Melanie Tomlinson: Bird Brooch

Melanie Tomlinson takes inspiration for her brooch designs from Romanian folklore where butterflies and birds are a reoccurring theme.  Each individual piece has a connection to a piece of a song or story heard whilst she is in Roumania.  

Melanie has spent over 15 years working on how to print on to sheet tinned steel.  It is a painstaking process.  she starts by making original, colourful and highly intricate gouache paintings which serve as the base for the printing process. These are based on original illustrations. My bird is based on the Liberty Strawberry Fields illustration. The metal is then hand printed and coated before being cut, folded, coaxed, smoothed and transformed into complex narrative sculptures, mysterious worlds in miniature, dioramas and tiny artefacts giving them jewel~like intensity of colour.  Quite often she combines the metal with other materials or objects she has found.

Crafted from printed tin, with her name embossed on the back, Melanie Tomlinson brooches are very life/animal like.  She makes moths, birds, fishes, butterflies, two and three layer brooches. The bird brooches can be found here

My brooch measures 83x46mm so it is certainly eye catching! It has a glint in its eye and certainly looks realistic.  I like using my brooch converter as it looks great as a pendant and hangs really well.

Available from: 

Melanie Tomlinson's Website 

Bacoca Boutique Bee Earrings: Review

 Bacoca Boutique are a online jewellery store that specialises in  "beautiful celebrity inspired jewellery with luxury, glamour and style.   I was lucky enough to win a pair of their bee earrings in a recent Twitter competition. They arrived today and they are gorgeous. They came well packaged in a Jiffy bag and wrapped in a little gift pouch, accompanied by a little jewellery care card.

The earrings are £18, gold plated and measure 1cm. They are fastened with butterfly backs.  They lay flat across my ear so there is no danger that they will get tangled in my hair or I will knock them out.

They look understated and elegant and bee jewellery is still very much on trend. There are also matching items available.

They run regular Twitter competitions so it is well worth following them!


Available from here
Twitter: BacocaBoutique

Anna Sui Magical Aquarium Makeup Palette & Face Gloss Limited Edition: Review

The Anna Sui limited edition Magical Aquarium Palette launched today on Asos and it is gorgeous.  It is a white palette decorated with monochromatic seahorses and jelly fish in a sea life motif. It has a great little compact mirror, printed inner compartment and a very secure lid.  It is compact so will fit easily in your handbag to carry around your essential makeup or jewellery.  It would also look great on a dressing table as it is so eye catching and unusual.

 

Anna Sui Limited Edition Sparkling Lip and Face Colour,  in blue and pink (also available in orange and purple) is £9. I loved the smell of this, it smells fruity and summery.  I didn't, however, like the texture - it was very greasy with no colour payoff.  I swiped the pink swirl several times and could only get a few specks of glitter to show up on my hand so I was very disappointed as I love multi use products like this one. 

I purchased these items myself from Asos and the views expressed in this blog post are my own.

#Review The Boss's Nine Month Negotiation by Maya Blake #millsandbooninsiders

I am a #millsandbooninsider but for this review I purchased the book myself.

The amnesia/ pregnancy is a well used theme but this book adds a new twist as the hero, Emiliano Castillo is expected to marry a business rival's daughter in order to save his parents from ipending bankruptcy.  Emiliano has a complex relationship with his parents who clearly saw him as the spare until his brother's accident.  Sienna Newman, with whom he was having an affair walks out when she finds out about his engagement.

He sees her at a restaurant, follows her and she falls and bangs her head.  When she comes round she has amnesia and they find out she is pregnant.  He takes her to his private island to recover and asks her to marry him.  She does, but her memory returns when she meets his parents and ex fiance.  he lets her go but comes after her pleading for her forgiveness.


This is a glamorous read set in Paris, London, Argentina and a private island.  Emiliano, despite being an alpha male has may complex layers in the way he relates to his parents, brother and to Sienna when she ill.  Sienna comes across as cold, not wanting work mates to know about her relationship with her boss, Emiliano.  It is only at the end of the book that you get the feeling that they actually love each other.

I  purchased this book myself and the views expressed in this blog post are my own.

E-book is £2.99, soft back £3.99.
Available from:
Amazon
Maya Blake's Website
M&B

Tartan Walking Sticks

Inspired by a possible second Scottish Referendum, I decided to look for tartan/celtic walking sticks. The top 3 are from Classic Canes, the bottom from Charles Buyers. The tartan permit blue badge  is from the Blue Badge Company (I have reviewed their permit holders in two previous posts).

I thought tartan walking sticks would be aimed at the older user, but when looking at the colour combinations they are quite eye-catching without being obviously tartan of the old car rugs variety. Rather than mirror the tartan theme clothing wise I would take one of the colours in the tartan and make that my main colour for my clothes so the blend rather than match. 

Available from:

Classic Canes

Walking Stick Scottish Highlands with Elegant Derby Handle Made from Sturdy Crystal Resin, Fitted to a Stick Made from Light Metal with a Typical Scottish Tartan Pattern, Height Adjustable, Includes Slim Rubber Buffer Fashion Derby

Classic Canes Fashion Folding Cane Adjustable Blue Tartan

Fashion Derby Adjustable Walking Stick - Blue Tartan

Fashionable, Multi Coloured Tartan, Height Adjustable, Derby cane + 2 Ferrules and Beige Wrist Loop (Top Quality Bundle

Charles Buyers:
Celtic walking stick

Tartan Patterned Folding Stick

Tartan Adjustable Walking Stick

Blue Badge Company: Tartan Permit Holder

April Birthstones: Diamond & Clear Quartz

There are two  April birthstones; diamond and clear quartz.

Diamonds are probably the most recognisable and popular gemstones in the world and is the modern birthstone for the US, UK and India.  It was also the birthstone for the traditional Polish and Hindu calendars.  The expensive relation to graphite, diamonds are a crystal that come in many different colours and are the hardest gemstones. Diamonds can be found in sedimentary rock, kimberlite (volcanic samples) and alluvial deposits. They are thought to bring luck and fend off misfortune for the wearer.  They are also suppose to improve relationships and bring balance, clarity and abundancy.

Clear quartz [rock crystal]  is the second April birthstone for the UK.  It is clear like a diamond and is often seen as a cheaper alternative. There are quartz mines on all continents.  Clear quartz is supposed to bring happiness and allow the wearer to see into the future. 

British Museum: Rosetta Stone Wooden Badge

When my mum left University in 1964 she was asked to go and work in the British Museum on the Rosetta Stone, she didn't, but is still besotted with it. I was browsing the British Museum shop online and saw the Rosetta Stone wooden badge - perfect Mothers Day present. The badge is a British Museum exclusive and costs a purse or pocket money friendly £2.99.

Measuring 5cm x 4cm x1cm, it is quite big and definitely not a lapel pin size badge. I also convert it to a necklace using my necklace/pin converter, but the museum does sell a sterling silver pendant version for £29.99. 

Available from: 

British Museum