Sunday, 13 January 2008

My first customer!


Thanks to my dear friend K who gamely placed an order for a charm bracelet with me the other day. She like the "My First Charm Bracelet" design and gave me pretty much free reign with only the requests not to have a purple colour theme as she already has quite a lot of accessories in that colour and it being along the lines of "My First Charm Bracelet" with the floral clasp.

Although she has a lot of black outfits, I wanted to create something versatile, which she could wear with almost any kind of outfits she chose, be it for work or play. So I borrowed the style from my previous creation to create something similar but different.

Babe, let me know what you think!!
Ingredients: 14K gold plated bracelet, Czech glass beads and brass charms

Saturday, 12 January 2008

Look what the postie brought in...


My latest order of beads finally come in the mail! Yay! Aren't they drool worthy?? Can't wait to get creative with them.... but its going to be one heck of a busy week, so many other things to do! Whee!

Thursday, 10 January 2008

Another happy girlfriend!


Update on Trinket from the Sea necklace:

Had dinner with my girlfriend who likes chunky accessories tonight. She fell in love with this necklace and has happily accepted my belated Xmas gift and declared that she is going to wear it tomorrow! Yay! :D

She kept gushing about the mixture of colours of the beads and how pretty they looked.... hehe, thanks babe! Enjoy it!

Its really satisfying when someone truly appreciates and likes something you have made specially for them.... I can't describe that feeling but I love it!!

Tuesday, 8 January 2008

A Bed of Roses


Had lunch today with a dear friend whom I have not met in a while. Had received really smashing news from her on new year's eve that her long time bf had finally proposed and they are getting married this year! Congrats again my dear! Really thrilled for you! :)

The glowing bride-to-be was looking sassy in her short 'do, after she had snipped off her precious long locks a couple of months ago "for a change". And it was such a refreshing change! It was with this new 'do in mind that I made this pair of not-so-long dangling earrings for her, in a blend of rose and lavender hued Swarovski crystals which suits her snow white complexion extremely well.

Hope you enjoy them my dear and thanks for "adopting" the Gingerbread couple :)

May your life be as beautiful as a bed of roses!

Monday, 7 January 2008

Pastel Princesses



Experimenting with the various pastel coloured Swarovski crystals I had, I was trying for a look which advocates the mantra that "less is more". Here are my attempts.

When Gingerbread Boy Met Gingerbread Girl


They had stars in their eyes! Hehe

Aren't these brass charms simply the cutest?? I absolutely loved them the minute I saw them... such an adorable gingerbread couple!

So fun making this piece! :)

Ingredients: Brass charms and metal stars

Sunday, 6 January 2008

The Warm Orient


Have been thinking about using these gold filigrees to make a pair of earrings. Finally got a chance today to set about doing so. The filigrees give a very oriental flavour and hence I decided to pair them with Swarovski crystals in a warm Topaz colour.

Quite like the overall result, simple yet elegant! Modern chinoiserie?? hehe
Think I will wear these to work tomorrow! :D

Everyday necklace


I came across these beads the other day, and they reminded me of lollies I used to eat as a child. I can't remember exactly what lollies they were, but I think it was Fox brand and they came in a multitude of colours and were translucent.

Anyways, I was looking to make an "everyday necklace", something simple which I could just throw on to jazz up what I call my don't-know-what-to-wear all black outfit reserved for mornings when I wake up and absolutely can't make up my mind what to wear! haha

Thought the mild but yummy colours of these beads would be just right, offset against a black top :)

Saturday, 5 January 2008

Trinket from the sea


The colours of the plastic stones in this necklace reminds me of the colours of the sea.... how the sea can look blue and yet green at times. These stones have white swirls which give them an interesting pattern. Mixing in some small lavender coloured glass beads for a look that is refreshing!

Another chunky necklace, which can act as "backup" for the girlfriend who likes her accessories chunky... in case she doesn't quite like the first necklace I had made for her. :D

Teal drops


I had been looking for the right pair of earrings to go with this teal coloured evening dress that I have. Unable to find something ready made in the colour that I wanted, I decided to make my own when I laid eyes on these gorgeous Swarovski tear drop crystals in Erinite. Paired them with tiny bicone Swarovski crystals in Cantaloupe. Cantaloupe is one funny colour, its only one out of two colours in the Swarovski range that changes colour!! Yes, these little crystals do change colour under different lighting... isn't that interesting? When my order first arrived, I initially thought the seller had sent me the wrong colour as they weren't green at all, in fact, a light greyish tinge!

The end result is a look that is simple yet elegant, just the right touch to go with my evening dress!

Fashionista Charm Bracelet


This piece was specially made for one of my girlfriend's who is a real fashionista. This gal knows and lurves her Miu Mius and Ferragamos, is a shopaholic, shoe-aholic and enjoys her after work drinks. Thus, I thought it befitting that her charm bracelet comprise of these loves of hers: a cute high heel shoe charm, a margarita charm (how adorable!) and a "Born to Shop" shopping bag charm! Finished off with various Czech glass beads and a "Made with Love" charm.

Pink Opalite meets Turquoise


I was intrigued by these pink Opalite stones when I saw the online pictures which made them look translucent and dreamy. When they finally arrived and I saw them with my own eyes, they had this milky, cloudy texture that is difficult to describe. The way they caught the lights made it an interesting material to work with. I decided to pair them with these irregular shaped turquoise beads for a striking necklace which would look fab paired with a black top.

A necklace.... finally!


Taking a breather from earrings and bracelets, I ventured on to my first necklace. This one's for a girlfriend whom I know likes her accessories chunky. Pairing together a twisted rope chain with glass and plastic beads, a solitary glass pearl and a metal heart locket.

I really hope she likes this piece! (yes, its a belated Xmas pressie as she's been on holidays!) Wonder if its too eclectic?

Oriental flowers


I decided to make something with a bit more Oriental flavour. I guess I'm at a stage where I'm still exploring the different type of styles that can be achieved using the vast array of beads available. When I chanced upon these lovely pink Chinese cloisonne beads, I evisioned delicate flowers swaying in the wind, accompanied by rustling leaves. For my lovely girlfriend, who herself is like a delicate blooming bud.

Ingredients: Pink Chinese cloisonne beads, gold leave charms and Swarovski crystals

Friday, 4 January 2008

Pinky dreams



This set was made for a real girly girlfriend. She loves pink and all things feminine... oh and pearls too! Ensembled from Swarovski crystals and pearl beads.

My first charm bracelet


Jewellery, being very personal, with everyone having their own personal tastes, makes it a challenge when you intend to make something for someone. Thus, when I set about making these Xmas pressies for my friends, I had to know their tastes well enough to ensure they did not absolutely hate what I had made.... my goal was that they did not dislike what I made and might even like it a bit. I wasn't planning to be too ambitious.

I had originally intended to make earrings for this particular friend but on second thought, felt that a charm bracelet would suit her personality better. I was very excited with the arrival of the supplies I had ordered and rummaging through the various charms, stones and glass beads which I had bought, I quickly assembled this piece, finishing it off with a floral clasp. I felt quite pleased by the end result.

But I was worried it might have been too "offbeat" and non-mainstream for her liking so I MMS her a pic of her Xmas pressie. She floored me with her response which was overwhelmingly positive and I floated on a cloud that night! Thanks!!! It gave me the right dose of encouragement and confidence that perhaps I might just have a bit of a flair for this... :p

Pearly pearls


Feeling more confident of my newly acquired skills, having practiced enough on making my "o" loops, I set about making my first Xmas present. This was for a dear friend who I know likes her accessories and pearly stuff was one of them. So when my shipment of supplies arrived from Australia, I immediately zoomed in on the glass pearls, mixing various colours and sizes to make this bracelet.

End result is shown above, although the lighting leaves much to be desired. I am delighted to say that the response to my gift was positive and she even put it own immediately! I felt so happy! :)

She also asked if I was going to sell the stuff I made.... could I really? Would anyone actually buy my creations?? Hmmm.....

Warm bunch of grapes???


Well, at least that's the thought that this pair of earrings evoked when I had finished making them due to the combination of the topaz and olivine colours. Made this pair of earrings from Czech glass beads in a mixture of round and tear drop shapes. This was to match the dual chain bracelet I had made earlier (shown in 2 posts below). That's the fab thing about self-made stuff, its completely custom made! You get to decide exactly what colours you want and there's no worrying about a whole bunch of other people having exactly the same thing.

I like!!! :D

My first self-made trinket!


This is the very first item I made when I made my foray into jewellery making recently. A pair of dangling earrings, not quite the length of shoulder dusters but long enough for me!

It was mind boggling being in the bead shop surrounded by such a vast array of beads, stones, charms and crystals in so many different shapes, colours and sizes! There were sooooo many delicious colours to choose from, I felt absolutely spoilt for choice! I settled on a gorgeous pair of Swarovski drop crystals in a beautiful Golden Shadow colour, accompanied by round Swarovski crystals and round Czech glass beads in pretty colours. Pity the picture above doesn't quite do the colours justice, some come out looking almost transparent!

The handiwork is a bit shoddy, but given that it was my absolute first attempt at making jewellery, surely I can be forgiven? ;)

I quite like the overall result though, reminds of my lollies - yum! haha

Being my maiden piece of work, this will always have a special place in my heart..... and my jewellery box! :)

Thursday, 3 January 2008

I've been busy with.... beads, charms, stones, crystals...

I've been B-U-S-Y over the last month in the lead up to Xmas and New Year's. Got super ambitious this year and decided to make my own Xmas pressies after picking up my newfound beading obsession. For someone who confesses not to be super dexterious, I wasn't too sure what the results would be. But I had already gone on this massive spree and spent a mini fortune buying all these lovely swarvoski crystals, stones, glass beads and charms that there was no backing out.... so the only thing to do was to bite the bullet and charge full steam ahead!

Some of my initial pieces were "trial" pieces, basically for me to practice my craft... found ready "guinea pigs" in the form of my aunts... thanks dears!!

Well, finally, here is a sneak preview of why I've been a hermit and have been hiding at home all those week nights and weekends!

More pics to come soon!


Picture 1: Warm coloured Czech glass beads complements the gold metal dual chain bracelet


Picture 2: Xmas themed bracelet with lovely Swarovski crystals and Czech glass beads finished with a pretty floral clasp


Picture 3: Earrings to match my new shirt of Xmas! Ingredients: Pretty swarovski crystals in delicious colours! Yummy!


Picture 4: One of the Xmas pressies I made for a girlfriend. She liked the earrings! YEAH! :) Ingredients: Swarovski crystals and Czech glass beads

Picture 5: Earrings for my aunt using lovely Swarovski crystals


Warm coloured Czech glass beads complements the gold metal dual chain bracelet


Xmas themed bracelet with lovely swarovski crystals and Czech glass beads finished with a pretty floral clasp



Earrings to match my new shirt for Xmas! Ingredients: pretty swarovski crystals in delicious colours - Yummy!


One of my Xmas pressies for a friend - she liked it! YEAH! :) Ingredients: Swarovski crystals and Czech glass beads


Earrings for my aunt - lovely swarovski crystals