Small Business Saturday Shout Out #2 Nachorratie
It may just be me, but as a parent to young children I have found that for the last few years I have almost entirely abandoned the idea of wearing jewellery. I don't know why very small humans have such vice like grips of steel, but the idea of one of those pudgy little fists wrapping itself around an earring and not letting go until it had ripped it clear of my ear was incentive enough for me not to even risk it to be honest. That, added to the fact that I have a boy who can actually only look at things with his fingers (apparently eyes are not enough on their own) and my entire jewellery collection has sat gathering dust for about 6 years. Now that they spend less time up at my head level though, I have started to rediscover the joy of necklaces and with it the awesomeness of shrink plastic. I have always been a little accident prone, so shrink plastic is perfect for me. It's surprisingly tough for something so thin (although it is still breakable), doesn't cost the earth and can be made in any design and style you like. My favourite shrink plastic jewellery designer by far is Kay Tinsley from Nachorattie.
Kay's designs are a little quirky, a little kitsch and nothing like anything I have found on the High Street before. Prices start at £4.50 plus p&p. Designs range from rainbows and unicorns to rainclouds, yarn, dinosaurs and skulls. There's a little something for everyone. She makes necklaces, hair accessories, brooches and earrings and is just about to launch a new range of stitch markers, like the beautiful ones in the photo above. All the designs are drawn, shrunk and assembled by Kay herself and are fully unique to her. They are always a talking point when I wear them and my children love them, but they do come with a warning to say that they are not designed or suitable for children which means that, best of all, they are all mine!
Kay's work has been featured in Docrafts Creativity Magazine and Let's Knit magazine. She can be found at:
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