Stradbally Jewellery Design

Whats been happening?

2012-03-09T02:14:00.002-08:00

Fame at last!

A piece of our work was featured in the Irish Daily Mail this week in the 'Life and Soul' section. An article by Kim Willoughby showing a selection of handcrafted Irish things. Our new Ivy Leaf was featured and we are thrilled!

Busy Bees!

Ken and me have been working like trojans in the last two weeks. Our first eight week course of Jewellery making workshops started this week down at the Kite Studios. We were down there on sunday fitting a new jewellery bench, extra bench pegs and putting in lots and lots of lovely shiney new saws and files (although any one who makes jewellery will understand that the older the tools the better!)

The first class went great! A great bunch, really keen and everyone, including myself seemed to be enjoying it. We'll be taking lots of pictures of the workshops in progress and with the budding jewellers permission we'll have pictures of lots of their beautiful pieces!

New Jewellery Making Classes!

2012-02-25T08:42:00.005-08:00

Jewellery Making Classes at Kite Studio's!

Many of our customers have for a long....time been asking about Jewellery Workshops so we have finally given in and planned an eight week course of classes. There's no experience needed and you will get to leave with something beautiful and shiney!

If you want to express an interest for future courses just drop us an email and we'll keep you posted!

We're back!

2011-10-08T11:34:00.000-07:00

Well people, it's been a while!

I won't make excuses for slipping on the blog front but....... well, lets just say we have been busy and something had to give.

Since our last blog post there has been an exciting new development for us. What began as a humble operation in our back room on a jewellers bench made by my dad has now blossomed. We had moved into a studio and shop space right in the heart of Waterford city called 'Kite Design Studios'. The move has been great for us and we share the space with four other crafts people. It makes such a difference working alongside people who are talented and passionate about their discipline. So... that's our excuse! That and the two boys, two Canaries, four chickens, Albert the cat and about 100,000 bees.....yes, Ken managed to talk me into letting him house a beehive on our roof!!

Our first exhibition!

So, as a direct result of the Kite studio move we have our first exhibition. We are collaborating with Anne McDonnell, a fine art print maker from the studio.

Using traditional printmaking techniques,

Anne will etch designs onto sheets of silver.

This is then inked, printed and framed.

The silver printing plate will then be created into a unique piece of jewellery by us.

The beauty of these pieces is that they are one of a kind and we will be displaying a collection of these pieces as part of 'Imagine Festival', an arts festival in Waterford city. It will run from the 21st - 31 October at the 'Kite Design Studio', Henrietta St, waterford and will be called....

'Metal and Ink'

A quiet time of year..... Not!

2010-03-04T09:12:00.000-08:00

The family....

As i write this blog, trying to concentrate, despite a severe lack of sleep over the last two weeks, my two year old is desperately trying to burst my eardrums! It's amazing how as a mother you develop the ability to shut down many of your faculties to concentrate on the ones you need most at the time. Our house has been full of sickness for what seems like forever..... It has thrown any routine we had managed to mould with our children out of the window. We're now back to square one, little sleep, refusing to use a potty, picky with food and so on and so on.... You get the picture.

The day job....

I never mentioned the dreaded day job before but both Ken and me have one. It would be very hard to make a living otherwise, especially in this climate. I actually make teeth for a living, metal, porcelain and acrylic. It's very similar to jewellery making and many of the tools and techniques cross over. The dream is to some day be able to make a living out of our jewellery but that day is in the distant future. Ken is a filmmaker, mainly working with youth and community groups. His job is far more exciting than mine! I shouldn't complain though as so many people are looking for work at the moment in Ireland.

The dream....

The farmers market we attend every Saturday in Waterford city has been very quiet the last couple of months. To be expected after Christmas i guess and the god awful weather hasn't helped. Poor Ken can't get enough thermal layers on him standing at the stall all day! I should really take my turn soon but i have been sick, running out of excuses now though! Despite the quiet market and our new Etsy shop being off to a slow start we do seem to be extremely busy. We have just finished making jewellery for a wedding (mentioned in a previous blog). Sent that off on Tuesday so we're still waiting to hear from the bride with her approval. With her permission we'll post the pics up here after the wedding has taken place of course. Now we have another three commissions to fulfill. One for a present for a newborn and two that are to be along the same lines as our large silver torque, featured in this picture.

So it's busy, busy, busy....

The diet and exercise.....

Ooo, is that the time? Must dash!

Exercise is bad for you.... surely!

2010-02-03T12:08:00.000-08:00

Babies... I love them but they are no good for your figure!

My youngest little darling is six months old and i'm still working my butt off trying to get back into shape. I joined a boxersize class and had my first torture session last night. Actually i secretly enjoyed myself i just love having a good moan. My muscles are sore and i'm so tired i can hardly see this keyboard but i feel thinner already!

I don't want to be a size zero but i wouldn't mind looking like Bridget Bardot.... the first picture that is!
Busy Bees!

I was watching a program the other night that said you should have at least an hour to yourself every day, 'me time' to relax!!! I thought, i'm lucky if i get that a week. It's amazing how the hours disapear when you log on to facebook or Etsy. It's like entering a timewarp. A conversation with someone in a chat room can take 30 minutes whereas in real life it would be over in seconds. We have been quite productive in the workroom too this week though. Ken has kept the Etsy creations going whilst i have been forfilling commission orders.

Pandora, Pandora, Pandora!!
We have just been asked to make some charms for a pandora bracelet. I had never heard of them before now but the more i research them the more i realise just how massive a business it is!! Whoever dreamed up the idea of this modern take on a charm bracelet is a pure genious! Not that i like them particularly but they are a clever idea that keeps people buying.

An Aladins Cave for Adults......

I came across an intriuging shop on Etsy this week. The name grabbed me first which i guess means it a very clever name! 'Adult Indulgences'. A great start huh? Once you look inside you find a world of herbs and spices. I'd never thought of food as a gift before but the gift boxes in the shop are beautiful and there is flavours to suit everyone!

In their own words!

We believe that food should be an adventure, even if it doesn't cost a fortune or isn't eaten at the most expensive restaurant. Food is like love--it should be shared, savored, and explored. Our one ounce packets allow everyone to experience the spices of the world and to share that experience with friends and family. Our custom spice blends make fantastic gifts for the experienced gourmand or the beginning cook. All Adult Indulgences spice blends come with recipe cards that we use in our own kitchens. Gift sets also include a surprise gift!

2010-01-19T13:50:00.000-08:00

There isn't as much time in the world as i thought!!

I do believe i have come to a point in my life where i need an extra day in my life. Between two small children a nearly full time career and our jewellery making 'hobby' which has turned into another nearly full time career and the usual life things that you have to do but take up a lot of time like eating....sleeping...etc life has gotten out of control. I remember the good old days as a student when i could stay in bed or in a pub all day if i wanted but now.... well i guess i don't want that and i enjoy my life being out of control.... i just wish we could afford a cleaner to control that side of things as i didn't factor that in time wise!

Snow comes to Stradbally

We never get snow in Stradbally due to it's proximity to the sea. I've been here ten years and have never seen it lie on the ground. During the cold snap over the last three weeks we had one glorious day where it snowed from morning till night and to make things even better it was a sunday so no work and we all got to make the most of it. Conor (our two year old) made his first snowman and Ken was out having snowball fights....two big kids! I got to put the carrot on though. As Conor came inside for his dinner he said 'see you later snowman'!! Little did he know his new pal would be just a hat, scarf and carrot the next time he saw him.... Bless!

Stay away from our snowman!!

Delights we found on Etsy this week..

Even with life so busy i still got time to browse through Etsy this week and found a wonderful little shop called http://www.etsy.com/shop/BlueJeanBlanketsPlus

She create the most wonderful things. Beanies, bags and my favorite a blanket made from recycled Jeans!

BlueJeanBlanketsPlus has a givaway on a the moment too. To win a free tote bag click on this link...
http://bluejeanblanketsplus.blogspot.com/2010/01/free-tote-bag.html
Hope you like her shop as much as i do!

Ps... The bride seems to have gone AWOL.

Featured artist of the week Little Sun

2010-01-14T00:52:00.000-08:00

My Favourite

A beautiful selection of handmade cards. Unique and personal.
A little sun has appeared in almost all my drawings for the past 15 yrs.I'm adding new items all the time their just an inspiration away!
Thank-you for stopping by my shop. Hope you smiled at least once! Make the cards your own use them as thank-yous, get well
or just to drop someone w/out email a note.I write to everyone prisoners, service people, my mom, etc.
"If you do this unto the least of these you have done it unto me"--Jesus in matt. 25:40
Have a look at little suns blog http://www.littlesunii.blogspot.com

Ouch!

2010-01-09T15:45:00.000-08:00

Has anyone had their swine flu jab yet? Ken, Conor (our two year old) and me all got ours the other day. I have hardly been able to move my arm since. Getting no sympathy at home though so if anyone's got any to spare send it my way!
I haven't heard much about it on the news lately. Does anyone know anyone who has actually had it! I thought a pandemic might have reached the outer limits of our tiny village but Stradbally seems to have an immunity blanket wrapped around it. I'm not complaining i just want to know did i get a dead arm for nothing?

Can you see the blanket?

Wedding Jewellery
wanted.

We've been asked to create some pieces for a wedding that's on in England on St Patricks day. We love getting commissions of course but wedding ones are always that little bit stressful! I guess a lot of it depends on the bride and we're lucky that this one is the most laid back bride i think I've ever met.
Being Irish she's ordered a couple of pairs or our Hurley cuff links

A Must have for an Irish Wedding!

She's not going for the traditional dress though, it's scarlet with sequins and diamante bling. The necklace and earring designs have been left in our hands so we'll keep you posted and post photo's of the finished product.
Wish us luck!

New Year, New Blog!

2010-01-07T12:40:00.000-08:00

It's taken a while to get around to writing this blog. The 12 day Christmas market we did was simply CRAZY!(in a good way). We underestimated Christmas shoppers and had to spend every night after market making and polishing pieces. We gave ourselves no time to recoup from the long, cold ,market days and were completely wrecked by Christmas Eve.... It was great

For the new Year we are stepping things up a gear to try and boost sales, we'd love to give up our day jobs! We have opened up an ETSY shop. For those who don't know, it's an online haven for buying and selling all things handmade. We have added a Badge direct to our Etsy shop if anyone wants to have a look!

Our Wedding Day
Three years ago now..
Ahhh memories

Too Much Chocolate!
Never thought I'd say that I'm glad Christmas is over. Started healthy eating regime on Monday. Just me, Ken was blessed with a high metabolism. It's hard to be creative when you are starving and cranky from lack of Carbs but we have managed to make some new pieces this year already. I even managed to pose for a few pics (sucking my cheeks in)!

This piece is 'Leaf' from the pebbles collection.
It has a very dramatic texture on it. Some people say pebbles, some say it reminded them of water droplets on the leaf. Either way, i think it's quite an unusual effect. We did it by melting different sized, small pieces of silver until they formed balls and then hammered the hell out of them before soldering them onto the petals.... Very therapeutic, especially if you've had a row with your other half, saves you hitting them with the hammer instead!

A Closer look....

We promise to blog regularly and would love to hear your comments on our pieces, our blog content and anything else you might like to say, just be nice!
Claire and Ken

Bleedin Tea Leafs!!

2009-10-20T15:16:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
We're busy bees at the moment. We have a 12 day craft market coming up for christmas and need to drastically build up our stock for it. At the moment we probably have enough for two days...Panic!! Whenever we seem to be building it up we have a busy weekend at the farmers markets and we're back to square one!
We shouldn't complain, a sale is always nice however it happens. These are the pros and cons of the market.
One major con is that you are outside, open to the elements... and the thieves. Yes we had our first theft on saturday. They must have been either very good at what they do or very small because we never saw a thing! We shall have to get CCTV on our gazebo!
Anyway, it's a lesson learned and we'll be ready for them next time!

On a happier note we have made some pieces this week that we're pretty happy with. Maybe anger breeds creativity. Heres a couple of pictures that we promised.

This one is a simple clean elegant and abstract shape. Someone said to me it reminded them of a seagull??? I guess i can sort of see wher they were coming from but it wasn't meant to be anything, just a nice shape that will sit nicely at the collar bone. It's sterling silver with a fine silver chain.

This is a rustic style piece that looks great with a wee black number or pretty cool with every day jeans. It is beaten sterling silver circles, linked together on a thick silver chain.

I just love this colour stone! It's called 'Brown Goldstone' although it looks a bit pink in this picture. The stones are set on a saw pierced backing and have a nice dangle.

A chunky pendant, with a slight curve that was beaten in and a large 'poppy jasper' stone.

This is one of our mixed metal pieces. I love silver and copper together and this is swaged silver sheet with swaged copper sheet, facing opposite ways. The three panels are separated by silver tubing.

Anyway thats it for now, i've had a rant and we have shown you our new pieces. Hope you like them. Feels free to leave you coments and talk soon,
Ken and Claire

Our First Blog

2009-10-15T14:05:00.000-07:00

Hello people,
This is our first ever blog. Yesterday we didnt even know what a blog was. We are just not 'down with the kids'!

A bit about ourselves.
We (ken and claire) are husband and wife. We live in Stradbally, a small coastal village in Waterford, South East Ireland. We have 2 young boys, Conor who is nearly 2 and Cian who is 13 weeks.
We have started a small business, handcrafting silver jewellery and selling at craft/farmers markets throughout Ireland. Things are going well so far but we are hoping to branch out into internet selling and maybe get some pieces into shops.

Both of us have our own ideas and when we put our heads together it creates quite a unique style of jewellery.

We will be keeping you posted on the ups and downs of whats going on in our business and putting up plenty of images so you can check out our stuff.
Have a look at our website www.stradballyjewellerydesign.com
We will soon have a shop on etsy.com so we will let you know about that.

Talk soon
Ken and Claire