I have been getting tired of something that just wouldn't come out the way I want it, so I decided to make something completely different. And this is what became a new bead: I still don't know how to call it, maybe something connected with space, but I am very pleased with the result. All it is is silverleaf on black base wrapped in Double Helix and then thickly encased. Easy-peasy, really. I obviously need to get bored more often!

Today started with me checking my ebay auctions - even if I say to myself that I must not go there (it always takes an enormous amount of time as I start looking at other people's work, admiring colours and ideas, so it never ends!) that's what happens when I have some beads for sale. Anyway, today, after looking at other people's auctions, I decided to try to upload some pix on my Me page - guess what, today it happened!!! After months of trying I wasn't prepared for this sort of good luck! So now I have a couple of pix there too, like all other normal people. So... what to do now? The weather in Norfolk is so awful that I won't be able to work in the garden as planned all week - really I HAVE TO spend some time there to tidy up etc, weeds are everywhere! - excellent as I would really like to go and melt glass!

Lots of things have happened: Flame Off came and gone, I only managed to come for a couple of hours this year and only on one day, but I saw lots of people including my dear friends Marlene, Gay, Becky, and Teresa and Diana, it was good to see them doing well. The most amazing thing was that Ray Skene (yes, the Ray Skene!) commended my beads in the Flame Off competition! I was ab-so-lute-ly thrilled; the only thing is, as I have never won anything and I was completely unprepared for such great luck, I don't even have a pic of these beads. Never mind, the good GBUK organisers have got one, so if you are interested you can view it on www.gbuk.org.

Hi everybody, I'm back!!! I have been writing my book, the last part of which was posted to the editors yesterday - yippee! I've been so busy that I have become some kind of a hermit, only replying to very urgent e-mails: I don't even remember when was the last time that I went to the pictures! Anyway, hopefully it'll be easier now.

On the bead front I've got lots of ideas which I am going to work on starting with almost now. Every Sunday for the last half a year we've been going to Derby. As you are on A50 driving away from the M1, there is one place there, which gave me a lot of inspiration for this bead: it will have green for the ground, and then pink and blue and yellow for the sky. The view is fabulous, I hope I'll be able to catch it in glass. It's gotta be called "Derby" or something like that. You can't call a bead "The A50", can you? I'll have to give it a little thought!

I have never known that moving house is actually a full time job. The problem is, you don't get a lot of time experimenting with glass. But I've managed to run away into my own world yesterday; this design has been torturing me (in my head!) and I had to get it tried out. So what do you think? I really like them, and more to follow!

It's been boring - raining cats and dogs! Luckily, only in Downham, so I hope all of you still have the lovely white snow. Today is the Old Russian New Year - yes, it is a very Russian thing, thirteen days after the normal new year here it comes! We have to put all the Christmas decorations away like everybody else, but I keep a branch of fur tree somewhere for this day: so the new 2010 has now officially begun (apart from the Chinese New Year, of course!). Happy New Year! xxxxxxxxx

Merry Christmas!

Hello at last! We have all been busy, and I have managed to ignore my own blog for over a month! I have been participating in fairs, meeting lovely people - this is my favourite thing about going to fairs. I went to Moscow and saw my family. I have been making beads and selling them on e-bay - this is something completely new for me, and I have been really excited about it. The thing is, I have been so pernickety and I did not think my beads are good enough. So hurray, people buy and they are happy! Thank you to all my lovely customers! I went to Scarborough. I went to London. Now I've got a minute and I would like to say:

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

HAVE A GREAT 2010 and may all your wishes come true!

Till next time... xxx

Wirework

I am getting better and better at it! Look at the pics - pay special attention to all those wonderful loops and wraps that I've managed to achieve, I am very proud of that. I think, the main thing is not to be afraid, so I just keep saying to myself: "Do it, go for it, it's going to be great!".

Not much bead making though. Selling bits on ebay. I am so happy that people like what I make. And hopefully tomorrow it will be sunny!