HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope everyone has had a good festive season! I had a lovely Christmas at home with my family and a bit different this year as Sarah (my sister) and I made the Christmas dinner. The usual turkey, stuffing, roast potatoes affair but with slightly different recipes and flavourings than we usually have thanks to the good food website. Sarah was head chef and was wonderfully organised with a detailed time plan and lots of prep done the day before. And I made a lovely trifle!

Santa was very good to me and brought me a bike for my journeys to the studio as well as paniers to carry all my stuff about in. Yippeee!! It goes fast!

I spent Hogmany and New Years Day (Ali's birthday) in Pitlochry at the aforementioned Ali's house. It was so nice being in the countryside for the New Year, she lives out near Edradour so we could see the fireworks in the town at midnight but were far enough away to see the clear sky absolutely covered with stars! There was piping, drinking, food and jenga, everything a good Hogmany needs!


Here are photos of some of the Kilt Pins I've recently made.




And look at this picture my sister found! A house made of caravans! I would like to live in a place like this!

MADE08 - Brighton

Last weekend I was exhibiting at MADE08 in Brighton. My sister and I went down together on the train on the Wednesday for set up on Thursday. We had ten items of luggage to control including two shelves which was a bit crazy, especially with a hurried train change in Edinburgh because of a broken engine. We stayed in a Youth Hostel right by the pier which was lovely, coffee on the beach every morning.



The show was held in the Corn Exchange which was only a 10 minute walk from the hostel, handy! The set up went well, all to plan, and there was a private view on Thursday night. The show continued over the next three days.












I had a really good time, met loads of nice people and some new customers. It was an expensive trip but I think it was worth it, you really have to travel if you want to get your jewellery known and there's a lot more people down there than up here! Although I think I'm going to look at craft shows a little closer to home for next year, a little less risk!

Here are some photo's of some other people's designs that I liked -

Alexis Dove

Angela Kerkhoff



Barbara MacLeod



Dan Stafford



Helen Noakes



Joanne Tinker



John Moore



Laura Anne Marsden



Lesley Stickland



Lindsey Mann



Rachel Darbourne



Sarah Herriot



Tanja Ufer

New Workshop!

I'm well established in my new workshop now! It's great, the sink may be up some stairs but I've got used to the basins of water again pretty quickly!


As you can see it's just as messy, creative chaos!

I've been working on Christmas kilt pin commissions and jewellery for exhibitions and craft shows since I got back from the World of Walt. Also been doing a great job of ignoring my self assessment tax forms, boooo! Meeting the accountant tonight though so hopefully I'll get it all sorted out pretty quickly.

Here's a couple of close ups of my desk covered with lots of half finished jewellery, I'm really good at making half finished pieces!



I'd really like to do a wee write up of my time in Disney World but so far I've not found the time and I think keeping it short would be the biggest challenge. I've got such a huge amount of photos it's just silly. Makes you wonder, when you're old and showing photos to the grandkids it'll take years to get through them all at this rate!

Bye Bye Garage

Tonight was my last night working in my garage workshop :(

I've stayed up far too late (it's quarter to six!) finishing a kilt pin, rings for an exhibition, a ring for a friend and a bunch of stuff to be hallmarked before I go away to Florida. (Still hasn't sunk in I'm really going yet, seems mad) Got a bit more to do tomorrow and a visit to my old school with a last minute jewellery order, yay! Thankfully providing some much needed dolla for holiday fund!

Here is my studio earlier on tonight, as you can see by the mess I've had lots going on!


I will miss it, I will especially miss the proximity to my bed! It's been a great workshop. But I am really looking forward to sharing a space with friends, I've been on my own for 3 years now and it feels like time for a change. Also, they have tools I can borrow! Cal, if you're reading this, buy that laith!

Fun times ahead me thinks!

7 more days till Disney!

Been a while! Lots has happened since I last wrote!

- Won Champion of Champions with my pipe band at Cowal! Whoo!


- Got a massive blood blister on my finger, hit it with a hammer :(

- Finished a long overdue necklace for the girl across the road to match an existing bangle.



- Started building our new workshop with my friend Adrian, getting better with an electric screwdriver!



- Started selling jewellery in a lovely wee shop in Perth called Boo Vake, here is their website.

- Went shopping in Glasgow and bought a pair of hareem pants for when I'm in Florida! I think they look fab, many would disagree!

- Confirmed two more exhibitions for over Christmas in Ferrers Gallery in Leicestershire and the Designs Gallery in Castle Douglas.

- Finished a beautiful kilt pin styled on the Iona Cross, probably the most traditional I've made but also one of my favourites.



Lots to do this week in preparation for trip to Disney World, so excited but this is not the time of year for jewellers to go on holiday! I'm also aiming to get my tax return done before I leave, ahh! Can't wait until I'm on that plane! Mickey! Here I come!!

Gold Ring Kilt Pin and Pendant

I finished these fabulous pieces last week, they were commissioned as a wedding present for the Bride and Groom. The left side is a kilt pin and the right a pendant, and when they are joined together they complete the gold ring. The notches represent the date of the wedding.

We did it!!! We won the Worlds!! Whoooooo!!!!

The Drum Corps

Me and my Mum

So happy! It was a fantastic day! The forecast was for rain but it managed to stay dry which was also a bonus and I had an advert for my kilt pins in the program! My first advert! For the rest of the results look here >> Our novice band came 8th in their grade.



Also that day the Courier, our local newspaper, published a feature on me and my jewellery. Please click here to read it. I am really pleased with the article as I was quite nervous about what was going to be written but I think it's a brilliant piece and the photos look really good too.

The band were at Crieff Games yesterday, I was so tired after my week of early starts doing my driving lessons and the day before (winning the Worlds gives you a hell of a hangover!) I managed to fall asleep in the shower trying to get ready in the morning. But it turned out to be a fun day, I had a lovely cheeseburger, some snoozing on the bus and dodgy judging! We got 2nd in Grade 3 and 1t in Grade 2.

So I'm having a bit of relaxing day today and a bit of a tidy up/sort out. My little sister is moving out today so I'm going to be moving my 'office' out of my tiny bedroom into her old room, well half of it, it's split in two from when my other sister, Sarah, and I stayed in there. I'm also moving workshops soon to a place in Dundee that I'll be sharing with a few friends. Starting to get a little bit stressed as I have all this to do plus making jewellery for up and coming exhibitions and craft shows and the Christmas rush, and my kilt pin commissions which are proving quite popular before I go away on the 15th September for two weeks. Although I am feeling quite postive about everything just now. Ahhh! Can't wait though! Going to Disney World in Florida and I'm sooooooooo excited, it's annoying when you want time to go slow and fast at the same time!