posted: Friday, 28th March 2014
I had a great treat this week as my parents came for a few days and we got to catch up and go out for dinner and enjoy spending time together.
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posted: Tuesday, 25th March 2014
It's full steam ahead on Geometric Beadwork Volume 2 here as I'm alternating between frantically trying to catch up on all the weeks I've lost and resting my poor arm in a sling and feeling sorry for myself.
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posted: Friday, 21st March 2014
For a long time now (many, many months) as I've chosen beads for projects I've been very naughty and not put them back again, instead putting them into an increasingly growing pile.
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posted: Thursday, 20th March 2014
Unpacking bags and boxes is continuing to resemble an archeological dig as I uncover more and more layers of my past.
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posted: Wednesday, 19th March 2014
Did I ever tell you about my secret past as a millinery student? Or a handbag making student?
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posted: Tuesday, 18th March 2014
Recently someone asked me what I would do if I could choose any other career and without hesitation I replied 'fabric designer'
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posted: Monday, 17th March 2014
Unpacking everything we had stashed in the loft in our last house has been a true wander back in time. So many things I had forgotten even existed. One treat was the discovery of a box of items from the first and second books I ever did: Beading for Beginners and The Big Book of Weekend Beading.
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posted: Friday, 14th March 2014
Not being able to bead or do anything on the computer for any length of time has meant I have more time to finally unpack from moving!
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posted: Tuesday, 11th March 2014
My Achilles tendon is a lot better and, ignoring my excruciatingly painful shoulder, I'm feeling a lot better so took a few hours off tonight to head to an event at an art gallery with a friend.
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posted: Monday, 10th March 2014
Unfortunately I'm not able to do much beading at the moment, a recurring shoulder injury (bicep tendon subluxation which means my bicep tendon dislocates) is causing me many problems and as a result beading and computer work (or pretty much anything that used my right arm) are only briefly possible
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posted: Sunday, 9th March 2014
Is it possible? Is the sun actually out? For the first time this year in the UK it actually seems so- glorious.
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posted: Saturday, 8th March 2014
I'm nearly back to myself today and headed out of London to teach for the lovely Penkridge beaders. I typically forgot my camera so sadly can't show you all the lovely Geometric Star variations that were created.
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posted: Friday, 7th March 2014
Update- To kits to create your on Interlocking Crystals Bangle are available here in pewter and Tanzanite and here in pewter and Padparadscha.
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posted: Monday, 24th February 2014
I'm back home a few days and trying to get back into the swing of things but suffering with tiredness due to a long day of travelling home.
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posted: Friday, 21st February 2014
Our last days in Portugal have been filled with relaxing, a return to Tavira for some shopping, drinking luridly coloured drinks and swimming in the sea and the spa.
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posted: Wednesday, 19th February 2014
Today we hopped on a coach and headed to Seville in Spain.
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posted: Tuesday, 18th February 2014
Today we took a short bus ride to a local town, Tavira, where we visited the museum and got to see found pottery, wandered the streets where we found a wonderful ceramicist (sadly I have no name to give you and only a rough idea of where it is but she is worth trying to find
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posted: Monday, 17th February 2014
Another lazy day in heaven.
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posted: Sunday, 16th February 2014
Following the success of our half-of-the-family holiday last year, when we escaped to Malta for some sun to get us through the dark months, we've done it again this year but this time we've run away to Altura, Portugal.
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posted: Tuesday, 11th February 2014
It's a well-worn joke that it rains in England but recent weather has gone beyond that with so much flooding and dangerous weather. Fortunately where we are hasn't flooded and we just have the seemingly constant rain and storms to deal with
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posted: Monday, 10th February 2014
I'm still heads down working away on Geometric Beadwork Volume 2 and today I'm beading extras for the variation projects to accompany my Cosmic Diamond Beads Beads.
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posted: Thursday, 6th February 2014
On her visit my mum has brought over to give to me a plate my parents bought the year I was born.
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posted: Wednesday, 5th February 2014
My mum and niece are with us at the moment so I thought we'd treat them to a trip to Incanto. Entirely selflessly of course, not at all motivated by my desire to go back...
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posted: Tuesday, 4th February 2014
Geometric Beadwork Volume 2 is still growing and today I'm working on finalising a new project which I think will be comprised of around 50-70 components- yikes!!
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posted: Monday, 3rd February 2014
Excitingly a copy of Mastering Herringbone Stitch popped through my letterbox today.
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posted: Saturday, 1st February 2014
Work on Geometric Beadwork Volume 2 is continuing and, though most of the beadwork is done, as I put the pages together I'm beading more samples etc for photos and variations.
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posted: Thursday, 30th January 2014
As someone who likes to support artisans hand-making items (AKA I like buying jewellery) I'm always on the look out for new items.
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posted: Wednesday, 29th January 2014
I'm working away on Geometric Beadwork Volume 2 and the projects and page layouts are all coming on nicely.
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posted: Monday, 27th January 2014
Storage is always a pressing issue and thankfully these units from Ikea has proved perfect for me
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posted: Sunday, 26th January 2014
My sister and her husband are with us for the weekend so it's a great excuse to visit a local restaurant I've been dying to try out- Incanto- and boy was it worth it.
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posted: Thursday, 23rd January 2014
I wrote yesterday about my love for Jonathan Adler's work and I have long been a fan of his lucite pieces, especially his Bel Air series and have them on my 'when I win the lottery' wish-list when I'll treat myself to all of them.
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posted: Wednesday, 22nd January 2014
I'm a huge fan of Jonathan Adler and covet a lot of his modern-take-on-retro pieces. He manages to combine the 70s aesthetic I love with clean, crisp lines and colours
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posted: Sunday, 19th January 2014
Another day at Charisma Beads and another project- this time Icos Pendants. By the end of the day everyone has mastered the tricky and intricate steps needed and many Icos pieces were on their way to being finished.
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posted: Saturday, 18th January 2014
I was at Charisma Beads today to teach my Peacock Drops class and it was such a pleasure to see so many new colour variations being created.
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posted: Tuesday, 14th January 2014
Everything is full steam ahead on Geometric Beadwork Volume 2 and I'm getting more excited as each day goes by and I bead new variations and new possibilities and ideas pop into my head and then off my needle.
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posted: Saturday, 11th January 2014
After painting my walls white the other day I couldn't resist buying some colourful polka dot wall stickers to add colour back in. Now I just need to decide where to put them.
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posted: Friday, 10th January 2014
I've been meaning for months now to visit the pearls exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum but the panic of realising it soon finishes finally got me there today.
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posted: Thursday, 9th January 2014
Through a completely unrelated conversation yesterday someone let me know that one of my books was for sale on the Ideal World/ Create & Craft shopping Channel
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posted: Wednesday, 8th January 2014
Before moving I took the opportunity to have a big clear-out but now we're here it's no surprise that I'm discovering I need to do more
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posted: Tuesday, 7th January 2014
My beadwork often travels around the world far more than I do and that means I need to bead extra samples and variations so I can have them at classes as well as in shops to advertise upcoming classes. As a result I've been busy making extra beaded beads for my upcoming Orbit Beaded Beads classes.
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posted: Monday, 6th January 2014
The world of book writing is a strange one and I'm sure I'll never understand all its mysteries. One thing that always seems magical to me is the journey through which an idea I have travels from my mind to my hands as I bead it and then into print which then travels the world spreading that idea.
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posted: Sunday, 5th January 2014
Today is the last day off for lots of people and tomorrow signals a return to work/ school/ normal life. Making the most of the day we headed off to the Tower of London for some outdoor ice-skating and brandy-laced hot chocolate
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posted: Thursday, 2nd January 2014
After all my debate about colour I finally decided to paint the walls in my workrooms white. The light up there isn't too bright and when we put the white cabinets in we realised just how much they helped the light bounce around and so carried that through with the walls
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posted: Wednesday, 1st January 2014
Phew- 2013 was busy!
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