looking back { the teleidoscope }

oh, the places we've been - week #52 of The Teleidoscope - Looking Back.

on Flickr

escape { the teleidoscope }

floating away - week #51 of The Teleidoscope - Escape.

on Flickr

early light...

on Flickr

Merry Christmas!

  Wishing you a very Merry Christmas 

full of love, laughter, good food & special people.

paint { the teleidoscope }

painting the roses red - week #50 of The Teleidoscope - Paint.

on Flickr

sweet somethings...

I think I already mentioned that we've been baking lots of goodies for Christmas...

we baked lots of honey cookies - they're something my Babcia (grandma) has always baked. Ours are never quite the same, but they're pretty good, if I do say so myself...

& I do mean lots...

I also baked a pair of boiled fruit cakes - we've already ah, 'sampled' one. Actually it's pretty much all gone - this is the recipe I use - with the addition of a teaspoon of coffee, dissolved in a little hot water - I also just used a mix of the dried fruit we already had (including sultanas, cranberries, apricots & peaches)...

& I baked these rye muffins last week, to help with the cleaning.  I adapted them slightly - in a double batch I added an extra egg, some mixed spice & some chopped dried fruit - they make a very nice snack.

before & after...

I've been working my way around my room, cleaning, dusting & generally tidying up. I finished the other day, having left the biggest mess - my desk/jewellery making space - for last.

Previous work-in-progress posts have lead to compliments on the neatness of my workspace - but those have all shown me working on pmc pieces, at the kitchen table. Which meant showing a space I set up, used & then packed up. I kind of felt I should also show my more permanent workspace...

...um, yeah. Basically it was just an accumulation of my not packing up properly as I started/tried/finished things. Plus plenty of dust (it's an old building + my window faces the road). Anyway...

I am going to make a concerted effort to pack up between projects, so that I can keep it looking at least a little bit tidy.

I might have mentioned that I have a rather large bead stash - that's what is in the containers on the desk, as well as those jars & drawers :)

family portrait { the teleidoscope }

the many faces of the Simons sisters - week #49 of The Teleidoscope - Family Portrait.

My sisters are the absolute best :)

on Flickr

wishlist wednesday...

a collection of cute critters...

Wren in a Flat Cap by birdsinhats

 Fox Brooch by PaperIvy

 Octopus Earrings by EmergentGlassworks

Needle Felted Hamster by Knittynudo

 Hedgehog earrings by AnnaSiivonen

recently...

...some bits of jewellery - a necklace very similar to this, but with a longer bead & a green & purple necklace featuring some gorgeous fluorite beads...

we've also been busy preparing for Christmas, lots of cleaning, (I'm almost up to my desk/workbench, which you might see, although I'm not sure about showing the 'before' photos), decorating the shop...

plus some cooking - I baked some madeira cakes - two for dessert on Christmas Eve (trifle, yum) & one to eat straight away. 

light & shadow...

lovely & light: daia, dainty fine silver & sterling necklace

softly shadowed: shadow, long snowflake obsidian necklace

diva { the teleidoscope }

singing a sweet evening song - week #48 of The Teleidoscope - Diva.

*random note - I think the second photo looks kind of like I've got to words written on my hand or something 
& also, this only happened with lots of help from Kathryn :)

on Flickr