Where has the time gone?

I cant believe we are well into 2014 and sadly I haven't achieved much jewellery or gem wise.
I have been getting into photography more learning how to use my newish camera, a Pentax K30, and have started to use a Flickr account I opened ages ago. Flickr by the way REALLY sucks you in! So many talent people out there which has really inspired me.

I spent a week at home visiting my Mum in New Zealand which was fantastic. We went on many bush walks and beaches and just relaxed in general.
This year I have decided to 'Do More Stuff' so have been making an effort to do the things that I have been meaning to do for ages but usually get left by the way side.

Also exciting news is that I entered a jade carving competition! At the moment there are currently 31 people registered from all over the world. There are two categories Jewellery or Sculpture and I have selected the piece I am going to carve and working on the details before I begin. There are people that have been carving longer than I have been alive so dont expect to win (haha) but think it will be a great learning experience and a bit of fun. There is a popular choice component where all the entries are anonymously posted on the site and people can vote..... I will be happy if I just get one vote so cross your fingers for me!

If you are interested to check out my photos here is the link to my Flickr account.

Info on the World Jade Symposium can be found here.

Art Exhibition Opening Tonight!

If you happen to be in the Melbourne city area you might want to swing by the city library on Flinders Lane tonight.

16 New Zealand artists featuring paintings, sculptures, photography, jewellery and more! 

Opening night tonight (sorry for the short notice!) with drinks, food and entertainment. What more could you want for a Thursday?! :-)

 

Trip down memory lane

I have been going though all my old sketchbooks and came across this:



These scribbles were my ideas for my first ever carving! I am from Greymouth, New Zealand and I grew up looking for 'Greenstone' (Nephrite/Jade/Pounamu) on the beach.
It is incredibly hard to find and pieces are usually small. One year while on a holiday home I decided that I HAD to find a piece for my Aussie boyfriend (soon to be husband in a short 6 months from now!)



To date the piece I found that day is by far the biggest and nicest piece I have ever seen found on the beach. It took me 3 hours to find and I got sunburnt all down my left side - a small price to pay for such an awesome piece!
I cant seem to find any photo of it in its raw state but the shape is drawn at the top of my terrible sketches and it had a fracture line running through it which I had to work around.

At that point I didnt have any diamond burs but had access to the cab room out at Nunawading Lapidary Club.

This was the result which I am still really happy with all these years later.



Sadly I havent done much cutting lately but last year I was lucky enough to shape a piece for Belinda Newick for the 40 year Jam Factory celebrations but that is another story...........