Polymer clay consists of particles of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) suspended in plasticizer. When fired in a home oven, the particles fuse solid, resulting in a hard durable substance. It is light to wear and warm to the touch, the closest texture I can think of for comparison is bone or ivory. The colours are vivid and the surface can be sanded to a smooth finish or given a matt texture.

My creation process has practically no waste – any unbaked clay offcuts get mixed up into new colours or used as core with layers of decoration on the outside. Any baked clay that I'm not happy with gets covered again or used as mosaic pieces. I even keep and use the scraps from drilling holes in my beads as decoration. Finally, I cure my finished pieces in a small dedicated oven at 110-130℃ which is a much lower temperature, and therefore less energy requirement, than glass and ceramics need.

For the accent beads that I have not made myself, I sometimes repurpose necklaces from charity shops and broken jewellery that has been gifted to me. I carefully wash the vintage and reused beads so that they are clean and ready for their new life as part of your jewellery. My jewellery may include shells, pearls or stones with unknown origins, but I don't buy these new. When I do buy natural stone beads I check that the supplier sources these ethically.

I'm an independent artisan and, from this website, you are buying directly from me. I lavish a lot of time and care on my beads and I have calculated my prices to allow for a living wage. Your support means I can afford to get extra teaching assistance for my children who have special needs. I also try to support other artisans by buying their handmade beads to use in my jewellery (I will specify who has made the components on the individual listings).

I am working towards offering a gift wrapping option, but this is not yet available.

For my packaging I try to reuse as much as possible, so your order may arrive in a slightly tatty envelope, but inside your items will be safe in a small box made from a sustainable option such recycled paper and eco foam made from recycled plastic. For now I am keeping these unbranded so that you can reuse them for gifting, organising your paper clips or recycling as you choose.