Once upon a time in the last century – too dramatic?? Probably, but it did all start with a damaged back in the 90’s. Having been a very active Housebound Librarian, too many years lugging crates of books and driving a van with no power steering got the better of me and I ended up running the department from a desk instead. Added to that was a really nasty boss wanting to get rid of all the existing staff with choices of her own – I moved on.
A short-term contract with Age Concern followed and then a friend from another local authority said her neighbour was looking for someone to run the old ICI library in Runcorn. So started a very miserable period of my life. Though the boss was lovely, I was a square peg in a round hole, without a science qualification to my name, corporate life was definitely not for me. So I joined a local gardeners’ association as a volunteer and started making costume jewellery, just stringing beads together really, but they were two extra things I could be doing when I was wasn’t at work that I could enjoy and help me deal with the stress.
After nearly 5 years, I got out. On the same day I started as an information officer and volunteer trainer at a Disability Helpline charity in Skelmersdale, I got changed in the loo at 5pm, hurtled off to St.Helens college for 3 hours of sheer heaven – silversmithing. I had found my calling.
That went on for several years with 3 different tutors and guest tutors coming in for special projects, it was magic. I learnt so much and over the years, I’d go on working holidays all over the country. Silver clay and anodised aluminium in Dorset, bronze clay in Edinburgh, Pewter casting and etching in West Sussex, enamelling in Cumbria, blacksmithing in Marlborough, bone carving in Galway and lots of different glass courses at Pearsons in Liverpool. More recently I’ve been more YouTube with resin as well flame painting copper and then a local wax carving day but I just haven’t had time to further explore that avenue further yet.
In between all that, I’d set up my business and was working from the back of the garage, far from ideal. We had the old leaky conservatory knocked down and replaced with a studio – attached to my office- perfect! Having spent 10 years at the Helpline, I decided enough was enough, I couldn’t go on there, doing craft fairs, supplying galleries, selling online as well as normal things and still volunteering – time to concentrate on me and my business. So, I quit and that turned out to be THE BEST decision. 12 years on and there are no regrets – but I really don’t know where all that extra time I was supposed to get disappeared to!!