Too much snow

Here is a photograph of our drive, although the weather does't seem quite so cold there snow hasn't started to shift yet.... could be a while before I get out

Snow

It has been snowing here since Wednesday and is lying quite deep around the house and studio.  Although I really enjoyed being snowed in at the beginning of the year at the moment I am struggling with it, I think it has come too early.  I am really lucky that I don't have to travel anywhere to go to work, just boots and coat and a (very) short walk to my studio next door.  Although the stove is lit and it is not particularly cold in there I have found it difficult to make myself work, preferring to snuggle up with a book and my dog on the sofa in the house. Today I have decided that I need to get a grip and start to think of the snow as an opportunity and as inspiration.

On Thursday I was supposed to be doing a workshop at the museum making paper snowflakes to decorate the tree; these being inspired by snowflake drawings done by Captain Scoresby Jnr. Ironically I couldn't get out so am just hoping the tree got decorated.....

 Here is the snow outside my door today and some of the paper snowflakes I made as examples earlier in the week.

More work, at last

It seems like ages since I actually made anything!  In the past couple of days I have had a chance to get back in the studio and work again.  These pale blue beads are my first two attempts to make Melon style beads, based on some ancient Roman beads.  I haven't yet got the grooves accurate or even enough, but am quite pleased that I am beginning to understand how to do this.

These tiny enamelled leaf earrings are part of a commission 

I have threaded these grey and purple beads onto nylon coated steel cable, with a small silver catch fastener.

These beads are inspired by the sea, plants, waves, sea creatures.  The fifth bead from the left has tiny copper shapes cut out and encapsulated in the glass.  I was trying to make them look like shrimps!

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Enamelling from the Esk Valley

Today was the final day of our enamelling exhibition at the Pannett Art Gallery in Whitby.  I have really enjoyed seeing visitors peering at the work on a number of occasions as I have passed through the gallery on my way into the museum.  There have been lots of nice comments and it has been encouraging that we have each sold pieces too, especially in the present economic climate.  Tuesday morning we will be taking the work down and packing it, some of it will return to the walls of my studio which have seemed a bit bare for the past six weeks.  Although I haven't done much enamelling over recent weeks I have done bits of sketching and am getting ready to begin working on some new ideas.