An ego pampering moment whilst I reflect on the year.  Please bear with me.

The Good

• Winning an award for my pendant.
• The work experience at Charles Green.
• Getting to go to Germany for Inhorgenta with my friend and getting one final chance to go to our favourite takeaway in Passing – the food is so good¹.
• Completing the final year of university and having a degree.  I felt that I wasn’t going to achieve a good final mark but I’m extremely happy that all the hard work and travelling expenses paid off.
• Getting a few chances to work on commissions, which I love.  Nothing brings a bigger smile to my face than turning a collation of thoughts and ideas, of the ideal jewellery piece, into an adornment they can actually wear, or give to their loved ones.
• Completing my website/shop².  Thanks to my host’s help I finally have an EPOS to actually sell my jewellery.  Now, all I need to jewellery to sell…
• Getting to go back to Hong Kong and staying for more than two weeks.

The Bad

• Nothing worth mentioning here.

The Forgettable

• Tonsillitis.  In particular getting is so close to my trip for Germany, where is was too cold.
• It was also kind of the reason I missed the awards ceremony.  Not good at all.
• My final exhibition.  My pieces weren’t bad, they just weren’t finished trying to get them perfect was not going to happen.  However, it tough me one valuable lesson: to keep the precesses less and simple!
• Eh…some of the football results…

Oh how rude of me… Happy New Year everyone!  If I drank I’d virtually clink glasses with you but since I don’t I’ll give two very Asian “victory” signs.

1. That is good pronounced with elongated o’s. [↩]
2. Designed and imperfectly coded by me. [↩]

It’s been almost 5 years but I’m glad to say that I have a degree under my belt.

It’s strange how opinions can change almost at a click of the finger.  After college I was adamant that further education was not  the path for me but thanks to my cousin and then-colleagues who persuaded me to take on the challenge of university.  Were it not for them I probably would either be still inspecting cameras or feverishly coding and designing websites¹.

*Memory lane*

Whilst on MSN Messenger² to my cousin she mentioned a jewellery course she was considering, which was jewellery making-related.  It was something we could do together.  The course sounded great fun but I still wasn’t sure but thought I might as well since I needed to make something of my life.  However, I knew persuading my parents was going to be a job and a half – and I was right.  They weren’t particularly keen on the idea, being the kind of Asian parents where if an immediate career wasn’t a dead cert. then maybe the course wasn’t the right one.  Eventually with some wise words and words of encouragement I made sure I pushed forward my choice – I wouldn’t say my mum was in agreement more so than annoyed with my constant pestering.  It resulted in an “ask your father” response.  Needless to say he didn’t disagree.

That was when I felt I needed to prove, not only my parents but also myself, that I am good at something.  Particularly since school and college results left a lot to be desired.  I needed something to be pleased about and to rectify what I didn’t do before.  Going to university was an opportunity to give my confidence a boost.

After sending my application I managed to get an interview for a gemology course, which I had to decline because I didn’t apply for that course.  I called to rectify and was told to come in and see the interviewer.  Since I had left the application late I thought there wasn’t going to be a fudge of a chance that I’d get onto the course but I guess we got a lucky break; my cousin and I secured a place on the course.  We both came out of the interview very happy and were about to enrol on ND Design Crafts.  Having earlier been shown around the exhibition by the interviewer we looked in amazement at the spectacular jewellery pieces.  Was I really going to be able to create jewellery like those?  I’m pretty sure my jaw dropped when I saw an 18ct gold brooch, which was made by a former ND student.

*End of memory lane*

Never mind prematurely thinking university was not an option I stuck with it for a further 3 years – completing the Higher National Diploma and BA(Hons).  It’s a chapter in my life I’m extremely proud of because I achieved a lot better than what I thought I would have and have been wanting a career in jewellery since I made my first gold brooch.  I can finally say that I have found my future, which wasn’t the case after college.

All in all I”m excited to see what I can bring to the future so remember my name because in the future my name may be plastered on shops. :P I know I’ve made it when I can price my jewellery more towards the higher market, or as some may say ridiculous prices.   I’m thinking big as in Thomas Sabo big!

1. Not that there’s anything wrong with the latter occupation but it’s just not healthy losing slept trying to fathom why something you’ve coded isn’t translating correctly.  Heh. [↩]
2. The thing back then. [↩]

I have posted entries relating to my fantastic work experience at Charles Green, if you’re interested hop over to my portfolio news page.

A cliche I know but the final year of university is flying by – soon I’ll be in the real world of work – be it building up my online business or work within a company.  Right now I’m working on my final project, a kirigami-inspired jewellery collection.  At the moment I’m stuck in a rut; a place where I’m hating all my designs but I’m sure it’ll resolve quickly as I know what I want to do…but don’t have the right…ingredients.

Ideally, after university I want to be earning a great salary but the likelyhood of that happening to a will be recent graduate is slim.  One things is for sure though, when I eventually do get my own place my first luxury purchase will be a piano.  Although I wish for a Steinway and Sons piano that’s unlikely to happen – they’re really expensive but sound oh-so good.   I think a more “affordable” – and I use that term loosely – option would be a Yamaha…probably the digital type and preferably with pedals.  However, I’m not giving up that dream of owning a Steinway just yet.

Anyway, less than 3 months to go and I’m sure it couldn’t go slow enough but before even worrying about work I need to concentrate on getting the highest mark for the project, otherwise I leave myself very disappointed at the end of this course.  However, I get a weeks work experience, which I am very much looking forward to.

Come the end of the semester I will probably bore with a post of my 5 year experience at uni.  You have been warned!¹ :P

1. By the way, by bore I mean having to read the post, not uni. itself. [↩]

Shame really.  It was nice, although I don’t know what I was thinking/reading, which led to that dream. *shrugs*

I’ve been really hit and miss with updating.  As in I start posts but don’t end up finishing them, or I change my mind and decide not to publish such drivel.  I’ve been mainly concentrating on university projects and planning my future, as personal things have been interruptive and quite frankly, annoying (verging upsetting).

Yesterday, for the entrepreneurship lecture we were going over the web and designing a website.  I enjoyed it as I got to geek-out, something I very rarely share with others because they don’t give a monkeys.  However, Office Live Small Business wouldn’t let me access my web folder, which is strange because it was working fine and dandy as home.  Conclusion?  University network.  Oh well, at least I had my own FTP account to work from.  :)

On another subject I submitted a CAD  piece into the Goldsmiths’ annual Design and Craftsmanship competition.  It was a last minute decision because a) I had completely forgotten about it so didn’t prepare anything, 2) basically having Wednesday (after work) and Thursday morning I didn’t think I could submit a professional looking board and 3) I didn’t consider my work good enough to enter but my friend persuaded me, like I did with her but ultimately failed.  I did it though, despite time and traffic working against me.  Don’t think I have a fudge chance in winning anything but it’s the participating that counts.  Plus, something to add onto my CV.