Pearls & Lace

Up until this point my jewellery designs have been, in the main, gemstone designs. I love gemstones for their individuality and metaphysical properties, and they'll continue to be my main focus, but I just fancied a bit of a change!

I'd used Swarovski crystal pearls before, in my own bridal jewellery, and I loved the colours. I also wanted to incorporate more resin work into my designs.

I wanted a look that blended a vintage style with modern elements, like the coloured pearls and resin in the pendants and I'm really pleased with the results.

If you'd like to see some more pop over to the Etsy shop - www.Etsy.com/shop/EriminiDesigns

Christmassy Makes!

As I have so many markets coming up as we head towards Christmas I thought I'd have a go at some fun 'stocking fillers'. These earrings are pure Christmas, and just £2 a pair (or £4 if you prefer sterling silver hooks), making them perfect for the office Christmas lunch!

And I just love these charm bracelets, available in child or adult size, with green or red ribbon and your choice of charms. Again, perfect price for a stocking filler, just £4.50.

These are the events I'm at in the build-up to the festive period, hope to see some of you there!

OCTOBER

Saturday 26th - Derby Arts & Crafts Fayre, Market Hall, Tenant Street, Derby DE1 2DB 10am-4pm https://www.facebook.com/derbyartsandcraftsfayre 

Thursday 31st - SpiritualEyes investigation at Gresley Old Hall, Swadlincote https://www.facebook.com/events/549063768465578/ 

NOVEMBER

Saturday 9th - Mind, Body & Spirit Event at Derby Spiritualist Church, Charnwood Street, Derby DE1 2GU 10am-4pm https://www.facebook.com/events/525126530901824/ 

Tuesday 26th - SpiritualEyes investigation at Tutbury Castle, Tutbury https://www.facebook.com/events/1383526548527066/ 

Thursday 28th - Treetops Hospice Christmas Shopping Event, Derby Road, Risley, Derbyshire, DE72 3SS 7pm-9.30pm https://www.facebook.com/events/192282284278271/ 

Saturday 30th - Derby Arts & Crafts Fayre, Market Hall, Tenant Street, Derby DE1 2DB 10am-4pm https://www.facebook.com/derbyartsandcraftsfayre 

DECEMBER

Saturday 7th - Christmas Craft & Gift Fair at St Peter's Church, St Peter's Street, Derby DE1 1SN 10.30am-3pm

DIY Metal Bookmark Display

I have wasted spent many an hour on Pinterest looking at jewellery displays for craft markets. I've worked on a new table layout for my upcoming events, but I was very stuck on how best to display my beaded bookmarks and bag charms.

So, inspired by this image, I decided to have a go at making my own. Starting with an Ikea RIBBA picture frame, I painted the back board in black poster paint. Once this had dried I laid two lengths of thin ribbon around the frame, leaving the ends loose and untied at the side (well, this isn't what I actually did, but is what I'd do if I tried again!). I then replaced the glass and back board and secured the clips. I then pulled the ribbon tight and tied the ends, snipping them close to the knot.

I'm quite pleased with the finished article, it fits in quite nicely with my new logo, and I'm very excited about using it on my table at Derby Arts & Craft Fayre in a fortnight!

All go, go, go!

Its been quite a busy few days here, working on a new logo and branding, new packaging ideas and finalising my Christmas events. Not only that but settling my eldest into her new reception class at school! 

Today I've arranged to have a stall at the Christmas Shopping Event at Treetops Hospice, Risley, Derbyshire. It'll be on the 28th November, 7pm - 9.30pm and all of the profits of the event go to this excellent cause.

My next event is alongside Spiritual Eyes at the Galleries of Justice in Nottingham, where these haematite designs I've done today will be going, then Derby Arts & Crafts Fayre on the 28th, which is running alongside Derby Feste, so it should be a good day!

New Gift Designs and Upcoming Craft Fayres

I've been working on beaded gifts recently, ready for *whispers* Christmas. I'm doing bag charms and bookmarks this year and I've had pretty good feedback on the ones I've done so far. I've stuck with using gemstones to give the pieces a quality finish, and the uniqueness that is so important to me.

I've also booked a few events to get me back to craft fairs after the birth of my little boy in July. The dates are as follows:

Saturday 26th October - Derby Arts & Crafts Fayre, Derby Market Hall 10am-4pm https://www.facebook.com/derbyartsandcraftsfayre 

Saturday 9th November - Mind, Body & Spirit Event ay Derby Spiritualist Church, Charnwood Street 10am-4pm

Saturday 30th November - Derby Arts & Crafts Fayre, Derby Market Hall 10am-4pm https://www.facebook.com/derbyartsandcraftsfayre 

Saturday 7th December - Christmas Craft & Gift Fair at St Peter's Church, Derby 10.30am-3pm

Hopefully I may see you there!

Hoot Hoot Hoot!

Sorry the blog has been so quiet, its been all go what with the house move and new baby preparations! The jewellery has been ticking along in the background though, including these lovely new owl designs (Fluorite, Tiger Eye and Rose Quartz in case you were wondering!).

I've also been doing a few custom orders, including this Snowflake Obsidian bracelet for a lovely friend who helped us no end with the  new house.

I've also today signed up with a new e-commerce site, Mummy Makers. Their site is a work in progress at the moment, but I really like the concept and there are some fabulous crafters on there already.

On the Bank Holiday weekend we took a break from infernal unpacking to pop over to Long Eaton Art Rooms who were having an Open Weekend. It was lovely to see so many talented local artisans, and my eldest daughter loved looking at all the different crafts.

So its all go, but we are slowly but surely getting through box mountain and settling in well :)

Facebook Milestone

Yesterday I reached the dizzy heights of 200 'likes' on my Facebook page, very exciting! As a celebration I've released a discount code for the Etsy store - 200LIKES will get you a whopping 30% off all orders over £10 until this Thursday at 5pm (GMT).

Its also been a massively busy weekend as its only four sleeps until we move house! (Is it normal when you become a parent to start counting everything in 'sleeps'?) So everything is totally topsy turvy and backwards and I really wish I could fast-forward to next Sunday and have everything already sorted!

Anywho, if I'm a bit quiet this week that'll be why!

Remember remember....

One of the trickiest things I found about early days with a newborn baby was keeping track of which side I needed to feed from next. If its not something you have dealt with I can assure you - if you skip one side accidentally it hurts. A lot. Think boulder-boob. Not good!

So when I started thinking about designs to make breastfeeding reminder bracelets were pretty high on my agenda. It had to be something that was very easy to switch from one side to the other, as well as being smooth so baby's head could rest on that part of the arm if necessary.

So far I've come up with two different designs. The first is 'Elephants Never Forget'. I absolutely love this charm, its so adorable!

The second is 'My Heart' with a smaller, more delicate charm.

Both designs are currently available in fluorite and moonstone. Moonstone is reputed to be especially good for breastfeeding as it balances hormonal cycles. Fluorite is meant to be very good for healing as it helps with cell regeneration, perfect for post-birth recuperation.

Check out these and my other designs at www.etsy.com/shop/eriminidesigns

Laura x 

And here I am!

Hello! I had been blogging in a different corner of the internet (www.mummymuddle.blogspot.co.uk) for a while, but since starting the business in February I've not really had time to devote to it. So I'm starting here afresh, focussing mainly on my jewellery but I'm sure the family stuff will creep in!

So, a bit about me. I'm a work at home Mum of two beautiful girls who are 4 1/2 and 20 months and we're expecting a new baby in August. I opened Erimini Designs in February of this year, originally to sell psychic protection jewellery at events run by Spiritual Eyes (www.spiritualeyes.co.uk) but I found I was enjoying it so much that I started to branch out and sell online. 

I work mainly with gemstones and crystals and I try to stick to natural materials as I feel they give the pieces a more individual feel. All of my designs are never remade so they are truly one-off items.

Its a very steep learning curve as I've never been self-employed before, but I'm very much enjoying the journey. What's nice is I'm finding the pieces that get the most interest are the ones that I like most, so at least I have that sorted!