knitting, crochet and beading

sales have been amazing these last two weeks. i'm also still fighting this bronchitis, into my 5th week and not an end in site. last night and today was really bad.

Friends and I have started a crochet group. This is our first session.

The five bracelets below have been designed around a special bead.

This bracelet was designed around the dearest little ceramic bird.

Glass hearts and ceramic beads.

sharing

iv'e noticed on some of the more popular blogs, that every now and again the blogger complains about unkind comments. is it a result of over sharing? 

anyway here goes.

at last there is an arts and craft market near to where we live. i've been invited to visit before but couldn't work out where the market could be. after my second invite, i made the effort on a sunday morning and was pleasantly surprised. there was not very much art, but some very enterprising stores. pictured are the rather casual seating arrangements. i was sure that once i was seated, getting up was not going to be an elegant affair. i'm toying with the idea of applying to have a stall there. hmmm, but i'm lazy.

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i don't often make earrings to sell, as i don't get many takers. anyway i managed to get some sterling silver ear hooks and i've given it a bash again.

i've had these ovals forever.

these earrings have polymer clay beads made by my friend Makkie.

these are porcelain beads.

not really my style but the czech glass and crystals are so sparkly.

more polymer clay beads by Makkie.

beautiful czech glass rocailles.

a mix of indian glass beads, ethiopian silver and brass jump rings.

delicate porcelain beads on migleo french wire hooks.

red african amber, paper disc beads and ethiopian silver.

african amber, disc paper beads and ethiopian silver.

huge square frames and glass bicones.

stunning oval moonstones.

faceted glass and heaps of spacers.

my extreme earrings. so boho or exotic that they had to be mine.

another one of of favourite creations. a wrap bracelet incorporating lots of different and peculiar beads, bindings, charms, buttons and cloth.

go kart racing at Liam's school on a saturday morning. Liam being pushed by his class mates and then cheering the next team on.

above and below, more attempts with polymer clay. what's in my minds eye is still not happening, but we'll persevere.

some beads which i'd ordered from Lima beads. i always buy beads by Gaea and seem to hang onto them for ages. probably because they cost me so much.

these are heavy, the black heart shaped flat beads are glass. with them, the faceted glass bead, silver metal and brass spacers and jump rings, these are not earrings to wear all day.

i'm very pleased with this bracelet. iv'e had the resin carved chinese looking beads for ages. iv'e combined them with painted wood beads and leather. the disk attached to the leather is actually a scrap booking accessory.

i would have loved to do this bracelet in gemstones but didn't have enough of any one kind. so we have glass beads and smokey coloured quartz glass chips. it sold the day it went into the shop.

chalky pastel clay and pony beads for this spring bracelet.

an interlinked bracelet of glass fired cream beads, hand painted porcelain beads and mint green rondailles.

beautiful clear glass nuggets with raw wood and a dark brown glass fired bead.

inspired by the black and amethyst coloured kasmiri bead. faceted amethyst coloured beads and black bevelled squares.

sunny orange, tangerine, red and chocolate czech rondailles, separated with silver metal curved tubes.

more extreme earrings, at least three bead caps, some dangles and shiny discs.

even more extreme. 6 bead caps in total, faceted coloured agate, hand painted porcelain, faceted glass, glass flowers and blue glass bicones. iv'e kept these as i don't there are too many people out there that would wear different coloured earrings.

there is a first for everyone. i was putting stock out at one of my outlets and spoke to man who needed his mother's rosary repaired. the shop was not keen, so i offered to do it for him. unfortunately some of his beads were missing. so i included gold coloured freshwater pearls and some mother of pearl round beads. he was very pleased with the outcome. so was i, to such an extent, that i want to make myself a rosary. i'm now keeping an eye out for a suitable crucifix and mary.

my mom kept telling me she was bored, but with the dementia, she is no longer able to knit anything with a pattern. i thought squares would be the answer. i bought mom some yarn but we soon realised that even this was difficult for her. some days she just can't remember how. my sister Lindy suggested that everyone in the family knit a square or two with a prayer. above is the completed blanket.

Liam reclining on Rebecca his pug, watching bbc children's channel, on a chilly afternoon.

awesome, yarn bombing at a monument in our city. the blankets were donated to charities.

i love this look. i'm going to have to try this.

more soon i hope.

catching up

catching up is more time consuming than keeping up, so why i procrastinate i don't know. i think it's because i always seem to have something more interesting to do, than what i know i should be doing. i have this marketing plan in my head but i'm far too distracted and yes, lazy to implement it as i know i should. 

i've had the beads used in these two bracelets, probably from when i started collecting beads. the first one has a copy of a "pandora bed" and two spacers which were R45 each, so there is almost no profit in the bracelet being sold for R120. The second bracelet is made up of various glass beads and some ethiopian silver.

this wrap bracelet was an order from one of Joce's clients. i and Denise, are very happy with the result. there is a combination of, moonstone, freshwater pearls, bone, shell, czech glass and matt cream mayuki beads. the bracelet is approximately a meter long and can also be worn as a wrap necklace. 

the design for the opera length necklace began with the porcelain bead. then came the linen cord tassle, the howlite cross, howlite discs, various painted porcelain beads and czech glass rocailles.

this aluminium heart was bought on one of my excursions in jo'burg, with my sister lindy. the heart has been sitting in the stash. when i came across a picture on pinterest of a heart wrapped with wire and beads. i took it a step further, as the heart already had a pattern and tied cotton lace to one side of the heart, then wrapped it with wire with czech glass faceted beads. the heart hangs on a string of matt white wooden beads.

beads bought on another retail therapy day. the beads are coloured volcanic rock and were on a special. i've added a ceramic leaf link from lima beads in the usa and silver metal leaves from my stock.

some pieces i give up for sale with a heavy heart but what is the point of my hanging onto the beads or the necklace. an old post office box key, wrapped in leather suede. the beads are ceramic beads from lima beads the artisan being gaea. the glass pony beads are an incredible colour and once again i used the scarce matt cream miyuki beads.

the silver metal amulet is from a friends bead shop. i've paired it with porcelain beads purchased from the bead shop in melville, hematite discs, black glass beads and black suede leather cord.

i'd made this pendant ages ago, the wording has no special meaning other than the picture including oriental writing, hence the edge. the pendant is linked to the necklace, with some wire wrapping done with a tool purchased on an excursion to jewellery suppliers in a seedy part of town. the beads are shell, faceted coloured agate, freshwater pearls and some unknown polished stone nuggets, as well as chryscolla chips.

one of those fun mixers. i started with the linen tape with the brown stitching and sewed on some small buttons, then a scratch in the stock for, kasmiri beads, crochet covered bead, clay beads, a ceramic bird from gaea, porcelain beads, howlite, various glass beads, wooden star and heart shaped buttons, leather, linen cord and metal chain and charms.

the pendant was bought at liebermann pottery, at the old gas works in jo'burg. it hangs from a string of czech glass rocailles, miyuki beads, ostrich egg shell discs and thick linen cord.

 i found the pale blue pedant at the kruger national park. the sign means persistance in african culture. to this charm necklace made especially for my daughter Jocelynn, i've added a bird from gaea and various glass/ceramic, bone beads, and shell and metal charms.

i went with bevan and claire to an "old stuff" shop to have a look at a table they wanted to purchase for their kitchen. i found the rich blue and green foil beads and had to make something with them. if they don't sell, i'll happily wear it myself.

i've had these ceramic beads for ages and finally decided to use some of them for a bracelet. they are strung on linen cord with navy blue czech glass rocailles.

my first polymer clay cane. not too exciting, no particular design but they had to be strung, so they are combined with small ethiopian silver beads.

this is a design i've done before. it's effective but takes hours to make. three strings joined every now and again with a smooth hollow silver fat saucer. the pendant is a large sphere of ethiopian silver, the shards are smoky quartz and in between are various seed and bone beads.

a polymer clay pendant from one of the artisans supplying lima beads. it's mixed with various silver metal beads and spacers, gaea ceramic, wood and glass beads.

my second attempt at polymer clay birds. the tiny mustard yellow bird sits in a wire wrap nest, perched on a wooden bead. there is a shimmery tassle, leaves and a green glass bicone dangle. i wired a chain of howlite chips, also included are sponge coral tubes, green jade and freshwater pearls.

and finally for this session, a large glass flower bead strung on leather and linen cord with a "pandora bead". on the other side are glass beads strung on 19 strand beading wire.

there would of been more, but i've discovered the best time to upload pictures is after 23h00. they upload in a flash. otherwise during the day it takes frustrating hours and plenty of data.

so thanks for visiting, any comments and questions are most welcome. hopefully i'll be here again soon as there is still much to show.