Erin Siegel Jewelry

7000 Bracelets for Hope

2012-02-11T12:18:00.000-05:00

The 7000 Bracelets for Hope Campaign is to help raise awareness for kids living with rare diseases and also to show support for the family members caring for the children. The Global Genes Project is asking jewelry designers, beaders, crafters and artisans to donate hand-crafted, blue jean-inspired bracelets for the cause.

To give you and idea of the theme for the bracelets,

here are a couple of design examples I've made:

Blue Jean Baby Bracelet

Owl Button Bracelet

Click on the link to find out more details about the 7000 Bracelets for Hope campaign and to sign up to donate a bracelet!

There are two lovely ladies in the bead blogging community hosting a blog hop for this year's bracelet campaign, Erin of Elysian Studios and Christine of One Kiss Creations. If you'd like to participate in the blog hop, you'll have to hurry! Today is the last day for sign-ups!

Click the button below to be taken to Erin's page to sign-up for the blog hop!

I can't wait to design a new bracelet to donate this year! I better get working on it soon, the blog hop is coming up in two weeks! See you all there on Saturday, February 25th.

Spring Stringing

2012-02-03T07:00:00.001-05:00

The Spring 2012 issue of Stringing is now available for download.

If you have to have the latest beading magazines as soon as they come out like I do, you'll be happy to know you can already download the Spring 2012 issue of Stringing magazine! Just click the cover picture above to download your copy from the Interweave website.
I have two bracelet designs in there. Also, an ad for our upcoming book, Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry: 50 Designs Using Leather, Ribbon and Cords appears in this Spring issue. That was exciting to see!!!

Art Saves

2012-01-29T08:00:00.001-05:00


Torch-ured Heart by Painting With Fire on Etsy.

The kind and very talented Barbara Lewis of Painting With Fire, is guest curator this week over at the Art Saves blog. Today, she is sharing one of my blog posts that she found moving and inspiring. I feel honored that she chose to include me along with posts from some other wonderful folks for her special event. I enjoyed reading some of the posts she highlighted from others and I will go back again and finish reading the rest of them. Some folks are new to me and some are friends I visit on a regular basis. Head on over and check out Barbara's feature at Art Saves and all the bloggers she highlighted from this past week!

African-Inspired Cuff

2012-01-27T13:50:00.001-05:00

I made this beaded cuff bracelet last night. It reminds me of intricate multiple strand beadwork made by women in Africa. I love channeling the inspiration of other cultures into my jewelry designs! It's kind of like armchair traveling, but with beads. Bead traveling...I think that's one of the things I find the most fulfilling in my work.

Here's a few photos of how it looks on. I love it!

I think I may do a little tutorial on how to make this bracelet. Keep an eye out for that soon!

Bohemian Knotted Earrings Workshop

2012-01-11T10:29:00.003-05:00

Bohemian Knotted Earrings Workshop

Bead Fest Philadelphia August 2012
Saturday, August 18th 8:00am-11:00am

Registration now open!
Click here to go to the instructors page and scroll down to find my name.

YAY! I can finally announce my BIG, huge news. I will be teaching this Bohemian Knotted Earrings Workshop at Bead Fest Philadelphia in August this year! I decided I wanted to start teaching again. I miss it. I've always had wonderful experiences teaching. I used to teach lots of beading classes when I worked at the Riverwalk Bead Shop and Gallery when we lived in Amesbury, Ma. I always had such awesome students in all my classes. I miss that interaction. I miss seeing those faces light up when they are having a great time creating something. I miss being apart of that fun. It's been over a year since I taught a class. I've been away too long. I really do love sharing the joy of beading and jewelry-making, so I'm going to return to teaching....And apparently, I'm going to eeeeease myself back in by jumping right onto the national stage. Eeeeek! It's only January, though. I have plenty of time to teach some smaller classes in between now and then. And speaking of that, I actually will be teaching this same class next month, Saturday, February 11th from 10-1pm at the Riverwalk Bead Shop and Gallery! If you are local, check out the class schedule and come see me!

Anyway, back to telling you about the workshop. For months, I worked hard developing these original earrings designs and now, this class for you! The earring projects for the class are based on and inspired by an earring project I made for our book, Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry: 50 Designs Using Leather, Ribbon and Cords. Each student in class will make 3 different pairs of earrings using various knotting techniques. Colorful gemstone rounds are knotted onto artisan-made copper and silver components by MISS FICKLE MEDIA!!! Yeah, a big thanks to Shannon for making me all those rings and ear wires for my class!

Class description:

Learn simple knotting techniques to make a trio of bohemian chic earrings! Using waxed linen cord, you will learn 3 different ways to attach colorful beads to a ring component.

Students will learn basic knotting techniques to make three pairs of stylish earrings. Techniques covered in class will included: lark's head knot, half-hitch knot, overhand knot and how to use knotting tweezers for precise knotting. Using waxed linen cord, students will learn 3 ways to use knots to attach beads to a ring component. Students will have the following color choices for each pair of earrings: red, orange, green, turquoise and blue.Variations on the three designs made in class will also be discussed, so student will be able to expand on the techniques they have learned.

I'd love to see you in class! Hope to see you there!

Vintage Seed Bead Bracelets

2012-01-09T21:39:00.000-05:00

When my husband came home from helping his grandma for the day, he handed me this old tin box. Inside held a long strand of colorful vintage seed beads. Grammy Siegel knows I make jewelry. She was cleaning up around her house and thought I might like them. Do I ever! I love them! As soon as I opened the beautiful aged metal box, I was inspired to start creating right away.

I decided I would make one of my signature multiple-stand bracelets to really show off the seed beads. I pulled out some purple Irish waxed linen cord. Then, I looked around in my stash for a few rustic beads to compliment the nature of the seed beads: An orange Kieth O'Connor ceramic bead, a copper African trade bead, and a Hill Tribe silver flower button for the closure.

Here is the finished bracelet!

After I finished the first bracelet, I still had a some beads left over, so I decided to make a second piece. I strung the seed beads onto some 24 gauge wire and wire-wrapped them around 2mm leather cord to create this second bracelet. Simple, but I love the effect!

I'm thrilled with how these both turned out!

Gratitude

2012-01-07T22:52:00.000-05:00

THANK YOU to all those who left me encouraging messages on my last post. I am grateful for your good thoughts and letting me know I'm not alone. I wanted to share my experience with the good intention to perhaps inspire awareness in others. I know now, I was unconscious of what I was really doing to myself and I thought others might be in the same boat I was in. I received wonderful emails and messages from some of you. Most of us don't realize how powerful our thoughts and feelings are and how much damage can be done with being negative to ourselves. I know I thought as long as I was sweet-as-pie to everyone else and gave myself fully outwardly to the world, that was ALL that mattered. We don't think that what we think and feel inwardly has any real, tangible affect, but it absolutely does. The great news is, we can change all that around by being aware of ourselves and thinking good, happy thoughts! I know this knowledge will always be with me now and I will remember to be aware of what I am thinking and try to keep good, happy thoughts with me at all times. I hope you will, too.

Chakra Meditation Pendant

On other note, some of you expressed an enthusiastic interest in my Chakra Meditation Pendant! I'm thrilled! I thought about and I think this item is unique enough, so I'm offering a few of them in my newly opened Etsy Shop. Please excuse the appearance, the shop is a work in progress! If there are others that would like one, I can make more, so just let me know if you would like a pendant made for you. I'm so happy for your interest! Thank you!

Let's Be Kind to Ourselves, Please.

2012-01-05T07:00:00.020-05:00

Chakra Meditation Pendant

I'm thinking a lot about self-care and self-kindness in the new year. For the past few weeks, I've been using meditation as a tool for coping with and releasing some negative emotions and anxiety. You see, I have not been feeling good physically and most important of all, I have not been good to myself emotionally. In fact, come to find out, I've been inner trash talking to a point that shocked me when I recently became aware of it.

For the past few months, I've been feeling a little lost about where to put my time and energy. I've been struggling with whether to focus on growing my jewelry-making career such as, selling jewelry, teaching classes, working on more publications, blogging, and networking or to focus more on family and home life such as, fixing up my house, decorating, organizing, cleaning, cooking, doing more for my daughter, Nora, and generally making life more pleasant and comfortable for me and my family. Up until now, I've been an all or nothing kind of gal. I pick one thing and focus on that with a one-track mind. So, for me, integrating all of these things into one life is difficult for me to grasp, to say the least.

The following is the inner trash-talk dialogue that went on:

"You really should be able to do both but, unfortunately for you, you can't multitask. Ha! You've never been able to. You used to be able to get away with it before you had Nora, but now, your slowness and total lack of any kind of time management skills is completely exposed. Maybe if you were someone else you could do it, but there's no way YOU could keep all those balls in the air. Why can't you seem to get it together enough to get more done in your day? If you were a good mother, you'd be feeding Nora better meals that this, too. If you were competent, you'd be able to make jewelry and keep the house clean. You'd be absolutely mortified if someone walked in and saw this house in the state it's in right now. This is disgraceful...."

And on it goes...I've said this and much, much more to myself many, many times over the months. I would never, ever, ever in a million years, talk to someone like that. I wouldn't dream of treating someone else like that...EVER. So, why on earth am I doing it to myself??? Crazy, isn't it? Well, needless to say, I won't be doing it anymore, I will try anyway. I think it will be a process, but at least I'm more aware. Awareness is the key. It is the first step. You can't very well change something until you become conscious of it first.

Listen to that inner voice, BUT please, make sure it's a KIND voice.

Thank you.

I made myself this Chakra pendant inspired by my meditation practices.

Holiday Sparkle

2011-12-22T08:00:00.001-05:00

Can't resist a little sparkle for the holidays! I made this pair of earrings to go with my LBD I'm wearing on Christmas Eve. Faceted black onyx rounds, gold faceted Czech glass beads and Swarovski crystals are hand knotted on black silk beading cord. I know...these beads are such a deviation from what I would normally chose. I'm not usually into the glitz stuff. I think that's why I'm finding these so exciting, because they are different from what I'm usually drawn to. And the gold. The gold is different, too. I never do gold. I'm feeling the gold and I'm digging the faceted gems and crystals. Must be all the twinkly lights and festive glitter everywhere that has stolen my mind. Still, even that is out of the ordinary. I don't remember wanting to make sparkly things last year. I think it's the silk cord that brings these earrings to a place I want to go. It adds that touch of fiber and natural texture that I find so appealing. I love the elegant drape of the cord, too. It gives the same effect as a delicate chain. I finally came up with a way to create dressy earrings that I enjoy making! These will be my signature fancy earring from now on.

Oh...and I was having so much fun with the silk cord and the sparkles that I made this pair of faceted gem drops, too! I can't wait to make more of these earrings.

Happy Holidays!

I hope it's merry and bright and full of sparkle for all of you!

Nora Story-time!

2011-12-17T20:55:00.000-05:00

I haven't shared much of my daughter, Nora here on the blog lately. Here's a video we took of her just today! She's nearly 14 months old now. Please enjoy Owl Babies story-time with Nora Siegel.

Art Bead Bookmark

2011-12-15T11:16:00.000-05:00

Did you like my handmade beaded and braided bookmarks? If so, head on over to the Art Bead Scene blog today for a free tutorial on how to make them! I hope you enjoy my project and Happy Holidays!

Beaded Bookmarks

2011-12-12T13:20:00.001-05:00

I've got books, books, books on the brain lately and rightly so. Lorelei and I will be doing the final edits and will be getting our very FIRST look at our completed book, Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry: 50 Designs Using Leather, Ribbon and Cords over the Christmas holiday! A very special gift for me, indeed. I came up with this idea of making a beaded and braided bookmark as a celebration of sorts and also as a way to create and share my joy and excitement with others as I wait in great anticipation for the release of the book! I'm really excited about how my projects came out. I just had to share. I'm giving these as holiday gifts this year to family and friends. Everyone as been so supportive over the last year and this is my way to express my gratitude for that special support that was needed and given during the book writing process. I really like that it's something other than jewelry, but still expresses my style, esthetic and materials I love using in my jewelry designs.

Looks great holding your place in your favorite novel! Or these bookmarks would certainly be perfect to use along side your favorite beading book, don't you think?...just sayin'. :)

I think these will make great gifts, even for the guys! The guys on my list are getting one, like this bone bead one pictured above.

Hmmm...maybe I could make up a tutorial for these so you can make one for yourself or give as a gift as well. Would anyone be interested in that? Let me know. I would love to share this with all of you, too!

Artists Helping Artists

2011-12-09T22:41:00.004-05:00

Several artists in the blog community have decided to band together to help a fellow artist in need. Each one of us is conducting a silent auction to help raise funds during this time of hardship. All moneys raised will go directly to the artist in need.

I'm offering my "Rainfall" earrings below:

Rainfall Earrings

Modern and stylish bohemian chic earrings with a long, dramatic drape! Perfect for the hip, fashionista in your life or maybe that person is you! If you're an earring girl like me, you will love them. These earrings are light weight and so much fun to wear. Beautiful red aventurine gemstones are hand-knotted with precision and hang from artisan-made hammered and antiqued 25mm copper rings. Ear wires are also hand-forged antiqued copper. Earrings measure 4 inches long including ear wires. You will receive the earrings pictured above packaged in a pretty organza gift bag.

This is a rare opportunity to own one of my original designs! You won't want to miss out.

The starting bid for these earrings is $20.00. International participants welcome! Shipping costs will be included in the winning bid amount. Auction closes Sunday, December 11 at midnight.

Would you like to be the winning bidder?

Please leave a comment along with your bid. If you are the winning bidder, you will receive an invoice after the close of the auction. There must be a way to contact you. If you have email preferences turned off in your profile, please leave your email.

Many people are auctioning items to help out! Please visit these other artists below and place your bids!

List of participants:

Heidi Post http://expostfactojewelry.blogspot.com/

Marie Cramp & Lori Anderson http://skyejewels.blogspot.com/

Barbara Bechtel & Staci Smith http://secondsurf.com/

Erin Fickert-Rowland http://elysianstudiosart.com/

Keirsten Giles http://www.cerebraldilettante.blogspot.com/

Andrew Thornton http://andrew-thornton.blogspot.com/

Karen Totten http://starryroadstudio.blogspot.com/

Kristi Bowman-Gruel http://dreamsomedesigns.blogspot.com/

Nan Emmett http://spiritrattles.blogspot.com/

Maire Dodd http://mairedodd.blogspot.com/

Amanda Cargill Austin http://www.seashoreglassgirl.com/

Janice Everett http://jlynnjewels.blogspot.com/

Rebecca Anderson http://songbeads.blogspot.com/

Shannon Iko Chomanczuk http://formysweetdaughter.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Justman http://soulsfiredesigns.blogspot.com/

Erin Prais-Hintz http://treasures-found.blogspot.com/

Kerry Bogert http://kabsconcepts.blogspot.com

Patricia Gasparino http://www.mylifeunderthebus.typepad.com/

Erin Seigel http://erinsiegeljewelry.blogspot.com/

Courtney Breul http://beadsbybreul.blogspot.com/

Other Fundraisers:

MaryAnne Carroll at LMAJ http://lovemyartjewelry.blogspot.com/2011/12/5-huge-giveaway.html

Sneak Peek!

2011-11-25T18:31:00.002-05:00

I thought some might like to see this.
Interweave Press recently released this preview of our upcoming book.
Here's a sneak peek look! Enjoy and let me know what you think!
Interweave.com http://www.interweavestore.com/Jewelry-Making/Books/Bohemian-Inspired-Jewelry.html

Bohemian_Inspired_JewelryBLAD_web

Secret Stuff and Snaptastic Photo Results!

2011-11-21T21:59:00.022-05:00

Hi all! I apologize for it being so quiet around here. Blogging will most certainly become more of a commitment in my immediate future, that's for sure. I was recently offered an amazing opportunity to join a well known group blog. I'm so excited! Joining a team like this will definitely help me make blogging more of a priority. Can't wait to share the news with you on that soon.

Also, I've been working hard on all secret jewelry stuff, lately. Mostly magazine submissions for 2012...and one other really BIG secret thing. At least, it's big to me. No, it's definitely big. Eeek! I'd be playing where all the professional jewelry girls and boys play if I got this. I haven't heard anything back yet, so wish me luck! I really want this thing to happen. I think it's the direction I want to take my jewelry career for the future. I wish I could tell you more, I just don't want to get too ahead of myself here, so I just can't go there. I know. I hate cryptic messages from people too, so I understand if you dislike me right now. ;)

Anyway, in other news, I finished up Kerry Bogert's Snaptastic e-course! Yay! I learned a lot and I'm improving on my jewelry photos tremendously! I still need a little more work and practice to be where I want to be overall, but I'm happy with the results I've gotten with the information Kerry shared in her course. You can still take the e-course, you know. Just click that link above. I highly recommend it! Here are a few of my new photos I took and edited while taking Kerry's e-class:

Rainfall Earrings

Blue Jean Baby Leather Wrap Bracelet

Exotic Wishbone Earrings

You can see a few more on my Flickr page!

A Jewelry Accord: Our Book

2011-10-18T09:39:00.001-04:00

Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry: 50 Designs Using Leather, Ribbon and Cords

by Lorelei Eurto and Erin Siegel

Book News! Check out my post on A Jewelry Accord Blog...

A Jewelry Accord: Our Book: If you've been following us for a little while now, you know that Lorelei and I are writing a jewelry-making book all about creating beaded ...

Taking Jewelry Photos

2011-10-13T14:16:00.002-04:00

I'm thrilled that Kerry Bogert is offering an e-course of her Snaptastic! Photography class! I was considering attending ArtBliss this year to take the class there, but with a baby, buying our first home and finishing up the book, I just couldn't make it. Kerry is one of those people in the bead and jewelry world I admire very much for just about everything she does. I'd love to meet her in person someday, but I was really thrilled she was offering her class as an e-course. Now, that I can do! I have some new plans in the works and I really need to be taking better photos of my jewelry. I feel I used to be able to get some good shots when I could take most of my photos outside, but I don't have an outdoor space to take photos where we live now. I need to learn how to get better shots inside. I also need to learn how to use the settings on my new camera. Even though I have a point-and-shoot camera, it still has settings and modes for things like aperture, shutter speed, manual, program, etc. Ack! I have no idea.
The e-course will be starting in a just few days. You still have time to registrar and take the class with me. I was a little too anxious to get started, so I bought her e-book version and I've gotten a little head start! I made some new earring designs I'm very excited about, so I wanted to get some good shots of them. I've been taking photos for 3 days straight and I'm exhausted!

Below are photos I managed to come up with after reading Kerry's e-book:

These were taken in natural light. It was cloudy all three days I took photos, but I think I managed to get some okay shots. Still, a bit dark. These are probably the best photos I've ever taken of jewelry, so at least there's improvement! So, what do you think? Be honest, now. I'm looking to improve, so don't be shy with the critiques!

10th Wedding Anniversary

2011-10-09T11:25:00.000-04:00

October 7th 2001.

Here we are on our wedding day, 10 years ago!

An Apache Blessing read at our wedding:

Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be the shelter to the other.

Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be th warmth to the other.

Now you will feel no loneliness, for each of you will be a companion to the other.

Now you are two bodies, but there is one life before you.

Go now to you dwelling place, to enter the days of your life together.

And may your days be good and long upon the Earth.

We are so lucky we found each other. We built a life together. We found the best together. There is no joy greater than living this life with each other.

Bead Soup Blog Party

2011-09-17T00:00:00.002-04:00

It's time for another fabulous Bead Soup Blog Party hosted by the lovely, Lori Anderson. I ended up with TWO Bead Soup Party partners, this time around. Yay! A double serving of soup for me, but as it turns out, I only had time to make one batch of bead soup jewelry. I will be doing a separate post with the bead soup from my second partner, Nan Emmett of Spirited Earth at a later date, so stay tuned for that.

Bead soup from Anna of Total Escape Clay Studio

My first partner is Anna Sabina of Total Escape Clay Studio. She is a polymer clay bead artist and she sent me the bead soup shown above. I don't usually work much with polymer beads. So, that was a little different for me. The style of Anna's beads are definitely my aesthetic, though. I crave materials that have a natural, earthy feel to them and I love creating designs with an ethnic appeal. So, of course, I really dug these faux carved-bone tribal beads and pendant. Below is the jewelry I made with Anna's polymer clay beads:

Tribal Necklace and Bracelet Set

The beads from Anna's soup are the carved "bone" beads and pendant, the fuchsia/orange swirl oval beads and a brass toggle clasp. I added copper and dark brown seed beads, copper and brass tribe nugget beads, and red and orange coco shell beads strung onto my favorite Irish waxed linen cord.

Here is a close-up of the necklace being worn. I love it and it looks totally chic with this top, if I do say so myself.

For another style option, the pendant can be removed from the necklace. Then, the necklace can be worn wrapped around the wrist as a beaded wrap bracelet. Below, I layered it with the tribal bracelet I made with Anna's beads. I love the look.

Thank you for stopping by my little blog today!
A special THANK YOU to our hostess, Lori Anderson for another amazing Bead Soup Blog Party! It gets bigger and better every time. It's an honor to be apart of this renowned event.

Here's the list of all the participants for the Bead Soup Blog Party:
1. Lori Anderson, Pretty Things
2. Barbe Saint John, Barbe Saint John
3. Rebecca Watkins, Artybecca
4. Doris Stumpf, Glaszwerg
5. Terry Carter, Tapping Flamingo
6. Nancy Peterson, Beading From the Heart
7. Ingrid McCue, Wrapped in Silver
8. Tari Sasser, Creative Impressions in Clay
9. Amber Dawn, Inventive Soul
10. Julie Nordine, Julie Nordine | Credit River Art Glass

11. Carol Tannahill, Fire In Ice
12. Lisa Boucher, Lisa's Clay Happenings
13. Jean Yates, Snap Out of It Jean, There's Beading to be Done!
14. Emanda Johnson, Artemesia's Studio
15. Stephanie Haussler, Pixybug Designs
16. Sandra Richardson, Sandy's Coloring Box
17. Kitty Durmaj, Perles and Life
18. Amy Severino, Amy Beads
19. Debbie Price, Green Shoot Jewellery Designs
20. Kim Ballor, Vitamin C ... A Daily Dose of Creativity

21. Jen Judd Velasquez, Jen Judd Rocks
22. Courtney Breul, Beads by Breul
23. Lynne Bowland, Island Girl Insights
24. Mary McGraw, MK's Creative Musings
25. Shay Williams, Shaiha's Ramblings
26. Shea Zukowski, gr8findings
27. Laurel Steven, Rue's Daftique
28. Heather Goldsmith, As I Bead It
29. Nicole Keller, Nicki's Reef
30. Stefanie Teufel, Stefanie's Sammelsurium

31. Johanna Rhodes, Fire Phoenix Creations
32. Niky Sayers, Silver Nik Nats
33. Valerie Norton, Hot Fused Glass
34. Lyn Foley, Lyn Foley Jewelry Blog
35. Jayne Capps, Mama's Got To Doodle
36. Tari Kahrs, Pearl and Pebble
37. Elisabeth Auld, Beads For Busy Gals
38. Judy Glende, Judith B. Designs
39. Mary Ellen Parker, Bee Tree By Me
40. Jennifer Cameron, Glass Addictions

41. Shirley Moore, Beads and Bread
42. Susan Kennedy, Sue Beads
43. Melissa Meman, Art, Life, Love
44. Lois Moon, Que Onda Q'town?
45. Sally Russick, Wire Worked
46. Hope Smitherman, Crafty Hope
47. Nan Emmett, Spirit Rattles
48. Kate Gardenghi, Tropical Blonde
49. Mallory Hoffman, For the Love of Beads
50. Deci Worland, Gem Trails

51. Sandi Lee James, Do Be Do Bead Do
52. Diana Ptaszynski, Suburban Girl Studio
53. Erin Prais-Hintz, Treasures Found
54. Lisa Liddy, Metal Me This
55. Tracy Bell, Copper, Glass, and Recycled Trash
56. Rebecca Anderson, Song Beads
57. Cathie Carroll, Cathie Carroll's Studio
58. Norma Turvey, Moonlit Fantaseas
59. Marianna Boylan, Star Girl Jewelry
60. Jackie Ryan, Keep Your Dreams Original!

61. Heather Pyle, My Muse, Aquariat
62. Joanna Matuszczyk, Bizuteria z filuc
63. Kathy Welsh, Girly Girl Art
64. Marcie Abney, La Bella Joya
65. Cassie Donlen, The Glass Beadle
66. Serena Trent, All Things Made Jewelry
67. Loretta Carstensen, Loretta's Boutique
68. Deana Hager, Just Deez' Art & Life
69. Stacey Curry, Star Hitched Wagon
70. Christine Brandel, A Hot Piece of Glass

71. Kristina Johansson, Wild Roses and Blackberries
72. Jennifer Pride, Jewelry by J. P.
73. Suzann Sladcik Wilson, Beadphoria
74. Cindy Wimmer, Sweet Bead Studio
75. Karen Williams, Baublicious
76. Kristi Bowman, Kristi Bowman Design
77. Sue Hodgkinson, Hello Gorgeous
78. Natalie Monkivitch, Beadmonki Lampwork
79. Marge Beebe, Rock Creek Creations
80. Lupe Meter, Gem's PC Corner

81. Genea Crivello-Knable, Genea Beads
82. Anna Lear, The Laughing Raven
83. Cat Pruitt, Boo Beads
84. Hilary Frye, FryeStyle
85. Karyn Bonfiglio, Plus Size Bangles
86. K. Hutchinson, Jumbled Hutch
87. Moira McEvoy, The Musings of Mystic Pesto
88. Janet McDonald, Singing Woods
89. Carrie Tahquechi, Carrie T
90. Ambra Gostoli, Chic and Frog

91. Birgitta Lejonklou, Create With Spirit
92. Kim Stevens, Picking Poppies
93. Becky Fairclough, Chameleon Designs
94. Jenni Connolly, Jenni Bead
95. Wendy Chamberlain, Bears, Beads and Beautiful Thing
96. Cory Celaya, Art With Moxie
97. Gretchen Nation, Art Food Lodging
98. Davinia Algeri, Polymer Clay Beads Baubles and Buttons
99. Michaela Pabeschitz, La Mar de Bonita
100. Karin von Hoeren, Creative Ideen

101. Tracey Weiser, Summer Smack
102. Lorelei Eurto, Lorelei's Blog
103. Malin de Koning, Beading by Malin
104. Regina Santerre, Regina's Writings
105. Ana Krepel-Novak, Cat's Pajamas, Dog's Tuxedos
106. Lesley Watt, The Gossiping Goddess
107. Eleanor Snare, EBS Jewellery
108. Gillian Lehman, The Adventures of GillyBean and Friends
109. Lisa Hamilton, Simply Irresistible Jewelry
110. Barbara Bechtel, Second Surf

111. Stacie Stamper, Park Avenue
112. Beth & Evie, EB Bead and Metal Works
113. Mylene Hillam, Mill Lane Studio
114. Claire Maunsell, The Next Bend
115. Jill Harris, Gypsy Brocante
116. Therese Frank, Therese's Treasures
117. Patty Gasparino, My Life Under the Bus
118. Christine Hendrickson, The Clay Chick
119. Melissa Mesara, One-Eared Pig Beads
120. Poranna, Poranna Reczni Zrobila

121. Laura Twiford, Souvenirs From Life
122. Holly Westfall, Silver Rose Designs
123. Noemi Baena, Fuego, Metal y Color
124. Natalie McKenna, Grubbi...
125. Karin Slaton, Backstory Beads
126. Cindy Gimbrone, Lampwork Diva aka Cindy Gimbrone
127. Sandi Volpe, Sandi Volpe
128. Kristi Harrison, It's a New Day
129. Stephanie LaRosa, Confessions of a Bead Hoarder
130. Michelle Mach, Beads and Books

131. Michelle Hardy, Firefly Visions
132. Stephanie Dixon, The Dixon Chick
133. Janice Everett, JLynn Jewels
134. Kay Thomerson, Kayz Kreationz
135. Cindy Cima Edwards, Live to Design
136. Norma Agron, Norma's Clay
137. Cece Cormier, The Beading Yogini
138. Kim Hora, Kimmykats
139. Margot Potter, I Color Outside the Lines
140. Melinda Orr, Peace Creek Blog

141. Marina Dobrynina, Savon Feutre
142. Cilla Watkins, Tell Your Girlfriends
143. Tammy Powley, The Crafty Princess Diaries
144. Vicky Taylor, Treasure Island Crafts
145. Erin Grant, Erin's Jewelry Creations
146. Nicole Rennell, Nicole Rennell Designs
147. Christine Altmiller, One Kiss Creations Beaded Jewelry
148. Sandra Wollberg, Stories from the City of Brass
149. B.R. Kuhlman, Mixed Mayhem Studios
150. Kelly Ramstack, Adventures with Kelly

151. Heidi Post, Ex Post Facto Jewelry
152. Julianna Cannon, Julsbeads
153. Karen Zanco, Everyday Gypsy
154. Laura Zeiner, Stick Lizard Designs
155. Linda Djokic, Lutka and Co.
156. Kathleen Lange Klik, Modern Nature: My Creative World
157. Molly Alexander, Beautifully Broken Me
158. Lori Dorrington, Lori's Adventures in Etsy Land
159. Bobbie Rafferty, Beadsong Jewelry
160. Amy Freeland, Copper Diem

161. Sarah Elder, My So Called Junky Life
162. Anitra Gordy, LeeLu Creations
163. Kristy Abner, Kristy's Kreations
164. DaviniaDesign, Davinia Design
165. Judy Riley, Three Red Beads
166. Pam Ferrari, Wait Just One More Bead
167. Lori Bergmann, Ashlyn Design
168. Diane Cook, Rosa - Josies
169. Charlotte Pevny, The Infrequent Beader
170. JJ Jacobs, Coming Abstractions

171. Diane Hawkey, Diane Hawkey
172. Jelveh Jaferian, Jelveh Designs
173. Deanna Chase, Deanna Chase
174. Jennifer VanBenschoten, Jewelry, Art and Life
175. Barbara Lewis, Painting with Fire
176. Natasha Lutes, N's Whims
177. Lisa Lodge, Pine Ridge Treasures
178. Cris Peacock, Cris' Page
179. Alice Craddick, Alice's Bead and Baubles
180. Riki Schumacher, Riki Jewelry

181. Cryss Thain, Here Bead Dragons
182. Cynthia Abner, Created Treasures
183. Erin Siegel, Erin Siegel Jewelry <---You are Here!
184. Raida Disbrow, Havana Beads
185. Andrea Turini, Andrea Turini Jewelry
186. Cherrie Fick, En La Lumie're
187. Melissa Clarke, Pieces of Me
188. Lori Greenberg, Lori Greenberg Glass Beads
189. Allison Scott, Oh Allison Beading & Designs
190. Cynthia Tucker, Sea of Glass

191. Lara Kinney, Something Unique by Lara
192. Jennifer Justman, Soul's Fire Designs
193. Patty Evins, Patsy Evins Studio
194. Jenny Vidberg, Shyme Design
195. Wendy Blum, Sand & Sea Designs
196. Bryna Lumb, Bryna's Bead Box
197.   Saskia Kaffenberger, Perlendistel
198. Kerry Bogert, KAB's Creative Concepts
199. Fiona Christie, Christal's Creations
200. Dot Lewallen, Speedie Beadie

201. Ann Rishell, My Critical Eye
202. Eva Sherman, Eva Sherman Designs
203. Pat Haight, The Wigglebutt Blog
204. Lori Bowring Michaud, Artfully Ornamental
205. Amanda Davie, Articulations
206. Sharon Palac, Sharon's Jewelry Garden
207. Tammy Jones, Jewelry Making Daily
208. Shannon Chomanczuk, For My Sweet Daughter
209. Susie Hibdon, Vintage Susie & Wings
210. Barbara Blaszczyk, Laboratorium Flory

211.   Jess Italia Lincoln, Vintaj Blog
212. Christine Damm, Stories They Tell
213. Staci Smith, Staci Louise Originals
214. Cristi Clothier, 2 If By Sea
215. Missy Rappaport, Melissa Rappaport
216. Sally Anderson, Wild Sally Road
217. Karen Firnberg, Weaveabead's Blog
218. Tara Plote, The Newbie Beader's Blog
219. Terry Matuszyk, Pink Chapeau Vintage Jewelry
220. Melissa Pynn, Behind the Smile

221. Rhea Freitag, Starrgazer Creates
222. Marie-Noel Voyer-Cramp, Skye Jewels
223. Marci Brooks, That Nothing Be Wasted
224. Erin Fickert-Rowland, Elysian Studios
225. Marcy Lamberson, Studio Marcy
226. Linda Landig, Linda's Bead Blog & Meanderings
227. Niki Meiners, Inspiration the Whole Year Through
228. Michelle Buettner, MiShel Designs
229. Dorcas Midkiff, Wondrous Strange
230. Kelly Morgan, Silver Parrot

231. Beth Emery, Stories by Indigo Heart
232. Debbie Goering, Prairie Emporium
233. Geneva Collins, Torque Story
234. Jenny Davies-Reazor, Jenny Davies-Reazor
235. Dana Johnson Jones, Dana's Jewelry & Etc.
236. Suzette Bentley, Ellie's Bijoux
237. Rose Binoya, Ahtee's Blog
238. Tania Spivey, Moobie Grace Designs
239. Aimee Wheaton, creativeFlutter
240. Andrea Trank, Heaven Lane Creations

241. Cynthia Deis, Shiny Little Things
242. CJ Baushka, 4His Glory Creations
243. Astrid Boyce, Cooking Glass
244. Sandra McGriff, Creative Chaos
245. Theresa Fosdick, Thoughtful-Notions
246. Polly Barker, Future Family Relics
247. Jane Haag, Did You Make Something Today?
248. Laura Blanck, Laura Blanck
249. Penny Neville, Copper Penny Designs
250. Gaea Cannaday, Gaea Handmade

251. Carol Bradley, Carol Bradley Designs
252. Charlene Jacka, Clay Space
253. Christine Miles, Wings N Scales
254. Heather Marley, Creaky Cogs
255. Lola Surwillo, Bead Lola Bead
256. Gail Zwang, Angelmoose Enterprises
257. Liz DeLuca, Creative Arty Facts
258. Rebecca Sirevaag, Becca's Place
259. Jana Tarhala, Stories of the Secret Garden
260. Mags Saari, Mags - koruja

261. Manuela Wutschke, GlassArt - Manuela Wutschke
262. Sabrina Staub, Sabrina's Glasswork
263. Tracy Stillman, TS Designs
264. Kristi Kyle, Kristi Kyle
265. Kym Hunter, Creatively Kym
266. Kate Richbourg, We Can Make That at Home
267. Cheryl Roe, BeadRoe
268. Collette Collins, Firefly Myst Artisan Jewelry
269. Charlene Sevier, The Bead Dreamer
270. Karen Sinkowski, Krisdaka's Kreations

271. Pepita Bos, Urracaa
272. Janna Harttgen, Palima Lim
273. Terri Gauthier, Blooming Ideas
274. Mandy Williamson, Mimi's Beading
275. Vonna Maslanka, Just Vonna
276. Laurel Bielec, Bielec's Baubles
277. Mary Eilliott, Starry Dreams Jewellery Designs
278. Monica Johnson, Vintage in Disguise
279. Sweet Freedom Designs, Sweet Freedom Designs
280. Alison Sachs, Beads by Earthtones

281. Suzanne Tate, Catching Up
282. Keri Lee Sereika, Pink Lemonade
283. Jennifer Heynen, Jennifer Jangles
284. Tamara Soper, Handcrafted Baubles by Tamara
285. Laura Sanger, Hg - Elemental Mercury
286. Andrea Morici, Strung Out
287. Maggie Towne, Maggie's Bead Towne
288. Ann Sherwood, Ann's Blog

289. Pam Brisse, The Blue Between
290. Julie Bean, Strung Out (#2)

291. Linda Inhelder, Must-Haves Jewelry
292. Amanda Cargill Austin, Sea Shore Glass
293. Karen Tremblay, Creative Alloy
294. Helena Fritz, Beadwork by H's Blog
295. Maria Grimes, Garden Path Beads
296. Tiffany Long, Glory Hound Designs
297. Cathy Khoury, Touch Jewelry
298. Barbara York, Quilting in the Panhandle
299. Sharon Gardner, Preciousness
300. Barrie Edwards, Barrie's Jewelry World

301. Rochelle Brisson, A Creative Chelle
302. Melissa Muir, Kelsi's Closet Jewelbox
303. Linda Murphy, Bonita Bead
304. Elizabeth Woodford, Elizabeth Creates
305. Dana James, Dana's Jewelry Designs
306. Mary Hicks, Falling Into the Sky
307. Christie Murrow, Charis Designs Jewelry
308. Patty Miller, Cabari Beads
309. Anna Sabina, Total Escape Clay Studio
310. Kathy Engstrom, Catherine's Dreams

311. Shay Stone, On My Path
312. Lara Lutrick, Lampwork Beads and Jewelry by Lara Lutrick
313. Bella Borgouise, Wirelicious Jewellery
314. JuLee Wolfe, The Polymer Penguin
315. Kathleen Robinson Young, Ugly Duckling Beads
316. Kari Carrigan, Kids, Glass, Life
317. Nadezhda Parfyonova, Nally's Creation
318. Eszter Czibulyas, Bigyo Gyar
319. Maria Horvath, Horimarka Beads
320. Doris Radlicki, Doralila Beads

321. Geanina Grigore, Janina Grigore
322. Charlene Gary, Gray Girl Studios
323. Miri Agassi, Bead Work by Miri Agassi
324. Julianna Kis, Juli Bizsu
325. Line Labrecque, Play Sculpt Live
326. Kimberly Roberts, Bahama Dawn
327. Maria Clark, Sweet Willow Designs
328. Kathy Alderfer, Artful Accents
329. Michelle Heim, Life in the Bead Lane
330. Elizabeth Owens Dwy, Clarity of Purple Sage

331. Shiraz Biggie, Secret Song Designs
332. Dee Wingrove-Smith, Beady Musings
333. Tracey Nanstad, A Beadiful Mess
334. Sara Hardin, Soft Flex Girl
335. Angela May, Canterbury Cottage
336. Terri Wlaschin, Starseed Jewelry + Beads
337. Marsha Neal, Marsha Neal Studio
338. Christine Stonefield, Sweet Girl Designs
339. Christine Hansen, Intuitive Sparks
340. Maria Rosa Sharrow, Willow Street Shops

341. Joyce Becker, The Joyful Gem
342. Marianne Baxter, Simply Seablime Jewelry
343. Marian Hertzog, M's Place
344. Joanne Tinley, Daisychain Jewellery
345. Salla Small, Blog by Salla
346. Tracy Martin, Nutkitten's Jewelry
347. Nancy Boylan, Snazzy Doodle Designs
348. Penny Ilagan, A Crafty World
349. Christa Murphy, Adventures of One Beady Woman
350. Pamela Petry, Seeing is Believing

351. Kelley Fogle, My Life... One Bead at a Time
352. Heather DeSimone, The Beadin' Blog
353. Candice McGinnis, Craziness, The Theme of My Life
354. Chris White, Dzeyner Studio
355. Jill MacKay, Jill MacKay
356. Julie Jones, Juliery Jones
357. Laurie Hanna, Laurie's Jewel Box
358. Beth Bricker, Vintage Sweets
359. Barbara Judy, Beads of Spirit
360.   Lesley Weir, Djinn Rummy

361. Jennifer Geldard, Torch Songs
362. Teri Baskett, Born to Be Worn

Bead Fest Philly

2011-08-31T07:00:00.001-04:00

I went to Bead Fest Philadelphia for the first time. I had the pleasure of meeting many wonderful, beady friends, that I hope to be able to make lasting connections with! My husband, Josh and 10 month old, daughter, Nora were unable to make the trip with me. Nora is in the middle of teething and we decided traveling with a cranky, teething baby wasn't such a good idea. So instead, my Mother-In-Law, Nancy Siegel made the trip with me. When we arrived Friday night, we met up for drinks and dinner with my friend and Co-Author, Lorelei Eurto along with Nancy Schindler, Lisa Petrillo, Diana Ptaszynski and her husband, Colin, Mary Hubbard and her daughter, and Melinda Orr and a few others. Later that evening, the amazing Melissa Cable came over to our table. What a treat. A fun night of meeting, drinks and chatting!

On Saturday, at the show, we went straight to the Ornamentea booth, where I met owner, Cynthia Deis and ceramic bead artist, Elaine Ray.

Ceramic beads, pendant and button by Elaine Ray from the Ornamentea booth.

There, we met back up with Lorelei, Nancy, Lisa and also Kelley Wenzel. From there, we popped over to Green Girl Studios and chatted with Andrew Thornton. Then, it was off to Earthenwood Studio to meet Melanie Brooks...

Ceramic pendants by Melanie Brooks of Earthenwood Studio. Greek Leather from Ornamentea.

And also, Diane Hawkey, who was my Bead Swap partner.

Ceramic beads by Diane Hawkey.

After that, we headed over to meet Barbara Lewis at her Painting with Fire booth.

Enameled metal beads and recycled sari silk from Barbara Lewis of Painting with Fire.

Then, a bunch of us met up for a bead swap hosted by Diana Ptaszynski of Suburban Girl Studio.

Diana Ptaszynski at the bead swap with a button by her swap partner, Kristi of Artisan Clay.

At the bead swap, I met Kristi Roeder, Jenny Davies-Reazor, Marsha Neal and Anne Gardanne for the first time. After the swap, we all met up for dinner Saturday night at Legal Seafoods, which my MIL and I were fashionably late for. A BIG thanks to Diana for making this event extra special and fun! She even made us all cute "Bead Snob" buttons. The whole experience was so much more fulfilling with the get-togethers and that was the main reason I even wanted to come to this show in the first place. To meet creative, like-minded people and make connections.....and well, the beads aren't bad, either. ;)

Here's the rest of the bead stash I snagged at the show on Saturday:

From top left: Coco shell beads from Priscilla Beads, Hand-rolled paper beads also from Priscilla Beads. Seed beads from Bead Biz and Metal nugget beads from Hands of the Hills.

What a great time! Looking forward to it again next year.

Have you seen my new banner?

2011-08-26T14:52:00.000-04:00

Have you noticed my new blog banner? Pretty snazzy, heh? I love it. What's even better is, the lovely Lori Plyler of Studio Waterstone created it for me. That Lori, she is so talented, isn't she? She's definitely one of my favorite artists. I have one of her handmade leather hand bags. I love that, too. Anyway, back to the banner story. I was visiting Lori's blog one day. She posted about some banners she made for her blog. I've admired the beautiful, professional image she creates for her own blog and Etsy shop for sometime now. I got the idea to ask Lori if she might be interested in making her talents available to others.

Luckily enough for me, she was interested! And lucky enough for YOU, too. Lori has decided to make her talents available to all her blog friends and she will create a unique banner for you. She even has a special banner page on her blog. Check that out right here. I highly recommend her. One happy customer here!

Mostly Metal Challenge

2011-08-16T07:00:00.017-04:00

Metal Love Jewelry Collection

Hi Everyone! Today is reveal day for Michelle Mach's Mostly Metal Challenge. We had 3 challenge kits to choose from with mostly metal components in them. Each kit had a theme and a metal color of either antique brass, gold filigree or gunmetal. Aside from all the metal parts, each kit also came with a few beads and some luscious fibers, which was my favorite part! You know me, throw some ribbon or cord in there and I'm all about it.

I chose the Gunmetal Love kit shown above. (Red cord and beads not shown.)

I liked the overall look of this kit and I had a few ideas for some of the components as soon as I saw them. I ended up using 4 items from the kit: the black metal key ring, the large heart pendant, the red cording and the two ornate bead caps.

I decided that I wanted to create a collection of pieces that looked chic together as a grouping. Each design in itself is very simple, but they enhance each other put together. I really enjoyed mixing the metal finishes in each piece. Each piece of jewelry has a combination of copper and silver metals.

Peace Made with Love Charm Necklace

The large split ring/key ring and red cord were from the kit. I made them into a simple charm necklace. I'm such a sucker for charm necklace. Always have been. What I love about this is the large key ring is perfect for making a necklace like this. The charms can easily be taken on and off the split ring without the use of any tools. These charms can be switched out anytime for other charms for a different look. How cool is that? It seems so simple and obvious, but I don't think I've thought of doing this before. I WILL be on the look out for more key rings like this one to make more charm necklaces! Can't help myself.

Our Hearts Beat as One Chain Necklace

Very simple design, but I like the simplicity and symbolism. "Two hearts beating as one." The heart pendant was from the kit. I added the Miss Fickle Media antiqued copper ball chain and the two heart charms. One in copper, one in silver.

Teal Tassel Earrings

How fun are these? The ornate bead caps were from the kit. I used them as "Cone" findings and made these cool tassel earrings with some teal colored embroidery floss. These earrings are super lightweight and add lots of drama to any outfit.

I hope you enjoyed my challenge pieces! Now, have fun hopping around to see what the others created with their kits.

Here's the list of the participating jewelry designers:
Antique Brass Romantic

Filigree Fun

Gunmetal Love

Bead Soup and August Happenings

2011-08-11T13:10:00.002-04:00

A special THANK YOU goes out to Lori Anderson for hosting another amazing Bead Soup Blog Party! It gets bigger and better every time. It's an honor to be apart of this renowned event. Here's a sneak-peek teaser of the bead soup I sent my partner, Anna Sabina of Total Escape Clay Studio. She is a polymer clay bead artist and I can't wait to see what she sends along.

And now, here's a list of a few beady events coming up in the month of August:

Tuesday, August 16th - Michelle Mach's Mostly Metal Challenge -
I'm participating! I can't wait to see what the other participants made with Michelle's mostly metal bead kits! I choose the Gunmetal Love kit. I'm pretty excited about the jewelry I made for this, so be sure to stop by my blog on Tuesday to see what I created.

Friday-Sunday, August 19th-21st - BEAD FEST Philadelphia -
I'm finally going this year!!! I'm so super excited! I'm mostly looking forward to seeing all my beady friends there. What was that, you said?...What about all the beads lying around? Ah, well...those are a nice bonus, too ;0 Can't wait to see my friend and co-author, Lorelei and Nancy and Kelley, too. I'll be meeting TONS of new beady friends from the beading and blogging community that I've been wanting to meet for years. I. CAN. NOT. WAIT. Are you going? Will I see you there? Please let me know if you will be there, I would love say Hi.

Saturday, August 27th - Lorelei's Shadow Box Challenge -
I missed out on this one, but I'm really looking forward to seeing what everyone does with those enameled boxes from C-Koop Beads.

Monday, August 29th - Andrew Thornton's August Reader's Challenge -
Geesh, another one I missed this time. I'm excited to see the results from the ones that did participate, though. It's always fun to see what others create. I like Andrew's idea of creating bead kits for the challenges. It's always interesting to see different ideas come to life from the same components. I really enjoy having a limited pool of materials to work with. Sometimes that makes it much easier to be creative. I will be on the look out for Andrew's September challenge kits to participate next month!

Arm Party

2011-08-03T06:25:00.000-04:00

Today, I'm participating in the Bloggers Do it Better: Arm Party! Not sure what an "Arm Party" is? Check out the Arm Party challenge post by Pretty Shiny Sparkly. Pretty Shiny Sparkly.com is a fashion and personal style blog authored by Kristina. I stumbled upon her blog a few days ago. I really love her "Bloggers Do it Better" concept. Her latest "Arm Party"challenge is jewelry related so I HAD to jump on board! Right? How could I let this opportunity pass without throwing on a few bracelets I've been making AND wearing lately? I just LOVE the stacked and layered bracelet trend that is so hot right now.

If you happen to be a DIY fashionista, you can find the step-by-step tutorial for the peace bracelet on my blog right here. You can also find a video tutorial to make a similar linen and silver bead wrap bracelet on my friend, Tracy Statler's Make Bracelets blog. The leather and beaded dangle wrap bracelet, I will be debuting a version of this bracelet soon in an upcoming jewelry collection, so stay tuned for that....but for now hop around and enjoy all the arm candy on the Bloggers Do it Better: Arm Party!

Simple Link Bracelet Tutorial

2011-07-23T07:00:00.008-04:00

Happy Saturday! I recently had a fun time making these little link bracelets. They are so simple and easy to make, so I thought I'd share. I hope you enjoy making some of these for yourself or they would make great gifts, too! One of the nice things about this design, the bracelets can be made with an adjustable closure, so they are able to fit a range of wrist sizes.

What you'll need:

1 yard or 36" of 1mm Waxed Cotton Cord - Fire Mountain Gems

1 TierraCast Rhodium Peace Link - Artbeads.com
1 Silver Greek Chip bead - Fire and Fibers

Tools:
Scissors

Note:
The measurements given in the instructions below fit my wrist on the first loop closure.
This bracelet works best if it's fitted perfectly to your wrist, so you may need to adjust the measurements just slightly to get a nice fit. The adjustable closure helps with that a bit though!

It's simple and I love it. It looks really cute layered with other bracelets, too.
Let me know if you make one....or five. Trust me you'll be addicted!
Feel free to link to this tutorial, if you are so inclined.

And the Winner is...

2011-07-22T09:54:00.000-04:00

The winner of the fabric and cotton cord covered beads is...

Martin Caraballo of Haegaerpr Jewelry!

Congratulations, Martin!
Martin, thanks for leaving me your email. I will email you to get your mailing address and I'll get your package right out to you. Thank you and happy creating with your new beads!

Also, thank you to everyone who entered and thanks to Wholeport.com for the giveaway items.

Fun Fabric Necklace and Giveaway

2011-07-18T07:00:00.001-04:00

Last week I told you about the peace sign pendants I received from WholePort.com. I also got these fun fabric and cotton cord covered beads! I used a big eye needle to string the beads onto some pretty pink silk ribbon from Marsha Neal Studio. I also tied on a crimson glass link from Cindy Gimbrone and a bit of ivory dupioni silk from Ornamentea for more texture. What a fun piece to make...and wear!

And now for the giveaway...

I'm giving away these 8 beads as shown above courtesy of WholePort.com. 4 fabric covered beads in a colorful plaid fabric and 4 cotton cord covered beads in pink and white. These beads are light weight and fun to work with. You will love them.

To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment on this post by Thursday, July 21st.

Tell me what you would make with these beads if you won them. I will randomly draw one lucky winner on Friday, July 22nd.

Thank you for stopping by and GOOD LUCK!

And the Winner is...

2011-07-15T07:00:00.001-04:00

The winner of the "Peace & Love" Giveaway is...

#1 Stefanie of Stefanie's Sammelsurium

Congratulations, Stefanie!
Please email me your mailing address and I'll get your package right out to you. Thank you and happy beading with your new wooden pendants!

Also, thank you to everyone who entered and thanks to Wholeport.com for the giveaway items.
Stay tuned next week for another fun jewelry piece, another giveaway and another chance to win!
Peace out.

A Necklace and the Peace & Love Giveaway

2011-07-11T07:00:00.005-04:00

Recently, I received an email from the lovely gal, Jenny over at WholePort.com, inviting me to take a look at her website. I really appreciated the friendly, personal email I got from her. Wholeport is an online craft supply site and I was more than happy to take a look around. While there, I found a few things I liked a lot. The first was this wooden peace sign. Jenny was kind enough to send me some sample pendants to try out, along with a few other items that I will share in another post coming up.

Here's my "Peace on Earth" Necklace I made with my peace sign pendant from WholePort.com. For my necklace, I wanted to give the pendant a worn, vintage look as if the necklace had been around the neck of a flower child from the 60's and 70's. I distressed the wooden pendant with a piece of fine grit sandpaper. I really like the affect. It adds some extra interest and dimension to the focal and the light sanding also smoothed out any rough spots in the wood. My necklace also features handmade ceramic beads by the artists of Sedillo Hill Studio and some copper African trade beads. The beads are simply knotted on some chocolate brown waxed cotton cord and finished off with a loop and large wood bead closure. A perfect Summer necklace.

The "Peace & Love" Giveaway

Okay, now for the giveaway part!!! Jenny at Wholeport also sent me some extra items to host a giveaway on my blog. This will be the first of two giveaways. The second giveaway will be in a separate post coming up next week. The first giveaway package is this collection of wooden cut-out pendants I am calling the "Peace & Love" Giveaway:

You will receive the the item shown above: Two large cut-out heart pendants and three wood peace signs that are a good size for either a pendant or charm for a bracelet or even earrings, too.

If you would like to enter my "Peace & Love" giveaway, you can do one of the following:

"LIKE" WholePort on Face Book: www.facebook.com/wholeport

"FOLLOW" WholePort on Twitter: www.twitter.com/wholeport
OR
If you don't have Facebook or Twitter, you can just visit the website: www.wholeport.com

Then, leave me a comment letting me know you want to enter.

Leave a comment on this post by Thursday, July 14th. Then, I will randomly select a winner from the comments on Friday, July 15th.

Even if you're not interested in the giveaway, please feel free to comment without mentioning the giveaway in your comment.

Also, in addition to this giveaway, Jenny is happy to spread the love even more by offering 10% off all items at www.wholeport.com with coupon code: CRAFTFUN10 that's good until July 31st, 2011.

Good Luck on the Giveaway!

and

happy shopping at WholePort.com for new beading or craft supplies.

Also, stay tuned for the second giveaway coming up next week.

Peace & Love, Baby!

Lucky Talisman Necklace

2011-06-29T06:55:00.001-04:00

This month, I received a lucky horseshoe pendant from Melanie Brooks of Earthenwood Studio for the design team challenge. I love this cute pendant! It has a horseshoe symbol on the front and the word "lucky" inscribed on the back. I knew right away I wanted to create a charm talisman necklace for myself. A special totem piece to remind me of important things in my day to day life. The idea of creating jewelry with powerful symbolic meaning really speaks to me. I chose a fairly simple design because I wanted the necklace to be a universal piece I would wear with everything.

Originally, I thought I would buy some charms and hand pick specific ones for this necklace. I don't have as many charms as I would like, but I dug through my stash and I found these three. A feather, a heart-in-hand, and a dragonfly. I decided to just use what I had. After I finished my necklace, I decided to do a little research and find out the meanings of each symbol and charm. Here's what I found:

The Horseshoe - Horseshoes are a symbol of good luck in many cultures. Especially, Ireland and European countries. Legend has it that a horseshoe pointing upwards will gather your luck and hold it like a vessel. If the horseshoe is pointing downward, your luck will pour out and you will be showered with it.

The Feather - Feathers are a powerful symbol, especially in Native American cultures. They usually symbolize a higher spiritual path.

Heart-in-Hand - This symbol represents compassion, charity or helping others in some way. It also symbolizes putting ones love, heart and soul into the things one makes with their hands.

The Dragonfly - As a creature of the wind, the dragonfly represents change. As a creature of the water, they represent emotions, the subconscious and/or dreams. These symbolic meanings are particularly found in Asian and Native American cultures. Some of the other symbolic meanings for dragonflies are prosperity, good luck, strength, peace and harmony.

I'm wondering what all this could mean for me? Yes, I do think there are some important messages here for me to think about. After all, it was my intention to make a lucky talisman/totem necklace for myself.

I will leave you while I ponder the deeper meanings of life....

Oh, and if you know of any other meanings for the symbols in the necklace, please let me know in the comments! Or leave me any comment you like...I love your comments! :)

A Jewelry Accord: Making of a jewelry book: Tools, Materials and Fin...

2011-06-22T09:13:00.001-04:00

Hey, Everyone!

Check out my post on A Jewelry Accord blog. There's a little sneak peak and an update on our book!

A Jewelry Accord: Making of a jewelry book: Tools, Materials and Fin...: "Today, I'm going to give you a little update and a behind-the-scenes peek at the making of our upcoming jewelry instruction book due out in ..."

Zinnia

2011-06-18T12:32:00.000-04:00

I love bright, vivid colors for Summer. Doesn't this cheery yellow just make you smile? :) Yellow isn't usually in my normal color palette to work with even though I like the color. I've seen it popping up everywhere in fashion the past few years, so I've been more attracted to it lately.

This happy, sunny color is in the inspirational artwork for the current Art Bead Scene Monthly Challenge. The perfect opportunity to work with some yellow in a jewelry piece! I love these lemony agate beads paired with this gorgeous Zinnia connector by Mellisa of Chinook Jewelry. The yellow beads really pop with the complimentary deep purple silk beading cord. I added a bit of purple dupioni silk from Ornamentea to accent the connector. I frayed the silk to add a little texture and interest; the perfect finishing touch!

Path of Life

2011-06-15T07:00:00.001-04:00

I made a new bracelet design a few nights ago in the studio. I really like it! Here, I strung some blue crazy lace agate ovals, blue agate rounds, some Czech glass spacers that almost have the look of sterling silver, a copper "Path of Life" charm, and a few art beads from some of my favorite artisans: A copper raku ceramic pinch bead by Duane Collins of Elements Pottery and a "Soul Sister" lampwork bead by Kelley Wenzel of Kelley's Beads.

Instead of attaching a traditional clasp, I made an adjustable slide closure with a strand of soft suede lace and a large-hole copper bead. Can you see how I did that there? It's really simple to do. I ended my beading with two sterling rings that I fed the suede lace through. Then, I strung the large hole bead onto both ends of the suede. Lastly, I made sure I could slip my hand through the bracelet before finishing the suede off with a couple of knots.

Summer Bliss

2011-06-09T07:00:00.003-04:00

When I received my ice cream cone pendant from Melanie of Earthenwood Studio for the design team challenge, it immediately brought to mind fun outdoor activities, laughter and happy times. It made me think of all my favorite things to do in the Summertime. For me, the best part of Summer is enjoying the warm weather and doing fun things like going to the beach, walking along the boardwalk eating ice cream, playing carnival games at a Summer fair, riding a roller coaster or two, eating an ice cream cone....that's after the roller coaster, and maybe a few rounds of mini golf! And...did I mention eating ice cream on a cone? Somehow, you can NOT do any of these Summer activities without ice cream being involved. It's the epitome of Summer and fun times. I love Summer and I love ice cream and who doesn't, right? It's pure bliss!

Here is the necklace I made with Melanie's pendant. I call it "Summer Bliss" and I would totally wear this doing the above mentioned activities and have a ball doing it.

"Summer Bliss"

Ice Cream Cone Pendant: Earthenwood Studio.

Ceramic Mermaid Beads: Gaea.

Happy Summer!

Now, check out what the rest of the design team did with their ice cream...

Andrew ThorntonGaea Cannaday Denise Yezbak MooreErin Prais-Hintz Heather PowersLorelei Eurto Lori AndersonJean Yates Marie Dodd Guest Designers: Michelle Mach and Amy Sprite

Nora

2011-06-05T19:37:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to share some cute pictures we took of Nora today. We often find her in her crib like this in the morning for the past few weeks. She's getting good at rolling over from her back to her belly now and holding her upper body up. She didn't used to like being on her stomach at all, but now she seems to enjoy it. Oh, she's also sitting up on her own, too! It's exciting watching her develop...

Bees and Blossoms

2011-05-23T08:41:00.000-04:00

Modern Vintage is probably the hottest rising jewelry trend these days. Mixing old items or vintage-inspired components with new beads that still give a design a feeling of an era gone by. Although, I understand the appeal of vintage items (and hunting for them), I'm not that into actual old things myself. I do however, like modern, vintage-inspired jewelry! There's a feminine, romantic feeling to vintage jewelry that really appeals to me. I don't think I've met a jewelry style I didn't like, so I had to give it a try. Here's my take on modern vintage style: A sweet Spring charm bracelet called Bees & Blossoms.

Bees & Blossoms

I wanted the multiple strands of Ceylon seed beads to look like strands of tiny strung pearls. I used an antique brass filigree button for the closure. I love the sweetness of these antique brass charms that dance around the entire bracelet. Of course, the design would not be complete without this flower stoneware art bead by Golem Design Studio. I want to thank Artbeads.com for the supplies and the inspiration to make this piece. Enjoy!

Required legal disclaimer: Artbeads.com has sent me the above mentioned beads, pendants, materials and/or findings to create with as part of their design partner blog program. I have not been paid by Artbeads.com to participate. Thank you.

Mother's Day and Baby Babbles

2011-05-10T09:46:00.000-04:00

On Sunday, I had my first OFFICIAL Mother's Day! Yay! (Last year I was pregnant) Here's me and my 6 month old daughter, Nora.

I had a wonderful mother's day. We had a delicious brunch at this restaurant, Finz in Salem, MA. Yum!

Here we are again. Nora's in her pretty pink dress from earlier in the day. She looked so sweet! Through spit-ups and diaper changes this outfit didn't last long, though. lol! Welcome to motherhood, Erin.

I'll leave you with this cute video of Nora talking in her baby babbles(and other funny things she does.) Enjoy! :)

Springtime Frills

2011-05-04T12:30:00.000-04:00

The beauty of Spring is truly amazing! I'm captivated by it every year. The weather is warm, the birds are chirping and the flowers and trees are in bloom. There are bursts of color everywhere and the air feels light and uplifting. It has me feeling energized and wanting to create things, like this bracelet I'm calling Springtime Frills. I stayed up way too late last night in the studio, but I couldn't help myself. I was feeling inspired by these Spring components from Earthenwood Studio.

Springtime Frills

Birds nest charm and new crackle egg component by

Melanie Brooks of Earthenwood Studio.

Are you feeling that Spring fever yet?
You can find Melanie's new crackle egg components for a limited time at her Etsy Shop and bird nest charms on her website.

Earthenwood Design Team - Key to My Affection

2011-04-28T09:44:00.002-04:00

It's been quiet on the jewelry front around here. Every spare second I have is being devoted to writing our upcoming jewelry book. I tell ya, I've never worked so hard on something in my entire life. It's all I think about and to tell you the truth, it's all I want to think about. It's the highlight of my life, my jewelry-making career to be creating this publication with Lorelei. I can't wait til we are able to share more. ANYWAYS. That's not what this post is about! lol! I'm rambling off topic here.

There's been no time for ordering beads or going to the bead store these days. Luckily for me, I have Melanie Brooks of Earthenwood Studio! She sends me her gorgeous handmade creation every month and for that, I'm grateful. Melanie has started a new line of components called Earthen Oxide.

I got to play with this red resin heart key with a love description on it.

Here's the piece that I made. I'm calling it "Key to My Affection".

A long, simple necklace. I love these brass heshi African trade beads! They give this necklace a cool vibe. I wish I had more of them in my stash. I strung the brass heshi up on some rust color waxed linen cord. I made a knotted bail for the key pendant. The turquoise beads add a shot of color, along with one of Melanie's new crackle-glazed ceramic links. You can find Melanie's crackle items in her Etsy Shop right now.

I love being apart of the Earthenwood Design Team!

Thank you to Melanie and thank you to you for being here with me.

Here are the other fabulous members of the team:

Andrew Thornton

Gaea Cannaday
Denise Yezbak Moore
Erin Prais-Hintz
Heather Powers
Lorelei Eurto
Lori Anderson
Jean Yates
Marie Dodd

A Visit with the Grandparents

2011-04-18T07:00:00.001-04:00

We had a visit with Nora's Grandparents a few weeks ago. Nora is 5 months in these pictures. She's almost 6 months, now. The time as flown by so quickly. Here is our day...in pictures!

Sitting on Mommy's lap...

Grandma, Nora and a Daffodil...

Reading a story with Grandpa...

Playing on the floor with Daddy...

Bead Studio-WIP

2011-03-31T12:20:00.001-04:00

The bead studio is coming along! I have a few more things up in my room.

I got this great pegboard installed! This is so functional! I love having everything out where I can see it all and just quickly grab any tool or supply I need. The pegboard comes as a kit with different kinds of hooks, attachments and accessories, like these clear bins and the cups. I found these pegboards on Amazon.com.

Here's the link to the one I bought. The price on Amazon was a little cheaper than on the manufacturer's website. The pegboards are made by this company called Azar Displays. They make all kinds of pegboards and displays for retail stores. They have a variety of different accessories that can be used with the plain pegboards. Definitely check out this company!

I put these painted wooden drawers behind my laptop. They hide all the wires in the corner from my electronic devices. Plus, I can store a few things in the drawers. They also hold a few jewelry displays on top, which I hope to fill with newly made creations soon!

Here's my wall art for the room! Well, it's not really finished yet. lol. It will be a cherry blossom branch once I put the flowers up! But even just the branches are pretty! Can't wait to see it finished, it's going to be sooo pretty! It's a vinyl wall decal I ordered from The Kinky Wall Studio on Etsy. It is really the perfect solution for the slanted in walls in this room!

Here is more pegboards on the opposite wall. I started to put a few things up. These are most of my cords and ribbons. A great way to store and display these materials, don't you think? I just love this! Everything is well organized and each material has a place to live! I love it when things have homes. As you can see, I'm a big fan of having everything stored out in the open. I find it much easier to design jewelry that way. If I don't see it I forget I have it. I can't take full advantage of the beads and supplies I have if I don't know I have it or I can't find it in boxes full of random things. Am I the only one with this problem? I think not.

Well, gotta get back to this cutie right here.

I'll show more later! Thanks for stopping by! Let me know what you think of my space so far and the pegboards and wall decal!

Bead Studio-WIP

2011-03-24T12:50:00.000-04:00

Beady playdate with Emma Thomas

2011-03-20T10:00:00.003-04:00

I met a new beady blog friend yesterday! I just LOVE meeting friends! Especially, beady ones! Here's me and Emma Thomas of Fredbean's Nook. We met at the Riverwalk Bead Shop and Gallery in Amesbury, Ma. Emma makes some WAY cool jewelry! I love her seed bead work mixed with metals and other elements for stylish, modern jewelry. Check out her creations here. Emma came all the way from her home in Rhode Island to have a little beading session with.....ME?! I felt so flattered she wanted to do that and so very glad she did! I had a lovely time with her and I really enjoyed chatting! We have lots in common, of course, beading and being apart of this online beading community. The conversation just flowed as if we were old pals getting together. It just felt so natural! Anyway, back to the beading! I showed Emma how to make my braided waxed linen cord necklace. If you look closely at the picture above, you can see our necklaces on the beading table in the background there! Here are the necklaces we made in our session below:

Emma's is on the left and mine's on the right. Both necklaces featuring Gaea hearts! I swear we didn't plan that!!! I didn't call her the night before. It just happened! I had planned my necklace before our meeting and Emma showed up at the shop with her heart pendant ready to go. I'm sure Gaea will be thrilled! It was a day for her hearts apparently. My necklace also includes a Miss Fickle Media antiqued silver ring and headpins.

I had a blast with Emma and I hope she'll want to get together again sometime!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T11:29:00.000-04:00

Yes, that's right. I'm one of those moms that dresses her child in holiday outfits. It's not my fault, though. I'm not the one buying these outfits! Other family members do. Who am I to ruin the fun. Besides, I enjoy being festive! I just hope Nora doesn't hate me later for these! Wish me luck on that. May the luck O' the Irish be with all of you today!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

Love, Erin and Nora

Just moved!

2011-03-15T14:26:00.000-04:00

Hi There, My family and I moved into a new apartment over this past weekend. YAY! I'm very excited about our new space. Here I am, sitting in the bonus room that will become my new bead and jewelry studio!

We had out grown our previous place quite awhile ago, even before Nora was born. It was a tiny one bedroom apartment. No room for Nora and no place to bead either, except for the kitchen table...and there's nothing wrong with that! Believe me, that was my space for a loooong time and that was fine, but it just gets to a point where that just isn't workable anymore. This is a BIG step up for me and I'm so very happy and grateful for this new place. I'm looking forward to sharing this space with you!

Sorry for this crappy quality video below. It's from my camera. This is the first time I tried using the video function on it.

Meet Our Editor!

2011-03-04T07:00:00.016-05:00

As many of you may have heard, I'm currently writing a jewelry instruction book with jewelry designing friend, Lorelei Eurto for Interweave Press. We were recently assigned our editor for the book! It's Michelle Mach! Come on over to the Jewelry Accord blog and read our interview with her! I asked her some interesting questions I know you'll want to hear the answers to...so come read!.... Okay, now back to working toward our deadline, which is NEXT week!

Bead Soup Reveal!

2011-02-26T04:55:00.002-05:00

It's here....What we've all been waiting for all month long - The Bead Soup Blog Party hosted by Lori Anderson! Yay! Here's the bead soup I received from my party partner, Dee Gordon of Runako Designs - An under-the-sea tropical paradise of beads!!! Thank you, Dee! I had a lot of fun with this!

I know everyone has a lot of partying to do today, so we will cut right to the chase and I will just show you the jewelry already! I'm not that good at coming up with something cute to say, anyway, lol. So without further ado...Here is my creation...

Tropical Waters Necklace & Earrings

Thank you for stopping by and thank you to Lori Anderson for hosting this blog hop! I appreciate it so much!

Also, there is a FABULOUS, AMAZING silk ribbon and art bead GIVEAWAY on A Jewelry Accord blog! You won't want to miss it. Click the link and enter to win!

Here's the list of all the participants for the Bead Soup Blog Party:

1. Lori Anderson, Pretty Things

2. Kitty Durmaj, Perles and Life

3. Michelle Heim, Life In the Bead Lane

4. Lisa Petrillo, Lucid Moon Studio

5. Anitra Gordy, Leelu Creations

6. Paige Maxim, Paige Maxim Designs

7. Marianna Boylan, Pretty Shiny Things

8. Cheryl Roe, BeadRoe

9. Heidi Post, Ex Post Facto

10. Cindy Wimmer, Sweet Bead Studio

11. Terri Gauthier, Blooming Ideas

12. Rachel Walsh, Balanced Crafts

13. Marian Hertzog, M's Place

14. Mary McGraw, MK's Musings

15. Sarabeth Burke, Chronicles of Sarita

16. Deci Worland, Gem Trails

17. Erin Prais-Hintz, Treasures Found

18. Laura Zeiner, Stick Lizard Designs

19. Kristin Latimer, MJM Jewelry Designs

20. Cathryn Brooks-Williams, Chile Cats

21. Holly Westfall, Silver Rose Designs

22. Janna Harttgen, Palima-Lim

23. Libby Leuchtman, Libby Leu

24. Rebecca Anderson, Songbeads

25. Deb Hunter, Living On Air

26. Diana Ptaszynski, Suburban Girl Studio

27. Jennifer VanBenschoten, VanBeads

28. Margot Potter, The Impatient Crafter

29. Cyndi Lavin, Beading Arts

30. Courtney Breul, Beads by Breul

31. Stefanie Teufel, Stefanie's Sammelsurium

32. Patricia Gasparino, My Life Under the Bus

33. Tari Khars, Pearl and Pebble

34. Kristi Bowman-Gruel, Kristi Bowman Design

35. Jayne Capps, Mama's Got to Doodle

36. Becky Fairclough, Chameleons Designs

37. Evie and Beth McCord, EB Bead & Metal Works

38. Lynne Bowland, Islandgirl's Insights

39. Barbara Lewis, Painting With Fire

40. Lorelei Eurto, Inside the Studio

41. Stacy Hartis, Sissy & Jack's

42. Jennifer Cameron, Glass Addictions

43. Marcie Abney, La Bella Joya

44. Johanna Rhodes, Fire Phoenix Creations

45. Nan Emmett, Spirit Rattles

46. Melissa Mesara, One Eared Pig

47. Amanda Davie, Articulations

48. Cherin Poovey, Lanyard Lady

49. Virginia Joste, ViviBijoux

50. Andrew Thornton, The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton
51. Lori Dorrington, Lori's Glassworks

52. Melanie Brooks, Earthenwood Studio Chronicles

53. Kate Gardenghi, Tropical Blonde

54. Serena Trent, PinkIce Jewel's Blog

55. Malin de Koning, Beading by Malin de Koning

56. Shai Williams, Shaiha's Ramblings

57. Francy Inman, 8 Second Studio

58. Amy Freeland, Copper Diem

59. Lisa Liddy, Joolz By Lisa

60. Sandi Lee James, Do Be Do Bead Do

61. Mary Harding, Mary Harding Bead Blog

62. Stacey Curry, Star Hitched Wagon

63. Leslie Gidden, Mad Maggie Designs

64. Elisabeth Auld, Beads For Busy Gals

65. Niky Sayers, Silver Nik Nats

66. Linda Djokic, Lutka and Co.

67. Tracy Bell, Copper, Glass, and Recycled Trash

68. Laurel Steven, Rue's Daftique

69. Ingrid McCue, Wrapped In Silver

70. Birgitta Lejonklou, Create With Spirit

71. Diana Hawkey, Diana Hawkey

72. Norma Turvey, Moonlit Fantaseas

73. Jeanette Ryan, Jeanette Blix

74. Jackie Ryan, Silver Lodge Gems

75. Jean Yates, Snap Out of it Jean, There's Beading to Be Done!

76. Debbie Goering, Prairie Emporium

77. Valerie Norton, Hot Art

78. Jana Trupovniece, Stories of the Secret Garden

79. Amy Severino, Amy Beads

80. Emma Thomas, Fred Beans Nook

81. Karen Zanco, Everyday Gypsy

82. Suzann Sladcik Wilson, Beadphoria

83. Janet McDonald, Singing Woods

84. Dana James, Dana's Jewelry Designs

85. Kristina Johansson, Wild Roses and Blackberries

86. CJ Bauschka, CJ Bauschka

87. Angela Barribea, Re: Angela Rae

88. Marcy Lamberson, Studio Marcy

89. Tanya Floyd, Glass Migrations

90. Lisa Kavanaugh, Beading Bliss

91. Sue Hodgkinson, Hello Gorgeous

92. Jenni Connolly, Jenni's Bead

93. Nally Parfyonova, Nally's Creations

94. Karyn White, Releases By Rufydoof

95. Emanda Johnson, Artemisia Studio

96. Sandy Richardson, Sandy's Coloring Box

97. Cindy Dolezal, Cindy Dolezal Designs

98. Stacie Stamper, Park Avenue

99. Mallory Hoffman, For the Love of Beads

100. Linda Landig, Linda's Bead Blog and Meanderings

101. Nicole Valentine-Rimmer, N. Valentine Studio

102. Jacinta Meyers, Jamberrysong's Creations

103. Charlene Gary, Gray Girl Studios

104. Rubiee Hayes, Glitter and Keys Galore

105. Marge Beebe, Rock Creek Creations

106. Elizabeth Freeman, Turquoise Sky

107. Shelby Foxwell, Sundown Bead Designs Rhetoric

108. Lynda Moseley, Diva Designs

109. Grace Danel, Grace Beading

110. Lois Moon, Que Onda Quitman

111. Agnes Shapiro, Beader Bubbe

112. Terry Carter, Tapping Flamingo

113. Judy Glende, Judith B. Designs

114. Mary Ellen Parker, Bee Tree By Me

115. Barbara Bechtel, Second Surf

116. Charlene Sevier, The Bead Dreamer

117. Alice Craddick, Alice's Beads and Baubles

118. Cory Celaya, Art With Moxie

119. Ronda Adams, The Ravished Heart

120. Sandi Volpe, Sandi Volpe Designs

121. Anna Lear, The Laughing Raven

122. Susie Hibdon, Vintagesusie & Wings

123. Amanda Austin, Sea Shore Glass

124. Jennifer Velasquez, Jen Judd Rocks

125. Hazel Ward, All Those Things

126. Brenda Salzano, Salzanos

127. Dee Gordon, Runako Designs by Dee

128. Anna Denisova, Anita-M

129. Margaret Saari, Mags-Jewelry

130. Genea Crivello-Knable, Genea Beads

131. Penny Neville, Copper Penny

132. Angela Blasingame, Hopemore

133. Helena Fritz, Beadwork by H's Blog

134. Stephanie LaRose, Confessions of a Bead Hoarder

135. Stephanie Haussler, PixyBug Designs

136. Diane Cook, Rosa & Josies

137. Maryse Thillens, Glass Bead Art

138. Jennifer Pride, Jewelry by J.P.

139. Shannon Chomanczuk, For My Sweet Daughter

140. Lisa Godfrey, Bead Happy

141. Heather Pyle, Welcome to My Muse

142. Regina Santerre, Regina's Writings

143. Liz DeLuca, Creative Arty Facts

144. Sig Wynne-Evans, Beaded Bear's Nonsense

145. Loretta Carstensen, Loretta's Boutique

146. Raida Disbrow, Havana Beads

147. Amber Dawn, Inventive Soul

148. Shelly Graves, Stars Dance With Me

149. Jess Italia Lincoln, Vintaj Blog

150. JJ Jacobs, Coming Abstractions

151. Carrie Tahquechi, Carrie T

152. Staci Smith, Staci Louise Originals

153. Katarzyna Kwiatkowska, Quiet Area

154. Ema Kilroy, Ema K Designs

155. Magdalena Sikora, Poranna Gazeta

156. Nicole Keller, Nicki's Reef

157. Ann Rishell, My Critical Eye

158. Noemi Baena, Fire, Metal, and Color

159. Christa Murphy, Adventures of One Beady Woman

160. Barbara Blaszczyk, Labotorium Flory

161. Collette Collins, Firefly Myst

162. Carola Greiser, Polymer Clay Shed

163. Joanna Kopijczuk, Bizuteria z Filcu

164. LeAnn Weih, Summers Studio

165. Cassandra Watsham, Design by Cassandra

166. Anna Motz, Stunning

167. Shea Zukowski, Gr8findings

168. Susan Kennedy, Sue Beads

169. Lisa Boucher, Lisa's Clay Happenings

170. Hope Smitherman, Crafty Hope

171. Alison Crenshaw, Beads by Earth Tones

172. Dorcas Midkiff, Wondrous Strange Designs

173. Melissa Rediger, Sea of Glass

174. Marina Dobrynina, Savon Feutre

175. Julie Nordine, Julie Nordine | Credit River Art Glass

176. Menka Gupta, Menka's Blog

177. Patsy Evins, Patsy Evins Studio

178. Cherrie Fick, En La Lumie're

179. Suzette Bentley, Ellie's Bijoux

180. Molly Alexander, Beautifully Broken Me

181. Lyn Foley, Lyn Foley Wearable Art

182. Tara Plote, The Newbie Beader's Blog

183. Natalie Schuetz, Natalie S Perlen

184. Kim Hutchinson, Running on Ink

185. Haley Frank, Wide Eyed Smilin

186. Grace Caputo, Suddenly Last Summer

187. Marie-Noel Voyer-Cramp, Skye Jewels

188. Erin Siegel, Erin Siegel Jewelry YOU ARE HERE!!!

189. Janea McDonald, Organized Chaos

190. Kristi Evenson, Colie Bug & Co.

191. Linda Inhelder, Must Haves Jewelry

192. Hilary Frye, FryeStyle

193. Whitney Lassini, Whitney Lassini

194. Nancy Schindler, The Rabbit Muse

195. Pam Brisse, The Blue Between

196. Beth Bricker, Vintage Sweets

197. Ruthie Stickney, Rose Works Jewelry and Gifts

198. Rose Noble, Lady Noble Designs

199. Karen Williams, Baublicious

200. Claire Maunsell, The Next Bend

201. Christine Damm, Stories They Tell

202. Kerry Bogert, Kab's Creative Concepts

203. Wendy Blum, Sand & Sea Designs

204. Juli Cannon, Julsbeads

205. Jenny Robledo, La Dona Boutique

206. Krista French, French Elegant Jewelry

207. Pam Krinski, Ewa Beads

208. Melissa Meman, Melissa Meman, Art, Life, Love

209. Dana Jones, Dana's Jewelry

210. Shirley Moore, Beads and Bread

The next party's sign ups begin August 1-3, 2011. Don't miss it!

Spring Issue of Stringing!

2011-02-18T07:30:00.000-05:00

It seems like it's harder to get jewelry designs published in the magazines these days! So many great designers submitting work, so I feel very fortunate that I have 2 jewelry designs in the upcoming issue of Stringing Magazine! A necklace and a bracelet. I can't wait to see the issue! It's on newsstands Tuesday, February, 22nd.

stringingmagazine.com

Earthenwood Design for February

2011-02-10T09:27:00.002-05:00

Valentine's Day is just days away now, so it's time for more hearts! This cool heart lock pendant arrived in the mail just a few days ago from Melanie of Earthenwood Studio. I love this pendant! It looks like an antique locket to me. I started working with it as soon as I opened Melanie's package. I just couldn't resist! She sent heart pendants and a few other link pieces to all the design team members this month. I'm sorry I didn't take a picture of the things she sent, but you can see all the beads on her blog!

I made a simple, delicate necklace this time around. Romantic, but a little dark. Actually, as I was working out the design, I thought of that girl from the vampire movies! It does feel a little Twilight inspired, don't you think? I call it Lovers Locket. Three strands of red waxed linen cord braided together with faceted black onyx beads. Drops of pear-shaped faceted garnets and tiny hemite beads dangle from one side and with the heart pendant as well. Finished off with a Vintaj brass hook clasp and a gunmetal chain extender with a garnet drop.

Lovers Locket

I'm looking forward to seeing what the other design team members do with the beads this month! Here's the list:

Andrew ThorntonGaea Cannaday Denise Yezbak MooreErin Prais-Hintz Erin Siegel Heather PowersLorelei Eurto Lori AndersonJean Yates Marie Dodd

Bead Soup Received!

2011-02-04T08:25:00.000-05:00

Here's my soup I received from my party partner, Dee Gordon! She wrote the cutest poem on her blog as she mailed out my package! Check that out here. When I opened Dee's package, I was whisk away on a tropical vacation! The tropical fish and colors of the seed beads and glass crystals make me think of azure waters and warm golden sun! So nice to think about in the middle of this snowy Winter! I love the wood bead and these beautiful silver pieces she sent, too. This whimsical tropical fish...well, he is just so adorable! I can't wait to start creating with him, I have some ideas already about what I will do. The jewelry reveal for the Bead Soup Blog Party begins February 26th! See you there!

Don't Miss This Giveaway!

2011-02-03T07:00:00.000-05:00

I'm giving away a sample pack of Irish Waxed Linen Cord over on A Jewelry Accord! The giveaway package includes 3 yards each in 12 different colors! If you've ever wanted to give this material a try, this is a great opportunity to take advantage of. It's great stuff and once you give it a try, you'll be hooked!

Bead Soup Sent!

2011-02-02T07:00:00.001-05:00

I'm participating in the Bead Soup Blog Party hosted by Lori Anderson. You can find out about the party and how it works on Lori's Bead Soup Party page. Here's the Bead Soup mix I shipped on over to my partner, Dee Gordon of Runako Designs! Dee makes gorgeous jewelry! Check out her blog and website. I had a fun time choosing just the right ingredients from my stash! I hope Dee finds this soup mix yummy enough to cook with! I think she does and I'm really looking forward to seeing what she dishes out! I will show you what she sent me as soon as I get around to taking a photo of it! So, stay tuned!

Plum Passion Bracelet

2011-01-29T07:30:00.000-05:00

I created this piece for the latest Artbeads.com design challenge. The theme this time around is 'Winter Enchantment'. Since Valentine's Day is a favorite Winter holiday that's right around the corner, I decided to go with a hearts theme! I love heart motifs, especially in jewelry! I picked out a few favorite Hill Tribe Silver heart charms from the charms section at Artbeads. I added in the Green Girl Studios heart button for the perfect closure.

I've been attracted to plums and purples lately and I do love this color palette for Winter. It does seem quite enchanting! I love the different finishes on these seed beads! I chose a variety of them in shades of purple and plum from the seed bead section at Artbeads and strung them up on my plum color waxed linen cord. I hope you've enjoyed my design! I love how this turned out. I'm looking forward to wearing this to a possible Valentine's Day Brunch with the hubby. LOVE!

Happy Valentine's Day and Happy Beading!

Disclaimer: Artbeads.com has sent me the above mentioned beads, pendants, materials and/or findings to create with as part of their design partner blog program. I have not been paid by Artbeads.com to participate. Thank you.

NYC Weekend Bead Trip

2011-01-26T07:00:00.002-05:00

I had a beadiful time in the city this past weekend with friends Lorelei, Nancy and Kelley! These ladies are the BEST friends a girl could ask for and so much fun to hang out with! We all met up in New York City on a serious mission for BEADS! (This is a looong post with lots of pictures, so grab a cup of something yummy and join me!)

Lorelei and Kelley in the middle of Times Square!

Nancy flippin' in Times Square!

Nancy took a few Flip videos during the trip. I can't wait to see how those turned out!

Kelley in Times Square.
Kelley is an excellent photographer! She took a lot of great photos during the weekend. You can see her pics from the trip in Kelley's Album on Flickr!

Kelley, Nancy and Me in Times Square!
I absolutely ADORE this photo that Lorelei took of the three of us! I want to frame this one and keep it on my desk. The only thing keeping it from being perfect is that Lori isn't in it!

I'm sorry to say that my picture-taking for the trip was sad, sad, sad, I'm afraid. Most of my pictures are all from the very beginning of our trip when we first arrived. After about 5 minutes of those fridged New York temperatures, the enthusiasm for pictures was quickly lost! Check out Lori, Kelley and Nancy on their blogs for more details on our trip and PICTURES! When we were in the bead shops, I was pretty focused on the BEADS, what I was going to get and how much I was spending, so sorry, no pictures of the bead shops either, but at least I can show you what I came home with and that's all that really matters anyway, right? Right!

So, without further ado, here's the tour of the NY bead stash!

Our first stop was Tinsel Trading Company! This shop was beautiful! It was filled with many vintage treasures and stocked from floor to ceiling with a vast array of trims and ribbons! It seems very strange that I didn't get any ribbon there, but I think I was just overwhelmed with the selection!

Lorelei shopping at Tinsel Trading Company.

Here's what I did get there. Some vintage metal sequins and a vintage metal button.

Next stop, Phoenix Stone & Beads Imports, Inc. Probably the best deals on stones at this bead store! Very nice people. It's wholesale, but if you pay cash they will let anyone shop.

Strands of metallic pearls, dyed agate, florite, turquoise, blue crazy lace agate and not sure what stone the purple teardrops are.

Next, was City Beads! This store had an amazing selection of Czech glass beads and seed beads! Very nice and helpful staff.

Some great quality wood beads and a selection of Czech glass.

Next, Toho Shoji! A Japanese bead shop! I love experiencing foreign ideas and concepts. It's especially exciting to see what's going on in the jewelry world outside the US. I really enjoyed this store. They had all kinds of different beads.

I ended up buying this book on wire mesh ribbon lace. It's all in Japanese! I can't read a word, lol! It's full of pictures of jewelry, though and that's enough! I've been wanting to try the wire mesh ribbon lace for quite a while now. It's on my list of materials to try and this book will help provide some inspiration!

Last stop on Saturday was M&J Trimmings! It was at the end of the day by the time we made it to this shop. We were pretty tired, so we didn't do much shopping. We barely made it through half the store! It was HUGE! Floor to ceiling, buttons, findings, leather, cords, ribbons and trims of all kinds!

I picked up these cool metal findings! I thought they'd make great earring components!

On Sunday, we went back to M&J Trimmings for another spin since we really didn't get through the whole shop the day before.

I'm sooo excited about these! I got these awesome faux leather flowers! I love the colors and finish they came in. I'm sure they are supposed to be appliques for embellishing a bag or hat, but I'm going to make them into pendants! L.O.V.E!

And last but certainly not least, Bead City New York Bead Center! This was a great, well-stocked shop! We spent a while in here. They had just about everything and a nice selection of EVERYTHING!

Wood beads, silk beading cord, copper beads, copper flower pendant, turquoise donut and Japanese seed beads.

And there you have it! I hope you enjoyed the pics and the tour of the bead stash! Thanks for joining me! :) I had a great time with my beady friends. Couldn't have asked for a better trip and I can't wait for the next adventure!

Cute Nora Video!

2011-01-24T08:06:00.002-05:00

While Mommy was in New York City buying beads with her friends (more on that later!), this was going on at home! Nora loves her new play mat! She was having so much fun, she tired herself out and fell right to sleep! :)

Lorelei's Fusion Beads Challenge

2011-01-21T08:00:00.018-05:00

Today is the reveal day for Lorelei's Fusion Beads Challenge! Here's my necklace I call Feather Fall. A decidedly Fall-inspired design! The colors and beads that Lorelei chose reminded me of an Autumn palette, so I decided to just go with my first instinct! Fusion Beads was out of the green lucite leaves that Lorelei had picked out, so I went with these Sienna feather leaves instead since I wanted a Fall feel and the idea of the feathers went along with the Green Girl Studios Owl Toggle.

I started with the leather strand, taking full advantage of those fire-polished beads fitting perfectly on it! I knotted the beads an inch apart for a lighter feel. I simply strung the wood beads and Japanese seed beads and added the copper chain with the feather leaves dangling or "falling" down for the focal of the necklace.

Earthenwood Design Team

2011-01-16T13:22:00.000-05:00

Melanie Brooks of Earthenwood Studio invited a few of her beady friends to participate in her newly formed design team! I'm one of the lucky designers chosen to work with her and boy, am I in some good company! Here's the list of jewelry designers for this month:

Andrew ThorntonGaea Cannaday Denise Yezbak MooreErin Prais-Hintz Erin Siegel Heather PowersLorelei Eurto Lori AndersonJean Yates Marie Dodd Lauren from Laurel MoonKristie from Colliebug and Company This month's theme is "Cabin Fever" and Melanie sent us each the components above from her "lumber" series. When I first saw some of her components from this line, I thought of wood boards or planks that you would use to build a child's playhouse or...a tree house! I always wished for a tree house to play in when I was little. Heck, I still want that tree house, LOL! I finally decided to live out my childhood fantasy and I made myself a tree house bracelet! Melanie's work often looks as though it is from the fantasy realm. I love the whimsical nature her pieces bring to jewelry designs.

"Tree House" by Erin Siegel

I used dark green waxed linen cord to string some tree agate rounds (which was very appropriate, I just love stuff like that!), varying shades of pressed glass leaves, wood beads and copper. I hope you like my design and I hope Melanie likes it, too! Maybe I can still get that tree house if I can get my husband to build one for our daughter, Nora some day and I'll get to play in it, too!...or at least live vicariously through her...but for now I will enjoy my bracelet.

Waxed Linen Jewelry

2011-01-15T11:53:00.003-05:00

Well, I know it's been a little quiet around here, especially on the jewelry front! I did manage to make a few new pieces recently. Of course, they are created with my favorite material, waxed linen cord!

Linen Blossom

This first necklace is a delicate piece with green agate rounds and new jade wire-wrapped dangles braided into the waxed line cord for the necklace. The pendant is an Earthenwood Studio flower bead with wrapped dangles of green agate, new jade and carnelian. The closure is also an Earthenwood bead.

Night Magic

This next piece is a fun multi-strand bracelet! Eight strands of blue waxed linen cord beaded with hues of blue seed beads. The cool button closure is from Green Girl Studios. I used an easy technique to create the button loop that I will be sharing in the upcoming book! I hope you will be looking forward to it!

My. Sweet. Baby.

2011-01-10T17:00:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T09:51:00.000-05:00

On a walk, New Year's Day 2011

Happy New Year, Everyone! May 2011 be filled with joy and prosperity for all!

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-24T23:46:00.000-05:00

Best wishes to all!

I hope everyone is having a joyful time with family and friends! We are here enjoying Nora's first Christmas!

A Jewelry Accord

2010-12-21T07:30:00.006-05:00

Please check out my technique tutorial post on the new blog, A Jewelry Accord! Be sure to follow this blog and add it to your list. We will be doing a giveaway coming up this week! Thank you!

Michaels Challenge-Winter Edition

2010-12-17T07:00:00.003-05:00

Well, Lorelei and Nancy were at it, again! They went to Micheal's and picked out these beads above for another beading challenge. It's reveal day for the Winter edition challenge! I picked up my challenge beads when I was out visiting Lorelei a few weeks ago. Here's my necklace I call Black Lotus.

Black Lotus by Erin Siegel

I used the freshwater pearls, mother-of-pearl ovals and the black quartz nuggets from the chosen challenge beads. I added in this open design flower pendant, a flower toggle clasp and paired it all with some wide black leather lace.

The best and coolest thing I added to this piece though, is the plum color silk! This was a wide silk satin cord that was stuffed with chiffon. I un-stuffed it and cut it up into sections and strung it on the beading wire in between the black quartz nugget beads.

Thanks for stopping in!

Looking forward to seeing what the other jewelry designers have done for this round!

Mini Necklace Bust

2010-12-12T11:02:00.002-05:00

I ended up at TJ Maxx again the other night! I went looking for some Christmas gifts. Of course, I found more stuff for myself than anything else! That always happens at that damn store! Geesh! Anyway, you might remember that Lorelei and I went shopping there when I was visiting her in New York, last weekend. She blogged about these cool jewelry trays we found. I haven't gotten any of those trays for myself...YET, but I did pick up this cute mini necklace bust!

I thought it would be great for display and possibly taking photographs of delicate necklaces. I think it's great, except it might be hard to tell the scale of a piece in a photo, since it's a mini bust. Hmmm...I don't know. What do you guys think?

At the very least, it looks cute holding a few necklaces on my beading table!!!

And The Contributors Are....

2010-12-10T09:51:00.003-05:00

Please visit our new blog to find out who we have selected to contribute to our upcoming book!

A JEWELRY ACCORD

Making Jewelry with Cording, Ribbon and Lace

Lorelei and I hope you will join us on the new blog!

Thank you!

Weekend with Lorelei

2010-12-07T07:00:00.015-05:00

I had a fun-packed weekend with my good friend and co-author Lorelei! She and Joe took good care of me with their wonderful hospitality! I flew into Syracuse, New York Friday night. Lorelei picked me up from the airport. I was so excited when I first saw her standing there waiting for me in the airport lobby! We arrived back at the house and Lori and Joe gave me a tour of the place. The house is so CUTE!!! I just love it! It's the cutest, prettiest Bungalow you've ever seen! They have put so much time, love and energy into fixing it up. It's beautiful. After the house tour, I was taken to one of their favorite spots for dinner. Mmmm...yummy Mexican food! I loved it. After dinner, Lori and I spent some time up in her bead studio! Yay! I was really looking forward to that! I even worked on an earring design for the book and Lori finished a few last minute earrings for her Jewelry Open House held on Saturday!

Here's a picture I snapped of Lori on Saturday right before guests started arriving!

On Saturday, Joe and Lori took me out to breakfast, my favorite thing to do! I love breakfast food to pieces! After breakfast, we headed back to the house to prepare all the food goodies for the party. Lorelei also made her Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread. Yum! I just loved it! I can't wait to make this for myself! The bread is so good, you have to make it. Thanks, L for telling me where you got the recipe from!

Here's some of Lorelei's cool jewels on display.

Lori had a nice turnout for her party. I was supposed to be helping with packaging up purchases, but instead I ended up just gabbing with the guests! Gah. Sorry, Lori! During the party, I was just hoping that a few of my favorite pieces would still be left at the end of the night. I was in luck! I grabbed a few pieces for Christmas gifts. I wish I could show you what I got, but they are for a special person who may be reading this!

After party time, Lori and I went out for a little shopping! We went to Micheal's Craft Store, one of my favorite shopping destinations and I picked up my beads for Lorelei's next beading challenge. Yay!, except I ended up forgetting them at Lori's house when I left! Gah, scatter brain! Anyway, after we were done at Micheal's, we went next door to TJ Maxx! My OTHER favorite shopping destination! We went in there with the intention of finding some necklace displays for Lorelei's jewelry. We didn't find any displays Lori was excited about, but we did end up finding some cute jewelry trays with compartments that you could use for storing beads or earrings!!! I don't have a picture of them, but I'm sure Lorelei will blog about the find soon!

After we got back from our shopping trip, we logged onto Skype and talked to Nancy Schindler via video chat! That was fun! I was super excited to talk to Nancy. We all laughed and had a good time. I love Nancy and her fun and witty personality, but she's also a down to earth kind of girl, too! I can see why Lori considers her such a good friend and why she adores her to pieces!

On Sunday, Nancy was in the middle of doing her last craft show for the year. The show happened to be in Syracuse. We had to be in Syracuse that day anyway to take me back to the airport, so we decided to head out early and stop by Nancy's show on the way! I was really looking forward to meeting her in person! I've admired Nancy and her work for some time. Even before I knew Lorelei, I had discovered Nancy way back when I started making my ceramic pieces. That was over 3 years ago now! To finally meet her in person was a real treat! I'm looking forward to seeing both Lori and Nancy on my next trip to New York!

Hmmm...let me see...what else...I'm forgetting something, right? What else did we do during my visit? Oh, yeah...we selected our contributing designers for our upcoming book! Yes, we did!!! We'll be announcing that very soon so stay tuned, everyone!!! Thank you!

Plans for the Weekend

2010-12-02T16:45:00.001-05:00

I'm getting on a plane tomorrow. I'm leaving Nora with her daddy for a few days. I'm going to visit my friend Lorelei for the weekend. Yay, I'm excited! I'm so looking forward to seeing her! It'll be a busy time for us! We have so much to do, but it will be fun! I'll be assisting Lorelei with her Jewelry Open House she's having on Saturday....and I mean assisting as in helping her get rid of all the food by eating it all and drinking all the wine...lol. Hey, I was gestational while I was pregnant, after all. I didn't get to have a lot of goodies AND I haven't had a drink since before I was pregnant! So, I think that's reason enough for all that! Don't you think?

No, but seriously, we do have a LOT of celebrating to do this weekend. This will be the first time we've seen each other since BEFORE we got our book contract!!! Can you say PAR-TAY! hehe!The pic above is the last time we saw each other, which was over the Summer when the book concept was born!

Well, it won't be all fun and games. We do have some serious business to attend to. We will be choosing the contributing jewelry designers for our book! Now, that is going to be tough! So many of you submitted great designs. Thank you to everyone who submitted. I'm blown away by the interest and enthusiasm for this project. We appreciate it so much, Thank you! Stay tuned!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-26T12:38:00.000-05:00

From our family to yours...Enjoy The Holiday!!!

Call For Contributors Reminder!

2010-11-24T06:06:00.000-05:00

Don't forget! If you are interested in being a contributor for our upcoming book, A Jewelry Accord: 50+ Innovative Styles Using Leather, Lace, Ribbon and Cords, you must have samples of your work submitted to the Jewelry Accord Flickr Group by December 1st! Yikes! That's only one week away!!!

If you're just tuning in or you need a recap, please go to the original blog post and read carefully for all the details about the book and how to submit! We've seen some great designs so far submitted to the Flickr group! Check it out, if you haven't taken a peak. Some wonderful inspiration there! Lorelei and I are thrilled with the response to our call out, so THANK YOU to everyone who has responded and submitted jewelry! You are going to make this a really tough decision on us!

Also, if you haven't submitted up to 5 designs, we encourage you to do so, really show us what you can do with those cording materials!!! As for the rest of you, get busy beading over the holiday and upload your designs to the Flickr group! ;)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Clay Bead Artist: Duane Collins

2010-11-18T11:33:00.000-05:00

I don't have any new jewelry I can actually show you these days. I'm working on jewelry projects for the upcoming book while Nora takes her nap. I can't wait to share my jewelry ideas with you, but it will be a while before I can do that! I want to show you something though, so I thought I would share the AMAZING clay beads I've received from some very talented clay artisans!

The beads below are from clay artisan, Duane Collins of Elements Pottery. Enjoy!

Please visit Duane's Website and Shop for more! Thank you!

Life with Baby

2010-11-11T13:04:00.000-05:00

My two loves while we were at the Grandparents house last weekend.

Well, we haven't been doing much around here except taking care of our bundle of joy! Nora is now 3 weeks old and doing great! I hope to get back to creating some jewelry soon!

Our Little Pumpkin

2010-10-26T12:34:00.000-04:00

We brought our new baby girl home from the hospital Sunday night. We are happy to finally be home with her. We are all doing great. It's been a busy couple of days getting adjusted to taking care of our new addition, we still haven't figured it all out yet. We are a little tired but doing well! Thank you for all the well wishes, Everyone! I loved seeing all your comments! I appreciate all your support for the new baby and the upcoming book as well! :)

A Book and a Call for Contributors!!!

2010-10-20T08:00:00.003-04:00

Dear Friends,

I will be writing my first jewelry-making instruction book with my good friend Lorelei Eurto! Yes, that’s right. Lorelei and lil’ ol’ ME! :) The two of us will be co-authors of an upcoming jewelry-making book for Interweave Press! I am just beside myself. This is literally a DREAM COME TRUE for me! I have always LOVED all types of jewelry-making books. I have tons of books in my beading library that I’ve been collecting for years. I’ve flipped through my books dreaming of my own book many, many times. I never thought it would happen this soon! I am so happy to be sharing this experience with a great jewelry designer and friend.

I don’t know if many of you know this, but Lorelei was the first jewelry designer to contact me when I entered the blog-o-sphere over two years ago as a new ceramic bead artist. She was the first to buy some of my ceramic pieces and the first to introduce me to the beading blog community. We have stayed in constant contact with each other since then and we have become close friends over the last two years. Lorelei has never let me down. She has always been there for me personally and supported me in all the different directions I’ve gone in with my bead-making and jewelry-making career. When I was a new ceramic bead artist, she supported me. When I changed my style and look of my ceramic pieces, she was right there cheering me on. When I found out I was pregnant, she was happy for me. When I announced I was leaving the ceramic world to pursued more of a jewelry-making career, she was again one of the first to support my decision and my change. I’ve always been able to count on her. She is a good friend. I am so happy and honored to have her working on this project with me and I can not think of a better person to be doing this with.

CALL FOR CONTRIBUTORS:
We want this to be fun and exciting for you as well! We are sharing this opportunity with all of you here in this beading community. We are looking for jewelry designers to contribute projects to our book! Yes, that’s right, YOU could be apart of this with us and have YOUR work “out there” and published in a BOOK and get paid for it!!! What could be better than that! We have chosen one contributor already, but we’ve decided to open the field up and give some others a chance to be part of this project. We are looking for one other designer, possibly two. If you are chosen to contribute to the book, you will be paid on a per project basis. We would like up to 5 projects from each contributor. Your jewelry designs and complete instructions will be printed in the book along with your name and contact info. You will also receive a free copy of the book when it is published. We are excited to be able to take an opportunity like this and share it. We hope you will be really enthusiastic about this upcoming book project! So, now you want to know what the book is about, right? Well here it goes:

ABOUT THE BOOK:
Title: A Jewelry Accord: 50+ Innovative Styles Using Leather, Lace, Ribbon & Cords
A fundamental jewelry-making instruction book with a focus on the use of alternative materials in beaded jewelry such as, leather cord, suede lace, waxed linen cord, cotton cord, silk cord, ribbons and other cords. This book teaches how to incorporate these materials into jewelry designs using basic jewelry-making techniques such as stringing, wire-wrapping, knotting and braiding.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

Do you enjoy using cords, ribbons or fibers in your jewelry? Would you be super excited and pumped to have your designs published in a book? If your answer is YES to these questions, then you could be who we are looking for!
There are some rules and requirements, so please read carefully.

Please US residents only. We are very sorry, we wish we could invite absolutely everyone. :(

We can not accept any projects that have been previously published.

Your projects must represent original work by you.

You must create your projects using basic jewelry-making techniques such as stringing, crimping, wire-wrapping, wrapped loops, knotting, simple braiding, etc. Think Stringing Magazine. Look through the techniques section to get an idea of what would be appropriate for this book. You may use more than one technique in a single piece.

Necklaces and bracelets only please.

Your jewelry projects must incorporate at least one type of cord or ribbon material in each design.

We encourage you to use various cord and ribbon findings to finish off your pieces such as crimp-style or fold-over style cord ends, glue-in style cord ends, cone findings, clamshells, knot cups, ribbon ends or clamps, etc. Please look around and see what’s out there on the market today for options.

We encourage you to use art beads and/or artisan made findings and jewelry components, if you want to, although this is not a requirement.

We also encourage you to try incorporating more than one type of cording material in a single piece. Try mixing suede lace with silk ribbon or linen cord with leather cord or whatever combination you can come up with! Have fun with it! Use your imagination and don’t be afraid to experiment with the materials!

If you are chosen to contribute to the book, you will be responsible for supplying a complete materials list, list of tools used, complete instructions and a resource list for each of your jewelry projects.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE DO THE FOLLOWING:

1. If you think you might be seriously interested in this opportunity, please fill out this form and send it ASAP.

2. Please join the Jewelry Accord Flickr Group and start submitting your jewelry designs that fit the above mentioned criteria. To be considered for the book, you must submit at least 1 jewelry design. You may submit up to 5 designs. We ask that any and all interested individuals to please have your jewelry designs submitted to this flickr group by December 1st 2010. Thank you!

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us. My email is in my profile. We are looking forward to hearing from you! Please feel free to spread the word on this CALL out! Happy Beading! :)

Gaea's Design Challenge

2010-10-19T08:00:00.000-04:00

About a month ago, Gaea posted a design challenge/giveaway on her blog. She chose 6 designers at random to receive a set of 3 of her gorgeous 'Mermaid Beads'! The participants were chosen at random out of all who commented on her blog post. I was lucky enough that my number came up in the drawing! I was thrilled! I love Gaea's beads, especially her magical mermaid beads. In return, She asked the designers to come up with their own jewelry design using the 3 mermaid beads and the above bracelet as inspiration.

Today is the reveal day for our creations!

Here's my design:

I had a lot of fun coming up with this fun bracelet! Thank you for the inspiration, Gaea!

Here are the links to the other participants in the challenge:

Life in the Bead Lane

For My Sweet Daughter

Lorelei

Sue Beads

Spirited Earth

Also, please visit Gaea's blog for more! Thanks for stopping by!

Michaels Challenge

2010-10-17T07:00:00.001-04:00

Today is reveal day for the Micheal's Challenge! Back a few weeks ago, Lorelei posed a reader beading challenge on her blog. We were all to buy similar beads from Micheal's and make a necklace using as many elements from Lorelei's chosen bead stash (above) as we could. Here's the necklace I came up with. I made an earthy, chunky necklace.

I ended up buying only two of the beads from Lorelei's picks. The white carved cinnabar beads and the green freshwater pearls. I kept the same color palette of dark brown, white and green. I substituted in these large dark wooden rounds to represent the dark brown beads Lorelei had selected. I added in these silver nugget beads and silver seed beads as my added element to the piece.

I used 6 strands of waxed linen cord to make the necklace. I strung the green freshwater pearls together in clusters for fullness and dimension. The silver seed beads were strung onto the multiple strands of linen and wrapped around the large wooden rounds for a decorative effect. Even though I used only two of Lorelei's bead picks, all of the beads in my necklace I bought at Micheal's! Now, I just need a nice name for my creation, any suggestions? Please leave a comment. Thanks for stopping by! There are lots of others participating in this fun challenge! Below is the list. Click the links to go on to the next designers! or Go to Lorelei's blog to check out the list there!

Mary Harding
Hilary of Fryestyle
For My Sweet Daughter
My Life Under the Bus
Kristie of DreamSomeDesigns
Linda's Bead Blog & Meanderings
Copper Diem

Andrew Thornton
TyneBodenNecklaces
Erin of Treasuresfound
Molly of BeautifullyBrokenMe
Beading by Malin de Koning

AuntieAnnie
Gr8Findings
Deborah M Purdy
Spirited Earth

Erin Siegel Jewelry
beads by breul
Beads for Busy Gals
Cynths Blog
Nayas Organized Chaos
Crafty Hope

Rosebud For the Love of Beads
Jamberry Song
Peacock Fairy
Elysian Studio Art
Designs by Debi
sweet girl design

October Happenings

2010-10-15T13:44:00.001-04:00

There are quite a few events and things coming up around the blog-o-sphere in the next week or so. Here's a list of some things coming up soon:

Sunday, October 17th - Lorelei's Micheals Beading Challenge

Please come back this Sunday to see what I came up with! Be sure to check out Lorelei's blog on Sunday to see what she did and also she will have a list of all participating blogs and jewelry pics from participating beaders. I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone created!

Tuesday, October 19th - Gaea's 'copy me' Design Challenge

I will be revealing my design this coming Tuesday. I was lucky enough to be a chosen designer for this challenge, but Gaea has left this one open to anyone that wants to participate! Check out her blog.

Wednesday, October 20th - Super Duper Big Announcement!!!

My good friend Lorelei Eurto and I will be making a BIG special announcement! Please be sure to check both our blogs on Wednesday. We are so excited to share this news and we hope you will be just as excited! All you jewelry designers out there will not want to miss this!

Sunday, October 24th - The Beads-Of-Clay Fall Blog Event

Plan on attending this event! I hope to attend this as well. The ceramic bead artists over at the BOC blog will be having an open studio event with a blog hop, shop sales and tons of giveaways all day!

And last but not least, somewhere in between all this, I will hopefully be having a BABY! LOL! :) So, if I've gone missing, I'm probably in the delivery room! Wish me luck.

Turquoise Button Necklace

2010-10-04T07:25:00.000-04:00

My second design for the Artbeads.com Fall design challenge. As I did for my first piece, I used the 'Fall 2010 Patone's Color Report' for my inspiration. Lagoon, Lipstick Red, and Oyster Grey. Turquoise is my absolute favorite color and my favorite gemstone! I'm thrilled that Turquoise is the 'Color of the Year', according to Patone and I'm taking full advantage of it! I love the organic shape of this natural Turquoise nugget bead strand. I hand-knotted the Turquoise gems onto some Red silk beading cord. The large antique silversmith button serves as the focal and the clasp! This decorative button can be worn at the side, in the front or at the back!

I made a simple loop for the button with a piece of 2mm dark brown leather and a large antique silver pewter crimp end. I hope you've enjoyed my Artbeads Fall design project! Thank you for stopping by! :) Happy Beading!

Disclaimer: Artbeads.com has sent me the above mentioned beads, pendants, materials and/or findings to create with as part of their design partner blog program. I have not been paid by Artbeads.com to participate. Thank you.

Interview!

2010-09-29T09:00:00.000-04:00

Please head over to Marcie's blog, La Bella Joya! Marcie was kind enough to ask me to answer a few questions for her blog series called Artists Answers. I am honored that she asked me for my input!

Thank you and I hope you enjoy the Q and A! :)

Baby Shower!

2010-09-26T19:46:00.001-04:00

Here's me at my Baby Shower last week on Sept. 16th. Yay! I'm 35 weeks pregnant here in this pic. The shower was held at The Riverwalk Bead Shop and Gallery, where I sell my jewelry and teach beading and jewelry-making classes! My girlfriends at the shop threw the shower for me. They did everything, from inviting all the guests to providing the food and beverages! It was so nice! I didn't do anything really except enjoy the party! I had so much fun! We laughed and talked about everything baby! Everyone was so generous with the gifts, I was a little overwhelmed but, oh so appreciated everything! My little girl will be all set for clothes, baby blankets, toys and a car seat! I love this place and all my friends here! Thank you so much Nancy and Birdie for throwing me an awesome shower! :)