Wedding Jewellery in my Etsy Shop

Silver Spray

Silver Spray Earrings in my Etsy Shop

Gorgeous sparkly drop earrings made from white and pewter facetted crystal glass beads.

I made these earrings to compliment the silver spray necklace seen below. I love these bold pewter crystal glass beads and used them as the main feature. I added a milky white, a crystal and a silvery glass bead and threaded them all onto silver plated wire; I completed the earring with a silver plated ear wire.

Length:  from hook 4 cms. (1.5 inches)

Silver Spray Necklace in my Etsy Shop

Pewter crystal facetted beads, crystal and opal fire polished glass beads, threaded on supple silver Beadalon wire, hang in a collar shape from white satin cord.

I love these bold pewter crystal glass beads and used them as the main feature. I added milky white and opal glass beads and silvery balls. I threaded them all onto satin silver Beadalon wire so that they took on a subtle shape and sparkled as they moved. I threaded the seven dangles onto white satin cord and closed the necklace with a pretty silver plated rose clasp enhanced with a central rhinestone.

Wear this necklace with the matching earrings pics. above, to sparkle on your wedding day or to shine at that important event.

The necklace measures

From end to end... 43 cms. (17 inches) ,

The centre dangles 10.5cms. (4.25 inches) in depth.

 

Garden News for April

Planting out, potting up and other garden happenings.

Broad beans I planted out survived the rain and sleet

 In the green house the seeds I sowed have started to flourish, assorted sweet peas

Courgettes, vegetable spaghetti and squash

Runner beans

Sugar peas and french beans

Tomatoes and globe artichokes

Jerusalem artichokes ready to plant out

and in the greenhouse borders.... lettuce and

 Mizuma greens

and the strawberries have started flowering

 and outside

The last of the Purple sprouting broccoli

Lovage, delicious added to soups

and cat mint for my feline friends

apple blossom

and black currants

Unfortunately the damage from two winters ago is still showing up

..lots of pruning to do!

My Spelt Bread Recipe

My Spelt Bread Recipe

For one loaf

( I usually make two at a time and slice and freeze them so I have fresh bread all the time)

Loaf tin size 19 x 9 cms non stick

100 grms. Fine semolina

200 grms. wholemeal spelt flour

200 grms. white spelt flour

(You can vary the amounts and omit the semolina if wished, as long as the weight adds up to 500 grms.) You can try adding oats too.

One packet dried quick yeast (7 grms.)

One teasp. salt (to taste)

One teasp. Sugar or honey (to taste)

One tablesp. Olive oil

250-300 M/L warm water ( approx ½ pint)

You can leave the bread plain or add seeds, nuts, dates, figs, apricots, Choc chips, cheese, herbs, have fun and use your imagination! Anything is possible.

Put all the dried ingredients into a large mixing bowl, mix together, make well in centre and add the oil and water, stir to mix in all dry ingredients. Then knead until the dough forms a ball. Spelt doesn’t like too much handling. Put into tin and press into corners and flatten top.

I use two different methods of cooking,

      1. Leave the loaf for 10 mins in a warm place then put into a cold oven  set to 180 C and bake for 50 mins OR

.     2.  Leave the loaf covered in a warm place for 30 mins and put into a preheated oven 180 C and bake for 30 mins.

       Turn out onto a rack to cool and try and wait till it is cold before cutting a slice, just to test that it is OK!

      These are the times that work for me; use them as guide lines as your oven might give different results.

I would love to hear from you with your comments.

Spelt flour is usually only obtainable from ‘health food’ shops, hopefully if it gets more popular we might see it on our supermarket shelves soon.

Spelt bread crumbs fried in a little olive oil and butter are delicious scattered on top of pasta too.

Watch out for more spelt flour recipes on my Blog.

My visit to an Eagle Sanctuary in Germany

Just a few Pictures...more to follow

Photoshot!

Choosing coloured background for photos

I have always had difficulty when photographing some of my jewellery to find a suitable coloured background to show the piece to its best advantage. White has been a particular problem. 
This is an easy solution, I found quite by chance, that might be helpful.
Last Christmas I bought a book of assorted coloured card, actually for making cards, I took all the colours that I thought might work with white or crystal jewellery, and made photos, this is the result.... the photos themselves are not the best, but it gives a good idea of what does and doesn't work, and is easy to keep on your desktop for future reference. 

And this is the colour I choose

Easter Daffodils

A beautiful Easter present...thank you Heidi and David

Spring Fever Necklace

To carry on the Garden theme...This is one of my favorites, with earrings too!

Spring Fever Necklace
http://www.etsy.com/listing/63527149/shades-of-green-glass-beads-and-silver

And the Earrings .....http://www.etsy.com/listing/94734600/spring-fever-a-mix-of-green-and-silver

Garden News

A good day to sow my seeds for the garden

Already the broad beans, artichokes and tomato seeds I sowed a few weeks ago are making good progress, and providing the weather and creepy crawlies don't attack them, they should be ready to plant out soon.

According to the moon's journey, today is good for sowing seeds,as she is waxing,and this is the best time to sow for strong heathly plants.This and much, much more information comes from my favorite gardening book, Organic Gardening by Charles Dowding

This year I am going to start off most of my seeds in my unheated greenhouse, the weather is so quirkey, that this gives them a better chance to succeed.

                               'Some pots I prepared earlier'

                                    ........and my seeds

                                    .......and all sown!

Now I am off to Germany for two weeks, so I will be blogging from there.
More about my garden when I return.