Artisan of the week, Joanne of Lej Jewellery

What a Beautiful Sunday morning we have here in Wales. The sun is shining Brightly and it really feels like spring is here to stay. Today I have the joy of introducing you to the lovely Joanne of Lej Jewellery. As her shop name suggests Joanne makes jewellery, but that is not all. She also hand crafts cards and gifts such as sun catchers & curtain tie backs. Her work can also be seen on Folksy and MISI . So here is Joanne to tell you a little bit more about herself.
1. Could you please introduce us to who you are and what you do?
Hi I'm Joanne, I live in Lancashire with my husband and 2 children and I design and create handmade jewellery. I also enjoy making other things such as bookmarks, curtain tie backs and sun catchers. I also dabble in card making, cross stitching and sewing. I love trying new things and most crafts, I tried knitting once but couldn't get past the casting on part!

2. What led you to take up your craft?
I had started crafting with cross stitch not long after my son was born and after a couple of years moved onto card making. It was while I was out looking at card making magazines that I came across a bead magazine with free beads and thought I'd give it a try. The rest as they say is history.

3.Which part of your work do you most enjoy?
Shopping for beads, I love beads and have completely taken over the house with them. I don't yet have my own craft room so I tend to sit in the middle of the living room floor with my beads spread all around me and plan what I'm going to make and what beads I'm going to use. I also enjoy making novelty jewellery, I like the idea that I have made something that nobody else has.

4.Which part do you find the hardest?
Waiting until my kids are asleep before I start to craft, if I could I would craft all day and night. I feel my fingers itching to start crafting once it gets closer to bed time. My son stays up late of a weekend and sometimes I'll get my beads out and he joins in but my daughter is too young and it will be a couple of years before I can let her loose with my beads.

5. Where do you hope to be in 1 years time?
I would love my website to be established, I have only had it a year and have worked pretty hard to promote it and get to the stage I'm at now. I also did some designing for a magazine recently and would love the chance to do it again and maybe for it to become a regular feature.

6. What is the best advise you have ever been given?
To respect other people and there opinions, it was drummed into me as a kid and I now tell my kids the same. I think it is important in life to respect other people and their opinions as not everyone is the same and we don't all think the same. The world would be a very boring place if we did.

7. Could you name artisan sites/shops would you recommend are worth a visit?
Of course there's MISI, and Folksy where I have shops. Also a couple of people who I have bought from or plan to do so in the future are Tee & Toast , Kitschy Coo and The Pink Fairy Cake

8. What is your favourite sandwich filling?
Well that's quite tricky as I don't really have a favourite anything, my mind changes daily depending on my mood. Today I would have to say cheese and finely chopped spring onion, tomorrow maybe tuna mayonnaise or ham salad.

Thank you for joining in at Autonomous Artisans Joanne. I hope your website goes from strength to strength. The Pink Fairy Cake site you linked us too has made me drool. So much yumminess so little eating time. Thanks for sharing. As usual dear readers if you click the images you will be taken to the items and the shops they are selling in. Take a look around and see what else Joanne makes.

Written by Lynne of PiratePixieCrew and Hyperloop Hoops