adult was a labrador x red cattle dog called 'Sunny'. Yeah I know, original names, lol.

2. We have a very bad record with keeping cats. We're up to number 5 in about three years. Mostly they just disappear one day although the last one we think met with a snake :(

3. I HATE snakes. Like REALLY HATE. They make me squirm and scream.

4. I hate spiders. Not as much as snakes but then again, they're not as big!

5. My Dad took me out of school at the end of year 6 and we travelled around Australia for a few months. They were going to make me repeat since I was too young to go to High School, so he thought travel would be better than doing the same work twice. Go Dad!!!

6. I travelled around Europe for 8 months in Year 7 with my schoolwork never quite catching up with me! When it did though, all I did was WORK! The trip prior to that was fun though and I saw a lot of the world from the window of a Bedford van!

7. A young man tried to buy me in Morocco for a camel, a donkey and something else I can't remember. I was 13 and the perfect age for a bride (!). My father kept reminding me for a number of years that he turned down a camel that would have been worth a fortune!

OK, this time I'm going to tag my Skwiggazine friends:

1. Designing Hilary

2. Tulip's Talking

3. Michabella Creations

4. Inspired Designs by Teresa

5. Daydream Art Studio

6. Cherished Dreams

7. Who Says 8 Is Enough?

Speaking of number 2 above, check out the pics from Lily's fishing trip and sequential sunrise shots.

Ooops, almost forgot about the pic at the top of the page. Don't you just love the sparkle and the impact of the black onyx and the red jade. Yum! Definitely a statement piece.

I made this one after a client had asked me to make an asymmetric necklace of red white and black (by the way I don't do asymmetric easily, so it was a real challenge!). The strength of the contrasting colours encouraged me to make this necklace - all the sparkle you would need for a night out, don't you think!?

Back from vacation

Well, I am relaxed, recharged and raring to go!!! What a wonderful holiday we had ... the weather was gorgeous, lovely warm sunshine and a couple of days light rain (but not cold) in the middle of our holiday to relieve that monotonous sunshine ;) The children had a wonderful time and spent their time darting between the house, the beach, the house, the playground, the house, the beach.... you get the idea, I'm sure!

I was also very productive and managed to make lots of beautiful jewellery inspired by the beach, the rather tropical feel and the warm, lazy days. Even though I spent some days 'working', being able to do so in comfort and still hearing the waves crash on the beach was very special.



It was marvellous to see our house again (once a year really isn't enough) and even though we have been there a few years running now, the number of kangaroos that hop around your yard, the street and even the beach is a bit amazing. We had a rather large male almost come into our garage and you can routinely get within a foot or so of them before they shy away. Of course, getting that close isn't really recommended as they are wild creatures, so its better to sit back and just watch! Although I had heard of them being on the beach, this was the first time I had seen it as this picture shows a couple of them that had been nibbling the grass on the dune in front of the beach! I can't understand why they don't promote Woodgate Beach a little more to our overseas guests who would love to see the 'roos hopping around the little town.

I am just about to start my spring show season - nothing like jumping right back into the thick of it! This weekend (13-14 September) I am off to Quirindi Show on both Saturday and Sunday and will be located in Pavillion 2, so if you are planning on attending the show, please drop by and say hello! The following weekend (20-21 Sept) is Merriwa Show and I get to catch up with all my lovely clients from that district. Luckily there are school holidays in between those two and my next 2 day event at the Coolah Spring Garden Festival on 18-19 October.

I was working on my website just before going on holidays and fingers crossed I may even get to work on it a little next week as well. I can't wait to unveil it all to you and am still so thrilled to have found the wonderful Emma of Morris Bear who created it for me. As I mentioned before I have looked and looked and looked for web designers and really had trouble finding anyone that could do what I was after at an affordable price! Well, I was pretty chuffed to see that there is another Aussie woman doing web design templates (not specifically e-commerce) at very reasonable prices - Jenni Markham Designs. She also creates the cutest stationery! Well worth a look if you are in the market for something like this.



The piece I've picked for today's pic is beautiful teal coloured, highly faceted jade (treated of course) which is incredibly sparkly. Would you believe the lovely sterling balls in between actually calm the sparkle down to a managable level? It's summery, shiny and sparkly - everything you need to wear against your skin or summer fashions.

It's great to be back although I'm still a bit behind on responding to comments... but I'll get there!!!

Cheers!

Spring and Fall

Well winter must be coming to an end - we have had some beautiful days recently, very reminiscent of spring. So, in an effort to keep up that feeling I thought I would do a quick rundown of spring fashions. Oh, and since half my readership is on the other side of the world where thoughts are turning to autumn (fall), I've done a quick onceover on fall colours too!

I am also getting ready for our annual holiday! We are heading north to warm sunshine and the beach - so I've been a bit disorganised on the home AND work front. But I'm always up for a bit of surfing and on my travels around my favourite sites found some personalised prints on My New Shiny Shoes - a particularly suitable idea for children with unusual names (ahem, like mine!) And then I was reading Daydream Art Studios blog and saw the wonderful collection of freebies Corinne had from other artists to give away at her local art & craft show. Now that is certainly sharing the love :)

Now onto the fashion colours/update:

Spring 2008 for those of us 'downunder'-
*What you will see lots of - shirt dresses, thin belts, head scarves, pencil skirts, high (but naturally high) waists, feminine dresses.
*Fabrics/Colours - silk, jersey, chiffon, a touch of metallics, black and white, white, prints
*Dresses - Feminine, floral and abstract prints (and pair them with delicate shoes), white white white sundresses, ballerina-chic.
*Overall impression - elegant and classy, think quality not quantity.

Fall 2008 colours for those 'up top'-
*Colours: rich, vibrant. Cool hues with bright undertones. Blue and purple tones are a firm favourite, followed by warm reds, oranges and yellows.

The jewellery item I've selected for today is a brand new one of a kind necklace from my new spring collection - in fact, you're the first to see it! Lemon citrine and 12ct gold fill - the lemon citrine has been cut into the most beautiful abstract shapes and are lightly faceted and incredibly clear. I think it would look very elegant with either the spring or fall fashions! Scrumptious. :)

Due to my above mentioned holidays I will be away in the sun, sand and surf so won't be posting till mid-September. BUT I am taking a LOT of jewellery projects with me (yes, woe is my long-suffering family) so I promise to come back laden with new pretties to look at!

Till next....

Cold days, learning something new and tagged again!

We've had a pretty cold snap up here on the Great Dividing Range over the last week - the fire has been roaring away trying to keep the chill at bay, and those earmuffs that everybody laughed at when I bought them last year are perfect - even hubby is looking slightly envious! Well, he DOES have to work outside most of the time, but he wears a nice wool beanie so it's not as if I'm letting him freeze!

With the cold weather, the huddling near the fire and more grey days than normal, I got a bit of a shock when I realised that my first spring show will be on 13-14 September! Thats just over a month away!! I've really got to dedicate some time to creating. Now that's going to be hard as looking at my calendar every weekend is busy until NOVEMBER! Ahem. Yes. Going to have to be very productive during the week I think. :)

I'm pleased to see that Blog Whammy has re-opened after a change of management. We have more bloggers on board and it will be great to revisit some of my old favourites soon.

Don't you love to learn something new? It's great for keeping your mind fresh. I have a friend who firmly believes this and is currently working on expanding her vocabularly by adding a new word at least every week and seeing how many times she can use her new word in a day. Last time we spoke the word was "adjectival". I think she had started using it as a swear word LOL.

I'm getting to learn lots of new things regularly as I am currently writing a Q&A column on Skwiggazine. Obviously I don't know everything and have to research the answers, so I learn a lot in the process. Missy has done a great job with the recent makeover from Everything Swkiggle to Skwiggazine and it is attracting lots of great artisans.

I've also found another networking site (yes, I know, time, time, time) but early indications show there are a great group of women to be found on Business Women Unite.

Do you like today's picture? Isn't the garnet glorious! The picture is very accurate and the stones really are that luscious red. Although each stone is quite diminutive, there's quite a lot in total when you consider the contents of a three strand bracelet! The garnets have a brilliant shine and the bracelet feels quite delicious on. Here is a pic of the whole bracelet - I've used a sterling tube clasp for a clean, crisp, finish.



I can't believe - I've been tagged AGAIN. Not once, but twice in one day! Geesh, at this rate, I'm not going to have any secrets ;) My taggers were: Lois at A Beaded Affair and Tina at Links and Loops.

This time I am supposed to list six of random things about me and then tag six other people. Well here we go on the 'random':

1. I love chocolate (who doesn't?)
2. I'm 5ft 5 1/2 inches tall - that extra half an inch makes ALL the difference.
3. I love reading Austen and Bronte novels again, and again, and again...
4. I have lost count at how many times I have watched Pride & Prejudice, in all its different versions. Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle is my favourite one though.
5. I really dislike gardening and my rose garden often shows the effects of this dislike.
6. I spend time reading blogs when I really should be working.

Here are the rules:

1. link the person(s) who tagged you
2. Mention the rules on your blog
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

OK, guys, consider yourselves TAGGED:

1. Mom Squad
2. Stone Soup
3. Stay Classy
4. Minna's Favourites
5. The Creative Junkie
6. Fractured Toy

Have a great day!

Spiralling out of control vs. achieving

Do you ever feel like your life is spiralling out of control? I am a bit of a 'control freak', so it doesn't take much for me to feel like this LOL. But I certainly feel like it at the moment!



There are so many demands on our time - especially if we are mothers and trying to meet all the commitments in our communities, in our families, in our hobby/business and so on.



Take this week for example. Outside of the home/studio I had a family function, took the children to a birthday party and two after school activities, attended a school function and my town's street fair as a stallholder. This meant that I was out 6 out of the 7 days! For the scant few hours that I was home, I was doing things that a mother and wife does around the house, and squeezed in some work on my jewellery in preparation for the fair. I am just starting the next week and find myself surrounded by a messy studio with boxes and stock everywhere (I've just started to unpack it all from the fair last night), mountains of laundry and a list a mile long of things I have to do!! I am also looking after the farm whilst my husband is away, but what the heck, just add a few more lines to the To Do list.



However, although I feel rather overwhelmed I really have had an extremely satisfying week as well! I got to see family I haven't seen in months, I watched the children enjoy a birthday party with their friends and improve at their dancing classes and even saw them perform, caught up with other parents at the school function and had a brilliant day at the street fair (once the wind died down LOL).



Its important to be able to look at the positive side of things and see what you have achieved rather than seeing the downfall in everthing. I read a post on the Etched in Memories blog and although is about achieving success, it does point to the positive aspect of it all and I can see comparisons to our daily lives.



After all that I need something pretty to look at....






I sold this lovely necklace last night to our Mayor's wife. Although we are going into summer here and this piece is almost autumnal, the colours looked lovely on her and I am sure she will enjoy it. It is made of pearls in tones of gold, green, cranberry and creamy apricot, plus BC Jade, citrine and garnet.

Nerves, challenges and a flower necklace

I'm off to Nyngan tomorrow for my first spring showing and I'm running around like a 'headless chook' as my Dad says. At least I now have a huge pile of boxes/bags to put into the car, so I am almost there. But I'm a bit worried about the drive - getting there on time and safely and a little nervous about the show itself! I have so much new stock that I have never displayed before, so the whole display will be different and new and take some 'tweaking'. A couple of shows in, I'll know exactly what has to to go where and I will feel like an old hand at it again!

I've been reading more blogs (yes I know - I should be working *guilt* LOL) but I loved this post on The Tall Poppy blogsite http://thetallpoppy.blogspot.com/2007/08/reach-for-sky.html. It initially got my attention with the picture and story of a cow (since I'm surrounded by them on a daily basis, they're a bit hard to ignore ;) ) Anyway, is a brilliant, uplifting story and does indeed make you wonder what is possible if you put your mind to it!

Keeping that idea in mind, the piece pictured above is one that took a lot of courage/commitment to make. I have made a couple of the gem 'flowers' before but they're difficult for someone who doesn't do a lot with wire wrapping and in the past very sore fingers from manipulating the wire has been the side effect! Nevertheless, I had this picture in my mind of a feminine choker or necklace made of flowers and I think it worked really well. It took well over a day to make it plus time to refine the design. And yes I did get sore fingers and a few broken nails too. But it just went to show that 'doubting' part of me that I can succeed if I try!

The necklace is made of many feet of sterling silver wire, the flowers are made of amethyst (purple), rose quartz (pale pink) or rock crystal quartz (clear), the centres are citrine (pale yellow) and the ends are peridot (green) representing the foliage. It is ended with an extension chain so that it can either be worn as a choker done up fully or as a necklace utilising the extension chain.

Do you like it?

Malachite and an interview

Its still pretty chilly here with winter still hanging on, but there are some warmer moments (and flies!! already!!!) but a more springlike air is noticeable and this goes hand in hand with a renewed interest in jewellery by my clients.

I was interviewed by Indie Entrepreneur recently and the interview has just been published online. Check it out at http://indieentrepreneur.blogspot.com/ . :) This is a great site with regular useful business tips and a weekly interview with an indie business/designer - which gives great insight into how we all work and design.

Today's piece is malachite, sterling silver and rock crystal quartz - a pretty combination isn't it? Malachite is a gorgeous stone - the wonderful orbicular patterns just scream to be admired. However it is a difficult stone to match other stones with - the rich, verdant green clashes with a lot of other colours until you think nothing is ever going to match it. But silver looks great with it and rock crystal quartz is such a complimentary stone that it does go with malachite, brilliantly.

Malachite is a relatively soft stone with a hardness of 3.5 to 4, so I confine my use as necklaces where it is unlikely to sustain knocks or rub against harder things that might scratch it over time. It has been used as decoration in jewellery and amulets by many cultures including ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman societies. As was the case with Lapis Lazuli, malachite was used a paint pigment and also ground up as eyeshadow.

Found in various localities, including Zaire, Australia, Chile, Namimbia, Zimbabwe and the USA. The Urals in Russia was the most important site for malachite at one period in history, with blocks over 20 tons being mined.

Metaphysically, malachite is considered a powerful stone that heals and protects. It encourages risk taking and change, draws out deep feelings and releases inhibitions. Also called the 'midwife stone' it facilitates childbirth and enhances the immune system.