Alan Taylor, Artist - Renard the Forever Alert Fox The Tin Shed is a new virtual venue for LoveArtNorthEast’s pop up fairs and exhibitions. This group of North East artists and makers usually holds regular art markets in Newcastle, together with a number of seasonal and one-off events. None of this has been possible this … Continue reading The Tin Shed Summer ArtFest
It's still officially summer, despite the weather today feeling more like October. However, the nights are definitely drawing in now, and there is a backend-ish feeling in the air. I'm not a lover of late summer, and I'm already looking forward russet and golden leaves, misty mornings, and cosy log fires. In anticipation of autumn, … Continue reading Falling Leaves
I made this silver and ceramic pendant using a piece of sea-weathered pottery from a beach in Fife, Scotland. I count it as one of my luckier beachcombing finds, because it's a fairly regular shape, and the ear of wheat just sits in a nice diagonal across the surface. So many pieces of sea glass … Continue reading Barley and Wheat
I made the first of these moon gazing hare designs back in the spring, and they have proved very popular with my customers. I have gradually been adding new items and variations, and have plans for more, as and when I have time. The collection was inspired by the hares who are regular visitors to … Continue reading Moon Gazing Hares
June is nearly over, so I thought it's high time I shared some gift ideas for those with summer birthdays. First up are my Daisy designs, mostly made from silver and brass, but I have recently added a pendant set with a beautiful golden yellow citrine. The designs are as neat and fresh as the … Continue reading Summer Gift Ideas
"Lost lanes of Queen Anne's lace, And that high-builded cloud Moving at summer's pace." (from Cut Grass by Philip Larkin) I have developed a bit of an obsession with Queen Anne's lace this May and June. I think this is partly because it seems to be a particularly good year for this graceful plant, and … Continue reading Queen Anne’s Lace
I should have been spending today in the lovely coastal village of Bamburgh, taking part in a craft fair in Bamburgh Pavilion. Obviously it's a minor inconvenience in the grand scheme of things, but it is really sad that all the fairs, markets, and shows that take place in communities up and down the county … Continue reading Bamburgh
It was difficult to order jewellery making supplies when the Covid-19 outbreak first hit (although things have improved now) so I've been on a bit of a mission to use up some of my existing materials on new designs. This copper seahorse is a case in point. I used to work with copper much more … Continue reading Copper Seahorse
Day 6 of the jewellery Insta challenge, and I’m still going strong. The prompt today is Process, so I thought I’d share a series of pictures showing the process of oxidising and polishing one on my moon-gazing hare pendant sets. The roughly polished silver pieces are dropped into a warm solution of liver of sulphur … Continue reading Process – Oxidisation
I’m combining two days of Instagram challenge posts here, because the two topics, Tool Collection and Workshop Assistant, are related. First up is part of my collection of jewellery-making tools, majoring on my pliers and snippers. The more observant amongst you will notice that this is a better quality image than most of my snaps. … Continue reading Tool Collection and Workshop Assistant
