Confessions of a bead fondler & colour junkie!

Circles

I had my wrist grabbed today! And, as is usual when this happens, it was because I was sporting some rather delectable beads. Clare Scott's dazzling 'Continuum' art glass beads arrived in the mail last week ( along with some other dazzlers) and I was so entranced by the way these beauties toy with the light that I set my heart on making a chain bracelet. As I'm a bead-fondler & a colour-junkie, I have a habit of holding art glass up to the light in order to suck up the colours - with the movement afforded by chain bracelets, they're an ideal vehicle for captivating, light-manipulating beads.

There's a tender aqua & an exhilerating purple at work in these beads (which sadly I couldn't adequately capture in my photographs, but Clare has, so scoot off to her website or Etsy & take a closer look). These colours tickled my memory bank so into the bead trays I dived and I surfaced with a collection of ceramic beads by Emma Ralph. I then scattered handfuls of silver and rainbow amethyst tubes into my lap and started work on the bracelet which you now see before you.

The lady who grabbed my wrist made my day! Having your jewellery examined in such a complimentary fashion is a boost and a half! On so many levels, creating jewellery is a therapeutic occupation & I thoroughly recommend it!

The Break-up!

Saucy Pendant

One enjoyable facet about creating your own jewellery is that you can freshen up your jewellery box whenever you wish. Haven't worn that bracelet in an eon even though the beads are a dream? Then take it apart, Dear Reader and revive & revamp.

This is how Saucy came about. I was looking at some delicious borosilicate beads which were languishing in a pair of tired earrings that were buried in the bottom of my jewellery box and the cruelty of my neglect finally shamed me into setting them free. And wouldn't you know it - as soon as I had liberated them from their old setting, a fresh idea occurred to me & I ran to my bead trays and got out these gorgeous saucers by Emma Ralph. I now have a pendant whose colour I revel in so much that, when I'm not wearing it, it's on permanent display in my study. It's a zinger!

Roll up, roll up, roll up. Head on over to Jean Yates' blog & read about her first selection of favourite jewellery designers. 'The Jean's List' is to become a regular feature on her blog and I'm looking forward to reading it immensely! What Jean doesn't know about jewellery design could be written on the back of a gnat so join her followers and make sure you don't miss any of her posts. I'm extremely honoured & bowled over to feature in her first selection which also includes Naomi Fujimoto, Cynthia Thorton & Margot Potter - how's that for glamourous company!!

So, keep reading her blog because next time, it might be you!!

Where to search for beads

Netscape With Mermaids

I love the luscious art beads that I use in my work with a passion. Because I'm not able to get out to any shows in person, I search out artists online and thus I rely heavily on the wonderful SRA scheme. If you want to avoid buying fakes or getting involved in scams, check out the SRA index and hunt for the logo. And then you'll be able to find ravishing beads like these by Emma Ralph!

Catching up!

It was the perfect weather for taking photographs today; the light was clear & bright and I could sit in the study without melting mid-afternoon.

I've been wearing this bracelet with these scintilatingly beautiful beads by Emma Ralph for quite some time, but I'm now delighted to be able to partner it with this mix & match group of four earrings featuring Laura Sparling's famous Luminobeads. The earrings go by the name of 'Don't Tell Chris' - this posting from Laura's blog should explain why. I do hope Chris will forgive me ;-)

Just look what I've done with Helen Breil's stupendous focal beads! You're probably wondering why I've spilt the original setting (as seen on Helen's home page) apart. I promise that there is method in my madness. I purchased another stunning focal from Helen and, as I want to make maximum impact in a demi-parure of earrings and a collar, I decided to create these earrings in a sculptural form. I love wearing them; the line is so flattering to the neck. I call them 'The Peacocks' as they bob & weave in a similar way to the waltz of those stately fellows as they parade before shaking their tail feathers out. Once I've figured out how best to do justice to Helen's other dramatic, scene-stealing focal, I'll add a photo of the collar.

I have Emma Ralph to thank for the Harebell Ice beads in this set of earrings. At just over 6cms from the tip to toe, these are lovely & long. I'm heavily into dangly ear gear this year!!

Trying a little longer...

I set myself the task of making up some earrings which are a little longer than my normal range so my Flickr Gallery now hosts photos of eight sets of earrings which measure from between 55 mm to 70mm.

Featured here are ( from the top) a set of gorgeous 'Glowing Stacklets' featuring beads by Emma Ralph, some 'Rosy Tubular Belles' which are a stunning showcase for the work of Laura Sparling & below, a pair of 'Paradise Stacklets'. These beads were created by Beverley Hicklin & their beauty is utterly hypnotic.

I am SO LUCKY to be able to play with beads such as these!!

Getting Ready for Valentine's Day - Part II

This stunning focal by Emma Ralph provides the 'Inner Glow' in this stupendous heart pendant. The word that springs automatically to mind is:

WOW!

Introducing 'The Big Easy: Savannah'

May I introduce you to 'The Big Easy' bracelet. Why have I chosen this name? Because these are big babes with a big agenda - these are not your regular chain bracelet. No matter what you are wearing, put one of these on & you are DRESSED - you've got seemingly effortless Parisian shrug-off chic nailed! No one will miss the fact that you are a stylish force of nature - that you are creative & artistic right down to your bones. You are someone to pay attention to - 'The Big Easy' is your calling card. It's as simple as that!

I'm making a lot of claims about 'The Big Easy' but I can do so because of the sheer mass of compliments that these ladies have attracted. As soon as my rib allows me to pick up my jewellery kit again, I've already got two commissions to fulfil. My clients had a wonderful time looking through my bead trays!

Not only do I play with beautiful art beads, semi precious stones & my signature totem adornments, but I pay attention to space too. As any artist will tell you, negative space is an integral element in the composition of a work of art - in assembling The Big Easy' bracelets, my aim is to embrace this concept too.

'Savannah' features some of Beverley Hicklin's exotic, graphic beads from her 'Out of Africa' series. Two sets of beads by Emma Ralph are also on display - her flamboyant Flamenco Tabs and the hauntingly, beautiful Lunaris nuggets. These soft, luminous & ethereal beads shift colour & pattern in a glorious yet delicate interplay with light.

I hope you like 'The Big Easy' bracelets. Assembling them is a wonderful adventure for me :-)

June ABS: 'Sweetie'

Art Bead Scene's challenge for June is 'Let them eat cake'. I love their challenges because their briefs are so cool & sassy. Entrants are invited to mull over the following:

'The theme for June is "Let Them Eat Cake." What does that mean? Anything related to sweets, treats, candy, Marie Antoinette, or France. Let your creativity feast on the possibilities.'

That description opens up an incredibly large vista for one's imagination to work on. I've entered two pieces already, but their challenge is so enticing that I want to think about a third. Is that greedy? Is that too much?

'Sweetie' is about candy colours & I entered 'Fondant Fancy' because Emma Ralph's beads are so utterly, totally perfect for the role.

Though I signed up for Illustration Fridays back in April, I haven't submitted anything yet. This week's word is 'Rejection'. I don't feel very drawn to this - oh, the pain of a pun!

I haven't played Stuff Portrait Fridays either, but my friend Jean does & it always looks such fun. I'm going to nose around Random & Odd and see what's what & where it's at!

I don't know what I've been doing?

Barola Polymer Earrings

All my plans for making jewellery & photographing the results have turned to dust during the last couple of weeks. It's been one of those experiences that we all have from time to time - rushed off our feet, but with nothing much to show for it. That's life!

I have added the Aegean Heart pendant & the Barola earrings to my website - a whole two things!! They are lovely though. Shortly I also hope to add a fresh photograph of the choker too - I need to do justice to Laura's stunning beads! 'Fondant Fancy' also needs a little more time under the lens, but then it will snuggle into the 'Hands Up' compartment on my website.

I have a lame brain today - it's run out of words. Does that ever happen to you?

Do you want to play the stream of consciousness game?

Romany Bracelet

This is a new idea - quite possibly a silly idea ( I rely on you to tell me), but I've started to compile a blog called pursuing the art of curiousity which is devoted to the images that inspire me.

If I'm stuck for an idea or I want visual stimulation, I have a big & beautiful Battle Book* at hand. If you want a book to keep a door open on hot, sultry days, then this stunner is the babe for you. I discovered 'The art of looking sideways' late last year. It was put together by the designer Alan Fletcher and though it is a mighty heavy tomb, I try to take it & my ubiquitous sketch book everywhere with me. When it's not travelling, it's yet another of the books that sit by my bed. It's perfect to flick through when your eyelids are drooping, but you're not quite on the edge of wanting to turn the light out. It can also cure brain whirr or brain race - I don't know if it's bipolar or just me, but sometimes my brain goes into a spin cycle. A few ideas or thoughts are reasonable & valid - the majority is garbage . T'was ever thus :-)

So why am I doing this? Let me quote from the 'pursuing the art of curiosity' blog :

No designer or artist can work in a vacuum. We need to explore - to enquire - to seek out those ideas & images which stimulate our imagination. The seeds of creativity require constant nourishment if they are to flourish.

I call this my ‘art blog’. It’s my intention to turn it into a collection of images or ideas that inspire me as I continue to pursue the art of curiosity. I will inevitably include some pictures of the jewellery that I’ve assembled because these pieces contain the art beads that inspire me. Each of the beads that I have the privilege of working with is unique, individual & original - a extraordinary font of creative stimulation. These are the qualities that I am searching for - not to copy, but to learn from & use as a springboard. Life is one long line of lessons.

When looking at an image, to get ‘into it’ I often play what I call the ’stream of consciousness game’. Reviewing these words is often interesting & sometimes surprising. Stay curious - keep playing the game :-) '

Today I've posted a picture of my mother's fork bracelet, but please forgive me for not playing the 'stream of consciousness game' today. Romy's Fork has been my motivator for many years, but I'd cry if I played today. However my entry for yesterday is there - go & have a laugh at me :-)

I am coming to the end now, but not before I ask one final question. I have lost control of my commas. Does anyone know what the New Yorker's policy on commas is today? It's the only publication whose rigorous editing I trust ;-)


* I have different sets of Battle Books to cover various subjects & situations that arise - do you have any Battle Books? What are they?

I belong!

Blue Prom Queen Earrings

This will be a rather teeny tiny entry because I've been adding comments to my previous instalment, namely 'the importance of a blank piece of paper'

I have some happy information which I would like to share. First of all, I'm delighted to report that there are now over 700 members of the SRAJD scheme! Click on the link and there before you will be a list of artisan jewellery designers that you can trust. I'm proud to be member number 316.

I'm also cock-a-hoop about the fact that I'm now sitting in the Blogs By Women directory. I have been officially approved so rest assured that I'm not harbouring any insidious spam garbage or whatever it is that's nauseous in Web Land. I need to get away from the computer today & make some jewellery (I haven't made anything in the last 36 hours & I'm getting withdrawal symptoms) so I'll have to add a photo to my entry another day, but nevertheless you can find me here: click!

Photograph & jewellery design by Jennifer Dangerfield © 2007

the importance of a blank piece of paper

I should be celebrating. I should be out on the town with a bottle of champagne in one hand & Daniel Craig in the other. The weather is perfect for fountain paddling at dawn! But alas, I am not the girl I used to be. My hot-to-trot party dresses & stilettos were bought at a closing down sale just before the Ark set sail and where as once upon a time I used to set the pace, all I want to do nowadays is to find somewhere comfortable to sit that is not in a draught. That last phrase is the killer. Caring about draughts is a rite of passage that everyone thinks they will avoid. Unfortunately it has the ability to creep up on one in an insidious fashion. If your knees start cracking when you rise from the ground, be vigilant! If you find yourself mentioning the damp weather & its effect on your bones, you are well on your way to developing a draught avoidance strategy. If this had already begun to happen, STOP RIGHT NOW & reassess your situation. If I may make a suggestion, throwing a cardigan away has an invigorating effect. It demonstrates your insouciance in the face of a draught. Insouciance can be very chic & flirtatious, so cultivate it. Buy that anti-ageing serum from you know where, inject a little insouciance into your life & voila - no one will ever guess your real age unless you leave your birth certificate lying around.

Now where was I? Why should I be celebrating?

I have finally finished work on the bones of my website. I’ve installed all the cupboards & shelves that I need for the moment. With the support of my mother in law and Old Man Dickson I have spent eight weeks working on this project from the moment I woke until the early hours of the morning. I had no idea it would take so long, but conversely I don’t exactly know what I’ve been doing all this time because there’s not a great deal to show for it.

So the end of this endeavour is the reason why I should be thinking of taking a dip & doing an Anita Ekberg - if only I had the right equipment!

Unfortunately I don’t feel like celebrating because I’ve fallen out of love with my website. I don’t like it any more - I’ve grown too ‘accustomed to her face’. I allowed myself to become obsessed with it & now it's pay back time. At my age I really should have learnt my lesson by now!

I miss assembling jewellery. I miss drawing. I miss reading books. Allowing myself to get obsessed is rankly dumb behaviour, but I have coaxed a little pearl of wisdom out of it. I now know why the concept of building your own website was invented! It exists to remind us of the value of a blank piece of paper!

You can make marks on a piece of paper & you can erase them without losing half a page of data with it. If you put a pebble on top of a piece of paper, you won’t lose it. Nothing freaks or is dumped - what you see is what you get. I LOVE PAPER!! It’s so simple & versatile and you don’t need a five year old on hand to show you how to do the most basic piffling task! You can carry it around with ease, wet it, dry it, drop it and tear it apart in rage.

I’m not advocating Luddism - far from it. I’m just saying that computers are the spawn of the devil if you allow yourself to be chained to them.

To move on...

So far I’ve only given you 5 things out of ‘100 things you don’t really want to know about me.’ I’m going to add a few more things to my list now & because I’m enjoying the renaissance of paper in my life, I’m going to tell you 10 paper related things. I bet you can’t wait ;-)

6. I love Ethel M. Dell (my laptop) but I still prefer to write on thick creamy paper.
7. I draw & paint & make collages with paper. Sometimes I make paper collages with paper I have made.
8. I have amassed a lot of cuttings. Two of my most cherished cuttings are the obituaries for John Peel and Spike Milligan.
9. I am a stream-of-consciousness list maker - read my lists & know my life. I can’t do anything unless it’s on a list.
10. I can make paper hats out of the broadsheets. I can do a ‘Wellington’ or a ‘Napoleon’. (I bet you know how to make these hats too.)
11. To date, I have never made a successful paper aeroplane.
12. I am currently reading a paperback called ‘The Deadly Space Between’ by Patricia Duncker.
13. I doodle on any available paper surface
14, I still practise my signature just in case I’m asked for an autograph when I’m a world famous writer/painter/Orla Kiely handbag expert.
15. If a card or something interesting arrives in the post, I use it as a bookmark for whatever book I’m reading. When I’ve finished reading, I leave the card inside the book - it’s a memory marker.

Have you had enough? I thought so. Well done for getting this far :-)

Photograph & design of Exotica necklace © Jennifer Dangerfield 2007

the bad news & the good news

Prom Queen I

I'm going to go all literary & pretentious on you - you have been warned :-) So that's the bad news done & dusted!

The good news is that I'm not going to ask you to read my own poetry - that would be too, too cruel. Something else that will bring you much relief is that I'm not going to unveil any of my own weedy works of 'art'. I'm not a sadist. In fact I'm really rather kind. Whilst all others are swatting & missing wasps, I'm the one that gently encourages said jasper to leave via an open window or door.

(Note to self - I must remember to tell everyone about my maternal grandfather who completely lost all composure & decorum whenever a wasp was in the vicintity. Neither must I forget to relate details of the day when a wasp had the temerity to approach when afternoon tea was served and Grandfather, armed with a rolled up copy of the Telegraph, swatted & flailed like a thing possessed. Unfortunately he only succeeded in shattering Grandmother's tea service, scattering shards of porcelain, Proustian madeleines & almond wafers in his wake. Another of Grandfather's party tricks was the skim-whack. The Telegraph would past so close & at such speed that the hair on your head or arms slightly bristled. This was usually followed by a sharp sting from the wasp that Grandfather had irked. I cannot recall any occasion on which Grandfather was himself stung, but the rest of us certainly suffered on his account. )

(Further note to self. You are a fool - you've just told them all about Grandfather & his battle against the mighty wasp!)

(Final note to self - I quite like talking to myself when I should be blogging. I hope this is a sign that I'm on the road to fulfilling my ambition of becoming a member of that happy breed, the great British eccentric. As I've always said, I want to be Margaret Rutherford when I grow up.)

To go back to wheresoever it was that I started, it's my intention to add a poem & picture each month to this docu-log. There may even be the odd quotation - I love a good quote & in my opinion, Dorothy Parker is the Queen of Quotations! In Cyber Land one can, to an extent, be whomsoever one wants to be, so I've decided to be the curator of a vast gallery & library. From this massive resource, I want to select a few of the things that I love & wish to share. It's just a little thing that I want to do. It might seem self-indulgent & pompous, but art & literature are my two of my favourite methods for dealing with:

"A poor life this, if full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare."

Whatever you are doing, I hope you can find some element of fun in the doing of that thing.

lulaism number I

Scottie Pendant


My anger about the bullies made me forget to add a Lulaism, Lula being my six year old tomboy. We were 'lucky' to have one of each - a boy, a girl & a Lula. Here is a small snatch of a conversation.( BTW, Lula has inherited my childhood lisp.)

Lula: 'Have any parthels arrived today?'

Mother: 'No. Why do you ask?'

Lula: Becoth I ordered loths of Spiderman fings on the computer.'

Mother: 'How did you pay for all this?'

We all waited with bated breath at this point - no flies land on Lula & she's smart enough to lift Daddy's credit card.

Lula: 'I never paid for anyfing. Isn't it free?'

Here's another favourite Lulaism. On December 31st 2005, we were jokingly making a list of our New Year's Resolutions. Lula's? She announced that she was giving up cigars! We don't know anyone who has this habit, so where The Mighty Atom got this idea from remains a mystery.

Photography & jewellery design by Jennifer Dangerfield ©

So which one of us had the bird brain?

Diving Belle Barbed Bracelet

I had a strange encounter with a bird today and cross my heart, I swear it is true. It was a beautiful hot day & since my room is the coolest ( it's cool in all senses of the word, but I would say that, wouldn't I?) in the house, I decided to work on the bed. (Actually my bed is one of my favourite places to work as I can spread all my kit & caboodle out, plus I'm extremely fortunate to have the luxury of a panoramic view across the valley & the golf course. I wonder whether other jewellery designers have a favourite place in which to work?) Lifting my head ready for a daydream at the view, I found myself staring into the eyes of a partridge. I haven't been sleeping too well recently so my first thought was that my mind was performing some kind of pirouette. The second thought wandered down the avenue of, 'Why is a partridge sitting on my window sill?'

A pair of pheasants & a pair of partridges have sensibly escaped from the land belonging to the local shoot & have taken up residence within the shrubs & brambles that separate the houses from the golf course. They're very fond of our garden - there's bird food around & the canine guardian's only concern is how many flies she can bark at - she ignores anything larger. So I'm used to seeing these birds amble around the garden although last week, I was a little surprised to find one of the partridges sitting on the terrace just outside of the sitting room. At this point I should mention that our house is built on the side of a mountain. OK, it's not a mountain but it is a very steep chalk ridge so we have 'terraced down' from the top of the drive to the bottom of the garden - our plot is a testament to the strength of reinforced retaining walls. Everybody else in Treble Close needs crampons to traverse their own properties.

I digress. The bird & I stared at one another. I felt slightly uncomfortable because it reminded me of a social encounter with someone who you think you know, who seems to know you, but whose name or any other useful information have deserted you. I slowly looked away, but I carried on looking at the bird out of the corner of my eye. There is no doubt in my mind that the partridge was convinced that I was the alien.

After logging this experience in my mind as memorable, I got fed up with being stared at by the bird (I now know what it's like to be a budgie) and carried on with my original objective of casting a dreamy eye over the golf course. And lo, I spotted the reason for my 'Close Encounters of the Bird Kind'. Juno, our well padded border terrier, had commandeered the bird bath & was lying in it. The partridge wasn't interested in me or my family sized bed. The temptation was clear - she wanted use of my wet room!

The facts are true but the conjecture is the result of an over-active imagination!

© Jennifer Dangerfield 2007

I love colour!

'Rainbow Sculpt' Earrings

I can't help it - it's an addiction. I LOVE colour & I LOVE perfume. Yet I read Albert Camus with Iris Murdoch & A S Byatt for light reading. My DNA is skewed!

Don't you agree that Emma Ralph's Ice beads are seriously stunning?

© Jennifer Dangerfield 2007