B is for my Beadmaker Bead

B is for my Beadmaker Bead... the ultimate fix for any bead addict - have your own bespoke bead made espeically for you!!

Amanda was the lovely lampworker for Trollbeads (a brand of bead jewellery for the non jewellery AtoZ visitors) down at an event in Cambridge;  I spent a thoroughly lovely time watching her work her magic with the flame!

So much so that when it became time for Amanda to make my own bead... I was still mesmerised and hadn't decided what I wanted!

After much discussion, we settled on pinky purples and blacks in swirls... and now it was time to watch my own bead being created.  I won't labour on the details as I'll let the photos speak for themselves!

Then came the long wait whilst the bead was with Trollbeads to be cored.  

It's always exciting to see if the annealed and cored bead matches what you thought it would look like from your memories of the night!

I love my beadmaker bead made by Amanda, and look how well it matches another lampworked bead I bought shortly after!

It only remains to decide what it's first bracelet will look like... I think I'm still mesmerised as I haven't decided on the final composition yet!

Have you ever had, or wanted to have, a bead made for yourself?

What did/would you choose and why?

Yorkshire Beadmaker Event at Sizer Jewellers - Saturday 7th March 2015

Sometimes my timing is rubbish, we finally get a Beadmaker Event in Yorkshire and I'm off to the *wrong* bit of Yorkshire for the weekend!  Whilst I'll be going from East to West, might I suggest everyone else head in the correct direction of North?!

Shop front of Sizer Jewellers at Huntriss Row, Scarborough - photo courtesy of Sizer Jewellers

Sizer Jewellers will be giving you a warm welcome from their shop at 44/46 Huntriss Row in Scarborough on Saturday 7th March, in just under 2 weeks time!

The lovely team at Sizer's have also thought of your comfort on the day and teamed up with a local café, nearby Boddy’s of Bar street to provide free hot drinks, a voucher system will be in operation... you'll need to pay for your own lunch though!  

The cafe menu ranges from sandwiches to Jacket potatoes with a large seating area for sitting and discussing Trollbeads!

So now you know where it is, when it is and food arrangements... what's happening Trollbeads wise on the day??

Julie, one of the lovely Trollbeads Lampworkers will be demonstrating and making Trollbeads throughout the day!

As with most beadmaker events you can have your own bespoke Trollbead made for you on the day!

A £75 minimum spend in the shop and an available time slot are required to qualify for this offer, the bead you have made is FREE!

Photo of Amanda making my 2nd beadmaker bead at Cambridge by Mars
I have two beadmaker beads now, one from Sue and one from Amanda...
can't believe I'm missing out on a hat-trick by having Julie make me a third!

Sizer's have already started taking bookings for beadmaking slots for those people who want to guarantee them.  They can take bookings over the phone or via email (contact details at the bottom of the post) but will also be leaving plenty of spare places for on the day too.

The full list of what you can expect:

• LIVE Beadmaking demonstrations throughout the day
• Your very own FREE bead made by Julie on the day (Terms & Conditions apply)
• A selection of rare sought after "Museum" Beads 
• New OOAK kits
• Gorgeous GOLD Trollbeads
• Raffle Prizes
• Lucky Dip
• Goody Bags
• Refreshments 
• Trollbead Rep Andrew will be at the shop for the day
• ...so much more!!

There will be lots of offers e.g. the White Jewellery Box for £65 instead of £75 (<--- I love this box)

The raffle and lucky dip will be raising money for the local Marie Curie Appeal and The Snowdrop Appeal (a local charity at the hospital raising money for a bereavement suite for the maternity unit).

Travel, parking and staying over
Their location is fairly central, just an 8 minute walk from the train station (according to Google). Trains run from York and Leeds every hour if you don't fancy the drive (means you can indulge in some bubbly!)

If driving, there are two park and ride stations, the buses from both stop at the end of Huntriss row which is where the shop is, with an even quicker 10 second stroll to the shop!

If driving in to the town, The Palm Court car park is opposite the shop.

The team says if you want to make a longer trip, hotel wise... the Premier Inn is a one minute walk away, it is a new inn and good quality accommodation.  For more traditional hotels, the Palm Court and the Royal Hotel are also good and one and two minutes away!

About Sizer Jewellers
We are a family run business, the day to day running is by myself Carrie and my Husband Andrew.

The team at Sizer Jewellers - photo courtesy of Sizer Jewellers

We will both be in the shop along with our lovely staff Juliet, Christine and Diane.  We are hoping to ensure that it is a fun filled day with lots of conversation, free flowing bubbly and cakes!  Usually a great mixture when selecting beads!

We have a huge selection of beads and have a bespoke display that makes viewing the beads so much easier.

To Book Your Place
Call Sizer Jewellers on 01723 372867 or email carriesizer@sizerjewellers.co.uk

Will you be heading in the correct direction to North Yorkshire on the 7th March?

Trollbeads Cambridge - Spring Collection Preview

So after 28 hours, 7 trains, 3 taxis, 1 bus and shanks's pony it was all over bar the waiting... what a wonderful whirlwind of meets, greets and treats!

Official pics courtesy of Trollbeads Cambridge, collage by Mars

It all started on Thursday morning with the usual "Oh my god, what do I wear?" dilemma.  Not the clothes - the jewellery!  Final choices selected, bags packed, triple checked, note pad, kindle, phone and charger (the staples of any blogging trip) and I was off!

Tickets check, bridge check, bracelet check, mocha & kindle check, final train to Cambridge check!

The sun shone all the way there until I actually got to Cambridge whereupon it got a little grey, however my welcome party were waiting for me at the station to brighten up my arrival.  Yes of course I have a welcome party arranged, er, okay, so my friends are pretty cool and had sorted out a lot of stuff before I arrived, thank you!!

Off we set to the first rest stop, time to grab a quick drink, sketch out plans for the evening, explain what Trollbeads are and aren't and whilst half the welcoming party escorted me to Trollbeads Cambridge, my suitcase was duly whisked away in the opposite  direction and direct to where I was staying for the night... okay so I'm not exactly sure it was opposite as I was barely there enough time to get my bearings; but for the sake of artistic license opposite is as good a direction as any!

In the meantime I'd made contact with the lovely Kay, arranged to meet her at the shop and had a quick guided stroll through Cambridge... 

Pic courtesy of Trollbeads Cambridge

Trollbeads Cambridge has got to have one of the prettiest store fronts I've ever seen and inside it's beautifully compact and bijou.  Combine this with Trollbeads new store furniture, great lighting, clever use of mirrors and display space and blissfully free from other brands and the whole package packs an amazing punch considering it's footprint.  

Official pics courtesy of Trollbeads Cambridge, collage by Mars

It certainly feels a lot bigger than it is and there are several distinct areas to browse and buy.  As you would expect from the UK's first concept store they carry the full range of Trollbeads as well as the newer line of X by Trollbeads and the staff are warm and friendly, attentive without being clucky - a rather perfect mix.  I had no preconceptions before I arrived, and I genuinely liked the layout and design of the store, it's been very well thought out.  

On arrival I spotted Kay straight away, met Phillip for the first time and enjoyed a glass of Prosecco and just talked beads to everyone for ages.

Trollbeads Cambridge - Spring Collection Preview Evening

It was one of those surreal but lovely times in that I "knew" quite a few people in a virtual sense from emails, facebook, Twitter, bead forums, Curling Stones and the Internet generally, but until this evening I had never actually met any of these people in real life.  

I especially had been looking forward to meeting Kay, who not only has been a contributor to Curling Stones in the past but is also someone I've been talking to for over 2 years without actually meeting in person - pssst don't tell her... but she's even more lovely in real life than she is on the Internet!

There was a nice vibe in the shop and a fair bit of shopping as well as LOTS of chatting!

The event itself was split between two venues, the shop served as first point of call and had Amanda the lovely beadmaker installed in the corner designing and making Trollbeads for everyone.

Beadmaking with Amanda! Design and have your very own Trollbead made just for you!

The second venue was just around the corner from Trollbeads Cambridge, upstairs at Don Pasquale's for canapes, cake and wine and the reason we were all there... the Trollbeads Spring and Valentine Collections.

A large display board held most of the collection on, complete with names and descriptions for everyone to browse, there was also plenty of time to get hands on with the new beads on a necklace whilst having a bite to eat.  The team from Trollbeads HQ were presenting the collection along with the team from Trollbeads Cambridge and it was great to see such strong support for the event.

Should you wish, you could enter the guess the amount of beads competition and take home a goody bag and eat more cake and pizza than could be got through in one evening... I did nibble away but I was eating with friends later so I only hope the staff were VERY hungry once we'd all disappeared!

New Collection and Canapes!

The two venues worked well as people went from one venue to the other and back again, allowing everyone to have time to take the evening at their own pace.

Taking photos, chatting, eating, drinking and bead fondling can be a bit tricky when you're trying to do all of these at once, the venue where the beads were being shown had very low lighting so photos were a bit tricky... but here is the new collection from the big display board for your perusal.

Sea Glow is firmly on my Wishlist as I love all the glow in the dark beads!

Blue Hematite was a firm favourite, as were all the hematite beads in the new collection.

Gentle Wave is another silver I've added to my Wishlist, to be fair there was a lot to like from the new collection

Compass is a bead I think I need to play with on a bracelet more, I can't decide whether it's on or off my list yet!

I almost bought Red Hematite on the night, it's a lovely purple/red, not that you can tell in this light,
but take my word for it, it's a very nice bead!  Dragonfly also appeared very popular, a very dainty bead.

Spring Leaves was a favourite of mine as soon as I saw a stock photo, it's another one for my growing Wishlist.

I love Guardian of Nature, it's a very endearing bead!

Path of Life was one that I hadn't "noticed" as much from the stock photo, but totally fell in love with on the night.

If you like hearts you'll love the Valentine collection, they are all very well done.

I really liked Live, Love & Forgive when it saw it's debut in Gold,
so glad the silver version has made it into the main collection

Life & Love is one that has also made it onto my Wishlist, I definitely have a soft spot for scarabs!

White & Red Love Symphony is a great match for Asian Hearts

So there you have it, I couldn't get photos of everything in a logical sequence but instead of chopping up the photos to just show one shot of each bead, I've kept the extra details and not cropped the photos so that you can catch more than one glimpse of each bead.  I didn't get any good photos of either of the leathers or the lock, and the Dolphin Heart pendant is best seen in the collage where I am holding it in my hand.  I've not been a fan of any of Trollbeads previous dolphin beads but I think the Dolphin Heart pendant has been beautifully done this time.

The evening was drawing to a close and it was time to say good night to everyone and head off home, or in my case off to meet my friends and have some food... more pizza!

I sorted through my goody bag whilst we were ordering food and found an extra special present from Trollbeads to all the attendees, thank you!!

My hosts for the night were the lovely Rob and Liz who run The Haymakers in Chesterton in Cambridge.  Not only did they organise the logistics for the Cambridge end of my trip but I got to finally have the lovely pint of Nero I've been promising myself since the last time I visited.  The new pub is lovely and I took some shots in the morning before heading off back up North!

The Haymakers in Chesterton, Cambridge - a rare sight to see it empty (only when it's shut!!)

Time to head home, and now I was against the clock to race back and make my appointment with the hairdresser for 3.30pm...

Humber Bridge as you approach by train

1 taxi, 4 trains, 1 late & almost a missed connection, 1 bus later and some more shanks's pony and it was finally time to doze whilst my lovely hairdresser sorted out my mane of grey streaks!  Yes, yes, I know - most people would sort themselves out before a VIP evening out, not after, but then this is me we're talking about!

If you want to know anything at all about the new collection or my trip, please ask as I also have a copy of the new Trollbeads catalogue and details of the new collection that came in my goody bag.

Super big thanks go to all the staff at Trollbeads Cambridge and Trollbeads UK, Amanda the Beadmaker and all at The Haymakers for all their help and hospitality, and especially to Trollbeads Cambridge for the wonderful official photos!

What do you think to the new collection from Trollbeads?

Would you be interested in attending more of these launch events in the future?

Beadmaker Bead Tales

"If you could have a bead made just for you...

what would it be and what would you do with it?"

Beaverbrooks and Trollbeads UK asked attendees the first question in person... and Curling Stones was waiting in the wings to find out what happened after the event!

Angela 

"Beaverbrooks staff were excited to have a beadmaker on site and our group all chose to have the same style bead made, but in different colours. 

My bead being made - photo by Angela

Mine is black with gold dust and I actually opted for this bead after seeing it on the wrist of one of the ladies from TB UK, I thought it worked well."

Photo by Angela

Angela has an incredible collection of beads and I think her choice of beadmaker bead certainly matches the rest of her collection very well!

Tracy

"I was so excited to have the opportunity of getting a bead made for me.  Especially  as it gave me the chance to create something unique to remind me of a very special occasion, my eldest son's wedding.

The choice of colour was an easy one as I needed the bead to go on the bracelet I was putting together to match my wedding outfit.  So off I went armed with a sample swatch of the colour of my dress in the hope my wish could be fulfilled. I was in luck, I could see amongst the bead maker's rods one that looked perfect.

However on chatting to the talented lady she told me she had had a few problems when working with this colour on a previous bead. It was producing dirty blackish marks in the glass and she didn't know why and was reluctant to use it.   I think she saw the disappointment in my face and came up with a solution.....she would add glitter to disguise them! 

My bead - photo by Tracy

The dots were then added to the top to symbolise 'stepping stones ' to the next stage of his life, hopefully on a path of never ending happiness. 

I left the shop a very happy lady."

All Photos by Tracy

Although I already knew why Tracy had chosen to have this bead made, I still got a warm cosy feeling when I read about the meaning...

Amanda Mac

"Over the years, I have been lucky enough to have several beads made for me by Georgina Black, the Trollbeads UK lampworker who has now returned to Canada.  Georgina was replaced by Sue, and this was to be her very first bead for me, as I didn't get a beadmaker slot at the last UK Trollbeads Convention in 2013, when Sue started.

I was in a bit of a lime phase over the summer... you can also see one of my other beadmaker beads in the photo below - the black flower on lime - which was designed by me and made by Georgina, and so I decided after much debate with trollie friends that I wanted a white armadillo with lime lines  (We spend hours beforehand debating our choices!). 

My Summer Lime Phase - photo by Amanda Mac

However, when I got to Beaverbrooks for the event and saw some of the beads Sue had made earlier for the staff, I decided to go for a lime and gold splodge bead instead!  A bit like the Oranje Boven only in lime.

As usual it was great fun seeing one's bead being made...

My bead being made - photo by Amanda Mac

...and even better to see the finished result.

Photos by Amanda Mac

When the bead arrived back after being cored in Denmark, I found that it was a lovely fresh apple green colour instead of lime.  I didn't mind at all because the colour is beautiful, and I know that colours can be difficult to get right with lampworking. 

I am playing around with combos at the moment (most of my bracelets are permanent) and I seem to be making a purple and fresh green combo at the moment...

New combo - photo by Amanda Mac

I know that my friends had similar designs made in different colours, and they are great beads too! 

Thank you, Sue and Beaverbrooks!"

Mars

"I laughed when I read Amanda's "We spend hours beforehand debating our choices!" - so did I, on the day itself I was still struggling with my choices and not knowing what glass rods Sue had with her (so I couldn't choose in person), I sent a few suggestions down to Bristol and deliberately didn't ask which one was made so that it would be a surprise when it arrived.  I love surprises!

Finally I got the message that all the beads had been cored and returned, and in mid-June I waited for my bead to arrive!  Having just got back from my holiday and also having just seen my bus for the first time, to say I was a bit excited was an understatement; what an amazing week that was!

So which design had Sue chosen to make?  Purple translucent bead with glitter in it!  I love purple and I'm always on the look out for deeper purples, so I was pleased to add another to my collection!

What did I do with my bead?  Well I've actually been wearing it ever since on a very special bracelet, nestled within the In Your Heart Charm... on my Bus Bracelet!

Although I had no idea what to expect when I was throwing ideas out into the ether for my bead, I couldn't have been more delighted with what I received and the timing of it coming.  

It's the perfect purple to match my bus and the gold glitter really reminds me of the wooden interior, especially how it looks when the light catches it in the late afternoon/early evening sun."

Carol

"My bead from the Beadmaker Event was a purple wave, I was a bit surprised as I was expecting a green wave in a purple bead...

My Beadmaker Bead - Photos by Alan

Bracelet by Carol - Photo by Alan

Now it's in my bracelet combination I'm actually happier it's not purple and green!"

I really like what Carol has done with her bead, I think she's chosen such lovely beads to make this bracelet and I adore the combination; beautiful!  P.s. I think it would also go very well in my bus bracelet!

Helen

My beadmaker bead - photo by Helen

"This is my bead, it turned out to be a deeper red than I was expecting but I was really pleased with it, it's my red boven!

Sunset - bracelet and photo by Helen

I was originally intending to put it on another bracelet, but when it arrived it really did look like it was especially made for this bracelet, so I took out the original focal bead and now my beadmaker bead takes pride of place."

I'm not normally one for darker red beads (I've been having a bright red phase myself) but I think I've fallen a little bit in love with Helen's bead, it's not a colour I've seen a lot of but I adore it!

Adam

Now most of you won't know (and Adam probably wouldn't remember) but he was actually the member of the Beaverbrooks Cribbs Causeway team who sold me 3 beads back in August 2012!  We had a really lovely chat about his (then) recent trip to Trollbeads UK Headquarters which I had just read about; I felt like I was talking to Trollbeads royalty!

Adam's Beadmaker bead - photo by Beaverbrooks

"Adam choose to have this bead made to compliment his bracelet which is mostly made up of beads of his favourite colour "Blue".  The orange was implemented due to him visiting Amsterdam and having an orange bead to commemorate his holiday, so he asked for some orange to be added.

The outcome was this amazing whirlwind of orange and blue.  Who would have thought it would come out so beautiful!"  Sara

Beaverbrooks 

Even the shop had a bead made!  

Beaverbrooks beadmaker bead! Photo by Beaverbrooks

  

"This bead is in the Beaverbrooks colours, purple, grey and white!" Sara

I like that the shop has had a bead made... especially as I'm the woman who made a bracelet to represent her bus!  I wonder who gets to wear this one or if everyone has to take it in turns?! 

I knew there was a question I forgot to ask!

I personally loved seeing and hearing about everyone's beads and designs, I'm so nosy curious!  I love this part of my job at Curling Stones and I hope you've enjoyed reading about them!

Big thanks again to the Beaverbrooks Team, Sue, Trollbeads UK and Angela, Tracy, Amanda, Carol, Helen, Adam and Sara (representing Beaverbrooks) for sharing their photos and stories - fabulous beads and bracelets!

Out of all the beads you could have made for yourself;
if there were no restrictions at all...
What would you choose?