Hello Beautiful Beaders!
Earlier this week a small child in the shop asked me if I was a reindeer? Very confused I said no, not that I was aware of…was it a particularly furry day for me? Having checked my six o’clock shadow I deduced not and asked the small being why they would ask such a question.
‘Because you’ve got a reindeer name’, came the reply, shortly followed by ‘Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen, Comet and Cupid and DONNA and Blitzen!’
It did make me laugh and it also got me thinking about names and their heritage and what a lovely Christmas gift a personalised namesake piece can be. It’s so easy to make a beautiful charm bracelet or necklace with just one or two elements. I’m even thinking about putting together a reindeer charm and the letter D onto a cord necklace for myself now!
Charm bracelets certainly haven’t become weary on the high street and trend circuit, with brands such as Links of London and Pandora still outselling many other jewellery retailers. But why spend hundreds of your hard earned £££’s on those when you can create something even more gorgeous by visiting Riverside Beads.
For something a little different you must buy our Bangle Charm Collection Kit. Such a cute gift set which makes four charm bangles, so it is great as a gift set or four separate presents. The collection is now only £7.50, so that’s less than £1.90 per bangle, and it’s an easy make for the novice Beader.
Those with more experience could of course use nylon, Beading wire or chain links and add Beads, jump rings and other accoutrements to create the perfect personalised piece. Remember hearts are very popular right now so why not grab yourself a cute little heart charm and add that to the mix. For step by step details of how to use jump rings and create chain why not check out my other blog posts?
If you and your kids would like to learn how to make a personalised beaded bracelet, perhaps using our super cute Alphabet Beads, then do enquire about our private jewellery making parties, held in our very own Riverside Makery room? We teach groups of all ages and can tailor a party to your requirements. It’s a great way to celebrate a birthday or holiday party, plus you get to keep everything that you make! To enquire call 01778 344 550 now.
I promised I’d let you know the rest of my trend treasures from last week and charms were only one of the other big stories that I found on the high street:-
1. Tassels are making a bit of a comeback, be it crystal rich tassel earrings or suede fringed pieces, if it dangles it’s IN and you simply must wear it!
These aren’t the easiest pieces to make, and do require some level of expertise, especially the crystal and seed bead (yep, them again!) designs that you’ll start to see appearing in stores soon, inspired by pieces like these Oscar De La Renta beauties:-
2. A slightly less challenging trend you can follow is pearl jewellery. Karl Lagerfeld continues to have a penchant for pearls and there were tons featured in the latest Chanel collection. It’s a staple accessory for this most exclusive brand, but he works it so well and gives us lots of inspiration to play with.
3. My final recommendation for the up to the minute jewellery designer in you is talismanic jewellery. Made with seashells and feathers, designs can be big and bold or delicate and petite. Our dream catcher workshops are right on trend for this styling, why not book your space now and create some beautiful miniature dream catcher earrings or necklace? For more information click here.
So that’s me for this week. I’ll be back in a couple with more news and reviews, but in the meantime this old deer is off to get her hooves polished ready for my next stint on Create and Craft TV this Wednesday at 9am!
Happy Beading everyone!
xxDonna
To see Donna on Create and Craft TV go to Freesat 813 Virgin 748 Freeview 23 Sky 674