Hello my lovely readers, thanks for coming back for your weekly look into the goings on at Caprilicious. It is a cold, wet January - but not as bad as it could have been. My thoughts are all in sunnier climes - in a few weeks I am off to see my family in India and although I am trying hard to keep a lid on it, little gurgles of excitement escape me at unexpected moments, reminding me that although I have lived and worked in the UK for ages and ages, a piece of my heart is firmly rooted in India. The colours, sounds and smells of India beckon me - and I always respond with a quickening of the pulse. Sometimes the reality doesn't live up to my expectations and I get a bit grumpy - no one likes change or disappointment, but hey, you can't have it all! It is that time of year again, to display my art and wait to see how it will be received. I hope to meet a lot of you and your friends there - do come and talk to me. This week has been all about supporting the junior doctors in their strike action and making sure the hospital was staffed safely for the patients. Mike went to the supermarket and took the juniors a load of carbohydrates to keep their inner fires stoked as it was a bitterly cold and rainy day out there on the picket line outside the hospital. The Evolution of the FrankenButterflyLast week I talked about my polymer clay "Frankenbutterfly" cane. Here are some pictures of how it evolved. I put all the components together, let it rest for a while, reduced it in size, and gasped as it began to look like nothing on earth! I held my nerve and my breath and cut it in half and.....exhale! There it was, my Frankenbutterfly. The clip above is from The Young Frankenstein - it is a classic film made in 1974 by Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks, and if you haven't seen it, it is one you should not miss, do look out for it, I guarantee you loads of laughs. LhasaLhasa, or The Place of the Gods is the administrative capital of what is now the "Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China". It is the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau and, at an altitude of nearly 12,000 ft, Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world. The inlaid brass beads in this necklace come from Tibetan vendors. Turquoise and red coral are much sought after in Tibet. They are at the opposite spectrums of colour and this is believed to enhance lives and bring good luck to the wearer. Tibetan turquoise is sought after by Nepalese and Tibetan people for its spiritual powers as well as its beauty. The New Year Giveaway I decided to run a New Year giveaway on the Caprilicious Facebook page and I put Pavo up as the prize. People had to like the necklace and say how or where they would wear it. The giveaway attracted around thirty five people - I assigned each one of them a number and put the numbers into a random number generator, and drew three numbers. The first number drawn was 16, which was assigned to Maggie Leitch Craig. If this lady does not get in touch I will contact the second lady on the random number list and then the third. I will also give all the ladies who cared to enter the giveaway a code, which they can apply to any purchase they make from Caprilicious for a couple of months. They are obviously sophisticated ladies who appreciate a nice piece of handmade jewellery and I am so pleased that they took the time to engage with the competition. Thats a wrap for this week folks. I will catch you next week, same time, same place. Have a great week,
xx
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Hello readers, thanks for joining me. Finally the frantic preparations for the big day are at an end - every last parcel wrapped, every last one mailed out. Thank goodness for that! Now I can look forward to my Christmas meal - we're having roast beef this year with all the trimmings, especially as I'm not working this year - if Mike ever get's over the man-flu he's had for over a week. The sighs and groans emanating from his corner of the room have been getting louder and more piteous all week and he must have developed bruises on his chest from all the thumping he's been giving it. 'My chest, my chest' he moans while I steadily go about my business, handing him pills and potions as I keep a wall eye on him and I carry right on with whatever I am doing. JaipurAnother one of the pendants from Afghanistan went into this necklace along with handmade polymer clay beads. The beads were made a while ago and it was about time I put them to good use. I saw a picture of a tribal necklace worn with a mini dress and boots and it struck me that there are no boundaries any more - only those we apply in our own minds. 'East is East.....' and all that jazz is just that.... a whole load of Jazz!! Although you might not want to wear a piece of jewellery that jingles to work - teamed with leggings and a T shirt, a loose cardigan and slouchy boots, Boho tribal jewellery is an excellent choice for a casual evening or lunch with friends down the pub. Flower FestivalLast week I made earrings with the offcuts from a polymer clay cane I constructed, attaching them to a wire framework. With a few more offcuts left in my stash, I made a wire torque to match. I enjoy the versatility of polymer clay and that through this medium, I am making jewellery that is definitely one of a kind - even I cannot make another - similar, perhaps, but never the same. Making a lot of the components myself gives me a lot of pleasure - it is great fun to string beads and make a piece of jewellery, that is all about style, and the ability to put colours and shapes together- however, it is so much more satisfying when you have made the beads yourself, in the colours you want, and the clasp, and perhaps even the pendant! Flower Festival was an absolute pleasure to make. Pixie PeopleNow that all the presents have been handed in, I can show you what I made for my juniors - Pixie People necklaces. I give them something I made each year - it seems so much more personal than handing out smellies or chocolate - unfortunately the men on my list got chocolate, I haven't got around to making man jewellery - yet. FrogabellaThese cuties were made with little polymer clay elements I made a while ago - they seemed to fit together. In shades of froggy green, the little shield shape seemed to be sitting under a floral umbrella - I am quite taken by these earrings, they are certainly unusual. GalaThe postman delivered a hank of coloured freshwater pearls - and I just had to make this necklace with every colour in the package. They looked so perfect, all twisted into a hank of multi colored beads and I didn't have the heart to separate them when they were playing together so nicely. There were seven colours of teardrop shaped pearls, but the seven strands looked extremely bulky at the back of the neck. Replaced with a string of colourful agate beads, the necklace was less bulky and sat comfortably around the neck. Well, here we are, the weekend before Christmas. Have a fabulous Christmas with your families and I'll catch you next week. I hope Santa brings you all you wished for - provided you have been good - I of course have been an awful good girl and I'm expecting to be rewarded amply for that! Catch you next week, same time, same place, xx |
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