Reading Art Week

Reading Art Week is an exhibition going on between the 29 June to 5 July in Reading. I've applied and found out last week that I got in!
Must admit that I am very exited. If around do come and check it out, the event will run across Reading, with the Arts Week Exhibition being held at The 3B's in the Town Hall, Blagrave Street, Reading.

These are the pieces I will be showing:

Christmas Craft Fair

I've just created a Facebook page for the Christmas fair I'm arranging on the 27th of November. It's the first event page I've ever done so still getting the hang of it! If you are interested in seeing what will be for sale etc please check it out and tell your friends too :-)

Christmas Craft Fair

27th of November 2010
All items handmade.
Coffee and cakes for sale.
Come in from the cold and support local artists whilst buying Christmas presents!
Above RISC and the Global Café in Reading

Today is a day of....

Jewellery work, craft work and art work!

I'd taken today off work to go for a meeting with the Berkshire Designer Jewellers but annoyingly it got cancelled last minute! The most annoying thing was the fact that since I've taken the day off this week to attend I can't then take another day off in a week or two for when they reschedule it, and it was too late to cancel the holiday. But except for the fact that I will now miss the other meeting it's not that bad. I had already planned to do some work for the craft event I'm planning after the meeting so now I've just decided I will spend the whole day working on that instead.

So today I am planning on making posters to see if I can find more people to take part, and then work on the design for the flyer's using the pictures I got from the people saying yes so far (come on people, more pictures!).
So far I got some brilliant Jewellers (me included), one that's confirmed she's taking part is the lovely Monika who does both paintings and jewellery. Also the wonderful Angela (who sadly doesn't have a web page).
And then it's the amazing Soobird who sells handmade hats (me wants) and fascinators.
I also have another 2 jewellers and a painter who are still making up their minds.
I believe this means my quota of Jewellery designers are well and truly filled!
I would really like to get someone that does knitting involved because I believe they would do well at a Christmas craft fair, if my sister Karin didn't live so far away (Sweden) I would ask her.

But I was given a great idea by Soobird on how to find some amazing artists and crafters in Reading so I will start with that today and see if I can find someone how knits and I'd also really like someone who sows (like little dolls and/or bags etc). Someone making cards and prints would also be good...

On a different note I now have a working torch! Yeah! Still getting used to it though since I've had mine for years so suddenly feeling very cranky about having to use a new one, and I appear incapable of figuring out the heat settings ("well mine didn't work like that" etc). Thou I did use it to make a really nice Lapis Lazuli bracelet at the weekend :-) At the moment I am trying to make up a load of stock so I can send it off to get hallmarked and back in time for the craft fair.

Anyways time to get to work!

Do you make stuff? Then look here!!!!

Hi all,

I am trying to sort out a handmade event for the beginning of December.
So if you are interested in renting a table at this event in Reading please let me know. I doesn't matter what you make, the only rule is that it has to be handmade.

At the moment things are still quite sketchy. I do have a venue in mind but need to see if I can get enough people interested to be able to meet the costs.
The cost looks to roughly be £20 per person but depends on how many people I can get interested in the idea. This fee will pay for the venue (and a table if you need it) as well as flyer's and posters.

If you are a painter I also have a lot of wall space so am considering renting out the wall space too (if you aren't interested in a table) If you are an artist that want wall space as well as having a table there let me know.

So if you might be interested and want me to keep you in the loop please send an email to: lina@linaj.co.uk

The emperors new clothes

Do you ever get this feeling that you are stuck in a new adaptation of the emperors new clothes? I do!
Sometimes I look at modern art, such as 2 pieces of plastic melted together to create a brooch and I just don’t get it. It seems the stranger and out there art is the more raving reviews it will get from the critics, winning more prices and being rewarded with more exhibition space, with everyone quickly agreeing as if they are afraid to say “but It’s just 2 pieces of plastic melted together, what’s the beauty in that?

Now I know taste is a very individual thing and maybe it is just a taste thing and I am being unnecessarily harsh but to me it just seems like people are afraid that other “art lovers” will think they aren’t “with it” because they can’t see the “hidden msg” or “soul” of the item being reviewed. So like the emperor and all the people around him they pretend to see the clothes and the splendour of them rather then stop and say “but I don’t get it? Why is that beautiful and what is it supposed to mean?

Well I don’t have an issue doing that since I don’t really give a damn if everyone thinks I don’t get it.
Because do you know what? I really DON’T get it!

Oakford Social Club Art Market

The art market at The Oakford went really well this week. I only sold 2 pices but 1 was my most expensive piece that I didn't think would sell there. The other piece was my lates design bracelet.





I am starting a new job tomorrow and moving on saturday. Moving means I will be able to start making jewellery again since I haven't had any space since I got back to work in. And getting a job should mean some more money. Also I still have weekends off so will be able to keep doing the art market on Sundays.

Oakford Social Club 07/02/2010 Art Market

I will be at the Oakford Social Club this Sunday selling my jewellery if anyone is interested.
Since I only just got back I haven't got that man new items, but luckily I still had some pieces left from before I went.








I also realised when adding pics that I have loads of pieces that it seems I never have taken any pic of, I will need to correct that soon.

Art market starts at noon.
Location: The Oakford Social Club, 53 Blagrave Street, Reading, RG1 1PZ‎ - 0118 959 4267‎ (opposite the Reading bus/train station)

Also to anyone that makes any kind of art, if you live close to Reading you should come around some Sunday and set up a stall.

Today has been OK

I am tired but content, it has been one very busy week.
Saturday went so so I made enough to cover my cost but someone nicked a pendant so I made no profit :-(
Worst thing is I think I know who nicked it, it was these two old ladies. I don't know why but that makes me sad.
Yesterday was busy and long and things kept going wrong but when i finalyl got into bed I still feelt I'd achived something.
Right now I am looking forward to the private vieuing on Thursday and then a long weekend off. Hopefully i will get to take some pictures and make some jewellery!

On another note, if I don't get internet soon I will go berserk and start killing people!

Busy bee

This Saturday I have a jewellery stall at The Oxford literary festival :-)
I'm hopeing for the best and then on Monday i am going to Norden farm to set up for BDJ's Exhibition there.
So busy busy busy.

And no I still haven't got internet :-)

BDJ Exhibition!

I am doing an exhibition with the Berkshire Designer Jewellers in April. If you live close, do come by and have a look.
Also if you are interested let me know and I will send an invite for the private viewing on the 9th of April between 18.00-20.00. :-)

Xmas fairs!

Did a Xmas fair last week (7th) and one this weekend (13th). The one on the 7th went quite well and was pleasant enough. It was only on for 3 hours but I made a nice little profit. The one this weekend was nice enough to do (lovely people) and it was on all day (10.30 - 16.30) but I made nothing!
I was in charge of the mulled wine. And since I would do the wine I didn't have to pay for the table but only pay 20% of the sales otherwise it would have been 20% plus £10. The weather was awful and the place is a bit out of the way which is probably why it wasn't very busy, also since I couldn't watch my own stall people had no one to ask and I did pop in from time to time noticing that the other stall holders thought my table was great to stand in front and chat since I wasn't sitting there (so they where in no ones way) but that also meant no customers could get to it. So it was probably a mix of weather and me not being at the stall that made it so rubbish. But the atmosphere was nice and I wasn't the only one that did really rubbish so will definitely try it again.
And like I said the week before went well. Especially since it was the first time they did it and it's even further out of the way. So that was a nice surprise :-)
Taking my jewellery to Sweden over Xmas to sell so hopefully I will do well then and I already got an exhibition booked for next year (plus I'm deciding on some more at the mom). So I'm being optimistic about my jewellery in the new year :-)

Pics

Decided to post some pics of recent creations! Since Xmas is coming I am putting more stuff up on Etsy plus getting stuff ready for Xmas fair.

This is just a bracelet using fresh water pearls, pink and cream. Nothing complicated but very pretty (at least I think so)


This is another bracelet but with blue Sandstone or Goldstone depending on what name you use. It's a lab created gemstone and thou you can't see it in this picture the stones glisten with little sparkles inside.


I really like this one but the pic came out rubbish! It's a silver pendant. I've textured the silver and added bits of gold then done a setting with a Lapis Lazuli.

And I really like this one, plus the pic came out better. It's completely unique because you can't really make exact copies of this. It's a silver pendant base (that I of course made myself) and then lots of pieces of silver melted on top and into the silver base. I guess it's very much a "depending on you're kind of taste" item but it's definitely to my taste (which I assume makes sense since I made it).

Exhibition

Thought that since I can't sleep I might as well post some pics from my exhibition. There isn't that many pics though. I gave the camera to my boyfriend and I don't think he got the point. He hardly took any and when I asked him why he said it was because he couldn't see me or the table for all the people.
That's the whole point!! You want pictures of the customers and the more the better.
But by the time I realised he hadn't taken any it was a bit to late so I only got some from the end of the day plus the one's he took of me and the table when noone was around! Plus he took some nice pictures of the buildings where the exhibit were.

This is a picture of the building I was in


This is a picture of the opposite buildings where there also were different exhibits.


And this is a piture of the celing in the room I was in.

The buildings were really old so the had lovely wallpaintings and hangings.

Now for some pictures of people admiring (and buying) my jewellery :-)






And one of just me and my table :-)


I'm afraid that's it. Like I said I didn't get that many pictures :-(

The exhibition did go really well thou. Apparently they had a record amount of people attend the day it was advertised that I was coming! I know that might just have been a coincidence but it's nice to think that it wasn't. :-)