beads, beads, and more beads

Last week I promised you pictures of beads.  I just walked around the house and took photos of what I have scattered about.  I'm in one of my reorganizing modes, so I have things in piles everywhere.

Various bead projects above.  Some of these need a little work,  a strap to be made, snaps to be moved.  A few are colors that I no longer wear so they will be rotated out of my jewelry drawers.


Below, the two projects I took with Bev Herman on the Bead Cruise 2011.  Sorry for the smudge in the crystal on the necklace on the left.  The necklace is called the Siren's Jewels and it is beautiful!  Altogether there are 16 links of chain that are beaded, making for a lovely strap.  The next necklace is bead embroidered with Vintaj chain for the strap and reflects our ocean theme.

In my living room, just a group of beady things hanging out.

On my computer desk, a pile of beaded jewelry.  Since this is my desk, you will also see some the normal mess of lists and scattered bills underneath the jewelry - not a very interesting background - but just the way it it sorted itself out.

Another pile on my desk.  I think these will go to the gallery.  I need to check everything out, make sure no threads are showing, that the earring findings are on tight....

Even more jewelry on my desk.

 

My Bead Journal Project embroidered pieces.  I need to think about framing them and just wanted to get a look at what I have.  My husband asked me not to frame the ones about depression or headaches on the upper left) or anger (out of frame).  I can see his point, so maybe I'll frame them as a separate group.

And finally, the last pile of jewelry on my desk.  Almost all of these are bracelets that are now too big.  I'm going to redo the clasp on the Rachel Nelson-Smith right angle weave bracelet and see if I can make it smaller.  I see a necklace I want to restring, a bracelet I'm going to cut up and make into a necklace, and a bezeled cab I made from a Marcia DeCoster class that I love, but haven't decided what to make with it.

Hope you've enjoyed a tour of my beads.  Now I have to pick them all up and do the actual organizing!

To all the University of Michigan graduates, congratulations on your graduation today.  I hope you enjoyed your time in Ann Arbor and take away fond memories.  And maybe, like Dennis and I, you'll find your way back to this wonderful city and make it your home.

A Week in the Life of...

A few pictures from this past week.  Last Saturday I went to a book signing of Beads Across America by Michigan's representative, Liz Thompson.  Liz and I know each other through the Great Lakes Bead Guild plus we both went on the bead cruise.

Monday night was the first night of Passover.  Dennis and I went up to Michigan State and had a seder with Sam at his apt.  Sam lives fairly minimally - for instance, no napkins, paper towels, regular kitchen towels, pot holders, or serving pieces.  He also only has one chair.  Luckily he lives alone.    He went to Eastern Michigan Univ. as an undergrad, hence the "E" in the mascot eagle.  I love this picture of Dennis and Sam.

Sam and I.

And finally, a sunny day in Michigan cannot go unappreciated.  The forecast for this coming week is all rain, so I'm enjoying a few rays of sunshine while I can.

You may wonder where the beads are.  I'm slowly finishing a few projects and hopefully will post pics soon.

And that's my week, from Saturday to Saturday.  Hope you had a good week!

Bead Cruise 2011

A few weeks ago I went on the Bead Cruise 2011, organized by Heather Powers.  It was a 7 day cruise, leaving from Galveston, TX and going to Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Jamaica.  In between the ports we had beading classes from a great group of teachers - Marcia DeCoster, Tracy Stanley, Dallas Lovett, Jean Campbell, Bev Herman, and Heather.  I think there were about 65 participants and we all had a lot of fun.  

The beach above and below is in Grand Cayman, which is known for its beautiful beaches and water. 

In Jamaica we stopped at a new port built by Royal Caribbean called Falmouth.  My friend Deb enjoyed dancing with a local band member playing in the square.

 

In Cozumel I saw a sign for a synagogue.  Whoever would have guessed that a small island off the coast of Mexico would have a synagogue?  That's one of the fun things about traveling, you always find unexpected treasures.

Everyone loves the pools on the ship.  The band is getting ready to play here, so it's probably late afternoon and people are going to be coming back from shore excursions.  Off to the sides are tables out of the sun where we often sat and beaded.

One of the great activities about cruising is eating.  Yes, it really is an activity.  The dining room is lovely, with a menu offering several selections.  Or you can eat in the buffet-style Windjammer or several other settings.  Luckily, another activity is walking, since the ship is so big.  I say luckily because even indulging in desserts like the one below, I didn't gain any weight.

Next year the cruise starts March 25 and leaves from Port Canaveral.  The itinerary includes St. Thomas and St. Maarten, places I haven't been to before.  I'm waiting to learn who the teachers are before committing...but I had such a fun time this year that I certainly hope to go again.  Won't you join me?

Beading for a Cure

Starting this week and for the next 2 months, auctions for Beading for a Cure will be on e-Bay (click on link, then on auctions, then on e-bay auctions for the week).  This will be the 4th year I've participated.  Each year a kit is made available to a number of participants, and from this same kit, we create beaded items.  All the items are then auctioned to raise money for Colorectal Cancer.  The idea began after the death of a bead forum member named Layne, who died of colorectal cancer.  Every penny raised goes to research because everyone on the board is a volunteer.  My piece is on auction this week and so far has one bid, please check it out and help raise money for this wonderful cause.

on a roll....

Jason asked me to make a bracelet for a new girlfriend.  He had no idea what colors she likes, how large her wrist might be, whether she even wears bracelets...but after some discussion we chose some colorful pearls for a leather wrap, hoping it would go with a variety of clothes.  I haven't heard yet if he gave it to her, but I sure hope she likes it.  I was still making it when this picture was taken, you can see that it's attached to a clip board to work off of.

75th Birthday Bash

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In December we all went out to Arizona to celebrate my mother's 75th birthday.  We had a week filled with activities - hiking, horseback riding, museum strolling, a surprise party with my mother's friends, and lots and lots of eating!  Above, the whole crew minus the photographer; below, me, Toby, Sharon, and my mother. Do the 3 of us  look like sisters?

more celebrations

There was a hint of Spring in the air for Sam's and my birthdays.  We celebrated our back-to-back birthdays first at Grizzly Peak Brewery for Sam's birthday and then at Common Grill for mine.  We were joined by some onlookers from the mural on the wall.  Sam (on the right) is now 26 and about to graduate from law school.

Kathie's going away party

Our beloved friend Kathie is moving to Miami with her husband in a few weeks.  We have been beading together for about 6 years and can't imagine our group without her, but that's what happens.  We gave her a going away party.  These delicious red velvet cupcakes were baked by Laura.  We also chose beads from our personal stash to give her, as well as 2 beading books, and a gift card to Jamba Juice, her favorite smoothie place.  Hopefully she will visit us for our annual bead retreat in October, or else we're all going to have to troop down to Florida!

Anticipation

We're expecting a massive blizzard tonight, such that we've not had in years.  Right now it is the quiet before
the storm.  The sky is heavy with gray.  There is already several inches of snow on the ground.  Just now a few flakes of snow are starting to whirl in the air.  But tonight is when the real action is supposed to start.

In anticipation, I have a pot of vegetable soup simmering on the stove.  Let's hope we don't lose power.  Yesterday I did some food shopping and made sure we had a lot of candles, fresh  batteries for flashlights, and blankets piled up in the living room. 

The University of Michigan has a policy of never closing.  I seriously doubt my husband will be able to make his 10 am class tomorrow if we really have up to 12" of snow.  Our neighborhood doesn't get plowed until about 2 days after a storm, and we live at the top of a hill, so getting in and out of our street can be tricky. There's a stop sign at the end of the street that when it's snowy and icy you can't stop at and just go right through and hit the sidewalk on the street perpendicular to the stop sign.  It's happened to me and it's kind of scary to know you have no control.

And yet, in this calm before the storm, everything truly is calm.  The soup smells delicious, I've just had a cup of tea, the house is quiet.  The anticipation, the waiting, the knowing, is all there, ready to be realized.

Unclasped Bracelets

I love making bracelets, but I hate making clasps, as you can see.  When my son was home he did something to my photoshop, so now everything gets painted a brown background.  I need to figure out how to get rid of it, if you know how please tell me!

Happy Birthday Dennis!

Dennis is 56 y.o. today, Happy Birthday! This pose is one I see every day, working at the end of the kitchen table, going over lecture notes or copy editing a paper, with a cup of tea to sustain him. No snow today, but the sun is out in celebration!

Thanksgiving Family Photo

My family, Thanksgiving, 2010. Sam, Susan, Dennis, and Jason. As much as I love beading, my family is my main vocation, avocation, and first love.

Anne Hesse Doll collaboration

I took a wonderful class with Anne Hesse on doll making. During the class, I discovered that I wasn't a dollmaker, so I created the doll as a collaboration with my dear friend, Kathie, and gifted the doll to her. I made the face, put the bunches of ribbon together, and she did everything else, including securing the face to a weighted backing, attaching the face to the doll, putting the ribbon on the doll, the hair, and attaching the arms.





A close up of the doll.




Isn't she gorgeous!!!

Turquoise and Lime Green

One day when I was reading Marcia DeCoster's blog she just happened to mention turquoise and lime green. A little lightbulb went off in my head. Those are my two favorite colors. I often combine them with fuchsia, sometimes bronze, or navy, but usually I just like the colors together.

2010 Bead Journal Project

I had high expectations for the third year of my Bead Journal Project. Rather than beading a mandala shape, I decided to bead on felt in a rectangular shape. I started with some needle felting of bright colors, representing the happiness of starting a new project, then surrounded them with black and white, representing the low contrast of color in winter in Michigan.





Well, winter in Michigan can be pretty bleak, as is my piece above.




I always dream of sun in March. In the past I've often gone away for a week in March to someplace that is supposed to be sunny. This past March my husband and I went to Miami and then took a 4 day cruise. It was freezing, overcast, very little sun. The waves were so high we couldn't even go to one of our destinations, which was (supposed) to be a gorgeous beach with turquoise water. Didn't do much for my mental health.





I tried to think of soft colors in anticipation of spring. But I was still feeling the depression of the lack of sun in March, so the sequins and black beads represent feeling down. Notice, though, that I was still trying to be optimistic, as the sequins are very shiny.

And that's as far as I got for 2010. I was not inspired to continue. I wanted to keep the depression at bay, and I didn't want to bead it or explore it further.