Well what a year we have all had! Crazy times and this Covid virus just won’t go away will it. I’ve had 3 vaccinations now and sadly got Covid a few months ago. It was I must say pretty nasty and I have never ever felt so totally exhausted in my life. It was like a very severe flu with weakness, fatigue and a weird muzzy head. This was me flaked out on my bed after trying to walk around!

Thankfully having had my vaccinations I managed to recover and I’m so grateful I had them.

This year has given me plenty to think about and one thing I have decided is that jewellery making will be no more. Yes it’s sad and I’ve enjoyed my time working with Silver BUT the arthritis in my hands has been getting worse and exacerbated by twisting and fine movements needed when silversmithing. Boy can it be PAINFUL 🙁 So I must be sensible and stop making it worse, after all, arthritis won’t go away and needs to be managed.

So with stepping back from jewellery what am I doing with my time you may ask? Well I like to be busy so I’ve taken up a few new hobbies! The first is…..GOLF! Never played it before and thought it would be something hubbie and I could do together. I ❤ it! But it’s SOOOO HARD, well for me anyway. Its a frustrating game that you can become very addicted to and keep wanting to play more and more in the hopes the next round will be better!!! Best to not get too competitive 🤣

So Golf has become a big part of my life. Another big part is family and this year we became grandparents again, joining our grandson Teddie who is 3 are twins Eleanor Betty and Annie Margaret and they are just gorgeous 😍 my son Sam and his wife Charli are amazing parents, and we love them all to bits. Here are a few pics to make you go Aaaaah and smile!

I still have jewellery in my online store here to purchase and all reasonably priced with FREEPOST too so grab yourself a bargain. Once it’s gone it’s gone!! I’ve had a fun few years making it all but looking forward to a new chapter.

Well 2020, what a year last year was! And lets face it, it’s still not great, ALTHOUGH at least there is a vaccine now which is slowly making it’s way around the population. Fingers crossed it continues and we are all vaccinated by the Summer 🙂

Anyway, I thought I’d kick off the new year with a Sale. As many galleries are shut I’ve retrieved rather a lot of stock from them and have decided to have a clear out! So you will find that my Sale section is quite large, and many items are at a greatly reduced price. Some items are even as low as £10!! All my jewellery is handmade, and Solid Eco Silver used. The items will arrive in a recycled gift box or a handmade gift bag. Here are a few of the REDUCED items.

These are all one-off items so when they’re gone, they’re gone. If you want to grab a bargain for either yourself or another then now’s the time to buy!

As a small business we have all been struggling on this year but thankfully I had an amazing Christmas, lots and lots of sales which were hard to keep up with! ESPECIALLY my Bombay Sapphire Range which I shall concentrate on this year together with a few new ranges. So a massive THANK YOU to all you wonderful customers that bought from me, I am TRULY grateful and it made me so happy 🙂 So one way of thanking you is with this sale, so do buy whilst it’s so cheap.

And lets hope that we are all vaccinated soon and life can return to a better normal! 🙂 Stay safe everyone xxx

Well what a year! I have to say I’ve been so enjoying making my jewellery lately and I think my decision to concentrate on Bombay Sapphire jewellery has focussed me!

I love it and next year I am going to do some pieces with GOLD 💛 wonder how that will look. They will of course be more expensive but I think they will look the business! I wonder what sort of chain to use? Leather cord still? Or should I go with Gold chain? Hmmm Gold chain would put price up even more…  thoughts appreciated!

I’ve also made a few more pendants using Bombay Sapphire glass that still has the words on it. They’re super cool and I surround the glass with a fancy silver bezel and no backing. Its fab to see it with the light shining through!

A few weeks ago I joined a Facebook page called Not On Amazon and the response was just FANTASTIC. So WELL DONE to the man that set it up! Ok Amazon are great and very efficient, we all use it, we all go look things up when we want something, but this year has been so hard for small businesses. I think we are all conscious of that so by supporting craftspeople and smaller businesses it makes us feel good. So THANKYOU to all that have supported me. If I’d known the response would be so great I’d have made much more stock!!

I do however want to remain making quite individual pieces, mixed with a few easier to make pieces that can be replicated. Next year I shall try a few different Gin Glass Bottles but most of them are clear so Tanquerey will be next!

I still have lots of stock recently collected from a local gallery so I just want it SOLD. I shall over this week be adding it to my website REDUCED PRICE! I shall create a reduced price section so head straight to that to grab a bargain for Xmas 💕 I send all my jewellery 1st Class Signed for or Special Delivery for expensive orders.

These bangles have just been added and would make a great prezzie, I’ve also some jewellery that’s always popular, silver coil rings, Copper boho earrings, silver pebble earrings, thumb rings. Adjustable rings are the answer as a gift!

Christmas will be a tricky one for so many people this year, depending on what Tier restrictions you have. You may even not be able to see members of your family or friends. How sad isn’t it. What I find sad too is how many shops are closing, the high street is dying 😢 people are dying, people are losing jobs, income, and how do you keep positive? But we must. 🥰

So keep going everyone, we will get through this. Support each other as best you can, ring people if you cant see them, do your bit for others and if it means celebrating Xmas at Easter then that’s what we shall do!!!

Cornwall where I live is in Tier 1 as I write this, I have a feeling every holiday home and 2nd home will be occupied right through Xmas and into New Year, let’s hope Covid rates dont rise.

Take Care everyone and stay safe xxx

I can’t believe it’s September!! What a very strange year this has been hasn’t it. Covid has certainly changed life for everyone and I for one want it gone asap. I’m a people person, always have been, like meeting up face to face with others, like to be sociable, HATE wearing a mask and really not into Zoom. Yet there is little we can do about it at the moment and sadly the Covid rates are rising 🙁

To be honest though I am happy pottering along, making jewellery in my garden workshop and going for lovely walks in Cornwall. I have decided to reduce my Stock on Etsy by having a 40% off SALE and lets face it with Christmas around the corner and people struggling with money I suggest you buy whilst it’s so cheap!

All my jewellery is HANDMADE, made from SOLID SILVER, usually ECO SILVER, which is RECYCLED STERLING SILVER, and it will arrive in either a GIFTBOX or pretty handmade GIFTBAG. What I want to do is concentrate on a certain type of jewellery. When I started making jewellery I would fuse Dichroic glass and make quirky ‘Boho’ pendants, earrings, rings and Bangles. I’d often use leather cord instead of Silver chains and my jewelley was quite individual, unique.

Time to return to what I love….being me….being different to the norm!

And here’s another love of mine, making Jewellery using Recycled materials, over the last year one of these materials has been Bottle Glass! And what better than to use Bombay Sapphire Glass, I fuse various pieces in my kiln then set them into all kinds of jewellery. People love Gin so it makes a fabulous gift for someone, plus it’s a lovely translucent blue. I’ve also starting to use Hendricks Gin too!! So this is what you’ll be seeing more of!

So pop over to my Etsy store JulestenningDesign, and grab a bargain!

I haven’t written a blog post for a while, the last one I wrote was in January! And let’s face it, rather a lot has happened in the world since then!

We are all still in the grips of the Coronavirus – Covid-19 Pandemic and the world is a very different place. Social distancing, all but essential businesses closed, no socialising, no seeing family except through video chats, one daily exercise allowed, no non-essential travel, holiday bookings all stopped, flights grounded, beaches fairly empty, building sites shut as the supply chain is broken until DIY stores and builders merchants re-start, Festivals no longer taking place, including Glastonbury Festival where I work whenever it is on (Was to be their 50th Anniversary Celebration this year), Edinburgh Fringe Festival also cancelled (We go every year as it is such fun).

Here in Cornwall, it is quiet, and we are very lucky as we have SPACE. We can walk every day along the cliff tops, around the golf courses, on wide stretches of open and empty beaches. There is space to move aside when someone is walking the other way and beautiful views. I do feel so sorry for those that are in cities, in places where it is not so easy, they may be living in difficult conditions yet we are all being told we must stay at home, to protect the NHS.

-March 16th we in the UK had 152 new cases and 20 new deaths, that figure has risen and risen. March 31st 3009 new cases and 381 new deaths. April 5th 5903 new cases and 621 new deaths, with our prime minister Boris Johnson also suffering with the virus and admitted to hospital. April 8th 5491 new cases and 938 new deaths. April 21st 4301 new cases and 828 new deaths. At least 100 healthcare workers have died from the virus. The UK have done far less testing for the virus compared to some other countries.

It’s all very sad, and sometimes hard to believe it is really happening. This is going to take a LONG time to go, and it will be ages before we can return to what used to be normal.

CERTAIN departments in our hospitals are of course very very busy, High dependency units, ITU’s, Critical Care Wards, with patients suffering from the effects of the virus, needing Oxygen or Ventilators. Elective Surgery is cancelled, outpatients are closed ( unless needed for chemotherapy/dialysis or other life saving treatments) so there are parts of the hospitals with hundreds of empty beds, keeping them free for a major surge in admissions from the virus. I am doing my bit by making scrubs for use in the hospitals that need them!

As it was my birthday on the 20th April, I was bought a sewing machine by my husband. A great present and I’m very happy that I can help the NHS in my small way.

Jewellery sales have been slow until recently, much of my stock is in a local gallery which is of course closed. Thankfully I have quite a lot of pieces at my home and with sales increasing it’s nice to be sending items out. Our Post Office has limited opening at the moment but at least it is open for 2 hrs a day. I have a fair amount of supplies and finished items at home so orders can be taken. However, if a certain Gemstone is needed, and I cannot get it, I will of course refund the money. Also, I am unable to HALLMARK at the moment as the Assay Offices are closed.

I do have some lovely BOMBAY SAPPHIRE jewellery in stock and more glass that I can fuse so if you are a Gin Lover one of these pieces would be great! All pieces are TOTALLY UNIQUE as each piece of glass fuses very slightly differently, though I do my best to match pieces for earrings!

I also thought in these difficult times that it would be great to do some jewellery with a percentage of the sale going to a charity. So as I live in Cornwall, and also I do voluntary work for the Cornwall Air Ambulance, I thought I’d choose them. Their ‘colour’ is RED with the new Air Ambulance a gleaming bright red, so I bought some fabulous Red Carnelian Gemstones and have set them in Eco Silver!! They look STUNNING. Red Carnelian Gemstones are know to have healing properties: increases personal power, encouragement, boost creativity and compassion.

The small ear studs have 100% of the sale price going to CAA, the other items have 25% of the Sale price going to CAA. Hope you like them, and if you purchase you will be helping Cornwall’s Air Ambulance whilst getting yourself a fab piece of handmade jewellery by a local silversmith 🙂

Best finish now as I need to do some plant watering! The weather here has been amazing for weeks, so so sunny, blue skies and warm, with empty beaches….I keep taking pictures as I just can’t believe it! It makes people feel happier despite the awful news we get every day, so here’s a photo recently taken when I was on a walk to Rock from Polzeath. Look at it and smile, the world will recover from this virus so lets all try to be positive, stay safe and stay well xxx

January is a funny month isn’t it! With all the madness of Christmas and New Year people are often a little bit ‘down’ in January. Lots of money spent, too much eaten, too many drinks of alcohol, and the weather is often horrible. But I don’t have the will power than many have so I focus on projects to take on rather than things to cut out!!

I’m all for resolutions, and I have a few of my own, things that will make me feel happy and positive.

So I decided firstly to have a MASSIVE SALE! THIS IS BOUND TO MAKE A FEW PEOPLE HAPPY! Many of my items have 40 – 50% OFF, amazing bargains can be had as my jewellery is SOLID STERLING ECO SILVER, all handmade and supplied either in a recycled gift box or a calico gift bag. Many of the items below have recently sold, some still available and plenty more on Sale in my Shop so get looking and buy whilst stocks last!

So this year will be a busy one for me and I will still be making and selling my jewellery but I have other things springing up in my life too!!! More will be revealed later in the year 🙂

I wish everyone a great January, whether you are trying a vegan diet, off alcohol or training for a marathon!!! And lets hope all the rain we are getting stops soon and the sun comes out!

It’s getting close everyone! So to make things easier for everyone I’m now offering FREE DELIVERY! I’ve also been adding some new items to my website so take a peek!

With party season it’s fun to wear an item of jewellery that can make you really stand out from the crowd! And this necklace will certainly do that! Its made from 30 strands of eco silver, in 3 different lengths. Each strand has a molten ball end and a looped top which is then threaded onto a Sterling Silver Snake Chain. I only have one of these in stock so its first come first served! Treat yourself to a fabulous handmade recycled party necklace and give yourself the ‘WOW’ factor!!

I’ve also added some querky dichroic glass items, made from spotty sparkly glass! The glass has been fused in my kiln and I’ve made a pendant where the glass has been set in Eco silver and has a silver wire case around to form the pendant, with copper wire criss-crossed for detail! Its different that’s for sure! The matching earrings are drop earrings with the drop stem made from twisted copper and Eco silver 🙂 They are very Boho and unique, would look great at a party or special event.

At this time of year the Zeath gallery in Polzeath is shut so other than my website, you can view my jewellery at the Wild Garlic Studio in Trebetherick. I have just polished all my jewellery and restocked the cabinet there so if you are passing by take a look. Or if there is an item from the website you wish to look at (and you are fairly local) then do get in touch with me and we can perhaps meet up. This has happened recently as I have had an article about my business, with some background info on me, in this seasons local LINK magazine!

With Xmas getting close I shall be off soon to visit family so any orders may not be done until after Xmas. Many of my jewellery items are made to order so as I shall be away from my workshop I can only send out jewellery that is already made. I hope you all have a VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR, SEE YOU IN 2020!

A big thank you to all my customers this year, your custom has meant so much as I only completed my website in the summer! I truly appreciate every one of you and do hope that you will continue to shop with me and recommend me to your friends! xxx Jules

Well…..September became October pretty quick didn’t it! I hope you are all well and not too fed up with the rain storms we have been getting lately!

Half term is here and lots of visitors have arrived in Polzeath…and they’ve brought the sun with them! I went on a lovely walk the other day to Greenaway Beach, just along the coast path between Polzeath and Daymer Bay. Here’s a few pics from then, some fabulous textures can be seen on the rock pools!

With this website now up and running it is HAPPY DAYS as orders have been coming in! But what I have realised is that I DO have to promote it more and one of the ways is to regularly post a blog or update! So rather than doing a monthly round up of what I’ve been up to I shall be posting on a more regular basis….with new items made, or new events I’ve attended. A very popular sales item at the moment is the Bombay Sapphire Jewellery and I intend to expand on this by using other gin bottles too! So I’m on the hunt for great coloured glass!

Bombay Sapphire is a beautiful blue and really looks great with silver. It tastes quite nice too! So I drink the gin (with my husband!!) then smash up the bottle, fuse the glass in my kiln, then set in Recycled Silver. Here are the latest items added to my shop…more to come!

The ring is made to order and the blue glass used comes in all sorts of sizes as breaking up a glass bottle doesn’t lead to exact sizes! The oval shape can be placed vertically or horizontally on the ring shank 🙂 So for now, I’ve just received back a whole batch of rings from the Assay Office so I need to get on and set lots of beautiful faceted stones! Enjoy the half term break if you are off with your families x

Well September is turning out to be a lovely month isn’t it! The Sun is shining and its lovely and warm. It’s such a great time of year and I feel very privileged that I live in Polzeath. It’s far less crowded and the coastal walks are just lovely! I went on a great walk the other day to the headland at Pentire and took some snaps of the wonderful textures along the way….and all the Blackberries yum yum

We also took a little trip to see one of my favourite local artists, Jethro Jackson at Porthilly Gallery https://www.porthillygallery.co.uk/ prior to his yearly exhibition at the Rock Institute. Whilst there we bought a fabulous painting, Pentire Abstract. I’m sure it would have flown out at the exhibition so very pleased we snuck in first! And it looks great in our lounge!

So aside from walking and spending money, I’ve also been tending to this website and adding plenty of stock for my Autumn SALE. Most items are 40% OFF so plenty of bargains to be had. I shall be closing my Etsy shop soon I think as I concentrate on sending customers to the website! Its great to finally have one up and running and also great that I can adjust it and tweak it whenever I want instead of having to go through third party. Sales are happening, so its happy days 🙂

This morning I went to Wadebridge and had a coffee in Vittorios https://www.cafevittorio.co.uk/, what a lovely atmosphere. Music being played, comfy seats to sit on, a grande piano in the corner and plenty of artwork on the walls. They have live music there every Friday and are starting a comedy evening once a month so I shall definitely head over for that!

Well I’d better get back to work as I have commissions to make and send, plus new business cards to order!