Swell response!

I can't get over the response I've had to my Stephen Fry post!

Since I posted my blog for the lovely people on the Etsy UK chat thread to read, everyone has just been so wonderfully excited and enthusiastic about my minor stalking activity! Thank you so much to everyone for your congratulatory messages on Etsy/Twitter/here - you've made me feel less like a fanatical Stephen Fry-loving weirdo and more like a hero!

Not only have I had lots of amazing messages and comments, but a couple of the brilliant UK crew have even blogged about it! Take a look at their blogs and their shops - they have some gorgeous items for sale:

• Wonderland Boutique - the lovely Amy Wonderland makes me feel proud of my close-to-creepy behaviour! Read her very funny and well-written blog!
  http://wonderlandboutique.wordpress.com
  
  
• My Aphrodite Jewellery - this lady is MY hero! She kindly makes me sound brave, when in actual fact I was terrified! Read her blog and try her recipe for Shoo Fly Pie!
  http://www.myaphroditejewelry.com
  
  

I'm so glad that everyone has been happy about what I did - I was a bit scared that I'd post to blog and that everyone would be horrified!

So I'm currently taking requests for my next celebrity target - it was suggested on Etsy that David Tennant would be a good choice, and he is currently starring in Hamlet in London...


....hmmm...double dare me?

Much love,

Frankie

x

Swelling with excitement!

This post is actually nothing to do with my jewellery, but it is dedicated to the lovely UK sellers that frequent the Etsy UK Chat community thread.

For those of you that have not been on this thread before, the main topic of conversation is, more often than not, Stephen Fry. As proud Brits, there is no one that we love more than this national treasure, and we have had numerous conversations about him and his regular tweets on Twitter. So when I got tickets to see him talk about his new America series at the V&A, my fellow etsians dared me to make a banner...

...so I did. And here's the proof!



Can you believe it?! Me and the man himself! Needless to say I was VERY embarrassed asking him to do me this favour, but it was really a once in a lifetime opportunity. Plus, I was DOUBLE dared, so it had to be done!

If you have ever watched Mr Fry on television or in a film and thought to yourself, 'Wow, Stephen Fry seems a rather nice chap!" you'd be absolutely right! Witty, self-deprecating and just a thoroughly decent bloke. It was a really brilliant night, and if you ever get the opportunity to hear him do a talk - take it!

I will actually blog about jewellery-related things soon. Promise.

Much love,

Frankie

x

Just swell

Hello! This is going to be a quickie, as I'm rather sleepy and have work tomorrow, but I just wanted to write a little something. Apologies for any terrible spelling mistakes or grammatical errors - I'm pretty much ready for bed!

I had my mysterious meeting recently, and it went pretty well, I think. I'm not going to say too much at this stage in case I jinx it, but I will say that I could potentially get some great experience. Fingers crossed for me, please!

Today I made a new necklace. I'm pretty pleased with it, and it's nice to work with silver for a change. I've used this great silver plated chain, so this one's a bit special:



You can't really see the vintage broach I've used very well in that picture, so I've tried to capture it better in this one:


I really am a terrible photographer...

My sister really wants this one for Christmas. What do you think, lovely reader? Shall I be generous?

Also, all of my past pieces are now on their way to Trinket in Edinburgh! It's all very exciting, and I really hope the people of Edinburgh like them. I know that they are holding special Christmas shopping evenings there on 26th and 27th November, so if you're in the area why not pop in? I'd love to know how much jewellery looks there!

I made some big price reductions on my etsy shop today. Please visit Swell Vintage at http://swellvintage.etsy.com and let me know what you think!

Once again, thank you for reading. You are my everything.

Much love,

Frankie

x

Swell happenings

Right, so I'm finally ready to tell you all about where my jewellery is going! I didn't want to jinx it by telling people too early on, just in case my collection wasn't up to scratch, but it all seems good to go now! Hooray!

My jewellery is going to be on sale in a shop!!! Not only that, but it's a BEAUTIFUL shop! It's called Trinket, and it's in Edinburgh, Scotland. I've blogged about it before, not because of this, but because I visited the shop when I was on holiday there and genuinely loved it. It's a really gorgeous mix of vintage and contemporary pieces, and has some really unique jewellery and accessories. I spent a small fortune in there when I went! I'm so so excited that I've been given this opportunity, and Jan (the lovely lady who owns Trinket) is been so understanding and helpful. I will be shipping my jewellery off to her over the next week or so, just in time for Christmas. I will miss my pieces terribly, but hopefully they'll be going to a good home!

In other potentially exciting news, I have been given the chance to meet with a very brilliant and very talented jewellery designer. I won't name names at this stage, but even if it's just a meeting, I'm sure it'll be a great experience. Fingers crossed for me, please! I'm really going to have to attempt to contain myself, as I'm a really big fan of his work!

Also, I've had my first Etsy sale - woo! If you have a spare minute, please stop by my shop, Swell Vintage - http://swellvintage.etsy.com. I'm really looking forward to making more jewellery so that I'll be able to sell some online too. I need more free time, please!

So I think I've written more than enough for now! I will leave you with a photo of one of my favourite vintage scarves that is on sale in my etsy shop:



I LOVE the pattern!

Thanks for reading! You are brilliant.

Much love,

Frankie

x

Swell beginnings

So today I FINALLY opened my etsy shop! Hooray! Wanna see?

...I really must stop asking rhetorical questions in my posts. Here's the link:

http://swellvintage.etsy.com

Now I know what you may (or may not) be thinking - where's the jewellery at? Well, due to the mysterious news that I have blogged about previously, all of my jewellery stock will (hopefully still) be going somewhere else...somewhere up north, and therefore I won't have anything left to sell. So for now, my shop will just be selling vintage goodies. I would love to hear what you think of my shop, so if you have any feedback for me, please do let me know.

Here are a couple of my favourite items that I have for sale:

• Vintage Hermes scarf
  
  I love this! If only I wore scarves more...the design is amazing, and I love the image of Napoleon in the center:
  
  
  So very french and so very cool!
  
  
• Vintage Mulberry messenger bag
  
  Mulberry make some of the most beautiful bags in the whole world - FACT. This bag is absolutely stunning, made from gorgeous chocolate brown leather. If I wasn't one of those women that carry their lives around in their handbags, I'd keep this one for myself.
  
  
  I like to think this is a bit of a bargain too!

Also, I haven't forgotten that in my last blog I promised to write all about bracelets. So, here I go:

I love bracelets. While I tend to make necklaces, I am trying to branch out more into bracelets, and I have already made a couple. Want to see?

...right, not more rhetoric! Silly me.


This one is made from a pair of vintage earrings, and I've carried on the pearl theme for good measure.


I loved this vintage brooch, but I think it makes a much more striking bracelet! I've used a heavy gold chain to give this bracelet a bit more of an edge.

I am definitely going to make some more bracelets soon, but again, I'd really like to know what you think. I'm still learning, and because I have some really fantastic Etsians reading my blog, I know how much I could benefit from any advice. Positive or negative, anything goes please!

Argghhhghh, I can't believe the weekend is nearly over! Thank you for reading my blog, you are very lovely.

Come back soon, please!

Much love,

Frankie

Swell antiques

I've been a rather busy bee recently, but today I finally had some time to make some new pieces. Three, to be precise. Want to see?

...I'm going to assume that you were thinking 'yes'. Here they are:

This piece is made from an antique drawer pull! I've used a mix of vintage pearl and darker chain to soften it up and make it a bit more wearable. I quite like it!


I've let the vintage brooch in the center do the talking on for this one. I've used some dark embellished vintage chain to add to the gothic feel with a single pearl because...I like pearl! Also green is my favourite colour.

I apologise in advance for the appalling blurriness of this photo:


Made from a HUGE antique drawer pull, this is easily one of the boldest pieces I've ever made. I've tried to lighten it up with pearl and some light large-link chain. It would definitely take a brave person to wear this one!

So, what do you think? Please feel free to email or comment me with feedback, good or bad. It's the only way I'll learn!

I realise that I've mainly shown my necklaces in this blog, but there is more to my work than just that. My next post will be ENTIRELY bracelet based, so please come back and have a looky.

It makes me very happy when people read my blog, so thank you very much for reading.

Much love,

Frankie

x

Swell twitterings

So I've gone and jumped on the 'twitter' bandwagon!

I wasn't too sure about it at first, but now I'm hooked. There are so many etsy members on there! Even etsy is on there! It's a great way to get updated about what everyone's up to. If you have twitter, please follow me!:

http://twitter.com/swellvintage

In other news, I think I need to buy this from TheHandofFatima!:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16627817

It's totally stunning and an amazing antique find. She's gone and done it again! I get paid on the 18th, and then (hopefully) it shall be mine.

I think this post needs an image. Here are some passport photos I had taken the other day:


Soon after I had them done, I realised that I didn't actually need them. Good one.

Please come back soon! I'll be working on some new pieces towards the end of the week.

Much love

x

Swelling

...riverbanks, that is. What horrible, horrible weather we are having in the UK today! Perfect weather to stay indoors and make jewellery, I think.

Today I made a new necklace, and I'm pretty pleased with it:


I really like this large link chain. I'll definitely be buying some more. Thanks again, etsy! I also made a bracelet, but it didn't show up very well in the photographs I took.

Unfortunately none of these items are going to be for sale in my etsy shop. This is because of the exciting news I wrote about in my last post, and I promise to say more about it soon. Today's clue is: bagpipes. I will, however, still be opening my etsy shop in a week or so, selling primarily vintage bits and bobs. I will eventually be selling my jewellery there.

I'd love to know what you think of what I've done so far! Please leave me a comment with any ideas, suggestions or thoughts that you may have, they are all very welcome.

Thanks for reading my Swell Vintage blog!

Much love

x