They're Here!

Wow -- I was taken by surprise this morning.  Holy smokes!  The Best Little Bead Box(es) showed up on my doorstep while I was indulging in my morning coffee.  And my day is full - I've had too much work to do on my tech job to dive into those boxes.  But this evening... oh, this evening is going to be glorious!  Stay tuned for a first-hand account of what's making its way around the country...

In other news, I've listed two new beads in my Etsy shop.  I'm hung up on flowers these days - maybe because my back yard desperately needs a face lift.  :-O

Well, I'm heading back to tech land - YOU go have yourselves a happy and creative day!

Hiatus is Over!

Rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated.  I took a much-needed break from the blogosphere, but I'm back - happy and, hopefully healthy!

What a busy summer I had, making stuff for my Etsy shops, selling at shows, teaching classes, working and travelling for my high-tech job, and taking care of my declining mom who has Alzheimer's.  Phew!

I signed up for the Bead Journal Project, and only made it through April.  I signed up for a creative drawing class and didn't get through that either.  I think I'm going to have to stop signing up for things until my life calms down a bit (hmmm... maybe that will be in my NEXT life.).  However, I DID sign up for a project that has me really excited.  See that new logo on the right side of my blog page?  It's the Best Little Bead Box project to benefit the Beads of Courage program.  You can read the inaugural post HERE to find out exactly what this project is.  Then follow along on the Best Little Bead Box Blog  -or-  follow along on Facebook - to see what leaves the box and what's being added.  Then stay tuned to find out how you can win win win!  It's going to be a dream stash, for sure!

Here's a preview of what I'm going to put in the box.

This doesn't include any of my lampwork - that will be a  surprise until I actually make it this weekend.  And I haven't finished raiding my own stash yet.  When it's my turn to fill the box, the Best Little Bead Box Blog will have much better pix of my additions to the treasure chest!

And now I'm heading back to tech land.  It's nice to be back here chatting with you folks!  And a big THANK YOU to all of you who came to see me at the ISGB Bead Bazaar in Rochester, NY as well as those of you who cheered me up at B.A.B.E.!  Soon I'll be adding more fiber to my diet... ah, I mean, my Etsy shop.  Stick with me, people!

Now go have yourselves a happy and creative day!

An Adorable Giveaway!

Do you like giveaways?  I've been lucky a couple of times with blog giveaways, and I just found out today that bird on wire is having one!  From now through July 25 at 5:00 p.m., leave a comment on that giveaway thread, and you will be entered in a drawing for the cutest little needle-felted barn owl this side of paradise!

These days, I've been really taken with birds.  I have a vessel in my Etsy shop with a bird on it by Humble Beads.  And when I was at the Bead & Button show, I purchased two raku birds by odd designs.  Later today, I'll be making a vessel for one of those raku birds - I've already designed the piece in my head, and made a lampwork bead to go with it.  This one will be somewhat different from my other vessels.  When I saw her birds at the show, a picture popped into my head and now it's time to execute that design - yeah!  I just came back from the eye doctor and the good news is that he didn't dilate my eyes today.  So now I can spend some time in the wet lab and actually see what I'm doing.

Here's the bird from odd designs that will go on my next vessel.

Speaking of raku, I recently finished a vessel on which I used a raku bead from Lisa Peters Art.  Here's my little dottie vessel...

And now I'm off to Starbucks for a quick iced tea before I hit the lab.  Hope YOU folks have a happy and creative day!

Birdsong...

I've just finished another vessel - now that it's almost summer, I figured that I'd better get a spring project under way.  Awhile ago, I purchased these wonderful little clay bird beads from Heather Powers of Humble Beads. I knew that I would use them on some of my vessels, but I really didn't have anything specific in mind.  This vessel was not planned ahead of time - it evolved as I was making it.  With all these pastel colors, it really feels like spring to me!  The pastels are a bit of a departure for me - usually if I'm going to work with pastels, I incorporate some much darker contrast in there somewhere.  But I decided to keep this one light, and I'm really glad that I did.  Here's my latest piece... "Birdsong".  I put it up for sale in my Etsy shop, but I do plan on bringing it to the Bead & Button Show with me if it hasn't been grabbed before then.

I had birds on my mind a lot while I was working on this piece.  So while I was out on Etsy, I decided that I had to create a few treasuries.  I included a bird in the first treasury and was so enchanted with birds that I ended up creating a treasury that I called "Birdsong", like my vessel.

Rust... With a Touch of Patina Treasury

Birdsong Treasury

And now I am off to the torch.  I have to try and make beads today or else my trays at the Bead & Button Show will be completely empty!  Now you go and have yourselves a happy and creative day!

Friday Favorites

Ah yes, Friday is here already. How did THAT happen? I've been wanting to get out to my glass lab to make beads, but my other commitments have kept me from doing so. Tomorrow I'll be at a glass studio in San Mateo, CA so I'm sure I'll get in some torch time there. It's the montly meeting of our Society of Glass Beadmakers of Northern California, where we gather for chit chat, sharing of our beads, great demos, and great food.

But right now, I'm going to present you with this week's Friday Favorites. Today's color scheme is called "adobe arizona desert pop" - now there's a mouth full! It's a scheme I'm very familiar with, since I love nature as well as autumn. When I lived in Connecticut, autumn was my favorite season - the cool crisp air with warm sunshine beating down on my back, the smell of crunchy fallen leaves, hot apple cider - OK, enough with the reminiscing. Here are the colors, along with my favorite picks. I've included the names of the shops whose items I've listed, from left to right.  Enjoy your shopping trip!

1.  tattoo dreams
2.  OrganiCeramic




3.  golly bard
4.  Mary Williams Photography



5.  Luster
6.  Tocadora Leather




7.  Beads 4 You
8.  the Mincing Mockingbird




9.  Portland Fiber Gallery
10. ReClaim2Fame








Here are some items I've made that fit into today's scheme.  I think I'm going to have to revisit this color scheme out in my wet lab - I need more of that bright yellow/orange pop!

And that wraps up the first part of my Friday. Now go have a happy and creative day!

Catching Up on Friday Favorites

I've been so busy - or out of town - that I've missed posting my Friday Favorites for the last 2 weeks. But I'm back, and here they are. If you're new here, it works like this. The little Google gizmo way down at the bottom of the page gives you a new color scheme every time you refresh or re-enter the page. I've decided to use it on Fridays to find Etsy items that catch my eye and match the first color scheme I encounter on Friday. I also check to see if I've made items that fit into that color scheme. Today's color scheme is called "autumn maple final". I'm not sure what the "final" part of that means, but here are the colors. And underneath that is the group of items that I just love! The shop names correspond to the pictures from left to right.  Have a happy shopping trip!

1.  MarcusBerknerJewelry
2.  GingaSquid




3.  nutmegdesigns
4.  AlchemicMuse




5.  Botanic2Ceramic
6.  shixie



7.  FreshMetal
8.  happylake



9.  AdornMeJewelry
10. BitsyKnits









Here are some items I've made that include colors in today's scheme.

1. Dawn Necklace, 2. Forest Vessel, 3. Pink Poppy Slider, 4. Bog Bead, 5. Garden Vessel, 6. Rose Bracelet

OK, it's lunch time - I'm outta here. Now, YOU go have a happy and creative day!

Time Got Away From Me!

If you're looking for my OWOH post, it's HERE.  And I've had so many comments on it that I've added a 3rd giveaway item - go check it out!

Wow, this last week or so has been a strange one.  I was supposed to have been down in LA last week for a 3-day business meeting.  I did a bit of scrambling to get stuff done before I was to leave on Tuesday.  On Monday evening I got a phone call telling me that the trip had to be postponed due to illness.  I was teaching a class when I got the call - when I got home that night I did a bunch of schedule rearranging and now here I am, needing to get a bunch of stuff done before I head down to LA on Tuesday.  Deja-vu all over again!

Since I was home I managed to do a bunch of project "stuff".  I completed the little vessel I was beading, and it's in my Etsy shop.  Here's my Tropicana Vessel.

The color on the beadwoven collar really pops!  I've often been asked whether I make the bead - usually a leaf bead - to go with the vessel or if I make the vessel to go with the bead.  I made this vessel based entirely on the leaf.  Sometimes I make a leaf to go with a vessel.  And other times, it's just serendipity - I make a vessel and happen to have the perfect bead to go with it!

I've made a tiny bit of progress on my Bead Journal January Vessel.  I plan on taking it and my beads down to LA with me in case I have time in the evenings to work on it.  Here's the latest addition.

I'm finding that I bit off a lot more than I can chew on this one - way too ambitious!  I think February's vessel will be a bit lower key in the beading department.  But I think part of the issue is all the things I have going on in my life right now.  I'm working on another felting project that's been very time-consuming and it has a deadline!  All of the wet-felted parts are done now - I just have to make some glass objects to go with it, then assemble the piece.  I can't show it to you yet - it's a special project that I'll talk about more at a later time.

If you know anything about my work, you know that I love trees and leaves.  I take mom to Starbucks fairly often during the week.  There's a tree that I can see way at the end of the parking lot when we sit in the window, and it caught my eye awhile back.  I'm going to use it for inspiration - maybe on a felted item, maybe on a bead... maybe both!  Here's the tree - you just might see something like it showing up in one of my Etsy shops.  (I think I'll leave off the BevMo sign, though...)

And now I'm going to go add more beads to my BJP January Vessel while I'm plunked down in front of the Grammy Awards.  Have yourselves a happy and creative week!

Journal Progress and Friday Favorites

Ah yes, it's Friday again - already!!  I did manage to make a bit of progress on my January journal page for the Bead Journal Project.  These are the colors I've chosen for the vessel.  I mean, hey, it's January.  And rumor has it that we're going to get smacked with 4 major storms over the next several days .  These colors look pretty stormy to me.

And here's the first layer of fiber.

As I build the layers, I'll blend the lines between the colors a bit so that they aren't quite as distinct.  It will be a bit challenging because I'm using different types of fibers.  Some colors are Merino wool, another is Harrisville fleece, and another is Columbia/Lincoln.  I can't wait to see how this one turns out!

And since it's Friday, I consulted Google's little "Random Color Scheme" that appears at the bottom of my posts and found some Etsy items that I just love!  Today's color scheme is called "spruce blue", and under that is a group of items I found that fit into that scheme.  The shop names correspond to the pictures from left to right.  Enjoy your shopping trip!

1.  Sand Fibers
2.  Do-Rah! Designs



3.  Artisan Clay
4.  Lucky Lather Soaps



5.  Joolz by Lisa
6.  The Millinery Shop



7.  JMN Pottery
8.  lisa peters ART



9.  frank IDEAS
10. house of beci





Here are some pieces that I've done that have some hints of that color scheme.  Perhaps the next color scheme that comes up on the little color inspiration gadget will send me off in a direction I haven't pursued yet.

Now it's time for me to get a start on my other Friday activities.  And it's time for you to go have a happy and creative day!

Friday Favorites

See that little gizmo down at the bottom of the page?  The one that says "Random Color Scheme".  I've decided to use it in several different ways.  I enjoy looking at folks' Etsy treasuries, I often find new favorite artisans.  Today I used the random color scheme gadget to find some Etsy items that caught my eye.  This is the color scheme that was on my blog when I first came out here today, called Boysenberry.  And underneath that is the group of items I found in this color scheme that I wouldn't mind seeing in my mailbox.  I've included the names of the shops whose items I've listed, from left to right.

1.  Butterfly Girl Designs
2.  WondersMohair



3.  Suus Keramiek
4.  jd wolfe pottery



5.  Prince Design UK
6.  Fired and Fused



7.  Madeleine's Mud Pie Studio
8.  tago Design & Crafts



9.  Jamn Glass
10. Goldspun Designs





Perhaps I'll use this color scheme to inspire my next creation - although it seems that I've made quite a few items that are similar to this group of colors.

1. Kimberly's Vessel Side 1, 2. Sonoma Vessel Side 1, 3. Twig Pin, 4. Raku Vessel

While I ponder on my next color scheme, I'm going to put together a bit of late lunch.  Now, YOU go have a happy and creative day!

Some Nuno, Some Treasuries, and a Whole Lotta Shakin'

Quite some time ago I went on a "girls' day out" trip with a couple of my friends.  We ended up in San Francisco at a fascinating place where you can drop off "stuff" that you no longer want that could be used for artsy kinds of projects.  You can also fill up a shopping bag with "stuff" that catches your eye for some of your own projects, and when you check out you'll be amazed at how little money you've spent.  I came home with various sorts of trinkets along with a length of fabric that I would never have given a second look before I started felting.  The fabric is synthetic, is very stretchy, and has a very open weave to it.  And it cost me less than a buck - how could I resist?  I decided that before I spend a large time investment working with it, I'd make a sample piece to see how it works as a base for nuno felting.  My sample ended up being a bit larger than I had anticipated, and I like it so much that I'm going to wear it as a collar, or scarflet if you will, so now I need to make some kind of felted brooch to pin it together in the center.  Here's the test piece that for me passed with flying colors (pun intended).

The reddish colored fibers are alpaca and this was the first time I had ever used alpaca in a project.  It's very interesting - the fibers are very long, and the straight ones really migrated a lot over the surface of the piece.  I'm quite excited about using this stuff in a vessel now!

Well, I've done it once more. Life has gotten in the way of me keeping on top of the Etsy treasuries in which my work has appeared.  Without further ado, here they are - going back in time quite a bit!

tootsytwo included my Embers Felted Vessel in her lovely treasury "Ashen Embers".

Thank you Tootsy Two! Be sure to visit her store to see her vintage items and hand-crafted works such as this lovely "Mini Quilt Art".

 enchantedbeas included my Showy Autumn Leaf Bead in her lovely treasury "COLORS (2)".

Thank you Enchanted Bitz! Be sure to visit her store to see her whimsical jewelry creations such as these sweet "Poppy Love Earrings".  They work quite well with the COLOR theme of her treasury!

vilte included my Aqueous Fossil Bead in her lovely treasury "Peonies and stars".

Thank you VK Felt! Be sure to visit her store to see her fabulous felt work such as her "Treasure" felted cuff.  I'd wear this in a heartbeat!

This morning as I was sitting in my office catching up on the happenings with my Facebook friends, the house gave a sudden hard jolt, the windows started rattling, and then the whole room was shaking.  It had been quite awhile since I had felt an earthquake and it sure took me by surprise!  It wasn't bad, only a 4.1 on the Richter scale, but it was centered rather close to my house.  It felt as if my chair was going to go through the floor!  Here's where it happened, on the Calaveras fault right near the Calaveras dam.  That's about 10 miles or so from my house.  Ka-boom!

After that incident, I really didn't need a 2nd cup of coffee!

Speaking of coffee, I'm about to head out for a Starbucks break, then back to my accounting work.  You folks go have a happy and creative day!

Assets and Tax Law and Whiskers On Kittens...

Now THERE'S a title for you, eh? I've been back in the world of high-tech, revisiting a subject area that I was intimately familiar with many years ago. In order to be most productive I've been doing research into what has been added to the tax laws since I left that product. But that's not why you're here...

Whiskers on kittens being among my favorite things - well actually, whiskers on puppies - I'll now get on with the "favorite things" part of my post. I haven't created the raindrops on roses, but since leaves are definitely up there on my list of favorite things, that's where I put the raindrops.

Here are pix of my latest leaf beads, which I just listed in my Etsy shop.

I'm also offering FREE SHIPPING on all of my beads and jewelry in my Jumping Jack Glass Etsy shop. How's that for a holiday treat?!

Tonight is the opening gala for the Holiday Show/Sale at the Olive Hyde Art Gallery in my home town. I have several items in the show, and I'm hoping that some of them will find new homes. I worked very hard putting everything together, so tonight I'm just going to enjoy munching, sipping, schmoozing, and admiring the work of all the participating artists. What fun!

But now, for me it's back to tax stuff and accounting. For you... go have yourselves a happy and creative day!

Catching Up Once Again

In my prior post, I showed you a picture of the latest vessel that I made with a promise of better pix of it to come. I never had a chance to get anymore pictures - I sold the vessel over the weekend. But I just about finished embellishing another one and I have plans for a new one roaming around in my brain.

The weekend before this last one, I taught a bead making class on Saturday at BAGI. Here's a picture of me doing a demo as a student watches. This picture was taken by one of my students with her phone (why it's fuzzy...). Not only do I NOT wear fashionable didymium glasses, they're the first didyms I ever bought. In true geek style, the left bow has tape on it.

During that class I showed the students a technique that I've been using for almost 10 years. While they were making their beads, a picture popped into my mind and the following Monday I went out to my studio and started creating my vision in glass. I've had some drawings of petroglyphs and pictographs on my work table for a couple of years but I never did anything with them. I just wasn't sure what the entire bead should look like. I now have 5 of them in my Etsy shop! I brought them all to the bead show with me over the weekend and they were a big hit. Some have new homes. Here's my version of rock art, in bead form. All but 1 have designs on the back as well, but you'll have to go to my shop to see them.

On a completely different note, this week I took the plunge and started a new contract job back in the world of software development. I'm excited about it, and I also realize that my creative time will be that much more precious. I have a gallery show coming up shortly for which I must prepare, I have to create a piece for an auction for the place where I teach bead making, there's a holiday ornament show for which I must make some pieces, and there's another opportunity to put my artwork for sale in a small gallery kiosk at our airport. So now I'm going to take a deep breath and get back to work.

Have yourselves a happy and creative day!

Minimal Embellishments

When I make felted vessels, I'm so tempted to deck them out with all sorts of embellishments. But sometimes less is a good thing. This is one of my recent vessels that I planned on embellishing. I even had the seed beads all picked out for the rim. After I added my lampwork disk beads to the vessel I decided to stop. It took a bit to hold me back - the seed beads were the perfect color for the vessel - but after a lengthy conversation with myself, I handed the vessel over to be photographed. It's now in my Etsy shop - no turning back! :-)

Today I was going to spend the whole day on the torch, but I decided to do some felting instead. It's the last day of the "Shibori Autumn" challenge on the Working With Felt online community, so shibori felt is it. I've never done this before so who knows what will come out of my machine. I'm just hoping that it will be suitable for the project I have in mind. Stay tuned...

Now go have yourselves a happy and creative day!

The Story of the Broken Vase

"A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...."

Actually, it was December of 2002 in the galaxy of Connecticut. I was visiting my mom - she still lived back there at the time - and I decided that I needed to get out by myself for a bit. I went into a West Hartford shop that was part boutique, part glass art gallery, and of course I headed straight for the glass. The gallery was arranged rather strangely; in the center of the room there were 4 rows of pedestals of varying heights with a space between the 2 center rows so that you could walk completely around the group of pedestals. Each pedestal supported a piece or two of glass art. However, there weren't any signs or cards that identified the artist of each piece, or the price for that matter. There was a vessel on the "inside" row of pedestals that I was interested in. Here's a very crude sketch of the section of the gallery that interested me. (I know, I should stick to glass and fiber art rather than drawing...)

The vessel was so lovely that I had already decided that if the price was right, I'd bring it back to California with me. Now... notice the 2 tall vases on the pedestal to the left and in front of the object of my desire. Next, notice the shallow bowl to the left of the 2 vases. And lastly, remember that this was December in Connecticut. Cold! Brrrrrr! Big winter coat! I think you're getting the drift...

I put my purse down and reached in to lift up the piece I wanted to purchase. (hmmm... that's a lot of p's.) Anyhow, as I reached in I felt the left side of my coat brush up against something. When I looked to the left, I saw the tall vase rocking and I panicked. Instinctively, I grabbed it with my left hand and was so relieved that it didn't fall. Unfortunately, I didn't grab it soon enough to keep it from hitting the identical top-heavy vase next to it. That vase took a nose dive directly onto the shallow bowl on the low pedestal next to it, taking out most of the top portion of the vase, the right side of the bowl and a corner of the mirrored glass top on the pedestal.

My heart went into my throat as I slowly sank to the floor to pick up the pieces, while dollar signs floated through my mind's eye. The gal who was working there came over to help and she thanked me for not running out of the shop. I gave her a quizzical look, and she told me that they had had several incidents over the years in which people had broken their glass art and hightailed it out the door. That should have been a red flag for me. We took the pieces up to the register counter and then she called the shop owner. After a brief phone conversation, she wrote up a receipt and presented me with the bill. Holy smokes! I guess it could have been a lot worse. I never even thought to question why their insurance didn't cover it, I was just too shaken by the mishap. She wrapped up the pieces and put them into a bag, then asked me if I wanted them. Well for cryin' out loud - I just paid $425 for a pile of broken glass, I wasn't going to leave it there.

Ouch...

Needless to say, I came home with a broken vase, 2/3 of a shallow bowl, and various small pieces of glass while the object of my desire remained in that little shop of horrors in West Hartford, Connecticut. And that's the story of the broken vase.

Here's the vase after it was coldworked a bit. There's still more work to do on it, but I'm not going to spend a whole bunch of time with it. It was a good hunk of glass to use as practice.

In the picture it looks like black glass encased in crystal but it's actually a beautiful deep blue/purple glass encased in crystal and partially sandblasted. And here's the remaining portion of the bowl that I inadvertently purchased.

The pattern was created by masking it and then sandblasting the bowl. I'm thinking that if I saw, grind, and polish the broken edge I can use it to create a wall sconce. You know, when life give you lemons...

In other news, I have a treasury to show you in which my work was featured. This goes back a bit - I'm just now catching up.

spindriftstudio included my Summer Garden Felted Vessel in her lovely treasury "Summer Fiber Magic".

Thank you Gigi! Be sure to visit her store to see her works in fiber such as this beautiful wall hanging "The Wonder of Tulips". This would have been a perfect addition to her treasury!

And that wraps up today's stories. Tomorrow I'll be cleaning the studio where I teach bead making, then perhaps some work in the wet lab. Have yourselves a happy and creative day!

Before I Say Good Night...

I wanted to show you the finished "Raku" vessel. This is the vessel that I made to go with the lovely raku beads that I purchased from MAKUstudio. I ended up using only one of the beads. I kept going back and forth about whether or not I should use either of the other beads and finally decided that less is more. I already have a plan for the other two beads!

This vessel as well as my "Zen" vessel are now available for purchase in my Etsy shop - Flames & Fiber. Gosh, it's really hard to part with both of these - my newest babies. But if I kept all of my favorite creations, I'd have to move into a warehouse!

And now I'm off to get a good night's sleep - my ocean project is calling me, and it's huge!

Have yourselves a happy and creative week ahead!

"I Love a Parade...

... the tramping of feet, I love every beat I hear of a drum."

Here's to a happy Independence Day weekend to all my fellow US citizens - and a happy July 4th weekend to everyone!

I spent my July 4th in a parade. Yep, that's right - my friend Sharon, her step daughter and I got all "duded up" and rode in the Mayor's Fourth of July Parade in Alameda, CA.

Here we are just getting underway... can you guess which one I am? Check out this car, will ya! A cherry 1960 Chrysler Imperial...

Here we are waving our feathers at the crowd.

Still haven't guessed which one of these dames is Shirley? hmmm...

So back to the world of glass and fiber... I've finished up a few more vessels, and I'll have the "raku" vessel complete this evening.

Here's the vessel that I made as a sample for the kits that I sold at the Bead & Button Show. I decided that I didn't want a nekkid vessel, so now it's wearing "jewelry".

And here is the vessel that was inspired by the Chihuly pieces in his "Basket" series. It has a bit of a Zen feel to me. I've embellished both sides of the vessel, and it will be going into my Etsy shop in a bit.

I haven't gotten very far on my ocean piece. Here's what's on my work table out in the wet lab...

I've cut out some templates and rolled up a few balls of wool. Tomorrow I'm going to try and make some serious headway on this project. A few more ideas have been floating around in my head since I started looking at my inspiration pictures, and I think it will be fun!

Oh, and if you're still wondering which of those crazy feather- and tiara-clad gals is me, well... we won "3rd Place Vehicle" in the parade, and here I am holding the trophy! (and no, I really don't have red hair...)

Now go have yourselves a happy and creative weekend!