I have been clearing out the displays here in the barn and like I always do, I'm going to be making lots of new stock. So with this is mind and thinking of those who can't always afford some of the prices that lampwork beads have been fetching this year, I have decided to have a 7.99 sale every few months. I will be listing around 50 sets of beads in my ebay shop all on "Buy it now" and all priced at 7.99. Most of the sets will be well worth over that amount but those of you who know me will know I love selling off older sets and replacing with new sets, it helps me to keep improving, I hate standing still and just making the same old beads because they sell.

   I will be letting you know the date on which the sets will be listed and it will be a first come, first served basis. It will be in the next two weeks for sure and I will send out emails to as many customers as possible, I want it to be fair. I'm sure there will be lots of sets listed that you have seen sell for far more money, but as well as helping me get old stock out it will also, I hope, help some afford lampwork in their jewellery.

   It has been a busy week yet again but I have had time to make a few more of the dream beads. I must admit I love these beads, they have such a soft look and feel about them and I'm sure they will look fantastic in any piece of jewellery.

   The colours do make a difference to the beads with the light pastel colours being the best, but I guess any colours can be used.

   In the set shown I have used yellows and oranges to show how just some colours will look. I have also just listed a lime colour set on ebay which I think look great. I hope to play around again tomorrow with other colours and you never know I may even get some made with bright colours, yes me, bright colours haha, we'll see.

   It would be great to get some feedback from any of you on these dream beads, so your very welcome to email me with your thoughts.

   Its a wet a cold sunday morning here in the Fens and I was hoping for a nice bright day just right for photo taking, oh well, we can't have it all.  I have been taking photo's of jewellery for a project that I'm involved with but I'm just not happy with the pictures yet, so it is just a matter of taking more until I get the quality I'm looking for.

   I have been making a few new frit blends for my own use and they are working out really well, I love playing around with frit and I hope to start selling some of my blends in the very near future, I'll be letting you all know when I start.

   This set of lentils that I listed on ebay yesterday were made using a new frit blend. I wanted that misty wind look with the waves of the sea very much in mind, so the frit blend was never going to be too busy, three or four colours at the most. I think the results were great and having etched the set helped a great deal too.

   I better get off to the torch now, I hope to have a play around and make some mother of pearl  beads to place in the bead shop here on the website.

   I guess the first thing I need to say is I'm sorry for not updating this blog, but things have been mad here in the last couple of weeks. First  we had trouble yet again with our broad band connection, second time this year and ment we couldn't get online for three days. Then I had to catch up on orders so it was busy busy busy ! Now I can say I have just about caught up with with orders and commissions.

   So I'm back and glad to say back to stay. I have been working on a few new designs in the last few months including a lot of rustic beads and organics. The commissions have been interesting including the trio of lentil beads here in the picture.

   There were for a new customer Janet and I'm hoping she will enjoy using them. I was so pleased with the results, I have been trying to get a mother of pearl look for a few weeks now, and I think at last I have it right in this trio. I know a lot of jewellery makers love to use mother of pearl and I wanted to be able to give them both in a bead and I feel now I can go on and use the effect more.

   Well, it's sunday, the day of rest and I'm having a day off YIPEEEEE !!!  Its time I did this blog update also I need to list a few sets and focals. How different the weather is this weekend, bright and sunny, not cold, a real great spring morning, great timing has we put our clocks forward last night.

   The last couple of days I've been making orders and I must say any of you waiting for orders from the website shops, they are all on the way to you, all orders were posted out yesterday, so monday or tues you should have your beads.

   I did make some time for myself, playing with ivory colour glass and silver, the results were reat and here is one of the sets that i'm just about to list on ebay auction.

   I did add some pure silver to these beads but it's the darkness of some of the effect that I like the most. Yes, I know everyone makes Ivory beads with silver and always will, but it's good to try getting new effects and there are two I'm working on, just need to get them right before I dare show them off. I want to work more on the crunchy looking areas of the beads, using more silver, I'm sure I'll get there in the end.

   Yesterday we had snow and around 5 inches here in the Fens, it was great getting up at 7 to see a wonderful carpet of thick snow and more falling.

   I had to get the camera straight away to catch the moment and out into the garden I went with my dogs who were rolling around in the snow within seconds of seeing it. It's the most snow we have had here in one go since we moved here six years ago and it really did look like a different place.

  Then by mid afternoon the snow had all but gone, just a few traces left, just for once it would be nice if it stayed around for a few days, but at least we had some this year even if it did only last a few hours.

Today I have been packing orders to be posted tomorrow and in all having a day off from bead making. I'm sure I'll be back at the torch first thing tomorrow, wishing I was still sitting there looking out over that world covered in snow. I hope you have all had a great easter weekend and not too much chocolate !!

   Somebody did mention this weekend was a holiday, mmmmmmmmmm does that mean we don't need to work, YIPEEEEEEEEEEEEE !!!!!

   Ok, I have to admit I have made a few beads, but just a few, I wanted to make a few sets of hollow beads this weekend, it's been a while since I made some and I enjoy making hollows, there is something more natural about the sizes and shapes. Most hollow beads are not a perfect shape and to be honest if you look at the sets sold on the market you would be hard to find a set of hollows all the same size. But to me this all adds to the unique feel and look of the beads, they have a great look and why should a bead be perfect, why cant each bead be different ?

   I make a lot of beads and there are many types I enjoy making, but I think hollows are near the top of the list. Yes they take a little longer to make but there is something good about the way they form. When you make that last wrap of glass, joining the two sides together you then watch the bead form in the flame, that really is out of your hands, the bead should form on its own if you have built the two discs right.

   For anyone who as yet hasn't made hollow beads they are well worth a try and don't be put off by those who say they are hard to make, if we all did that we would never try anything, once your used to making them they are as easy as any other bead.

   After the last few weeks I thought it was time for at least a morning off, so with that in mind we decided on a morning trip to the local coast to walk on the beach and pick pebbles.

   We love collecting pebbles and I often use them for colour ideas. I have been mixing my own colours for a while now and I can spend hours making thick stringers of all colours, ideal for using as decoration. I remember one evening I was looking to make a soft pink and started mixing. After two hours I had a jar full of stringers in around 20 different pinks, I don't think enough people do this, they just seem to stick to the colours sold to them.

   For some of you living around the south coast who are lucky enough to have those wonderful blue seas, our coast may seem cold and dull, but I enjoy the beaches we have here in the east. The sea is always looking wild and cold from the north and it brings us so many  different colour pebbles, yet still leaves us some amazing sandy beaches.

  It was a great morning and after sitting watching the sea with out little bag of pebbles we were soon back here and on went the torch. I know it was just a morning off but it was nice just to relax, worth every minute.  

   It has been a very busy time here at the barn this last week with private orders to be made and the rest of the family coming down with colds, yes, I know the colds came from me, so I shouldn't moan.

   I have managed time to work on some stone effect beads and as you all know they are my favourite, so it was a pleasure. I'm hoping to get the website stocked more this coming weekend and here is just one of the sets I'll be listing.

   I love the different effects that these beads show, just like that of natural rock and stone.

   The stones I was looking for needed to be dark and magical, the kind of stones you would find in some dry sea cave, the kind of place used by unknown creatures over thousands of years, stones laid as a floor on which dragon scales have laid to rest, their hot breath giving the stones the dark look.

   I hope the other sets I'm going to list give you real cause to think of places and times we can only dream of.

   I have been working on a new idea, simple yet magical too. The focal I have shown here is the first of the Dragon Drean collection and I have already had some great feedback and interest in the beads.

   The Dragon dreams were left upon rocks all over the world by Dragons just waiting to be found and looking deep into the dream globe would show your dreams and in many cases take you back to to the time of Dragons and other mythical creatures. The colours of the dreams could vary a lot and in this collection I'll hope to produce many of the colours. 

   I will be selling these focals on both this website and on ebay auction so keep your eyes open for the different colour dream globes.

  With this focal I used Ivory base with some Iris and silver effects and then etched the base bead. In other beads I will be using real stone effecr base beads and have already done so, this gives an even more mythical look to the beads.

   I will be listing a couple of these focals later this evening on ebay auction, so it will be interesting to see what interest they get.

   First of all I need to say a big sorry for the lack of blog updates, but to be honest the last week has been a real crap one here. That cold seems to have hung on and I just had no get up and go. But I'm pleased to say I'm feeling great now and enjoying my bead making again, in fact I'm making some very different beads which I'll be showing you over the next few days.

   The frosts are back and they are very welcome, bringing some wonderful fresh mornings with them. Many parts of the country have had snow, but nothing here sob sob, it looks like I won't be getting the chance to sit at my torch watching the snow out of my window this year.

   Yesterday I had a day working with Ivory glass, making a few lentil sets and some larger tyre bead sets with large holes, these are very popular for use with leather thing or cord.

   These lentils were made with a turquoise centre incorporated in the raised swirl. I have made these beads a few times before and have seen them in finished pieces of jewellery too and they look great. They are soft in look and feel being fully etched.

   Man flu all gone apart from a slight cough but it felt so good getting on that torch again. I guess its rather like having an addiction, the odd days I do have off just seem to fuel my passion for beads even more and I can't wait to get going again. Its been over two years now since I became a full time bead maker and I can honestly say I have enjoyed every minute, even after filling so many rubbish bins with crap beads.

   You may have noticed I have been listing a selection of focal beads both here in the focal shop and on ebay (robsbeadsofglass). I have been making a few focal beads in the evenings and wanted to get a few on show. I always seem to get carried away when making focals and I dread to think how many there are in boxes in the barn. I find them a great way to try out ideas for bead sets. If I feel that say three colours will work well along with gold leaf then I make a trial focal using those colours, ok doing this does account for a few crap focals, but when it works I'm left with a really nice bonus focal.

   This pair of focals are listed here in the organic shop and I really like them. I don't feel they would ever be used together in one piece but both are great focals in their own right.

   I have fully etched both beads and the feel is great, I sometimes wonder if many people feel the beads they wear, etched beads give such a soft feel so try it sometime. I love this colour and the way it plays such a great host to silver, never failing to give great results.

  I'm not sure I'm looking forward to tomorrow morning as I really need to tidy the glass in the barn and believe me it's not the best job in the world, rods everywhere, bits of rods in pots, jars and tins and if I told you where mandrels have been found you would never believe me haha !  

   Well, I have struggled over to the pc from under the quilt on the sofa, my loo roll in hand and a sore nose that already make me look like cocco the clown. I bloody hate colds, like all guys I guess I make a big thing about it, unlike most women who always just seem to work on through it.

   So, an easy day for me here, I did manage a few sets this afternoon, and among them I made some sample beads. I do this a lot, I make odd beads when I have ideas on colours. They get strung up in the barn along with many others.

   I guess other bead makers do the same and I often tell people how in years to come they will walk into this old dusty barn and find this sad old bead maker working at his torch with the barn full of strings of odd beads, hanging from everywhere. I can imagine them rubbing off the dust and finding these wonderful beads, designs not seen before, but hold on, the barn is getting like that already and I'm getting old too !

   Well  I better get back under that warm quilt and let the world carry on around me while I run bead ideas around in my head.

   No frost this morning and its not that cold, but we do have yet more fog and by the sounds of it so do most parts of the country. I had a nice surpise as I opened the kiln this morning, yesterday late afternoon I had made a set of Spree beads with a mixture of olive green and rust brown all encased in clear Vetrofond.

   The beads are far better than I expected, so much so I just had to come in onto the pc and let you see them. The colour mix is not one I would go for every day, but they seem to work and the results are rather like the rock formations found around North Wales.

   This just go to prove that sometimes the colours you wouldn't dream of mixing can indeed work. I know we all use the well know colours pairs such as Turquoise and Orange, Ivory and Turquoise or black and lime. We see hundreds of sets made from these colours over a year and maybe its time we all started looking at the colours we leave standing gathering dust.

   A little trick I try is to select eight rods of different colours, lay them out on my worktop and then pick out three with my eyes shut. Ok, I know I make some real "in your face" sets, but believe me, some of the sets I have mad in this way have made the odd customer very happy and some have sold for very good prices, so go on, give it a try and let me know if you get on ok.

   I just wanted to show you the sight from my studio window, the sight I was lucky enough to be seeing today, all day. Yes the barn was freezing this morning but nothing the kiln and heater didn't fix and the fact that I could sit working next to a warm kiln looking out on a garden full of this was well well worth the hour of coldness early this morning.

   I think you have all guessed by now that I love the winter months, its a great season with so much going on, plants budding up, leaf buds on my fruit trees and birds looking so busy.

   I have been working too, I promise, orders were made and I have been working on some enamel beads this afternoon. Also I was making a few sets of Spree beads for a customer.

   I'm hoping to have half a day off tomorrow, visiting family in my home village in Hertfordshire, I try to vistit as often as possible as we are a close family and a big one too, I guess a lot of village families were. So its with fingers crossed that I hope we get another fantastic frost filled morning tomorrow.

   The mornings this last few days have been a real pleasure with Jack frost staying out to play until lunch and indeed on one occasion never leaving our garden. The barn is freezing at first but the heat from the kiln and the odd heater soon help to warm the work area and by mid afternoon the place is very cosy.

  I have been working hard this weekend I promise, with orders all posted this morning and even new sets of pebble beads being made. I thought I would do a few sets of pebbles in the mythical designs with some matching silvered spacer beads, small pebble sets, keeping the cost down and yet still enough beads to help make some nice piece of jewellery.

   The set seen here are made from a real mixture of glass, some Effetre soft glass with Reichenbach glass and silver adding to the design. I decided five pebbles were enough plus the six spacers. The size of the pebbles needed to be bigger to make up for number and yet I had to keep a size that wouldn't be too chunky to wear with comfort.

   I knew I wanted to find a sea feel in the beads and with this in mind I decided to use one of my favourite blue glasses, the glass gives a wonderful mythical look, with some clear patches but also more cloudy. I'm so pleased with the finished pebbles and don't worry there are more in the kiln as I type this blog. I have just listed these along with a smaller set on ebay to see what the feedback will be and please feel free to go take a look and comment.

    It has been a good day here in the barn, but it started very foggy once again, it has been like victorian London here this past two days. I had a good day at the torch, making a lot of sets and some orders too. I made a few more rustic sets today and listed two more on ebay from yesterdays hoard. I alway get people asking whats the best thing about being a bead maker, being in the warm on cold days ? starting when you want in the mornings ? or just being your own boss ? well, yes all of those go to help make this job so good but there is one thing that really gets to me every day and I mean every day.

   After long days at the torch, or difficult days , the days when everything goes wrong, there is always the next morning. When I say this I mean the excitement of that few minutes when you walk into a cold studio, turn on the radio and the heater then open the door to the kiln. You take out all the mandrels, each holding at least one bead and while walking to the cleaning station you try to see the look of any new beads that were made that day before. Its like being a kid at christmas, trying to see what is under the tree. Some mornings its a real let down, with colours not turning out the way you wanted but then some mornings its just amazing how beads can look far better than you ever expected. So you see, that one small amount of time goes a great deal of the way to making this job the perfect one.

   Here is a set of my "Peach Sands" rustic beads that I made yesterday, really simple beads but they just have something about them, maybe its the colour, maybe the etching, I don't know, but they have that little something. The set are all made on the bigger mandrel so the hole size is around the 3mm size, making them perfect for those who wish to use them with leather cords or thong and they are a good size bead too, far bigger than spacers.

   This set is listed on ebay along with a few more of the rustic range, hope you get time to take a look, any feedback is very welcome.

   I have listed a few sets of rustic beads on ebay this evening, I like making the beads for customers and they always seem popular here at the barn, so with this in mind I thought i would give them an outing. I the problem I have is that I feel people will just think they are spacer beads, but that is far from the truth. These beads for a start are a lot bigger than spacers, in fact some are a lot bigger than the tyre beads I make. They are all made on thicker mandrels, giving a large size hole, ideal for those who wish to use leather cord or thong and all the colours are rustic, browns, greys and greens, all the natural colours we find in nature all year round.

   I have seen these beads used with leather and they do look good, the teenage generation seem to love them used in this way and indeed will change colours many times. I think its all part of our younger people feeling more importance for nature now and loving the rustic look and feel of things, I remember being a teenager of the late 70's when fashion was so very different, the girls wanted only bright colours and sparkle, and no, I won't be putting any pictures of me in the 70's on here haha !

   But now the younger people really do go for the more natural colours in their clothes and in the jewellery they wear, you only need to look on tv and you'll see how many are wearing natural coloured beads and I think they look great. So with that in mind I thought a range of rustic beads would maybe go down ok with customers, fingers crossed.

   I stood unlocking the barn this morning and all I could think was "what a fantastic day", the sun was already out and the sky was blue and even with a nip in the air, what a great morning, "any bead maker could only enjoy working on a day like this", I thought.

   I started the day as normal, empty the kiln, clean and wash the beads from the day before, string and sets that I need  for posting and then cuppa and get the torch lit. I was then called from the house as my glass supply from the guys at Tuffnell Glass had arrived, I'm always like a big kid when I get glass even though it was just basic every day glass I need for stock.

   Then I started work and was looking to make a set of lime caves. They were a set of beads I had made over a year ago and they sold within minutes at Harrogate Bead Fair. I had been clearing out some old bead pots in the barn at the weekend when I found one of the beads from the set I made. So I just had to make another set.

   These are the beads in question, Ivory colour beads with those clear windows in the surface allowing you to see the lime silver inside the beads, this kind of bead always seem to put smiles on faces.

  I think I might look back at some more old favouries , there may be the odd gem to be found.

   What a fantastic fresh sunday morning, just one thing wrong, we have no snow. Many areas around us here have had a few inches this weekend, but we had nothing, what a pity, but maybe we still have time before Spring is upon us. You may have guessed by now that I love the snow, always have since being a child and the thought of sitting at my torch looking out the window to see a thick white covering of snow is one that appeals to me.

   I have been playing around this weekend with pebble beads and one of the sets I came up with were these shown here in the picture.

   I like the way ivory glass can play host to many different colours and one of the best being amethyst. So i thought i would give these a try, I didn't want lots of colour, just windows looking into the beads and I'm pleased with them. I have tried over colours too, the old favourite turquoise, but most bead makers use turquoise with ivory, including myself, so i thought i would so the amethyst.

   I'll get off to the torch now and I hope your all enjoying your weekend and maybe some beading too. And when you see that snow falling and your all moaning about the cold and getting to work in it, remember that sad old bead maker watching it from his window with a big smile.

   I wanted to show you another new set of spee beads that I made this week. Its funny I like blue as a colour but I don't seem to use it that much, I don't know why because when I do I feel the resulting beads are always to my liking and are very popular with customers.

   This set are made from a mixture of transparent and opaque glass and of course I did manage to get the odd piece of silver in there too. Again I choose the spree bead because it has a lot more weight to it and i find the round edges seem to show off more of the design. These beads I left with fully encasing in clear, the use of the transparent glass gives so much depth without having to encase.

   Any feedback is very welcome, I would love to hear what some of you think about using more blue in my work.

   Now cuppa time over its back to the torch and I think I may be raiding the blue glass tubes again.

   Well I did promise to show you a set of the new spree beads and here they are. I have been playing with sprees for a while and I love the size and weight of this kind of bead. They are much larger than their smaller cousin the lentil bead, giving a much more chunky look to jewellery and the rounded edges help to give a better feel when worn.

   In this set I was playing with the rock effect that I use so much in my work, in fact I think I could just make that kind of bead for the rest of my life, there is no end to the different combinations you can try and every time I take them out of the kiln I honestly never know how they will look, its amazing, the more you look into the beads the more you see.

   With the beads being encased this helps magnify all the small details plus after flame polishing the beads they look superb. I hope to show you more new beads tomorrow but for now I better get back to my torch, cuppa breaks can only last so long !

   The last few days have been very enjoyable here, I have been trying out new bead ideas and still my luck seems to be holding with some really good results. To be honest I'm not sure why, but my beads seem to be improving so much since the new year, maybe there is someone up there looking down on me.

   I have been making more leaf beads after the success of the Winter Forest set and this is one set that I have been trying.

   They are made with the same look but I have been adding different hints of green to the design, in this case its a transparent that is running through the leaf, making every leaf very unique. I have also started making a few bigger leaf beads which we all feel would look great used as a single pendants, I hope to put a few for sale in the focal shop.

   I have also been making some new spree beads this last two days and I hope to show you tomorrow how some of them turnned out.

   Well, the focals are still coming and I started to list a few on ebay auctions last night. Tonight I hope to list a selection of focals here in the focal shop, so if you get time feel free to take a look. Its turning into a great week for me, the focals are making me smile, I guess I'm what you call "on a roll", for once the rubbish box is not over flowing with messed up beads. I love periods like this, times when most things seem to work out good, tho they don't come along that often.

   This focal is another of my turquoise silver style, I never get fed up using the glass in this way, if I ever get days when the world seems against me, making one of these brings a smile to my face, yes a smile, even if some think I'm a grumpy old sod haha !

   These beads are really popular with many customers and I guess the turquoise helps a great deal. I do make the same style with purple, emerald, blues and ambers and believe it or not, I even make a tiny amount with pink glass !

   I would also like to show you one of the sets I have just listed in the organic shop here on the site. They were made using silver to get that stone look and feel but I have been working on mixing transparent glass of late, so thought I'd give it a try in these. The two colours used produce a wonderful mixture of purple hints and gold and to be honest I'm bloody pleased with them.

 I think after these working out ok, I may be making more in different colours, I hope in the future to see these in a nice pice of jewellery, fingers crossed.

   This week along with the orders from the website shops I want to make new stock for the focal shop and also add new auctions on ebay.

   I think you all know by now that I would be very happy to spend the rest of my beading life making focal beads, just letting my mind run wild and filling the kiln with the most wonderful and the most ugly beads.

   I have been looking at the local coast here for some inspiration and the results so far are very pleasing, well to me they are. The Norfolk coast as a life of its own in the winter and still so full of interest, no crowds on the beaches, just the odd dog walker and the rolling seas, full of magic and so much danger too. The sands are so much darker this time of year and what a great time to pebble hunt.

   In this focal I used a wonderful new Vetrofond glass because of the dark sand colours and wrapped around the bead is a river of silver and iris as if the bead is held tight, keeping it in place.

   I hope to show you more focals as the week goes on and I hope you will enjoy at least some.

   Being a full time bead maker for me is a bloody fantastic job, yes it has its bad points and yes there are the areas of bead making that I can't stand, like the politics and those who always find things to moan about, such has the prices others are charging etc etc, all very sad people, but all in all its a wonderful job to have and the good points far out number the few bad.

   One of these good points is being able to see the finished jewellery my customers and friends create with the help of my beads. This week I have been lucky enough to take some pictures of jewellery from one of my regular customers and friend Joy McCall.

   In this picture you can see that she has used some of the dark red pebble beads along with some nice silver, making a really nice piece and mixing the natural shape of the beads with the elegance of the findings, in all a very nice bracelet indeed.

   I get to see a lot of work from local customers and I hope they will carry on bringing them here to show. I find it amazing how the same design of bead can be used in such different ways and I'm lucky enough to get to see most.

   So, you see now why I feel so lucky to have a job like this, making beads and knowing they will be used to great effect one day and I hope going a little way to helping make someone very happy with the jewellery they are wearing. Now back to my torch, cuppa time over here and there are a lot of customers out there to please.

   I just wanted to show you my latest set of leaf beads. The beads were made last week at around 8am while looking out onto my frost covered garden. This gave me the idea of the forest floor in mid winter, frozen areas and yet still so many colours around.

   There are ten leaf beads in the set and I thought I would add the nut shell looking spacers to add to the winter feel. I love winter and so often I feel people miss so much about it. The countryside is full of interest at this time of year and the colour range is so large.

   I know a lot of bead makers use flower colours and shapes to help with bead design ideas, but hey, come on guys, get out there on a frost filled morning and open your eyes, winter has lots for you to see, she is a wise old lady.

   It is the first day of my new listings and it's really nice to get back into the swing of things. I have already listed more new sets on this site and on ebay I have put three new sets up for auction, this will be followed by more tomorrow.  All this week I hope to add beads to both website and ebay and I must admit it's nice to start afresh again. I think the ebay shop was becoming a little stale so a fresh start was called for. It has helped me too, after the rest this christmas and the need to make sets for the new display here at the barn, my work seems to be a lot better, well in my eyes it is, others may say different, but then we can't all be perfect can we.

   One of the sets I have put on auction this morning is the "Davy Jones's Locker" set, I think these are one of my favourites, not because they are the most amazing beads but because they are just what I was after when I set out to make them.

   I wanted a set of beads that showed that lost seabed look, a set of beads that could have been found after a hundred years laying on the seabed, then dried out in the sun. I had an idea of the dried salt giving the beads a rough surface and the odd streak of rust from any minerals in the beads.

   I think I got it this time, they show all that I wanted and more, the colour is spot on, the suface effects are right, they even feel how I imagined. So for a bead maker to be over the moon about a set of beads doesn't always mean the beads are the best looking beads ever, but more importantly, they are the beads he or she had in their head. This has only happened a few times for me and I'm guessing for others too, but what a way to start 2008, I just hope its the start of things to come. 

   I just wanted to show you another set of beads I made this holiday, I must admit I'm really pleased with the beads I've made in the last couple of weeks, I think it's the fact of having more time and less rush rush orders.

   When making this set I was looking for that fire look, dark orange and golden yellows, all the flame colours but in a organic look to the beads.

   I think I came close to the look I was after, and the set being fully encased in clear glass brings out every little detail, of which there is a lot. The silver comes out really well between the fire orange and I'm sure these will go a long way to helping make a wonderful piece of jewellery.

  I hope you all enjoy a great evening and 2008 brings us all some fantastic beads.

Happy New Year !  

   Well, it's been and gone yet again, another Christmas came and went, is it me or do they go faster the older we get ?  I hope you all have a great christmas and your all looking forward to the new year. I found my way to the barn a couple of times over christmas, of course by accident, because as you all know this holiday is for resting haha !

   On one of these accidental visits, I thought it would be best just to try the torch, just to make sure its ok you understand. I found the best way to check it was to make just one set of beads and this set is the result of this little check.

   First of all, I love spree beads, the size and thickness making them an ideal size for jewellery, so this is the shape I chose. I wanted a set to add to my mythical display here in the barn and my old favourite the Dragon came to mind. These are fully encased and by doing so, this magnifies all the details. Its an exciting time here at the moment making new sets for ebay and the shops here on the site. I think a set of these might find their way here to the organic shop. 

   First of all I want to wish all my customers and friends a very merry christmas and a wonderful new year and thank you for putting up with my ranting and raving over the last year. It has been a hard year at times here but it was knowing such nice people that makes all the struggles and work worth it, so thank you, all of you.

   I hope to be listing beads over the holiday period and cleaning out my ebay shop, its time the shop was brightened up and I have so many new ideas in my head that I feel I could fill it with bags and bags of new beads. I want to add lots more beads to the bead shops here on the site including some of the really strange work I've done, you never know someone out there might be interested in them and it is better than keeping them in a box covered with cobwebs in the dark corners of the barn.

   It's been nice to get so many new customers this year and a lot of locals too, there seems to be a lot more new people getting involved with bead jewellery making and I'm sure the hobby will grow and grow in the next few years. Even in the two years that I have been bead making full time the world of UK beading has gone crazy and I hope it will continue.

  Hope you all enjoy tomorrow and I hope you all get what you want in your christmas stockings, just think there will be beads wrapped in christmas paper under trees all over the country tonight, let's just hope Santa don't like beads !!!

Merry Christmas

   Today is my last working day before Christmas and I just have a few things to clear up. I had problems with my kiln this last week so for three days I couldn't make beads. Yes I know some people would say you can make beads then batch anneal them later, but thats not the way I work. I find that placing my beads into the kiln straight from the flame is by far the best way for me and the lack of cracked beads backs this up.

  One of my customers buys a lot of beads from all over the world and she always asks why she never gets cracked beads from me. All I can tell her is that I anneal straight from the flame and a lot of bead makers don't, or indeed some bead makers sell beads that have been cooled only with a fire blanket. There is no secret to the way I anneal, there are many makers who do the same, but I sometimes wonder if all bead makers understand about annealing. You see people stating that their beads have been kiln annealed for 10, 12 or even more hours, but why ?  I'm sure these people believe that they are cooking the beads and the longer they cook them the tougher the beads become, well I'm sorry but in my opinion this is wrong. I feel that the most important thing about annealing beads is that they all cool at the same slow rate in the kiln. So I guess because I concentrate on the cooling of the beads, this is why I get such a good success rate with cracked beads.

   Of to my torch now for that last day, but I'm sure you will be hearing from me before the big day and through the holiday as I get stuck into giving the site and ebay shop a new look.

   It's almost here, tree is up ready, lights and decorations all in place and the barn is full of festive cheer, but someone please tell me when the work stops !!!  This time of year can be very slow when it comes to sales and commission orders, but this year that has not yet happened.  I guess I should be pleased having so much work, but I really feel its rest time at last.

   I need to take time out and spend Christmas with the family, they have been fully supportive all year and I thank them for that. I dread to think how many nights I have worked into the early hours without a bad word said to me, or maybe they prefer me being out in the barm, have I been missing something here?  Also without the girls doing the bead fairs this year then I wouldn't have done them, full stop !

   I have a big list of jobs to do in the holidays including a complete overall of the website and ebay shop. I have some really good new bead ideas that I might work on too, thats if I manage to creep out into the barn without being seen !  Also I hope to spend some time doing some work with silver, I have made a lot of beads ready to silver core and also I have made a good selection of cabochons, so I want to do something with those too.

  Well, I better get back to the torch and I wish you all well getting ready for the big day.

   Last week I decided to start placing some of my unusual beads on the website to see if the would get any interest. I think you all know by now that my evenings are my time, time to try out new ideas and learn new techniques, so I seem to gather a lot of odd sets here in the barn, beads that I hold back so to speak, sometimes they sit in boxes for months before I get persuaded to list them on my site of in ebay shop.

   The Sneeze beads are just one of the types that fall into this category and so into the website bead shop they went. The first set sold on the day they were listed and even visiting customers here at the barn headed straight to them. So I have made more in different colours and some etched which I will be adding.

   This set were made using a mixture of transparent Effetre glass and I felt they looked much better left unetched, showing off the amethyst hints more. The shape may not be the standard for a bead, but there is just something about them I like. And to think these have been sitting in a box since late July.

   At last the bead fairs are over for this year and I must admit I'm very relieved, the thought of having time to build up my website and ebay shop really brings a smile to my face. I have started adding more bead sets to my website and I hope to be placing at least one set on there each day, building up a far better selection.

   The ebay shop is also getting sets added each day, more auction sets are going on and you'll see the shop is having a total revamp. I plan to keep a good selection of bead styles on ebay, but you will find that more sets will be placed on auction, giving a better chance of getting a bargain.

   I have been playing around with more of the organic beads this week and one set I'm pleased with is this driftwood set. There is something about the darker brown colours that really excites, these colours never stop producing great results.

   In this set I have used some silver to add interest, I found it gave more of a rustic look to the beads. Often on driftwood you find those very dark areas where the layers of timber are worn away by salt water.

   This sunday there is another bead fair at the Newmarket, the fair is not the biggest in the world but is well worth a visit. The girls will be there selling our beads but yours truely will be here working on some commission work and maybe the odd family visit.  I'll be sending plenty of new beads plus a good selection of silver core beads and focals, so if any of you are going I'm sure Yvonne and Nicola would love you to pop by and say hello.  

   Today was a transparent bead day for me, I really enjoy these beads and they seem very popular with customers. I find the etched sets give more detail than those unetched and the etching gives the beads a real soft look.

  In this set I have used light turquoise and a pale purple in a base of clear. I have been making these beads in many colours over the last few months and my own favourites are the amber or pale greens, but then I'm one for the more natural colours. A nice plain bead but one that can make a nice unique piece of jewellery without too much support. 

   It has been a real busy time here and I now know that the decision to do less bead fairs next year was indeed the correct move for me. I sometimes wish that I could just concentrate on my website and ebay shop rather than keep trying to juggle all, but then I feel that the fairs do help gain new customers, which is always very welcome.

  Having to make stock for the fairs every few weeks plus making beads for ebay shop, auctions and this site really is getting too much, yes I know I love working all hours, but next year had to change. So with  us only doing nine fairs next year I'm hoping I'll be able to produce a lot more beads for this site, also the amount of customers who now visit here is growing so a lot of beads are needed to keep up a nice display for those people. My commision work really has taken off this second half of the year and I do enjoy it, tho some requests take more work than others which I guess helps keep the mind working and the ideas coming.

   I have also just started a new exciting project along with a few really talented jewellery makers which I hope will be ready to show you early next year, so as you can guess, my days are long and my evenings too.

   On the bead side of things, I have been working on new colour combinations and I always think encased beads are the best way of showing the different effects. The beads shown here were made with that feather like design in mind, it works well when trying to find which colours pair up best. Often it turns out to be the colours you least expect to work that turn out the best. Here I was using lime and turquoise with just a hint of blue which I'm really pleased with. I think I get carried away sometimes and the box of tril beads here show that haha, but hey, how else will I ever get to find that perfect bead, a few zanny colours won't ever hurt.

   Its that wonderful time of year now when we watch the winter creeping in upon us and what great colours it brings in the countryside. We can only be inspired by the leaf colours and the mist filled mornings, giving us so many ideas for bead colours and designs.

   It has been a busy few weeks here and this week is no different, making new stock for the bead fair on sunday at Harrogate. It's always a nice fair, never too busy but the people up there are always really friendly and interested in the beads.

   Just one more fair this year at Newmarket next month and thats it for another year. We have decided to only do nine fairs next year and no more, I'll be adding a events page to the site later which will have all the 2008 fairs on it.

   I'll be working on a lot of sets for the christmas period in the coming few weeks, but I guess you all know by now I wont be selling the usual snowmen, santa and christmas tree beads, they just aint my kind of thing, but I'm sure there will be hundreds for sale from other bead makers.

   I'd very much like to thank all those who have been interested in my silver core beads and to those who have obtained them from me. Its always good to get great feedback from buyers and makes this job really worth it. I was never going to go down the road of mass produced rivets for doing the job, I wanted to make them the way silversmiths have for many years, I guess its that learning a new skill thing again and for me ready mades don't do that. I'll be adding a lot more to my ebay shop (beads of glass) on monday I hope plus they will be making their debut on this sit next week.

   At last a relaxing weekend, I never thought I'd ever get another this year. I spent the weekend taking photo's, listing beads on ebay and here in the bead shops and best of all I spent a couple of evenings making the silver cores for more Troll beads. These beads are fast becoming one of my favourits, being a good challange in both bead making a silverwork.

   I can remember a couple of years ago seeing a picture of a silver core bead in a glass art book, and remember thinking how on earth did the guy do that. Its so strange how over time we all learn these skills, now looking at pictures and thinking, mmmmmmm I know how they did that, I'll try one. I think we all go through this and when you stop and think, it shows how far we have come and we should be proud of that.

   I have been making some trolls with more natural colours this weekend, the nice creams, dusty browns etc, the real" Rob colours", the times I get told off by customers for not making enough pinks, purples and reds haha !

   Well, I'll let you into a secret, there are pink and purple troll beads on the way, so the boring old fart as at last took notice. But in the mean time there are a few more natural colours being listed.

   This first bead was made with some wonderful new opaque glass to which I added some light brown and ivory, letting the swirl design work the tree colours in together.

   I always use sterling silver for my cores and I keep the hole size to just over 6mm, making them ideal to use with most troll bracelets or 5mm to 6mm round leather.

   I was lucky enough to see some pieces that a customer made using my troll beads and she made one piece using a silver troll bracelet, boy did it look good and as she told me, that piece was going nowhere, it was for her only. I also think these beads look great on round leather cord when used with silver ends and toggle, they are more natural looking and the kind of necklace a guy could wear.

   This next troll was made in the same design as my rainbow stones, being colourful but still natural. I have made one or two more like this and I'm sure they will be used in some nice pieces, fingers crossed.

  I guess I'll be out in the barn playing with silver for many weeks to come, and I hope my beads will bring as much pleasure to those who use them in their work as they do to me making them.

   I have been busy this last week or so but I did manage to find time to make some new focal heart beads. I was asked by a friend and valued customer to make her some hearts in my stone look design. Well being one who loves a challenge I set out to see what I could do, yet did I know that I'd still be enjoying making them weeks later.

   I knew she enjoyed working with the focals I made without to many fancy extras, edge cuts, weather holes and raised swirls, so I set out to start off with plain stone look hearts, these were fine, but there was something missing and I was convinced it was a little colour that I needed.

  This was to work out just right, giving in my eyes, a fantastic look, including colour but in a very natural way, the slight colour combinations that we miss so very easily when passing stone and rock every day in our lives

  In the heart shown I have used a couple of really light greens, the results are better than I wished for. These hearts are great to use on their own but also I have made small stone like spacers to use with them.

   This week is becoming a very busy time here, with a lot of new organic bead orders and the bead fair at Uttoxeter this coming sunday, the days just don't seem long enough. I remember when I was thinking of going full time making my beads more than one person told me I'd end up putting a lot more hours in than I expected and wow, were they right. I'm just so lucky that the hours never become a bore as I love making beads. This last four or five days I've been putting in 14 hour days but I seem to be making some nice new beads and I hope the quality is getting better as the months pass.

   I've been working on a few new beads this last week or so and the Silver Core Troll beads are coming on well, I'm hoping to have a good selection to put on my website next week. I hate listing beads that I feel are not ready, I mean beads that are not to a standard that I would buy myself. I Will be listing Troll beads without silver cores as these seem to sell well from here at my barn, most of which are in the mythical or stone effect style.

   Here you can see a few of the silver core beads that I've been working on and to be honest with you I really enjoy working with the silver, it adds so much to the beads and after a few trials it's not as difficult has I first thought.

   I know there are lots of bead makers making silver core beads now and I guess i'm just behind the times but I always try to teach myself new beads, as I did with the hollows and it gives me something to do in the evenings, which as you all know by now is my time, yes I know its just an hour every evening but after a week or so you would be surprised how much you can learn. I'm not sure yet what is next on the agenda, there are still so many things I want to learn and I'm sure I'll find something, so far it's been Vessel Beads, Hollow Beads, Silver Core Beads and Encased Spiral Beads. I guess I just want to learn, I was ok at school, never the clever one, more like the one who was out on the football pitch , but all my life I've been keen on learning a wide range of skills, which can't be bad can it ?

   All bead makers seem to find a style of bead they enjoy making and become known for, some make lots of hollows, some like to make floral beads and some are known for there wonderful encased beads. I have an idea of where I'm heading and I know which beads I enjoy making the most, but I guess time will tell for me.

   It's been ages since my last upday here on the blog and the main reason being that I've been working some long hours this last few weeks. Because of the great success we had at the Lingfield Bead Fair, I had to make a lot of bead sets to stock up for Haydock Bead  Fair. This along with the fact that I had to Keep new sets and focals going into my ebay shop, ment that I had far too much work to do.

   I should never moan tho, its far better having too much work than not enough and with it being the summer months to be busy is great news. Some people say this time of year is slow and I agree, so I'm lucky. I have had a lot of commission work to do and had a lot of new customers visiting me here. Its been great meeting new faces and a lot more local to my area.

   I'm working on some beads that I've always wanted to do this last few days and I'm hoping to get some on for sale in the next couple of weeks. Its really exciting knowing I have taken another step on my learning journey. It's strange that a couple of years back I was looking at beads in books or on the net and thinking, WOW ! how did they make that. But now it's a different matter, I now look at most beads and have a good idea of how they are made, I guess its just time as we all gain so much experience.

   I have made a few nice sets this week, one being these tyre beads, they are now on auction on ebay and I hope they find a good home. They are one of my favorites, I'm really pleased with the look and I think the iris colours really make the beads unique.

   First of all I'd love to thank everyone of you who obtained beads from our tables at Lingfield Bead Fair. The girls had a great day and enjoyed meeting some old faces and lots of new customers too. I was here at home working on some orders hoping that you would like my beads and to my relief many of you did.

   I must admit I had yesterday off so we could take a drive up to see the Tuffnell guys in Driffield and it was a great day, I always enjoy their company. So back to the torch for me today and work work work !! The beads are really coming out ok this last few weeks, there are periods of time when all the hard work pays off and the last week or two this has been happening for me. I have been trying a lot of new bead designs and some of the results have been really pleasing.

  The focal side of things is working out well and I'm still making hollows when I get the chance. There is one problem tho, I seem to be using a lot more colourful glass, I'm even using pink at times in focals, boy whats happening haha!! Me, making beads with bright colours, whatever next ?

   This focal is on ebay auction at the moment and I have to say I'm very happy with it, I have been making more focals like this and indeed some colours really work well in this type of design.

   I'm sorry for taking so long to update my blog, the fact is I have been really busy this last two weeks. I had to make all new stock for the Lingfield bead fair, which is on today and I have been getting a lot of orders from the website shops too. So at last I find I have a morning off to sort out the site.

   My wife and daughter are at Lingfield selling and I'm hoping they do really well. They love going to the fairs so often it's me who gets to stay home looking after the dogs while they get all the fun. No, really I don't mind not going, I hate driving around the M25 so I tend to go to the fairs which are North of here. The next fair we are doing is Haydock Park which in in two weeks at the end of the month.

  I have had some time to make more focals which I hope to put in the website shops this week, they seem to be getting very popular with customers and I'm finding a lot of new customers are buying from me which is also very welcome.

   This focal shown is one of the Hag Stone type beads I'm making. They seem to be getting a lot of interest and I have had some really nice comments about them. I guess a lot of you will already know the story behind the Hag Stones but I'll go through it quickly here.

   Hag Stones are stones found on beaches or often around the rocks at the cost which have weather holes worn through them, holes made by salt water the rain or just large amounts of bad waether over the years. These stones were and indeed still are by some, kept hung over the door of their homes to help keep witches away. For me the interest is in the way these stones give that very magical and mysterious look and feel and this is what I try very hard to copy.

   It has been a great week for me having made a lot of beads even by my standards. A lot have been put away for bead fair stock ready for Lingfield next month along with Haydock Park too.

   There have been sets made for ebay and commissions also and I seem to have gone etching mad this last few days. I think most of my customers already know how much I like etched beads and I never hide the fact. I have also been making some more large groups of tab beads, these seem to be popular with customers, giving the choice of using them in one large piece of jewellery or maybe using some of the larger beads as focals, either way they work really well.

   In this set I used one of my own frit mixes to get the colours I wanted and I'm really pleased with the results. The beads have hit the two points I was after, the etched organic look and feel yet still being full of colour.

   I have had a lot of ideas for other colour mixes and indeed there are already a few new sets sitting here ready for Lingfield. Its funny really, in my opinion over the last say, six months etched bead sets have at the very least doubled on ebay. I guess it just a fashion thing and there will be another design taking over soon, but for me its nice to see these etched designs making the headlines and I hope people are enjoying using them.

  I have been working on other beads too, hollows are still my main hours relaxation at the end of most days and I'm hoping these hollow sets will get a lot of interest at the fairs next month. Also I have been making a lot of focals, always my favourites.

   I have started making some new beads which will be going to Lingfield and all I'll say is they are very girly for me haha! But I'm sure they will be popular, fingers crossed.

 This is one of the many focals I have made this week and is listed in my ebay shop along with a few others. Making focals is so enjoyable, you really can let your imagination go wild and the funny thing is, sometimes after making a focal you feel its not what people will like, but no, along comes a customer who can't wait to get their hands on it, thank god we are all so very different.

   The last week was interesting for me, I have had a lot of feedback over my new moon nuggets that I listed on ebay. I had a few customers visit here and all were amazed with the effect of the designs. You can't really see how the beads look inside in pictures but in life when you handle the nuggets you see the effects running rite through the beads.

   The size of the nuggets makes them interesting, being large enough to use as single focals or to use in a chunky piece of jewellery producing the real "WOW" factor.

   I have made a few sets and they have been selling well but I would love to see how they are being used. I have made a few bright summer colours and I'll be listing them when I get time.

   There seems to be a fashion in the larger beads at the moment and the bright summer colours are still in demand, even if the summer is trying to hide from us all.

   This last week as been a real organic week as far as bead making goes. The beads I sell here in my website shops are becoming more popular and in particular the organic beads. Its really nice to see new customers getting interested in my beads and makes all the hours at the torch seem well worth it.

   I have listed a couple of pebble sets on ebay but I'm really not sure if they will sell, its strange really, how different bead designs sell better from ebay than those from websites. I have spoke about this with a couple of other bead makers and they say the same, you seem to get two groups of customer form. To me the website sales are always so very welcome, saving ebay fees is a bonus and I must admit I do sell some of my more daring, unusual sets here on my website shops.

   The new nugget beads are getting a lot of interest from customers and customers who visit me here can really see the designs better than in a picture. Its funny, I was just playing around with ideas last weekend and came up with these beads, yes, I love the swirl designs and always have, but placing the bubbles into them really adds something special.

   Now i get to play with colours to find which works better, there is no end to the combinations I can try. Because of the way the beads are made they will never be small, they will be around the 15mm size and bigger, making them ideal for focals as well as sets. I'll keep you updated with new colours I try.

   The new stock for the Lingfield bead fair is starting to take shape, with a lot of new ideas for people to look at, I'm making a lot more mythical sets to take also, these are popular and I'm always being asked about them. But there will be a lot of summer coloured sets there, these always go down well for me, yes I know I have to force myself to make them, but I get there in the end haha. Its just that you should all know me by now and now I'm more into the natural colours.

   What great weather we are having here in the Fens, the last few days have been bright and sunny, maybe summer is here at last. I have been working on orders this last few days but at last all up to date and the last are being posted tomorrow.

   I had a chance to make a few silvered sets this weekend, one of which is this purple set of square tabs. The six smaller beads are matched with a nice large tab focal. I'm pleased with the way these beads ended up, I wasn't sure if they should be etched, but I think I did right.

   I'm just starting to place new sets to one side for stock to take to Lingfield Park Bead Fair in July. I really have had a big spring clean here in the barn, selling off a lot of the older sets to customers and listing some on ebay this last month. I love to change things around every few fairs, I hate taking sets to more than three fairs, I always think they look tired. And the look of the table is important to me.

   I have had a few commission jobs this last two weeks, and most are for wedding jewellery. I guess its that time of year, all the summer brides who want some stunning hand made jewellery to wear.  I must say I'm enjoying making the girly beads for a change, lots of flowers, roses and clear frit beads.

   Its been a busy week here, the commission work is really picking up and I'm making lots of new sets which will be listed in the next few days on both ebay and here on my website.

   I have been working with silver far too much in the last few days so today I went lentil crazy. The press as beed red hot all day. I think most of you know by now that using a press is not one of my favourite beading techniques. I love the hand formed styles, but I have to admit that lentil beads really are very popular with all customers and they do show off the designs more than tyre beads.

   This set were listed yesterday in my ebay shop and even I can't fault the results. I wanted to encase a real soft summer look bead and thought lentil would be the best shape to go for.

   I have made a few different colours and I'm hoping they will go down well with customers.

   I would like to thank those customers who have used the beach beads in their work. I wasn't sure if people would like them but they do seem to be popular. They are fun beads and I think we should all have fun with the summer ahead of us. I'll be adding more to the range this coming week, some colours are rather on the bright side but I'm sure some of you will be daring enough to use them. I would love any pictures from customers who have used them in their pieces.

   This second set of lentils were made using lots of silver and iris designs. There are for sale here on my website and are getting some interesting remarks from customers who have been here in the last few days. The opaque glass was important to the beads, I had to get that smokey purple effect when they were etched, I think I got it right for once. They are an interesting set and I just hope they get used well.

   First of all I want to wish you all a happy relaxing holiday and I hope you really enjoy your day whatever you decide to do. It was ment to be a day off for me, we have a list of jobs to do in the garden, but we are having rain here in the Fens, so I've been saved YIPEEEE!

   I'll be making a few beads later and there are a few orders that I need to clean and post off also. I'm also hoping to get to make a few more hollows this evening, think I have the hollow bug. I just find working on them helps me slow down at the end of the day plus I get a nice surprise the next morning when I empty the kiln.

   I have a set of encased beads that I would like to show you. I made them last weekend and I really like them. They were made by encasing a mix of blue swirls and the encasing was really thick, helping to show off the design far more than normal.

   I just started playing around with swirls and gravity beads, but thought the two would look good mixed together. This was the results, ok they are not the best looking bead