Last week madebyhandonline jeweller Sue Gregor introduced us to some of her new cuffs and necklaces inspired by autumnal colours and Roman headdresses. The richness and depth of autumn tones present in the plants, flowers and vegetables have formed the starting point for Sue's Autumn collection. Today Sue introduces some more beautiful new work for madebyhandonline...

"A plant I am working with this Autumn is the passion flower plant.  I grow it up one of the walls in my garden. I really like the curly tendrils that it uses to support itself as it climbs. The leaf shapes are bold and strong. I have tried to capture the vitality of this plant in my cuffs.
 
The fine detail of the leaves that I transfer from the English hedgerows onto my jewellery is through a process in which I dye and emboss plastic. This is my own method which I call fossilised plastic, as it captures the intricate detail of the plant's form. This also allows me freedom to be creative with the colour and design, making each piece unique. I see beauty all around me and the plants which have struggled to succeed in an urban environment give me inspiration on a personal level and for my handmade jewellery. 
 
I have often admired the colourful stems on beetroot leaves in my Fathers garden, so I decided to make some pieces that have this as their inspiration. Here are the necklaces I came up with. Using skeleton leaves to create these designs, I used two colours; one for the veins and one for the rest of the design. Red and green in the stem and leaf of the beetroot are contrasting and also complimentary to each other and create a vibrant effect."
 
Thank you ever so much to Sue for writing for us.  Like so many lovers of handmade craft, we've always wanted to know about the inspiration behind a Maker's work and we hope you've enjoyed learning a bit more about Sue's jewellery. We're really pleased to have her as our Maker of the Week!

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