Has it Really Been That Long?

Has it REALLY been THAT long since I last blogged?!?

Well, what can I say? I've been rather busy since last, er, March.

What HAVE I been doing? Well, making, making and more making of course, keeping my stock up in my Folksy Shop and in Gloucestershire Arts and Crafts Centre and Taurus Crafts in Lydney. I attended some fabulous Christmas markets at Nature in Art and Gloucester Cathedral and I ran several classes at the Arts and Crafts Centre (including one using silver clay)! I also started experimenting with new techniques, which I am still refining and getting really excited about - including wax mould carving, photopolymer stamps and using copper and bronze clays - all things I fully intend to blog about over the coming months. In between all that Little Miss MoonRiver grew up a bit more and went off to secondary school (sob) and I studied a bit of theology (as you do)! SO all in all it has been a busy and crazy 2015.

And so, new year 2016 was a time to reassess and take stock. I have decided that from the end of January, I will no longer sell my jewellery at Gloucestershire Arts and Crafts Centre. I'm rather sad about this as I have loved my time there and made some fabulous friends, but I am simply not getting enough time in the workshop to develop all the new ideas I'm so excited about. I still have classes booked there each month though (for full details see attached poster) so I'm not disappearing entirely!

Right now, I'm itching to jump into all the half finished projects and ideas I have lying around but I really must be disciplined and attend to some less glamorous tasks like tidying up websites, shops and, yes, blogs. On that note, I hope it won't be so long until I post again!

 

The Round the World Blog Hop

Recently Mossy from Silver Moss Jewellery contacted me and asked if I'd like to take part in an around the world blog hop. I'd not heard of it before but the idea behind the Blog Hop is for creative bloggers to write a post based around a few questions. Their answers offer an insight into their creative thoughts and processes. The blog 'baton' is then passed on to another creative and so on...

You can read Mossy's post here. I have to admit to a rather tardy publication of this post - Christmas and New Year rather got in the way......but as I'm now back to (almost) full speed here it is!

So here are the questions - and my answers:

1) What am I working on?

All the custom orders on my bench at the moment are for silver fingerprint pieces. My customers have sent me the fingerprints they want to include and I transfer them to their jewellery. The work needs to be done in stages, so I tend to get all pieces to one stage before moving on to the next. 

I'm also busy building up stock in my Folksy shop again after Christmas - I'm working on a lot of tree of life pieces at the moment.

2) How does my work differ from others in its genre?

No two pieces I make are ever the same! I don't really work in bulk designs - if I'm using gemstones they are often unique shapes which means that I can only ever recreate a similar design. With my wirework trees, the nature of the work means that every piece is different - the stone affects the ways the wires lie and as I twist everything by hand the tension varies which produces differences in the branches. And of course, no two fingerprints are ever the same. Nor are leaves for that matter!

This way of working can make things hard work! I list every item separately in my Folksy Shop so that the picture a customer sees is the piece they are buying (except for fingerprint jewellery or course, which is made to order).

3) Why do I write/create what I do?

I started out making only silver fingerprint jewellery - but of course silver clay is very addictive! I began to experiment with new designs and continue to do so all the time. Most of what I make is inspired by the natural world around me - what better inspiration is there?

Oak Twig Rings

4) How does my writing/creating process work?

I start most new pieces with a sketch of how I want the finished piece to look. Sometimes I create a quite detailed plan but sometimes I just experiment as I go. I can't afford to experiment as much as I'd like though as silver clay is quite expensive! I'm always collecting things when I'm out and about that have interesting shapes and textures that I might use later - I embarrass my children by carrying a collection bag with me everywhere! 

And now I'll pass the baton on to John from The World Outside The Window to answer the same questions. He's a writer rather than an artisan so it should be a bit of a change! In the interest of full disclosure, he also happens to be my husband! So you can imagine us sitting opposite each other working if that helps :)

You can find his blog here: The World Outside the Window

Back to the classroom

It's a bit after the event now (doesn't time fly during the summer holidays!) but last month saw my first foray into the world of teaching.

I'd been invited to run a two day course for Gloucestershire Arts and Crafts Summer School, so I diligently packed up my work shop and relocated to a local secondary school.

I have to say that it was a bit strange being back in a science lab again, it was not my favourite subject at school (and yes - labs still look and smell the same)!

I had a great two days with eight lovely and willing students. Over the two days they each made four pieces of jewellery, including a silver leaf and a gemstone tree of life. One of my ladies even made a silver ukelele pendant!

Sadly I was so busy teaching that I forgot to take any photos to show you (maybe next time).

I'm hoping to run some short classes of my own soon, so if you'd be interested in classes in Gloucester then watch this space or sign up for my newsletter here.

To find out more about the Gloucestershire Arts and Crafts Summer School you can find their website at http://www.spanglefish.com/gloucesterartsandcrafts/index.asp

Now Booking!

Look what I received in the post this morning! The brochure for this year's Gloucester Arts and Crafts Summer School featuring a two day class by little old me.

This is what it says about my class:

Silver Clay Jewellery -  21/22 July - Fee £95

Learn how to use precious metal clay and sterling silver wire to make your own pieces of silver jewellery.  The course will include making pieces from lump clay and clay in its paste form, as well as some wire work.  We will be using naturally found materials in our work to add texture and make moulds.  All tools  and equipment will be provided.  The cost of the materials is £30 payable directly to the tutor.  Each student can expect to take home at least three pieces of finished jewellery depending on what they choose to work on.  This course is suitable for complete beginners.

Tutor

Heather de Gruyther runs MoonRiver Jewellery, specialising in silver fingerprint keepsakes and draws her inspiration from the natural world around her.  She sells her work online, at various shows and shops, and at Gloucestershire Arts and Crafts Centre.  She also works to commission.  You can see her work on her website - www.moonriverjewellery.co.uk

There are also classes available in painting, textiles, stone work, mosaics, beading, glass, decoupage, encaustic arts, sculpture......... if you'd like to find out more information or to book a course then visit www.spanglefish.com/gloucesterartsandcrafts