Was visiting the mom earlier and she said, "Hey! You've got to see this jewelry on How It's Made!" After she fired up the DVR and my brain had enough time to absorb the fact that she watches some of the same stuff that I do I realized that yeah, this technique was pretty cool. I decided I MUST order her something when I got home. She was really into the stuff and she barely has enough jewelry total to fill a cigarette box, it's usually not her thing.
Long story short, I just paid SIXTY BUCKS (well, £36.90) for some dyed twigs glued together with epoxy on earring posts. Argh! Nothing like knowingly ripping yourself off...