May

A very busy month for me, as I have four family birthdays and our wedding anniversary, today!  This month I have been using a new product called Polymorph, which is a fantastic new plastic which can be moulded in near boiling water. I am trying some moulding with organic shapes around interestingly shaped stones. The Polymorph will then be cast in silver, using the lost wax technique.

May has the most beautiful birthstone the emerald. Emeralds have been mined in Egypt since 1500 BC and in India since the 14^th century. 

A very expensive stone measured using the 4 C,s to grade it.  A fine emerald must possess not only a pure verdant green hue but a high degree of transparency. They range from a yellow-green to a blue green. The best ones have a blue-green hue.

Today Colombia is the world’s largest producer supplying up to 95% of the world production, with Zambia being the second. However Emeralds are found all over the world.

Have a great month full of bank holidays with summer just round the corner.

If you are up in London the V&A has a exhibition on the glamour of Italian fashion, from the 5^th April till 27^th July. I haven’t been yet, it is sponsored by Bvlgari, and on google images they show the most beautiful emeralds.

http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/exhibitions/exhibition-the-glamour-of-italian-fashion-1945-2014/about-the-exhibition/

Have fun

xx