Events
Details of craft fayres and other events organised by Sea Witch's Cavern can be found on our Event blog - Click on the link on the Blogroll to find out more.
Handbag Charms
One of the things I still really miss are the evenings I used to spend with my niece making jewellery. She moved to Australia several years ago and although we talk on the phone fairly regularly it is not the same as spending a relaxing evening or afternoon together making. Towards the end of last year I got together with my sister-in-law and her daughter and heard about her handbag charms. I suggested they come along to one of the craft fayres and was impressed with my nieces charms. I’d made a few for the craft fayres (not as nice as Ceri’s) and always intended to make them for the shop but never got around to it and after a bit of thought came up with a scheme which would be good for both of us.
I suggested that Ceri make handbag charms for the Sea Witch’s Cavern using my beads and clasps etc and we split the proceeds. For me it would use up beads etc, be good for the shop, give Ceri some pocket money and the biggest benefit of all as far as I am concerned is the making sessions. We’ve spent some lovely evenings and afternoons together since. Ceri working on the charms, her mother working on handmade gift boxes and me on jewellery. We also got together to take the photos when we had a reasonable batch of charms and then Ceri took the charms home so that she could write up descriptions. Then I showed her how to list them on the shop. It’ll look good on her CV when she leaves school! We were both pleased when her charms started selling, they are beautiful and really jazz up a handbag or purse.
Happy New Year
Happy New Year everyone. I’m praying that this one will be a better year for everyone. My new year resolution this year is to pull my finger out and do a bit more blogging than I did last year. 2011 seemed to zoom by it would be nice if 2012 would be a bit slower or I could speed up a bit to keep pace.
Time Flies
I can’t believe it was April the last time I posted. Time certainly flies! A lot has been happening so this post will be a quick one and then I will try to do better.
Sea Witch's Cavern Stall
The Spring Shopping Evening at Oaklands School went very well – I had been gradually setting up new displays and they worked well in Kent and at Craft Fayres since.
We did have a few problems with the display at Dursley earlier this month. We seem to be getting our April showers late this year and it was a blustery day on the 18th for our Dursley event. Lots of heavy showers and gusts of wind which blew my photo frame displays over and sent the body stands flying. The glue gun I’d bought that morning from Krazy Craft Supplies came in handy for mending the corner of one frame which split. For Minchinhampton I will need a backing board for the tables methinks.
I had a good day and sold the Jasper the dragon necklace among other products. Terry’s first attempt at a copper dragon pendant was more wormlike than dragon shaped. With the next attempt he came up with the adorable dragon in the photo. He worked on it for four days. After showing it to me and after I’d run my fingers round the edges he had to work on it some more so it wouldn’t catch in clothes. Not an easy task with all those mini spikes.
I was very impressed with the dragon and decided he had to be attached to a necklace befitting to him. Dragon treasure and dragon caves were in my mind when I chose the gemstone beads. Of course, I just had to use the new Dragonblood Jasper beads I had bought. They are a beautiful mix of greens with red markings. I used Dragonsblood Jasper small rounds between the haemtite stars and the rectangle shaped ones between the garnets and square shaped beads between citrine beads further up the necklace. The rock quartz crystal chips obviously were from the cave roof and the gorgeous moonstone beads I used because of an image in my mind of dragons flying on a moonlit night.
Garnets, Dragonsblood Jasper, Moonstone and Citrine Beads
After finishing the dragon pendant Terry told me that he wouldn’t make another until this one sold – I better order some more copper sheet! It may be that it will become a made to order item.
The lady who wanted Jasper had a hard time persuading her husband and I moved off and talked to AnneMarie from Krazy Crafts to give them some privacy. The husband eventually asked me if I would take a reduced price and after seeing how much the lady wanted it I accepted his offer and the sale was made. I’m glad Jasper is going to a good home.
They came back later and had a look at another necklace I’d moved over. I could see she wanted that one too but she admitted defeat for that day. I had given her a list of the other fayres we were doing in the area and she told Terry that she would work on her husband. Hehe.
Not such a quick blog after all I will end this now and continue soon!
Competition at Sea Witch’s Cavern Facebook Page
It’s the last few days of a competition I am having on my facebook page
All you have to do is like my page and enter your details for a chance to win a pair of sterling silver and gemstone earrings.
Spring Shopping Evening at Oaklands Primary School
Spring Shopping Evening At Oaklands Primary School
Join us at our Spring Shopping Evening
Great shopping and gift ideas for everyone
Thursday April 7th
Doors Open 6.30pm—9.00pm
Oaklands Primary School—Oaklands Lane,
Biggin Hill, TN16 3XH
£1 Fund Raising Admission Charge
I am looking forward to a visit to Kent in early April to attend the Oaklands Primary School Spring Shopping Evening. I will have my jewellery, bookmarks, hair accessories and other gifts for sale. Sea Witch’s Cavern now accept payment by debit or credit card at events.
I have been to an Oaklands Summer Fair and enjoyed it very much. The event was well organised with lots of fun and I expect the evening to be a fun, relaxed event too. Come and join us if you are in the area.
Brockworth Craft Fayre
Brockworth Community Centre contacted us last year and asked if we would do one of our craft fayres at the hall. After visiting the centre we booked it for last Saturday, 29th January. We had some reservations before the event but by the end we were very pleased with how the afternoon had gone and definitely will be booking the centre again.
We had several new stallholders and it was lovely to meet them.
The ladies from Going Dippy arrived early and very soon I realised that they had a similar warped sense of humour to me and it was fun setting up with the bantering back and forth between the four of us. With my food allergies I didn’t dare try any of their dips but Terry said the ones he tried were great and they seemed to do well with the customers. I am pleased that they have booked for other events.
Going Dippy
When Terry booked Tina of Shadow Mini Boxes in, and I had looked at her website I told him that I was going to end up spending on her sea boxes. On the day, Tina’s stall was opposite me and with a beautiful starfish shadow box staring me in the face I had to buy it.
Tina's Shadow Boxes
My friend Steve came to help out. At future events he’ll be doing the teas but I wanted help this time. Sea Witch’s Cavern is now setup to take debit/credit cards and having only tested it on Terry’s card before I wanted some help in case I was slow serving.
Ronald our regular woodturner sold several of his pieces. I told Terry that I was glad he did well – Terry laughed and said Ron was complaining about the sales. Woodturning is Ron’s hobby and he has to sell it off so that he can make more. He’s not so keen on doing it in the winter because his workshop is cold and the sales he made meant that he’d have to make more before the next fayre in February. Terry suggested he make extra during the summer but that won’t work because apparently his wife will only allow him four boxes full at a time. It did make me laugh, there’s the rest of us hoping for sales. Of course if he didn’t make any that wouldn’t be good either. Our craft fayres wouldn’t be the same without Ron, he is a craftman, his work is beautiful.
Semi Precious Gemstone Copper Swallow Necklace
Gemstone Copper Swallow Necklace
I asked Terry if he could make me a swallow from copper and showed him a picture of what I meant. He said he could, that he had done hammered copper work at school. We shopped for copper sheet and for the tools he would need to cut it and waited impatiently for the parcels to arrive.
When the tools and copper sheet arrived Terry proceeded to amaze me. The picture I had in my mind was of a plain flat swallow but the bird which Terry created is anything but. I had no idea that hammering copper could have such an effect. As he worked on it the swallow went from being flat to gently curved and patterned and seemed to come to life. After the shaping was completed it then needed filing and smoothing and heating until it was red hot to harden the metal. I had to decide what I was going to use it for and to decide where the hole for hanging had to be drilled and then Terry buffed and polished it.
Then it was my turn to create the necklace. I wanted to use gemstone beads in colours that would match and blend with the rich copper colour of the swallow pendant. I chose large facetted citrine, snowflake serpentine hearts, green jasper coin beads and carnelian beads as the main beads with small hematite and mother of pearls beads as contrast.
Each different bead cluster is linked with the next to form a beaded chain which I then attached to large diamond shaped silver plated links on either side of the necklace. The necklace is then completed with silver plated figaro chain which sits comfortably across the nape of the neck.
I decided to display the necklace at our craft fayre at Horsley Village Hall. I put the display dummy with the necklace on in the front of the car. Two minutes from home as I slowed at a mini roundabout the dummy shot forward and cracked her head on the dash board. I pulled over and hastily put the seat belt round her. 
Since the craft fayre I have listed the necklace for sale at Sea Witch’s Cavern
Swarovski Crystal Pendants
Swarovski Crystal Heart Pendant Necklace
Swarovski crystal jewellery always looks classically elegant but some make a real statement and this Swarovski 40mm AB crystal heart pendant certainly is stunning. It seems to soak up all the colours around it and reflect them back. It is fitted with a hallmarked sterling silver leaf fitting and figaro chain and is on sale at Sea Witch’s Cavern.
Yesterday I added several pendants to the Swarovski crystal pendant section in my shop. The simple but classic crystal De-Art pendant, shown below is just one of several new additions.
Swarovski Crystal De-art Pendant Necklace
Swarovski Crystal Sterling Silver Triple Loop Pendant
The dainty pendant triple looped pendant was made with sterling silver wire which I shaped into the loops and then added a Swarovski crystal bicone bead and two sterling silver beads to complete the design. I made earrings to match the pendant also added to the shop yesterday.
Handmade Hair Slides Clips
Handmade Hair Slides
Terry and I have been busy making hair accessories. The beaded and organza flower clips are the ones I have been working on. I am lagging way behind Terry who is responsible for the sequined mini barrette slides. I’m impressed with the variety and beauty of the designs he is coming up with but he admits that coming up with a matching pair would be difficult for him.
I have a lot more ideas for my beaded clips and slides but I am having to go slow because of a dodgy thumb, which is improving thank heavens, as it is definitely beginning to annoy me.
These and more will be making their first appearance for sale at our next Craft Fayre at Nailsworth Town Hall on the 2nd October 2010.
Beaded Bookmark Thongs
Amethyst and Mother of Pearl Beaded Bookmark Thong
Unakite and Serpentine Bookmark Thong
I enjoyed making these two gemstone beaded bookmark thongs. Although I have had gemstone chip beads for a long time I’ve never used them in any of my projects before. I’m pleased with the effect and will be using them more. I like the randomness of the chip beads, if I make these bookmarks designs again they will never be identical.
One of the things that fascinates me about the semi precious gemstone beads that I use in my jewellery making is the mystical healing properties that they have.
Amethyst is an extremely powerful and protective stone. A natural tranquiliser Amethyst blocks geopathic stress and negative envionment energies. Amethyst has strong healing and cleansing powers and enhances spiritual awareness. It is also the birthstone for February .
Unakite is the stone of vision and rebirth. It brings a calm gentle mind allowing clarity of thought and insight. It is supportive in convalescence and recovery from major illness. It treats the reproductive system and aids healthy pregnancy. A channel to vitality and health.
Serpentine is an earthing stone, an aid to meditation and spiritual exploration. It stimulates the crown chakra. It helps with mental and emotional balance and phyically, Serpentine is cleansing and detoxifying.
Just some of the properties of the stones I used in making these bookmark thongs. Both thongs are on sale online at Sea Witch’s Cavern.
