A few Miscellaneous Bead Photos

I found these pieces in some of my draft posts so I thought I would put them up.  The top two bead embroidered pieces were made for a seaquilt that was raffled off to raise money for cancer in a walk that a friend was doing.  Her daughter had cancer and she wanted to contribute in a tangible way.  The quilt was absolutely gorgeous and although I bought a lot of tickets I didn't win it.

Another square that I made.

*******************************************************************************

*******************************************************************************

I don't believe I have posted this doll before, and I did find the photos in a draft post.  This doll was made in memory of a friend of mine who killed herself about this time of year.  She was a lovely and charming person, but she was haunted by growing up as a child of Holocaust survivors and suffered from anxiety and depression.  A lot of people think that Christmas is the highest time of suicides, but in fact it is the beginning of spring.  Just when winter starts to recede, when color starts popping up in the garden, when leaves start filling up trees, and a fresh and warm breeze blows, there are those who do not feel the joy of life re-emerging, of the energy of the season, of a lightness and laughter that comes with a sense of rejuvenation. They feel no hope, and without hope there is no reason to go on.  What I write is simplistic, of course, but the captures the essence of why there is a higher suicide rate in spring.  And for dear and gentle friend, the spring in which she found herself was too much for her to continue living.  It was not a choice that she made, she did not wish her family to suffer from her death, for her children to grow up without her, for her husband to mourn his only love and to live out the rest of his life alone.

This doll reflects the joy that she spread in the world.  The bright colors for when she was happy. The wings for how she protected and cared for others.

And here, remembering spring so as to never forget.  And to remember, that when times were good, my friend's garden blossomed beautifully with a riot of colors.

April BJP

My April BJP surprised me quite a bit.  I used the bracelet on the left as inspiration, liking the way the netted beads waved and flowed, creating a fullness and heft.  However, I didn't take into consideration that I would be beading on a round wooden ball with a 1" diameter.  

I started with a netted base on the wood ball in a pretty purple, just because I like the color.

My idea was to add rows of netting (a process in which the number of beads used increases on each row, creating the wavy look), that reflected my mood for the day.  I used Matsuno beads, which are gorgeous colors, but kind of squarish beads.  As much as I loved each color, seeing the colors next to each other the rows looked terrible, no flow of mood or color at all.

Trying to capture some of spring, the gray days, feeling blue about the weather, seeing green start to come out in the trees and grass.

Here you see a lot of gray, some matte, some transparent as if trying to let the light in.  But in the end blackness won out, and although it's hard to see, there are 3 rows of netting on the last row, giving a heavier look on that row.

Another view.

Because I was unhappy with how the bead looked and disappointed that I wasn't getting the flow and rhythm I was looking for, I decided not to finish the bead, and just filled in the empty spaces with more purple beads.  If you look on the far right you will see some firepolish.  That was an effort to see if I could get more light in the bead, hoping it would shine through and catch sunlight.  But when I decided not to finish the bead I just left it alone.

I feel that this is a true bead journal piece.  I had an idea but the beads took over.  I thought the colors were pretty but they didn't look pretty together, instead they really reflected my kind of down-in-the-dump mood over the month.  A lot was going on in April that we/I had no control over, and it was a very long month after a very long and cold winter.

Where does inspiration come from?

The beads in the first photo were put together to make a bead mix (or bead soup) to make the necklace I am wearing below.  But where, you ask, did I get the idea?  A friend of mine, Erin Siegel has this necklace as the cover page for jewelry stringing spring 2014.  As soon as I saw the necklace I loved the vibrancy of the colors and the simplicity of showing off the glass beads.  I already had a set of beads similar to the ones in her necklace, so I was thrilled to find a way to use them.  Often, as beaders, we buy things knowing we like them and will one day use them, but we don't always know what they will be used for or when that day will be.  The necklace is made on Irish waxed linen cord, not pictured.  So for me, the inspiration for this necklace comes from friends and color and the happiness of using beads I already have.  Thanks, Erin!

March Bead Journal Project

March for me represents water.  I'm a Pisces and I feel like water is my home.  When I am in water I am at peace.  My bead for this month represents water, and particularly Bead Cruise 2014.  I started the bead while on the cruise.  I brought a mix of size 11 seed beads and a mix of drop beads.  That's it.  There are probably 3 layers of beading on the wooden bead.  Lots of things you can't see, like swirls and ruffles and wave caps, but it's all in there.

This first photo is of my favorite beach, Wingaersheek Beach, in Gloucester, Mass.  We spent our childhood going to this beach.  There is a story that my father was once offered a plot of land when he got out of the army but he was young and it seemed expensive at the time.  If only....!  We were fortunate to have friends who had a house on the private side of the beach and that is where we went.  This is the path leading to the beach, just seeing it evokes so many memories.

February Bead Journal Project

In February I visited my mother in Arizona.  The visit was to help celebrate her 78th birthday and to attend a wedding shower for my nephew's fiance (now wife).  I was inspired by the cacti in her backyard and chose a palette that reflected the colors.  I thought I was going to create a nature-looking bead, so you can imagine how surprised I was when the bead turned out to look like a cake, a very fancy one.  I guess I had celebrations on my mind.  The bead was freeform using peyote and netting stitches.

Bead Journal Project 2014 - January

For my bead journaling I am using a 1" diameter wood ball and beading around it.  For January I have chosen the theme of snow, because this year our winter in Michigan broke all records for snow, and it was amazingly cold as well.  Interestingly, because it was so cold, the sky was often blue, which is unusual for our winters.  Usually it is gray and depressing.  What was depressing about this winter was how unbearably long it was and how it actually hurt to go outside because of the cold.

Renewing Blog

I am going to start blogging again.  The impetus for this is to join some challenges that require a blog.  I've done challenges in the past and have found that they motivate me to push my bead work beyond where it is, to use new materials and colors, and just to have fun.

Since my last post I have continued beading.  I still prefer seed bead weaving and I mainly make jewelry.  I also like color, nice and bright!

I will post pictures soon of my recent bead work.  For now, I just wanted to get started.

Snowflake Bead Challenge Part 2

 I made a second piece for the challenge.  The first piece I made, in the  previous post, was influenced by the winter weather of Michigan, using cool colors.  My second piece was influenced by the warm weather and colors of Arizona.  I unexpectedly spent some time there after my mother fell while hiking and broke her knee cap.  After surgery and a short stay in a skilled care facility, I went to help her transition to home.

This pendant is inspired by a class I took with my friend Barb Klann, based on using mixed metals and a beaded bail.  These colors are probably my favorite, lime green and turquoise.  I incorporated some of the beads in the challenge with additional Czech firepolish and some metal pieces.

A close up of the main section above.

 The beautiful porcelain bead hangs at the bottom of the pendant.



Secret Snowflake Participants
Please visit the blogs of all the jewelry designers who participated!

• Alice (Alice Dreaming)
• Chris (beadjewelry.net)
• Christa (Adventures of One Beady Woman)
• Crystal (Here Bead Dragons)
• Cynthia (Cynth's Blog)
  
• Dawn (Morning Glory Beading)
• Donetta (Simply Gorgeous)
• Erin A.
• Jennifer (JenniferJW)
• Jennifer (Jewelry, Art and Life)
  
• Kari W. - Coming soon!
• Kate (We Can Make That at Home)
• Kay (Palm Coast Art)
• Linda (Lindy's Designs)
• Lisa C. (A Bead a Day)
  
• Lisa (Inspired Adornments)
• Mary (MLH Designs)
• Michelle (Beads & Books) - YOU ARE HERE
• Michelle B. (Reverie & Revival)
• Millie (AMM Jewelry)
  
• Norma (Moonlit Fantasies)
• Pam (The Crazier Sister)
• Pamela - Designs pictured on this page
• Rebecca J. - Designs pictured on this page
• Renetha (Lamplight Crafts)
• Rosemarie (Gem Rose Designs)
  
• Shannon (Falling into the Sky)
• Susan (Bead Inspired)
• Therese (Therese's Treasures)
• Therese (Domestic Goddess Enterprises)

Snowflake Challenge Revealed

The time has come to share the results of the Snowflake Challenge hosted by Michelle Mach.  My project is a necklace.  I used two of the pendant pieces for the focal points.

The ceramic pieces are hung from a peyote triangle bail.

The strap is a 3 unit herringbone.  Since the colors are shiny, it was very hard to photograph.  What I want to show here is that there is an area of alternating colors in a block pattern, separated by a Czech firepolish beads.

And here is the clasp, a simple hook and eye, which I usually prefer for its simplicity and comfort against the neck.

Thank you, Michelle, for hosting this challenge.  I love the ceramic snowflakes (it's snowing out as I write this), and all the fringe beads, which I didn't really take advantage of using. Yet.  I look forward to seeing everyone else's creations on their blogs!

Beading on Vacation

 My husband had a conference in Orlando and since it was at a nice hotel and the weather was supposed to be sunny and warm, I accompanied him.  Of course, the weather was a bit cool and we only had one day of sun.  However, I saw my friend Kathie who drove up from Sarasota and we had a great lunch at a Lebanese restaurant and then went to a very funky bead store called Dear Prudence.  We got lots of ideas for bead projects there.  Above is a picture of one of the rugs in the hotel.  Although not my usual color palette, I liked the design.

I did do some beading on my snowflake challenge.  I almost finished the strap for the pendant and bail.  I think that perhaps I made the colors too subtle, so when I use the rest of the beads for another piece I will try to punch up the colors a bit.  This picture must have been taken before I started the strap.

Next year the conference is in Maui.  Tempting....

Snowflake Challenge

 I have been thinking about the challenge and what I want to make.  Yesterday I started getting some beads together to see what I like.  I have my bead box all set with my needles and scissors and other tools. 

I love this ceramic pendant.  I think it needs to be the focal point so I am looking at working with subtle colors.  I like the blue and brownish seed beads I chose, but not the white ones or the pearls.  One of my favorite straps is herringbone, but as I was falling asleep last night I had a flash of an idea about a bail, which may determine what I do next. 

Today is a good day to spend a few hours working on the challenge.  It's raining here and doesn't look very inviting to go out.  So the beads and I have a date!

Blog Hop and Challenge

I am participating in a Blog Hop and Secret Snowflake Challenge hosted by Michelle Mach.  I always love challenges, but the bead hop is new.  A certain number of kits were available for the challenge and Michelle will post the final project(s) with the blogs they are on, so you can go blog surfing and see what everyone has created.


I was attracted to the colors of these beads, all the shades of blue, a few white ones, plus the beautiful handmade beads.  What's nice about this challenge is that you can do anything you want!  You can make one project, several projects, not use all the beads, add any beads you want, make jewelry or not.  I have several ideas floating in my mind, we shall see where they go.

Bead Retreat 2011

 

 Donna modeling her hostess gift.

      It's hard to believe that my bead group had its 8th annual bead retreat last weekend.  As always, we brought more projects than we could ever finish, and we beaded like crazy. It helped that the weather was stormy and discouraged us from going out.  However, when the power went off, we lighted candles and poured some wine and had a lovely evening.  Above is our wonderful hostess Donna, with the bracelets we made her. Donna loves to wear multiple bracelets at once, and so each of us made a bangle called XOXO from the book Crystal Brilliance by Anna Elizabeth Draeger.  There are several variations to the bangle, such as changing the bugle size or adding a different bead on top.  We all started with the same number of beads for the foundation and simply made them using "Donna" colors.  I think she was thrilled!  Many thanks to my bead cruise friend, Caroline, for wearing this bangle on the cruise and providing the inspiration for our gift.  By the way, if you choose to make one of these bracelets, just know that they are quite addictive - one member of our bead group has made over 75!

Summer Jewelry

 Lots of show and tell from summer beading projects.  Above and below are details from bracelets I made designed by the talented and creative Barb Klann, nationally published bead artist and member of my bead guild.  The bracelet above is 3 strands of St. Petersburg stitch attached with channels of right angle weave.

 The second bracelet shows details of a delightful right angle weave bracelet.

 Above are the two bracelets in full view.  I plan on wearing them as "sister" bracelets and hence I coordinated the colors.

 Caravan Beads has a great blog on their website and the bracelet above is from there.  I used blue iris beads in 3 sizes, 11, 8, and size 10 triangles.  Using the different sizes gives the bracelet the dimensional look.

 Wrap bracelets are fun and easy, but hard to photograph!  The ones above were made using size 2 seed beads, which are often used by knitters because they're so large.  These bracelets wrap around my wrist 3 times.

 Half the fun of a wrap bracelet is choosing the button! These bracelets use size 8 seed beads and some pewter beads to give them a little flair.

 Linda Richmond is one of my favorite designers and I've bought a lot of her kits over the years.  The set above comes from her and it's delightful.

 When I went to the Inspired by Nature retreat we made a garden bracelet, which you can see above.  The polymer clay beads are made by Heather Powers and then there are 6 passes of Zulu stitch using seed and fringe beads.

 When I went on the bead cruise I saw a woman wearing the bracelet above (hers was in navy blue) and she was generous enough to share the pattern with me.  Again, it's another bracelet that changes the sizes of the beads, 8,11, and 15, which creates the ruffle.

 A few years ago Leslee Frumin came to our bead guild and taught the crystal part of this necklace.  I added my own strap, the now favorite St. Petersburg stitch.  Leslee is a member of our guild and used to live in Michigan.  She now lives in CA but luckily comes back to teach.  Her designs are fabulous!

 Marcia DeCoster is another teacher that we're lucky to have teach in our guild.  The above photo shows detail of a bezeled cab that is actually designed to be a bracelet.  I like necklaces, so I made it into one, using, once again, the St. Petersburg stitch.

Here is a full photo of the necklace.  If you look at most of the pieces I made this past summer, you will notice I used a lot of blue!  I love blue - it is the color of the sky, the sea, the Great Lakes.  It is an integral color of nature and surrounds us in our daily life.  For me, being a Pisces, I always feel connected to blue and find it both soothing and stimulating.

Hope you've enjoyed my summer tour!