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Hello Blogworld

I have been totally under the weather recently, not only with snow and ice but literally laid out flat with flu for nearly 2 weeks. Phew! Flu really takes its toll on your sanity as I headed into a more depressed state wondering if I was ever going to feel normal again!

Well, the good news is... I am better and feeling much more normal (well, as normal as I'm ever going to get anyway!). As you can expect, everything took a back seat whilst I fought the bugs, but I am now ready to embrace my online world again and might even find time to write my next tutorial that has been spinning around in my fuzzy head but got no further.

The other annoying thing that has been going on is intermittent telephone and internet problems in our house which is REALLY frustrating. It has shown me how reliant I have become of machines and all their technological do-whats and thing-a-ma-jigs. So, I am hoping that not only will I remain fit and healthy for Christmas, but also that all our connection problems will be solved.

Until the next time, stay safe and healthy my online friends and readers.
Kristin :)

Etsy treasury - Simply Ballet

My Tourmaline Tutu Earrings have been featured in this classically beautiful Etsy treasury created by RindowDesigns that she has named Simply Ballet. Please click on the picture for a better view of the lovely items she selected.

Come and meet me in Beads and Beyond!

I am so excited to announce I am in December's issue of Beads and Beyond as their featured artist in their 'Meet and Greet' section.

I felt very honoured to be invited to do this interview and was delighted to be given the opportunity to share my work with a wider audience. December's issue is out to buy now.

Princess Zara Pendant

Following similar design principles to my Cinderella Pendant, I made this necklace for my friend, Zara's birthday. In keeping with the fairytale theme, the necklace found its name easily...

PRINCESS ZARA

Amethyst Spiral Loop Teardrop Frame Sterling Silver Necklace

Cinderella Pendant

Not all my jewellery has a name or even a story behind it but this pendant certainly has...

CINDERELLA

Pink Amethyst Spiral Loop Teardrop Frame Sterling Silver Pendant

... Initially, this started out as a much more simple frame for a smaller bead of a different gemstone. It was actually going to be one of a pair of earrings. Then I wondered what it would look like with more spirals and loops around the frame... I liked it, but then decided it was too much for an earring and better suited to a pendant. Then at the last minute, I swapped the bead to this plump pink amethyst briolette... it was a perfect fit... as if I had made it for that bead all along... It was just like Cinderella trying on the glass slipper!

Rose Pink Teardrops

You may remember that back in the summer I made some vibrant blue Kyanite Teardrop Earrings. Here is an alternative version in pink but this time with a beautiful faceted coin bead fixed within the middle of the teardrop. This version was not as easy to make as I thought it would be as I had to find a way to stop the coin bead from spinning round. I'm please to say I succeeded!

ROSE PINK TEARDROPS

Rose Quartz & Rhodolite Garnet SS Teardrop Earrings

Colour Combo Pendant

Last year I made a very colourful pendant I named 'Colour Me Happy' made from multi-gemstone rondelles woven around a handmade circular pendant. Here is an alternative version I have just made with a smaller colour palette of one of my favourite colour combinations: purple and pink.

COLOUR COMBO

Amethyst, Pink Amethyst, Rubellite Garnet & Rose Quartz

Woven Sterling Silver Circle Pendant

Garnet Swirl Loop Earrings

I really enjoyed making this design (see my Blue Topaz and Crystal Quartz versions created back in September) and I decided to make another pair, this time with the deepest crimson red garnet briolette beads I have seen in a long time. They are truly luscious and ideal to co-ordinate with your autumn/winter wardrobe.

CRIMSON SWIRL DROPS

Garnet Sterling Silver Hammered Swirl Loop Earrings

Icy Leaves - a texture experiment

I have been experimenting with texture on sterling silver wire and the finish on these wire leaf earrings reminds me of ice and frost.

ICY LEAVES

Moss Aquamarine Sterling Silver Hammered Wire Leaf Earrings

... and here's another pair of earrings with a silky smooth finish...

GOLDEN LEAVES

Champagne Citrine Sterling Silver Hammered Wire Leaf Earrings

Both of these earrings are now available to buy from my online shops: Folksy and Etsy.

Encircled Flower Pendants

An alternative version of my Five Bead Flowers - these flowers have circular petals and are secured within a circular pendant.

The iolite and the peridot pendants are up for sale in my Folksy and Etsy shops but the garnet pendant is mine... all mine! However, if that one is your favourite too, fear not as I will be listing it soon as a 'made to order' item in both online shops.

Instant download of new tutorial now at de Cor's

Good news! My latest tutorial 'Five Bead Flowers' is now also available for instant download from Corra Liew's website.

Here is the direct link to the tutorial:

http://www.de-cors.com/product_info.php?products_id=95

New tutorial from K S Jewellery Designs - FIVE BEAD FLOWERS

This tutorial has been a long time coming and I am happy to present to you my seventh tutorial entitled FIVE BEAD FLOWERS. I just can't stay away from flowers and this tutorial shows you how to create beautiful flowers using five beads and soft wire which is shaped, hammered and coiled.

This tutorial is currently for sale at Jewelry Lessons, my Etsy shop and my Folksy shop and costs $5.00/£3.00.

Here are some of the Star Flowers I made in preparation for this tutorial. Now I have lots of flowers to incorporate into pendant and necklace designs - watch this space!


... and here are some of the variations I tried based on the same design process.

Isn't nature amazing!

It's no wonder I get so inspired by flowers and plants and they seem to feature frequently in my jewellery designs. Look at this amazing plant that has been growing in my garden all summer.

I'm not sure what it's called but my mum gave it to me in the spring and it has been sitting in a pot on my patio. I was outside this morning photographing some jewellery and decided to take some photos of it using the macro setting on my camera. I love the way the centre spirals around and the bright green contrasts dramatically against the muted red.

Free wire jewellery tutorial - Spiral Adorned

Not many of you will know but.... I have a free wire jewellery tutorial called 'Spiral Adorned' which until now has only been available on Jewelry Lessons.

The good news is that this tutorial has just been made available for FREE instant download from Corra's website (http://www.de-cors.com/) and here is the direct link to the tutorial: http://www.de-cors.com/product_info.php?products_id=92

Lilac Amethyst Five Bead Flower Pendant

I've been working on this design for a couple of months on and off, in between all the other busy things that go on in my life, trying to work out the best way to secure the beads and petals. Then a few days ago I had a 'Eureka' moment and voila... my 'Five Bead Flower' design is ready to be shown to the world!

Lilac Amethyst Five Bead Sterling Silver Wire Flower Pendant

I've got lots of variations of this design to show you but just need to find the time to take the photos. My next project will be to turn this design into my next tutorial. Watch this space for further information about that...

K S Jewellery Designs tutorials at de Cor's

I am very happy to announce that all my jewellery tutorials are going to be available for purchase and instant download from Corra Liew's website: http://de-cors.com/.

Corra contacted me recently and invited me to become a guest artist on her site. I was very flattered and am delighted to have my tutorials for sale alongside other jewellery designers that I greatly admire.

I urge you to check out her site and browse through the variety of amazing tutorials on sale there (click on the 'Catalog' button on the top her website).

Blog giveaway winner

And the winner was.....

Congratulations to Sarah. She has won a $30.00 voucher to spend in my Etsy shop.

** Sarah - please contact me asap to let me know what you would like **

200 Etsy Sales! Time for a Blog Giveaway!

At the weekend I was very excited to have made my 200th sale on Etsy... and to celebrate I thought I would have a long overdue giveaway. In the past, I have given away a specific piece of jewellery or an offer of a custom made item. However, this time I am going to giveaway a...

$30.00 voucher

This voucher can be spent on any item or items in my Etsy shop. With $30.00 you could get all my tutorials for free (Tutorial Package x 5) and still have $10.00 left towards something else... or you could get a free pair of Hammered Circle Earrings... or you could put the $30.00 towards the cost of a more expensive item. It's your choice.

All you need to do is leave a comment below this post, leave me your details and say what you might spend your voucher on.

I will draw a name of one lucky winner on Monday 20th September. Good luck and thanks for stopping by.

Swinging Leaves Earrings

Recently I bought some fabulous faceted marquise briolette beads from my supplier. I haven't worked with this shaped bead for a while so I have various different designs buzzing around my head. I thought I would start with a simple design to show off the beauty of these peridot beads.

SWINGING LEAVES

Peridot Sterling Silver Hammered Leaf Earrings

Crystal Quartz Swirl Loops Earrings

Another pair of 'Swirl Loop' earrings - this time with sparkling crystal quartz...

CRYSTAL SWIRL DROPS

Crystal Quartz Sterling Silver Hammered Swirl Loop Earrings

Blue Topaz Swirl Loop Earrings

I have just listed these beautiful earrings my Folksy and Etsy shops.

SKY BLUE SWIRL DROPS

Swiss Blue Topaz Sterling Silver Hammered Swirl Loop Earrings

Kyanite Teardrop Earrings

Whilst on holiday in Cornwall this summer, I found some time to create some jewellery. I only took a few tools and materials and here is one of the pairs of earrings I made...

BLUE TEARDROPS

Kyanite Sterling Silver Teardrop Earrings

Available to buy from my Folksy and Etsy shops (please click on the photos for more details)

Chocolate & Cherries

I pondered long and hard on what to call these earrings but I couldn’t stop thinking about chocolate and cherries when I looked at them!

Glossy round beads of rich brown smoky quartz are framed with coils of sterling silver wire, fringed with sparkling rondelles of deep crimson red garnet and tiny little sterling silver beads.

Available to buy from my Folksy and Etsy shops (please click on the photos for more details).

CHOCOLATE & CHERRIES

Smoky Quartz and Garnet Sterling Silver Fringe Frame Bead Earrings

Hammered Shape Earrings

These earrings came from an idea I was working on a while ago by shaping and hammering sterling silver wire.

The earrings are named 'Little Shells', 'Little Leaves', 'Little Hearts' and finally 'Little Peacock Feathers'.

New pieces from K S Jewellery Designs

Hooray! The school holidays start here.... and soon we will be going on our family holiday. Here are some new pieces of jewellery that will be listed in my online shops on my return from holiday.

Lapis Lazuli Tail Feathers Pendant................. Kyanite & Sterling Silver Loopy Hoop Earrings

Iolite Random Links Bracelet..................................... Hoop of Colour Pendant

Pink Tourmaline Tutu Earrings

Serenity

I made this pendant a while ago but have just listed it in my Etsy and Folksy shops (please click on the pictures for more details).

SERENITY

Fluorite and Labradorite Sterling Silver Spiral Adorned Pendant

Time for texture

Recently most of the jewellery that has been made at my work bench has featured smooth shiny sterling silver. I do love the result of hammering, sanding and polishing. However, I was very pleased last week to receive a commissioned order for one of my 'hammered circle bracelets' with a textured finish.

Green Aventurine Sterling Silver Hammered Circle Bracelet

And here's what the same design looks like with a smooth silky finish...

Carnelian Sterling Silver Hammered Circle Bracelet