A floral fantasy in painted silk and bead embroidery

Spending time in the garden in early summer always inspires me to create something that reflects my planting colour scheme. This year I have many purple and pink flowers, planted in every sort of container I could find, as well as some lovely old weathered and much loved terracotta ones. I sat in the sunshine with my sketchbook and came up with a plan for a lush beaded ‘v’ shaped necklace.

I’ve decided to include a large painted silk centrepiece and the pictures show it in progress, just before completing the edging. Many hours of happy crafting lie ahead of me!

Not all went smoothly last week though. I was sitting comfortably in my favourite old patio chair when the fabric seat gave way. Have I really eaten that much cake during lockdown. My bum hit the deck and I was left with my legs pointing skywards through the frame in a most undignified way. Mr J had a job to extract his poor wife and all credit to him for keeping a straight face!  But hey ho, we crafters are a positively ingenious lot. As the old saying goes, 'If life gives you lemons, make lemonade', so once I’d nursed my bumps and bruises I looked at the nicely seasoned good quality wood in the arms of the old chair and wondered if I could saw some nice jewellery making elements from it! Perhaps I will carve some leaf shapes and call it ‘Fall’.