New stuff from the house of Swell

...although I actually live in a flat!

Although I've been busy with a good few Christmas jewellery commissions recently, I've also made some new pieces that I really want to share with you. As always, I'd be grateful for any feedback or thoughts you may have about the pieces, so please sock it to me. All of these pieces will be available from Swell-Vintage.com in the new year.

This is my Queen of Hearts necklace. It's made from a vintage brooch, hung on vintage chain and is adorned with freshwater pearls. I am really pleased with it's simple beauty - so much so, in fact, I might even wear it to my Christmas party tonight! Turns out I'm very indecisive...

The Luck be a Lady bracelet is a bit of a bold beast, but it still has an air of elegance about it. It's made from a vintage brooch, linked on vintage chain and is, of course, adorned with freshwater pearls. I do so love a bit of wrist bling.

Inspired by everyone's favourite Quality Street treat, this is The Purple One. I do have a confession to make - this is not a new necklace. I made it a long time ago, and it was for sale in a boutique in Edinburgh. Unfortunately that boutique has now closed down, and although I am very sad about it I am very happy to have this necklace back.

So what do you think? Which piece is your favourite? What would you wear them with? Tell me what's on your mind.

Also, it's nearly Christmas! I am so overly excited about it, and I'm looking forward to spending some quality time with friends and family. What are your plans for the festive period?

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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P-A-R-T-why? Because it's Christmas!

I love Christmas. I honestly do. Not just because it's the season where binge eating becomes a socially acceptable activity (they're known as 'mince pies', not 'mince pie'. Thus, I must eat as many as I can fit into my mouth...right?), but also because there 's always a good occasion to get up.

As mentioned a few posts ago, I recently left my full-time office job so that I could devote more of my time to Swell Vintage. It's been a couple of weeks since I left now, and while it has been amazing to explore my passion more, I do really miss the people. I worked with a lot of brilliant and wonderful people, many of whom became very close friends to me, and you just don't get the same level of social interaction when you're sat at home talking to yourself. And I've definitely tried...losing touch with reality, you say? Don't be crazy...

However, before you start playing the world's smallest violin just for me, the good news is there is some light at the end of my anti-social tunnel - the Christmas Party! I'm still allowed to go, and I fully intend to have an awesome night.

But I do need your help, my dear reader. I've got the dress, but I need help choosing a necklace to wear!

Ok, so here's the dress. It's a vintage black lacey number that I got from Vix Vintage on Etsy, and I am in love with it. It fits like a dream and definitely gets me in the mood for a party.

As you can see, the neckline is rather plunging, so I will definitely need a necklace to go with it. I personally love a statement necklace to make an outfit pop, especially with a black dress, so I'm going for something quite bold. And lucky for me, I have lots of lovely necklaces to borrow from Swell Vintage! Here are the options:

Necklace One

My 'Princess Pearl' necklace could work because it's quite striking, but the pearls add a touch of elegance to it. Also - let's face it - it looks a bit like a nipple, so it's quite fun to wear with a low cut dress!

Necklace Two

My 'Rose by any other name' necklace is one of my all-time favourite pieces, and it might be nice to soften the dress with something a bit prettier...but would it work with this dress? What do you think?

Necklace Three

I made this necklace today, and I'm really pleased with how it's come out. I've called it 'Pearl of the Sea' because the jagged shape reminds me of coral. I like it because it has a classic feel to it, and that could go really well with this dress. It will also be available to buy from swell-vintage.com as of tomorrow.

So what do you think? Which is your favourite necklace? If you could place you vote and let me know any ideas or thoughts you have in the comments box, it would be very much appreciated! Also, I'd love to hear about your go-to party outfit for the Christmas season, so please tell me all about it.

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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R.I.P Leslie Nielsen

This morning I woke up to the very sad news that Leslie Nielsen had died. I am geniunely heartbroken about this. I have grown up watching his films, and I like to think that his genius first inspired my appreciation and love of comedy. I can quote nearly all of his films on demand - a fact that I am very proud of.

Another reason why this makes me so sad is because I never got to see him in person. Earlier in the year I had tickets to see him in conversation over at the BFI, but unfortunately he had to cancel. We all hoped that he'd be able to reschedule the talk at some point, but he didn't. It would have been amazing to see the man himself in the flesh, recounting stories from his incredible career, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be.

“Yes, it’s true - I’ve been called the Laurence Olivier of spoofs. I guess that would make Laurence Olivier the Leslie Nielsen of Shakespeare.”

R.I.P Leslie Nielsen, you absolute legend.

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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Dear Santa

First off, I'd like to say I'm a big fan of your work. Not only do you bring joy to children and young adults all over the world every year, but you also have a very impressive beard. Kudos to you, sir.

I think I've been a very good girl this year, but I know I can be quite hard to buy for. To help you find something you know I'll love, I've put together a little list of amazing things that are available to order online right now (only 33 days to go, Nick...the clock is ticking!). So if you would kindly bring me the following presents, I'd be much obliged!

My hand NEEDS this incredible ring by Alexander McQueen, £150 from Matches

My feet require some epic shoes by issue, $225 from Olive Shoppe

My blog needs videos filmed on this Flip Video Ultra High Definition Camcorder, £109.99 from Amazon

My torso and every day life would be better with this Vivienne Westwood Anglomania Black Drape Dress, £197 from my-wardrobe.com

And finally...no dream list is complete without an amazing handbag, £695 from Mulberry

But enough about me! What will you be asking Santa for this year?

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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This could be the start of something Swell...

Roughly two years ago, I decided to give jewellery making a go. I can't remember where the idea came from exactly. I didn't have a plan or goal in mind. I just knew it was something I wanted to try.

One of my first ever pieces...please excuse the awful photography!

Since then things have moved on a fair bit. Swell Vintage has gone from a small-time hobby to being my one true passion. So much so, in fact, that I have now quit my full-time office job and will be dedicating more of myself to my Swell love. It's my last day tomorrow, and I still can't quite believe I'm doing it.

A weird mix of feelings come with taking a big leap like this. First and foremost comes the fear - what if it all turns out to be a spectacular failure? What if everyone hates the jewellery I make and it doesn't progress any further? Fortunately, this is massively outweighed by the immense excitement that has been bubbling under the surface for months. Despite any doubts that are lingering, I know I'm doing the right thing. I'm finally going to be living my dream, and I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Please wish me luck, my dear friends! I'm going to need it.

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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A tribute to my Grandma

On 2nd November 2010, I returned to my desk after a meeting to find two missed calls from my Mother. I called back straight away.

Me: Hi Mum, are you ok?
Mum: I'm ok...but you're Grandmother isn't...

Haemorrhaging had unexpectedly occured in my Grandmother's brain, and she had suffered from a lot of internal bleeding. She died two hours later.

So many people have tried to describe how it feels when you're told someone you care about has died, but few rarely come close. It may seem like an odd point of reference, but I always thought that this quote from the children's book “Lemony Snickett's A Series of Unfortunate Events” sums it up best:

It is a curious thing, the death of a loved one. It's like walking up the stairs to your bedroom in the dark and thinking there is one more stair than there is. Your foot falls down through the air and there's a sickly moment of dark surprise.

Add that winded feeling you get when you've been hit in the stomach to it, and I think you get pretty close.

When I was told that my Grandmother had died, I wasn't sure exactly how to feel. While I instantly felt that gut wrenching mix of shock and sadness, a part of me felt a quiet happiness. Before you go thinking that I am a terrible human being, let me explain: for the last 40 years of her life, my Grandmother had been a professional spiritualist. This meant that she was able to communicate with spirits, and she did so every day (she maintained at all of our dead relatives regularly sat on her sofa at once. They would all merge into one, and she was only able to tell how many were there by counting their feet.).

Now, I know there are a lot of sceptics out there. You may not agree or believe that spiritualism is real or even possible, but it doesn't matter – my Grandmother did. More than that, it made her happy. Unlike a lot of people, my Grandmother had no fear of death at all. In her later years, she even looked forward to it, because to her it meant that she would be reunited with all of her loved ones and that her spirit would live on.

My Grandma at her spiritualist church

I'm sorry if this post was not what you've come to expect from Swell Vintage, but I wanted to make a little tribute to my Grandma. She was a real character with a generous heart. I will miss her enormously, but I know that somewhere she is happy and at peace. This is what she always looked forward to, and I hope that she and all of my past relatives are having one hell of a party somewhere.

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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Britain's Next Top Montage

Can you believe it's been a week since the last day of the Britain's Next Top Model Live event?! Where does the time go?

For those of you who weren't able to make it, the wonderful people at Motorola have put together a lovely video of our catwalk show:


(To get a better view, go directly to the Youtube page)

Please ignore how terrifing my eyes are! Note to self - use your small eyes when talking...

In other news, the very kind people over at So Charming, a rather fancy website that sells designer jewellery, are offering all Swell Vintage readers a generous 10% all purchases! All you have to do is head over to www.socharming.co.uk enter the code "charm10" into the coupon box when you're checking out. This code is good for the next three months, so bag a bargain while you can.

Happy Halloween!

Many thanks,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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