What do you mean it started weeks ago? I got here in the end…
I hope you are all well
and staying safe? Let’s make this a good year, shall we?
I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you what extreme circumstances have befallen the world in the last year. Or how badly the postal services are struggling with Christmas high demand, pandemic backlog, extra ordering from those bored at home or trying to buy things they can’t get out for. And those of you who follow UK news know we’re in the process of recovering from Brexit. All of the above affects online shops – including Rose Bay Jewellery. There have been problems with postal delays, new rules and regulations to learn, and the upshot of all this means that I have taken the decision to withdraw overseas sales, and these – hopefully temporarily – have been removed from Etsy for the time being. However, if you’re a regular overseas customer, and don’t mind waiting for your order, come and talk to me – I’m sure we can work something out.
Well, that’s the depressing stuff out of the way. Lets get on to the good stuff, shall we?
Last year we introduced interesting jewellery-making supplies, and I have now added some 5-8mm semi-precious chips to the shop. We’ve got things like rose quartz, turquoise, amethyst, aventureines, agates and white jade, and there will be more stones and sizes to follow. Look at these – aren’t they beautiful? Perfect for modern, Boho, and historical designs! A win for everyone!
I am also currently in the process of adding some Viking-inspired pendants to the shop. I have a whole load of these ready to go and you can get a preview of them below. Watch this space!
I thought you might
like to have a little peek behind the scenes at Rose Bay Jewellery!
We sell a lot of Clipon Christmas tree earrings at this time of year.
All of my finished jewellery goes out in some kind of bag (or box,
for certain items) and it saves time to do some up in advance. The
clipons go out in cute little organza bags – they look amazingly
colourful and fun when a batch is finished. You can’t help but feel
cheerful when you look at them!
Also finished a batch of Viking-inspired pendant necklaces, all now listed in the shop.
As a jewellery maker
myself, I know how important it is use good quality materials, and
how difficult it is to find the more unusual components, I’ve already
added well over 100 new supplies, including sterling silver ear wires
and bracelet charms, ceramic, lampwork and other glass beads, beading
kits, Christmas and Halloween components and Steampunk mixes, as well
as pewter charms from Tierracast, beading mats…. so many things,
and many more to come!
I haven’t added as many
things as I would have liked – we’re in the middle of decorating my
craft room at the moment and I’m sure you’ve all experienced the
utter chaos of shifting things from place to place so that you can
work, and I’m having trouble finding half my stuff right now! But it
will all be worthwhile and I’m very excited about having a lovely new
room to work in.
Have a look at some of my new jewellery supplies and I’ll tell you all about my new room and my new products soon!
As promised, Rose Bay Jewellery is back up and running. I have decided to focus on more historically-inspired jewellery, largely in the Celtic/Viking to Victorian time-frame, although I could wander off on a different path from time to time. Products will likely get older as we go along, so that should be fun. I will be making a more detailed post soon to tell you all about it!
In addition, I have
also started selling some interesting jewellery making components,
and I have heaps of those coming up soon.
I’m sure I don’t need
to tell you about the problems facing the world right now. Many areas
are in lockdown, and here in the UK, we aren’t any different. While I
think that jewellery – especially mine – is pretty essential, it
isn’t right to burden mail-service workers with non-essential
supplies, or worth the risk to my family to keep trotting off to the
post office. I have therefore taken the difficult decision to put
Rose Bay Jewellery on hold for a little while until we see how things
work out.
However, that doesn’t mean that I’m not doing anything. I am still making lovely jewellery, and I am working on something new for when we can be together again. In the meantime, I will be making the odd post here, plus I have my Twitter account where I post links to interesting articles and repost daft and quirky stuff, too. We could all do with a little light relief right now. On Instagram, there is no point posting pictures of products that aren’t on sale, so instead, I’m posting other sorts of pictures – most notably, images of our new rescue cat. She is settling in quite nicely, thank you very much for asking.
Actually, this reminds
me of something I meant to mention. In the UK, and probably where you
are, too, animal re-homes have been put on hold because nobody is
supposed to go out to view them, and charity shops attached to these
re-homing centres have been closed for the time being. Since these
shops are the centres’ main (and sometimes only )source of income,
they are suddenly bereft of funds.
If you have a pet
sanctuary close to you, and you are so inclined, please could you
check out their local websites or media pages to see if you can help?
It’s not just about the cash – some need food or other supplies,
and some just want media help to spread the word out.
March is here and
spring is on our doorstep. Probably…
I have added some new clipon earrings to my Etsy shop, varied and fun!
Sunday was,
apparently, International Women’s Day and I am, as always, late to
the party. However, I couldn’t let that pass without a few links to
posts about our awesome women. These ladies prove you can do more
than you ever thought possible!
Yvette Lundy: French Resistance fighter from World War II. She died last year, at 103
Mary Eliza Mahoney became the first African American licensed nurse, graduating in 1879
Eleanor Wadsworth, currently 101 years old, is the last surviving female pilot from WW2.
Emmeline Pankhurst is best remembered for organising the UK suffragette movement and helping women win the right to vote.
Ada Lovelace was an English mathematician and writer, chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage’s proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine.
Boudicca was queen of the Iceni tribe who led an uprising against the the Roman Empire around AD 60
Oh, and on the subject of amazing women, for those of you celebrating at the end of next week, have a great Mothers’ Day!
We’ve had some hefty
gales hammering the UK recently – I hope the weather is nicer where
you are!
Its nice and warm
indoors, so that’s where I’ve been hiding, busily making stuff…
I’ve got a new selection of beautiful handmade ceramic earrings with Czech glass beads. These little darlings are available on my Etsy Shop.
Summer dangles!
My clearance range is growing rapidly and still has lots of cool stuff, with lots of bargains still to be found. Check out my SALE!
February houses Valentine’s Day, and I hope you have a lovely day with your partner, or perhaps find somebody to share the day with. In the UK, Valentines’ Day is primarily for romantic couples, but I gather that in the USA, the love theme expands to include family and friends and I think that’s rather nice.
If you want a laugh, scoot over to YouTube and take a gander at Simon’s cat’s (I love these cartoons!) Valentine’s Day story ‘Love Me, Love My Cat’.
So. Been a busy girl this week! I promised you some new products, and the first of these are now up at my Etsy shop. There are four, for now, very pretty Swarovski crystal heart earrings with sterling silver ear wires. They come in colours (the crystals, not wires!) of Siam red, Fuschia, rose, and heliotrope.
I’ve also been doing a bit of housekeeping, so to speak. I’ve been making a lot more earrings and to emphasise this, I have re-arranged the categories into alphabetical order.
In addition, I’ve added
a new clearance line. There are only a few things there so far, but I
will be adding a lot more soon – and the best bit is – because
I’ve dropped prices on those, you get some great deals!
