Old Friends, by Caprilicious Jewellery

Hello good folks, how are your preparations for Christmas going? There are but 12 days remaining and only 5 days if you want to get cards and parcels sent off in the UK.
​ Sadly, Caprilicious has been a victim of the Christmas parcel rush and the courier company has lost a parcel I sent out to the USA recently. However, this was only my second parcel lost in 8 years, so I guess it was my turn, by the law of averages. 
Last weekend I got the tree up and decorated but had no luck getting any of my presents together and wrapped. It all seems such a monumental chore at the moment. However, as the gifts go out to people with whom I work, who have made my life infinitely easier,  I guess I shouldn't begrudge them the time - after all it is but once a year that an opportunity to thank them comes along. 

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Birdie

This necklace was made with the remaining little 'birdies' I made, and because there were quite a few of them, I used them liberally, both in the necklace and dangling from the pendant. I hung them on long wire tassels from the pendant along with vintage African seed beads, and in the necklace with chunky red coral and wood jasper beads, hand carved into the shape of gourds. The colours and shapes give this necklace a very tribal African feel.
Wood Jasper, called Egyptian marble, was one of the traditional Jaspers in Ancient Egypt used for amulets, ritual vessels, and jewelry. Native Americans and other indigenous societies carved it into arrowheads for luck and protection, and utilized the stone to call in rain. A quintessential Earth Stone, Wood Jasper engenders security and protection, nurturing and healing. It cleanses the physical and emotional body of toxins and negative thought forms, and repairs the aura, bringing stability and balance. I must say I am not personally a believer, but there are plenty of people who believe in the mystical properties of gemstones.

This is what the necklace looks like when it is worn - the tassels are stiff and rustle pleasingly as you move and the necklace is comparatively light and easy to wear. I 'test drove' it and got a lot of compliments, which pleased me greatly.

Pavo

I always have one of these on my books, and sold the last piece at the Warwickshire Open Studios event in Leamington Spa. I thought it was time to make another.

Pavo, or peacock, is such a pretty and delicate piece and is a pleasure to weave. I find that I've used a whole string of the green and gold foiled glass lampwork beads so I must have made and sold quite a few of these necklaces. All I know is that when I show it to people, they love it for being so different, light and interesting. The fact that it can be adjusted to various necklines can't be a bad thing. People have asked me where I buy it in from, so I took a couple of pictures as I went along - I do make the jewellery on the Caprilicious pages myself, honest, I do!!

I've made so many iterations of the Birdie necklace and Pavo, that they are beginning to feel like old friends!

I started another embroidered pendant towards the end of the week and will have it ready to show you in the next blog post. Here's a sneak peek - I took photographs as I went along.

Once the piece of Lacey's Stiff Stuff (I love saying that, makes me chuckle) was embroidered and embellished to within an inch of its life, I fashioned a sort of ladder with a length of wire and stitched it in place. I already have beaded dangles to hang from the bottom edge of the wire 'ladder'. This was then covered and padded over with felt and finally, a piece of Ultrasuede was glued into place. I still have to edge the piece and hang it with a bail on a beautiful string of beads - this time, I've picked the beads for the necklace first, rather than the other way round, where the pendant is made first and I've then rummaged through my stash of beads to find the best way to hang it. 
​The piece of blue agate druzy at the centre of the pendant is so beautiful, it reminds me of the Blue Grotto on the coast of Capri.

That's me for this week folks. I shall now go and stupefy myself with the results of the UK elections that are beginning to roll in and sound very depressing indeed.
Have a fabulous week, and I'll catch you next Friday, same time, same place.
Until then
xx