Silver and Copper

It's been a while since I was last here with any news and as I've recently been telling more people about my blog I thought it might be a good idea to update it!

So, lately I've been working on a few commission pieces, some earrings for the artist Lia Melia.  I'm really fond of the bass/treble clef pair so might just have to make some more of those for myself.                               

I've also been concentrating on pieces that are either just silver in simple shapes and designs or are lightly embellished with a small semi-precious stone.  

Details of all of these designs and many more pieces of my jewellery can be found on my website www.arcjewellery.co.uk
I also recently made my first pair of copper earrings.  These are for my sister who doesn't like silver  so I made these copper earrings with a deep blue facetted agate bead.  Copper is a metal that I only usually use for practice pieces, when I'm trying out something new or a little complicated.  However, she's really delighted with these and I was also pleased with the way they turned out so I may start using it a bit more.

I've also been busy putting together my Etsy shop www.etsy.com/shop/arcjewellery

I've just added a few things for now to see how it goes.  There's a great community feel on Etsy with lots of teams to join and forums to contribute to.  A really good way to get networking.  These leaf drop earrings have proved to be very popular on there so far...

Don't forget that you can shop online at www.arcjewellery.co.uk for the items listed here.

Beads from Vietnam...

A lot of my current pieces of jewellery contain some lovely agate beads in rich, deep purple, bright citrus orange or with mystical black dragon veins.  I thought you may like to know the origin of these beads...

Earlier this year I was lucky to have the opportunity to visit Vietnam.  Whilst there we visited one of the many floating, fishing villages in Halong Bay in the North of the country.  Like in so many of the villages the people were struggling to make ends meet and were trying to raise money for books and equipment for the village school through the sale of crafts, gift ware and beads.  I bought several strings of agate and jade, which are lovely quality and have such beautiful colours with flashes of silver or deep, rich veins of colour running through them.  I was pleased that I was going to be able to create some lovely pieces of jewellery with these and that the proceeds were going to a really good cause.

This is the school house and some of the children, who were incredibly friendly and loved having their photograph taken.

The class room

A game of football in the playground

The ball spent a lot of time in the water...

Here are some of those beads used in simple long pendants with the addition of silver hearts and leaves.  All of the beads are a good size, the largest being approx. 2cm x 1.5cm with lovely colours and patterns running through.

Many others in different designs, with twists and curls of silver, can be found on my website where you can shop online...
www.arcjewellery.co.uk

Why not join arc jewellery on Facebook...
www.facebook.com/arcjewellery

Web updates and postal option changes...

Well, it's been a busy couple of weeks at arc jewellery.  I've been creating some new designs and additional stock for some upcoming events as well as trying out some new tools and techniques.  I managed to find time to photograph my work and restock the virtual shelves in my shop at www.arcjewellery.co.uk 

There are some classic pieces here as well as some more unusual designs.

I have also decided to review the postage options available to customers when purchasing jewellery from my online shop. In the past I have preferred to use the Royal Mail 'signed for' service so that I can track when parcels are delivered.  However, I have discovered that quite often a signature isn't even requested and the parcel just gets put through the letterbox in the usual way meaning that no tracking information is available anyway.  

The other side of this is when the postal service do insist on collecting a signature and the recipient is out.  They then have the inconvenience of having to go to the sorting office to collect the parcel themselves.  

With all of this in mind I have decided to offer 4 options for UK delivery still using Royal Mail:
First class, Second class, First class 'signed for' and Second class 'signed for'.  

There are two options for overseas deliveries: Airmail standard small parcel service or Airmail 'signed for' parcel service.

I think there is still the occasional need for using 'signed for' especially when sending a gift that you want to track to make sure that it has arrived safely and on time.  For the most part though it seems that regular post is not only the more convenient but also the most cost effective option.

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June showers....

I hope that you have all enjoyed the bank holiday weekend and jubilee celebrations!  
Another rainy day here means that the long walk and picnic that I had planned just isn't going to happen...
Oh well, on the bright side the garden doesn't need watering and it has given me the opportunity to update my website :) 
Things have been going a bit loopy at arc jewellery this week as you will see from some of the new pendant designs.  I've also been playing around with ear wires and rather like these little curled and forged ones on my latest pairs of earrings.  

You will find these and other new additions at www.arcjewellery.co.uk.


I have been receiving some very flattering comments on my Facebook page recently (www.facebook.com/arcjewellery) about my photography.  I really enjoy taking photographs but am by no means a photographer.  I think it's important to lay the pieces out well and in interesting ways, silver jewellery seems to photograph better on a matt background but after that I have to say that it's all down to the camera;  I just set it on auto or macro and hope for the best.  My camera does appear to know what it's doing so I just let it get on with it.  I'm usually pleased with the results (although a lot do get deleted) and I'm very grateful for all the lovely compliments that I've had....thank you!

Leafy earrings and something for him...

After a very busy week of making I thought it was about time that my website, www.arcjewellery.co.uk, got updated.  I've added a few new pairs of earrings including a couple of pairs of stud earrings, plus a some ring pendants with blues and greens.

I'm quite often asked if I can create some more masculine pieces, so I'm starting to put a small collection together to see how it goes.  This necklet is the first piece and more will be added during the next few weeks.  

Follow the link for more details on this item or to purchase it from my website - http://arcjewellery.co.uk/ProductInfo.aspx?ID=145

Sunshine and Crystals

I have been making the most of the gorgeous sunshine this week and that lovely natural daylight to take some more photographs of my work.  Some of my more recent pieces include tinted crystal beads in various bright summery colours.  Crystal beads photograph really well with the sun shining through them, they really light up and glow.

These bright, colourful earrings would make a stunning addition to a summer outfit, the crystal catches the light beautifully as they twiddle around in a hammered ring of sterling silver, showing the deep veins of rich colour that run through the beads.


They are available to purchase through my online shop

 

This lovely deep turquoise crystal bead also hangs in a hammered ring of sterling silver to form a stylish pendant.  There are stud earrings to match this piece with some dangly earrings coming soon.


I've added a few more pictures to the album on my Facebook page  www.facebook.com/arcjewellery and will be adding more items to my shop at www.arcjewellery.co.uk very soon...


Long may this glorious sunshine last!!

Web site launch!!

I'm very excited to be able to show you the new website for arc jewellery that was launched today!!
www.arcjewellery.co.uk

There have been a few hitches and glitches along the way with the web design and the technical aspects underneath but we got there eventually and I'm very pleased with the result.


It will of course evolve as the weeks go by with new pieces of jewellery and items of news being added but take a look and let me know what you think....