A purple patch...

Sometimes you find yourself in trend without even realising it....
Whilst the weather was really bad and we were snowed in, I started to look through all my findings and spares. I have beads, stones and pretty bits and pieces, a lot of which are genuine vintage or antique that I have have collected over the years. I have always kept any broken or damaged jewellery, as I hate to throw anything away especially if it's old and twinkly and also because I don't like to repair anything old with something bright and new, it just looks totally wrong in my eyes and makes me feel I can't sell it as authentic & original. I think I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to my vintage jewellery :-)

Saying that though, I love the idea that old findings, spares and otherwise useless broken bits can be used to make a completely new piece of jewellery or artwork. I have made things ever since I can remember and one of my new year resolutions was to try to give a little more time to craft in general, so when the snow came down I got stuck in and had a few hours faffing about making earrings, some of which have gone into my etsy shop Vintage Jewel Box and some still to be listed.....
Well and truly into a creative spell, I had recently gone out and bought some Rowan wool with the intention of reviving my crochet skills.....This hasn't quite gone to plan as I couldn't make head or brim of the hat pattern that I have, but determined not to give up completely I had a go at the flower corsage that came with it..........Yey! success :-)

As I made the earrings I put them on stands on my window sill, the corsage is sitting on there as well, alongside the amethyst crystal and my set of lilac perfume bottles......Mmmm all shades of purple......

I beavered away happily and five purple themed pairs of earrings later, I thought I had better change tack as not everyone will share my love of the colour, so I went for another favourite, black :-)

Well, french jet is a classic and if a girl can't have too many pairs of black shoes or trousers then the same must go for earrings too :-)

Although, with my most recent purchases being a purple jacket and wonderful dark purple handbag, I think for me, purple has just become the new black!

Oooh baby it's cold out there...

Well, what a week!

The weather here in the UK has been the most wintry we have had for maybe 18 years...Most of the country has been blanketed with snow which has resulted in chaos on the roads, at Airports and lost days at work and school for many people.
The children have loved it as many haven't really seen snow so it was a whole new experience for most. My eldest nephew struggled home from school on Monday with a huge snowball so he could finish making his snowman when he got home. I think he thought it would all vanish as quickly as it came so he wasn't taking any chances :-)

Even the birds seemed confused by the snow. The blackbird sat on the fence looking very downcast and those that couldn't use the bird feeder were scavenging around the bottom of it looking for the odd seed that had been thrown out. So, I put on my polkadot wellies ( I knew they were a good buy ;-) ) and cleared the table for some bread and leftovers....

Hurray for cold weather..... I love winter clothes. It is a time to enjoy all those hats, scarves, gloves and boots that we have bought :-) My much loved fake fur coat has been taken out of the box at the top of the wardrobe, so glad I didn't give it away when it hadn't been worn for three winters.
Inspired by the cold weather and all the wonderful creative talent on etsy I have bought some lovely Rowan wool and purchased a hat pattern from etsy shop crocheteria . Somehow knitting and crocheting seems more appropriate during a real winter. Mind you it is probably about 15 or more years since I did any craftwork so I may need some help!

More snow is forecast so I am going to make the most of it and snuggle down in front of my fire, a pity its only gas logs but I can pretend ;-) Drink red wine, eat comfort food like cottage pie and make frothy hot chocolate to end the evening with....I may even make a start on my hat!