Shells come home.

I still don't have access to a working metal studio but I have been reconnecting with work created in what seems a life time ago!

These shell necklaces were created when I was living in New York - far away from the east coast of Australia where their inspiration came from. They were part of a satellite exhibition during a Metalsmith conference in Denver Colorado - a land-locked state.  So you can imagine they were quite happy to be reunited with the beach - back to their origins!

Bead Explosion

So my bead stash exploded a few days ago!

Out of the confusion and chaos a few beauties came into existence

Also made a some sparkleys for the beach-babes and then headed off down to the weekly Baazar market at the Community Centre.

I haven't really had a lot of market experience in the past but Byron has such a strong market culture it wasn't so scary. Turned out to be a great way to spend the day, meet people and chatter away. Oh, and a little grocery money never goes astray!

Benches have moved to the Beach!

One day you're living in the city and the next you're living at the beach - it's a crazy old world, that's for sure!

Byron Bay is my new home and I'm starting to wonder at the B's in my life. Might have to expand on this project

Brooklyn to Brisbane

Yet another bench!

I'm starting to think I should rename this blog "The Bench Blog" and that I should seek help for compulsive bench collectors, as it appears I've overlooked yet another bench in my life!

This bench is tucked away in the Museum of Brisbane's Workspace for jewellers. In the past I had a residency there but, due to time restraints caused by bench number two and paid work, I only get to visit this bench two Thursday's out of the month.

As the museum is soon closing for renovations my time at this bench is quite precious and not taken for granted. I'm stocking up on the nuts and bolts that make up my bits and bobs. They don't look like much but they make connections possible and interesting (sounds like a dating service ad!).

Inspiration for the third bench

I have overlooked mentioning the third bench in my life - the kitchen bench! Loads of time is spent at this bench and although I only have a few original creations I get a lot of pleasure being inspired by other people's recipes.

My friend, Toni is a perfect example. In addition to being a food stylist extraordinaire, she is a truly inspirational blogger. This recent posting of hers provided me with some roasting-tomato entertainment today.

 I used these beauties in one of my favourite salads that comes from another friend and so is named...

Mia's Lennox Salad

220 gr baby bocconcini

8 roma tomatoes (in this case, grape tomatoes roasted a la Toni)

baby spinach leaves

2 Tbsp pine nuts

Dressing

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tsp dijon mustard

small garlic clove, crushed

salt and pepper

roast the tomatoes as on Toni's blog

grill the pine nuts

mix it all up and toss with dressing

Thanks very much, Toni and Mia!!

love is.....orange

In honour of my friend Mia's impending nuptuals to Cam, I dusted off bench number one and set about bringing this into the world.....

Then there were some earrings to match -

And voila! A wedding was had!!

Couldn't keep my mitts of the precious tho...
     besides, I had to show the post-wedding casual look!

Happy ever-after

Mia and Cam!!

Two Benches

This past year has seen the addition of a second bench into my life. My original bench is still here but has to share time with the new bench now and the new bench can be a bit greedy at times.

The purpose of bench number two is to create great works towards a degree (yet another!) in Social Welfare and Community Development. I'm studying by distance education so it's effectively my classroom.


Bench number one is still dear to my heart and although I don't spend as much time there I still get a lot of enjoyment when I do. Following postings will show what's been happening on bench number one.....

Christmas Revisited

Wow! A year has flown by and Christmas is almost here again. Unfortunately I haven't been able to greet the season with a stunning range of new jewellery due to many unrelated-to-jewellery reasons. We'll see what happens in the new year but for the moment I'm casting my mind back to last year and the Makes You Want to Rollarskate range.....

Featuring lightning bolts, tiny stars and hammered textures in a world of sterling silver and iridescent blue titanium.

It's all about going fast, dreaming big and having fun!

To view the whole collection go here.

Distracted

Lately I've been using my hand-work time to knit - rather than the jewellerizing that I should be chipping away at. I think it's a form of denial about the imminent hot weather that's around the corner - if I'm knitting then it must be cold, right?!?!?

Probably what I should be doing is developing these knitted metal pieces that were created earlier this year in a workshop with Erika Leitner.......


But I guess this is the journey I'm on for the moment!

Re-Worn

Seeing as I FINALLY finished my Bachelor of Fine Art last year, I thought it would be celebratory to offer up a piece to the QCA Alumni Network Art Prize. So here it is!


Due to movement being a frequent factor in my life, constant culling of my belongings is a must. As a result I attach great value to the ‘keepers’.

“Re-Worn” is the reconstruction of my beloved winter coat. It is an acknowledgment of the value I place on the memories embedded in the fabric, the tacit sense of familiar comfort and the recognition of a finely crafted garment.

Reworking the coat in this way is an opportunity to feature the inherent worn history of the garment while showcasing it in the present.

It is a positive exercise in holding on.

Time Out

Spent a little time out in Melbourne recently. The occasion was a birthday party but of course I got to squeeze in some gallery visits.

It's great to remember that there are places where members of the general population value contemporary jewellery to such a level that a number of jewellery-specific galleries are able to thrive.

Wandering around the streets and alley ways of the city, I oohed and ahhed at both e.g.etal galleries, then moved onto Gallery Funaki where I was dazzled by the work of students from the Akademie der Bildenden Künste. There was more but they'll have to wait till next time because it got cold so we snuggled in at the Horse Bazaar to soak up the atmosphere, oh, and have a drink too!

Deadlines are helpful

My friend gave me this heart-shaped rock and asked me to make something with it at some point. Well that was over two years ago but finally, I have finished!

Presenting the Nedspoon.....

- a belated present for her first born child.
I'm happy with the way it turned out and doubly pleased that Ned isn't in high school yet!

This brings me to the title - deadlines really do help me out. I have so many left-overs, do-overs and to-do's that serious action is required. So lists have been made and deadlines have been created - now it's time to get on with it!

Welcome to my bench

Ok! Here we go - blogging and making jewellery.

Lately I've found that the momentum of part time jewellery making has been hard to sustain so my plan is that blogging will be motivation to get on with it. (no, it's not a distraction or an avoidance tool!)

It will also give me the opportunity to play with my camera more as well as show everybody what I'm getting up to.

I'm still figuring out how to link to Flickr (as well as get that page sorted out!) and I have some further page decoration to set up but this is a start so here's my bench today.......