my silver ring again

Here's my ring again. Now you might think it looks worse now than it did last time, and you'd technically be right. But it's going to be a zigzag, and those notches will eventually join up. It may take several weeks, but I'll get there.

safety pin brooch

And finally another safety pin brooch, in my favourite colour.

wrap bracelets, rings and random necklaces

This style of wrap bracelet has proved very popular, and although it's really time-consuming, it's not hard to make. I've switched suppliers for the memory wire and now I get an extra loop, but it's a lighter gauge.


I've made a couple of rings in the same style - the person who bought this one asked for a matching bracelet to go with it.


I made another floating necklace. This one's purple with garnets, although the photo doesn't do the colours justice (they never do with gemstones).


And this one's another simple spaced necklace, just grey and black. Striking, but easy to wear.

spaced necklaces

These three necklaces are all made the same way - tigertail threaded with glass beads, spaced with crimps.

twisty wire bracelets

I made these wire bracelets from three strands of black copper wire, threaded with mixed beads of three different shades and twisted together.

some phone charms

I haven't posted in a while because I've been so ridiculously busy. But that certainly doesn't mean I haven't been making stuff - here are some phone charms I did to start you off:

a little something extra

I just remembered that I never posted these pictures of my special chocolate truffles. Secret recipe obviously.

my latest ventures

I've been really busy lately, as I've been selling my stuff at the office where I work. It's been very popular and I can only just make enough to keep up with the demand! It also means I haven't been able to photograph a lot of the things I've made, because I've just taken them staight in. But here is an example of one of the newest things I've done: a bag clip.

And of course I've been plodding on with the extremely slow process of getting my silver ring lovely. Here it is as it is now, polished and ultra smooth. It just needs decorating now (Just! As if that's the easy part!)

wot, no chimps?

A disaster! I've run out of crimps, or chimps, as Mr Tony likes to call them. Crimps are the tiny little things that you squish to hold everything together, so without them I can't hold anything together and I can't make anything! Apart, of course, from things that don't require end-squishing, like these two extra-long necklaces:

They are on nylon thread which is knotted, so the join can't be seen and you can wear them as a bracelet if you wind them round lots of times. And you don't need crimps.

Here's the necklace which made me run out:

The ends aren't finished off, but it's mostly done. It involves lots and lots of crimps and little sections of tigertail and it's very fiddly, but worth it in the end, I think.

I'll be ordering some more stuff soon so I can get on with it.

more silver

Lately I've been making a lot of birthday presents and things, and not doing so much of my own stuff. But I have been going to my silversmithing class, and this is my latest creation:

I spent the last class bashing it into this vaguely round shape, and eventually I'll be able to solder it into a ring and decorate it.

I also thought I'd stick up a couple of pictures of things I've done recently, so here's a necklace made with green tigertail and green beads with copper wire wrapped round:

And a purple and black (and therefore ultra-fashionable) bracelet made - I hasten to add - before all the magazines said it was fashionable:

It's on three strands of black wire and looks really striking when it's worn. I did another in blue and silver for a friend's present.

I've also added my email at the top of the page, so feel free to send an email if you don't want to post a comment.

christmas cards phase 2

I began making them this weekend. I've made all these little squares and they'll go on the cards. It didn't take nearly as long as I thought, mainly because I prepared well - I got all the stuff together and it all co-ordinated, so I could just put them together very easily a few at a time. Now I just need to make a load more and stick 'em on cards. They should hit the shops (well, shop) within a couple of weeks.

what I've been up to

Here are those rough bits of silver again. They still look rough but I can assure you they're very smooth under that tatty plastic covering. I spent two hours filing them (and filing my fingers while I was at it).

I ran a card-making workshop for Northumbria University's 'Give it a go' programme. I showed people how to make these cards. It was a bit manic because I only found out I was doing it the day before so I had to rush round at 5 o'clock getting all the materials. But I managed it, and I might be doing another near Christmas.

And I got some coloured safety pins from Yum Yum beads in Leeds, so I've been having fun with them. Here's a brooch I made for a friend's birthday present (hope she doesn't read this before then):

christmas already

As it's October it's time to start thinking about Christmas cards. This is what they look like at the moment - a pile of sparkly bits. But in a couple of weeks' time they'll be a pile of Xmas cards, with luck. Watch this space.

my first attempts at silversmithery

I started a silversmithing course this week, as I've only done beaded jewellery up to now. I really enjoyed the first session. All I've done so far is these slightly rough looking bits of silver, but they'll be a pair of earrings soon.

three necklaces

Three necklaces I've made in the last few months

micro giraffe has a blog!

I'll be posting on this blog photos of my jewellery and cards and any related news.