Creme Caramel

 

I also sell my beads on Folksy which is essentially a British version of Etsy.  It is an online craft store where artisans sell their handmade items.  The great thing about both of these online stores is that you can be assured (most of the time) that you are purchasing items that have been individually handmade by very handworking artists.  I say most of the time because as always there are the odd few that slip through the net attempting to sell wholesale items. 

 

This set of beads is called Crème Caramel. When I took these beads out of the kiln I was really pleased. The internal swirls of avocado and chocolate all encased within a light amber coloured glass that reflects the light beautifully.  I have blogged about these beads before but decided that they needed some more publicity ..... they are lovely!

 

This photograph shows the swirls beautifully.  I originally intended for these to be an autumnal set of beads but there is definitely a summery feel about them too.  Perhaps it is the richness of colour produced by the chocolate swirling through the amber glass. 

 

 

Beads have always held a fascination for people and have been used for many different things.  My beads are no exception.  A selection of my beads are sold in Kiki's Craft Store in Scotland.  Here they are purchased mainly for decorating textiles.  I sell to jewellery designers, hobbyists, collectors, all kinds of people and I always ask for photographs of their final pieces of work (blog post coming soon) because I am really interested to know what they have made with my beads.

 

Of course, you don't have to do very much with my beads to enjoy their attractive allure.  All you need is a silver chain.  Pop the beads onto the chain and you have an instant piece of pretty jewellery.  The great thing about this is that you can take the beads on and off and match them to your outfit or mix and match the beads with other bead sets.  There is a great deal of potential ....

This set of beads would definitely suit being placed on a sterling silver chain.  Sometimes the simplicity of a design can be all the more stunning! 

All of my lampwork beads are handmade by me in my studio in Somerset. I am a professional lampwork artist and make all of my bead to a very high standard. All of my beads are kiln annealed to ensure long lasting strength and durability and all of my beads are thoroughly cleaned to remove all traces of bead release.

 

I have included 7 beads in the set. They range in size from 14mm by 9mm beads to 15mm by 10mm beads. The bead hole is 2.5mm.

 

All of my lampwork beads are securely packaged in a gift box. I pack them very carefully because a great deal of work goes into creating these little treasures

 

This set of beads is available to purchase from my shop on Folksy.  I ship worldwide.  If you click on the photograph a link will take you straight there.

 

Sarah xx

www.beadscrumptious.co.uk

www.hypersmash.com



 

Nautical - Gaudi Inspired!

After dropping off my little kiddy winks this morning I went straight up to shed/studio/shed, turned on my kiln and pondered what colour combinations to use today.  I wanted fresh, bright and vibrant.  After probably 30 mins searching through my stash of glass (and going off to feed my chickens) I came up with this combination.   

I think I am still having a 'Gaudi' moment because the trapped bubbles within the glass remind me so much of the Casa Batllo in Barcelona.  I know I keep going on and on about Gaudi but I can't help it, the man was a genius!  Anyway, Gaudi designed the Casa Battlo on a nautical theme and there is plenty of evidence for this as you walk around the house.  But he also considered so many other aspects in his designs.  For instance, the colour of the tiles in the stairwell get pregressively darker as you ascend the stairs.  This was to give a more natural balance of light (there was more natural light further up the stairs) as you ascend/descend the stairs.  I digress ...... sorry ... can't help myself.....

As you can see from my photograph above Gaudi had inserted glass panels as part of the bannisters.  Now interestingly, when you looked through these you get the illusion of being underwater .....

The distortion produced by placing a glass bubble if you like, on top of a bead design reminds me of these bannisters.  Perhaps my mind works in a peculiar way or I am just completely obsessed with Gaudi ... who knows?  But this set of beads, especially the colours, the distorting bubbles of glass and the trapped air dots that remind me of bulbous fish eyes, all take me back to a nautical theme.

I shall leave you with a few more pictures of my new set of beads to let you ponder what they remind you of!

This set of beads is available to buy on Etsy - Beadscrumptious on Etsy


Sarah xx
www.beadscrumptious.co.uk
HyperSmash.com

Woman in Black!

I had this set of beads on Etsy for a few months.  The inspiration came from reading the Woman in Black!  A very scary but brilliant book!  If you have the chance I would definitely recommend reading it, especially when you are tucked up warm and cosy on a winter night with the rain lashing against the windows and the wind howling around outside ...... 

My beads did suddenly take a dark turn  ..... The set comprised 7 lentil shaped beads using a dark grey transparent glass with a strip of silvered Ivory just resting on the top of the bead.  This was slightly raised and gave the beads an organic look. 

I should mention briefly what I mean by silvered Ivory stringer.  I take an Ivory glass rod and heat it in the flame until it becomes molten then I roll the molten glass in silver leaf.  I place this back into the flame at a lower temperature and using my pliers to grip the warm end of the glass rod I then pull the glass into a very thin rod/strip.  This cools and forms what is called 'a stringer' which is basically a very thin rod of glass!

Every time I looked at my shop on Etsy - Beadscrumptious on Etsy (just in case you wondered where my shop was ......) I had this niggle in the back of my mind as to whether I should remove them from my listings and make a piece of jewellery from them.  Well, the other day whilst pondering what to make for Christmas I came across this set of beads and could not resist them any longer. 

I wanted to keep the bracelet simple but elegant!  Each lentil shaped bead was enclosed within sterling silver saucer beads.  Between each group of beads I added a 6mm swarovski crystal to add a touch of sparkle.

The next day I went back out to my studio and made some more of these beads so that I can make a necklace and some earrings to match.  When I have a complete set I will be listing them all in my new shop on WOW Thank You!

What Christmas creations are you making? 

Sarah xx

www.beadscrumptious.co.uk

Hypersmash.com

The Continuing Voyages of the Starship Beadscrumptious!



Galactic Beads can be found on Etsy!

Hello, I thought I would take a quick moment to update you on where you can find my handmade lampwork beads and jewellery on the internet!  The idea came about when I realised half of my links on Pinterest no longer worked.  These links are important because they take future customers to the sites where I sell my beads. Then it struck me that I haven't actually published a definitive list of where I can be found on the internet and I can be found in a lot of places ....

This Lampwork Heart represents my Avatar for all of my internet site!

So here we are!  I have already mentioned Pinterest but what is it?  Well, Pinterest is a 'virtual pinboard' where you can pin items that you like from the internet onto boards that you have created.  The great thing about Pinterest is that when you pin an item it also keeps the link.  For instance I love baking and I am always pinning recipies onto my Recipie Board.  When I decide to make something I click on the picture and it take me stright to the site where I found the recipie.  Easy!

Every time I make a new set of lampwork beads or jewellery I always post the item onto my board Beadscrumptious Lampwork Beads and Jewellery with a link to the site where the item can be bought.

Winning Implosion Beads - Beads and Beyond Jewellery Maker of the Year

I have a website Beadscrumptious where you can find out more about me and I have links to nearly all the places where I can be found on the internet.  However, there are always exciting new developments on the web so it doesn't contain all of the places I can be found.  I haven't set up a shop on my website yet because I already sell on Etsy but this will change in the future.  Occasionally, I publish free tutorials on my website.

Enchanted Tree Focal Bead

I have already mentioned that I sell my beads on Etsy!  Etsy is an online handmade marketplace that promotes artisan crafts.  The site is focused on selling handmade or vintage items.  I have had a shop here since December 2011.  It is also a very friendly and supportive place where artisans promote each others work through the power of social media. 

Carnival - Lampwork Glass Button

Following in a similar vein to Etsy is the British equivalent called Folksy! I do also sell here but have a fairly limited selection of my work.  I am not sure if I am going to carry on selling here when I set up my shop on my website but we'll see. 

Calypso - Lampwork Bead Bracelet

Years ago there was always this mis-conception that you could set up a website to sell your work and you would become an instant millionaire overnight.  In reality, this is certainly not the case!  When you set up a website to sell artisan crafts there is a great amount of promotional work to do for your site/work to be noticed.  It takes a lot of dedication! Selling on Etsy and Folksy help to increase exposure but there also sites out there that can help by promoting your work for you.  Of course, there is a fee to be paid but if it helps to generate sales and exposure it is sometimes worth the cost.

I have recently started selling on one of these sites called WOW Thank You! As part of joining WOW Thank you!  I found out about CRAFTFest which is a virtual online craft fair.  I will be participating in the next fair in November and will write a blog about my experience.

Cool Waves

I also sell my beads and jewellery to shops.  One of these is  Kiki's Craft Corner in the Highlands of Scotland!



As seen in Bead Magazine!

 



Flickr can be viewed as an online photograph album!  This is another site where I share all the photographs of my beads.  There is also a Flickr community and you can join groups relevant to your craft, follow fellow artists and essentially network.  It is great!



Protea Implosion Bead

 

Never underestimate the power of social media!  As an artist I use various social media sites to promote my work.  To maintain consistency (and almost branding, I suppose) I always use the same Avatar (Purple Heart above) and my company name Beadscrumptious!

Below is a list of sites where I can be found!  Please click on the buttons/pictures, come over and say Hello!

 

 

 

 

 

You would be most welcome to click on the link below and 'like' my facebook page!

 

Sarah xx

Beadscrumptious.co.ukHyperSmash.com

How to wear my lampwork beads!

A very lovely friend of mine suggested that I write a blog post to give some ideas about how to wear my beads.   So here goes ......

1  Make your own simple jewellery!

My beads have a 2.5mm - 3mm bead hole and will fit very comfortably on a sterling silver curb or snake chain, providing you ensure that the fastenings are not too large.  I find this to be a very versatile way to wear my beads because you can easily change the beads to match what you are wearing each day.

2  Add my beads to your Charm Bracelets.

Every bead I make is a one off limited edition!  Each bead is hand made by me in my studio and no two beads are ever the same.  Inspiration comes from all around me and from refining my designs.

I also make larger holed beads with a 5mm diameter hole that fit very nicely onto some of the european charm bracelets.  You will soon be able to purchase sterling silver bracelets from my shop on Etsy that you can add my beads to and make up your own unique jewellery. 

3  A simple pendant.

My focal beads can very easily be made into very stylish pendants using different coloured ribbons.  All you need to do is thread the focal bead onto the ribbon, tie a knot to secure it, place it around your neck to the required length and tie into a bow.





This also works really well using any of my bead sets.  Changing the colours of the ribbon can dramatically change the look of the finished piece of jewellery.

If you are feeling adventurous you could even add in a few knots between beads or groups of beads .....



There are so many different options!  Without even realising it you will be on your way to designing your own jewellery.

4  Designing your own unique jewellery!

 It really isn't that difficult, honestly! Over the next couple of months I will be writing blog posts to show you (using step by step instructions) how to make your own jewellery.

All of the beads and jewellery featured in this blog can be found in my shop on Etsy ........

Beadscrumptious 

I would love to see any of your creations!

Sarah xx