Sarah Downton Beads and Jewellery

Monday morning

At last…I’ve finished. Well, my tax form isn’t filled in yet, but hopefully my MIL will be helping me with that bit. I’ve got all my info logged on spreadsheets ready to go. Woopeeeeeee.
So that means I can at last get back to doing what I love most and that’s making beads. Can you tell I’m excited? Unfortunately I appear to be suffering with another cold that snuck up on me Friday, and I’m not sure whether to venture out and try lampworking today, being under the weather can be dodgy when playing with fire….but shhhhh, don’t tell Rick, it’ll be our secret.

It’s been a really lovely week and a bit (even with my tax stuff looming overhead). I’ve had the privaleadge to meet and teach 5 students in the last 8 days which was fab. I don’t think I’ll ever get over the thrill of helping new flame workers make their first beads. Needless to say they were all really pleased with the selection of beads they each took home, I just wonder if they all dreamed of making beads in their sleep afterwards, like I did. I remember my beginners course very well. We set off to Plymouth and stayed in a B&B for 2 nights. The second night (after my first day) I dreamt I was melting glass and rotating mandrels all night, I was very restless, but in a good way. There was just something about it that grabbed at my soul and still does, which is why I think I’m going to have to go and get some torching therapy. see ya.

Friday evening

Oh I’ve been a busy bee this evening.  I’ve made a few updates to the information on this site.  Details of the Surrey Guild gallery can be found on the outlets page, and a link to the website on the links page. I’ve also updated my tuition details announcing the second workstation, so ‘learn with a friend’ is officially here. yipee.

We have an early(ish) start tomorrow as we attend the first of our official Christmas do’s.

We can be found at Croham Hurst School, Croham Road in South Croydon at their Craft Fair, from 11am to 3pm. We will have our usual mix of my contemporary glass jewellery together with my fun fashion ranges and my hand-crafted silver chains, bangles and earrings.

Monday evening

Hello. It’s nice to have a bit of time to blog again, but oh dear, I didn’t realise it had been nearly one week, eek. I’ve been spending the past week designing a few new pieces of jewellery to put in my cabinet at the Surrey Guild gallery in Milford, and generally making up new pieces and organising everything I need to do for this. I hope to get this set up this Thursday, so look out for details later this week. I’ve also been preparing for 2 days of selling this week at the Bromley Adult Education Centre where I attend a class one afternoon a week. It’s lovely to have a day focused on jewellery making, which was how I got started on this lampworking obsession, and time with other people who love designing and making jewellery, and going to similar exhibitions and events. It’s very easy to become insular when doing any type of work or craft alone at home every day, although my joining a few groups has been very good with making new friends locally who love all things arty.

Anyways, this evening I’m taking a bit of a rest and am sitting on the settee with my feet up. I know things are going to get more frantic as my local craft fairs start this Saturday, and I have to start restocking my jewellery for sale by the weekend and want to have my batteries recharged at least a bit so I can work efficiently. I’m resisting the urge to go and clean all the beads that my last 4 students have made. I’ll do them tommorrow, hee hee, honest govner. Evening all.

Tuesday evening

Well hello there, at last a few minutes time to blog. We had so much to do to get the studio ready to accommodate 2 students, which included changing a worktop, buying under bench storage frames, sorting shelves for them, reorganising tools, glass, and generally moving everything, that poor Richard didn’t really get to celebrate his birthday properly yesterday. Added to that I was teaching all day Saturday, and we were out all day Sunday, and I was out all day yesterday so we’ve only just stopped. I think that may be why a migrane is threatening to rear it’s ugly head. Mind you, at least the floor got a quick wizz of the hoover this morning (cheers rick).

So the good news is that we had a lovely day today, we all fitted in the studio nicely, my students made some fab beads and were really pleased with themselves. My studio looks great without the shelves and now needs a lick of paint to make the remaining section of wall white, and a bit of time to cut lengths of waste pipe and glue them to the shelves to make a posh rod storage thingy-ma-jig. While tomorrow my next panic starts, ho hum….I really know how to get snowed under with stuff to do. Night all.

Saturday evening

Brrrrrrrrrrr. It’s definately cooling down for winter. It was 0.5 deg C in my studio yesterday morning and 5 deg C today, although Rick had put the heater on to warm it up before we went out there. I’ve had the joy of teaching several beginner beadmakers lately and have 2 more coming together next week, so it’s a relief to finally get my spare oxygen concentrator and second torch hooked up and working. Rick changed part of the worktop last week so we can accommodate a second student, and I’ve been buying the bits to furnish a second workstation and to posh up my glass storage, which at the moment consists of long cardboard boxes stowed on the shelves in the studio. Those are coming out to make room for 3 people at once in the studio (2 students and little ole’ me). Oh it’s so exciting, I love changes, especially when it’s for the better.

Of course I will be sticking to my one to one lessons, so if you book on your own, that booking is one to one, unless of course you want to bring a friend to learn with you. I will never add another person to a one to one booking that has already been made, but I’ve had so many requests for 2 friends together lately that we felt we needed to do something. I’m off to put me feet up with a coffee now, have a good weekend.

Thursday Night

Ahh…that’s much better. My second lampwork session this week, I had to take a break because of the intense heat, and haven’t torched for one month…eeek. I’m now spending time in the evenings topping up my bead levels in anticipation of the GBUK bead fair next weekend (Bank Holiday). I’ve made some more variations on the Hydraengea theme, some penguins and a few more dotty fish. My days are spent helping my daughter with her art projects, trying to tidy the house (bit of a no hoper that one) and trying to find time to design and make some new pieces of jewellery.

I’m also now starting to get excited about my course next week with the Michaelangelo of the bead world, Loren Stump. You can see his work at his website. I’m doing his 2 day Murrini course, which is face cane, and I can’t wait, even though I’d rather be doing the Sculpture course. After my experience with Kate Fowle earlier this year, I’ve learnt that there’s so much more to taking a class with a guru than the main subject. It’s facinating to see the way other glass artists manipulate the hot glass, and watch their individual techniques. I’m sure I’ll be exhausted and full of ideas when it’s over.

Saturday evening

hellooooo. a quick blog before I turn into bed, well, go to bed, not actually turn into a bed, that would just be silly. I’ve had a lovely day today teaching a new student, (Hi Julie) and I’m going to pop down to the studio in a minute to check on our dichroic beads, can’t wait to look and see.

Yesterday we took my daughter out of school and went to Art in Action again in Waterperry, just outside Oxford. We had a leisurely trip up, parked at my friends mums house in the village, then had a very civilised mug of tea and catch-up with old friends before walking up the road to the show. Such a lovely show to visit, loads of marquees specialising in different diciplines from woodworking to metalwork, jewellry making to textiles, asian arts and sculpture, painting, drawing, ceramics, performance arts, and of course glass. Everyone who is there demonstrates what they do, and are allowed to sell their work so you can just go around all day watching artists do their thing. There was also a craft market, a materials maquee where you could spend lots of lolly, and an exhibition of the Best of the Best. I do like days out like yesterday, but I’m absolutely shattered now, so night night.

Thursday Evening

Hi there, just finished another day’s work, well I finished half an hour ago and took time out to munch a bowl of Crunchy Nut and watch my favourite comedy show at the moment – ‘My Name is Earl‘. There were some really funny lines tonight, mainly because they’d given all their money away and were getting desperate for food, the funniest line being Earl replying to Joy

“Send the letter…I’ve already bought a stamp and I can’t take it back because I let Randy lick it for lunch”

Many apologies this week, my email’s been up the shute and I know that a few of them haven’t got through, this includes my contact form, so PLEASE if you sent me one on Wednesday, or I have failed to get back to you, please resend and I will.

Late Wednesday evening

Phew, we just got home half an hour ago after a fun filled day at the Mastering suite in Rochester (Cyclone Music Productions). We spent most of the day (10 hours) working on mastering the recording that Rick and I have been working on, and are still amazed at how much difference can be made to a recording at the mastering stage. It now sounds really lush and sweet!

Fortunately me for me (but not my purse), Creative Glass was around the corner and of course I had to go and spend some dosh………

The day has also given me the opportunity to work on course notes and details, while listening very intently to the music, so I will put more info up in the next couple of days.

Monday afternoon

AAhhhh, I feel strange man. I returned home from my first taste of Acupuncture this morning, and oh I feel weird. Good weird, a bit spaced out and amazed at how good it was. It remains to be seen whether the course I’m about to embark on will make any difference to me, but at least I get to lie still and relax during the day instead of having to work or do housework, LOL.

It’s half term this week so no beady making for me unfortunately, I suppose I could go out in the evening but just can’t face the cold! I’m still working on dates and details of my courses, things are starting to come together so more news soon I hope.

Friday evening

At last, I’m done!  It was with much trepidation that I attempted to file my online tax return last night.  Actually it went relatively smoothly, so I had half a Fursty Ferret to celebrate and caught up on Wednesday nights Desperate Housewives and split my sides laughing at this weeks ER. Talking of telly, what an amazing advert Honda have out at the moment.  It makes us laugh every time we see it.

I’ve had several enquiries regarding my courses, so keep them coming if you’re interested.  I’ve found a perfect venue for my bead and wire courses, and would now be interested to hear when you would like to attend them e.g. weekday mornings 10 – 1 or Saturday mornings 10 – 1, or maybe you prefer an evening class type of approach.

The lampworking will be in my studio on a one or two to one basis and will be a 6 hour day.  I’m planning to book Mondays and Tuesdays term time for this.

More details on my courses will follow very soon.  Have a great weekend.

Saturday lunchtime

Oh dear, I still haven’t torched for a while now.  I have other mandrels in the fire (if you’ll pardon the pun) and MUST finish my tax return.  My time has been spent trying to tidy up paperwork and my workspaces (that includes the house!), and planning for my beadmaking year ahead.

If you’ve read my news on the front page you will have seen that I’m getting ready to commence teaching in my studio.  I will be starting with Lampworking and Bead and Wire as 2 separate courses but have other ideas for interesting bead and jewellery courses which I will be running sometime in the future.  Lampworking will have to run in my studio, but Bead and Wire can come to you if you wish!

I will be adding information on my courses very shortly, so please come back to see.