Bead Soup Blog Party: Soup is Ready

Good Morning! Good Afternoon!!! Hello....FINALLY!!!

Today is the day for the reveal of the Bead Soup Blog Party.

Remember to go here to see all of the participants and their posts.

I am a little late posting today, and I apologize, but our internet is off more than it is on now-a-days! I have been trying to get this post done since yesterday! The internet will literally be on for 10-20 minutes, then it goes off for a few hours....very frustrating! And while it is on it is as slow as molasses!

My partner, Karen, was very generous, and sent me 5 focals and tons of wonderful natural stone beads. With all the natural stones I got on an earring making kick. A few years ago customers would ask me to make earrings and I would say, "no, I dont like making two of the same thing".

Then I came up with earrings that were the same, but different. They are very 80's probably, but hey, that's when I grew up so I am influenced still by that era.
Here are all three pairs that I made.....

Here are some close ups.....this first pair are my favorite :)

These run a close second....

The stones that my partner Karen sent were so cool that I love these just as much!

I then had to choose one of the wonderful focals sent by my partner. It was difficult because they were all so beautiful, but I finally chose the one with the sand dollar.

The focal can slide on the chain because of the hanger I made for it.

Karen makes all of these focals herself and she uses a lot of seed beads, so I thought I would challenge myself and use some even though I had asked her not to send me any. I am sure Karen would have done something more exciting with the seed beads, but I did what I could.

I am calling this piece "Earth and Water". The the black around the sand dollar reminds me of lava or the dark sand at a river's edge, and the leaf toggle represents land. The shell, the color of the raku beads and the seed beads represent the water.

Make sure you check out all the other wonderful Bead Soup Blog Party posts....there are over 300 of them this time around!
Also, be sure to go to Karen's blog to see what she made from the pieces that I sent to her.

Bead Soup Party Coming Up Soon!

It's been like a month since I posted last.....that's embarassing!

Between lack of internet and Hurricane Irene passing over us I got behind on blogging!

I am taking part in the Bead Soup Blog Party again this year. We are assigned a partner, by Lori at Pretty Things, partners swap bead packages and make something with what was sent to them.

My partner is Karen, from Seattle, and you can check out her blog here.

Karen sent quite an amazing package.

Here are the Focals and the toggle. Karen made these focals!!! The one on the bottom right has a sand dollar embedded in it!! They are all so beautiful and my imagination is whirling thinking about all the things I can do with these.

And then there were all the other extras.....

Look at all these beautiful stones!!!! Karen told me the round disks are fossilized coral....very cool!! These pieces are all new to me since I have never worked with stones like these. So it will be an exciting journey.

The turquoise cube beads above are some of my favorites!

Be sure and come back September 17th, do the Bead Soup Party Blog hop and check out what all the amazing jewelry artists have created.

Well, I've got to go get to work, and I promise you I will be back before September 17th!

Bead Table Wednesday ~ getting somewhere

Remember those components that had me artistically stuck?

Well I am getting somewhere with them this week.

There is also a heart bezel that is filled with goodies and resin which is drying on the side.

I am having a busy week - both emotionally and physically - but being able to create is my solace.  I always seem to be beaming with ideas at times like this.

Happy Bead Table Wednesday!

~Bead Table Wednesday~

It's been a busy week here with workmen in and out of the house.  I am surprised I was able to do anything creative.  Two weeks ago, in this post, I showed you a variety of components I was working with.  I am really struggling with getting these to come together right.
BUT.....I was successful with this pendant.....
I love making those fused silver rings, hammering them FLAT.....very therapeutic.....and then stamping them for some texture.

I had a headpin leftover, and it was lonely, so made this simple pendant for myself..........

I have also had my hands in clay and glaze again......

Cant wait to glaze these and fire them.  I love that owl towards the bottom right.....he's gonna be a cutie :)
Right next to him is a bezel box that I cant wait to fill with goodies and resin.
Here are a few glazed beads waiting for something creative to happen to them....

I think they may grow up to be pendants.
Be sure to go the Flickr group, Bead Table Wednesday, and check out what other jewelry artists are up to.
Happy Bead Table Wednesday!!!
What is happening on your bead table?

B.T.W.

Personally I think a messy work table shows that work is getting done!!!

Right??????

It is a little embarrassing to show this photo, but when I am in a bead making frenzy this is what happens!

And I think most artists are capable of making a real good MESS!!!  I just hate myself when I have to clean it up, and that time is soon coming!
Very soon I will be upgrading to a mixed gas torch and I cannot wait!!  I am just waiting for all the items to get to me :)

I am still working with the findings I showed you last BTW.

Here are a few beads that will go with that mix.

What is on your creative table today?
Go here and check out what others are doing on Bead Table Wednesday!

Bracelet Blog Hop for The Global Genes Project

The Global Genes Project is a campaign to raise awareness to rare disease in children.

One of my blogging friends, Lori Anderson, is hosting this blog hop.  She too, is affected by a rare disease.

Jewelry artists were asked to make a bracelet with the predominate color being blue.

The bracelets will be given to one of the 7000 families that have a child with a rare disease to show them love, hope and support.

Here is the bracelet that i made.....

I used one of my lamp worked glass beads, a hand stamped tag *wish*, and several blue glass shell beads.

The shells, for me, represent unfolding mysteries.  I wish for these families that the mystery of their child's rare disease can be solved.

I had a hard time getting a good picture of the hand stamped tag.

Go and check out all the bracelets that others have made here on Lori's blog.

Scroll down to the bottom to see the list of blog participants and check out all the wonderful bracelets.

I hope I am not posting this too early, but I am getting ready to leave for an art show so I needed to get this posted before I left.

Creative Project #28 ~ last day of the creative challenge.

I am kinda sad that this creative challenge is over.  It has kept me so inspired throughout this month!  Although like I told you in a previous post I joined a new group called "Creative Everyday".  I wont be posting every single day about what I have made, instead weekly, but I still will be creating everyday!

Some days were a crunch to get something creative done, but it was well worth the effort to make the time to do it.

So today I made some more beads. I am hooked on making headpins.  Here are a few of the batch I made.  You will have to wait and see the rest when they are in a piece of jewelry.  I have lots of ideas for these little gems.

I got hooked on making these pins when Cassie Donlen, of the Glass Beadle, had a giveaway on her Facebook page for some headpins that she made.

I WON THE GIVEAWAY!!! WOOHOO!!!

Cassie is an amazing glass bead maker, and has a great video out if anyone is interested.

Cassie then asked on her Facebook page how others made their glass headpins.  She made hers on the end of the mandrel then attached the wire with epoxy.  I wrote in and told her I made mine on high temp wire, but then I wanted to try her method since the wire can be tricky if it isnt completely straight.

The last couple of days I have been making them on the mandrel and kind of like that way.

Here are the awesome headpins that Cassie made, and I won....

I got to pick out the four I preferred.

I cant wait to use them with one of her toggles I bought last year.

Have a great week!

Creative Project #27 ~ a beady kind of day

Today was a day of catching up on some rest as well as melting some glass.  I go into another zone when I make glass beads.  It is like my own little zen.

Here are a few of the batch I made today....

I also designed a new necklace to go with this ceramic pendant that I got out of the kiln on Friday.....

and have started to make some of the components.

The day ended with several rewarding hours of agility training with our agility club and my wonderful potcake, Trixi.

It has been a fun and busy weekend.....I love it!

Creative Project #24 ~ paint, paint, paint!

I almost missed my post today!!!  WOW!  Couldn't let that happen since I am on such a roll!

Thursdays are usually such a busy day for me anyway, and today was even crazier with Saturday's market coming up.

Thursdays are my day to grocery shop, have lunch with friends, run errands in town, do banking, dog agility class........

On top of all of that I baked vegan cheesecakes to sell on Saturday, made tons of hummus, and painted ceramic beads.

These babies need to go in the kiln first thing in the morning, right after my run!

Here are some of them drying....

Tomorrow I will need to get all my show goodies together and in one place, like floats, bags, display stands......just so Saturday morning there are no early morning meltdowns.

Good Night!

Creative Project #17 ~ when supplies are low

I have let myself get dangerously low on my fine silver wire supply, and the urge to create jewelry hit me today so I had to turn to copper.  One of my favorite sayings (I am not sure who's quote) is "Do what you can with what you have".

So that is what I set out to do with my creative challenge today.

I learned how to make the coiled circles from an issue of Step by Step Wire Jewelry.  In the magazine they were on a silver necklace as spacers, but the copper worked just as well.

I strung the pendant on two satin ribbons for an elegant necklace.

Yesterday I told you about my asterisk blocks I was working on.  I worked on them some more today.  Here are the pressed and trimmed blocks.

I hope everyone is having a fantastic week!

Creative Project #13 ~ Artbeads Winter Enchantment Challenge

As you know from previous posts I am an Artbeads Design Partner.  The challenge that was recently sent to us was "Winter Enchantment".

Down south, in the tropics, we don't see snow and cold is in the 40's if we are lucky!

On cool, crisp days all the colors seem brighter and more vibrant.  The ocean beams and the trees are screaming green because it is a comfortable temperature for them.
I went with a blue, green and silver color palette.

The design was simplistic with sterling silver chain, a sterling silver toggle, some sterling coiled wire and my lamp worked beads. This toggle was perfect because it looks like a branch from the trees who's color I was trying to capture.
There are so many neat toggles at Artbeads that it was difficult to decide which one I wanted to use.

I am calling this necklace and earring set "Winter Colors".

I am so in love with the diamond cut rollo chain that I got from Artbeads that I have already ordered more.  It is on sale right now so hurry over and stock up!
These earrings are so light that you cannot even feel them on.

The bead just floats below your ear.

I went a little crazy adding beads to the toggle, but I was having so much fun with the beads being the perfect color and adding the coiled sterling silver wire for some fun and texture, that it was difficult to stop.

This design is a lot simpler than I normally do, but it seems that the designs I have in my head to do now are headed in that direction.  We'll see what happens!
Hope your weekend has been fantastic!


The Artbeads.com products in this post were provided as a promotional gift by Artbeads.com, as part of their Design Partner & Blogging program.  I have been asked to review these products and give my honest opinion - good or bad.  My comments and opinions about these products are my honest, personal opinion and I have not been paid for any endorsement.

Creative Project #12 for February......G.I.V.E.A.W.A.Y. for my 100th post!!!!!

Today is the day!! WOW, one hundred posts!!!  This creative challenge I am participating in has helped me get to my 100th post quicker than I normally would have.

This is what I decided to use for the giveaway prize:

Swirls with Swirls earrings.  As always the wire is fine silver wire and they are my lamp worked beads.  I love how that color combo turned out and hope you all like them too.

I have been selling a lot of earrings lately, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with these for a giveaway prize.

Let's go over the *rules* again:

1.  Post a comment under THIS POST for one chance to win (not on Facebook)

2.  Become a follower of my blog for a second chance.

3.  Write about this giveaway on your blog for a third chance!

4.  For each one of the above tasks you do, PLEASE write a separate comment.  This will make it easier for me to use the random number generator.

5. You will have until tomorrow when I make my next post to play :)  I am guessing sometime after lunch - eastern time.

Yesterday I showed you a terrible picture of a ring I was working on yesterday.  I got a half way decent shot this morning even though it is cloudy here.

(the ring is not included in the giveaway prize - only the earrings)

Good luck in the giveaway!

Have an awesome weekend!

Creative Project #10 for February......earrings and a few new things!!!

Yesterday I posted a pair of earrings that I said *might* be the giveaway for Saturday's 100th post, but they were snatched up.  So I am not sure what will be my giveaway....maybe something you have seen, maybe something I haven't blogged about yet.  Surprises are good :)
I spent the morning making more beads and letting them anneal while I ran some errands.

Some I am saving for a necklace, but I used one pair for earrings.

The same but different from yesterday :)

I also got some new tools in the mail today and spent some time making a glass button and practicing a flower shaped bead.
Here is my glass button still on the mandrel.   I only made one mistake.....I only ordered one mandrel, so I can only make one button at a time!

Here is my first try at a flower bead.  I thought it was okay for a first try.
The shape is somewhat close.  Just got to work on getting the petals even.....making that liquid glass *SIT & STAY*!

Here they both are off the mandrels.

I am looking forward to playing with both of these new techniques!
See you tomorrow :)

Creative Project #9 for February......earrings on the brain!!!

Just a quick Create! project today since I have been in and out of meetings I havent had much creative time.  I have tons of earring ideas in my brain.  Quite a change for me since I usually HATE doing earrings since I have to do the same thing TWICE!  Oh well, I seem to be on a roll now so I will go with it.

These were fun to make and are a combination of fine silver wire, copper wire and colored copper wire that is non-tarnish.

The shape reminds me of a birdcage or a bird perch.

I am *thinking*, but not sure yet, that these may be my giveaway prize for my 100th post.

Just so no one misses out let me go over the *rules* again.

1. Comment under the post for the 100th post (this Saturday) ~ this gives you one chance.

2.  Become a follower of this blog, thru your email, not thru facebook ~ this will give you a second chance.
3.  I will give you until Sunday evening to comment and will announce the winner on Monday.
Hope you all want to play :)

Creative Project #7 for February......Valentine's Day is a week from today!!!

I have been on quite the roll lately with my blogging!! I am very proud of myself!

For Create! day 7 I am still in feeling the Valentine's spirit, and got such a great response to my heart jewelry that I thought I would make some more with a slightly different twist.

Floating Hearts Earrings:

The glass beads are dark pink with black swirls.  The hearts are made of fine silver wire and soldered.

Just in case a matching pendant was needed, and since I had so much fun with this pattern:

I was looking through my box of finished beads, trying to decide what I would make and found I had enough beads to do earrings and a pendant.

The top bead was so much fun to make.

I had all this space to doodle on with the stringers.

Now my head is bursting with heart designs and ideas for jewelry!

Just five more posts until I do a giveaway for my 100th post! I think that will fall on Saturday.  Here is how it will work.....first you will have to comment under the post, on Saturday, for your first chance at the giveaway........BUT...if you become a follower of my blog that will give you an extra ticket in the drawing.

I am still trying to decide what I will giveaway, but will decide soon!

Until tomorrow......happy creating!

Creative Project #4 for February.......Valentines!

Happy Friday everyone!

It dawned on me yesterday that I should probably do some Valentine's themed projects.  So that was my goal with my *Create!* project for day four and since I am on a roll with the jewelry, that is the direction I went in.

I am not a matchy-matchy type of person so to me the pendant and earrings can be worn together, but I know to some that just wouldn't do.

All the beads are made by myself, and all the silver wire is fine silver wire.  The colored pink wire on the pendant is colored copper wire that is non-tarnish.

I think the earrings are my favorite.

Now I need to get back to finishing my orders that are almost done!  So if you ordered something from me at the show last weekend, then you will probably see me next week!

Have a great weekend.

Creative Project #3 for February (and a surprise for me)

Today was a bit of a rush for me since Thursdays are my day to go into town, grocery shop, run errands etc.....  BUT I did manage to do something creative!  This challenge is really giving me a chance to try out patterns that I have had for a while.

Most of you know that one of my favorite books is "Totally Twisted" by Kerry Bogart.

Well she has patterns for sale at the interweave store also, and I purchased this pattern called "Pacifying Pendants".  I had to work with the beads I had made so it isn't exact, but my version I guess.

Some of you may remember a few months back I was making these pendants.....

That is when I was playing around with PMC.  At the time I only had a torch to fire the silver with and this was the only pendant that didn't melt before my eyes.  Now I have a kiln I can fire PMC in, but with the shows I have been doing there wasn't much time to *play*.  It is way up on my list to try some more PMC projects with my kiln very, very soon!

To top today off I received my Potholder Pass package from Amy!!!

Amy and I have become fast virtual friends and she and I are moderating the potholder swap together for this round.

What an awesome package!!!

Do you see that eyeglass case?  Amy makes those...she prints the fabric and everything!

Check out her Etsy Store and see the really cool creations she has for sale from her printed fabrics.

I am so in love with these potholders that I want to frame them!

I just adore free pieced letters and green....perfection!

Hope you are all having a great week!