Tuesday Randoms

[[[ If you're looking for the Bead Soup blog post, it's HERE. :) ]]]

What I think of while I'm wire wrapping:

• Wow. All these songs sound new. Probably because I usually listen to audio books while I'm working.
• I think I need a new audio book. Game of Thrones has become a bit depressing and the narrator leaves something to be desired.
• Hm. I do that a lot. I'll stop reading/listening to a book before it's over. Well, at least I go back to it eventually.
• Wow, there's a lot of rap songs on this playlist. 
• Oh, that's right. I tried to be "gangsta" in high school.
• I wonder if my brother was embarrassed by me when I was in high school.
• I wonder how my brother and his fambam are. They're like my favorite people.
• Really should go look for Legos to turn into jewelry for my brother's girlfriend.
• I wonder if I could make some pyrex jewelry too (she like's pyrex).

I love how my mind wanders when I'm creating. I mean, is that bad? I know some people say that you should focus but some things like wire wrapping... c'mon. Oh it's beautiful, but I can't just count wraps and beads the whole time, can I?

It was unbelievably warm the other day. Like "OH! I can wear my favorite sleeveless dress today!" warm. And my fingers came up with these earrings, now in the shop here. Minty green and tangerine flowers. I bought those beads because they looked like margarita green but are pretty transparent now that I've wrapped them up in shiny copper.

I liked this design so much I made another pair of earrings:

But those are mine. ALL MINE! I'm trying to be more daring with the jewelry I wear myself (inspired by the lovely Shannon). I usually just wear silver studs and a few wrap bracelets but I think these will make a regular appearance on my lobes. Even made a matching necklace... which I forgot to take a picture of. Soon, I'll be brave enough to show my mug on my own blog. Booyah.

I tweaked the design a bit with the second pair of earrings. I think if I make these again, I'll make them just like that. I love the fire polish finish on the Czech glass too. Happiness all around.

Remember my bead soup bracelet? I found some pretty zebra jasper to make more bracelets to sell.

I love the variation in the stone. Some have purple tones. Some are all brown and orange. Some are black and grey! And they were on clearance at Michaels. SCORE!

My latest bead store haul. And yes, I was at Corner Bakery... again... I practically live there. But I think the details on that topic deserves it's own blog post.

Can you tell I LOVE Czech glass? Druk beads. Fire polish. Crystal. Sigh. All kinds.

I've already played with those seed beads.

I'm thinking necklaces. Add a simple chain maybe? Break up the chain with some crystal? I dunno yet. But I'm having fun making the bows.

So, that's my random Tuesday post. Check out the shop where my new earrings are sitting, waiting for a new home. I've marked down some destash mags and added some UK issues. Woot? WOOT!

And, soup's on! Dig in!

I had this post ready to go yesterday but noooo... it wasn't there when I went to look this about... oh... 15 minutes ago. Oh Blogger, you are so fickle. I am reposting this now and will have to hop tomorrow! First day of my new job today! WOOT! 

The wonderful Lori Anderson has put together this Bead Soup Party and I was one of the lucky few chosen to participate. Love you, Lori!!!

Here are the beads my partner, Kathy, sent me. Don't you just love those bronze pieces and that stone?! And the round piece on the right? From her button collection. AND Czech glass beads!? Love.

Here's what I came up with:

I've been trying to make my pieces more interesting and has presented with a lovely opportunity to play with a new material: wire mesh tubular ribbon. I love how the stones look in the ribbon.

Added some Czech glass beads and a lucite flower. I am absolutely head over heels for that moon pendant.

And of course, I couldn't get away without some wire wrapping...

I used copper wire and some seed beads to make the frame. That stone is such a wonderful shape and sits on top of the frame so beautifully.

I used some silk sari ribbon I bought many many moons ago. Knotted and used a wood bead as a clasp. Simple, but pretty. And it feels great on my wrist.

That ribbon makes me ridiculously giddy. Though, I learned that just because the scraps are sewn end to end doesn't mean it's the most secure binding. SO. When you yank, sometimes, it will come apart. Do try not to scream out obscenities in the middle of the night if this happens to you. :P

I had such big plans for my lovely beads, but was hit with a nasty cold on Sunday. I haven't done much making and creating since then. My bed and I were good friends this week. Here's what I was left with:

As you can see, I started to work on a few different pieces, but never finished. Hopefully, I'll have a second companion post with those pieces sometime next week.

I don't normally work with this color pallet. Oh, I always want to but when I go out and buy beads for myself, they usually end up being purples or pinks... copper wire... sometimes, shiny brass. Thank you, Kathy, for sending me such lovely beads and giving me the opportunity to work outside my comfort zone.

Check out Kathy's blog here.

And hop on over to Lori's blog for a list of all the bead soup players.

7000 Bracelets for Hope

7000 Bracelets for Hope. Such a wonderful cause. When I heard about it, I jumped at the chance to make a bracelet for a mother or caretaker who has a child they are caring for. Someone who needs to know that we are out here, appreciating them, and praying for them and their families. 

The Global Genes Project uses jeans/denim as their theme so I chose a denim blue cord for my wrap bracelet. But it seemed a little dark so I added a strand of baby blue! Something I've never done before. I love the little pop of baby blue in the finished bracelet below.

The bracelet is a simple wrap bracelet. No metal so the wearer can wear it whenever they want and won't have to worry about tarnish. I mean, they have enough to worry about without tarnish or green wrists creeping up into their thoughts.

Sorry for the crappy picture- camera currently out of commission. Only have my camera phone :-/

Check out all the other lovely artists creating bracelets for some really deserving people.

Elysian Studios and One Kiss Creations

The Studio Sublime

Crafty Hope

The Gossiping Goddess

SilverRose Designs

Firefly Visions

Pink Chapeau Vintage Jewelry

Michelle Mach

Pine Ridge Treasures

Backstory Beads

Adventures in Creativity with Lorillijean

Carefree Jewelry by Lisa

Sue Beads

MiShel Designs

Created Treasures

Taralinda Muses

My Life Under The Bus

Elizabeth Creates

SilverNikNats

Erin Siegel Jewelry

Carolyn’s Creations

My Life…one bead at a time

Fresh Baked Designs

Songbeads

Sunshine Bliss

Lori Anderson

Rainy Days Designs

Pat Barden Jewelry

Tell Your Girlfriends

Therese's Treasures

Windrock Studio

Bead Lola Bead

Spice Box Designs

Antiquity Travelers

Vitamin C...A Daily Dose of Creativity

Beads and Bread

Sharyl's Jewelry and Reflections

Ahtee's Blog

Thoughtful-Notions

Beads for Brains:365

Wild Sally Road

All The Pretty Things

Skye's Creative Chaos

My Addictions...Handcrafted Jewelry by Patti

Lindy's Designs

Falling Into The Sky

Star Hitched Wagon

Mama's Got to Doodle

10KDgroup

Pink

So, I had a lovely Bead Table Wednesday post all planned out for yesterday...

But then I had to deal with my bank showering me with unknown fees that ended up overdrawing my account...

And I just wasn't in the mood after that... lol.

But I did post some new pink things into the shop. Pink makes me happy.

One more day before I choose people for the Beady Round Robin! So far, there are three gals and me. Room for 2 more people!!! Check out this post for more details.

Beady Round Robin

I've been bouncing this idea around in my head for a while now and I think I'd like to start a Beady Round Robin.


I got the idea from an article in Bead Trends and after surfing the bead blogs, I see that some people have done this before! And I think it's a wonderful idea to have something that several people have worked on and given their love to.


I need 3 more people to participate. Seems my blog has been getting a lot of traffic lately but not many comments so depending on how many people comment, I'll either pick people by a random number generator or if there's only 3 comments, well... they're the 3 people! :P

READ THIS ENTIRE POST BEFORE YOU COMMENT!

Here's the rundown:

1) 6 people will be participating! Three people have already told me they want to play via my Facebook page so I thought it was only fair that I'd let them in on the first go.

2) We'll be making necklaces! LONG necklaces! ^_^ Each person will make a 5 inch length of necklace and send it off to the next person. Keep in mind that not everyone has the same skill set so please keep it simple. If you're a beadweaver, maybe leave some loops for us stringers and wire workers to attach links to. If you're a stringer, maybe start a necklace on a length of bead wire and stick it on bead stoppers so people can add on to it. Also, if you're gonna use oxidized metals or metals with a patina, remember not all of us will be able to patina or oxidize what we add on to it.

3) Each person will send a little notebook with their creations so we can chronicle our beady journey. Let the person know things like why you chose certain beads or colors. Or maybe if you worked on the piece while on vacation somewhere...

4) I'd like to keep the turn-around for each working to 1 week. I know that some of us are busy and might not be able to fit it into our schedules so that is something to consider.

5) Blogs- Not necessary but would be fun! I'd like to ask you, however, to only reveal a TINY part of  the length YOU'RE working on. Maybe a snapshot of a special bead or a section of wire work. I'd like the person who the necklace is being made for to have a nice surprise and be the one to reveal the whole thing. Do take pictures of what you worked on, however, so you can post about it after everyone has finished their pieces.

So that's it! My Beady Round Robin! If you're interested in participating, please leave a comment with your email address so I can contact you!

I will be picking people on Friday, the 24th! ^_^

I really hope there are people who want to participate! You just never know with these things :P

Pink Jade

From http://www.earthstreasure.com : "pink Jade is said to have such a strong effect on the nervous system that even if one holds it in their palm they can feel the resonating energy within."

Well, I certainly enjoyed holding these little beauties in my hand. Got a small strand on sale at JoAnn's this weekend. 50% off! How could I pass that up?

I also read in one of my books last night that pink jade is good for love... not a burning lustful love, but a true love that lasts. I can't remember the exact quote but it still tickled me... pink... :P

See, I knew pink would cheer me up after yesterday's post. :)

Hope everyone had a lovely Monday! This week is going to be an awesome one!

Stressed and Depressed

Some people lose weight when they're stressed out. I gain. Even if I have no appetite. Even if I don't eat the whole day... I gain.

Some people sleep more when they're anxious about something. I wake up in the middle of the night. Or can't sleep for days.

I haven't heard back about my two job interviews. Both seemed to have gone really well. One job will get me back to what I was making at Borders... maybe even more. The other would be so rewarding and fun.

For two nights now, I've bolted upright in the middle of a dream... woken up several times during the night with my heart racing. Bad dreams, my boyfriend thinks. But when I wake up, my mind goes to money problems, disappointing people with my lateness, or wondering how we're going to get through the next few days. And then I can't fall asleep for a while... and once I do, it's only for an hour before it happens again.

Unbelievably stressed out and I don't understand why it comes in spurts. Most days, I'm fine. Most days, I can deal with the pressure and the unknown but sometimes, whether for days or weeks, I can't sleep. I don't want to eat. My hair falls out. I'm just a wreck.

But my problems aren't worse than they were... they just seem worse. I'm still in the same place I was in September- unemployed. The bills are the same. Everything... the same. I just can't figure it out.

Perhaps I'm not trying hard enough to find a job. Perhaps people don't want to employ an ex-GM as an underling. Blah.

Sorry to be so depressing. On the bright side, I'm working on something pink. I can't possibly stay depressed while working on pink things.