Bead Hoarders Blog Party - The Reveal!

All beaders have those beads that they just can't let go of, and that they just can't bring themselves to make something with. Beader's block? Fear of not creating something that lives up to the beauty of the bead? Just the dragon-like tendency to amass a collection of shiny things? Whatever it is, we all have those hoarded beads in our collections, just waiting to be pulled out and used.

Lori Anderson to the rescue! She created another one of her legendary bead swaps, but this time the only rule was to send a bead we'd hoarded, along with a story of why it's important to us.

My fabulous partner Kathy Lindemer sent me a gorgeous handmade ceramic donut by Diana Ptaszynski of Suburban Girl Studios. Kathy said she loves Suburban Girl beads because they often have a nautical feel, and the blues and greens that she uses are colors Kathy enjoys using in her jewelry. They are pretty delicious colors, aren't they? Along with the ceramic bead was a lovely length of blue satin cording and a clasp that Kathy made herself.  If you'd like to see the whole package, go here.

How did I know this was a perfect hoarded bead for me? Because it was a perfect match for some seed beads that I'd been hoarding...blue transparent green-lined lovelies that I hadn't found the right way to use, until now. They were absolutely the perfect match for the shades of green and blue on the donut.

I wanted to stay pretty minimal with my design, to focus attention on Kathy's bead. A herringbone rope with superduos, miniduos, and tiny crystals, undulating from small to large and back again, echoing the large to small decoration Diana used on the donut. 

A lariat style allows the focal bead to stay front and center, and the fringe has one, two, or three tiny crystals at the ends both to add sparkle and, again, echo the larger/smaller dimples on the donut.

But wait, there's more! I couldn't pass up using Kathy's clasp and that luscious blue cording. Again, a simple design to focus on the lovely components used - this time I used a pendant I made with seed beads and two-holed triangles. Easy peasy, just right for spring (if it ever gets here and stays here!)

Thanks for visiting, and huge thanks to Kathy for sharing such a beautiful bead with me. I hope I did it proud for you.

Now, go treat yourself to the eye candy created by others in this swap party. The full list is HERE. Enjoy!

Bead Hoarder Swap - My Partner and What She Sent!

There's nothing like a beading challenge to kick your creative juices into high gear. And considering that over the past year my creative juices have been tucked way, WAY in the back of my brain, I appreciate all the creative kicks in the pants I can get.

So, when Lori Anderson announced a new bead swap blog party, I was ready to jump in. And this time, we were to give our partner a bead we've hoarded for ourselves. What a terrific idea!

And I was so lucky to be paired with Kathy Lindemer of Bay Moon Design. I've admired Kathy's work as part of the ZNetShows design team, and one of her necklaces was just featured on the Art Bead Scene blog.

Many of Kathy's pieces have an element of nature - flowers or plants or animals. Her work exudes a wonderful serenity that I find really appealing:

Wanna see what she sent me for the swap?  It's yummy!

Kathy sent a beautiful little box, complete with a card she had made (creative lady!). And under the card was a spectacular ceramic bead by Suburban Girl Studios, complemented by a length of delicious blue silk cording and one of Kathy's handcrafted clasps. The ideas are burbling up already!

The box was so cute, decorated with washi tape, that I almost didn't want to mess it up by opening it.
Almost.

Kathy's handmade card

And the beautiful surprises inside!

Thank you, Kathy! I can't wait to get started!

Anchors Aweigh - The Reveal

The lovely and wonderfully talented Rita of Toltec Jewels came up with a great opportunity to showcase the talents of artist Diana Ptaszynski of Suburban Girl Studio, challenging a group of us to create jewelry based on her adorable anchor beads.  Cute, cute, cute!

(Caution - bad nautical themed puns may follow.  I apologize in advance.)

Several ideas came, and mercifully sank into the depths of oblivion before they could catch wind and sail too far. But then freeform peyote came to my rescue and gave me a way to add the flavor of waves and water, with lots of oceanic shades of blue ranging from deepest blue to the white/blue of sea froth.

It occurred to me today that the earrings are a good metaphor for the past three months. Lots of things in my life have kind of been at loose ends, drifting as if at sea (if you want to torture the comparison.) With uncertainty on lots of fronts, life has been a bit freeform, turning in unexpected directions and certainly not symmetrical or predictable.

As soon as I finished the earrings, one of major uncertainties in my life was resolved. So I'm going to look at these earrings as a talisman for smoother sailing and calmer seas ahead.

Thanks to Rita for setting up a fun challenge, and thanks to Diana for her artistry, which was a great source of inspiration.  Please sit right back and take a (three hour?!?) cruise through the rest of the creations made by the other participants.  Bon voyage!

Featured & Honored Artist:           Diana Ptaszynski

Diana's Shop:                           Suburban Girl Beads

Diana's Blogs:                          Suburban Girl Studio

                                                  Art Jewelry Elements

Hostess: TJ                               Jewel School Friends

Bobbie Rafferty                        Beadsong Jewelry (you're here!)

Chris Eisenberg                        Wanderware

Heather Richter                        Desert Jewelry Designs

Michelle McCarthy                  Firefly Design Studio

Kathy Lindemer                       Bay Moon Design

Dini Bruinsma                          Angaza by Changes

Cynthia Machata                      Antiquity Travelers

Kathleen Breeding                    99 Bottles of Beads on the Wall

Linda Younkman                      Lindy's Designs

Robin Reed                               Artistry HCBD

Marla Gibson                            Spice Box Designs

Gina Hockett                             Freestyle Elements

Renetha Stanziano                     Lamplight Crafts

Marianne Baxter                        Simply Seablime Jewelry        

Christina Miles                          Wings N Scales

Marybeth Rich                          A Few Words from Within the Pines

Shai Williams                           Shaiha's Ramblings

Cheri Reed                                Creative Designs by Cheri

Monique Urquhart                     A Half-Baked Notion

Jennifer Reno                            Musings of a Crafty Jenny

Shirley Moore                           Beads and Bread

Tammy Adams                          Paisley Lizard

Melissa Trudinger                      Bead Recipes
Jill Bradley                                 JillyBeads