Blog

If you haven't discovered Just Makers at Harlow Carr RHS gardens you have missed a gem!  I'll start from the beginning. Harlow Carr is the RHS garden situated in Harrogate and is a fabulous place to visit particularly with families.   There are wide open spaces and magnificent flower beds and a terrific adventure playground tucked away between the trees at the far side. As you wind your way between the architectural allium.... ....and glorious sea holly you arrive at the bottom of the valley and there you will find Just Makers. Housed in the beautiful Old Bath House building Just...

Out there, in our back gardens is an amazing hidden world under our noses.  Few people realise what details pass by us everyday because of the tiny scale in which it exists.   Large Yellow Underwing - what the moth should have looked like! By Jerzy Strzelecki (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons   A perfect example of this occurred one day after school when my daughter was playing in the garden and she called for me to come and see a moth she had found.  It was a Large Yellow Underwing, we get a lot in...

Whilst I was working in my studio last week I thought I would have a bit of fun and video me working on some of my jewellery at the embellishment stage.  Don't worry I have sped it up and so it is only a couple of minutes long!  Take a look and please let me know what you think in the comments at the bottom.     

Over the past few weeks I have been focussing on taking photos of my products and staging them in a way that shows people the inspiration for my jewellery.  Talking to customers at fairs and exhibitions allows me to point out the connections to nature and natural forms as the fancy beaded designs often mask the initial inspiration for that jewellery piece. For example, this beautiful pendant set is inspired by....... ....a gorgeous purpley blue Hydrangea I found at Harlow Carr. And this pine cone laid on it's end inspired me to create.... ....this intricately beaded brooch. A couple of...

So far you have seen me create the base image, bead the image and now we are ready for the final stage - the resin.  You would have thought that the resin was the easiest stage as all you are doing is pouring it on but often it is the most time consuming part but it is worth getting right as it creates the fabulous clear dome which magnifies the final piece and enhances those fiddly beaded designs. The resin comes in two parts which, when mixed, will thicken and harden over the space of 36 to 48 hours.  The...