Sharon Golding Designs

 It has long been my desire to make a lampshade for a lamp that was gifted to me and I have at last accomplished this. With no real idea of how to go about it, I ordered some lampshade backing which is stiff kind of polythene stuff on which to mount your fabric. The fabric was an easy choice as I have mountains of the stuff from my sewing obsession period!  Having chosen a pretty blue-ish country pattern, I set about making templates of the wire sections to be covered. I used stiff card and simply pressed it against a section of the wire skeleton shade.  As there are two distinct sizes on my shade, I had to make two templates. Here are the two completed templates.  I used these to draw around to make both the fabric sections and also the backing mounts.  After drawing four of each template on to my backing mounts and four of each on to the fabric, I cut out the sections.  I think cut out the pieces. The polythene backing came with a sticky side so I was abl...

Today I did some enamelling using copper and brass blanks.  Have you tried the Efcolor enamels?  They’re lovely.  You just sift powder onto your metal blanks and bake in the oven on a low heat for about 5-10 minutes.  Here are some of the items I have enamelled.  I’m going to make them into jewellery, earrings etc. It didn’t take long and it’s possible to add layers and rebake. This is a closeup of the yellow and red.  It’s quite enjoyable to try different colour combos and I shall definitely be trying more of this. I wonder what is involved in proper enamelling?  It would be fun to try it if I could, although I believe a kiln is needed which is quite an expensive item.I may look into courses for after lockdown.  It’s always fun to try new things. All the best Shari x

  Recently I have got back into my jewellery making.  I love silver work and have made a number of sterling silver rings (see pic) and am now trying to get to grips with something a little different, kinetic jewellery.  There must be a way of making small items that move and I am starting experiments to do just that.  What are your thoughts?  Any ideas are welcome. I’m going to try something using copper first as it’s cheaper so if all goes pear shaped I won’t lose any precious silver.  If it works with copper then I will try it with silver. I will upload some pics of the ideas I’ve been playing around with.  When I get time I would like to upload a video or even some step by step photos of how I make my jewellery if you are interested. Stay safe.  All the best, Shari x