Friday 30 September 2016

Meet a Member: Beadie Eyed Edie



Who is Edie?  Edie was a cat I had the pleasure of having in my life for 18 years and the inspiration behind the business name 'Beadie Eyed Edie'.  Back in 2010 my business Beadie Eyed Edie was born as a platform to sell my art and crafts. Having moved down to Essex from the North East of England to live with my now husband, I started looking for a creative past time I could do in the restricted space of our then one bedroom apartment. With no room to get out the sewing machine or my existing large stash of textile and craft goodies (which were away in storage), I returned to my love of beading and jewellery making.  Beadie Eyed Edie was purely jewellery in the very beginning but as soon as we moved into a house I started to add my passion of textiles to the business, it is after all what I trained in and  where my true passion lies. I must admit I am a total craft addict and I want to try EVERYTHING! I may have been to art college to study textile design specializing in embroidered textiles, but a lot of what I have learned  happened long after leaving college. I continue to nurture the skills I have gained as well as constantly wanting to learn more. I believe it is a priority in business to always look for ways to progress.

  Although Felting is something I touched upon at art college I never gave too much time to it since, focusing mainly on machine embroidery. I decided to practice and experiment with needle felting and discovered it is really just a tactile version of painting. I love being able to blend and layer colours, there is really no image you can not create with felt that you could with paint. My natural tool for drawing for a long time has been the sewing machine, with most of my work done freehand (no fully drawn out  image) I move at a crazy speed when I get started! So combining felting and machine embroidery happened, at times embroidering on needle felting is a nightmare and I break a lot of needles! I think the results are worth it though.

If I am needle felting, embroidering on fabric or indulging in one of my other many crafts I am inspired by everything around me. Nature is a big inspiration for me and you can see from my work I love flowers. I wish I could say I was a gardener but really the weeds in my little garden are as much of a love as the plants we have added ourselves! I also love to felt and paint seascapes, the northeast where I am from has an amazing coastline and I use photo references I have collected over the years for ideas.
My work does not stop when I switch off the sewing machine or put down the felting, my brain never switches off from it all.  I am always taking photos of things I see, sketching, making notes, browsing photos online and I even wake up in the middle of the night thinking of new ideas. If I decide to take a little time out I just find myself doing something creative, like an up-cycling project or a bit of soap making. If I have ever thought I might call it a day on the textile art, I realize I could not if I wanted to as it is a total addiction and passion.

I think the hardest part of running a creative business is all the non creative necessities. As well as being able to come up with ideas and follow them through you need to be good at promoting yourself, managing the financial side of things, navigating your way around social media, creating a website or finding the right person to do it.....and so much more! I currently sell my work via Folksy, Facebook and direct to customers. I have sold work via shops in London, Norfolk & Newcastle and love the face to face contact with customers at craft fairs. I still get a buzz from thinking someone has my work hanging on their wall at home or are walking round wearing my jewellery!

Monday 26 September 2016

SAPPHIRE SUPERSTARS - Super Canvas, Rag Rug Textiles, Natalie Tiltman Textile Art, K.D Jewellery, Handmade By KiKi J, Glitz and Grammar

Welcome to another batch of PCG 

Sapphire Superstars!

Today we are featuring:
 
Super Canvas
Rag Rug Textiles
Natalie Tiltman Textile Art
K.D Jewellery
Handmade By KiKi J
Glitz and Grammar
 
Super Canvas
Member No: 020215664
Owned by: Rebecca Dunning
UK
Bespoke Canvas and Framed Prints
 
www.super-canvas.com  
 
 
 
Rag Rug Textiles
Member No: 160512294
Owned by: Deborah Hastings
UK
Rag rugging: designer, commissions & Kits, embroidery:designer, teacher & stockist
 
http://www.ragrugtextiles.com/
 
 
 
Natalie Tiltman Textile Art
Member No: 111014632
Owned by: Natalie Tiltman
UK
Hand stitched cards, art and gifts
 
www.natalietiltman.blogspot.co.uk
 
 
 
K.D Jewellery
Member No: 100714600
Owned by: Kirsty Dimond
UK
Handmade Macrame Jewellery and Accessories
 
www.kdjewellery.co.uk   
 
 
Handmade By KiKi J
Member No: 270416748
Owned by: Kirsty Jess
Scotland, UK
I make ooak jewellery and accessories with a wide variety of supplies and teqniques and use a lot of artisan beads in my designs. I also make and sell my own supplies including beads headpins clasps.
 
www.etsy.com/uk/shop/HandmadeByKikiJ
 
 
Glitz and Grammar
Member No: 290915725
Owned by: Kelly Patricia Lawrence
Shropshire, UK
Creating handmade cards & gifts including clocks, canvasses & photoframes, amongst others. Every item is unique - no 2 the same. Specialising in bespoke items. Handmade with you in mind!
 
https://craftycrafterscreativecrafting.wordpress.com  
 
 
 

Monday 19 September 2016

SAPPHIRE SUPERSTARS - Watercolours and Lace, TMD Crafts, Somerset Beads, Semi Precious Jens, Jewellery My Design and Honey B's

Welcome to another batch of PCG 

Sapphire Superstars!

Today we are featuring:
 
Watercolours and Lace
TMD Crafts
Somerset Beads
Semi Precious Jens
Jewellery My Design
Honey B's
 
 
Watercolours and Lace
Member No: 180814616
Owned by: Julie Harris
UK
Hand painted designer yarns in luxury natural fibres, knitting and crochet designs and kits, threads for embroidery and lacemaking, project bags, beaded stitch markers.
 
 
TMD Crafts
Member No: 280714605
Owned by: Tracy Michelle Devlin
UK
Handmade cards, invitations, place cards & all Wedding Stationery Items Handmade knitted clothing, goods & photography props
 
www.tmd-crafts.biz
 
 
Somerset Beads
Member No: 241114116
Owned by: Karen Burrow
UK
UK based bead suppliers, we supply a wide range of jewellery making supplies and beads for jewellery making, crafting and other bead projects, including semi precious gemstone beads, glass beads.
 
www.somersetbeads.co.uk
 
 
Semi Precious Jens
Member No: 090713472
Owned by: Jennifer Menzies
UK
Handmade semi precious gemstone jewellery & accessories.
 
http://www.semipreciousjens.co.uk/
 
 
 
 
Jewellery My Design
Member No: 100911098
Owned by: Fiona Barron
UK
Sterling silver, copper, niobium and gold-filled chainmaille jewellery.
 
http://www.jewellerymydesign.co.uk
 
 
 
Honey B's
Member No: 070115648
Owned by: Fiona Barron
Warwickshire, UK
Family run business manufacturing our own products here in the UK Our items are British Made.
 
www.honeybselection.co.uk  
 
 
 
 

Monday 12 September 2016

SAPPHIRE SUPERSTARS - Ace Characters, Anne Pearson Designs, Bernadine's Creations, Fire Farie Designs, Maelotti, Sewdivinedesigns

Welcome to another batch of PCG 

Sapphire Superstars!

Today we are featuring:
 
Ace Characters
Anne Pearson Designs
Bernadine's Creations
Fire Faerie Designs
Maelotti
Sewdivinedesigns


Ace Characters
Member No: 150615712
Owned by: Elaine Hemingway
West Yorkshire, UK
Personalised cake toppers for any celebration. As individual as you are.
Anne Pearson Designs
Member No: 160116731
Owned by: Anne Pearson
Lancashire, UK
All things Macramé





Bernadine's Creations
Member No: 030315675
Owned by: Bernadine Makins
UK
Gorgeous beaded jewellery, watches and gifts.  Exclusively designed and created by experienced jewellery maker.
 
 
 
Fire Faerie Designs
Member No: 250315688
Owned by: Michelle Reece
Norfolk, UK
Mixed media jewellery designer maker. I use the mediums of clay and glass to make exclusive pieces of jewellery art.
Maelotti

Member No: 300812337
Owned by: Claire Ann Strevens
UK
Semi precious and wirework
 
 
 
 
 
Sewdivinedesigns
Member No: 021115729
Owned by: Julie Roberts
West Midlands, UK
Specialising in personalised cushions and bags, newbie at CE certified soft toys and dolls.