Playing and Amusing the Muse

So, this weekend (I'm counting Friday night, here) I experimented with something new... well, new to me. Ice Enamels!  I really do like them! I have turquoise, a sort-of chartreuse green, and a clear/opalescent set of colors.

This first one is a steel washer I layered with turquoise, then added some small pieces of the chartreuse color and a teeeeeeensie bit of the opalescent (no, sorry, don't remember to precise names... I'll add 'em later)  I really like how this turned out. And I haven't done anything else to it, no resin topping or anything. Cool, no?

This one... well, it didn't work as well. I don't know if I got too excited, or just straight up too messy with my work, but it blotted in a few places on the wings and slid off around the dragonfly where it's attached to the shell casing.  Still, I think I may be able to do some clean up if I take my time with it. More experimentation is in order. Yes.

I'll keep you updated as I make further attempts.

What new things did YOU try this weekend, hm?

Etching Attempts - Pleasing the Muse

So, I have emerged (briefly) from my Creative Exile (aka taking care of a HUGE puppy!) and decided to plunge into trying some etching (pun fully intended).  My 1st attempt was this simple copper marker I etched the word "Sisters" on and some extra whirly-gigs to give it a little extra oomph. I learned two lessons; 1) careful of the amount of "oomph" you add, it can overwhelm what you're trying to do and, 2) remember to marker the sides of your piece so the etchant doesn't eat away at it. (whoops!)

"Sisters" etched copper, high-
lighted with alchohol ink and
the high points sanded.

My 2nd attempt was with some brass casings I have. I learned another lesson here; small spaces such as this need less detail to really stand out. Still, I like what's there. Now I just need to bring out the detail and finish them up (earrings, of course!). I'll post some pics as soon as I have 'em finished.

Here's hoping I can continue to get into my craft room for even some small sessions. My Muse is threatening to go into hiding if I don't do more!

Brass shell casings etched - learning process in action

...and, suddenly, puppy!

Staring at my Mom eating waffles. He
didn't want to chance missing the offer
of some peanutbutter... notice how his
eye level is above the counter top?



Helping his Momma feel better on a sick day



Hardware Can Be Beautiful

So, I was in Lowe's a few days ago, looking for copper wire and copper tubing (don't ask, I'll show you when it's done!) and I found these sweet little brass mirror holders.  My immediate thought was "HEY! I can make these into jewelry somehow!"  (y'all have been a really baaaaaaad influence on me!)  Anyway, I'm still contemplating what I'm going to do. Any ideas from you?

 

hard to tell the silver color from the brass
color in this shot, eh?

And, don't forget, my March Contest will be over this Saturday and I'll be drawing two winners shortly thereafter.  Go here if you still want a chance to get in on the contest.

WEDNESDAY CHALLENGES

Mellisaover at Chinook Jewelry is doing a Wednesday challenge each week.  She's putting up a pic of one of the focal beads she's made and asked us to show her the beads, chain, cord, etc., that we'd use with it.  It's hard for me, not because I can't find anything, but because I want to go in SO many directions at once.  Having to narrow it down so the bead pics don't look like a TOTAL mess is hard.  But, okay.  Here are my choices.  It was harder to decide what to use for the focal to hang from, I had three items I was looking at (all will be pictured) but I think I'd end up going with the chain. 
This is Mellisa's pendent:

Cute, huh?

My choice of beads are:


These aren't as yellow as the beads on the right imply, they
are a lighter color that go well with the creamy yellow in
the pendant and would bring that color out, I think.

 

I decided these glass teal beads would be a good accent so
the creamy yellow wouldn't be overwhelming.



These are creamier in color than the monitor
shows (it's also possible the background
washed out some of it and made them whiter
than they are)  I like them for added interest
and to off-set the yellow glass beads juuuust a bit.

  

I liked the richness of this color ribbon for the
pendent to depend from, but....



....I also like this velvet cord (it's much
richer than the monitor shows)
 Again, buuuut......

 

...I finally settled on this as what I would
use to hang the pendant. Love the brushed
look and the way the chain echoes the shape
of the pendent. 

So, these are the beads and findings I envision to go with Mellisa's pendent bead. I went for simplicity because I want the beauty of the pendent to shine through.  I also think I'd make it a long necklace... maybe 12" to 14" in total.
So, what's your vision?

PERSONAL CHALLENGE

I saw something on a friend's Facebook page last night that inspired me to do this personal challenge.  I'm going to send a handmade gift to the first five (5) people who make a comment on this post.  The challenge to myself is that each item will be made as the comments are made. No sending off something I've made already. The gifts will be either a pair of earrings or a bracelet.

Here are the rules:
1) You can comment about anything in my Etsy store, on my Facebook page or any other post in my blog but it MUST be made to this post. If not, it won't count.
2) This will only run until January 31st.  (and, remember, it's only the 1st five who comment, I can't afford to do this for everyone) 
3) You may tell me what colors you like and I will try to incorporate them into the design.
4) You may tell me if you prefer elegant, playful, casual or funky and I will try to create in that element.

5) You won't know which piece of jewelry you're getting, you get to be surprised.

So, comment away, folks.  Let me hear what you have to say and I'll contact you for your mailing address for your gift.

Happy New Year!

Table-Top Studio Update!

We took my table-top studio set back to the camera store my Mom bought it from and found out it was just a little short in the back of the lamp itself (not the cord). The guy helping us said he had a technician that worked in the store who could very likely fix it if we wanted to try that route first. Well, I'm all for the simple solution. He promised to call us when it was done (this was about 10:30 yesterday morning).

No calls.
All afternoon.
SO bummed. :(

Then, today, I get a message from Mom that the camera store had called her.  MY STUDIO LAMP IS FIXED! YAY!!  They'll get it for me this afternoon and I can set up some shots again tonight.  Woo HOO! Yes!  We'll see how things go, now.  Hopefully I'll have some creative pics to share soon.

New Year, New Work

Okay, I've been working this last week on some more jewelry for my store and was finally able to take pictures.  Happily, I was able to use my new Canon Rebel camera for the pics and they look pretty good. Semi-happily I was able to set the items up in my table top studio. Sadly, only part of the studio was in working order (one of the lights refuses to work which means we're going to need to take it back and get a new one... which may need to be ordered... which means I won't get to use my studio for a while longer... sigh)

Oh, well.  It'll get here eventually.  Until then, here are some of the pics I took.  I'll work on some more this weekend and see what I can set up outside, around the house, etc.  You never know! :)

I kept these, but I'm going to make
another pair to go into my store.
Cute, eh?

~Earth Metal~
Now in my Etsy store

My first attempt to play with copper
tubing and some wire I had. Debating
whether to put this in the store or wait
until I've made a few more attempts at
any kind of wire/metal work.



~Forest Wisdom~
Again with the Autumn colors. This
is the necklace I restrung with the
cute little hooty-owl. Going into my
Etsy store soon, too.



I bought these from Lima Beads. I tho't
they made cuter earrings than they
did necklace or bracelet embellishments.

Set 2, this time with a
little blue dangle used from
Michelle Mach's snowflake
challenge box. Cute, eh?

Pearl Fans - simple pair
of earrings made with gray
and charcoal pearls.

MERRY KISS-A-MOOSE! (er, I mean, Merry Christmas! ~heee~)

MERRY KISS-A-MOOSE!

(ain't he a cutie!? I'd kiss his li'l nose!)

CONFESSIONS OF A BEAD-AHOLIC

Yes, I am coming out. It's time to let others know that it's okay to confess to this particular addiction.  I'm afraid there's no real cure for it, though. It's the kind of addiction you simply need to continue feeding because, unless you really OD on it, it's never going to go away.

Bead-aholicism.

Yes! I've done it! I've confessed! I am a bead-aholic!!

(whew, what a relief!)

As I said, this isn't anything that can be (or needs to be) "cured."  The problem with bead-aholicism is the bead-aholics' inability to pay attention to anything else while beading.  This can include (but not be limited to); passage of time, phones ringing, children, spouses, visiting family and/or friends, anything outside of a three foot radius.  Sometimes anything within the three foot radius if it's not a bead.  Many's the night when I've been beading away and looked up to realize the only light in the house was coming from my lamps on my work table.  I hadn't heard the t.v. stop blaring it's show.  I hadn't heard anyone heading down the hall to bed.  I hadn't even noticed the lights go off.  I was in my own little world (but, that's okay, they know me well there!).  The other problem is the bead-aholics need for pretty, shiny, all-shapes-and-sizes of beads. If you take a bead-aholic into Michael's or Hobby Lobby be prepared to, a) mop up the drool that will roll down the chin and, b) see them spend an outrageous amount of money on strings of beads and packets of findings that will go perfectly with what they already have.

A  bead-aholics sense of humor can even revolve around all things bead.  I have a co-worker who uses old pill and medicine bottles to store her beads, findings, etc. and, in spite of her telling him he didn't need to, her husband keeps saving them for her.  We joked about maybe they needed to be filled.  After all, we wouldn't want these poor bottles to become depressed because the lack of beads and findings made them feel unneeded.  At this time of year they could end up in a severe down-ward spiral of depression that could only be reversed by the application of rich-toned seed beads or luscious glass and gemstone beads.

Why am I confessing to bead-aholicism?  Because, I have a regular, 8 to 5 job that takes up the greatest part of my time.  I have a 30 minute commute to work and home again (another hour out of my day!)  It's 5:30 by the time I get home; that is, if I don't have to stop for fuel or some other errand... or my family doesn't decide we need to eat out instead of cooking.  If that happens I don't get home until well after 7pm.  And, knowing how I am about beading (disappearing into the art of creating something pretty) I don't like to bead too late in the evening during the week because I won't go to bed early enough to get enough sleep for the next day.  I know, I know, there are weekends to work at my craft.  Except that's when all the chores and things you weren't able to get done during the week are done.  Now what? Huh? Huh? Now?  Now you whine and pout and give everyone the "Bambi Eyes" in hopes you'll get (at least) a few hours to sit at your table.

The state of which is another indication of your bead-aholicism.  At MY table, I pull out several things at once when I start creating; mixing and matching colors, accents, wire or chain, findings, headpins.  And they rarely go back to the boxes and containers they came from so there's a serious mix-mash of all these items strewn about at any given time.  I recently read an article over on Art Bead Scene by Erin Prais-Hintz of Treasures Found about making bracelets (or earrings) out of the "left-overs" on your table!  How fun! (not to mention a great way to clean up your mes... ahh... table!)

Another indication of bead-aholicism is how many times a day you either blog about, or read other blogs about, your passion.  It's hard to sit at my desk and not bring up my blog to see what all the blogs I've got on my "I stalk these people" list have been doing. What can they say or show me to inspire my creativity? The next clue is whether you email yourself the link to the picture they've posted so you can be inspired again later (tutorials only, folks! NO stealing someone's hard-earned designs!!!) or if you just print a copy of the picture then and there to add to your growing collection of "I have to try this!" pages that are shoved messily onto a shelf near your table or pinned to a board above it. 

Yes, bead-aholics are an interesting, if misunderstood breed.  We're (mostly) harmless (unless there's a major sale at Michael's or Hobby Lobby then, LOOK OUT!), and we really don't mean to ignore you.  Just understand we're on an entirely different planet than you when creating.  But, that's okay.  In fact, we won't mind at all if you want to come visit us there!

EARRING MADNESS!

Well, I went back to Pier 1 Imports last night and bought out all the daisy wine glass tags I could find. THEN, sadly, I found some cute little butterfly tags.  I say "sadly" because there were only two sets so, six pairs of butterfly earrings.  I also found some great lampwork flowers that I'm turning into earrings, too, and I have plans to go back and buy up the glass bead tags as well.  On the negative side, it cost me a little over $80 to buy all those (about 14 boxes of tags).  On the plus side, almost all of them were on sale so it only cost me a little over $80 to buy all of them.  On the plus-plus side, half of the ones on sale were on a better sale than the red tag led me to believe!  I just LOVE saving money! (if I only don't go broke saving it ~HA!~)
Anyway, here are three more pairs I made from last nights' haul, but they're not daisies this time.
Enjoy! (and, as always, feel free to share this link with anyone! *wink*)

Blue Swirl

Flowering Hope
~for my Spina Bifida line~

Hope Floats
~also for my SB line~

To paraphrase my Etsy description, those with SB aren't really that different from the rest of us.  They're no less fun-loving or any more serious than we are.  I want some of my SB line to reflect more than "serious" jewelry, I want fun and funky as well.  Hope Floats and Flowering Hope start that portion of my line.  Enjoy them, too. There will be more!

....AAAAAND CUT!

Whelp!  That's the end of the First Annual Virtual Craft Show.  I hope everyone had as much fun as I did.  I know winner announcements are up-coming so, as soon as Lori lets me know who has won my giveaway, we'll be contacting each other for all the info exchange necessary.

On another note, the discount at my Etsy store is currently closed but stick around.  When we get closer to the holiday, there may be another one!



Autumn Sunset

 Now, on to the private drawing I was having for my Etsy store... I only had six people who ended up entered in my private (not part of the Virtual Craft Show) drawing but I'm still not going to tell you who the winner is until tomorrow.  Once I've got the name, and if you left a way for me to contact you, I will let you know and contact you for your mailing address.

Good luck!

VIRTUAL CRAFT SHOW ~ SNEAKING UP ON US!

Yes, folks, the First Annual Virtual Craft Show is almost upon us, hosted by Lori Anderson at Pretty Things.  It's been sneaking closer and closer and now we have just a little over a week and a half left until it's time to hop from blog to blog and shop to shop to see what all is for sale.  Christmas gifts galore!  Treats for your sisters, cousins, mothers, aunts, granmas... and, I'm sure there will even be some manly items available.  It's like an electronic treasure hunt, you just follow the links and do a little digging and who knows what sorts of baubles you might come up with.  There are some real gems out there (pun FULLY intended!)

Shoot, forget the other women in your family.  Buy for yourself! (like a friend of mine did... her poor grandaughter has no idea what she didn't get! hahaha!)

Pre-sale treat-peek of some of what will be available on my Etsy Store!

Christmas Cheer - beads are

handmade lampwork by
Sue of Sue Beads



Golden Tears ~ wire wrapped
gold beads on hand made
ear hooks

Support Spina Bifida line ~
Watch with deep purple
and yellow beads and
bicon crystals - 8" lgth

Autumn Sunset ~ chocolate
ribbon with caramel colored
oval beads, copper spacers
and a sunset colored glass focal.

Earth's Wheels ~ earth-tone
mottled beads on brass
chain, handmade ear wires.

A FEW MORE PICS

Well, I have a few more pics of jewelry.  I didn't get as much done this weekend as I wanted because my Mom, Saner Sister and I were doing a serious house cleaning because we have guests coming in starting this Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday.  Not that I won't be glad to see them, but I really hate cleaning house like that. WORE. ME. OUT!!  Anyway, here's a few pics: (and, the watch can be made smaller by removing a few beads, I just need to be made aware)


Alaskan Aurora ~ a golden-tan crystal
bicon wire wrapped with tinier green
crystal bicones





Spina Bifida - purple/yellow watch
bracelet, 8" around



Christmas Tree Earrings -
prototypes. Plan to make
them red wire, bit sturdier gauge

 



Brass Keyhole Cover -
Any ideas on how to use
it in my jewelry? LOVE
how it looks!



THOUGHTS, SUGGESTIONS, IDEAS

I'm one of those who can get three or four ideas (or more...my high school principle called me a schizophrenic thinker ~HA~) running through her head at one time and, upon occasion, actually pin them down and make them work (or, pen them down if it's a writing idea ~ I just love puns!).  It might take awhile, but it can be done. 

Sometimes, however, an idea ferments and foams and boils and..... fades away.  This one hasn't faded, yet, but I'm not sure where to take it, so I'm asking for suggestions.  Here it is;  I was in London (yes, as in England) a number of years ago and we went to a street faire where they had all sorts of interesting things for sale (think of it as the British version of a flea market, I guess).  What caught my eye (and wallet) was an old fashioned key-hole cover.  It's brass, about four inches long and about 3 inches wide and it's carved... or embossed... or stamped.... I'm not sure, and I'm not sure exactly how old it is.  But it looks very old... Gorgeous, isn't it!

I want to use it, somehow, in my beading or art, but I'm thinking it's too heavy and bulky for a necklace.  I could use it to make a mold but we're still talking size, here.  I suppose I could make the mold then just use part of it, but that doesn't appeal to me at this time.  I've even thought about scanning it, reducing it and seeing if I could (somehow) make a mold from it that way.   So, even though I'm in the midst of finishing my November ABS challenge, and getting things together for the Virtual Craft Show, I thought I'd throw this out there and see what you folks have to say.  SOMEthing has to click!  I've just GOT to find a way to use this puppy!