Black and Silver & Black and White

My two hairdressers admired my necklaces, so I knew what to make them as a christmas gift. I asked them their favourite colours - black was the answer! so two variations on a theme.

Black & White



Black and Silver

and the boxes:

Black & White & Heart

Black & White + glass heart

I made this quickly on Wednesday as we had a family funeral to go to on Thursday, and I wasn't quite sure which outfit I was going to wear and I needed a necklace for one of them.  (As it turned out didn't wear the outfit this was made for!).   The picture I took when I made it  really doesn't do it justice as the glass heart is absolutely gorgeous and really catches the light in real life.

I have just tried taking a couple more photos, and I think they show the heart more realistically.   I bought this heart at the Sandown craft show a few weeks back, and absolutely fell in love with it.  It is really heavy.



a slightly better photo

Close up of the glass heart



I am going to the beading show at Sandown tomorrow - so may well wear it to that!

As I mentioned we went to a family funeral yesterday, in Southend -  a place I haven't been to since I was 10! (I have a photo taken at the end of the pier under the famous Bell with my Mum and Dad, just after my Dad came out of hospital that year, which is how I can date it!).  Well I wasn't sure what to expect when after the funeral and spending a pleasant afternoon sitting in the garden catching up with distant rellies, whilst enjoying a fantatic buffet lunch, before heading home we drove along the seafront.  Heck it is like other parts of the Essex coast I have visited - I call it the "Land that Time forgot".  I suppose living near the South Coast and Brighton and Littlehampton, I was expecting something a bit like them, which always seem to be busy, even out of season, particularly as Southend is virtually the nearest resort to the East of London.  I doubt that much has changed really since I was a kid.  If we had been earlier with our "promenade" we might have made the effort to take the train down the pier for "old times sake".  OK it was just after 5pm, and it was "Out of Season", but it was deserted, and not even dark enough for the "Lights" to be on which might have made a difference, and it didn't help that most of the promenade was edged by a concrete wall that prohibited you from seeing a lot from the car!   Here are a couple of photos I took:

Southend Pier looking toward Kent



Southend Pier from the other side.



Mags

Granddaughter's Alice Band and Red Necklace

I have been busy with the french knitting again today.  The first item is another alice band for one of my granddaughters.  I had made her a red one for school, but said I would make her another non-school one.  I asked what colour she would like, and the reply was pink and blue and yellow!   Well I said I couldn't do three colours, so her reply was to buy some rainbow wool!  (5 year olds have all the answers don't they!)  Anyway I didn't have any yellow, so made this pink and blue one, and then embroidered some white daisies on it.  Hope it meets with her appoval!



Emboidered Alice Band



The second item is a necklace for one of the receptionists at our surgery.   She had been admiring my necklaces on our various visits, so I promised to make her one.   As I discovered that she is on duty tomorrow, I made this quickly for her today, together with a box, made as usual on the hougie board.



Red necklace and box



Finally, I am little sad tonight as I write this blog, as I learned that my mum's second cousin Lily (91) passed away tonight.  We only knew her for 8 years.  I made contact with her eldest daughter through genesrunited and my familytree research.   We discovered that they only lived a few miles from us.   With trepidation, my mum, my daughter and my eldest granddaughter and I made our way across to them.  It was a very hot day, and the previous day, I had spoken to my cousin, and she said "Don't stand on ceremony as it is going to be so hot - we will be in shorts!"  Well, shorts it was - and gosh was it hot, but it set the scene for a relaxed day, and,  it was as though we had known each other for ever.   My mum hadn't known the existence of this second cousin, but they had lived almost parallel lives.  Lily could remember my mum's grandfather - her Uncle James - and had stories to tell about him, yet mum couldn't remember much about her grandfather as he didn't live that near them (although he didn't live that far actually!)  But Lily and her family lived a few streets away from mum's grandfather. 

It was so uncanny how alike Mum and Lily were, and as we chatted family traits came out, including the habit of tapping a finger when making a point.  Apparently this stems from their great grandfather!  I am afraid I do it, and so does my daughter, and so does my eldest granddaughter - don't know about the youngest granddaughters - haven't caught them doing it yet - so maybe it is a female line thing!

We visited a few times over the years, and when the family moved further away, we managed to see them a few times when we were holidaying in the area.  She was a lovely lady, I was fortunate to have met her and her daughters.  Rest in Peace Lily.



"The Glorious 12th - A Family Reunion"
(my mum is in the middle at the back, and Lily has my granddaughter on her knee in the front - you can see the family resemblance)



Mags

Lime Necklace

Lime Necklace

My latest creation is a lime green necklace for a crafty lady.  The bead was a white wooden one from my stash, so I painted it with acrylic paints, and varnished it to match.  I also made a box for it., using my Hougie Board.  Yes lime green again.   The recipient very much likes lime green - you may be able to guess by the colour who the recipient is.   She knows I am making one for her, as the choice of colour was her request, when I spoke to her at Sandown last week.  I can't wait to see her face when I give it to her at Ally Pally.



Necklace in box




The personalised box

 Have any of you guessed who the recipient is?  There is a clue in the posting.

Thanks for popping in.


Mags

Necklace and Headbands

Ribbon necklace

Another of my ribbon necklaces.  My daughter asked for one in sort of beige and browns, and I found this glass pendant at Sandown and thought it would be just the thing!  I also bought some gold findings for it at our local craft shop.

I also knocked up three headband covers for my granddaughters with double knitting wool instead of ribbon - the blue and red ones are to match school uniforms, and the purple one is for the two year old.   I made them on the largest setting of my wheel, and then threaded through some cheap headbands that I bought in Poundland. 



Headbands for Granddaughters

 Thanks for dropping by

Mags

A Christmas Star plus another Black and Silver Necklace!

As you can see I have been playing with my "sunburst crystal"  beads and created this Christmas Tree decoration!  Not sure I am happy with it as it would look better with graduated beads from centre to outside, but as it only took about 3 mins to make - I can soon take it apart and think of something else!

I also made another silver and black ribbon necklace today as requested by my daughter.  I varied it slightly to the one I made for her friend, and put two silver cubes on it!  This is the 3rd Black and Silver necklace I have made - is this going to be setting a trend?  (Particularly as eldest granddaughter was rather coveting her mum's necklace today!  Better go and buy some more black and silver ribbon!)

Close up of the silver cubes - wonder how easy it would be to make your own with some odd bits of wire?

Think I might try a memory wire necklace tomorrow, using some of the techniques Sarah from Beader's Companion was demonstrating today!

Thanks for looking.

Mags

Black & Silver Ribbon Necklace

Made this yesterday for my daughter's pal, who fell in love with one I was wearing last week.

I now have another one to do for my daughter!  Good job they both teach at different schools!  I love the little silver cube beads I bought last week (they are like little meshes of twisted silver wire)

and made a little box to present it in with my Hougie Board of course!

Mags

I have had a terrible day today - if it could go wrong it went wrong!  Fortunately once I had got the third one out of the way - things began to look up.   When I went to deliver the necklace, my daughter gave be a large bag of craft ribbon "stuff" (Craftlon Nylon Craft Ribbon) for knitting, crocheting etc with, together with a Craftlon pompom maker.  Her neighbour recently died and her daughter asked if the ribbon was any good to me/us.  Not only do I have various ribbons I also have a video tape of how to use it, and two instruction/pattern books - so watch this space!

An August Sunday

It was a beautiful day yesterday - probably one of the nicest we have had since Easter.  It was even warm enough to still be sitting outside after the sun set.

I spent the morning creating a promised ribbon necklace for my Daughter-in-law, including painting a bead to match.

and also playing with some pretty "flower" beads I bought on Friday, and created this protype christmas tree decoration.  I need to get some more barrel and flat red beads/ buttons to repeat the creation!

Later in the afternoon the whole family descended on my Daughter for a spa and bbq together with a neighbour and good friend and her husband.  Theoretically the start of our week's holiday!  We had a fab time.  I even ventured into the spa - oooo I am hooked now and want one at home!  My youngest granddaughter didn't want to come out!

We had hoped to get away for a week, but everywhere we wanted to go was fully booked - the only place that had vacancies was on the Isle of Wight - but there were no available ferries! C'est la Vie as they say!

Not sure exactly what we are going to do this week - if the weather is kind we may venture out - but as my husband can't walk far - choices are a bit limited.   However, we may indulge in some meals out.  Having said that what have I done today - housework!  and the forecast tomorrow is heavy rain - so looks as though we shan't be venturing further than Sains for the fortnightly shopping trip!

and finally my eldest granddaughter made one of these yesterday with some of my spare wool, whilst we were at her house, showing her other gran how it was done.   We gave the necklace to her aunt as it matched the dress she was wearing  - so today, I made her another one to replace it!

Craft Day with Granddaughter - Part 2!

I made this today for my daughter: - Turquoise ribbon, and a bead I made and painted myself using Cloud Clay and acrylic paints:

Ellie also wanted to learn to make my ribbon necklaces.   So I gave her free rein of the ribbon stash, but she decided she wanted to use my fluffy wool.   Well I won't even start to tell you how quickly she made this necklace! 

She then wanted to make something else using the larger wheel. As she started it we realised it was going to be rather large and might make a large fluffy bracelet, and that was the plan at first.  We discovered that as it was being created it had quite a "hole" down the centre - Then I had a brainwave. I had bought a couple of Alice Bands in the Pound Shop, with a view to doing something with them with flowers or beads for the granddaughters. Well we decided to turn her second project into an Alice Band cover. (Just threaded it through the middle!). She is now going to show off her creations to her pals and get me some orders! I have told her she is on commission!  (She made a list of all the colours and types of  ribbon I had ready to tell them what they could have! LOL!)

 

The ensemble!

Thanks for dropping by.  Hope you enjoyed sharing our craft day.

Mags