A Selection of happenings in my life over the last 6 months......

 

 I was once again amazed to see that 6 months had passed since my last blog entry, where on earth does time go to?? I have been busy so that usually eats up the days it's true.

I have put together a selection of images from the MANY I have on file. Instead of adding the chosen ones individually I have grouped them in little collages, I hope that they open up big enough for you to see the details!

Above is a commission I had a few months ago, a thick heavy optical crystal free standing wedge circle. I hand engraved the cow on the back and sandblasted the lettering on the front.

 This was a lovely commission to do, a special presentation to the two craftsmen who renovated the Alfred Corry. I drew the details of the vessel from an old photograph on my computer to suit my sandblasting technique, keeping it simple and neat but showing as much detail as possible. I then print a very clear transparency and make masks for each decanter out of photo film mask which I then use to sandblast the crystal decanters. There was no hand engraving involved.

 I engraved at several events last year for Bombay Sapphire both for promotional (press event) and the public. Mainly at Selfridges both in London and Birmingham. At the events I hand engrave the bottles but I also sandblast bottles they send to me at my workshop for presentations to clients. I also engraved Grey Goose last year.

 

Then I was back in Harrods engraving for Givenchy, such beautiful perfumes. I have also been sandblasting bottles for their clients at my workshop.  

Then look who I bumped into again.... :-)

 

 I played loads of golf last year, my second year as Ladies' Vice Captain. I managed to win a few trophies which was fantastic, both individually and with my mixed partner. What a team!!
Then in December I was voted in as the Ladies' Captain at Halesworth Golf Club, for which I am extremely honoured and proud! I have a super busy year ahead and am really looking forward to it. With this in mind I must remind anyone wishing to come and see me, please make an appointment, especially if you are travelling from far. Keep in mind that Thursday is Ladies Golf day at my club.

 This is a lovely Dartington Crystal candle holder which I engraved a while ago, the little girl is on the front and the moon and star on the back. I took a photo on my phone of the moon together with this star one evening at home so I am happy that the angle and positions are correct. I have put this in my ETSY shop which I have recently re-opened. Do pop in and have a look. I have just this week sold a crystal wine glass with a bee engraved on it to a customer in USA from this shop.

 This chap is also in the shop, "Cockadoodledoo" ... he is hand engraved on a crystal whisky glass.

 One of my pre-Christmas commissions was this lovely set of wine glasses, each with different flowers, what an enjoyable commission that was.

 A very special presentation was made last year to the Captain of The Hong Kong Golf Club by the Captain of Lindrick Golf Club to celebrate the 125th Anniversary of the club. Lindrick will celebrate the same anniversary this year. What an exciting trip to have made, lucky Captain!

 I exhibited 2 pieces in the Guild Of Glass Engravers exhibition last year at Morley College in London. A breathtaking display of the best engraving you could possible wish to see! I met up with Mark Raynes Roberts from Canada, and Freddie Quartley from London, who were also exhibiting.

 

This was an incredible event to engrave at, Johnnie Walker Symphony In Blue, Merchant Taylors' Hall, London. I cannot begin to describe it. There were 3 sessions for the guests to enjoy. Each guest experienced 6 different situations for which to partake of the whisky, (you will have to search some of the detail on the web) they then enjoyed a massive banquet (I was lucky enough to be a guest at one of them) after which was a cabaret that is beyond words! The event was created by those that created the London Olympics opening and closing ceremonies....that will give you an idea of the scale! I engraved on Johnnie Walker Blue and King George V .... breathe....slowly.... these were VERY expensive!! Some I was engraving at 11pm!

 I attended the Guild of Glass Engravers AGM and Conference in London at The Artworkers Guild. It was fantastic to catch up with old friends and fellow engravers especially Nancy Sutcliffe (pictured above) and Edmond Suciu !

Here is a delightful commission I had at the end of last year. I had to engrave 2 small diamond shape glass panels (Opti-white low iron glass) for St. Mary's Church, Swaffam Bulbeck. A memorial to Leonard Jenyns. Have a look at my Facebook page to read a little more about it.

 I had a very busy day engraving for L'Oreal at a press Event in London, not glass but lipsticks this time!

 Here's something different....A photographing challenge for sure! Yuletide/winter solstice celebration with Old Glory Molly Dancers.....arriving from across the moors at Geldeston, rural Suffolk, on a cold winters night...so authentic, it was like being transported back in time. I enjoyed it with a dear friend and we just had to have a pint of the special Ploughboys Winter Warmer Ale! The rest of my photos are HERE.

 Above and below are a few more of the #glassengraving commissions I had between August and December.....

 

...and for those who have followed my long family story...here is a lovely piccie of my two sons Gavin (youngest, on the left) holding my grandson Mason and Shane (on the right, dad of Mason). How I do miss them.... oh so much! Thank goodness for Skype and computers and Facebook! They live in New Zealand and Australia! My heart is swollen with such pride. I LOVE YOU GUYS XXX

I wish you all happy engraving out there and always experiment and practice if you are learning to engrave glass, don't be afraid, just get in there!!!

I have to also admit that I get emails and phonecalls every single day from all over the world!! I wish I could help you all, but as you can imagine I simply can't answer everyone. So many questions! There is a hunger for learning glass engraving. Again I say when I have more time I will be able to create more videos, probably write a book, but in the mean time I have to earn a living and life is very expensive ... not to mention of course this year I will be involved even more in my golf, it is a one year position. So please understand if I don't answer your correspondence. There is a lot you can learn from my little videos if you keep watching and practising.

Take care everyone!!! Have a wonderful 2015! ♥

 Please visit my website HERE

 

A belated Happy New Year to everyone. I have quite a number of photos and bits of news to share, much of which is already on Facebook, but not all of you are on Facebook, so I apologise for the delay in blogging about it all. It appears that the last time I posted a blog was around 6 months ago! For goodness sake where on earth did the year go?  Anyhow, I have skidded into 2014 a bit bedraggled after a very hectic last few months. I had so much work that I really only had Christmas day and New years day off, but that is not counting my golf days! 

 I am delighted to be in my second consecutive year as Ladies' Vice Captain of Halesworth Golf Club. I am thoroughly enjoying it all, having been involved in golf committees for many years in Harare, Zimbabwe, it is wonderful to once again to be in the thick of golf politics again.

 One of my favourite wins last year was The Granny Trophy, for the second time. Winning it for my grandson Mason who is 3. I had 43 points finishing with an eagle on the 412 yard par 5 18th and shot back down to my 16 handicap.

Here are a few of the commissions I have had in the last few months:

 Tudor Crystal honeypot:

2  Large Tudor Crystal bowls for wedding gifts:

 I am re-visiting this decanter, I still have it in my gallery. The price I have on it is only £350.00 an absolute "steal" ! It is Krosno Asquith design glass decanter, chunky and heavy with my hand engraved grape vines all around and sandblasted lettering, a quote from Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. It oozes romance! "A book of verses underneath the bough, a jug of wine, a loaf of bread and thou" 

 I mentioned a while back a lovely editorial I had in the Yachting Matters and The Yacht Owner magazines, courtesy of Colin Squire, the Editor. Well this is a little thank-you gift I gave to him. The yacht I engraved was from one of his own photographs.

 I get a lot of requests for glasses to go in the yachts and for this I create a basic drawing of the yacht and simply sandblast them, this means that I can engrave as many as the client would like on glasses, decanters, etc, simple and affordable.

 This was a different sort of commission, obviously a very treasured member of staff.

 

I had this wonderful commission to do on a gorgeous thick hand blown lead crystal bowl I had made by Steve Bradley of Bradley Crystal. He made 3 for me and I have sold them all. (Well one remains for me to engrave for a client who is waiting patiently!) The one below was requested by a glass collector for his niece and one of my favourite subjects! Daisies and Dog Roses.

  

 

 Then a fun commission... well my clients put their thinking caps on and come up with these ideas so I don't have to. It was not as straight forward as it looks....!! (" Dartington Crystal champagne flutes)

 An urgent one...I get loads of these, in fact I would say most of my orders are urgent, it is in the nature of the business!...and off it flew to Kuala Lumpur.

 I engrave a lot for military presentations and this was another one. An interesting choice of vessel but a perfect canvas for the subject.

 

 Here are a few more commissions....

 Another Tudor Crystal bowl commission, this is a house in France and the mountains and scenery are engraved on the other side in reverse so they are viewed correctly as the background .

 under the middle of the base of the above bowl was the family crest. It is one I have engraved before for this family.

This image views the engraving through about 5cm of lead crystal including some bubbles and flaws from the blowing process.

 This lady loves giraffes

 This is something different...I picked it up at an antique fair. a beautiful lamp shade for the ceiling, I am looking forward to it hanging up.....

 

 I got a bee in my bonnet and decided I want to create mini masterpieces with the loads of lead crystal pieces I have in my workshop...so I decided to create a new brand, a new range of contemporary crystal jewellery. I love the look and I use mainly leather thong findings. Each piece is hand carved and engraved and sometimes also sandblasted and each is signed and number and is completely unique! At the moment I have a selection on exhibition at Craftco in Southwold.

 

Many have colour overlay which I carve through. They are all English hand blown lead crystal.

 I have so far got a Facebook page, am slowly building a website....slowly....

 I was delighted to have had some African animals to engrave at the end of last year. One was for a client I had in Zimbabwe years ago, another for a Zimbabwean friend also living here now. The ones below are Dartington Crystal hiball glasses.

 

Yet another large Tudor Crystal bowl, this one had a lot of details of the family home and surrounding wild and domestic life.

 

I mentioned earlier engraving "other bottles" well here I am in Selfridges engraving for Bombay Sapphire. Great fun indeed and it looks like I will be there again nearer Valentines day.

 Here is a Dartington Crystal beer tankard with a popular local scene....

...and a pair of loving decanters with another popular commissioned scene engraved all around the 2 vessels.

 A rather technical one here, on its own you may wonder what it is.....so I included the picture.

 

 This was simply a large plaque for the Masons to commemorate a special event.

 

 A pet horse portrait on a crystal decanter....

 And then I was at Harrods once again, at the peak of the Christmas rush, the 4 days before Christmas engraving for Christian Dior in the Colour Room. I love the buzz, the aromas, the sounds....a wonderful end to a very busy year...despite getting to Liverpool Street Station on the afternoon of Christmas Eve to find my train home had been cancelled to to the bad weather.....I managed to jump on one which took me as far as Ipswich where I was very kindly collected by my partner and taken home for Christmas!....I was back in the workshop on Boxing day though, to finish another 2 orders !!
Here I am with Joe and Petr, two of the members of Dior staff I had the pleasure of working with, ensuring all went smoothly.

 

 It looks like I have some more dates lined up for Dior as well this year....

 

And I leave you with a bit of London weather at Christmas. 

 

It is hard to believe it is a year since we were in Auckland visiting my sons and grandson and everyone there. I miss them terribly, especially at this time of year, but being so busy had helped keep my thoughts occupied elsewhere. Thank goodness  for Skype and modern technology. I am so grateful for living right in these exciting techno times!!

Have a great 2014 everyone, health, freedom, love and happiness!!!