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Thursday, November 30, 2017

You're in my Heart

Hello Everyone! Here we are at the end of November, gearing up for Christmas and all that goes with it. No matter what the negatives may be, Christmas is undoubtedly the one time of year that brings a more active sense of Love that isn't as strongly present throughout the rest of the year. People seem to experience and express more Joy, more Kindness. Not the "buy her a diamond" kind of kindness we get from TV commercials, but genuine expressions of kindness, giving, caring. I guess it's up to each of us individually to keep it going the rest of the time. 💖






I was definitely feeling Christmas 🎄 when I put these earrings together. Petra Carpreau's gorgeous Gold Filigree Heart ceramic components were such a great canvas to work with! That's ScorchedEarthOnEtsty. 😊 The "cap" is two separate pieces. The bottom piece is part of the Lotus Cap from FallenAngelBrass. The tops are a pair of caps I've been holding onto for a few years, purchased from a Destash, and this was the design for them. Creamy Pearls and tiny oxidized brass beads, all wrapped in deeply oxidized copper wire finishes the design. 

I hope you have a great time as the next few weeks fly by! 

Happy Days!
norbel
SheFliesAgain


Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Holiday Ferris Wheel Earrings


I've had fun making, what I call, my Ferris Wheel ceramic components, in a variety of color combinations.  So I thought, "Why not see how they look in holiday colors?".
So I made one pair with a green background and one pair with a red background.  The green background pair sold at Bead Fest and the other pair became the earrings you see here.
Gold always feels festive during the holidays, so I paired the ceramic dangles with gold plated beads and some satin finish, red "o-beads".
I will have these for sale at a show I'm doing this weekend, but if they don't sell, I'll be adding them to my shop. Do you like to wear holiday themed jewelry or not so much.  Let me know in the comments.



Monday, November 27, 2017

Home Sweet Home

Here we are on the brink of December with thoughts of friends and family, visiting and gift giving. I spent a long weekend visiting my husband's and my family for Thanksgiving. 'Home' and 'house' and 'family' were words that came up with every place we travelled.

I love house beads. Home and family, love and great memories all wrapped up together in a little bead. I decided to try making my own version in polymer clay. I am quite delighted with how they turned out.



I grew up in a little white house with a grey roof that is now over a hundred years old. My mom has lived there all her life and I lived there till I headed off to collage. This little house isn't the exact copy of my parent's house but I do get happy when I look at it.



I thought of making earrings with them and adding little key charms but I wasn't satisfied and kept digging through my beads stash. When I found these grey wooden paddles from Smitten Beads UK it just clicked.


















My little house was right at home on
that grey wooden paddle. So I dug some more. A Czech leaf with greens and reds and shimmery red peanuts all from my boxes of goodies from Smitten Beads UK finished my design perfectly.











Going home...trying to recapture good memories and building brand new memories for my two children in that white house with the grey roof is priceless. May all your visits with family this coming holiday season be happy, too.

 
Till next time,
Jetta 

Friday, November 24, 2017

All stacked up

Hello, hope all my American friends had a lovely Thanksgiving. 
So today's post is all about stacking up components which I have been doing a lot lately...maybe too much :D.  

Here's the group shot of my latest.


I used these beautiful lampwork drops by Australian artist Fiona Horne (I'm having trouble adding Fiona's facebook link here, look up Rhino Glass Beads on FB to find her).  Stacked up on top are my painted brass cones, silver plated brass caps, glass flowers


For this pair I used antiqued brass pins with painted brass cones, caps, claws and glass beads.



I've used brass pins again for the 3rd pair, topped by my painted cones, silver and raw brass caps and glass beads.  


These will be available from my Etsy shop soon.

That is all for this week.  See you again soon.

Suhana 

My Etsy shop: Buttoned Up Beads


Thursday, November 23, 2017

Thankfulness


As I write this, on the day before Thanksgiving Day in the U.S., I'd like to share a new pair of earrings with you but also take a minute to thank all the many wonderful and varied artists who've made the beautiful



beads, charms, and other elements I've been privileged to turn into handmade jewelry over the years.  Just as I was drawn to the beauty they created, I hope I've been able to create some beauty in return.  

These new earrings are clearly a study in blue!  Lampwork artist Beth Mellor of Beeboo made all three sets of beads, in three shades of blue.  I love the beautiful streaky hollow beads that I recently bought from her, and the little heishi-like beads in a slightly darker shade.  I added to the stack of blues another gorgeous pair of Beth's rondelles that I'd had for a while, smaller, in a rich darker blue.    




I had a blast painting artist Kelly Luttrell's beautiful rustic pewter charms several different shades of blue, and then I wrapped everything together with lightly oxidized sterling silver wire and hung them from matching ear wires. 



One more thing.  I'm also grateful to everyone at Earrings Everyday for the friendship and the welcome I've always felt here.

I'll see you all next month!  💗

xoxo
Meridy
My shop
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Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Metal Guru.

Hello folks! Hope I find you all well. It's been a  busy week so far with three out of my four grandchildren succumbing to a sicky bug that's had me running around with not much time to make. So if you think your eyesight is a little blurry - no - I left it  a bit too late to take my pictures today and the light was disappearing fast, so it's the pictures, not you!

This week I thought I'd introduce you to a new venture for my friend Helen Backhouse. She's begun to work with metal clay - silver, bronze and copper - and the results are beautiful. She's using the same moulds as she does for her polymer clay work - all individually hand made from natural found objects, not proprietary. The first pair today is copper, in a bark effect. I've given them the special treatment, with my new delivery of Basha Beads - magical colours that look like the beads have tiny flames inside.


The shells are some of my favourite shapes and they cry out for sea treasures - coral sticks and keishi pearls, all copper wrapped.




And finally- the silver. Oxidised heavily and polished back so the relief in these teasel heads really stands out. I've kept these simple with black pearls and Lucy Haslam's oxidised silver twisted sisters connectors. Gothic glamour.


 
 
So those are this week's earrings; all available in my Etsy shop. I'll see you in two weeks, hopefully bug-free! And by then, there will be only two weeks to Christmas - can you believe it?
 
Lindsay x 
 
                                                                  My Facebook page

Blue For You

Hello dear friends,
Todays earrings are made from a pair of lovely ceramic disks I have had in my stash for a very long time. I believe they were among the first batch of art beads I bought from Round Rabbit, aka Nancy Adams, back in 2010 or 2011. They are rather big, 3 cm diameter, but very thin, so they are super light weight.


I've assembled them with the earring hooks via some pewter square profiled rings and one of my favourite materials, waxed linen cord. I have a small box of scrap bits of cord that I just roamed around in and soon found the bits of these three perfectly matching colours.

The whole equipage comes to about 15 cm and will just barely touch the shoulders when being worn. These are a kind of everyday yet statement-kind-of earrings. A style that I myself am very fond of. I am looking forward to taking them out on their first excursion in the city any day soon.



Art Beads:
Blue rustic thin ceramic disks - Round Rabbit

 Other ingredients:
Waxed linen cord
Pewter square profiled rings
Handmade heavily oxidized sterling silver earring hooks

-------

All my best,
Malin


Monday, November 20, 2017

Pretty painted brass

I haven't had much time for making jewellery over these past couple of weeks. Family and work commitments have taken over and if it wasn't for this blog, I'd have nothing new made! Whenever I have a break from creating, I always find it difficult to start again. Typically, I surround myself with components, but this never helps!
So, I took a deep breath and just pulled out this beautiful pair of hand-painted brass charms by my fabulously talented friend, Suhana Hart of Buttoned Up Beads. Aren't the colours beautiful? I love the pattern too. I added some pretty brass hoops and picked out the colours with these fabulous seed beads and lentils (they're from a new range at Smitten Beads. Really worth checking out). Although this design is pretty simple, it took me a good couple of hours until I was happy with it. Out of practice, y'see.
Thought I'd share these other two pairs featuring Suhana's painted brass charms. These include beautiful lampwork beads by UK artist Joanne Joyce, brass triangles and pretty earwires by Lucy Haslam

And this final pair, with heart shaped charms, and some rather lovely chunky recycled glass, and more brass hoops
So, all of these are available in my etsy shop. Thanks for stopping by. I'll be back in a couple of weeks, when hopefully the creative juices will be flowing a little more speedily!
Sue x

Friday, November 17, 2017

We're All Ears :: November Reveal :: Quotes

Hello earring peeps!
Sorry for the delay. Google has been messing with me and somehow froze my account - meaning I couldn't access this blog, my photos, my email - nothing! But I somehow found a way back in! Better late than never!

This month was a special challenge inspired by our friend and editor Loralee Kolton. She challenged ME to find a way to use quotes to be the inspiration. Challenge accepted!

I selected the quotes because they had a built in visual element to the words and because they spoke to me. I believe in wearing positive power mantras in my jewelry and this would be a very abstract way to do that. Only you would know that this is a representation of a powerful message. I like that bit of mystery.

So here are my four pairs of earrings. Which quote speaks to you?

 I was thinking literally of stars when I read this quote. But I don't happen to have any star shaped beads. So I decided to seek out shiny crystals. And that is when I spotted a strand of these fun two-hole beads. They are tiny, like little pinponts of light, and they have the most magnificent flash of an AB color treatment (very hard to photograph). I wanted them to have a bit of a shooting star vibe, but my 16 gauge steel wire was not cooperating. In frustration, I crossed the ends of the paddles I had made, which reminded me of awareness ribbons. There are people that I know that are facing insurmountable odds and grave darkness with many different circumstances. And this quote speaks to me because you cannot appreciate the light without the darkness. It is a hope-full quote and one that resonates with me to also be that star shining in the darkness for another.

I have a friend who is the most positive person I know. She exudes a bubbly optimism that is infectious and striking. She and her husband own a cabin cruiser boat that they spend all summer on and when she knew that I was making this quote into a pair of earrings, she told me she immediately thought of her maritime adventures. I was at first thinking of maps and journeys. But as I worked through that thought I realized that I would need a lot more time to make that vision a reality. What I next considered were compass roses and arrows and the concept of true north. True North is the direction along the surface of the earth that points directly toward the North Pole. It is a fixed point that orients your entire world. To be successful, you need to stay on track, and your "true north" are your guiding principles, your core values and your most deeply held beliefs that point you in the right direction. To be truly you, this internal compass guides your way. Finding your "true north" means staking your integrity, fueling your passion, and taking steps to journey toward your one true goal - and that is different for every person.

Initially, I wanted to make something triangular that would call to mind a mountain, with a bright shining crystal at the top. For me a mountain is uncharted territory, and although it may be a steep climb, rife with pitfalls and downhill slides, reaching that summit is a goal. I imagine that the view from the top of a mountain is glorious and filled with light. I found these odd shaped golden crystals that I loved. And then I spotted these little triangular bead frames. I tried to make those top heavy crystals balance on top but it just didn't work. I was about to give up when I noticed that one had flipped upside down. That is when it all came together. And it reminded me of this quote...and how a change in perspective can make all the difference.

Acorns are a very powerful symbol of growth to me. I have little bowls of them in my house, and one that I found on a walk in my car as a reminder that from the smallest seeds can come the largest trees. I knew that I had to use an acorn for this pair. I have these lovely acorn bead caps, but I always struggle to find a bead in my stash that fits them properly. Then I spied some long-neglected ceramic beads by MaryAnn Carroll. They have this band of the most yummy rust and apricot glaze and best of all they fit the caps! I remembered that I had a stash of enameled oak leaves from Anne of Gardanne Beads and modified some Vintaj oak leaves to add some layering. This quote reminds me that the growing is the thing, not the seed, not the tree. It is not where you start from but where you are growing to that counts, and the day you stop growing, stop learning, stop striving is the day you die. I have a lot more rings left in this tree trunk!

I hope you enjoyed my journey through some favorite quotes! Which one is your favorite quote? One of these or another one? Be sure to add that to your comment as I am a collector of quotes and this was certainly a challenge, and fun, exercise! Thanks to Miss Loralee for suggesting it!

Your turn! Add your link below and be sure to hop around to see what everyone else created! (LinkyTools will be open for one week, so get your post in!)


Thursday, November 16, 2017

Land of the rising Sun

I was scrambling at the last minute for ideas to make some earrings. I always have a hard time deciding which colors to go with. I think I need to start writing colors onto pieces of paper and just draw a main color at random and go from there lol

So instead, I went on my FB page and asked my friends what colors I should go with. Orange and Fall colors were some of the suggestions (among many other fun ideas), and since I had a pair of handmade polymer clay components that had some nice orangey shades to it, I pulled out some Carnelians and went to town:

http://www.MyGardenOfLove.Etsy.com


I'm a sucker for Copper, especially when it comes to coupling them with rich Fall jewel tones. I wanted to use some kind of bead cap for the chunky faceted carnelian briolettes, but I didn't have anything suitable on hand. I pulled out some of my handmade slightly domed copper beadcaps and bent them to make a bit of an Asian style cover for the top, as I wanted to add a bit of width to the bottom part.

A few more copper accents and carnelian beads, and voila!

I wish the "rising sun" would make its appearance here. We've been drowning in rain for the past couple of weeks now. I had just a wee bit of a break to go plant my seed garlic in the garden (after the blizzard we had, I thought I had missed the window to plant garlic). It's been very wet and dreary here... these sunny Carnelians were a very welcome sunny sight on my bench!

I need to take better pictures before I list them, although it looks like they might be spoken for already :)

Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends in the US!

Cheers,
Nathalie
Visit my shops:
My Garden of Love on Etsy
The Crafty Tribe on Etsy

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

Gilded Fragments

I find these components very moving.  Blissfully asymmetrical with the touches of rich gold that bring a warm cohesive feel.  The beautiful ceramic charms in both earrings, were handmade by Andrea Salkowe of JosephineBeads.   They remind me of broken pieces of fine china.

The folded pod type beads at the top, were purchased at The Bead & Button Show.  They are 24k gold vermeil.  I remember in detail, going to the register to pay, and the shock on my face when the little baggie of beads I was carrying was totaled up!  You see, you pay per ounce for the beads of this kind and not by design like I'm used to.  It was an education! Maybe I am the only one who didn't know..lol  But goodness, just look at 'em...





To create the illusion of space and add a little sparkle I used some very old crystals repurposed from a 1930's necklace.


For this pair I used some lovely druzy agate for texture and a bit of softness from glass pearls.




Can you tell I'm gearing up for the holidays with the touches of gold?  I will also admit that I've listened to more than a few Christmas carols already..lol

A million thank yous for stopping by and having a look today! 

Talk with you soon,

Loralee xo


Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Old love

Hello peeps,

How are you all doing? I hope you’re enjoying the fall.
Last week we spend some wonderful days exploring some ancient sites on the Peloponnese. The weather was wonderful, apart from one morning of heavy rain. We drove through gorgeous mountainous terrain, with lots of trees in autumn colors.

This is the Pantanassa monastery in Mystras, dedicated in September 1428. It is the only monastery on the site still permanently inhabited.

These few days traveling and exploring brought my muse back to live. I am back to my old love: bead embroidery.

Last weekend I made three pairs. Here is one pair:




A picture of a fourth- still in progress- project, which gives you an idea how I make these.

The design start with gluing components on ultra suede.Then I get to play with tiny beads which I embroider on the ultra suede.
One pair will take me about 4 hours to make.

Bead embroidery gives me the freedom to place the beads exactly where I want them.
The advantage of bead embroidered earrings is that they are very lightweight.




These, as well as the other 2 pairs are available in my shop.

Thank you for visiting. And you know the drill. I love to read your comments, so don’t be shy and write a few words. See you next month.

Wishing you a wonderful day,
Janine
Esfera Jewelry

My etsy shop
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Monday, November 13, 2017

Warm and Cozy

The leaves are almost all off my trees. I have even started shopping for Christmas presents. The year is zooming on its way. With the cooler days I start thinking of cozy knit sweaters, scarves, and playful gloves.

I love fiber and texture in my jewelry designs. I have made knitted straps to use with necklaces and bracelets. Soooooo, I just had to try smaller straps and see how they looked as earring components.

These are my first three experiments. I used artisan enameled beads for all three pieces.

This first pair is made with a mulberry and light blue yarn with teardrop enamel charms from Alison Page Studios. I named them 'Mulberry Wine'.









The next two pairs are a work in progress. I did snap some shots of how I plan on them looking when completed. Remember my mentioning the year zooming by? But I will finish them! I find jewelry making so relaxing.

This pair is a forest green mixed yarn that looks wonderful with enamel diamond charms from 4 Ophelia. I named them 'Green with Envy'. I think the swirls in the enamel is so lush.












And the last pair have a fun mix of pinks, yellows, green in the yarn. The sweet little enamel leaves are from Gardanne Beads. I have been hording these leaves for a while. They seemed so cheerful I named them 'Hello Morning'.











I love wearing earrings in fall and winter. I think it is their time to shine since winter is all about bundling up with scarves and coats. Now I feel like I am wearing a scarf on my ears.

 
Until next time, stay warm and have fun making earrings,
Jetta 

Friday, November 10, 2017

Spikes, 4 ways,

sort of.  I had plans for this.  I have spiky drops of many shapes and sizes in my bead stash.  I wanted to make a series of spiky earrings, the series obviously didn't happen (not enough hours in the day) but I managed to squeeze in a few.  Here's how they turned up.

I used these absolutely stunning lampwork spikes by Janna Petrovna, topped with double caps, claws (had to get some in there) and Czech glass.  


And a second pair with similar spikes.


3rd pair also features Janna's beads, chubby hollow lampwork pins topped with triple caps, claws and Czech glass flowers.


And finally a 4th pair, featuring spiky dangles by Jana Bliznakova


These will be available in my FB show on Sunday in The Earring Show.  See you in a few weeks time with more ear candy <3

Suhana
My Etsy shop: Buttoned Up Beads 

Thursday, November 9, 2017

Goldenrod

Our son Jesse, who lives in Kansas City, has been visiting for the last few days.  As I'm writing this, we've just dropped him off at the airport, and I'm feeling tenderhearted toward the world at the moment. 💗


That, and that feeling you often have when your grown kids leave after a visit...that bittersweet wish that they could stay longer.  But the sweet thing is that these earrings are a gift for Jesse's sister, Rhia, and working on them has added to that tenderhearted feeling too.

And about the earrings...  They owe a lot of their sleekness to these gorgeous asymmetrical lampwork headpins by Kimberly Rogers.  Their beautiful colors of mustard yellow swirled with gleaming gray and their crusty/shiny glaze make them irresistible.


I emphasized the slim, elongated lines of the headpins by topping them with slender copper tube beads wrapped with what look like little vines, and then adding small bead caps, rustic yellow Czech glass beads, and finally beautifully faceted topaz-colored helix-shaped glass crystal beads.

They're lightweight, sleek, and elegant.  (And I hope Rhia loves them!)  😊

Goldenrod


Headpins:  Kimberly Rogers
Copper tube beads:  by JBB Findings (at Rings and Things)
Bead caps:  Copper plated pewter bead caps by TierraCast (Fusionbeads.com or your favorite place to buy TierraCast)
Helix crystal beads:  Available at Danette Darbonne on Etsy.


Thank you so much for reading--I'll be back in two weeks!

xoxo
Meridy

My shop
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