A throwaway society!

I have been working a lot lately with recycled materials in the studio producing beautiful jewellery that has history and charm and it has made me think about the things people throw away.

Recently I have found a supply of old watch pieces that someone takes the time to pull apart, package up and sell for artworks and jewellery and it has been beautiful working with them as I know they hold history. Someone wore them on their wrist for who knows how long before they arrived in my studio and I then in turn create jewellery that someone will again wear. Isn’t it nice to think that they have not been thrown away and discarded like so many of the things we buy today?

One of the reasons I love what I make is that I know they are cherished by the people who purchase them and the beads have the potential to be worn for the next 100 years, generation after generation. It’s such a nice thought that they will not become one of the pieces that get thrown out after being worn once or even worse is purchased knowing they will not last.

We have been conditioned as a society to accept that we throw things away after short use and that everything is mass produced and I am so proud to know of many gorgeous artists who make one off pieces that will last a lifetime.

Next time you go to buy something ask yourself the question....

The important things in life!

I have been thinking lately about life, what I am doing and pondering what my future will hold.

I am extremely lucky to have two beautiful boys, a supportive family, a high paying job, great friends and the ability to express myself via my art, but... I am wondering about what parts of my life will be important in a year or 20 years from now.

I found this picture of my Mum and I and it made me question what life is about.

The picture was taken in the caravan park where we lived in a van with my brother and sister. We didn’t have much money and Mum and Dad worked really hard. On the flip side of that my boys have everything they could every dream of, we live with my Mum and Dad so they get way more attention than most kids and because I earn good money they don’t want for anything.

The question I have been asking myself is what will be important to me/ them later in life?

What will remain of me when I die?

How will people remember me?

What part of me do my children respect/ admire?

My youngest son made it clear to me yesterday when he said to me “as long as your happy Mum, that’s all I care about.”

In a year or 20 years I want to be remembered for my undying love for my boys and my passion for my art and realistically the only things that will linger after I am gone will be the values I have instilled in my children and some beautiful glass beads.

If I am lucky my kids will look at a picture like this one and remember to be passionate about life and love every day!

Cheers,

Skye

Bright colours surround us!

 I get so excited about colour and I have found myself making more and more pieces that are bright, bold and exciting.

I am so glad to see that in everything including fasion, homewares and jewellery we are embracing vivid colour.

One of my favourite design companies is Dinosaur Designs and these two pieces remind me of something that would come out of their prodiuction line. Fun, bright and sculptural.

I thnk it is really important to combine unusual shapes with bright colours and you end up with a finished piece that anyone would want to own.

One of the other things I have discovered is that when I am at the torch working on something like this I am happy, like my mind soaks up the colour and it makes me smile.

I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoy making them.

Till next time,

Skye

All of life is an experiment.

The more experiments you make,

the better.

Ralf Waldo Emerson



The discoveries we make!

I am so often excited by the discoveries you make when working in glass.
The picture shown is of one of my favourite beads...they are a vintage looking, romantic and soft glass bead that are a green colour while at the same time a soft pink.
This amazing technique was a chance discovery when playing at the torch one day and has become one of my most popular bead finishes.
It is made from a base bead of copper green, overlaid with transparent pink enamel powder and decorated with dark ivory and copper green to get the beautiful organic patterns.
It just goes to show that playing at the torch is one way to keep your work innovative and fresh meaning my customers always get something exciting to look at.

Till next time.

Cheers,
Skye

 In 2010 I completed a course with an amazing Glass Artist from America, Andrea Guarino who introduced me to a wonderful silver fuming technique that creates the amazing effect that you see in the photo.
It never ceases to amaze me how spectactular Lampworking can be and how far you can stretch the traditional techniques.
The photo in this Blog is from a piece I completed as a trial for a competition in which I wanted to encase the technique that Andrea had taught me within the femal form.
As you can see from the photo I did ok with the shape and was really excited that the encased and fumed glass looked like muscles within the body.
I am really excited to play with this a bit more and see what I can make.

Cheers,
Skye

Beautiful things!

I am always amazed at the beautifl things that devlop in nature and most of my work is inspired by the world around me.

I was recently asked to make something unusual for a client that was going to a special occasion and this is the result.

It is a gorgeous mix of red glass flowers in a necklace with small seed pods.

It was inspired by my grandmother's garden. She always has something interesting and beautiful planted and it always makes me smile and so does this necklace.
Cheers,
Skye

How do you make glass beads?

Lots of people ask me how I make the beads and I had a beautiful friend of mine take some lovely photos recently that show me at work in the studio.
I dont think there is any other place that makes me as calm and at peace as working in the studio surrounded by glass!
In this photo you can see me working on the design of a round bead.
The glass needs to be heated to a motlen state and wrapped around the metal mandrel to create to bead.
In this photo I have completed the plain round bead but am heating a blue rod to add designs to it.
How much fun does that look ???

Cheers,
Skye