Our creative space: armcandii

To be honest we have tidied it up a bit! Mostly we work at the lovely wooden desk in front of the dining room window, which is bathed in sun on a good day and has a view of the garden. As Su [Quercus Silver] commented: a workspace is very personal. Ours may be small but as any creative knows, once inspiration takes hold, any space will do!


This is where we make our jewellery and finish off felted candii. Having everything you need around you makes it easier to put a piece together. We have a veritable stash of vintage and retro jewellery, beads, buttons, wire, findings and merino wool [for felting] in boxes and tins that share the space but your eyes are not ready for such an assault!! Our work is usually inspired by the piece of vintage jewellery we are recycling; sometimes we sketch the design possibilities but often we just put the piece down and play around with beads and other pieces to see what works together.

The dining room doubles as our 'studio' and 'office' so when one of us is at the desk working, the other is either at the dining room table wet felting or on the computer keeping up with the digital side.

[snowbird: from sketch to completed neckcandii]

[vintage bird brooch with hand wired tail feathers of recycled glass beads and  freshwater pearls on vintage diamante chain necklace and string of recycled glass beads]

You can find felted candii - candiicorsages and candiicollars - in our Etsy shop and armcandii jewellery will be added soon...

My creative space: Quercus Silver

Creative spaces are not only very personal to their artist but they can vary from a dedicated studio, to a dining room table, to a tray on a crafter's lap in the evenings. If we are driven to create, we do what we can to make our space work and accommodate us! Whatever their set-up, everyone works differently; so we thought it would be fun to show you where the magic happens. First up is Su of Quercus Silver, based in Bath. Su has a dedicated workshop. Not only does it give her a peaceful escape from the rest of the household but she can pick straight up where she left off the previous day because it is her own private space. Take a look:

 

 

Su says:

"So here is a picture of my bench... I'm in the middle of making some new resin pieces which you can see on my main bench, and I'm making rings for the Ring a Day [a 365 day challenge!] at my soldering station. This is such a personal place to me that it's hard to be objective about it. Everything  looks organised to me but probably only to me..."

 

You can follow and keep up with the latest Quercus Silver news on Su's blog; and do have a peep in her shop - she has a new AbstraKt range of resin earrings in lush colours for Spring/Summer :D

Member mosaic: Miss Mary Elliott

Introducing Miss Mary Elliott jewellery, handmade in Dorset. This lovely, feminine collection comprises jewellery fashioned from semi-precious gemstones, brass charms, vintage beads, swarovski crystals and quality findings. The 'Mary' behind the Miss Mary Elliott collection has a background in fashion design and says she is "inspired with all that's around me, past and present". Shop this range for whimsical designs that make affordable, unique gifts, as well as feel-good indulgences that won't break the bank...

Clockwise from top left:

• briar rose vintage cameo ring
• pretty bird pendant necklace
• love pink rose earrings
• ivory rose cameo brooch

♥Maisy