Creative Spark E-Zine & Spring Challenge

A few weeks ago, I mentioned there was a surprise coming up. I may have mentioned beads and Znet Shows (I don't remember at this point) but there were (obviously) beads involved and they were from Znet as a part of a blind Spring Challenge (blind, as in I didn't know what beads I'd be working with until I opened the box they sent). Boy, what a box! It was crammed! It was packed! I got the box and giggled for at least twenty minutes.



A beautiful mix of Spring colors to work with



More....



More....



There were actually a lot more beads than this, and I made a whole bunch'a earrings, but only so many could be entered in the challenge. You see, they were going to be published in their E-Zine, Creative Spark. YES! ME! WOO HOO!! First time I've ever been published for my hobby. I love beads and I love getting free beads to create with. Znet Shows has some awesome beads to play/work with. Please, take a moment to go here to check out their 'zine (I'm featured starting on page 83) and feel free to enjoy the beautiful work of my teammate designers.

Spring Cleaning Challenge

I'm not sure what made me sign up for Sharyl McMillian-Nelson's Spring Cleaning Challenge for your studio but, I did. Sadly, I didn't finish my clean up. Here's what happened.

I am one of those who creates best in a creative mess. Honestly, it just seems to work for me. I didn't get a before shot of my "creative mess" but trust me when I say "mess" was being polite. Yeah. Bad. So I decided to roll up my sleeves and dig in. Oh, and, while I was at it, I was going to move things around. Yeah, that will get me finished EVER so much faster! Anyway, I did think to get a few pictures here and there, so let me share those!

 

Here's the "half-way" point. Notice the sunlight. Yeah. Anyway, it got a lot worse than this before it got better. That walk way to the left was filled with moved stuff before I got everything in place.

Here was the (nearly) completed and rearranged craft room. I actually managed to get the table cleared off later so there was a nice, clean surface to start over on. I have an area specifically for my torch work and clay (when I get braver) work. I have all those nice little drawer sets to put my papers, extra tools, ribbon, etc. in. I even reorganized my bookshelf to hold my wires, special beads and findings as well as books, drawing pads, & paints. Again, notice the (lack of) sunlight? Yeah, took that long. This was, for me, a day-long project. The procrastinator in me can't do bits and pieces over several days, it has to all be at once. If I don't, I can get distracted by all the things I "find" to play with. Remember that ADOS I've mentioned in other posts? Uh huh. (Attention Deficit Ooh! Shiny! for those of you who've not hear me mention it before). I don't think I've ever been so tired in. my. life!

Sadly, I didn't get a shot of the completely clean table top and, not long after, I began a new series of projects that required me to make a mess all over again. Here's what it looks like again (sorry, Sharyl, I know this wasn't exactly what you had mind):

When I'm working, even when I leave my table to return later (that day, another day, whatever) I leave out what I'm working on because, to me, why make the bed when you're getting right back in that night? Yep! I'm that bad! What I'm working on doesn't require everything that's sitting there, but what's sitting there might spark an idea so why fight it?!

Anyway, that's where my table is. The rest of the craft room is still pretty neat from my cleaning spree, but the table is, once again, on it's way to that "creative mess" so many of us live in. But, it's okay, they know us in this world ;)

Please go to Sharyl's page to check out everyone else's pages that participated in this Challenge. I'm sure they did much better at it than I.

Pantone Spring ~ Copper Candy Twist

I only had a little time to play with my beads and wires this weekend and that was on Friday night.  And that wasn't even until late in the evening!  Oh, well, I got to play!  Anyway,  I decided to play with two of the colors in Patone's list of what's going to be "hot" this spring and to use copper wire to bring it all together. I don't know why copper wire except the beads themselves seemed to just beg for it.  They whispered insistently in my head that copper wire was the way to go! (don't look at me like that! you know you ALL have beady little voices whispering to you, too, or you wouldn't be here!)

ANYway, this is what I made Friday night in a fit of creativity: (and, yes, I decided to keep these for myself. LOVE the color mix more than I tho't I would and it's my first real wire work of any kind! eeeeeesoproudpatsselfonback)

Copper Candy Twist ~ the light orange
beads are a tiger's eye sort of bead (not
real tiger's eye, but that sort of "movement"
in the bead) It's a little richer than the lighting
makes it look.

Played with the copper wire (also a deeper tone
than the lighting makes it seem) and did some
(semi-) serious twisting. This is the back of it. I
like that I can still see the beads if the necklace
gets twisted around this way.



The front ~ (do I have to mention the lighting
again? plus, it's taken with an iPhone)

connector between the dangle/focal and
the necklace. (honest! the colors are a little
richer than this!)

I kept the same colors (the tubes were a dark
orange) and pattern throughout

Matching earrings

close-up of one