Bead Shops are Like Sweet Shops!

I love bead shops, they're like sweet shops for people who don't eat sweets!  We used to have a lovely little one in Long Melford but sadly it closed.  I love getting a little wooden bowl and filling it up with goodies, mentally planning necklaces and earrings as I add to it, so I was thrilled when I discovered one in Cambridge earlier this week.

When I got my treasures home I started rummaging in my seed bead boxes to find small beads to go with the larger ones I'd bought; laying them out in different arrangements.

After lots of arranging and threading and adding ends I ended up with 3 new necklaces with matching earrings:

a blue and white set (reminiscent of delftware I think),

a yellow and green set (a perfect match for my lovely work jacket)

(no I didn't make the jacket, Hobbs did),

and a lovely green set with gorgeous acrylic patterns beads.

All in all the 3 sets cost me £27, which is a darn sight less than I would have to pay if I'd bought them ready made, and I had the all the fun of stringing beads onto thread and wire :-)

A Day Out in Cambridge

I've had a few days off this week so a friend and I went to Cambridge for the day.  We did a little shopping then had lunch in here,

the Old Library (now home to Jamie Oliver's restaurant).  As we came out we saw the statue to Snowy.

Snowy was a big part of my childhood trips to Cambridge. He always had a cart full of animals, usually a hat full of white mice and often a white cat on his head.

Snowy Farr - photo from here

He raised thousands of pounds for charity.  You can read more about him here.

The real purpose of our trip was to see the Winifred Nicholson exhibition at Kettles Yard.  It was rather small, which was a little disappointing but it was still worth seeing.

Winter, Bank's Head - Winifred Nicholson circa1970

I could really imagine sitting in the warmth looking out of this window at the cold landscape outside.

I think this one was my favourite, the colours and the simplicity appeal to me.

White Saxifrage - Winifred Nicholson 1967

Although it's only small, it's worth a visit if you're in the area.  It's free and they let you take pictures too (providing you don't use a flash).

The rest of the week I've been tree pruning (I'm getting good with a bow saw up a step ladder!) and some of today was spent lining a beautiful picnic basket from here, to make a cat proof knitting basket.

Hopefully this will now be the end of chewed wool!