On Saturday 25 May from 1pm - 6pm The Courtyard Cafe and The Yoga Hall are holding an event, Inside Out Open Day, in support of the charity Mind in Mid Herts. I will be having a stall with my friend Sue, if you can come along and support a good cause.

Earrings made from felt are light to wear and can be embellished with embroidery and beads to make unique jewellery.
Because wool takes dye so well you can obtain colours from muted to bright making felt the perfect background to achieve any look you want, be it subtle or vibrant.
Embroidery threads come in sumptuous hues too not to mention the variety of glass beads you can get to add texture and sparkle. The mixture of wool felt, glass beads, embroidery and your imagination you can create little works of art.

To make earrings you will need earring findings, headpins and hooks, these can be bought online from places like John Lewis or craft shops.

First make your felt balls following the felt bead tutorial here 

To make the earrings take two felt balls of equal size. Pierce the centre of each felt ball with a large needle, this will be where the earring headpin will be inserted when all the decorating is complete.
Decorate the felt with embroidery, using simple stitches, I used french knots. When you are happy with your needlework adorn with a few beads to complete your unique design.

With the earring findings and a few spacer beads turn your embellished felt balls into earrings.

On Friday I went to the Courtyard Cafe, St Albans , to a preview evening of local artists.

The Courtyard Artists 20 Apr - 31 May 2013

The Courtyard Café
, 11 Hatfield Road, St. Albans AL1 3RR

Opening times 8.30am to 5.00 pm Tuesday to Saturday

I particularly liked the paintings of Anna Cloutman in fact I bought my self a watercolour painting of a pig, it was in a mount but unframed and at only £10 for an original painting i was very pleased with my purchase. If you want to see the exhibiting artists pop down to the Courtyard cafe for a cup of tea and a brows, you may even come away with some original artwork.

Yesterday I met up with a friend, Ann, we went to Somerset House to see an exhibition called Wool House. 

"In the world’s largest showcase of wool, the recently renovated West Wing of Somerset House will be transformed into a home made primarily from wool.  Seven individual rooms, from the bedroom to the study, created by leading designers, such as Kit Kemp and Donna Wilson, will be exhibited to show how the design community uses wool extensively in their work.  Three additional rooms will be dedicated to fashion displays, celebrating the importance of the fibre in today’s fashion industry.  Presented by The Campaign for Wool, an artisan in residence will also work on location throughout the period demonstrating the heritage of industry skills to the public."

The exhibition demonstrated the versatility and beauty of wool from its raw natural 'sheep' colours to its capability to hold rich deep vibrant dyes. To adapt from traditional to contemporary styles in all kinds of guises but all feel and look luxurious. There were lots of decorative things to covet in the exhibition, Ann and I discussed how beautiful it all was but how do you keep the dreaded clothes moth at bay! 

The cafe in Somerset House was worth a visit, the food looked delicious, but we resisted and just had a coffee.

Now if you are quick you might catch this exhibition, it finishes on the 24 March, entry is free. Or visit the The campaign for wool website 

On Saturday we had a family outing to the theatre.
My niece Amy Gunn is the stage manager for the production The Great Gatsby, it was Amy that told us about Wilton's Music Hall. From Amy's enthusiasm and description of the theatre we wanted to see this hidden gem. Wilton's is tucked away down an alley in the East End, not far from the Tower of London, its the oldest and last surviving grand music hall in the world.

As soon as we stepped through the doors we were part of the show, some people had dressed the part in 1920s Jazz age flapper dresses and suits. Cast members interacted with audience members pre-show with talk of prohibition, gambling and even the sale of saucy postcards to plant the show firmly in the roaring twenties. The theatre is amazing with its faded grandeur playing its part in the overall atmosphere of the production. Although not a musical the clever use of a cappella singing, by the cast, to denote transition and mood change from one scene to the next, was inspired. The acting and singing were excellent, we thoroughly enjoyed the whole evening. Audience participation was encouraged too in the interval with people being taught the charleston on stage.

I would love to say go and see it but unfortunately every show is sold out.
But you can go and see Wilton's theatre, visit their website Wilton's Music Hall  and find out more about this unique venue

More kitsch, cutlery earrings, bought in 2012 from Topshop they do some fine earrings!

I bought these in the 1990s in Florida, the sunshine state, being from the UK it seemed so wrong buying Christmas things in semi tropical heat! These skinny santas only see light of day for a couple of weeks a year so it's nice to give them a little outing out of their season.

Little rubber ducks, bought them last year, love them!