This week Sally asked us to focus on food for our Focusing on Life prompt. Well alrighty then. I can do that!
A comfort food to me is a lazy weekend lunch of bread and toppings. An open-faced sandwich if you will. Growing up; it was a staple. You can find this in pretty much any Scandinavian kitchen. My Norwegian friends call it a smørbrød, and if you're Swedish you might call it a 'cold table' or smörgåsbord. I just call it delicious.
So a favorite for me is to slice a few pieces of a fresh Italian bread, some greens (I prefer arugula with its slightly peppery flavor), a few slices of cheese and a little kick with jelly. I LOVE chili jelly. And a good friend of mine makes some pretty amazing homemade stuff. On my table is a little from her farm called The Land of Nod in Canaan CT (just in case you're in the neighborhood and can stop by).. it's worth it.
Earlier in the week I posted a blue sea glass necklace in silver. I really like the blue sea glass with silver as it has a casual Beach-Boho feel. But I wanted to try something with a little more glam.
This is a similar piece, but this time I used gold and orange glass. I created a focal with a beautiful piece of orange sea glass from ZnetShows shaped as a conch shell.
This is a handmade chain with faceted cut, accent beads and gold bars I was gifted from Christine of One Kiss Creations. I also made a hook clasp with a little hammer gold 18 gauge wire.
A simple piece, with a touch more elegance in gold vs. the silver. Perfect for a summer's night out.
This month Sharla of the Beaded Tail has challenged the BBA team to "create something with flowers and let your imagination bloom!"
I confess that this Spring has been start and stop. One day it is miserably cold, and a few days later it feels like July. I think my flowers in the yard are equally confused! Their blooms open up to the spring rains, and the hot days wilt them.
This year I've been feeling like the colors are washed out, and decided to do a piece in muted colors. I took inspiration from my yard.
I've been wanting to use some new beads that most people call "dragon scales." If you line them all up in a row they do look a bit like scales. If you click on the link you'll see an example of a bracelet made this way.
But I wanted to try something different. I did a double cross over which created a cluster that locks in place, which I think resembles a lotus flower. I also used a few faceted yellow glass beads from Znetshows. I like how the white makes the pale yellow stand out like my flowering dogwood or my double bloom daffodils. I do like how this pattern turned out. I just might have to try it in other colors!
I wanted to make a simple necklace with a single sea glass focal from ZnetShows.
This one does just that. I added a starfish charm to pull in that Beach-Boho feel. Bill also sent along a few blue faceted glass beads to use as accent. They work perfectly in this simple hand-made chain I did for the necklace. You might notice some sweet silver bars I also used ... many thanks to Christine who gifted those to me!
Clearly, I'm having a lot of fun with the sea glass pieces. You can dress them up, or down ... make elaborate bead weave patterns or simple wire wraps. Hope you are all having a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend! Be safe out there.
I wanted to really play up on the richness of the orange sea glass from ZnetShows and decided to pull our some charms that I got when we were traveling in Spain a few years ago. I picked these up in Toledo. They are a technique called Damascene where they score metals and oxidize the unmarked areas. I blogged about our trip to Spain awhile back.
I wanted the charms to lay flat on the sea glass, but to do that I had to make my own kidney wires. Typically the wires only have room for a single charm. But with the thickness of the glass I needed to make a larger loop. Making wires are actually not difficult at all to make. One more thing I ask myself why I buy them if I can make them so easily? Hmmmm, note to self.
For this second pair (same glass shape) I used a pale yellow, etched glass leaf. The earwires are copper from Melinda of ORRTEC. The copper gives it a little more rustic look, which I really love. With these earwires I also had to re-shape them to widen the loop to fit both pieces, but that was easy enough. These are a sweet little pair and I just love the simplicity of them.
When people talk about something being an 'acquired taste' they typically mean that as you grow older that you've had time to become familiar with unusual tastes, smells or even odors (such as cheeses). Over time you might actually grow fond of that unusual taste.
Salmiakkis are an acquired taste. But I don't think it has much to do with age since every kid on my block loved them. They are considered a treat for Finnish kids, and my neighbors had them shipped (by the box load) directly from Finland. We all asked to get in on the action.
What, might you ask, is a Salmiakki? It is salty licorice that originates from the early 1900s in Finland, Norway and the Netherlands. Originally it was used as a cough medicine known for 'tongue-numbing,' and somewhere along the way became a candy. Clearly, an acquired taste! They are quite salty.
This week Sally asked us for our Focusing on Life prompt to think of a time when in the middle of your busy day something unexpected brings you right back to childhood. I was traveling for work last year and was in our London offices, and saw a box of Salmiakkis on a co-workers' desk. She cracked open the box and I popped one in my mouth. Instantly I got flashbacks of me, standing in the yard with my childhood friends. I get that with tastes, smells and especially music. Salmiakkis definitely make me feel like a kid.
This is a quick post today from my bead table to show you a simple pair of earrings with sea glass from ZnetShows. I used infinity charms from Nina Designs. They are the last of my stash that I was sent last August. I really love how well the gold and orange go together.
I have a few more earrings paired with orange sea glass to show you that I'll post over the weekend, so stop back by!
This piece came together quickly. I was playing around with bezeling the outside of a piece of blue sea glass and then added a second and saw a focal coming together.
I think for me, when Bill of ZnetShows sent me a stash of sea glass I immediately saw how a few pieces here and there could be added to patterns. I've shied away from using the mother-load in any one piece. But that also means that the projects will just keep rolling out over the next few days, to a week. Dare I say 2 weeks? I'm not sure yet as I'm still working my way through it all.
Ok, back to the piece here. The inspiration was silver. I really love how silver can bring out a richness to deep blues.
I found this gorgeous bail at a recent bead show. And yes it is a little heavy, and yes they weigh the silver which means this was a bit of a splurge. But I love it. I added my own hammered charm and a few large silver beads. Just enough silver to play off the blues.
The spiral is a Russian Spiral done with all the same size beads. What this means is that it has more of a webbing look and feel. I threaded the spiral over light blue cord and used a couple basting stitches to keep the spiral in place. Honestly, this piece came together inside of 2 hours. And I just love it's Boho Zen feel. Check out my teenage daughter sporting it with a denim shirt and lace top.
I've got a lot of sea glass from ZnetShows on the bead table at the moment. In fact I kinda have it all over the place with pieces in varying levels of 'done-ness.' Much to my family's chagrin.
I'm working as quickly as I can to plow through the patterns, but just as I'm halfway through one another pattern seeps in and I need to start that project so I don't lose the idea. Yeah, I know, it's kinda a sickness. But the ideas are just pouring out as I play with this wonderful sea glass!
I think this freeform piece might just be my all-time favorite. Not sure why exactly since I had a bit of a throw down wrestling with the pattern. It was all good in the end. The cream, matte beads seemed to pick up the texture of a starfish and the orange sea glass are like windows beckoning both sides of the cuff. It is uniformed when looking at the whole piece, but pull up close and it has the uniqueness you'd find on the surface of a starfish, or snowflake that only a freeform pattern can do.
I used a number of stitches in this one. The main one being freeform peyote, but I also used ladder and brick with some larger square beads. I also continued this freeform stitching for the bezels around the sea glass, and brought in some micro seed beads to create a bit of a dainty pattern around the edges. I am still working on the closure, but I will most likely use my most recent zig zag pattern to give it a continuous feel.
I have been trying to find my groove with freeform, but I have struggled with feeling like I am suppose to create a somewhat 'messy' pattern. But my big epiphany with this piece is that there are no rules, and who says you can't have a little structure to freeform? I still stitched organically across the pattern, but I used some structured elements too. I think this might actually be my comfort zone with freeform beading.
I showed you a blue glass hoop yesterday from Bill at ZnetShows, and today I'm switching over to orange glass. Same hoop, different color, and earrings instead of a toggle.
I picked up these cute brass dragonflies on a recent excursion to Metalliferous with a beady friend Linda Younkman of Lindy's Designs. She and I were like kids in a candy store sifting through all the fun charms they have there! I walked away with a bag full of great new brass to play with.
These are a fun, and easy pair to make. Just a quick twist of a large wire loop and a bend of the brass charm. Easy peasy, and you have a fun pair for summer!
I'm a little late to the party, but I'm so glad to finally get a chance to try my hand at some of the sea glass that ZnetShows has been sharing through the beading community.
I love sea glass, and this 'cultured' glass is wonderful. If feels exactly the same as the pieces I've picked up along the shore and comes in such amazing colors and shapes!
Bill Zhang of ZnetShows sent me beautiful blue glass and orange. I've got projects going in every direction at the moment and I'm just lining them all up to show you what I've done with his glass. This first piece uses a glass hoop as a toggle along with a beaded bar (more Russian spiral!). Bill also sent accent beads, which I used here with matching blue faceted cut glass. The center focal is also from ZnetShows; a large white faceted bead which I added a few strands of beads to. Somehow it gives it that deep sea look to me like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea! I am just loving this sea glass, and can't wait to show you all the pieces. So be sure to stop back by over the next week (or maybe two - Bill sent me quite a stash!)
I think we all get tunnel vision from time to time; I know that I do. For me it is about my commute; it eats up 3 hours of my day every Monday through Friday. A coping mechanism is to find ways to use that time productively; reading, working, and the occasional 'power nap' (aka exhaustion).
What happens when we pull in to Grand Central Station is that most people 'hit the ground running.' There is a mass shoving to get to your destination for the day. For the most part I keep my eyes on the road (so to speak) and stay focused to navigating the streets of New York. I do, in fact, forget to look up. I forget that I work in a very iconic place. This week I took Sally's Focusing on Life prompt and played tourist for a few moments.
I've been in the Chrysler Building many times, but always for a meeting. It is a real office building, and it's conference rooms look the same as any others. Typically I am rushing to the meeting, so I hurry through the lobby. But this week I decided to walk over during lunch and pull out my iphone and snap a few pics like any other tourist, which by the way there were many.
I thought I'd take you on a quick tour of the Chrysler Building lobby. A gorgeous example of Art Deco Architecture. The first picture is standing just in the entrance and looking back out to Lexington Avenue, but looking up through the backlit glass above the revolving doors.
Once inside, looking up you see ceiling murals. I love the one of the Chrysler Building itself.
When I have come here for a meeting, I needed to check in with security. This is mandatory in every building in New York City after 9/11. At the concierge desk, if you look up you see a clock that flips the numbers for the hours and minutes of time (click on the photo to see this one better). The main elevator again reflects the Chrysler Building itself with the base of the spire on the doors. Looking up you see the geometric patterns of the light sconces both beside the doors and above the doors.
Walking around the corner you find the stairways. I tried to get a good shot of the lights, but my iphone just wasn't cooperating. However, I do like the reflection of the lights in the marble walls. For a better picture you can check out this link. The stairway feels straight out of the movies. I expected Greta Garbo to cascade down the stairs at any minute in some flowing gown.
One last little picture I snapped on my way out was this great old post box. You'll find these all over Manhattan in the old buildings, and this one was such a great example. I slipped my phone back in my pocket, darted across Lexington Avenue to my favorite deli to grab a little pasta salad before heading back to my office. It was a nice little break for lunch. Thanks for a great prompt this week Sally!
I think most of us struggle with closures. I know I do. I'll have this great idea for a focal, but then what kind of a chain, or bead pattern do I use? And then, ugh ... I'm not exactly sure how I should do the closure. Will it lay flat? Will it fit nicely around the wrist? Will it seem out of place with the rest of the pattern, or worse, overwhelm the rest of the piece?
This little zig, zag closure (left) is my latest creation. I wanted something simple, but that would keep the beaded band close together. Leaving it with a feel of continuous pattern around the wrist. This worked perfectly. I simply doubled up the ladder stitch on the back side so it created a loop for the closure to slide through. You can un-hook it on either side.
If you're looking for simplicity try these little flat hook closures (right) I used on my Sultan bracelet. Most of the time I use them with wire wraps at the end, but you can easily use them with bead weaving. My most recent addition to closure options are these fiber end caps.They have a hole on the top of the cap to slip a wire through. I wrapped the sari silk at the end and thread the wire through, then pulled through the end cap to create a wire loop.
When I'm bead weaving, my number one, go to closure is a button. I have a large jar of buttons that I love to dig through to find just the right pattern for my piece. For this brick and ladder bracelet I added a pewter button and then did a simple peyote loop (left).
Sometimes my piece is too wide, or complicated for a simple 'button-loop' closure. I need to narrow down the pattern a bit before I add the closure. For this wide peyote band I used a ladder stitch with alternating lengths to match up the peyote. From there I switched over to brick to narrow down the width. Then added my button and loop closure (right).
One last example of a button-loop closure is this final bracelet. It is a bit of a tease for tomorrow when I will reveal the full pictures of the piece. But for now, I thought I'd show you the closure. I wanted to use this gorgeous wood & shell button. But it is big, very big. In fact you could opt to wear it backwards using the button as the focal. This bracelet is a soft, loose weave which I finished with an extended string-ladder stitch closure. I did use a brick stitch behind the button to give it a bit of a backing and stability. Come back tomorrow for the final reveals of both my last two pieces and to see what everyone else has created for the hop.
This is part of a beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is tomorrow, Wednesday May 15.
I think this might be my favorite piece from my bead weaving extravaganza. The Sultan (as I've taken to calling this bracelet) has got some flare of it's own!
When I was making the Cellini spiral I could see that it was going to be a pretty generous tube shape, and it just seemed to be calling out for something to be pulled through it. Then I remembered the sari silk that Christine so generously shared with me. I am really loving this sari silk from Darn Good Yarn. And, I knew the silk was going to be perfect to try these new end caps, which did prove to be very easy to use. Just hook a little wire for wrapping at the end and pull through the top of the cap. Easy peasy.
The thing is, that as I looked at the bracelet I knew I wasn't yet finished with this design. The silk was taking me some place else, and I went in search of inspiration. I had a little bit of fun with mood boards, one from a Turkish wedding, the other Indian. Either could work. So to complete the look I had in mind I needed a little bling ... Sultan style. I found these metal sequins, yes folks I said sequins. I know how much I swore and yelled at the sequins for the Sequintastic challenge last year. But I'm embracing my inner bling; especially these metal ones that give just a little jingle when you wear it. I bought extra, so these fun little sequins will be showing up again.
This is part of a beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is next Wednesday, May 15.
What is it about the Harlequin pattern that draws me right in? Christine had a few pieces with her the last time we met up. She wanted to show me some examples for our little tutorial, and I was immediately sucked in drawn to the this wonderful pattern she created. I couldn't help myself, and I had to try it!
I'm not much for clowns generally, but something about a Harlequin evokes a timeless, court character to me. The oldest Harlequins date back to the 15th century and were known for their agility. Their performance was full of acrobatics. I find Cirque du Soleil to have similar qualities. But maybe that's just me. I do love to see their show, and my favorite part is always the acrobatics in the show.
But I digress. Making jewelry does that to me. It has a way of transcending me to another place and time. So for my practice piece with Christine's pattern I chose dark colors as I like the richness of it. The base is ladder straight through the middle with brick creating the diamonds, and a small tear drop bead to complete the pattern. I love this one! The bracelet slips on easily and wears so comfortably. Thanks Christine!
This is part of a beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is next Wednesday, May 15.
I think ladder has officially become my 'go to' stitch. Who knew? I have tried to do ladder stitch in the past, so many times with zero luck in getting it to look right. But this time it stuck. I get it!
I really wanted to try a stacked ladder with larger seed beads to get some width to the band. I also wanted fringe on the sides, so I started with a little picot edging. This gave me the base I was looking for, and so I moved on to the fringe! I added wire wrapped large grey freshwater pearls looped through the small seed beads at the tip of the fringe, and alternated with small hematite rounds. I've never wire wrapped through beads like this before but it seemed to really work. It isn't stiff, and the beads have plenty of room to move around.
This bracelet has a luxurious feel to it, and the sound pearls make when strands glide over one another. This pattern will be a 'keeper' in my repertoire.
This is part of a beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is next Wednesday, May 15.
Several weeks ago I showed you a bracelet that was on my bead table (below). At the time it was not quite finished, but I wanted to make sure to come back and post it once I was done.
With this one, I was practicing a new pattern that Christine showed me that she calls "Something Fine." This is her pattern, and she named it after the Jackson Brown song because it reminds her of sheet music. You can see the darker green rounds do look like notes on sheet music!
It is such a sweet, delicate pattern with ladder bands in between simple stringing. I loved the pattern right away and wanted her to show me. This bracelet gave me my first successful piece with ladder stitch, and I've been using it non-stop ever since!
This is part of a beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is next Wednesday, May 15.
I love this lampwork bead that Christine found on our last excursion to a local area bead show. My friend is just drawn to the lampwork tables like a moth to a flame! She will oogle over the beads for sometime ... to the point where I start to wonder what beautiful patterns are dancing around in her mind as she goes from one gorgeous bead to the next.
Lucky for me, she gifted me one of her lampwork beauties! And this one didn't sit on the bead table long. I went right to work on a pattern. Yesterday you saw the bead table tease with a Russian spiral rope using small coral rounds. I wanted to use the coral rounds to echo the red in the lampwork. But I didn't want to connect the lampwork to the beading because I thought it might look too 'chunky' ... I wanted to elongate it and have some fun with the pops of red in the pattern. I also used repeated oval shapes between the silver pieces, the coral and the lampwork focal. It is a fun, playful necklace. Thanks Christine!
This is part of a beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is next Wednesday, May 15.
The Time to Stitch challenge 3 is going to be dominating my blog for the next week, just to warn you! I have been practicing like a crazy person, and now it is time to start revealing some of the work.
I'm going to start with the bead table: and that means spirals. The first spiral I learned was a Russian Spiral, which has become my go-to pattern when thinking about spirals. The one here is using coral rounds. You can see I'm mid-pattern, and you'll have to come back tomorrow for the reveal of this one.
The second one is a Cellini Spiral. A stitch that has stopped me in my tracks historically. But I was determined to figure this baby out. I pulled out every bead pattern book I own and worked on this stitch with all of them (and I mean all of them) open as I attempted to figure this one out. Then I decided I was just going to have to break down and watch a YouTube video on the matter. I started it, then stopped it. Then started again, and back up the video. Then ripped out the pattern and started again. After 3 hours of this, most of my family had had enough of this wacky lady listening to a repeating video on beading ... that they all headed to bed. It was slow going, but by midnight I had finally figured it out. I know I need practice, but this is a big jump in my learning curve. Stop by next week to see the reveal on my Cellini Spiral.
This is the kick off to my beadweaving series that I'm running this week for the upcoming A Time to Stitch Challenge by Christine of One Kiss Creations & Therese of Therese's Treasures. The Blog Hop reveal is next Wednesday, May 15.
I just love Audrey's sense of style and man did she like to wear hats! Check out this great Middle-Eastern looking hat she's sporting here. It is one of my favorites of all the hats she wore. Seriously, who could make tassels look that elegant but Audrey? It is wonderful inspiration for me, and for my Hat's Off project for Bobbie's challenge. I'm going to attempt to make a few pieces to match Audrey's style without using any of those pearls she is so famous for.
I just happened to have a tassel sitting on the bead table. It is one of the tassels that come with stones when you buy them one, or two at a time. I did a simple beaded band around the top of the tassel and then connected it to a long basic spiral patterned necklace. But it still needed something? I pulled out some grey sari silk that my friend Christine gifted me from Darn Good Yarn. And that was it! The fiber was just what this piece needed. I thread it through the grey beads in the pattern so it really brings out the color of the sari silk.
I just love Audrey's style, and she had so many hats to match up with that I wanted to try at least one (maybe two) more. Next up is this cute Southwestern style outfit. Problem is that with the shirt she's got on the pattern is too much for a necklace. Ok, so earrings it is! These are etched silver that I got from my mom. I didn't like the original setting, so I pulled them apart (as I always do), and "upcylced" them with a touch of bamboo coral. With Audrey's hair up like that, these earrings would look fantastic with that outfit.
One last piece. Christine also gifted me this very cool wood focal. And it was screaming at me to figure out how to use it in a pattern. I started with a ladder stitch, and then a stringing pattern with a mix of red seed beads. But it still needed something? When I saw this picture of Audrey, same hat but different shirt I realized this was what I was looking for. Look at the thin black in the hat and how that brings a richness to the red. I added just a thin layer of black matte beads along with daggers at the end of the stringing. I finished with black suede to keep the necklace itself simple. It has a tribal feel to it somehow. And the little something extra in this piece are 5 faceted red beads mixed in to the red stringing. These are a beads from Christine's Gram. It gives it just a little bit of attitude, kinda of like that look on Audrey's face!
