Seascape by Caprilicious Jewellery

Hello folks, nice to catch up with you today after a hectic week at work. I've been learning to do telephonic consultations and it is no mean feat in gynaecology, I can tell you. I've just found out that 'velfies' (go figure) are a thing, but not as good as a face to face (?) appointment. My poor pregnant patients are, of course having to come in alone, sans partners and moral support in what must be an incredibly anxious time and we are having to deal with them in the hospital, wearing surgical masks. Now that the lockdown is set to continue for three more weeks, we have to be doubly careful not to become complacent and risk catching the lurgy - and that goes for all of you too. All around us, nature has begun to bloom again - the picture is of the crab apple tree on the front of our house and the May Blossom across the street. 

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Strange birds have been seen in our quiet street - my neighbour sent me these pictures of a bird that visited our gardens this morning - it is a cock pheasant, probably bred for being shot at by wealthy landowners - yes we do have a few around here who practice these incredibly nasty sports (that's my view). Mike said the bird had come to the porch on the front of the house yesterday as well, and Wilfred caught sight of him and let out a roar, the likes of which he hadn't heard before. I was asleep when these pictures were taken and forwarded to me by my lovely neighbour, Michelle. I hope he can fly before Wilfred catches him - he does look a bit ungainly - or he will soon be an ex bird. Just now the warm weather is making Wilfred sleepy, so Mr Pheasant has been lucky, thus far.

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I was on call on Easter Monday and made up parcels with little earrings and bracelets for all the ladies at work over the Bank Holiday. There were some for the midwives, Health Care Support workers, and domestics on labour suite and the ward. I spent the Easter weekend making a few new wire work pendants from the designs that Nicole Hanna gives away free on the first Tuesday of each month in a Treasure Hunt. She is incredibly generous to do this, and it also drives visitors to her page just when they are feeling a bit flush. These pendants are tiny, and by the time I made five of them my hands hurt with repetitive strain injury from moving wire around in tiny circles and swirls.

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Image courtesy of Olive Hue Designs

I've been thinking about what I should do during my evenings while the lockdown carries on - no one's going anywhere, so no one wants to spend money on jewellery. Besides, we will soon be in an official recession, so there's not much point in making a load of jewellery and filling up my box which is satisfyingly low on stock after my visit to India. 
I decided to pull out all the tutorials bought earlier which I haven't used, and try them out. I shall also pick up focal pieces which I didn't know what to do with, and figure out a design for them. Last week, I had Calypso on the blog, made with one such piece, and this week I picked out a Vintaj brass seascape with a seahorse and a fish. I do love seahorses, they are to me the unicorns of the sea, except that they are real creatures. I found a picture of a seascape I made in 2012 that I called The Octopuses Garden - My mother gave me a pair of her clip on enamel and marcasite seahorse earrings and I incorporated one of them into this piece, and the other one went into a mermaid pendant.

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Most of the Vintaj pieces I bought are of art nouveau women, but for some reason Calypso and the seahorse caught my attention and they have sat in my stash for years. This, now, is the time to use it, I decided. Shibori ribbon provided me with a 'sea', and a couple of Swarovski crystals for added interest as well as diamante cup chain for bling.

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This is what it looked like at the end of the second day. However, on day three, I decided I needed to make it even more substantial, so tacked on some more of Lacy's stiff stuff and then began to add felt padding and seed beads to the piece.

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Day 3-4, Seascape

Through all of this, we've been binge watching 'Ozark' on Netflix - it is all about the travails of a money launderer for a Mexican drug cartel and is an excellent drama. We still have all of Season 3 to go and I've no doubt the series will take me to the end of this seascape. All the areas that I have padded out with pieces of felt will be raised up from the piece and give it a three dimensional effect. Do come back next week and take a look at how I'm getting on.

I do hope all of you are being careful and distancing yourselves - unlike the hundreds of idiots who came out onto Westminster Bridge in a throng to clap for the NHS at 8pm last night - we thank you all very much but would much prefer it if you stayed indoors or at the very least distanced yourselves from other people. That does help, and will help to keep us safe, which is all the thanks we need really, for doing our jobs. After all, who wants to be a lauded, but dead hero?
Take care and have a nice week. I'm on call this weekend and bracing myself for what may come at me. All being well, I'll catch you next week, same time, same place.
Until then
​xx

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