Christmas is Coming!

As it is now October 1st, I think we can say the season for gift shopping has officially begun. And I am looking forward to providing lovely jewellery gifts for folks who are looking for that special, exclusive piece of artisan jewellery to give to their friend or family member. I've been keeping very busy with lots of new makes. My goal is to upload at least 12 more items before mid-October - more in each category of my shop - to give you plenty of choice when doing your Christmas shopping.

This time of year makes choosing stones so much fun. Most natural stones are very earthy colours so, at this time of year, the stones match the season. My great love for creating leaf-like designs plays into the season as well, as I plan to include many autumnal pieces in the new offerings - bronze and copper complemented by rusts, dark greens, greys, and reds. I shall be adding more pieces that include very organic designs and these will carry over into bracelets and brooches. I've recently purchased some beautiful heavy tube beads in agate and jasper. They are amazing and look fabulous in chunky pieces that suit the heavier clothes of Autumn and Winter. I'm sure you will find many pieces you like when the new pieces are uploaded. And don't forget my lovely chunky brooches - they will look perfect with a shawl, scarf and on the cowl of a heavy winter sweater!

In addition to the new designs and makes in The Selkie's Haunt, I am working very hard on getting new pieces ready for the fine jewellery business, Ailleas Designs. The brand is getting a whole new look starting at the end of November, along with all the new designs that include set gemstones and touches of 18ct gold. In fact, over the next month, I am working on two commissioned pieces - both completely 18ct gold with set gemstones. I love working with gold, but I am always pleased when clients begin the consultation with, "I know it's going to be expensive." Gold of this quality is expensive, but so worth it. I can't wait to finish these pieces and present them to their owners. It is going to be so special. Other designs for Ailleas Designs were created for the British Red Cross annual Fashion Show in London. I was invited to create and donate pieces for a pop-up designer boutique. I am humbled by the names of the other designers with which I will be sharing space. Very exciting and will hopefully get the word out there.

It feels as if my business, my brand, is finally gaining real recognition and appreciation. They say it can take years for a business to become established and, if true, I am probably right on schedule. I've been running my business for close to 7 years now. Time for success, I think.

In addition to all my "professional creativity," I am crocheting a huge blanket for my granddaughter. It is all go here, that's for sure. But soon enough, Christmas will be over and it will be time for a little quiet. Of course, I look forward to spending more time in the studio over the winter months, creating even more beautiful jewellery for 2017.

Spring is here!

What a strange month March was. In addition to not having particularly lovely weather, it was a time of changes for me. After seeing my neurologist at the end of February, and, thankfully, receiving the news that I have essential tremor and not Parkinson’s, it was time for an adjustment of my pain meds. After some to-ing and fro-ing that made me feel a bit manic, we have settled down with morphine tablets. They are handling the pain pretty well, but, oh my, between them and the beta blockers for my tremor, I couldn’t be more relaxed. And that’s not always good! I’ve produced far less this month than I had hoped, and my anticipated new collection for Ailleas Designs hasn’t even been started.  But I’ve been very busy with my bronze and copper jewellery. With two events this month, and then increasing numbers of events until December, I need to be sure to have a substantial amount of stock available for those events, and have some available for my stockists as well (I am anticipating one new stockist to be announced fairly soon). And I’m still working on that. I’m finishing up my first brooch, to be followed by more. I’ve opted against making rings in bronze and copper because, unlike silver and gold, the solder does not precisely match the metal in colour and I don’t like the visible seams. While that is more acceptable in general pieces, I don’t feel that rings would benefit from that look. I will continue to try to see if I can get a technique perfected that will not give me visible seams, but I am not going to concentrate on rings for now. Instead, I will be doing more with pendants, some bangles, and more detailed metalsmithing and designing.

If you follow my Facebook page, you will have seen the photograph of this pendant that I created using copper and a beautiful 4.5mm rhodalite garnet. I love the look, but didn’t feel the finish was as perfect as I wanted it to be. It became, instead, a gift for a friend. She loves it and, as another friend said, my not quite perfect is probably perfect by anyone else’s estimation; but still, I have my standards for making things to sell. I will be using this technique on other pieces, including its use with the precious metals and faceted stones. I am looking forward to exploring the designs that appear in my mind. This particular design reminds me of far eastern/medieval textiles. What other amazing looks can I create? I am limited only by my imagination and how far I can manipulate the metal. But I do love the process.

In addition to the markets in which I will be taking part, I will spend part of April preparing pieces for the Dornoch Summer Exhibition. The exhibition runs for two weeks from May 21 until June 4. I am so happy to be taking part again this year. I will be providing some innovative work for the exhibition and hope to sell well.

I am looking forward to working with larger and differently shaped cabochons as I expand my offerings for The Selkie’s Haunt. Keep your eyes on my Facebook page and my website to see new pieces as they are added. It’s going to be an exciting time.

A busy February...

Copper bracelet with Brazilian amethyst and labradorite

These past six weeks have been all about making. In addition to creating the perfect look for my packaging/branding, I also wanted to take my designs to the next level. And I have been doing just that. I am pleased that say that, by mid-February, I was able to post 10 new pairs of earrings and a new necklace. Some sales of jewellery from the Aultbea Hotel meant a restock, including a stunning copper bracelet that was created completely by hand. When, in the past, I wanted copper chain, I simply bought it. That is no longer the case. I am now making all the chains, links, pins, etc., for each piece. So this bracelet, pictured here, was a real triumph for me. The copper bracelet is comprised of 27 hand-forged links, hand-forged clasp, and 81 hand-forged pins. The African amethysts I've used number 54 - two to each link, and the stunning labradorite, with its amazing flashes of colour, number 27, one to each link. This bracelet is now on offer at the Aultbea Hotel for the cost of £70. A pretty amazing piece of jewellery.

Copper post earrings with
bezel set peridot

I had a wonderful time creating my new pieces. One pair, which I've called "Celtic Swirls", features two separate pieces of copper, soldered together, and a bezel setting and decorative wirework soldered onto the face of the earrings. These earrings feature sterling silver posts and earrings backs. In my pledge to make everything myself, the earrings backs are the only things that I am buying in. As they are not an intrinsic part of the design, I am not as concerned about them being bought complete. But I will continue to make, by hand, all the parts of each of my designs.

Bronze earrings with handforged
chains, green fluorite, and
A-grade carnelian

These bronze earrings, which feature beautiful green fluorite and A-grade carnelian, are another pair of post earrings. The delicate chain of bronze wire that connects the hammered bronze round to the stones beneath, is, once again, completely hand made. The sense of achievement that comes with this sort of work is exhilarating. To see all the new designs, pop over to the website at www.selkieshaunt.com. You can also follow The Selkie's Haunt on Twitter and Facebook.

Finally, I just want to thank all of my friends and Selkie's Haunt followers for their good wishes. I have been dealing with a hand tremor for the past couple of years, but it had become much more prevalent and was causing problems with me doing my work. My GP put me on beta blockers and referred me to a neurological consultant. I had my appointment and I'm relieved to say that I do not have early Parkinson's Disease. I do, however, have a condition called Essential Tremor. It will be with me for the rest of my life and will have moments of making things difficult, but the beta blockers are doing a good job of easing the tremors and I will continue to find ways to work that will allow me to create my work without fear of setting myself on fire! So, thank you for your good thoughts.