You were missed.....

Another gorgeous day dawned, the sun was beginning to peek through the clouds, snow was attempting to fall and I set off to teach at The Bead Lagoon in Sidmouth. The journey there was just beautiful..... and as I dropped into Sidmouth the sun was glinting off the sea, calling me to walk and enjoy, but first I had a lesson to teach.

But... by 1.30 I was off.... straight to the beach....

..... and a walk along the prom.....

to Jacob's Ladder..

I have spent many a happy hour here in the past and the memories came flooding back... It was good to remember!

Phew!!! I made it to the top!

Looking back towards the town.... more pondering!....

What a shame you couldn't join me for a cuppa here... you were missed!

A quick stroll back through the gardens...

One last look at the beach...

Before heading off to Pebbles to catch up with some special people... my parents. xxx

Speaking of Pebbles, I will be running a jewellery making workshop there, morning and evening, on March 23rd. If you would like to come and have a play with beads and wire I would love to see you.... why not treat yourself to a stay there as well???? Email me for details.

I hope you've had as lovely a day as I've had.

Wishing you and yours a very happy weekend.

xxxxx

Catching up...

I have been in such a stew just lately.... really wanting to post to my blog, feeling guilty that I have promised a free hand embroidery tutorial and not done that yet, wanting to keep up with all of your lovely blogs and comment on them, post some pictures of what I have been up to, but... as you already know, a whole month has passed since I last posted..... sorry! there have been so many events, trips, makes and projects to tell about, but, apart from the fact that my internet connection is VERY intermittent.... grrrrrrr... and it takes A.G.E.S to upload pictures... more grrrrrr.... I have been extremely busy. As quick as I make jewellery, bags, pictures etc... they are selling. Yay for me, but not so yay for you as I haven't had time to photograph them all!!!

Ah well.... here are a few pics that I have managed to take....

More splishy, splashy pictures..... these are now adorning the walls of Pebbles........

Poppy fields.....

The sea....... this one is now sold!!!

Fireworks.....

Hmmmmm.... couldn't come up with a name for this one... any ideas???

Field of flowers...

I've also been to The Bead Lagoon and taught several more classes... this one was a little more advanced and we did some wire work.....

Ooooops, you shouldn't have seen that... how did those Jaffa cakes sneak into the picture??? Mark and Kate are so good at keeping us going with endless cups of tea, coffee and Jaffa cakes.... mmmmmm!!!

Wrapping...

Shaping and bending....

Concentrating hard....

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I have also been doing a bit of galavanting.... my favourite pastime.... well, one of them.

I went here.... any guesses???

.... and my MOST favourite place..... here...... for a spot of R & R, walks along very blustery beaches, lots of lovely food, new friends made and a spot of retail therapy!!!

Just look... isn't it gorgeous?

Oh, and I've also been walking on Dartmoor... just look at the colours... stunning!

Avon Dam.... not too far from home

Well, that's a bit of a whistle stop tour of the last month or so.... Sorry it's been soooo long. I started out on my blogging adventure thinking that I would post something of interest every day, but life just isn't like that... it's filled with many days of mundane chores and work, with a few exciting adventures in between!

Having said that, Christmas has come early here and we have been having fun making some small pressies and decorations... if this awful soggy rain stops I will take some pics to show you... It was good to have some light, creative relief as my small nephew has been really poorly over the last few days.... his family are missionaries in Macedonia and they were on holiday in Bulgaria visiting friends when he had to be rushed into hospital. He is making a gradual recovery but is having to come back to the UK to have yet more tests as they have no idea what is causing him to be so ill... for those of you so inclined, we would love you to remember him in your prayers... his name is Evan.

Thank you xxxx

Bags and beads

I promised you last week that if the sun shone again I would rush outside and take some pictures of the other bags that I have been making... well, here they are.....

As you can see, I have been inspired by the lovely heathery colours that are filling the moors at the moment...

The main body of these bags is made from a vintage blanket that I have dyed and felted...

I do so love this squirly, circley design.. It's so much fun to do.. if you've never had a go at freehand embroidery on your sewing machine, I would urge you to give it a go... it's not nearly as scary as you think it will be and you will be amazed at what you can do!!

This one is very retro don't you think? I'm especially pleased with this bow detail too... It's definitely all these little details that set you apart from other designer/makers and also add that little extra something

This was definitely my most favourite make of the day.... a new cushion for the sofa!

I just love the colours together and the big shiny buttons!!

I do get moaned at for having so many cushions on my sofa, but I think you can never really have too many can you?

As an aside..... see all those gorgeous cosmos flowers? Well, these are the ones that I grew from seed back in the spring, and they are STILL flowering profusely. I will be planting these again next year too as they are so easy to grow and give so much pleasure.

I took a trip here last week ( I know it's loathed by many!!!) and came home with a few extra things that snuck their way into my shopping basket... such as some new sewing threads... oh, and underneath them is my new table cloth... I LOVE the colours, and, although it's waterproof... I vowed I'd never have another one of those now that the children are all grown up - I really wanted to have grown up, vintage, fabric cloths (I do have those too), this doesn't look at all plasticky, just bright and colourful... yay!

Oh... how did they get in there??? More fabric I hear you say... well..... yeeessss!! Just a couple of metres for a few more bags and other goodies that I want to make. The sewing bug has really caught on again... I think I was shamed into it by a very dear friend... you know who you are J... who was shocked at my lack of sewing over the last few years and said as much... thanks for the shove!! So, watch this space for some more fabricky goodies in the near future...

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Well, here we are at The Bead lagoon..... This is the lovely shop in Sidmouth where I take jewellery making classes on a regular basis....

... and here we are inside... all prepared and ready to go....

I love the wall paper and curtain fabric.. it gives the shop a warm welcoming feel...

My students trying to choose their beads for earrings and necklaces...

This is the hardest part of the morning I think... choosing colours and styles!!!

Well, wouldn't you find it hard with all of this amazing selection to choose from?

... and this.....

Scrumptious!!!! If you are ever in the area this is a place NOT to be missed, you will be amazed by the selection and quality of the beads...

Here are just a couple of other shots of the shop... as you can see there are many, many trays of beads and findings and plenty of inspiration in the form of jewellery that has been made by Kate, at The Bead lagoon, and also some of my pieces too!!!

There are several more workshop dates in the diary now....

Saturday October 24th... Beginners workshop 10am - 1.30pm

Thursday November 5th... Beginners workshop 10am - 1.30pm

Saturday November 14th... Wire work jewellery workshop 10am - 1.30pm

Thursday November 26th... Beginners workshop 10am - 1.30pm

Saturday December 5th... Jewellery making for Christmas presents 10am - 11.30 am and 12pm - 1.30pm

I would love to see you if you are in the area.... and if not, why not treat yourself to break and stay at Pebbles, which is not far away, and come along to one of the workshops... you will not be disappointed with either!!!

I am now off to try and finish my promotional literature for some workshops that I will be holding at The Flavel in Dartmouth on the first three Tuesday evenings in December... could be difficult though as when I came to find the photo paper on which to print my posters, I discovered that there is only piece left... hmph! ... the others having been snaffled by a certain daughter who is taking photography as an 'A' level... grrrrr! Looks like I will be off to the shops then!!!

Bye for now xx

p.s if you would like to know how to do freehand machine embroidery on your sewing machine, please let me know and if there's enough interest, I may put a tutorial on the blog.. woo hoo.. my first one!

I'm happy to give you tutorials on jewellery making too if you would like them... just let me know

TTFN xx