Monday 30 November 2009

Cyber Monday!

Good evening one and all. Happy Cyber Monday for those of you in America! How was everyone's weekend? I've had a very productive time and I shall write a big blog tomorrow morning.

In the mean time I'd like to say that my Sale is still going on in my Etsy shop. 20% OFF throughout my entire store. Hurry, sale ends tonight!

Have a lovely day, speak more tomorrow,

Heather x

Friday 27 November 2009

SALE SALE!

Come one, come all! I am having a sale - 20% off throughout my entire shop (excluding shipping). I have already adjusted the prices accordingly. This sale will run until Monday so order now to avoid disappointment!

Thank you,
Heather x

Thursday 26 November 2009

SALE and new listing

Good evening and Happy Thanksgiving to those of you in America.

I'm having a 20% off Sale in my Etsy shop starting tomorrow and ending on Monday 30th. This is my first major sale so I'm really looking forward to it. I think I'll blog tomorrow morning with any details I have forgotton to mention at the moment. I'd also like to take this opportunity so say that if you are outside of the UK and would like your order by Christmas, the cut-off date is December 1st. If you live in the UK the cut-off date is December 15th. 

Today I have listed the Katarina bridal necklace I mentioned last night. It is located here.



I'm really pleased with how it has turned out and I am now raring to go on my next project. Seed beads add a certain elegance to this kind of item which is great. I've decided to tat my Mystica pattern using some of these beads and I think I shall make it into a necklace. I might finish it tomorrow if I'm lucky.

x

Wednesday 25 November 2009

Tatting with seed beads

Good evening. Apologies for the lack of a blog post yesterday, my computer has been playing up. Today I've been finishing off my seed beads project I mentioned recently. It's taken quite a while but I love the end result. Here is a sneaky peak:



The design is my Katarina pattern and I've added some gorgeous seed beads. You will see the full item tomorrow afternoon.

I've got some more tatting in the pipeline that I shall be listing over the next few days; one of which is a prototype for a Renaissance style choker. I'm still working out the number of double stitches required for a part of it but I'll get there eventually. I will be blogging again tomorrow.

x

Monday 23 November 2009

A lovely treasury and more tatting

Good evening. First of all I'd like to say a big thank you to Sandra Darling for including me in her new treasury. It really means a lot to me. Check out her shop. She mostly does fine art and potography. I found her shop a few days ago and I love all of it. Her prints have an elegant and ethereal touch to them. My favourite has to be Sub Rosa III . It is looks so delicate and makes me think of medieval and gothic stories. They really are beautiful.

Today I've been working on my seed beads project. I've finished the motif and now need to work on the beads up the necklace. This process does take quite a long time but it is incredibly fun to do and the finished product is so elegant. I shall try to put up some sneaky peek pictures tomorrow.

I've also been tatting a prototype today for a Medieval/Renaissance-style necklace / choker. At the moment I can't decide whch period it fits into as it seems to go across several eras. This motif is quite large so it may take a white to tat up. I shall keep you updated on my progress.

That's all for today, more tomorrow.

x

Saturday 21 November 2009

New gothic bracelet

Good evening. I've listed the gothic bracelet I have been working on for the past few days. I used forty black seed beads in this design and I thnk it looks really effective. I wanted another medieval-type name so I went for Nimue (who is part of the Arthurian legend). Here it is:



I might be tatting this in other colours as well, you shall have to wait and see!

I may be able to list some more items tomorrow, but I'm not sure yet. If I don't then I shall wish you a lovely Sunday.

x

Friday 20 November 2009

A small update

Hello. I've had a semi-productive day today. I've been continuing on with my seed bead project. It's getting there but I still have lots to do. I had intended to list my new bracelet but, with the weather being what it is at the moment, it was almost impossible to get good photos. We shall try again tomorrow.

That's pretty much it for today. I shall blog when I list the new bracelet.

Thursday 19 November 2009

Seed beads and gothic reds

Good evening. I've been shopping today and have bought some gorgeous silver lined seed beads. They are perfect for my tatting and I have already started incorperating them into one of my designs. It looks great at the moment and I may show you a sneaky peek tomorrow.

Speaking of seed beads, I've finished off the bracelet I mentioned yesterday. I hope to list it soon. I really like this pattern and might do it in different colours. I'll blog when it is up.

I was so busy last night I forgot to mention that I had bagged a treasury. It ends tomorrow morning. This one is entitled 'Gothic Reds'. When I do a treasury, the theme seems to nearly always be gothic. I really do love dark elegant items. It's difficult to explain why but I suppose it's in my nature. It's part of who I am. Anyway have a look at these fantastic Etsians. Here's a screen grab of it.


Blog more soon.

x        

Wednesday 18 November 2009

It's all about the bracelets!

Good evening. I seem to be in a bracelet phase at the moment! I've listed the light blue and white version of my Katarina pattern on Etsy. Here is is:



I love this design. It's so simple yet effective and looks great in different colours. I might do a black version next to match the black pendant.

Today has also been spent finishing off a gothic bracelet. I have used quite a few seed beads in this design. It took ages to tat up but it was fun to do and I love the result. I shall photograph it tomorrow and have it listed by Friday.

That's all for today, blog more tomorrow.

x

Tuesday 17 November 2009

New tatted bracelet

Good evening. Goodness me isn't it getting cold outside! I've had an exceptionally busy day today. It included tatting, tatting and more tatting. I finished off my two new bracelets and have listed the red and ivory version on Etsy. This goes with my Katarina pendant. I will be listing the other one tomorrow.



I've had an idea for another bracelet design and I shall probably do a prototype towards the end of this week. I don't know if it is going to work yet but I will soon find out. Stay tuned.

x

Monday 16 November 2009

New items in shop and a Treasury

Good evening. I've had a very busy weekend. I listed another bracelet on Etsy yesterday. Recently on Flickr, I showed a prototype of a bracelet I was working on. It is the same design as my Christina pendant. I finished my own version and then made a larger version to sell. Here it is. It reminds me of filigree metalwork.

This item required a lot of patience to make but it looks great when it's finished. The ready-made version is 6 1/4 inches long and includes an extention chain that adds a further 5 cm to the length. I have also listed a custom fit version.

Today I have been working on two bracelets. These use the design of my Katarina pendant. One is complete and shall be listed tomorrow. The other one I am two thirds of the way through and shall be listed on Wednesday.

I have been included in a treasury. Margaret aka MissElany has created one featuring UK people. Check it out (it's open till Wednesday).



I shall blog more tomorrow.

x



Friday 13 November 2009

Updates to Etsy shop

Good evening. I've been working all day on my products. I finished some items this morning and then took photos this afternoon. I've decided to list two today and (hopefully) two tomorrow. The first is a unique and elegant Bridal pendant called Christina. Previously I had done the gothic version and I then thought it would be a good idea for my Crystal Wedding Collection too. I replaced the black glass teardrops with clear AB teardrops, used white cotton thread and voila! Here it is:



The second item is a new design that came to me two days ago. I was doodling and noticed that my Katherine/Katarina pattern could be adapted further. I realised it would work as a simple pendant with a flat drop bead dangling from the bottom of the motif. Again this design is very medieval. I tatted it up yesterday and worked out the price but was unable to think of a suitable name. Today my mum thought it could be called Elaine. This works really well as Elaine was King Arthur's half-sister (if you believe wiki). I don't know if this is true but it ties in with my medieval/fantasy designs, so kudos to my mum! Here it is:



I think this design would look wonderful in any colour so I might do just that. Watch this space!

I shall try to blog again tomorrow.

x

Thursday 12 November 2009

More updates

Good evening. I've been tatting and sewing practically all day today. I finished another pendant this morning and shall be listing it tomorrow along with the items I did yesterday. I shall do a blog post when they are all up on Etsy.

That's it really. Sorry for the small blog post, I hope to have more to say tomorrow.

x

Wednesday 11 November 2009

A little update

Hello. Just a little blog today. I've been working on some items to list in my Etsy shop. I have tatted a white version of my Christina pendant and have also done a new design. Expect to see these items in my shop in the next two days. I'm also working on a bracelet. Once this is done I can also list a custom fit bracelet of the same design (for people with a different size wrist to the one already made up).

We didn't catch any more mice today which is good but we will keep baiting the trap just incase there are more.

I shall blog again tomorrow.

x

Tuesday 10 November 2009

New treasury and mice

Good evening. I've had a non-productive day today. I had wanted to continue tatting my bracelet but my finger has gone down. I hope it gets better soon.

I got a treasury yesterday. It's called Brown and Gold. It's open till Wednesday. Enjoy!


As I mentioned yesterday, we caught a long-tailed field mouse. We caught one this morning too. They really do seem to like our house! Here are a few of the pictures I took. It was quite difficult getting a shot as it was moviing too quickly. I love this kind of mouse, they are so much prettier than house mice.

As I can't tat at the moment, I might go and sketch something. It will keep me occupied I suppose.

Monday 9 November 2009

My weekend and experimental tatting


Good evening. I've had a busy few days. On Saturday I set about tatting up a gothic version of my Katarina pendant. Here it is. I managed to list it in the evening.

I also listed a bracelet. I used my pattern for the Elizabeth pendant and extended it. I think this design works well as a bracelet. I have listed it as custom fit. This saves me having to tat up bracelets of different sizes when I only need to tat them as needed. What do people think of these items? I shall be adding more bracelets to my shop soon.

Saturday evening I did a Saturday Night Special in my shop. I didn't receive any sales but it was fun nonetheless. I might be doing an SNS again but not for a bit.

I decided to have Sunday off from tatting and so my mum and I finished watching season 7 of 24. All I can say is WOW. I think this is my favourite season so far. It still manages to engage you emotionally in every episode. I can't wait to see season 8.

Today I've been experimenting with a different style of tatting. I've been trying inverted tatting. I'm thinkng of doing something with it but I won't say too much about it yet. It's still in the prototype stage. I may put some pictures up tomorrow.

This morning we caught a long-tailed field mouse. It's soo cute. They alway find their way into our house and start nibbling on the soap in the cupboard under the sink. I did take a few photos of it before we let it out into the wild and I shall be posting them tomorrow. I shall blog more then.

x

Friday 6 November 2009

New photos and a Saturday treat.

Good evening one and all. Well today I've been doing lots of work on improving item photos in my shop. I set up my lightbox first thing this morning and was practically taking pictures for most of the day. As you can see in my shop, a few item photos have been changed. I've been experimenting with different colours for backgrounds. My light blue and white Elizabeth pendant is now on a lilac base which I think looks better than the blue base it was on before. I shall change my Eleanor pictures tomorrow.



I'm still learning on the photography side of things but I think I'm getting there.

As I said last night, I've started reading The Princess Bride. I am enjoying it immensely and I might read some more tonight.

That's it for today. I shall blog again on Monday. Oh and you might want to check out my shop tomorrow evening (Saturday 7th November). Just saying!

x

Thursday 5 November 2009

New prototype and what I'm reading

Hello. I finished my prototype off today. It  has no name at the moment but I'm sure I shall think of something. The photo below shows most of it. I used sixteen Swarovski Crystals in the design. I really like how it has turned out, I just need to adjust it slightliy. I'm thinking of putting this in an evening wear collection. It took quite a long time to make but it was worth it.



On another note I have been rearranging some bits on my blog. I've added a few flickr links and just done a bit of general tidying up. I hope to include more buttons and the like in the next few days.

This evening I found some time to pick up a book. I've decided to start reading The Princess Bride. I first saw the film last Easter and immediately loved it but i've only recently been able to buy it. I hope it's as good as the film. I shall blog again tomorrow.

x

Wednesday 4 November 2009

New Listing and Darren Hayes

Good evening. I listed the black version of my Mystica pendant today. What do you think?


As you can see I've been experimenting with my pictures. I like how it looks on the flower. I shall try to get some different colours soon so I can try it with my other balls of thread.

I've always had a passion for gothic jewellery. It's so great to be able to make it myself. Over the next few days I shall be doing some more gothic items. I wasn't able to finish my bracelet today so I shall get on with that tomorrow. I have started to do a new design which I shall be posting on Flickr this evening. I might get on with that tomorrow too, I'll see how I go.

As I've mentioned before, I'm very passionate about my music. I have wide tastes, ranging from gothic to acoustic, from rock to medieval. One of my favourite artists is Darren Hayes. I have been following him since he was in Savage Garden. I've seen him live six times and he just keeps getting better and better. At the moment he is creating his next album. Today he uploaded a video blog about this process. It's so exciting to be able to hear some of his new songs (even if it was a few seconds). Here's part one:





And here is part two. He really is an incredibly talented artist who deserves to be heard.



I'll get on with that tatting tomorrow. Blog more tomorrow.

x

Tuesday 3 November 2009

Bits and bobs

Good evening. Well I've had a semi-productive day today. I started off the morning by trying out my new design I told you about yesterday. It didn't work. It ended up being way too flimsy for my liking so I have abandoned it for the moment. I might come back to it later if I find a new way of working round the problem.

I have tatted up a gothic version of my Mystica pendant. I shall take pictures tomorrow and then list it on Etsy. After that I shall probably get on with making a bracelet. I had an idea for a choker this afternoon but it shall have to be put aside for the moment as I need to order some ribbon for the design.

That's all for the moment. Blog more tomorrow.

x

Monday 2 November 2009

Busy, busy

Good evening. I am very happy to say I have been included in a blog post by Wychbury. Thank you Lesley and Paula! I included their Medieval Floral Heart Necklace in my newest treasury. Check out their shop. I really love all of their items. I've included a link to their blog on the left hand side.


I've been very busy today. This morning I sent off my first order and then got straight down to some tatting. I have an idea formulating at the moment but it's only on paper. I think I shall try it tomorrow and see what happens. Sometimes these ideas work first time round, other times they need adjusting.

I was able to tat up part of a bracelet that matches my black Christina pendant but then I made a mistake. Oh well that's life! Tomorrow I shall try again and, hopefully, this time round it will work porperly. I'm now off to watch Flashforward. I shall blog more tomorrow.

x