The Year in Jewelry 2013

The Year in Jewelry 2013

A collection of DIY jewelry projects and tutorials I have offered throughout the year.

Enjoy the links!

Silver Branches Bracelet

LOVE Color Block Bracelet

Dainty Spring Necklace

Mixed Metal Chevron Necklace

Day Glow Earrings

Bead Embroider Leather Cuff

Fiesta Sun Earrings

Anchor Leather Bracelet

Fortuneteller's Bracelet

Dream Catcher Pendant

Rhinestone Leather Wrap

Gilded Gold Tassel Necklace and Earrings

Jewelry Stringing Winter 2014

Jewelry Stringing Winter 2014

The Winter issue of Jewelry Stringing magazine is out now. I get so excited about this beading magazine. It's my favorite. I'm happy to have a few designs in this latest issue. I absolutely love the fabulous necklace on the cover. Oh, that is pretty and so on trend! I know I'd love to make that and wear it. Below, is my necklace design called, Glistening Garland. It appears in the same "Sparkle, Dazzle and Shine section as the cover piece. I love the clear drop beads I used in the design.

Glistening Garland

Necklace in "Sparkle, Dazzle and Shine" section

Jewelry Stringing Magazine Winter 2014

I remember a glorious happy day in May when I created this necklace for submission to the issue. It was a few days after Mother's Day. I captured the moment in this photo below:

Nothing could have been better than the day this photo was taken! I spent the whole day in my studio beading and sipping tea from my new Mother's Day mug. Oh, how happy I was. It was blissful. What a wonderful memory.

I hope I have another day like that again real soon. I hope you enjoy some creating time yourself over the Winter holidays. If you are looking for fashionable project ideas this season, be sure to pick up a copy of Jewelry Stringing or download the digital version. I always do.

Happy Beading!

Beads, Baubles and Jewels!!!

Behind the scenes at BBJ!

 Top row: Jennifer VanBenschoten, Jill Wiseman, Jewelry set up.

Middle row: Kate Richbourg, Me and Katie Hacker, Jean Campbell.

Bottom row: On set with Katie and staff, Candie Cooper w/ my book, Barb Switzer.

The new season of the Beads, Baubles and Jewels TV series is airing now! You might remember I traveled to Cleveland, Ohio this past June to film two segments for the 1900 series. This was a huge deal for me. It was my first time in front of a video camera. I was so nerve-racked about how it would go! There is no rehearsal, no practice and no script. The segments are organic and free-flowing. In some ways that was a relief and in other ways I was completely terrified. Oh. My. Gosh, this could be a total disaster. I just had no idea how I was going to perform under the bright lights with those cameras pointed at me. I'm not exactly comfortable in the spotlight. I tend to shy away from that, but what I don't shy away from is opportunity, new experiences, and chances to grow and expand. I seem to crave those things! There were so many reasons for me to say yes to this opportunity. A chance to reach out to a larger beading audience and share my techniques and projects, promote Ornamentea, promote myself and my book, meet and connect with others in the jewelry community, gain valuable experience, push myself to meet all that I'm capable of and more...

 More behind the scenes...

When all is said and done, I'm pretty happy with how my segments turned out. More importantly, I'm thrilled with the experience I had at the production studios. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming. I felt comfortable and like I belonged there. The green room was like a beaders paradise social party! Lots of chatting, laughing and connecting going on. I loved every minute of it. One of the main reasons I was attracted to doing a spot on the show was the opportunity to meet some great ladies in the beading and jewelry community I admire. I met the show's host, Katie Hacker, Jean Campbell, Jen VanBenschoten, Kate Richbourg, Barb Switzer, Jill Wiseman, Candie Cooper, Patti Bullard, and Kellie DeFries. I'm grateful to have connected with these ladies. I could not be happier with my experience and I'm so glad I decided to go through with it.

 Host, Katie Hacker and me. 

I'm hopeful that my appearance on the show will help me connect with more of you out there, too! I want to continue to connect with others who like to make jewelry and creative like-minded people all over the world. I hope you enjoy my projects and I can inspire you in some way. I've been given the okay to share my segments as seen on Beads, Baubles and Jewels 1900 series. Without further ado, here they are:

 

All materials, supplies and instructions for both projects can be found on the BBJ website as well as my designer page on Ornamentea. com.

Happy Beading!

Gifts for the Creative

I offer some great products for the jewelry maker or anyone who likes to create things. (The Interweave items are on super sale right now!) It's the season to make and give handmade gifts. Let these items get your creativity flowing or give them as gifts all on their own!

Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry Book and e-book

Leather Ruffle Hoops Earring Kit

Fiber Findings and Finishing Techniques for Jewelry Download

Knotted Friendship Bracelets Kit

Happy Holidays!

Gilded Gold Tassel Necklace and Earrings TUTORIAL

Gilded Gold Tassel Necklace and Earrings

Erin Siegel 

for Ornamentea.com

Sparkle, dazzle and shine in this 1920's inspired jewelry set!

Ingredients for necklace:

1 crystal Swarovski rhinestone ball

1 brass tulip bead cap

1 antique brass 3” head pin

36” of antique brass straightbar texture chain

31” of antique brass sparklechain

Tools

Chain nose pliers

Round nose pliers

Cutters

Ruler

1: Cut the sparkle chain into ten 3” lengths. String all the chain pieces onto the head pin as shown in photo 1.

2: Use the head pin to string the bead cap and rhinestone ball bead as shown in photo 2.

3: Form a wrapped loop that attaches to both ends of the straight bar chain as shown in photo 3.

Ingredients for earrings:

2 crystal Swarovski rhinestone ball

2 brass tulip bead cap

2 antique brass 3” head pin

2 antique brass lever-backear findings

62” of antique brass sparklechain

Tools

Chain nose pliers

Round nose pliers

Cutters

Ruler

1: Cut the sparkle chain into ten 3” lengths. String all the chain pieces onto the head pin as shown

2: Use the head pin to string the bead cap and rhinestone ball bead as shown

3: Form a wrapped loop and attach a lever-back ear finding as shown.

4: Repeat steps of the second earring.

Shades of the Past: A Photo Gallery Event!

Please join me Saturday, November 23, 2013 from 12pm - 10pm

24 Water Street, Exeter, N.H.

Local friends, you are invited to a public viewing of the "Shades of the Past" photography project created by Bushor Photography and M. Lavigne Photography. I will have all my jewelry featured in the photos available for sale. You can get a closer look at the jewelry pieces in my last post about this project. This will be an all day open house event held in downtown Exeter, New Hampshire. Light fare and cake will be served from 5-10pm. Enjoy a bite to eat while viewing the photos and pick up a one-of-a-kind, handcrafted gift for the holidays!

See you there! 

 Photography by Bushor Photography and M. Lavigne Photography

www.shadesofthepastphotos.com

Online Beading Magazines

Bead Chat magazine 

November 2013

I'm honored to contribute to the latest issue of Bead Chat magazine! An online jewelry magazine published by Artisan Whimsy members. Artsian Whimsy is an online community for jewelry artists of every kind. The group is extremely active and with a website and a facebook page. They are doing some exciting things and I'm looking forward to see what the future holds for the beading community. 

Lead editor for Bead Chat magazine, Cynthia Machata asked me a few questions about getting jewelry designs published in nation-wide bead and jewelry magazines. Special thanks to her for extending an invitation to me to contribute content. She was a such a pleasure to work with! In the interview, I share a funny, true story about my first published piece of jewelry. I also share my best tips for getting your work published in top beading and jewelry-making magazines. Plus, there is plenty of other great content for jewelry-makers and of course, gorgeous jewelry designs and eye candy from members. I especially loved the tribute to Bead Trends magazine and the interview with jewelry artist, Jess Italia Lincoln.

The Beading Glass magazine

November 2013

Another online publication that has come to my attention is The Beading Glass published by Leah Curtis of Beady Eyed Bunny. The Beading Glass is another online magazine for the jewelry designer offering inspiration, jewelry and bead artist profiles and interviews. Some very talented artists are featured on the pages of this magazine. You'll find great jewelry design and simply stunning art beads. The thing that brought the magazine to my attention is that my friend and co-author, Lorelei Eurto, has an interview that appears in the November issue. Even though I know her very well, I enjoyed reading her answers, seeing her designs and learning a few bits I didn't know.

Happy online bead reading! 

Shades of the Past photo shoot

A local friend and photographer asked me if I wanted to have some of my jewelry pieces included in her photo shoot. Would I like pictures of my jewelry gracing the necks, wrists and ears of gorgeous models in an amazing location? "Um...YES! Sign me up, please!" I even got to be there on location the day of the shoot and play 'Stylist' on the set. The shoot was called "Shades of the Past". A passion project between my friend, Monica Bushor and another talented photographer, Mat Lavigne. More photos from the entire shoot can be viewed at www.shadesofthepastphotos.com. The photo shoot had four different themes or genres: Roaring 20's, High Fantasy, Modern Formal and Medieval.

Roaring 20's style photo shoot

 Gilded Gold Tassels Necklace and Earrings - 20's style photo shoot

 Gilded Gold Tassels Necklace and Earrings - 20's style photo shoot

 Hemlock Forest Necklace - 20's style photo shoot

Hemlock Forest Necklace - 20's style photo shoot

Champagne Shimmer necklace - 20's style photo shoot

High Fantasy photo shoot

 

Turning Leaf necklace - Earth Fae photo shoot

 Turning Leaf necklace - Earth Fae photo shoot

Fire Goddess necklace - Fire Fae photo shoot

Stormy Winds necklace - Wind Fae photo shoot

Stormy Winds necklace and bracelet - Wind Fae photo shoot

Modern Formal photo shoot

Champagne Shimmer necklace - Modern Formal photo shoot

Champagne Shimmer necklace - Modern Formal photo shoot

Midnight Pearls necklace and earrings - Modern Formal photo shoot

Midnight Pearls necklace and earrings - Modern Formal photo shoot

Misty Lilac necklace and bracelet - Modern Formal photo shoot

I'm grateful that Monica invited me to be apart of her special project. I had so much fun collaborating with her and the rest of the team. I will be working with them again on future projects. Stay tuned!

artBLISS 2013 in Latergrams

Oh dear, I'm woefully behind on updates around here. These pics are supposed to be Instagrams. Latergrams will have to do...

On the weekend of September 27th, 28th and 29th, I traveled to the Washington D.C. area's jewelry retreat, artBLISS. When I arrived, I was greeted by the artbliss mascot. She is pretty, classy and perfectly patriotic. I'm bad with names but, I think her name is Eleanor? Excuse me, if that's not right.

Friday night was the 'Meet and Greet' event. Here I am with my friend and fellow artist, Erin Prais-Hintz of Tesori Trovati Jewelry. I'm happy to have spent some quality time with her over the weekend!

On Saturday, I took Stacie Florer's Thin Gauge Metals class. These are the earrings I made during class. I'm thrilled with them! It was so much fun. Stacie's class was everything I knew it would be and more. I really connect with Stacie on a deep personal level and a creative one. Her class was inspiring in more ways than one. I learned a lot, got tons of personal attention from Stacie even though her class was full to the max and I just enjoyed creating in the environment that she facilitates. Oh, and laughed a lot, too!  I do hope our paths continue to cross and I get to work with her again in the future. Before I took the class, I said I was participating for the experience and had no specific intention of adding metalwork to my jewelry. Now, I could actually see myself playing with the techniques I learned. Working with the thin gauge metal is beginner-friendly, forgiving and very approachable. There's lots of potential. I'm excited about the possibilities!

Saturday evening was the 'Soiree' event of shopping and socializing! Here I am at my vendor table. I sold copies of my book, Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry, kits, and an array of my favorite jewelry-making materials, beads and findings from Ornamentea.com. I also demonstrated one of my favorite projects from Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry, my Leather Ruffle Hoop earrings.

Another treat was getting to see my friend, Tracy Statler of Make Bracelets! She also had a table at the soiree selling some of her stash. And oh, how I loved her stash! I did some shopping with her but, I would have loved to take that whole table home! Too bad my suitcase was already overweight. Tracy makes the coolest jewelry and she contributed some of her awesome designs to Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry. Tracy is a sot-after designer. She recently added Cindy Wimmer's new book, The Missing Link to her book contributions.

Speaking of The Missing Link book, here it is! ArtBLISS co-creator, Cindy Wimmer just authored her own wire jewelry book called The Missing Link: From Basic to Beautiful Wirework Jewelry. Fortunately, her author copies arrived just in time for her artBLISS retreat and she was able to have a book signing! WhooHoo! It just wouldn't have been the same without it. Having Cindy's book there and being able to get a signed copy straight from her was a highlight for me and it made artBLISS this year that much more exciting.

Here's Cindy signing copies surrounded by the fabulous jewelry from the book. Well, it's about time this talented jewelry artist authored her own book showcasing her incredible work. I've thought this for some time. I have to say it was well worth the wait. This is one of the best wire technique books I've seen in a long time.The wire links themselves are the stars here. The link designs are beautiful, original and highly adaptable. The step-by-step photos and instructions are thorough, detailed and well-executed. Even a beginner could follow along and make the wire links with these excellent photos and directions. One of the things I love the most is the gorgeous photography and styling. The photos do justice to Cindy's exquisite work and that of her contributing designers. The style of the photos shine with Cindy's personal touch and aesthetic with her own vintage props used for backgrounds. It's a gorgeous book and I'm thrilled I came home from artBLISS with my own author-signed copy!
 

ArtBLISS 2013

www.artblissworkshops.com

Oh my, the artBLISS retreat is next weekend! Hard to believe it's already that time. I will be attending and vending the event again this year and I can't wait. It's hosted by fellow jewelry artists and friends, Cindy Wimmer and Jeanette Blix. It's one of my favorite social gatherings of the year. You can read about my time there last year here. Since I missed out on all the fun and camaraderie at Bead Fest in August, I'm anticipating artBLISS with intensity. I'm looking forward to spending some quality time chatting with my creative friends in attendance.

Thin Gauge Metal Workshop with Stacie Florer

Last year, I was one of the five instructors. I taught my Macrame Flower Bracelet class and I demonstrated how to do some macrame knotting. This year, I'm a student. I'm taking Stacie Florer's Thin Gauge Metal Workshop just for fun! Stacie is such a beautiful, inspiring soul and a very talented metal jewelry artist. I jumped at the chance to take a class from her. I want to just be there in the presence of her lovely energy and connect with her. I also have a feeling that being in her creative teaching environment will be an amazing experience all on it's own. Metalworking is outside of what I normally do and I don't plan on adding it to my existing work. I'm not taking the class with the intention to add techniques to my jewelry-making repertoire. Rather, for me, this class is all about enjoying the experience and having a little fun tinkering around with different materials. Who knows what I may discover from that. I am, however, looking forward to taking home some awesome, handmade metal earrings I learned to make from Stacie Florer.

See me demo my Leather Ruffle Hoops at artBLISS 2013.

Speaking of earrings, even though I won't be teaching a formal class this year, I will be demonstrating my Leather Ruffle Hoops on Saturday evening. A version of these earrings can be found in my book, Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry. At Saturday night's soiree, I will be showing how to make a pair of these and I will have kits for sale so that my fellow artBLISSers can make'em, too. Leather embellishments like in these earrings are really hot and trending right now, so I'm hoping they will be popular with the attendees.

Leather Ruffle Hoops in action. Follow me on Instagram.

In addition to the earrings, I will also have lots of other goodies for sale at my demoing table. I've teamed up with my dear friends at Ornamentea.com to bring their quality products to artBLISS. I'm talking some gorgeous materials here! I'll be toting along my very favorite fibers and beads from their selection. Here's just a smattering of the yummy bits and baubles I'll have at my table:

 Fibers and beads courtesy of Ornamentea.com will be available for sale at artBLISS workshops 2013.

Plan to stop by if you are in the Washington, D.C. area. 

Hope to see you there!

Submissions for Jewelry Stringing Spring 2014

Hello! It's my Studio Saturday day over at the Art Bead Scene blog. Hop on over there for a chance to win an Irish Waxed Linen Cord Color Mix from the Jewelry Accord shop. Right now, I'm working on magazine submissions. Today, I invite you inside my studio to take a sneak peek at the materials I'm creating with for the Spring 2014 issue of Jewelry Stringing Magazine! It's time to submit jewelry designs for next year's Spring issue, now. And yep, I'm actually sharing with you exactly what I'm working on for the pieces I plan to submit to the magazine. That might seem kinda crazy, but I embrace the idea of freely sharing information that might help someone else find success in getting jewelry published. I thought it'd be fun to do a little show and tell to give you a glimpse inside my process. I hope this information will help other designers feel more confident about creating jewelry for publication. Getting your jewelry published can be a tricky thing. Personally, I find that challenge fun! There's absolutely no guarantee that anything I make will be selected. All I can do is try my best to follow the magazine's guidelines, let the themes and color palettes provided inspire the ideas for my designs and stay true to my own style, esthetic and creative process.  Jewelry Stringing is one of my all-time favorite beading magazines. I'm intrigued and captivated by the themes and color palettes the editors come up with to inspire their contributing designers. Come join me now and get a taste for what I'm working on and my process for creating jewelry pieces for this particular magazine. I hope to inspire you to work on your own creations as well and submit your designs. Jewelry Stringing provides guidelines, themes and color palettes for each one of their upcoming issues. You can find the full details and guidelines for submission here. I've provided some of the information for the Spring 2014 issue here in this post. The first theme and color palette for Spring 2014 is "Soft Jewelry". (The following description is taken from the guidelines on the magazine's website.) Soft Jewelry

Leather, ribbon, cord, thread, embroidery floss, and fabric are most commonly used as stringing materials and structural components in jewelry pieces, but they also lend themselves to creative and compelling focal elements. Submissions in this category will range in style, but they should all include fibers, textiles, or leather as a prominent design feature. Consider highlighting these materials through techniques like knotting, braiding, and wrapping, or incorporating current trends like fringe or tassels into your designs. See their Pinterest inspiration board for this palette at: http://pinterest.com/stringingmag/soft-jewelry-spring-2014/

So, here's what I've chosen to work with for this theme:  Sankofa trade beads, Irish waxed linen and Greek leather from Ornamentea. As you can see, I've matched up pretty well with the first two colors in the palette provided. You do not have to use all the colors in the suggested palette, but at least one color in your design should match up. I chose these African trade beads in "Teal" from Ornamentea.com. For additional color, texture and the fiber elements needed for the theme, I hand-knotted the beads on multiple strands of Irish Waxed linen cord in "Sunflower". Then, I'll pair the knotted beads with some brown Greek leather cord to complete the design. The second theme and color palette for Spring 2014 is "Spring Greens". (The following description is taken from the guidelines on the magazine's website.)

Spring Greens

If there is one color that ubiquitously represents springtime, it has to be green. Fresh leaves sprout from the trees, grass peeks out from beneath snowdrifts, and budding shoots speckle our garden beds. From subdued mossy shades to high-energy lime tones, each piece in this category will celebrate spring in all its green glory. See their Pinterest inspiration board for this palette at: http://pinterest.com/stringingmag/spring-greens-spring-2014/ Here are some materials I've chosen to use for this palette and theme:  Shimmer Floss Ribbon, Czech glass beads, Irish waxed linen and a gold button. I've got some hand-painted Shimmer Floss ribbon in "Grandma Moses" from Ornamentea.com, green, faceted Czech glass beads, Irish Waxed Linen in "Dark Forest Green" from Jewelry Accord and a matte gold button from the fabric store. For this palette, I did want to match up with as many of the green colors as I could. The hand-painted shimmer floss helps me pull quite a few of the green tones in the palette with just that one element. I'll pull in the darkest green color with the waxed linen cord. Then, I'll pair the fibers with the contrasting finish of the faceted Czech glass beads and the button for balance and interest in the piece. The third theme for Spring 2014 is "Monochromatic".  (The following description is taken from the guidelines on the magazine's website.) Monochromatic In honor of our annual color issue, we are inviting our contributors to create monochromatic pieces in the color of their choice. While creating a piece in a single color simplifies the process of selecting color-coordinated materials, it makes the other design elements of the piece more visible. Balance, proportion, and symmetry are often accomplished through clever color combinations. Without the aid of a varied palette, designers must rely on their other skills to create well-executed, interesting, and attractive jewelry. We know that you are up to the challenge, so pick a color and show us what you've got! See their Pinterest inspiration board for this section at: http://pinterest.com/stringingmag/monochromatic-spring-2014/ Below is the color I've decided to go with for monochromatic: Gray Opaque Matte size 8 seed beads from ShipWreck Beads. Yep, Gray. Might not seem too exciting. Why in the world would I choose grey out of all the beautiful colors of the rainbow? Well, the design I want to make for this category will be elegant, sophisticated  and a little bit moody. That description could not be farther from how I would describe my usual style. I've decided to go in this direction because the color and look I have in mind is a total deviation from the esthetic I would normally create. It's fun to try different styles and show some range in my work. That is very exciting to me! :) I'm going to incorporate these opaque, matte grey seed beads from ShipwreckBeads.com into my jewelry piece by stringing them on multiple strands of gray waxed linen cord. The multiple strands of these seed beads will provide texture and visual interest to a monochromatic design. Last, but not least, the fourth theme for Spring 2014 is "Bead Soup". (The following description is taken from the guidelines on the magazine's website.) Bead Soup In contrast to the previous theme, the pieces in this section will be packed with colors-the more the better! We are challenging you to use as many different colors as possible in your submissions for this category, but be careful that you aren't sacrificing cohesion or wear-ability for variety. Tip: Successful "bead soup" pieces often have a unifying characteristic that runs throughout each design (ie: consistent bead size, shape, finish or material; a repeated technique; a specific theme or motif; etc.).  See our Pinterest inspiration board for this section at: http://pinterest.com/stringingmag/bead-soup-spring-2014/ Here are some beads I pulled from my stash for this category: Seed beads from ShipWreckBeads.com and a handmade ceramic bead set by Keith O'Connor. One hank of "All Mixed Up" size 8 Czech seed beads from Shipwreck Beads and a graduated ceramic bead set from ceramic artist, Keith O'Connor. I can't think of a better way to get more colors in than these fantastic seed bead mixes! They remind me a lot of the African "Christmas" or "Love" trade beads, which would also be a great choice for this theme. If you take a look at the Pinterest board for this category above, there are images of African beadwork. So, obviously those would be an ideal selection! I hope you've enjoyed following along with me on my journey to creating jewelry for the Spring 2014 issue of Jewelry Stringing magazine. I want to inspire you with ideas that you can use in your own jewelry. If you'd like to try submitting your designs, here is the deadline information and submission guidelines you'll need to know: E-mailed pre-submissions are due September 26th, 2013; physical submissions are due October 10th, 2013. For the rest of the submissions instructions and specifics, please read through the Contributor Guidelines in their entirety here. Don't forget to leave a comment on my Art Bead Scene blog post to be entered to win the cord color mix giveaway. Thanks you! Happy Beading!