Pineapple, Lemon...Sweet, Tangy

It's the last Friday of July!  That means it's time to show off some Artisan Clay!

This month's piece was a challenge for me.  When Kristie gave the team options to pick from I immediately wanted the yellow donut...it made me think of summer:  sweet, tangy citrus lemonade yellow.  I can picture a frosty glass with that pale tart and sugary goodness right now and it just makes me feel happy and refreshed.  Well, I got my wish and had a lovely big donut with pretty, crackling yellow glass "floating" within its ridges.  I immediately went to my yellow bead drawers and pulled out the lemon quartz and pineapple chalcedony...it seemed like the natural flow.  I actually have a lot of different shapes and sizes and tones of yellow stones so it became harder and harder to choose as all the options came out.  I kept laying out more and more choices in the monochromatic yellow theme.  Then, suddenly, I saw a pink and yellow art bead on the table and started moving down that path with two-color ideas and ended up with pink leather, sari ribbon and all a whole new set of beads added to the mix.  I have to admit that I got a little bit overwhelmed and had trouble keeping the focus on the Artisan Clay piece that's supposed to be the star.  My editor had apparently gone to lunch so I just had to walk away from the table.

I eventually made it back to work (along with my editor) and decided to put away the pink and go with my initial instinct and keep it simply yellow.  I pulled out some thin brass chain and went to work making a longer necklace design so the donut would be a focal pendant hanging a little lower.  Why long this time?  I shop at Chico's and am a fan of their styling in the store so I'm loving the look of a long necklace combined with a scarf.  It seems like a kind of modern twist on the scarf & brooch combination so that's the direction I took.  It's hard to take a good picture of the length but you can see all that chain...

Of note, you'll see that the original chain bail idea that I had earlier in the week was replaced by a piece of sari ribbon.  I did a little wear test on the long chain and the swinging around of the chain on more chain on earthen clay was not a really pleasant sensation.  I had to remove some of the movement so there wasn't any grating between rough surfaces.  To go back to the lemonade analogy, it's like when you're drinking the fresh carnival kind of lemonade through a straw and you suck in a big mouthful of sugar from the bottom of the cup.  :)   I like the addition of the ribbon, though, both for softness and for the better wear-feel.  

I used some more of my lemon and pineapple stones to put together some dramatic earrings with big faceted pieces and then twisted up a quick bangle.  That's actually a plain brass Chico's bangle that I got on a super clearance sale that I wrapped with some wire, ribbon, and chain to add a simple accent that highlights the summer yellow stones perfectly.

And that's the end of my story!  I got up bright and early this morning to post this because, of course, I waited until the last minute.  I actually had to take the photos with my iPhone because my "real" camera is at the office.  I'm kind of impressed with how they came out!  

Thanks, Kristie!

Artisan Clay Design Team Reveal: Smoke & Stones

Artisan Clay Design Team reveal day was yesterday...it's the last Friday of every month.  I didn't realize until yesterday morning that the it happened to already be the last Friday in June.  Nice.  I thought I had another week!  Oh well, it gave me an excuse to get up early this morning after a bit of an "extra social" evening celebrating at my promotion party.  I got to enjoy some yummy coffee with skim milk (because the creamer is gone) and get my Artisan Clay inspiration on...this lovely smokey donut was my starting point:

It looks similar to the piece I worked last month, but I love that design concept so much that I figured I'd keep with it but go with the neutral smokey tones and add some complementary stones.

I actually spent more time stringing the bracelet strands because I kept rethinking how I wanted to arrange the lights and darks.  I dug into the stash and used some Beadalon crimp ends that I've had forever.  I found a lot of great stones that would work with this smokey theme...

Many thanks to Kristie for the great piece and for being understanding of my calendar challenges.  :)

Tackled Stash in Blues

Met another June goal!  Whoo hooo!

I wanted to do a project inspired by Operation Tackle that Bead Stash and those luscious blues.  Well, the project expanded when I saw all those blue beads on my table and realized that I could also make a few blue bracelets in support of The Global Genes Project's 7000 Bracelets campaign.  All my blog worlds collided because this month's Art Bead Scene challenge also featured blues for inspiration to generate some bracelet support, too.   Anyway, here are my tackled bead stash creations:

Pieces and parts:

~ The necklace features a glass disk from Bronwen Heilman of Ghostcow Glassworks that I picked up probably two years ago and have had it stashed since then.  I used memory wire, clear rubber tubing, deep blue suede and steel wire to highlight the big blue in a circle-y design.

~ The coordinating bracelet is tubing-covered memory wire with some little steel wire twisty beads that I made.  Then I pulled these matte blue stones out to create dangles for the ends--don't know how long they've been in my stash!

~ The matte blue beads let to another bracelet and I wanted to carry the "clear" theme and found these rough quartz nuggets in the stash and made a little focal grouping.  Those beads I've probably had for five years.  Nice.

~ Speaking of five years or more, the big quartz oval piece in the last bracelet has been in my collection for a realllyyyyyy looooong time (and I still have lots more!) so I matched it up with some of that deep blue suede and a handmade steel hook clasp.  I can see more bracelets similar to this in my future.

Here's a shot of the OTTBS palette:

BTW: Starting with Earrings

I've had some random pairs of earrings hanging around on my bead table for a long time now so on this Bead Table Wednesday, I'm sharing progress!  I think I made them back when I lived in Alabama so it must be at least a year since that's how long I've been in Hampton.  My goal has always been to make up a necklace and bracelet to go with each and create a full-up set.  They sit over in a little bowl waiting for me to get inspired.  I know we all have different selling experiences, but I've found that I frequently get asked for something to go with whatever piece I create...so I've gotten better about making things that coordinate.  I try not to get too matchity matchy so that each piece can stand on its own.  Long story short is that I finally got some of these sets done. 


The first pair of earrings that I decided to tackle feature lampwork by Kathy Perras (I just went back to make sure I cited this artist right and figured out I bought these in April of 2010, nice.)  They have a great periwinkle purple and grassy green that I paired with silver and aquamarine.  (I just noticed that both earrings have the nugget on the same side instead of being opposite as I would put them now...will have to go back and switch one around.)

I stayed with the periwinkle color and added some Donna Millard lampwork and a couple of her new vintage tin bead caps then finished it off with a summery green suede cord and my new fave steel wire. 

 I went for a different look with the bracelet and used lots of the aquamarine nuggets to highlight a focal group with more of Donna's glass, a little wood and more vintage periwinkle glass.

 Here's the whole set together...it's listed in my shop now.

The second pair of earrings I decided to work with have a different feeling to them...more earthy with the turquoise and forest green Barbara Lewis enameled rounds.

 This necklace took me off the artisan bead path and over into my semi-precious stones where I picked out this big green garnet nugget for the centerpiece.  It's highlighted with some rolled paper beads, turquoise heishi, a little brass and then steel wire to finish and connect to the smooth brown leather.

 I went with memory wire for a simple bangle with little danglies at the end.

 And here's the whole thing all together which is also listed as a set in my Etsy shop!

Hope everyone's having a great, productive week clearing off the bead tables on this Bead Table Wednesday!

I've Been Seen at Art Bead Scene

Many thanks to Lori, my Pretty Things friend and a contributor at the Art Bead Scene! 

 She picked my design from this month's ABS challenge, Ophelia, to feature this week!

I have to share the love on this because it's all about the Art Beads!!

- My friend, Sandra, bought the set last week from my Etsy shop!

- Juls' ribbed turquoise glass rounds are amazing

- I just bought a couple more sets of disks kinda like 

that yellow one from HMB Studios.

- I'm going to another Barbara Lewis class in July to learn how to 

make more beads like that blue enameled one in the middle.

- The blue and green disks came from Donna Millard with some amazing little vintage

metal bead caps and now I want to try to make some myself.  I only

cut myself once on the first try.

I need to try to sell some more stuff so I can justify the $ I spent on more artisan goodness this week.  I'll share some bead porn later this week after all the fun little yellow envelopes make it to my little mailbox.

Purple Pieces for a Thursday Morning

I just got back from the track and while I cool down/sit here and wish I didn't have to get dressed for work I just wanted to post a few pics of the summertime pieces I've been working on.  These are two of the purple sets.

Kick-ass purpley-pink faceted magnesite rounds are the standouts here, but there is still some fantastic glass goodness from SueBeads, some vintage glass and some pearls...all finished off with my new leather luv and a steel wire.  I'm psyched about how cool the clasps look 'cause I made them myself!

And, of course, the matching bracelet. 

A four-artist masterpiece:  a Barbara Lewis enameled bead, a Cherie Ranfranz lampwork focal and then a Gardanne enameled pendant...who's the fourth artist?  I'm taking that credit because I'm so proud of my little twisted wire clasp. :0

Another matching bracelet with a Barbara bead and a pretty little glass round from SueBeads all arranged with some leather, brass and steel.  Love this one!

Sh*t...now I'm going to be late...haaaaaaaaaaaaa

Revealing Fun...on the Artisan Clay Design Team

I showed off a little bit of what I was planning back on Bead Table Wednesday, well it's Friday and that's reveal day.  That means I was up waaay early this morning getting my designs all finished and photographed.  Today is my first day of vacation...we've been planning a getaway to Asheville, NC for months!  Spa...mountains...sleeping in the car...heaven!  haaaaaaaa


Anyway, back to bead business.  Before we can take off I want to show off these pretties because I think they're going to get a lot of wear this weekend.  I'm so thankful that Kristie asked me to be a part of the Artisan Clay design team...helps me be more creative while working with awesome pieces.  This month there are little charms that are a lovely rich green and turquoise.  Kristie wrote a post about them this week on her blog and talked about how much she loves this size and wanted to see how other people would use them.  I tried to keep that in mind with my designs and see what I could come up with.


First off is this piece with a mixed focal and green leather:

I had a blast pulling blues and greens from my stash to mix up with this.  The glass spree and  teardrop headpin are from Genea.  I pulled a few random seed beads and copper wire and chain scraps together with this wooden bar to create a sort of asymmetrical bouquet.

Since I had a pair of Kristie's sweet charms and about 20 minutes before my creative time was up this morning I decided on a quick, simple design that really puts the charm front and center:

Bracelet-sized memory wire strung with some tubing, seed beads and a perfectly coordinated "turtle" turquoise round creates a frame for the pendant and still keeps it simple!  I strung the whole thing on a ready-made leather choker so it was super-easy.  I think this one might turn into a little tutorial since you could really make one up for an outfit before heading out the door!

So, thanks again to Kristie for sharing the goodies...and there are other designs out there for this big Friday reveal so head over to the Artisan Clay blog for links! I have to get ready for a road trip!!!

More Custom Work

I can't believe I just got distracted by The Bachelorette.  Reality TV is just so wrong sometimes.  This show in particular makes me appreciate my sweetie so much...thank goodness the big Air Force got small enough for us to find each other.  :) 

Anyway, now that I just watched some dumbass sing her a song about himself and another one do a flip off the top of the limousine it's time for me to get down to posting business.  The other day I posted about a custom piece of work for a lime-green dress for my friend, Patty.  Well, she loved it.  But, as an extra bonus, I had the box of goodness on my desk at work and one of the instructors was wandering by to chat with some other students in my seminar.  I was laughing about how much I've progressed through the year...not so much in air power expertise, but more in blogging numbers.  :)  He didn't understand, so I showed him the goods.  He immediately wanted "a set" for his wife...the only specification was to use the olive green blister pearls in it somewhere.  So, here's the necklace...

I was inspired for the whole color scheme with the Cindy Craig lampwork glass focal that I picked up in Philly at BeadFest Wire.  The amethyst and olive are soooo pretty!  Here's the whole set:

I am now in "set" mode...made three of them tonight!  (It's dark now, so no pics 'til the morning.)  We had a three hour panel discussion at school on the military and the media.  Well, it gave me plenty of time to work on my creativity to-do list.  There are only a few days left in the month which means challenge deadlines, submission deadlines, and just plain old finishing up projects before I have to pack everything up for the big trip.  June 10th is right around the corner and that's when the movers take off with everything I own!  Except the beads...I pack those myself so they'll be jammed in the car with me and the kitty boys.  I can't wait.  haaaaaaaaaaaaa.

"I need a 'wow' piece for a lime-green dress."

First, off, many thanks to my friend, Stella, who hosted a little show for me the other day out by her pool.  I probably ate most of the cheese and drank most of the wine, but I also had a great time feeling the love of my friends for my jewels.  And, yes, Stella is one of those girls in the picture that I posted the other day so we've known each other a loooooong time.  haaaaaaa  Somehow, though, we haven't aged a bit...isn't that perfect?  haaaaaaaaaa

Okay, then, onto the business of this post.  One of the girls at the party the other night is specifically in the market for a special piece to go with a simple, summery lime green dress.  So, I told her I'd take the challenge.  She's going to her hometown in week for big family graduation parties and wants to have something that everyone will ogle.  That's some pressure, but I love working with green so I sat down last night right away to work it.  I opened up my "special glass" drawer and right away saw this kick-ass focal from Donna Millard.  (By the way, she is killin' me with the new beads...they have to be my latest faves.)

And the rest of the piece worked itself out from there...

- Funky blue jasper faceted nuggets
- Vintage turquoise lucite rounds
- Smooth onyx nuggets
- Lime green pearls & South American beans

And since everything was there on the table, there's a bracelet and little earrings to complete the set...

Cross your fingers for me...I hope this is "wow" enough for her!!!

***Post update from a week later...she LOVED the whole set!!!  :)

Summer Swirlie

Just wanted to share this pic of a recent design.  I'm using the draping methods that I learned from Noel Yovovich to work with a bit of sterling silver and create a casual swirlie slide that I love paired with a simple leather choker. 

You won't find them in my Etsy shop just yet since I'm planning on a little show this weekend over at a friend's house.  She's a big fan and amazing supporter, so wine, cheese, and pretties by the pool is the perfect way to bring my year of school and creating to a close.  If there are any left, I'll bring them on to the cyber world!  :)

Oh, and as I grow my wireworking skills there's always inspiration at the Art Bead Scene...the Carnival post on growth is a great one with some really inspired links!

May Day! May Day!

Nothing's wrong in my world today...it's just the beginning of May. 

So, there's a few things that I'd like to say:

My husband shaved his moustache off, so we can all say "yeah"!
I wish I could see it in person, but he's still too far away.
But, he went to Bagram for meetings and sent me some beads today.
Don't know what kind they are, but they'll be awesome anyway.

Soldering's on the agenda today, but I'd be safer with clay.
The cat's chasing birds outside; hope he doesn't run away.
I'm drinking reheated coffee, much to my dismay
But I hate to waste a half a pot that's left from yesterday.

I'm going to a Cinco de Mayo party later on so I can play.
The exciting part is that the host can grill even better than Bobby Flay.
I'll take some wire with me to craft on-demand at the soiree.
Earrings and rings and are great for a giveaway.

Here's a summer necklace that's knotty in a really good way
And it's for sale in my Etsy shop, but not over on Ebay.
I'm gonna go pick some roses for a little kitchen bouquet,
So, ya'll go have a great weekend full of laughs and fun, okay?

Beads 2010 Project: Marsha Neal Studio

There were massive thunderstorms last night and we expect that there'll be more storms all day today.  Looks like it's going to be a work-in-your-pajamas-doing-crafty-stuff sort of day.  In typical Air Force fashion, I got about 20 emails and pop-up alerts on my computer warning about tornadoes.  So, what do I do?  At 1100 last night I put the flashlight battery in the recharger and took pictures of my bead studio in case I need it for insurance.  I briefly thought about what I would do with the cats, but then decided they'd just run around like crazy anyway.  Nice.  Nothing like having a plan.

Anyway, to focus on what this post is really all about...another artist from Beads 2010:  Marsha Neal.  I love the variety of textures and shapes and materials that Marsha uses.  I was lucky enough to win a giveaway on her blog a few months back and got some seriously awesome treats.

First, a necklace...

It's all about circles and wire.  One of Marsha's decaled porcelain donuts was the inspiration.  I added some "totally twisted" wire, a recycled glass ring, and a little wooden ring to create a focal trio.  All are strung on a pretty blue silk ribbon from Riverstone Bead Co. that's finished off with a toggle

Now, for the ears...check out the "shards"...

I have to admit I was a little stumped by Marsha's porcelain "shards" when I first looked at them.  But, with a little gunmetal grey wire-wrapping, they make a great pairing with some lightweight paper beads.  I love when a design challenge works out into something cool!

You can shop for either of these pretties in my Etsy shop!

Beer & Nut Jewelry

I have a test in the morning on joint air campaign planning.  Yep, a four page essay on the command and control of our country's air power...should be a cinch, right?  haaaaaaaaaaaa  Apparently I'm on a study break.  In honor of my little snack time, here are some of my newest pieces....

These earrings have all the beer and nuts you need!

The brown glass rings are recycled from bottles...from Art by the Case

Purple enameled headpins from SueBeads

Nuts from Brazil.  :)

Of course, a matching necklace would be great, right?

This necklace is copper cool.

The big copper toggle is from Artbeads.com.

The purple stone focal and crazy lace purple beads are from my random stash.

Most importantly, the recycled brown glass ring is from Bronwen Heilman.

Many thanks to my friend, Anne-Marie who did some proxy shopping for me out in Santa Fe.  :)

Oh, and there are lots more Brazilian nuts!

These beer-nut specials are in my etsy shop.  :)

Color Adventure: Split-Complementary

I'm no color genius...I can't even figure out what my natural haircolor is!  haaaaaaaaaa  So, when it came to the "Split-Complementary" challenge through the Beads of Clay blog.  I had to do some resesarch.

I started first on this website, recommend by Kristie of Artisan Clay:  The Color Schemer tool.  You can pick a color combo and then play with a sliding scale of values to see your options. 

Then, I broke out my new "3-in-1 Color Tool" that I picked up on Amazon.  It's made for quilters, but it's great for my bead drawers.  I can pull out the "swatches" I need and then use them to search for just the right colors because each swatch includes all the tones and shades of each color.

I picked my focal first and then built from there.  This awesome purple zinnia piece is by Tracee Dock from The Classic Bead.  From the purple, across the color wheel, is yellow-green, so to split that I got chartreuse and green. 

The end result:

Zinnia Stoneware Pendant - The Classic Bead

Faceted lemon quartz

Facted iolite

Green/yellow agate rounds

Green chunky pearls (I hate the word "blister" so I can't use it here even though I think that's what they really are)

Sterling silver wire used to bail up the pendant

And you can own it...it's for sale in my etsy shop.  :)

There are two more color challenges in the mix right now, so come on and join me in exploring: 

The Tetradic Color Scheme - through April 2nd

and

The Neutral Color Scheme - through April 16th

Yes, Actually

I spent the day home sick on the couch today.  Yuck. 

But, I have something to share...another piece with the turquoise-purple-yellow color scheme.  This is a casual little necklace that I call "yes, actually" in the spirit of yes, those colors go together quite well.  There's turquoise, amethyst, and a sweety lemony quartz.  Plus, the art glass focal on this piece is a Gardanne glass bead by Anne.  The colors are all there in one bead, so I had to use it!  She puts out new beads every Wednesday and has a giveaway going on, so go check out her blog!

(It's for sale, too!) It's sold!

Spring Diggity!

This necklace and bracelet are Spring Diggity!  And they're available in my Etsy shop.  :) The bracelet is actually in the Spring issue of Stringing...that's the issue with the gorgeous cover and tons of my beading friends in it!

In addition to my sweet little bracelet on page 59 some of my fave things in this issue are:

~ Michelle Mach's feature called "Take Two" about reworking designs that weren't all the great starting out...it's nice to know that every designer comes up with some bum projects sometimes.

~ Tracee Dock's necklace called "Circle Around" that features some rings that she makes that are available at The Classic Bead.  I have one of her pendants that I'm hoarding for the perfect project.  :)

~ "May Day" by editor Danielle Fox rounds out my faves.  I love the big enameled floral pieces (from a newly discovered shop:  Sleeping Dog Studio) combined with some always-awesome Humblebeads.  :)