Personalised love heart sweet paperweight

Over 10 years ago, back in October 2011, I wrote an article about the messages found on love heart sweets. Around this time, I also started to make resin pendants containing the sweets, and I didn’t realise at the time how popular these would be. Today I continue to make both pendants and paperweights containing individual love heart sweets.

Well, recently I was asked if I was able to preserve a small packet of personalised love heart sweets within a resin paperweight.

The message I received was: “Would you be able to put this packet of bespoke love heart sweets into a paperweight?  I had these sweets with the bespoke wrappers printed for my daughter’s wedding and would love to make a paperweight with one of them as a present for her husband.   The packet is about 3 cm long not including the clear wrapper ends either side, so it would need to be a little bigger than this (I don’t know your sizes).  And I was thinking a round shape so that you can see the text.”

This is the first time that I have heard of personalised love heart sweets and what a great idea they are! These small packets of sweets can be given as wedding favours to the wedding guests; they are personalised on the packet labelling with the names of the married couple, along with the date of the wedding, the wording ‘Just Married’ and love heart symbols; making a lovely keepsake for the married couple, family and friends.

Personalised love heart sweets paperweight

I set the small packet of personalised love heart sweets inside a resin domed shaped paperweight. The sweet packet was positioned with the ‘Just Married’ text facing upwards, the name of the married couple on one side and the love heart symbols on the other side.

What a lovely keepsake for the married couple, and a forever reminder of their special day!

Mick

Memorial tea light candle holders for ashes

I mentioned in March that I had introduced a latest item within my range of keepsake jewellery and memorial ornaments for hair or fur, a resin tea light candle holder for pet fur.

Well, last month a lady asked me if I could set the cremated ashes from her pet dogs within a resin memorial tea light candle holder.

This is the completed tea light holder; the candle holder is cast using clear resin and is heart shaped measuring approximately 10cm in diameter. The central jar holding the tea light is glass and is removeable, allowing the tea light candle holder to be used as a trinket dish as an alternative option. The cremated ashes are embedded inside the resin and scattered throughout the heart shaped candle holder.

Heart shaped tea light holder containing ashes

Another customer recently asked me if I could set a loved ones’ ashes inside a resin tea light holder in the shape of a flower. This is the  completed clear resin flower shaped tea light holder. The holder measures approximately 8cm in diameter and the cremated ashes have been encased throughout the resin cast flower petals. Again, the central glass holder containing the tea light is a removeable glass cylinder, allowing the holder to be used as a trinket dish.

Flower shaped candle holder containing ashes

These custom-made tea light holders are a lovely way to light a candle in remembrance to a loved one.

Are there any alternative tea light holder shapes that you would be interested in?

Mick

Bone shaped memorial pendant for pet hair or ashes

Those that follow my Facebook Page will know that I had this year’s second jewellery giveaway in April. My giveaway was for a custom-made bone shaped sterling silver memorial pendant that would be suitable for containing a pet dog’s hair or ashes. Alternatively, the bespoke pendant could be left without any contents, with the resin simply coloured and/or glittered.

The jewellery giveaway was won by Lorraine who wanted to combine a small amount of fur from her much-loved pet dog Holly with the ashes from two other fur children, Chloe and Sheba. I suggested including a small amount of her hair within the straight/horizontal section of the pendant, with a small sample of ashes from each of the fur children within the two end sections of the pendant.

Here is the completed pendant, a sterling silver bone shaped pendant containing both pet fur and ashes set within clear resin.

Bone shaped pendant for hair and ashes

Lorraine loved her bone shaped memorial pendant and thanked me for bringing her three girls Holly, Chloe and Sheba together. 

Mick

Bespoke Retirement Paperweights

Over three years ago I wrote a blog post about a custom retirement paperweight gift that I had made for a retiree from a company. Well recently I have been asked to make several similar paperweights for various companies and charities, the bespoke paperweights are to be given as retirement gifts to the departing employees.

The following are just a few examples of the bespoke retirement paperweights that I have recently been asked to make and all contain objects that were sent to me by the business or charity for encasing inside the resin paperweight.

Refuse derived fuel pellet within a paperweight.

For the first bespoke retirement paperweight I was asked to make, my customer sent me an unusual object to be encased inside the paperweight. To be honest, I was not sure what the object was after receiving it and I had to ask my customer to explain.

Refuse derived fuel pellet paperweight

 The object is a refuse derived fuel pellet, made from recycled household waste (paper/plastic fractions), and it is designed to replace coal. This is a new one for me and the first time I have seen a fuel pellet made from recycled refuse, looks great inside the paperweight too!

MS Society badge paperweight

This next paperweight I was asked to make for the MS Society, a UK wide group of volunteers, fundraisers, researchers and campaigners who are working together to help those suffering from Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

MS Society badge paperweight

The paperweight was to be made as a retirement gift for the Chair of the MS Society board of trustees. I was sent a small badge (the very last ‘shining star’ being awarded by the MS Society) to be included inside the paperweight.

Employee name badge paperweight

This last paperweight contains the metal employee name badge worn by the employee who was soon to retire from the company.

Employee name badge paperweight

I always feel honoured when asked to make these bespoke retirement paperweights for companies and charities. It is such a thoughtful gift to an employee or volunteer who has given so much.

Mick

Butterfly themed memorial jewellery for ashes or hair

 I had a jewellery giveaway on my Facebook page in January, to celebrate my 14th year in business making keepsake jewellery. One lucky winner was to win a new stye of keepsake pendant that I have started making in the shape of a butterfly. The sterling silver and resin butterfly pendant would be suitable for ashes, locks of hair, horse hair or just coloured and personalised to virtually any requirements.

The giveaway winner sent me a small quantity of ashes from her pets to be incorporated into the pendant and this is the completed butterfly pendant:

Memorial butterfly pendant for ashes

I have set the ashes within purple coloured resin inside the sterling silver butterfly pendant and gave the pendant a sparkle with a small amount of glitter dust. The recipient was over the moon with the finished pendant, and I really enjoyed making it for her!

This was the first butterfly shaped memorial pendant that I have made, although I have been asked many times over the years to incorporate butterfly symbols into my jewellery. For example, there is this resin hair keepsake pendant containing a silver butterfly.

Memorial pendant for hair with butterfly

or this heart shaped memorial pendant containing ashes and a tiny, coloured butterfly.

Memorial pendant for ashes and butterfly

As part of the jewellery giveaway, I also asked each participant to name their favourite butterfly. The Peacock butterfly seemed to be the most popular amongst those that entered my blog giveaway. I would love to know, what is your favourite type of butterfly?

Mick

Tea light holder containing pet hair

I am often asked if I can make resin ornaments, paperweights and other decorative items containing pet hair, a loved one’s hair or cremated ashes. Well, a few weeks ago I was contacted by Faye who had been given my details from a friend whom I had made a necklace for, containing the hair from her beloved dog.

Faye had some fur from her darling border terrier Flo who was sadly put to sleep following a short illness late last year. Faye really loved the idea of having some fur preserved within a resin tea light holder. Having never made a resin tea light holder before containing pet fur but always up for a challenge, I began to look at possible designs. I managed to source suitable moulds to make several different styles of tea light holders, including star, circular and heart shaped options. 

Faye decided that she would like the pet fur to be preserved within a heart shaped tea light holder. She sent the fur to me, and this is the completed tea light holder containing the fur. The holder is created using clear resin and measures approx. 10 cm in diameter.

Resin tea light holder containing pet fur

The central circular container holding the tea light candle is made of glass and can be easily removed, so the tea light holder could also be used as a trinket dish if required.

Resin trinket dish containing pet fur

Faye  received her custom-made tea light holder containing her pet’s fur and loved it! She sent me this lovely message after receiving it and accompanying photo of the tea light located in her memorial space.

“Just got back from a busy morning at work to open my lovely tea light holder, I'm so happy with it, it's so beautiful and I can't thank you enough for your wonderful work.  I will treasure this for the rest of my life. All the best, keep doing what you do”,

Custom made tea light holder memorial

I am so thankful to people like Faye who give me inspiration for making new products. The tea light holder is an excellent idea and I am looking for to making more of them to preserve sentimental objects for people.

Mick

Custom paperweight for fishing flies

 I have been making custom made paperweights encapsulating personal objects for over ten years now, and it never ceases to amaze me whenever I am asked to set something new inside the paperweights.

This happened to me recently when I was asked by Brenda from Ayrshire in Scotland, if I could set fishing flies inside my resin paperweights.  It is certainly possible for me to encase a fishing fly within a resin paperweight, and I am surprised that I have never been asked to do this before. Although I do not fish, I have always  found fishing flies beautiful to look at and I also admire the skill and artistry of those that make them.

Brenda sent me a photo of the fishing flies along with measurements, so that I could advise on the best size and shape of paperweight to accommodate them.

A selection of colourful fishing flies

We decided that two of the smaller fishing flies would be perfect together inside the square shaped paperweight that I make. Brenda also wanted me to further customise the paperweight by including a short message; she sent me the flies and this is the completed paperweight:

Custom paperweight for fishing flies

I have encased the fishing flies together with the message ‘Tight Lines’ (which is used between fishermen as a greeting or good luck wish), the phrase ‘keeping your lines tight’ means that lots of fish are being caught.

The fishing flies really do look beautiful inside the paperweight. The resin tends to enhance colour and textures, so the feathers and other materials that make up the flies look stunning. The fishing flies also look like they are suspended within water. The square paperweight being a good choice for displaying the flies because as well as being displayed flat like a traditional paperweight, it can also be displayed upright as a display piece.

I am going to now look up some YouTube videos on how fishing flies are made. Thank you so much for reading about my paperweights!

Mick