I am teaching another class at Shiney Rocks in Bristol.

For more info, head on over the the Shiney website

When you are making jewellery to sell online, the second most important thing is good photography (the first being making quality pieces). If someone is browsing a site with poor photography and blurred photographs they are going to be put off. Making sure your photographs are good is vital and not difficult.

I have a rather expensive camera because I am doing a degree in photography but you can do everything on a much smaller budget. An SLR is best but a good quality compact camera with a macro function can work well. I use a special macro lens which means I can focus very close to jewellery but if you don’t have this then just work as close as you can whilst still keeping focus. You can always crop the image later on to get rid of all the space around the piece of jewellery.

The flash I have is a separate unit that attaches to my camera, this means I can direct it in whatever direction I want. I point the flash upwards to bounce the light off the ceiling. This diffuses the light so there are no sharp shadows. If you don’t have a separate flash unit you can put some tissue paper over your onboard flash to diffuse the light or work outside. If you are working outside with natural light, cloudy days are better. You will notice that there are no harsh shadows like there is when the sun is shining. If you live in the UK like me then you won’t have to wait long for a cloudy day!

Put some thought into your background. So many people photograph on plain backgrounds which look lovely but you want your photos to be different and stand out from the crowd. Create your own style. All my photographs are taken against a light brown background with driftwood and pebbles. Choose simple things that complement your work and don’t distract from it. I’ve made a small set in a cardboard box – it’s not very glamorous, as you can see! I took a long piece of paper and curved it so that there was no corner between the bottom of the set and the back. This eliminates any lines and harsh angles in your photos.

My high-tech set!

I’m not very good at explaining it all but if you have any questions please do ask and I will attempt to answer them.

My beautiful girl will be four tomorrow!! Can’t believe how quickly the time has gone by! She is my constant inspiration. She brightens every day and I love her to bits.

First birthday

Second birthday

Third birthday, poor Pixie was behind bars with a broken pelvis

Fourth birthday – TODAYYYYY

Because my work was featured in Beads and Beyond Magazine I got a voucher to spend at Beads Unlimited.

I didn’t actually buy many beads, just a few little silver spacers. I did however, get lots and lots of fimo!! Can’t wait to get to work with this stuff!!

I was knocked for six yesterday when I received a phone call from my mum to say that Pip had died. Pip was our family dog and my best friend in all the world when I was a teenager. We had her mum, Midge, from a puppy and I was 12 when Pip was born. She got me through very tough times when I was a teenager, always being there to listen to me and make me feel better. She had a wonderful life living on a farm and going on thousands of miles of walks over the years. She was the most wonderful little dog in the world and I miss her. I am dreading going back to my parents house next weekend, knowing that she won’t be there to greet me.

Rest in Peace little Pip. Hope you are with your mum now.

I thought I’d have a go at making a spirally version of my Enchanted Entwined pendants. I like how it has turned out. It’s pretty heavy though! There’s a lot of time and wire gone into this one.

Now I’ve had a go at making the beads, it’s time to incorporate them into my jewellery. It’s made me realise that round beads aren’t necessarily the shape for bracelets, I think I prefer flatter beads. I think the round ones will be more appropriate for necklaces. I am going to experiment further with the clay and see if I can make the perfect shapes for the kind of things I am making. That’s the joy of making your own beads, they can be made just the way you want.

I’ve been wanting to make my own beads for a while now but to do great things with polymer clay you need a pasta machine. I decided to treat myself after teaching my class on Saturday and so now the adventures begin.

The beads above are inspired by Ronna Sarvas Weltman’s book Ancient Modern. It’s a wonderful book full of great inspirations. I am sure I will be trying lots more of the ideas in the book.

The leaves below are from the book How to Make Polymer Clay Beads by Linda Peterson. I’m really pleased with how they turned out. I want to try some of the faux stones in the book too, especially the turquoise.