Bead Beat by LTD Beads & Jewelry

New Work - Kumihimo with mixed beads

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 02:59:00 +0000

I discovered kumihimo (the ancient Japanese art of braiding) a couple years ago when I wanted to learn to make beaded rope necklaces. Since then, I've almost become addicted to the craft. It's soothing, and since there's an unlimited number of possible designs, I've always got a project ready to go.

Here's one of my latest.

For Your Thanksgiving Enjoyment

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 09:21:00 +0000

Crochet a Beaded Rope

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 22:57:00 +0000

Kumihimo is just one way to make a beaded rope. Crocheted ropes are also popular. Here's a tutorial from Craftmastery that I like.

You need to be able to do a slip stitch to complete this rope. Here are simple directions for the slip stitch.

Swarovski Crystal Horse by Stella McCartney

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 07:10:00 +0000

Here's a happy combination of two of my favorite things: horses and crystals. Stella McCartney, daughter of former Beatle, Sir Paul McCartney, designed this fantastic "sculpture" for installation at Belsay Castle in Northumberland, U.K.

Named "Lucky Spot," it consists of thousands of Swarovski crystals hanging from precisely aligned threads to create a chandelier image of a fantastic horse.

Lucky Spot is a tribute to Stella's late mother, Linda, who loved horses, as well as a modern response to the famous painting Whistlejacket, by 18th Century artist George Stubbs.

How very appropriate, given that Whistlejacket was foaled at Belsay Castle.

Whistlejacket, painted in about 1762 by George Stubbs.

Spotlight on Saorsa Studios

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 01:51:00 +0000

Connie Cooper of Plantersville, Texas, has played with beads off and on for her entire life. She moved through micro-macrame into lampworking. Connie says she's "done a lot of things in my life and this is something I really enjoy. I’ve found that trying to “make a living” doing a job I hate doesn’t make for living at all, so I’ve created a life for myself based on bringing the beauty of [the] Universe to you in my little glass and fiber creations." Take a peek:

This fantastic piece is on Connie's blog, on the "micro-macrame" page.

This steampunk-inspired lampwork bead is available on Connie's Etsy shop.

Here Connie combines her lampwork with natural stones and an African porcupine quill. I'm happy NOT to meet that porcupine!

Spotlight on Lisian Blue

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 06:22:00 +0000

Kris Hunt of Lisian Blue has been featured here before. Let me show you a bit more of this multi-talented artist's work. Here are two handpainted bottles:

Morning Glories

and Lilies.

Here's the stitching detail from a hat she's making for her granddaughter.

Kris also makes quilts. Her grandson thought it was sort of funny to cut material up into little squares, just to sew them all back together to make a blanket. Well, Kris admits, it is a little funny if you think about it. Read Kris' blog and check out her Artfire store.

Spotlight on Baublez P to A

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 06:04:00 +0000

Carmen Trueheart of St. Augustine, Florida came to precious metal clay via hippy beads, seed beads, and gemstone beads.

Precious metal clay (PMC) frees Carmen's creativity, as you can see in this pendant.

Bracelets are another favorite of Carmen's, and this is one of my favorites, too.

Carmen loves animals and donates 20% of her sales to the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Utah. Check her blog, and visit her stores on Artfire, HAF, and Etsy.

Spotlight on S & T Creations

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 06:06:00 +0000

Teri Baskett is has over 10 years experience as senior IT manager. She provides guided wine tastings and designs jewelry in her "spare" time. Check out her work on Etsy, and take a look at her blog. And look at this necklace from her Etsy store.

Spotlight on A Touch of Glass

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 05:16:00 +0000

This week's featured artist is Brenda Miller of A Touch of Glass in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Brenda makes incredible hand-painted fused glass pendants and other jewelry. Brenda believes that your jewelry should be as special and unique as you are.

You can see the love, attention, and painstaking detail that go into every piece.

Brenda has just introduced a new line call "SNOOKS" – "Sweet, Novel, One of a Kind Sensations." She combines her hand-painted fused glass faces with other found treasures.

You can see more SNOOKS on Brenda's blog.

And look what Brenda does with guitar picks:

Brenda has a blog, as well as stores on Artfire, eBay, and Etsy.

Using PayPal to Ask How Your Customers Found You

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 03:29:00 +0000

Ever wonder just how your customers find you? Thanks to Handmade Spark I learned that you can add a customer service question to your PayPal checkout. Here's how:
• Log in to your PayPal account
• Click "Profile/More Options"
• Under "Selling Preferences" click "Custom Payment Pages"
• On the "Customize Your Payment Page" screen, click the "Options" tab
• Under "Merchant Service Options" check the box for "Add a Customer Service Survey"
• Fill in your question (How did you find XYZ Store?) and list of answers
• Click on the "Save" button and you're done.

Spotlight on Kazumi

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 30 May 2010 02:17:00 +0000

Featured artist this week is Kazumi, based in Yokohama, Japan. Kazumi works in many media, offering cheerful, whimsical drawings in pencil, pastel, and chalk as well as sock monkeys and amigurumi sock monkeys. She has stores on Etsy, another Etsy shop specializing in sock monkeys and small purses, Zazzle, and also on CafePress.

Kazumi recently added a line of chalkboards. Just add your message – tonight's menu, chores for the kids, etc. Erase and write a new message tomorrow.

Kazumi's Zazzle shop let's you purchase her art printed on items as varied as mugs, postcards, magnets, even baby's onesies.

Spotlight on iKnitQuiltSew

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 23 May 2010 02:20:00 +0000

Her grandmother taught her to knit and sew, but Sandi, of Cedar City, Utah, had to learn quilting from a book. Check Sandi's blog for a delightful overview of the evolution of her quilting.

Here's the most recent version of her "house" design.

As you'll have guessed from her store's name, Sandi also knits and sews.

Here's a darling shaggy-furred teddy bear. Child-safe, this teddy has safety-stay eyes and jointed arms and legs.

Check Sandi's Etsy shop for more goodies, including knit clothes for baby and a delightful line of rag dolls.

Spotlight on twiddletoes

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 16 May 2010 00:42:00 +0000

When it's just a bit too cool to wear flipflops, don't you wish you had socks that would fit around that thong? Have you ever wished someone would make socks with a big toe? Well, twiddletoes does exactly that.

Watermelon Tabi —
85% wool, 15% mohair

Tabi socks are named after traditional Japanese socks that have a separation for the big toe.

twiddletoes specializes in handknit, artisan footwear, designed and created entirely by hand — no machines, no mills, and no mass production. twiddletoes knits regular-toe socks, too.

Simple Luxury
Alpaca Socks —
100% Alpaca

twiddletoes explains that each sock is made up of over seventeen thousand stitches. Yes, that's 17 with three 0's. Each one of those stitches is slipped from needle to needle by hand, not whirled around the gears of a machine. A pair of socks has over 34,000 stitches — about twice what a proportionally-sized sweater (on larger needles with larger yarn, of course) uses. As for yarn, these socks take a little over 1/4 of a mile of yarn.

twiddletoes is based in Atlanta, Georgia. Check out her blog, her online store, and her Etsy and 1000 Markets stores.

Spotlight on Haffina

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 09 May 2010 01:54:00 +0000

This week the Handmade Artists Forum spotlights Haffina, multi-talented Australian artist.

Haffina makes jewelry.

She creates some amazing beads from polymer clay.

She makes chainmaille,

even very tiny chainmaille.

She creates beautiful and complex seed bead pieces.

All this plus Haffina's the mother of five. Don't know how she does it, but I'm pretty sure Haffina's day has more than 24 hours. Visit Haffina's blog, and check out her Artfire, HAF and Zibbet shops.

Discover Mackin-Art

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 06 May 2010 03:10:00 +0000

Check out this stunning beaded creation: An Island IS Surrounded by Water

Based in Mackinac Island, Michigan, the artist explains this is: "an attempt to visualize the creation myth of the Island, a great turtle arising from the waters, the rock of the Island forming on his back. The turtle itself is primarily bead embroidery, the water is a combination of peyote, netting and fringing."

Spotlight on NaLa

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 02 May 2010 03:11:00 +0000

NaLa is a self-taught jewelry artist with a delicate and sure grasp of design. Her work has been featured in numerous Etsy treasuries. Visit NaLa's Etsy shop and her blog. Enjoy these samples of her work:

These "Irish Eyes" earrings were featured on Etsy's front page.

Here's an
antiqued brass butterfly/floral necklace.

Wire Wrapped Bracelets - Tutorials

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 08:09:00 +0000

Check out these tutorials, I found them listed on the Beading Gem's Journal:

The first is basic – a totally simple way to feature a single dangle. It needs a really heavy gauge wire to work. The tutorial is from Geltdesign.

Here's a basic wrap that is both simple and effective. The tutorial is by Connie Fox.

Finally, a slightly more complex wire wrap design. The tutorial is by Jane from the Handmade Jewelry Club.
Tutorial: Part I, Part II, and Part III.

Making Text Work

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 23:28:00 +0000

There's a line of thought that claims text should be "invisible" to be most effective. Attention drawn to the text is attention taken away from the message. Here are some basics for making your text easy to read.

Use Upper and Lower Case: Unless you're a beginning reader, you read groups of letters, not just one letter at a time. With upper and lower case, some letters are taller and some extend lower. This variety helps to identify the word (each word has a "shape"). On the other hand, with upper case (all caps), every letter has the same height and every word has the same "shape." All caps are much harder to read, so use them sparingly. Italics, too, are harder to read (and they're nearly impossible to read as all caps).

Color: The high-contrast combination of black type on a white background is the easiest to read for people with normal vision. Red type and yellow backgrounds are a reasonably close second. Black type on a VERY pale background can also be effective. Stick to one color for the body of your text and save other colors for headlines or other areas that have only a few words. Remember, if you use too many colors, one of those colors will call attention to itself, and actually pull attention away from other areas.

Proportion: The space between words should be bigger than the space between letters (that's how we know where the word starts and ends). The space between lines should be bigger than the space between words (this helps our eyes move horizontally across the line and not vertically through the paragraph). An accomplished reader actually reads groups of words, usually 4 to 6, at a time. That's why newspapers (remember them?) use narrow columns. What to do if the space you're using is not ideal? Say it holds a dozen or more words? Adjust the proportion: add space between lines to help the eye in its horizontal motion. And adding extra space between paragraphs works especially well for such longer line lengths.

Spelling: Use a spell checker. Then read your copy. Sure it's a nuisance, but errors make you look sloppy.

Spotlight on Paradise Purls

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 21:52:00 +0000

Elizabeth Humphries of North Carolina started Paradise Purls after teaching herself to knit via a "how to" booklet. She makes beaded jewelry too. Check out her blog and her Etsy shop. Here's a sampling of Elizabeth's work:

Here's a toddler's hat with cheerful colors for a cool spring day!

Spotlight on Dreams and Echoes

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 04:12:00 +0000

Linda Talbot (a/k/a Raedawn) worked for years as a visual artist before she began creating beaded jewelry. She says "Beading is a journey ... a wonderful experience ... It's this experience of mystery and joy that I want my jewelry to convey ..." Check Linda's blog to read more.

Here are just two of her pieces. You can find them in her HAFShop, or in her Etsy shop.

Discover Gravel Road Jewelry

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 23:58:00 +0000

Check out these stunning wire wrapped pieces by Gravel Road Jewelry. She also has a HAF Shop.

Stunning!

Spotlight on DreamRiver Designs

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 19:17:00 +0000

Debbie Downs of DreamRiver Designs works from her farm in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, where she also raises Dexter Cattle and Olde English Babydoll Sheep. Raising these Heritage breeds helps to preserve critical genetic diversity in our livestock. When it comes to jewelry, Debbie enjoys wire wrapping and chainmaille. Visit Debbie's Handmade Artists' Shop and check out her blog. Here's a pair of her chainmaille earrings:

How to Retweet Your Blog Posts

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 07:20:00 +0000

Here's how I got the "Retweet" button at the bottom of my blog posts. It uses the TweetMeme service and links back to the specific post, not the entire blog. It's loosely based on the coding found on the TweetMeme website. This should work with any Blogspot blog. There is a separate link for a Wordpress plugin.

• First, here's the code as I used it:

<script type='text/javascript'>
tweetmeme_url = '<data:post.url/>';
tweetmeme_source = 'YourTwitterName';
</script>
<script src='http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js' type='text/javascript'/>

You will need to update YourTwitterName on the 3rd line. It will appear as RT @YourTwitterName.

• Now, here's how to put this code into your blog (Blogger/Blogspot only):

Open your blog, go to CUSTOMIZE, select the LAYOUT tab and click on EDIT HTML.
It's a good idea to use the link to DOWNLOAD FULL TEMPLATE and save it for a backup.
Under EDIT TEMPLATE, click the ballot box to EXPAND WIDGET TEMPLATES.

Do a search (Control F) for:
<b:if cond='data:post.hasJumpLink'>
Paste your code directly above this line.
Click SAVE TEMPLATE and you're done.

Spotlight on Lisian Blue

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 17:48:00 +0000

Kris Hunt of Albuquerque, New Mexico sells her art under the name Lisian Blue. She's been crafting all her life. Today, she works with glass, both hand painted and stained, makes beaded jewelry, and makes fine art prints from her most awesome photos of gorgeous flowers. See her work in her Artfire shop and check out her blog, too. Here are two of the items Kris has available:

Spotlight on ... LTD!

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 21:49:00 +0000

I am pleased and excited to have been the featured artist on the Handmade Artist Forum this week. My thanks go out to all for your consideration and kind words.