Hello, readers, nice to chat with you again. It's been a long hard week at the salt mines, complicated by a horrendous accident at work when I managed to pour a boiling hot cup of tea over my legs and end up with a scald injury and blisters. Mike had to come and rescue me from work and drive me home, and I spent the next couple of days doped up on pain killers, curled up in my bed. All I can say about this sorry episode is that thankfully I am not male or my family jewels would have been in jeopardy, with the risk of being cooked by the hot tea. As it is, I am having to go in to work with a rolling gait like a drunken sailor due to all the swaddling around my injuries to prevent the blisters from chafing. I need to get better soon as I fly out to Boston USA, mid next week and I am keeping my fingers, and toes crossed that all will be well. Before the week went pear shaped on me, I made a few pretty things that I shall show you in a minute. But first, I was ever so proud of my little polymer clay tutorial for the use of chalks on polymer clay - for some reason it caught people's imagination, and two of the great and the good featured it on their blogs within the same week. First, it got a mention in Pearl Blay's Beading Gems Journal - Pearl writes a daily journal with a lot of helpful tips for jewellery makers and I follow her blog every day. And then, within the week, it was noticed by The Daily Polymer Arts Blog, which is another blog, this time for polymeristas, written by Sage Bray of The Polymer Arts Magazine that I follow faithfully. The Silver SufiBack in early April, I made a necklace using a whirling dervish pendant. I loved the pendant so much, I imported yet another from Istanbul and made a second necklace. As you can imagine, it can be quite difficult to take similar ingredients and make two entirely different pieces of jewellery within a short space of time. The first one stays on your mind and try as you might, it feels as if it is almost impossible to get away from it and think up another design. I decided to use uncut rough nuggets of lapis lazuli so that I could get as far away from the first piece as possible. A couple of Murano lentil beads and a bamboo coral nugget provided interesting accents. I also remade Essaouira - the first necklace I made drew so much interest and so many requests that I felt compelled to send for more beads and remake the piece as best as possible - being a handmade piece of jewellery, it is never the same as the first one, just similar to it. Moulin RougeI am enamoured by the instantly recognisable work of MargitB, a polymerista from Germany. To my mind, she is a pioneer in the use of chalk on polymer clay. Her use of colour is unerring and joyous and I made the beads for this necklace heavily inspired by her work. She wrote a little tutorial on Flickr and I used it - the beads that resulted reminded me of my visit to the Moulin Rouge. I went there in the mid-nineties with my friend Sheela and it was one hell of a riot of colour. The Moulin Rouge is credited with the invention of the Can Can and although it was over twenty years ago that we went there, I still remember the atmosphere and the colours of the spectacular show. Zen FlowersZen is a school of Buddhism that developed in China, the essence of which attempts to understand the meaning of life. It puts a great store on meditation and gardens have been built to encourage a calm and meditative state of mind in countries where Zen Buddhism is practised. The gardens have eight elements, each with a symbolic meaning - these elements are bridges, islands, flowers or plants, sand, stones, trees, water and waterfalls. Each one of these can be simulated using stones and natural driftwood, planted in sand or pebbles raked into concentric circles representing tranquility, balance and style. Lotus, iris, azaleas, rhododendrons and flowering cherry are the few flowers actually found in Zen Gardens. The beads in this necklace were made using a tutorial for faux ancient Roman glass by Ginger Davis Allman and the centrepiece, from a book by Ronna Sarvas Weltman. I think they go well together, and so did Ginger. I sent her a picture and she sent me an email that had me beaming from ear to ear. This is what she said Neena, I'm glad Ginger liked it and I love her comments, though living in the UK for so long (and being my mother's daughter) made it difficult not to feel a bit embarassed at her exuberant enthusiasm - we are not used to such extravagant praise in Britain! Next week I fly out to the USA to visit with one of my oldest friends from medical school in Boston, attend a Big Fat Indian Wedding in Cleveland, meet a load of class fellows from medical school who will attend this wedding and generally have a good time - or at least, that's the plan.
That's all I have for you this week folks, see you next week with a quick catch up, same time, same place xx
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It's Friday, and we meet again. Hello, readers, I am so glad to see you. This has been a busy week at the day job and consequently I am tired and exhausted at the end of it. The weather is slowly warming up and I spent a bit of time in the garden, weeding and clearing out the detritus from the winter and feeding my plants. People who aren't used to seasonal changes in the garden cannot understand how miraculous the regeneration of the garden feels like in the spring and how much it uplifts you. I thank goodness for my garden and Caprilicious this week - they are a balm for my soul. As it gets dark later and later on in the day, it is wonderful to be able to sit out in the garden with a cup of tea and watch the cats (yes, they are now just over one year old now and not kittens anymore) play in the greenery that is only just breaking free of the ground. Once it gets too cool for that, we go indoors and then I get to play with my beads and wire while Mike idly flicks through the channels looking for something on the TV to round off the day. I am completely addicted to these two entities that keep me sane and punctuate my day with pleasurable moments that make it all worthwhile. MarrakeshI fell in love with all things Moroccan a long time ago and even made an effort to import one of these tiled Moroccan Zellige fountains for my garden. Unfortunately, the deal fell through. Oh well, it was simply not to be - but isn't it ever so pretty?? It has a tap in the mosaic wall from which water pours into the trough below and is recycled by a pump - not good if you have bladder problems, which, fortunately, isn't a worry, for the moment anyway! The beauty of the distinctive pink walls of Marrakesh which are made of a red clay and chalk is the inspiration for this necklace. The slab nuggets of quartz have been electroplated with titanium and a couple of gaily enamelled Berber beads are accents that are reminiscent of a Bedouin tent. SophiaA tassel from Istanbul with an opulent bead cap, decorated with Hamsa hands and cubic zirconia arrived last week and went straight into a necklace of amethyst beads. The pendant calls forth memories of beautiful Byzantine architecture conjuring up the Aya Sophia on the banks of the Bosphorus. I attempted to get the necklace to match the opulence of the pendant, using pyrite, shiny crystals and a couple of bronze clay beads I made in my kiln, as well as a baroque crystal dangling from a chain at the back. Tassel necklaces are extremely fashionable at the moment and never let it be said that Caprilicious hasn't got its finger on the pulse. The gemstone beads in the necklace are pretty too and are in the colour I call 'Iced amethyst crush' rather than the usual deep purple that is the norm. Steel and RustI bought the stripy lucite focal bead in India a couple of years ago and had it stashed away. I brought it out and fondled it regularly like a worry bead, without any idea what to do with it - just knowing that it was pretty was enough for the time being. And then, I set eyes on this picture - a picture of rust growing on a steel door and that was it, like a thunderclap, I suddenly knew what to do with it. The fabulousness of the mouldable colour of polymer clay swung into action and I made the beads in order to create this necklace in the colours of Steel and Rust. Birds Do It, Bees Do It.......This lampwork glass bead is almost translucent. Heart-shaped, with a sprig of blue flowers on it, and wrapped in about twenty-five feet of wire it makes a very pretty addition to the series. That's me for this week, folks. I did start a wire dragonfly, but I soon realised that it was going badly when it began to resemble a cow, with wonky wings at that. Note to self: Don't try to make anything when mentally exhausted. It only turns into a mangled lump of rubbish. I have had to cut it up and rescue the bead, which was rather pretty. The wire went into the bin.
Thanks for dropping by, it means a lot. Have a lovely week and I'll catch you next Friday, same time, same place xx Hello readers, thanks for joining me once again on this fine Friday morning. Ms Muse and I have been working hard this week, arms moving in a blur like bees wings - I had a few days off from work in combination with a Bank Holiday, and in consequence, we have a lot of pretty things to show you this week. I have decided to take Caprilicious to a craft fair in June, and quite a few little pieces were made up in readiness for this event as I am trying to be well organised and prepared for it in advance. As a consequence, Greased Lightning had nothing on us this week. I did slow Ms Muse down by making some of my regular pieces as well - beads kept on coming at me through the post and I couldn't resist using them. Jewels from the SeaI've been hoarding this pendant made of a cross section of a conch shell, wound around with sterling silver wire, garnets and blue jade for over two years now - I wanted the perfect beads to carry this beautiful and unusual piece of jewellery and when I saw these sea urchin spines, I just knew that I had found a match. In most people's imagination, a sea urchin or cucumber is quite an attractive object - however, there is a sting in this tale. Sea urchins are actually covered with spines, which are made of a calcified skeleton and multi-functional - they keep the creature from desiccating and away from the harmful effects of UV radiation, they help it move and also protect it from predators. The urchins in the picture to the left have been denuded of their spines to make them pretty - in actuality, they look like the creature below, which is a purple sea urchin. They cluster in shallow waters where currents bring food to their mouths, but if stepped on by an unwary human the spines can break off into the skin of the foot - the tips themselves are not poisonous, but there are tiny organs between them that release venom. According to an article I read, their gonads are pretty tasty and are thought to be an aphrodisiac by the Japanese - there you are, another tidbit of useless information - just when you thought this blog wouldn't amuse you! Follow the link by clicking on the picture to read more about this most interesting fact. Anyway, back to the spines, which are ever so pretty and tinkle gently when jingled against each other. They are delicate but robust, and one wouldn't believe that these pretty objects are capable of causing any harm - but you just need to take a swim in the coast off Hawaii to find out just how mean they can be to the unwary human who treads on them ( but looking at it from the urchin's viewpoint - serves them right, eh?? After all, who likes to be stood on by the equivalent of Ten Ton Tessie?). They come in many sizes, and this particular one suited this pendant beautifully. NishikigoiNishikigoi or the koi carp is thought to be a symbol of luck, prosperity, and good fortune within Japan. The koi signifies perseverance and strength, due to the fish’s tendency to swim upstream, and resist simply going with the flow against poor odds. A hand carved alabaster pendant of a koi carp pond, complete with lotus leaves and seed heads, was wrapped in copper wire and hung on a necklace of rose quartz nuggets. MayuriAnother peacock feather, all beaded up like a Rastafarian with little iridescent beads, hung on a necklace of Indian Agate beads. I never tire of this bird and it's beauty. SandstormWanting to use some of the polymer clay beads I had made earlier, I was inspired by this image of the beauty of a sandstorm - as I write this, I am aware that beauty is in the eye of the beholder - and to me sitting safely in front of a computer, the image is fabulous - the poor people who live through the sandstorms no doubt hate them - as do the people who tread on a sea urchin - it is no laughing matter! And then, just as we were beginning to wind down for the week a parcel arrived from Istanbul - Ms Muse was at it like a ferret up an entry and I had no peace until these last two necklaces were made. I was unable to think up any more imaginative names for them, so in spite of her whining at me to whizz another one up, Ms Muse will have to put up with Topkapi 2 and Topkapi 3. If you wish you can take another look at Topkapi 1 here. Setting myself a challenge with some extremely pretty heart shaped lampwork glass beads, 9 feet of 20g wire each and unlimited amounts of fine wire, I made pendants using the same design, and the aim was to make each one slightly different from the other. So late at night, while we watched the last movie on the telly and the cats snored gently on the hearth, I made these three pendants. Hung on Nepalese threadwork necklaces, I think they look very pretty and are similar, but different from one another. They now form part of a series called Birds Do it, Bees do it...... See, I told you I'd been busy! Ms Muse and I are taking a well-deserved rest today and then a few polymer clay pendants are on the cards for the weekend. Have a fab week, and catch you next Friday, same time, same place
xx Hello, readers, it's nice to catch up with you again - I almost didn't make it this week, what with toothache and a root canal treatment (ouch!) and an outage of my internet all day yesterday. It was at midnight that I found the cable reconnected - Hooray! I thought I'd play a bit of music for us. There's nothing like a bit of sultry Norah Jones at midnight, although this piece of music really belongs to Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. I have decided to do a couple of craft fairs in the UK this year, the first one in Worcester in June, along with my friends from Look-In-The-Bag. I have decided that I will make a few pieces to take to the fair each week. Having never done this before, I'm not quite sure how Caprilicious will be received - will my jewellery be too difficult to sell at a craft fair? Well, there's only one way to find out, so I have decided to test the waters this year. I bought a tutorial to make faux Czech glass and antique Roman glass from Ginger Davis Allman of The Blue Bottle Tree, and made some beads last weekend. I sent Ginger pictures of the necklaces I made up and she shared them on her Facebook page - I think she was quite pleased with the way the beads turned out. She said " Neena of Caprilicious Jewellery used my Faux Glass tutorial as a starting point for these orange beads and made them look like ancient trade beads. And the faux turquoise and lapis are made from Diva Designs, Inc.'s tutorials. What a well-conceived piece! If you like the ethnic look, you'll love Neena's work." I was now drowning in a sea of beads - so I decided to use some of them and deplete my stock. I had three Afghani pendants left in my collection - they must have come from the same necklace as they are all the same size and shape. I wanted to try and make the necklaces as different from each other as possible. Love AffairThis title comes from the run-of-the-mill Bollywood 'Boy meets Girl' movie. Boy, rich, Girl, poor or vice versa. They elope and Boy sets Girls' mind at rest (in common with all boys, this Boy too wants only one thing) by exchanging garlands at the conveniently located local temple. She promptly gets pregnant - completely ignoring the Indian government's exhortations to use contraception posted on every free wall and surface, at every turn. But she's married in the eyes of God - because she exchanged garlands with said Boy, didn't she? And then, the story goes on to tell us what happened next, to Boy, Girl and Baby. Cosmic MelaA Mela is a gathering or a fair - the largest one in India is the Kumbh Mela. It is said to be the largest peaceful gathering of people on the banks of one of four holy rivers, every three years - they estimated that a hundred million people attended it in 2013. I used Rudraksh beads, donated to the Caprilicious cause by my mother - these are worn by the sadhus who attend the Kumbh Mela and I have written about them before. Isn't the young sadhu in the picture cool?? He's gone for a less traditional way of wearing the Rudraksh beads. and is obviously aware of the camera and posing for it. Cosmic Mela is named after a swirly bead I made with some leftover offcuts of clay, some of which happened to contain specks of silver foil - it ended up looking cosmic - that's the best word I can find for it. Flower MelaCzech glass beads can be expensive- almost as expensive as gemstones. I welcomed the opportunity to replicate them in polymer clay. I used a bunch of flowery moulds I have collected over time, some of them had their first outing with this tutorial. That's it, I will make no more ethnic/ tribal jewellery for a little while. I quite enjoy making the kind of jewellery that can be worn with any sort of attire and do not necessarily wish to be pigeon-holed as an 'ethnic jewellery' maker. Preferring the internationalist's approach, I like to make stuff that is loosely applicable to everybody, indeed any sort of pigeon-hole is an anathema to me. SummertimeI fell in love with the whimsy of these millefiori glass pendants, flowers and ladybirds. Put together with dyed jade beads, I reckon these necklaces will be ideal to take to the craft fair. I continued the whimsical theme with a toggle clasp in the form of a dragon fly. Reach For the StarsI was beginning to develop withdrawal tremors from a lack of wire in my life. Just as I was really beginning to feel the pain, a couple of bismuth crystals arrived in the post. I have used them before and simply adore the beautiful colours and crystal formation. These two crystals seem to soar upwards, reaching for the stars. Bismuth said to relieve emotional and spiritual isolation, facilitating a state of oneness, connectedness and serenity. Useful when experiencing change, providing for calmness, vitality and orderliness. Bismuth facilitates the enjoyment of travel and stimulates group and relationship cohesiveness. That's it for Caprilicious this week folks, have a great week and I'll catch you next Friday, same time, same place
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