My Personal V8 Moment

You know the classic move in the V8 commercials?  The slap on your forehead that accompanies the great enlightenment and insight?

Yeah, I had one of those this weekend.

During slow moments at the show I was doing, I worked on bezeling a couple of donuts from my stash. Peyote is my usual bezel choice, but this time it felt like time to try a right angle weave bezel.

Yes, most of the seed beading world has done these. Yes, I realize that my insecurities about RAW is irrational, and can only be overcome by working through it.  And yes, I have had many previous escapades with the stitch that ended in bug-ugly projects, inappropriate language being thrown around, and frustration.

And you know what?  This time it came together like magic!  I don't know why.  I can't explain it.  Perhaps it was an early holiday miracle.

So I did two.  The photos aren't great, but here they are...

There's no telling what they'll eventually become part of , but I think the smaller one is going to get some spikes...stay tuned!

The Excavation, Part 1

Moving the studio is an enlightening process.

Okay, it's also a giant pain in the butt, but I'm a "glass half full" kinda gal.

Anyway, in the process, I've found a couple of interesting things -- half-completed projects, forgotten pieces,      etc, etc, etc...

Here's one piece I found that had been lying around, waiting for its clasp to be fabricated and woven on.

"Swirl", the newly rediscovered and completed necklace

I remember buying the focal bead in D.C. about, oh, three years ago, and working the necklace up pretty quickly after I got home again.  Why it sat unfinished for so long is one of those archaeological mysteries best left for the ages.

Anyway, it's done and completed, and ready to go to Alabama for my next show in a few weeks.

Can't wait to see what else turns up during this studio move!

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda, Resolved!

Ever have one of those "coulda, shoulda, woulda" moments?  You know, a minor, nagging regret over something you might have done but, for one reason or another, it just didn't happen?

For a long time, I've thought I'd love to add a printer's tray to my display.   Used to be that I'd see them all the time when I went to antique places, but I couldn't figure out how to fit them into my display style, especially the big trays I was seeing.  When I finally figured out a way to make them work in my display setup, for the life of me I couldn't find any.  Despite haunting the antique malls where I'd seen them in the past, there just weren't any for sale.

Coulda bought them when I found them - they weren't outrageously expensive when I saw them.  Shoulda bought them, because, hey, there they were, begging to go home with me.  Woulda bought them if I'd just trusted that the inspiration for how to use them would come to me.

My dilemma was resolved this past weekend.  Look what came home with me!

It's 10 1/2" x 17".  My vision is that rings will go in the smallest spaces, and pendants or pins will go it the others.

But first, I have to get it cleaned up a little bit (any suggestions other than Endust and lots of dust rags?  Maybe Murphy's Oil Soap?) and get some hooks put in....

The hunt may continue for more trays, but at least I've bagged my first one!

What's in Your Purse?

Today, I decided to clean out and change my purse. This is not an activity I undertake frequently or lightly, as the bottom of my purse usually resembles an archeological dig more than a proper lady's accessory.

I totally fail the Proper Southern Lady Handbag test. On an epic scale that would give Scarlett O'Hara the vapors.

Anyway, on today's excavation, even a novice archeologist could have learned that I am a beader. Here's what was left at the bottom when the wallet, cell phone, four dozen pens, three sad lip glosses, and 2,000 crumpled receipts were gone:

Please overlook the crumbs from some long-lost package of saltines I pilfered from a restaurant somewhere along the way. I told you I failed at Proper Southern Lady.

I'm not even entirely sure when or how these treasures got into my purse. But hey, it's beady treasure, so -- woohoo!

Drunk on Soup

Have you been Bead Soup-ing?

Do you know what Bead Soup is?

If you do, then you know exactly what I mean. I've spent many happy hours over the past week, getting bleary eyed and incredibly inspired, enjoying the beading creativity of 210 artists. The list of blogs I'm following has exploded.

And if you don't know what I'm talking about, get thee to Lori Anderson's Pretty Things blog, http://www.lorianderson.blogspot.com/ and check it out. You'll be glad you did.

What a fabulous idea. What a great way to spend several hours, filling up on eye candy (watch me mix those food metaphors!), reading blogs, finding new artists to enjoy.

It sent me back to the bead table with a renewed sense of fun and possibility. Last night, I tackled a project that's been sitting, partially done and taunting me, for weeks.

So if you were part of the Bead Soup Blog Party, thank you for sharing your artistry, your creativity, and your sense of humor.

And look for me in August, when I hope to be swimming in the soup with everyone else!

Daily Inspiration

Most artists and crafters I've had the privilege of knowing have certain things in common. A drive to create. A sense of fun and discovery, and often, a wicked sense of humor. A wonderful smile that comes over their faces when they think of a new box of 64 Crayola crayons. A stash of unfinished projects, lurking somewhere in their house, waiting for that elusive spare time to be taken back up...

And then there's the love and appreciation of the work of other artists' work.

Eye candy. Food for the creative soul. Recharge of the inspirational battery.

Need a little jolt of your creative juices? Here's a great site I stumbled on a couple of months ago:
Daily Art Muse.

Check it out. You'll be wowed. You'll be excited. You'll be stunned. But you will never be bored. And guaranteed, you'll want to run right to your work table and make something.

Enjoy!