It's hard to believe that it's only 6 months since 'Small beads, Big Jewelry' got the go ahead as it has taken over my life ever since.

After getting Geometric Beadwork published at the start of November last year, and knowing I had 3 big separate overseas trips to teach at the start of this year, I had planned to ease myself into 2013 fairly gently. 

I was planning to work on Volume 2 of Geometric Beadwork throughout the year with most of the work in the last six months, and that's how it's turned out, but I managed to squeeze another book in there in the meantime.

The idea for the book had been bouncing back and forth for a long time between the publishers and I but on the 30th January 2013 I got the email giving me the news that it was greenlit and 8 days later we had a meeting where all the final details were worked out and ever since I have been beading, writing and diagramming like crazy to get it all done.

I know I haven't shown much beadwork these past 6 months but in that time I have beaded 20 projects (30 different pieces when variations are added in) plus written and done the diagrams for them all. As the book excitingly contains 10 projects from other designers (some of whom had never written up a project before) I have also written/ drawn/ edited and re-arranged instructions and diagrams for another 10 projects.

Phew- not bad seeing as for 52 of the 170 days since I began the book I haven't been in the country and no wonder I feel like I could sleep for a month!

I'm now in the final stages of the main bit of the book. All the projects are beaded and the instructions are on their way to the publisher. What will follow now will be extra words on materials, tools, resources etc along with lots and lots of proof-reading and more proof reading before the book comes out in January 2014.

As a treat here is the last project I may be showing before the book comes out- a flat spiral rope using a cute and perfect Claspgarten clasp I got from StitchnCraft Beads especially to match the Swarovski pearls I used (in Dark Lapis).

I'm away all next week teaching bead embroidery at Missenden Abbey and then back home and dive head first into Geometric Beadwork Volume 2.

I have most of the book planned out and know what is going in there. I just need to start doing it all!

Behind the scenes I have been beading a few projects and planning out others. Some of them have been in progress or on the drawing board for years waiting for me to finish them, and I'm looking forward to being able to dedicate my time to it.