Jasper, a stone that's available in an astonishing range of colours (from naturals to forest greens to bright, oceanic blues and the captivatingly named 'dragon blood' jasper which contains patches of bright red) is the bead of choice on these sterling silver/silver plated pieces. Matched with sterling silver and Czech crystal these are eye catching indeed.

SOPA to wait

According to posters in the Etsy world, U.S president Barack Obama has signalled that he will veto both the SOPA and PIPA bills. This means that for the moment we users of the digital world, will not be saddled with responsibility for any (even inadvertent) breaching of copyright law.  Shutdowns have been planned all over the Net world, and these include such major players as Wikipedia. I don't know whether or not they will go ahead but to my mind it might be wise to continue watchful and be ready to take action where possible.

Well done, activists and freedom lovers everywhere!

Summer Cherry

These are the last of my stock of faceted, agate beads, in a necklace and matching earrings. I have used oxidised copper chain and findings for these beads. I like the rich colour of copper with the glowing translucence of red agate.  These are available for sale in my Etsy shop today.