Coral Creatures

This one is a bit different... most of the time I'm making jewellery or sculptural glass for galleries, but every now and then it's nice to make something just because it makes me smile.

These are my Coral Creatures. Bright little brooches made from felted wool and some wonderfully ridiculous glass beads.

The beads are made from the teeny tiny ends of glass rods that would normally end up in my recycling bucket. I can never quite bring myself to throw colourful glass away, so it was lovely finding a way to give those little leftovers a second life.

The felt has a story too. I learnt to felt over summer while recovering from chemotherapy, with my teenage son patiently teaching me from the other end of the sofa. I wasn't very good to begin with, but somewhere along the way these funny little creatures started appearing.

They took far longer to make than anyone sensible would recommend, but they were never about that. They were about making something joyful.

Pin Point: A brooch show
Opening 10 September, 4-8pm
Upstairs at Presentz, 430 Richmond Road, Grey Lynn, Auckland.
Open Friday - Sunday 10-2pm