I love books!

I love fiction books. Without some or the other book on my bedside table I’d feel lost, or that I was lacking vital vitamins. But my passion lies with non-fiction books, or as my 9-year-old would call it: information books. I have books on all sorts of subjects, many of them craft related. Since I took up jewellery-making my bookshelves have been bulging with books on various jewellery techniques, from making button necklaces to enamelling to silversmithing, and of course glass, glass, glass. Now and again I sigh and think I should really put them all into some sort of order and keep them in one place. That would be the sensible thing to do. At present they are scattered all over, some in the bedroom, a couple in the conservatory, some in amongst the children books, some open on my workbench and in the kitchen. I am notoriously disorganised!

And then something happened which make me think it’s ok: I was going through the mundane task of writing up a shopping list for the week’s big shop, and tried to think of something new, tasty and healthy I could cook for my kids. I was running my fingers over the various cookbooks, hoping to find inspiration, and there, nestling snugly between Delia Smith’s “Winter Collection” and “The Best Ever 20 minute cookbook” was my “1000 Glass Beads”! What a serendipitous find, certainly one that granted a fine cup of cappuccino with ground nutmeg on top, and half an hour of indulgence – after which my outlook on life was lifted, my creative spirit flying and I could walk off to the shop with all sorts of new ideas in my head. Needless to say, children had the same good, old favourite fish fingers and two veg for dinner :-)

Have hardly touched the torch over xmas holiday, but a few nights ago I was granted a couple of hours in my workshop, and this little fellow came to life:



I tried to make Nemo, but I think we can all agree it must be his uncle Fred, who’s seen and been and done a lot in his fishy life. Happy New Year to you all!