Cinnamon Jewellery

Up until a couple of weeks ago this was a new one on me....yes having to pay a Customs fee on a returned item, in other words having to pay import VAT on my own item to get it back! I'm totally aware of the Customs charge that has to be paid on items imported into the UK from outside the EU that have a value of more than £15 but when a customer from the US asked if she could return a silver bangle recently as it was too large and she wanted a smaller size of course I said yes that's fine, just send it back and I'll get a smaller size made. She was happy to pay another shipping charge for the replacement so all I had to do was wait for it to arrive... It wasn't until the postman left a card informing me there was a customs charge to pay on something - I wasn't sure what it was at that point and thought maybe I'd forgotten I'd bought something lovely.....then it suddenly dawned on me what it was for. The returned bangle! So after feeling quite annoyed a...

I've been trying out some new designs with my enamel earrings recently by combining a layer of etched copper and a layer of enamel beneath it. The copper layer has pierced out sections which allow the enamel colour to show through as the earrings are worn. I've made just two pairs for now in orange and blue and it's possible the design idea may evolve if I think hard enough about it....... :D I've also made a few new copper bangle designs partly as a result of a custom order for two bangles in sterling silver. Having copper wire meant I could try out what my customer was asking for using a less expensive metal first until a decision was made. This inspired me to make a couple of new designs and an improved version of a recent addition to my bangle-ing enterprises. The first is a hammered copper bangle made from 4mm round wire. I kept the round shape by hammering the texture before the bangle was soldered {which was quite a lot of hammering!} instead of...

I started making copper bangles sort of by accident. I had some thick gauge copper wire and didn't know what to do one night at a jewellery class I was at so decided to experiment. And I haven't looked back. They have proved to be very popular especially with men buying gifts for their copper wedding anniversary -  usually leaving it to the last minute!  So it makes sense to expand on the designs I make which is why I experimented with this loop bangle recently. I cut a length of 2.6mm {10g} round copper wire and annealed it so it would be easier to shape. I guessed the length I would need - I had no idea how long the wire would need to be at this point. I used a bezel mandrel to form the loops starting at the centre point of the wire. I had enough wire to form six loops with some left for the straight section. I annealed the wire again and hammered the curved sections then used a texturing hammer to add some pattern to the loops and the straight wire. ...