Peridot - the birthstone for August

Wear a Peridot or for thee, 

No conjugal fidelity, 

The August born without this stone, 

`Tis said, must live unloved; alone.

The birthstone for August - Peridot is one of the few gemstones that occur in only one colour; green. Although the intensity and tint of the green hue is dependent on how much iron it contains and individual peridot gems can vary from a sparkling pale yellowy green to deep olive. 

Whilst the most valuable peridots are usually the less common deep olive shades, I prefer that zingy fresh pale green and tend to go with that for my designs. And yes, it does help that it keeps the cost reasonable!

It looks perfect with sparkly sterling silver!

Peridot is the gem form of the mineral olivine, and it is formed by extreme heat and pressure in volcanoes and is then forced to the surface in the lava. It is also, (less frequently) found in meteors that land on the earth’s surface. It's amazing to wonder what that little shiny stone on your earrings has been through and how long it took to form. 

Peridot is also a great stone for weddings in August, and is the gemstone for 16th wedding anniversarys.

These gorgeous handmade calla lilies hold a teeny faceted peridot stone within.

I must get some more peridot designs up in the shop, as it really is a gorgeous gem! 

May Birthstone

Who first beholds the light of day
In spring's sweet, flower month of May
And wears an Emerald all her life
Shall be a loved and a loving wife.

Emerald is the birthstone for May. It's a true gemstone, as opposed to a semi-precious stone. Emerald tends to have numerous inclusions and is graded by eye, rather than a loupe. These inclusions mean that it is not a particularly strong stone. It's such a special stone it even has a cut named after it. Which shows off the stone's colour to it's best, whilst maintaining a strong shape.

In 1953 Jacqueline Bouvier was presented a 2.88 carat diamond and emerald engagement ring by Senator John F. Kennedy. Apparently, John Kennedy's father, Joe Sr. picked out Jackie's emerald engagement ring. Not the most romantic, but still who wouldn't be thrilled with this beauty....

I've always loved that deep emerald green colour. I always look for clothes in this colour, but rarely find any. I once saw Mary Hansen, from Stereolab on stage in a gorgeous emerald green sequinned dress many, many (many) moons ago. I wanted that dress then, and I still want it 20 years later. One day I'll make it happen. I'll probably be in a nursing home by the time I get round to it, but I will make it happen dagnammit.

I'm working on a couple of emerald birthstone pieces for the shop - some gold wire wraps, a first foray into the world of gold!! Plus I have some lovely teeny cabs which I'm setting onto silver to make some pretty little earrings. I'll let you know when I have pictures!

Birthday goodness

I never did get around to showing you my lovely birthday gifts.... so here are some of them...

(I love daffs!)

(and orchids....ahhh how beautiful are they?)

How gorgeous are these dinky teeny vases....so beautiful, and crying out for some blossom, or teeny buds - but not until they are in my new room dagnammit.

On a vase theme, a do love a nice vase +  I do love Rob Ryan's stuff = perfect pressie for me!

Have you seen "My Neighbour Totoro", produced by Studio Ghibli? It's a japanese animation, and one of my all time fave films. The girls love it too. So this totoro key chain, which now hangs on my bag is an extra special pressie for me. It reminds me of cosy Sunday afternoons, watching a dvd with the girls while the rain pelts the house. And how can you not smile back at totoro?

Hubbie and I have been in discussion about getting a dog. I had a black lab when I was growing up, and I'd love another.  R said he could probably be convinced about a dog "if we can find one that doesn't moult, or smell". Hmmmmm..... in the meantime he bought me this cute little black lab... made of soap and which smells of rosewood and bergamot!

And I also bought myself a little pressie....

Kheeeeeeeeeeeeeee new tools.

Happy Birthday to me!

It was my birthday on Friday, so to treat myself I spent the day at the Desire fair in Richmond.

Wow,  there was some truly amazing work there. It was great to see such a fantastic range of work in one room.

Things seemed to click into place for me about my jewellery style and where I'm going (and where I'm defintely not going!). People often ask me what type of jewellery I make, and now I think I could answer them a little better.

Ring by Sabine Konig

There were some stunning stalls, where I simply stood and stared at the goodies (possibly with my mouth slightly open, and  drooling a bit) and some where I had a chat with the artisan and got a real insight into the stories behind the pieces. So interesting.

The best thing for me from the day though, was that even looking at the most stunning works there, I felt inspired, and thought, "yep, one day if I work hard, I could do something as good as that". It probably sounds a bit silly, but in most other fields I seem to be the type of person who would think " oh dear, I'll never be that good, aren't they lucky to be able to do that"

A beautiful ring by Barbara Bertagnolli......

I wonder if it's just that I've found my path with jewellery.... or whether I'm just getting a bit more confident in my old age.

Speaking of which, I had a great weekend as well. We went up to London and had a Duck Tour - it's a tour on those amphibious vehicles - a drive around showing the girls all the sights, and then a splash down in the Thames. The kids loved it! After that we took the girls to see Stomp. Brilliant - sweeping up will never be the same again.

I got some fantastic pressies off my lovely family... I'll show you later in the week but I also made a little present for myself.

I've been looking into birthstones recently and thought it would be nice to have something in my own birthstone. As my birthday is March - that means Aquamarine. I have a little secret....don't tell anyone.... I don't really like it that much... (ssshhhhhh!). Don't get me wrong it's a really beautiful stone, but it just wouldn't look right on me with my pale skin and red hair.

The traditional stone for March is Bloodstone, which I admit would probably suit my colouring a little more, but I fancied something with a little more sparkle.

So what to do? I did what anyone should in my situation. Cheat.

I found a lovely moss aquamarine, wrapped it in sterling silver and voila! Happy birthday to me.
Let me know if you're a March birthday and would like to cheat too, I'll happily make you one!

Birthday finds....

Some lovely bits and bobs from around the interweb that i would LOVE for my birthday.....

Vintage test tube holder from Concept Furnishings on Etsy. Not planning on doing many experiments, but perfect for keeping my saw blades in order!

3 antique french apothecary bottles - yummy - from French Melody on Etsy. No idea what I'd use these for - they just look pretty.

And just think how organised my new room could be with this..

(from elemental)

or this Doctors Cabinet from The Holding Company..(sorry can't grab the image for some reason!).

or ....(swoons)...these from the Portobello Road market

So I love storage...who knew!

Amethyst - February Birthstone

The February-born shall find
Sincerity and peace of mind,
Freedom from passion and from care,
If they an amethyst will wear.

From light pinkish violet to a deep dark purple, the Greeks believed these beautiful stones could prevent intoxication hence the name; the word amethyst comes from the Greek word “amethystos” meaning “not drunk”! Medieval soldiers wore amethyst amulets as protection in battle because they believed amethysts could heal people and keep them cool-headed. 

Because of their beautiful colour and relative hardness, amethysts have been used in jewellery for many hundreds of years, in fact beads of amethyst have been found in Anglo-Saxon graves. But although it is quite a hard stone it's still only 1/15 the strength of a diamond. 

The most expensive amethysts are the darker purple, which look gorgeously regal,  but I have to say love the lighter violet and pinky colours too.

Did you know some types amethyst can be meters long. In 1900 in Mexico a stone was found which measured 33 feet, by 16 feet, by 10 feet and weighed over 8 tonnes.Not your jewellery grade amethyst you understand!!

January birthstone info

More information on the other birthstones

January Birthstone - Garnet

By her who in this month (January) is born
No gem save garnets should be worn;
They will ensure her constancy,
True friendship, and fidelity.

Garnets are apparently found in a variety of colours - including orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, black, pink and colorless. The rarest of these is the blue garnet, discovered in the late 1990s. But the colour we usually expect to see is red, from a light bright crimson, to deep claret colour.

If you're into the theory of healing gemstones - the garnet is thought to assist the regulation of the heart and circulation as well as provide strength and protection.

The most popular colour amongst women is red, and I definitely have to go with the majority in this case. I'm a huge fan of red, and of these stones too. January needs a little brightness, don't you think, and these sparkly red gems are just the thing. Shining bright through the chilly gloom.

Click on the pictures to go through to the folksy shop and see more of the pieces!

Time flys on....

No way! Has it really been THAT long since I blogged?? Where's the time gone?
Since then we've been on a little holiday to Italy...

...the girls had such fun. The little seaside town we stayed in, is just completely geared up for kids. As well as the beach there was a pine wood in the centre of the town with meandering paths, and an amazing number of kids rides, and play areas.

And then there was the ice cream.

Think I need to get back on track with my running. ahem..

It was also Eve's 4th birthday. I love that she loves to wear her pretty her party dress so much, but still wants to accessorize it with spiderman face paint! (even though all her friends chose butterflies and flowers). How cool is she? hee hee.

I've also been really busy making jewellery - mostly my fingerprint range. I will take some pics and let you see later in the week....

Take care

Becky

January Birthdays!

I always feel a little bit sorry for people with January birthdays, they often get forgotten after the fuss of Christmas has passed. The birthstone for January is the gorgeous garnet.....

My favourite colour, and a lovely lovely stone. It's just perfect to brighten up the grey days at this time of year.

These are my little garnetty offerings, but I decided to do a little Folksy Friday on perfect January birthday goodies.... hope you like them! As usual just click on the pics to go through to the shop.