Inspired: Scilly

I can't believe it's December already! If you haven't yet looked or are still searching for the perfect Christmas gift for a loved one, please check out the gorgeous new Swarovski Crystal Christmas Trees on the Special Offers page. It's really simple to design your own sparkly Christmas Tree earrings with the easy-to-use order form. You choose the colours you would like, press submit and then pay for your order via Paypal and a lovely pair of sparklers will be winging their way to you! They make a great gift, stocking filler or secret santa and will dazzle everyone at the Christmas party! They've been very popular this year, so don't delay getting your hands on a pair! Needless to say, I'll be making some for myself! ...Now, what colours to have... Swarovski Crystal Xmas Trees in heliotrope with blue bicone crystal and vitrail cube.

We've finally got around to getting the holiday snaps printed! It's always lovely going through them by hand, but I thought I would share with you a few of those which really show some of my inspiration. It's not hard to see where my colour inspiration comes from! Even the ducks at the tea gardens are sporting fancy feathers! It's a great place to go rockpooling and there is a huge variety of seaweed. The beaches are just astounding - yes, the water really is that colour!

Inspired: Scilly work has been featured in several Etsy treasuries of late which is great! The collection of items that have been put together are just gorgeous. Here is a few of the best to feast your eyes upon! Lavender Relaxation - very calming! What starts with red, ends with purple? - a rainbow of Etsy finds! Pretty in Pistachio - ok, this is cheating as I collated this one but isn't it a gorgeous colour? Much, Much Cooler - a stunning reflection on the changing of the seasons

I had such a fantastic time on the islands this year, it still feels like a lovely dream! But, in between the reminiscing, I've been busy turning my gathered inspiration into a few new pieces for the autumn/winter season and upcoming Christmas craft markets. Here is a sneak preview of my lovely new wire knit brooches: A fishy one, naturally! I love the gorgeous peacock colours in this one - perfect for the autumn/winter season with lots of rich shades and a bit of lustre for the party season. And something Christmassy! All these and more will soon be appearing on Etsy and wil be available to purchase at the Christmas craft markets that I will be attending this year. 30th October 2011 - Flare Christmas Craft Market, 11 - 4pm at The Chapel, The Cemetery, York 6th November 2011 - Flare Christmas Craft Market, The Tithe Barn, Church Lane, Nether Poppleton 19th November 2011 - Coxwold Christmas Craft Fair, 10 - 4pm Coxwold Village Hall

From crystal clear waters and sun-drenched beaches to a rather blustery day here at Inspired: Scilly HQ! My time in Scilly was simply magical and I am now in a bit of a time warp - did it really happen...?! It certainly feels like I've been to another world. I'm pleased to report that there was much gathering of shells (watch this space for these swirls of natural colour and pattern finding their way into my work) and so much inspiration, I shall be busy writing it all down in my new notebook (which just happens to be illustrated with Scilly pictures - perfect). I was also delighted to discover a little craft fair that was on in the town hall on the day that I sadly had to leave and it cheered me up a bit buying, well, rather a lot of bargain buttons! I've just poured these into a big kilner jar and (rather sadly) I'm just rejoicing over the fact that they fill it up exactly! Of course, the idea is not to just gaze upon my gorgeously full stash of treasures but to use m...

I'm bursting with excitement here at Inspired: Scilly HQ, because I have just 3 weeks to go until I'm in Scilly again and I can't wait! I've missed it soooo much and am so looking forward to being inspired again and hopefully picking up lots of new ideas and inspiration for my work. To celebrate, I've made a very special bracelet that pays homage to the sea with a tangled mesh of hand knitted wire in a gorgeous petrol blue, adorned with luxurious Swarovski crystal bicones in bleached, beachy shades of white opal, sand opal, light grey opal, light azore, black diamond and pacific opal for lots of sparkle! In amongst the sparkling crystals are freshwater pearls in peacock blue and olive green. I've named this bracelet 'Jewels of the Sea' as it is very sparkly and sumptuous, with a gorgeous mix of shades reflecting the sea, seaweed, sand and shells. The bracelet is just £30 for a lot of Swarovski crystal and freshwater pearls in a carefully hand woven piec...