A little extra from the studio - new ceramic beads, from Something to do beads

So, this is a bit of an add on to my Inside the Studio post last Friday. If you read that you'll know that I'd just picked up a bumper load of beads after firing (I haven't got a kiln yet). Anyway, I didn't have time to take any pictures so I'm sharing them today.  On Friday I included a picture of some earrings made with a couple of dinky bird beads. Well, I've made quite a few birds...

If I have a spare bit of clay left out after making something I tend to make it bird-shaped. There are bird sets, lone birds, and birds in pairs for earrings.

Talking of earring pairs, I've made rather a lot of them.  

There were several casualties on the way to getting these warp-free, and I'm sure there'll be more warping in the future.  The glaze on the pair on the right is beautiful (and it's not like I made it, so I'm allowed to say that!), but, frustratingly, I've struggled to take a picture without having all of that light reflecting off them.  

I did say lots of earring pairs, yes? 

I do like crackle glazes. I've also always been a sucker for any glaze with crystal inclusions, like those I've used on a couple of these pairs.

They can be messy to use but I love them.  Had to make these glossy bonbons using them too.

I tried making up some of my old polymer designs in ceramic. These turned out quite nicely.

And, of course, there was bound to be some owl-age.

Which fox do you prefer - realistic fox or stylised fox?

These have a hole running down the centre at the back. Here's another fox-y piece:

And here's some more pendant pieces.

I've been having a go with glaze stains; I'm quite pleased with these sets.

This is a bit of an ongoing project - faux beach pottery. I've yet to get them exactly how I want them.  

Here's a few more miscellaneous pieces. I particularly like the tiger stripes and the cobalt feather set.

Yellow may be my favourite colour of rose. The rosebuds above, to the right, have also been an ongoing experiment. I really wanted to get a pinched, paper-like feel to them.  Here's an earlier set that I made as I attempted to get the look I was after. 

If you read Friday's post you may remember that I said the prize for the ITS giveaway would be a mystery bundle of beads. Well, let's clear that mystery up! The winning commenter will receive this set of roses. But I promised a bird too, so here's everything that's up for grabs:

If you'd like to win these, head here and add a comment saying what piece of equipment you'd most like for your workspace.

I hope you've enjoyed this little preview of these new beads. I have many more: a frankly alarming amount of photoshopping lies ahead. I'm hoping to get them in my shop within the next week or so.

Bye for now, Claire

something to do with your hands

Something to do beads on Etsy

something to do with your hands on Etsy