Fruity bangles

I have been so busy of late that I haven’t blogged, and I’ve not felt inspiration to do it either, sorry! However a couple of weeks ago I did show you a WIP of a custom apples and oranges bangle I was making, with matching earrings. It took a lot of clay slices and effort, but I think it was worth it! I would be happy to custom make these again, but they are too fiddly to list in my shop on a permanent basis!

On another note, I went to the Festival of Quilts and spent too much money on fabrics. I cut a strip from one of them and embedded in my first tall bangle! It needs a bit of sanding but I think it will look great!

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Down on the Farm and a new supplies shop- exciting stuff!

As newsletter subscribers will know, I’ve started delisting some of my ranges, some of which will merge and others I feel uninspired by and don’t feel like making again. This was partially to streamline and partially because I wanted to introduce a new range… and so here’s a sneak peak of my new range “Down on the Farm”!

Also I have taken the decision to open a supplies shop on Etsy and Folksy. I’m waiting for my delivery of ribbons, but once I have them, you can expect to see some of these pretties…

Stuff I’m working on

I made these medals this week. After asking for feedback on Crafteroo I’ve decided they are a bit too big, so will be looking at smaller “medal” and thinner ribbon combinations because I think the proportion is just right. Also looking at a better way of attaching the ribbon, and after suggestions I think kilt pins are the way to go! I have a couple more designs up my sleeve too.

I also made this belt with a swirly resin buckle. I’ve decided to stitch the next one differently (I’ve ordered some plain fabrics) and also I invested in some denim strength needles for my sewing machine as things got a little hardgoing at times! I’ll be making buckles to sell alongside the buttons in my shop.

Also I blogged previously about the colour core bracelets. Whilst I have been busy with orders (an amazing thing considering it is January) I have managed to finish one of them which is now for sale!

Custom orders have been really popular and today I finished this bangle for textile designer Aisling Law using pieces of her canvas inside. I think it came out really nicely!

And here’s a peek at other stuff in the works, I have a couple of wholesale orders and a few fairs coming up so it’s a case of catching up with the inventory too, and I also want to use my new power tools to make rings out of pool balls and also get a set of boot bracelets completed and up for sale soon so I’d better take some deep breaths and break out the sandpaper!

Work in Progress – coloured core bangles

These are nowhere near finished yet, but this shows you some other plans for 2010. These bangles have coloured cores to make the outsides stand out. The lace is in clear resin with an opaque black centre, and the fish bangle is clear with bits of green wool with a transparent blue core. These need sanding and polishing, but hopefully soon they will be finished and added to the PennyDog shop!

Quiet times

I’ve been a bit quiet on the blog front recently- it’s been busy! I’ve been doing fairs on both weekend days, writing articles and also making up custom orders and shop wholesale things, not to mention I had a TV interview/audition for a BBC programme on Monday!

Nic of Murano Silver said I should make pink girlier coasters, so I did! I also made this strawberry themed bangle recently and a gingham bangle for Tia, I feel like I’m on a bit of a summer picnic theme at the minute!

Just need to list them tonight!

Make 50: Week 46

This week’s make is a submission for the Upcycle Christmas competition run by Folksy. The Carnaby bangle is made with plastic beads from a charity shop and will go up for auction for Sue Ryder Care in a few weeks time.

On another note I am at Bungalows and Bears in Sheffield this Saturday afternoon selling my wares, and also at Rawlins Community College, Quorn, Leicestershire on Sunday if you wanted to pop in!

Make 50: Weeks 41 and 42…. and um… 20.

I’ve been trying to figure out why I had a picture missing in my Make 50 set on Flickr. Turns out I jumped from Week 19 to 21. Oops. So here’s three new things to share…

Gardening cufflinks

Glitter cuff (not available for sale as has been sent off for secret project)

Haberdashery paperweight

Only 8 more to go 🙂 In other news I am working on my own range of moulds, just hoping the quotes for production aren’t too scary! I will also be selling more unusual colour of dye in a new Etsy shop as well as on www.pennydog.com

There’s still a bit of time to sign up for the first Rothley Craft Farm workshops too, including the resin jewellery workshop with me! Have a look at www.rothleycraftfarm.com for more information!

New stuff going on

I’ve been making loads of new stuff recently, so thought I’d share some here as my blog post today 🙂

  

  

  

Thank you Miya, Make 50: Week 20 and other stuff…

Sorry this post has been a while in the making- my laptop spectacularly broke and I’ve been working on articles and other stuff as well as going to unsuccessful craft fairs!

Firstly, the garden swaps should all have been dispatched by now, so if you haven’t got your package, you should expect it quite shortly, and please share photos on the Flickr group here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/1121311@N21/pool/!

I didn’t photograph mine, so hoping Miya will do when they arrive (any day now!), but here’s what she sent me!

From left to right… Four little stitched notecards- I love these, very simple and useful for everything… A little fition book based around real life photos with a Gocco printed cover (I think- Miya please clarify this one for me I’m a bit dumb!)… A green pouch with seeds as an interesting spin on the edible part of the swap… a biiiig floral bag, perfect for all my kitchen miscellanea… Some fabric to add to my ever increasing collection of interesting designs and some earwires which are always useful!

Thank you Miya!

For my make last week (yes I need to blog another later this week) I actually finished a couple of Heart on Sleeve cuffs. They are completely handstitched, edging, buttonholes and all. If you’re subscribed to my newsletter, you probably know this already, but they are a new bracelet concept, here’s the official spiel:

“Wear your heart on your sleeve with a new concept bracelet from PennyDog. This bracelet is made from fabric and backed with felt and designed to fit snugly around the wrist like a shirt cuff. This cuff will fit a wrist circumference measurement of 15cm. The cufflinks are interchangeable with others in the series and create a snug fastening.”

Only available at www.pennydog.com

I also have some new stuff in the shop, so keep your eye out as I’m currently going through a phase of adding new, here’s a few new bits…

And I should probably introduce you to Fletcher, Penny’s great-nephew, who has joined the ever increasing number of animals. Now we live in a bigger house we can have two dogs, though he has caused quite a lot of strife in the two weeks we’ve had him in the form of peeing, vomiting, jumping, stealing, running away for miles- and I haven’t even paid for him yet! Luckily he gets on with the Penz fine!

Make 50 Week 18 and 19 and a small request

I’ve kind of made two things this week, so I’ve decided to catch up as I think I fell behind a little while back. This bangle has vintage sewing pattern inside and reclaimed buttons and was made for vInTaGe VioLeT, who has been providing me with little tags to label my jewellery up.

I also made a ring with watch parts inside using a ring blank from http://www.dichro-findings.co.uk – they have loads of great things to choose from, so I think I will be paying another visit. Now I just need to name the ring so I can list it on Etsy and Folksy!

 

I went to Breedon Priory today again and picked up some awesome saucers with orange trees on them (not pictured), I plan to put these on the wall. I also got this exercise book, the pages are dated 1911. I got it because I really liked the drawings inside, and how the images of animals were drawn to support a mathematical exercise (pig pen size).

 

I also went to Staunton Harold and picked up some scrap fabrics from the quilting shop. I love scraps, because even tiny pieces can be made into jewellery, and the small parts make you appreciate the bigger pattern. This is where my request comes in! I would love to buy or trade for any fabric scraps you have with small designs on, so please get in touch if you can help! kerry (at) penny-dog.co.uk