Monday 25 March 2013

Fruition...

Gulp! I blinked and suddenly it's two weeks since my last post, spring has officially arrived (wearing a fur coat to ward of the cold) and Easter is nearly upon us...wasn't it just Christmas...? Anyway, the upside of living life in time lapse is that things have started to happen and projects are showing signs of coming to fruition on time and as planned.

First, and most exciting is the new studio/kitchen refit which is now moving ahead very nicely and the builder is contracted to start work on April 15th. Last week the surveyor came out to draw up plans for all the necessary planning notifications and 'Lawful Development' certification. The latter is not a legal requirement but can be very useful when it comes to selling. So here's what it's going to look like...


 The kitchen design consultant came to measure up this morning and has gone away to draw up 3D plans for fitting both rooms with units from the range below. Sadly my kitchen is too small to get the lovely curvy cupboards and worktops in but I have managed to get them into the studio...


The plans will be ready on Wednesday and I've no doubt i will be tweaking my choices before I finally settle and I still have to decide on tiles and flooring but, it all seems to be going remarkably well.

The other project that has been draining resources of late is of course "The Big Bead Show" on April 6th and I am happy to report that light has been seen at the end of this tunnel too. Yesterday I finished up all the clay work for my inventory and although this still leaves me plenty of finishing to do, it does mean that the first step of the production process is complete and the work waiting in each subsequent step can now only go down.

I still don't know if I have enough or indeed the right inventory but I've done all I can and if it doesn't sell, well I'll have a lot of Etsy listings to do when I get back! I did have a kind of plan as to what I was going to make but I get bored quite easily doing repetitive work so I did go of at a few tangents and created new things. I'm quite pleased with them so let's just hope the show visitors are too...



I would love to be able to take a bit of a break but I only have one week between the show and the builders moving in so I guess I'm going to be pretty busy clearing the decks and sorting out all the logistics of having a major upheaval in the house. It will be worth it though and I am so looking forward to seeing it completed by the end of April. 

As I'm going to be limited as to what production I can do during the build, I'm also looking forward to being able to dedicate some time to making jewellery (including my Bead Soup entry - eek!) which I don't seem to have done for ages. I'll also be getting back on track with my blogging too, starting with regular posts on 'project studio'...that should be fun!

I hope you're all progressing well with your 2013 plans and not suffering too much from the prolonged wintry weather - surely there must be some sun on the way soon...?

Lesley

Tuesday 12 March 2013

Show Progress...

Oh dear - I really am being rather rubbish at blogging at the moment and of course it's all down to to my complete an utter dedication to all things 'Bead Show'. But today I have a lull between process stages so I just thought I give you a quick update.

Things are actually going quite nicely and I'm feeling pretty positive. The housework has of course gone to pot as various bits paraphernalia encroach further and further into the living areas. This is my dining room - central administration and patination station...






Meals on trays only between now and April 6th!

I still need to make more inventory but a lot of it is done now so adding patina is the main process scheduled this week. I have to say I really enjoy this part as I love playing with colour and I've come up with some new colour palettes to debut at the show...


I've even managed to sort out most of my pre-show admin and have ordered new business cards and a banner for the stand - I'm hoping a couple of my owls looming large will attract some attention and draw people in...


If things keep going as they are I think I may even be ready with time to spare which would be great since I also need prepare things for the development of the new studio...yes, the contractors are booked and work will start on April 15th - can't wait!

In the meantime plenty to do so best get on with it!

Lesley

Wednesday 6 March 2013

Show Blues...


Well my first (and possibly last) bead show is little more than 4 weeks away now and am I where I should be? - absolutely not! Having always been a seat of the pants kind of person I haven't started panicking yet even these cuffs are the only pieces I have fully finished...



And I have far more trays like this one waiting to be patinated...


And even more like this one queuing up waiting to be fired...


There's no reason to worried yet though - 4 weeks is plenty of time isn't it...? It won't take long to organise all the other things a show involves will it? And of course nothing will go wrong in the meantime...not after I've replaced the firing pan that disintegrated on me yesterday anyway!

Ok - well I may panicking just a little so I'd better go off an do something with those piles that are desperate for my attention. If I don't become a complete gibbering wreck I will will keep you posted on further progress.

And if you're in the UK and are planning to go to the Big Bead Show do come and say hello...I'll post our stand number as soon as it's available.


Wish me luck!

Lesley