Bead-A-Licious!

Hi From Wyoming!

2021-09-19T11:53:00.003-06:00

Oh yeah! Haven't seen me in awhile but I'm still around selling beads and doing what I do! You can find me at www.dragonfly-beads.com, on Etsy as DragonflyBeadsStudio, on Facebook as Dragonfly Beads Studio, Beads & Findings, and on Instagram as DragonflyBeadsStudio_ (although I hate what FB has done to Insta and consider blowing up my account on the regular)! You can also find me in Casper, Wyoming at my working studio: Dragonfly Beads, Market Square Plaza, 232 E 2nd St, Suite 205, Casper, Wyoming, 82601.

In 2015, we moved back from to Casper from Phoenix and, of course, that upset my immune system and put me in a tailspin, which always takes me a minute to regroup. It wasn't long after moving back that I set up a working studio here and have been selling since. I love the building I'm in but recently the energy down there has changed and I've really been contemplating moving to an industrial location just for warehouse space. The jury is still out on that one!

I love Wyoming. I was raised here and split my time between Wyoming and California as a child. At 19, I moved back to San Diego. And then 16 years later, Wyoming somehow sucked me back in! I will ALWAYS be a child of the ocean, but I live in the Mountains. Go figure?! My allergies DO NOT LIKE WYOMING, but my artist's mind loves Wyoming. What's not to love - no people, sweeping landscapes, animals and nature right outside your door? There's nothing to not love about Wyoming (and, yes, I just used a double negative - whatever).

Since 2012, I've been selling online and as a vendor at large retail shows like Whole Bead Show and in Tucson. I've also sold in Denver, Las Vegas, and Phoenix. I'm waiting for the hype surrounding the Big C to settle so that I can get on with my life. It's been dramatically less interesting not traveling. In fact, I'm bored out of my ever loving mind! For now I am focused at selling online - my primary focus being Sea Glass - because, duh, I love the Ocean.

For today, I thought I'd show you some of the projects I've done over the last so many years!

It's not much a blog to reacquaint myself - but hello and I hope you enjoyed the show! Feel free to contact me with questions or comments!

Waxed Linen Sea Glass Earrings

2015-07-31T00:10:00.000-06:00

I'm all about incorporating natural elements into my beading, so I thought I'd show you my version of waxed linen earrings. They make up fast and you don't need a lot of materials to get them done.

Tools/Materials:

Scissors
Ruler
Flat and Round Nose Pliers
Irish Waxed Linen
Flocked Beading Pad
Beading Awl (optional)

Beads/Findings:

2 feet of size 22g wire
2 - French Ear wires
2 - 5mm Closed Jump Rings
2 - Abalone or shell drops
6 - Sea Glass Fish Bones in staggered sizes

Okay, you've gathered your materials. Yay! Let's move on!

The first thing you need to do is create a double-sided wire loop onto your shell. Mine is Abalone - you can use whatever you like! Wire both pieces of shell so that your dangles are ready to add to the earrings.

I'm not going to cover the wire loop here. You can find those directions in many places online or in the back of (my fav) Wirework Magazine.

Pull 2 strands of waxed linen 9 inches long each.

Fold the two pieces in half and pass them through that top loop of one of your shell pieces.

Tie an overhand knot (or as I like to refer to it "a shoelace knot") into the 4 strands over the top of the loop. Split the strands 2 to a side and form the knot.

Tighten the knot down onto the wire loop.

You're going to add the largest of your 3 pieces of fish bone Sea Glass. Split the waxed linen so that there are 2 strands on the right side of the sea glass bead, the inner most strand going through the hole, and the fourth strand on the left side of the bead. (See the photo). Now, form and tie an overhand knot down onto the bead.

Here's a picture of the overhand knot loosely formed in the linen. You can see here how I've configured the strands of linen around this bead.

I've tightened the knot down onto the bead.

Now, add your next smaller piece of sea glass. Except this time flip the two strands of the waxed linen to the left side of the bead.

In this photo, I've configured the two pieces to the left side of the sea glass, the inner most strand is going through the bead, and the single strand of linen is on the right side of the bead this time. Form your overhand knot and tighten it down.

We're adding the last sea glass bead! This time, the two strands of linen will be on the right, inner most through the hole, and single on the left. Form your overhand knot and tighten it.

It's time to knot on the closed jump ring so that we can add our earring finding. Almost done!

I'm going to leave the photos for this section a little larger. Detail can sometimes be everything here!

Pass 3 of the waxed linen strands through the jump ring, but leave the 4th strand off at a right angle.

Fold the 3 strands down over the earring (as in the photo) and put your thumb on top of them. You're going to use the strand you left out to create an overhand knot around the 3 strands capturing them and the jump ring.

Hopefully you can see how I've formed the overhand knot around my base of all the other linen strands. I'm going to tie 3 or 4 overhand knots around this base to finish this part of the earring.

Here, I've created several knots around the base and I'm getting ready to tie my final knot. Once I've tightened the knot, I'll cut it off close to the base. Then roll it all between your fingers to warm the wax and melt all the loose pieces together.

Now, you will add the earring finding and you're done.

Tips about working with waxed linen:

Try to use Irish Waxed Linen - it's made with more wax and a much higher quality linen. It holds up better and working with it will not pull the wax out of the strand onto your hand. The cheaper waxed linen bleeds wax until the linen looks frayed and unwaxed.
Got a loose end to work in after a knot, just roll it between your fingers and watch it disappear.
Never make a knot in a place you don't want it to stay. It's nearly impossible to remove a misplaced knot and doing so will fray the linen.
If you are not as comfortable working with waxed linen, use a beading awl to place your knots before you tighten them. The awl allows you to get the knot exactly where you want it before it tightens.

Looking for a quality waxed linen? I sell it! You can contact me for the choice of many colors and ply's (ply refers to how many strands are twisted into the linen cord - there is 2-ply, 3-ply, 4-ply, and 7-ply).

4-Ply 10 Yard Spools (Not Irish Waxed, but pretty good quality):

Black, Dark Brown, White - $1.99/spool

Irish Waxed Linen:

2-Ply (Black, Natural White, Med. Brown) - $1.99/10 yards

3-Ply (Black, Med. Brown, Lt. Brown, Dk. Brown, Rust,

Ruby Red, Emerald Green, Lavender, Maroon,

Natural White, Olive Green, Plum, Royal Blue,

Sage, Salmon, Teal, Turquoise, White) - $2.05/10 yards

4-Ply (Black, Med. Brown, Lt. Brown, Bright Yellow,

Charcoal, Ruby Red, Dk. Brown, Denim Blue,

Emerald Green, Rust, Forest Green, Fuchsia,

Lavender, Rose Pink, Rust, Bright Yellow,

Magenta, Mint Green, Maroon, Natural White,

Navy Blue, Olive, Plum, Royal Blue, Robin Egg Blue,

Victorian Rose, Salmon, Sage, Slate Gray,

Teal, Turquoise, Williamsburg Blue, White,

Country Yellow) - $2.50/10 yards

7-Play (Black only) - $3.75/10 yards

Need shell, sea glass, gemstone, findings or any other materials or tools mentioned in this blog - we sell that too! Just contact me for prices or check out my Etsy Store: DragonflyBeadsStudio

Keep It Simple Stupid!

2015-03-17T15:32:00.002-06:00

K.I.S.S.

Ever feel like a project just isn't worth doing unless it takes 40 hours - endless cursing - and techniques so complex they don't make sense anymore?! If you've just started beading....Beware! The monster of complexity looms on the horizon.

I've been teaching beading - all manners of - for over 12 years now and I know this scenario well. It begins simply enough: you've been taught how to do something simple by your beloved local bead store (because if you're shopping at a big box store - shame on you), and off you go tra-la-la-ing merrily learning to bead! This is good for the next few months. Year. Maybe two years. Then, all of a sudden, it's not enough!!

What? Wait, a minute. What just happened?! I'll tell you what happened. You've mastered the basics and moved on. Then, LOW AND BEHOLD you've gotten addicted to your new hobby....and, yep, beads do that! They have this way of insidiously seeping into our every waking (and no so wakeful) thoughts forcing us to devise new ways to use them.

All of us old timers will tell you that that addiction is tough to put away. That addiction leads us in to ever-evolving and complex beading projects because our minds are fascinated with the act of beading. At this point, resistance is futile! Those one hour projects have, hopelessly, turned into 3, 4, 10, 40 hour projects. 40 hours?!!

You know what?! You can't readily sell a project what has taken 40 hours to create. It's your baby, you sure you want to sell it anyway? Trust me when I say, the higher the price point, the longer it takes to sell. And, I'm here to remind you of one more thing.....Keep It Simple Stupid!

Why, you ask, should I back track now just when I've hit my stride?! Well, a couple of things. To remind you that (1) simple sells, and (2) simple cleans and refreshes your mind. Like sleep clears your thoughts, so will doing a simple project from time to time. It allows your mind to relax. With that thought in mind, let's play with our beads!

Recently, I played with some pearls - well mostly because my mom came to me with a friend's repair which involved some pearls - but, I had them out and I thought: "God, I love pearls!" So, here is something simple to consider and maybe create - just for you from me.

Why not, right?!

The Simple Pearl Project

Supplies:

11 - 8mm Freshwater Pearls

13-15 Inches - 3mm SP Curb Chain

10 - 4mm SP Jump Rings

5 - 5mm SP Jump Rings

7 - 1.5" GP Bead Tip Headpin

15 - 3mm GP Faceted Nuggets

1 - 9mm SP Lobster Claw

1 pair of SP French Ear wires

1 - 8" piece of 22 g SP wire

1 Tiny Cute Charm

Prepare the components before assembling:

1. Cut 4 - 2" pieces of chain

2. Cut 2 - 2.75" pieces of chain

3. Cut 1 - 1/2" piece of chain

4. Headpin 7 pearls with a gold nugget and top loop onto a GP bead tip headpin (charmed pearls)

5. Wire 4 pearls with gold nuggets and loops on either side onto the 22g SP wire (double looped pearls)

6. Lay out your components in the order they will be assembled on a bead pad.

Assembling the Necklace:

7. Open the top loops on the charmed pearls and ring them onto the 1/2" length of chain (see left) in the pattern you see: one pearl on the end and two each on the next link up, skip a link, then again on the next link up

8. With a 5mm jump ring, ring the cluster of pearls to two lengths of 2" chain

9. With 4mm jump rings, ring a double-looped pearl onto the end of each of the 2" pieces of chain

10. With a 4mm jump ring, ring a length of 2.75" chain to the end of each double looped pearl (see left)

11. In this order finish the chain as follows: jump ring the last two double looped pearls to the 2.75" chain, then jump ring the last two 2" lengths of chain to those pearls.

12. Finish the necklace with a 5mm jump ring on one side and a 4mm jump ring and the lobster claw on the other.

13. Add the tiny cute charm next to the lobster claw

Earring Assembly:

1. With a 5mm jump ring, ring a charmed pearl to the french ear wire. Voila!

You should have a nice pearl necklace and earring set! Yay!

Now, go outside and play with your kids.

Happy Beading!!

Wanting to know more? You can get more detailed directions and full color photos of my projects at my Etsy store - Dragonfly Beads Studio - as a downloadable PDF.

You can also get all or most of the supplies you see in my projects from me at my Etsy Store - Dragonfly Beads Studio - or like me on Facebook at Dragonfly Beads!! You can send me messages on either link for supplies you can't find online - the findings, wire, clasping, gemstone, pearls, seed beads - I carry it all! Just ask!

2013-02-12T15:53:00.000-07:00

"Round Squared"

A Right Angle

Weave Pendant

How-To

This post is a how-to on a right angle weave ("RAW") surrounded disc to create a pendant piece for a necklace. I will not be teaching RAW in this post ~ just how to use RAW to create a focal piece. You can find some great RAW how-to's on the Internet and I encourage you to do so if you do not know RAW. Otherwise, you will not get through this project!

For this particular pendant, all I am doing is surrounding a round disc with a square box. I will show you the basic structure - it's up to you to finish it!

If you do, I'd love to see the finished project. I'll even post your finished photos on my blog. So send me a photograph and your experience and I'll get it up!

Materials:

35-38 mm round disc (in any material)
11/0 rocaille seed beads
15/0 rocaille seed beads in 2 colors
   (optional 1 15/0 rocaille, 1 15/0 hex cut)
Fireline .006mm in crystal or black
13/0 beading needle
Scissors (sharp ones!!)
Bead Pad
50 - 4mm Czech glass fire polish rounds
1 strand - 4-5mm Freshwater pearls
                 (or something else in whatever material that has a nice contrast to your work)

1. You will build a basic RAW structure by stringing the following beads to create your RAW "boxes."

15/0 rocaille
15/0 hex
11/0 rocaille
15/0 hex
15/0 rocaille

2. You will re-create this pattern for each side of the RAW box.

3. Now, you will create a row of 9 boxes.

4. Connect to your first row of 9 boxes, a 2nd row of 9 boxes.

5. Connect to your 2nd row of 9 boxes, a 3rd row of 9 boxes.

6. Now create your final row of 9 boxes to create a square.

THE TRICK: There is a trick to attach row 4 to row 1. After box 7, string your beads for the first side of box 8. Pass your needle through the closest side on box 9. You can see in my picture the beads strung and my needle sticking out of the closest row - see that?

7. After you pass your needle through this row, pick up your next side of beads and finish the box. Tighten it up, pass your needle back through several areas, create a knot, pass your needle through a few more areas, create a knot, cut off your thread.

It sounded like I was repeating myself? I was! You can never be too careful with knotting off your Fireline and cutting off. I knot in several places before doing so to ensure my work will not fall apart later. Take heed!

8. You are now going to begin the side embellishments on your box. Pass you needle and add boxes where you see them in my finished box in the photograph to the right.

As you can see from the left photo, I added one box on the inside of the square and several along the outside of the square.

9. Here's a closeup of the finish box with embellishments. I put my disc in the center to be sure it would fit. Cute, huh?

Make sure you knot off in several places and cut off your Fireline.

10. Now you need to re-create this box as you see it all over again. We are going to layer the two together when we're done and you need two identical layers to do this. So get busy!

11. As you can see here, I have the two layers spread apart like a butterfly so you can see more completely what I'm in the process of doing. I'm zipping the two layers together with RAW along the side. You use the 11/0 rocaille, adding 11/0;s as you make RAW stitches along the edge.

THE TRICK: Work your RAW along with edge with 11/0's only. It's easier to see what bead your working off on each of the two edges and what beads your adding to attach the two sides together. 11/0 make the work visible.

You can't see the detail work here, but you can see how I hold the two pieces and am working the edges.

12. When you have all 4 sides sewn together, you can needle back to the front of one of the two sides (there is no top or bottom, just pick a side to make your front) and start crossing the tops of the boxes with your embellishment beads.

In this close-up you can see how I crossed over and embellished my boxes on this blue piece (which is in progress).

When you create crossovers, you are using this pattern:

15/0
4 mm Czech or 4-5mm Freshwater Pearl
15/0

Here is a close-up of the final on my brown piece. I used transparent dark topaz 4mm Czech glass and freshwater pearls.

On the blue piece, I used 4mm cobalt blue crystal bicones and 3mm Czech glass opaque turquoise fire polish rounds. You can use whatever you want! Just have fun with it!

Thanks for beading with me and I'll see you next time!!

Tassel Bohemian Earrings

2013-01-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

Art Fiber Tassel Earrings

In this short how-to, I will teach you to create a tassel made from embroidery floss and turn it into an earring!

You will need the following materials:

Embroidery floss - any color
1 - A big-eye needle
2 - Earwires
2 - Eyepin
6 - Jump rings
2 - Bead caps
8-12 - Indian Bells
1x1.5" piece of cardboard
Scissors
Flat nose and round nose pliers
Jewelry wire cutters

Hold the free end of the embroidery floss under your thumb on top of the cardboard card, with a small 1 to 1.5" tag of embroidery floss hanging off the card.

Wind the embroidery floss around the card 8 to 10 times, so that you end up with an even amount of loops on the bottom of the card.

The tag of embroidery floss and the longer length attached to the skein will end on top of the card if this is done correctly.

Slowly, pull the card out of the loops so that you have something that looks like this.

Do not cut off the longer length. We will need it to stay attached for a few more minutes.

Pinch the loops in between your forefinger and thumb so that the top 1/4" of the tassel is sticking out (along with the two pieces of floss).
Grab the longer piece of floss, and tightly wrap around the top of the tassel so that is it completely covered.

Now you can cut off the longer length of floss, leaving 1 foot.

Thread the 1 foot length of floss onto the big eye needle and carefully pass it up in between the loops (through the middle) of the bottom of the area you just wrapped.

Pass the big eye needle back through to the top of the tassel so that the tassel, once again, has both pieces of the floss coming out of it.

Now, you want to knot both pieces of floss to each other carefully (as as to not pull length from the loops).

After making your knot, you may cut off both pieces of extra floss.

You now have a tassel. Now, make another tassel. After you have two tassels, you can begin assembling the earrings.

Earring Assembly:

Pick up one tassel, split the loops apart evenly and carefully pass the eyepin up through the bottom of the tassel so that the top of the eyepin exits the top of the tassel (leaving the eye of the pin in between the loops and under the head of the tassel). If yours' looks like mine, you've done it right!

Now, put the bead cap on top of the tassel so that it covers the head of the tassel, like so....

We are making a wrapped loop on top of the tassel. This will hold the tassel together with the bead cap and provide places to attach our ear wire and charms! Yeah!

Pick up the flat nose pliers and make a right angle bend right above bead cap. Put your flat nose pliers down and pick up the round nose plier. Place the round nose plier next to the right angle bend and gently pull the long piece of wire around the top round nose.

You need to reposition the pliers (see photo) so that the wire passes through the middle of the plier jaws.

Once you have repositioned, gently pull the long piece of wire down around the bottom jaw of the round nose pliers.

When you pull the pliers off, you will have a loop! Well, if you've done it right. No worries, you can contact me or google "wrapped loop how to" and get more specific directions.

Position the loop in between jaw of your round nose pliers and wrap the end of the wire around its base 2 times. Cut off any excess wire you may have and gently push the end into its base with your flat nose pliers.

All we do now is open jumps rings and attach bells. Jump rings are meant to be pulled open front to back, not side to side.

I put 2 to 3 bells on a jump ring, hooked the edge of the filigree bead cap, and gently close the jump ring. Do this once or twice around the cap, or on either side of the cap, depending on how many bells you would like on your earring.

Your final steps!

Open the loop on your earwire, hook the loop on top of the tassel and close your earwire loop. The earwire should now be attached to the tassel.

As you can see, we have our bells on the cap already and your only other step is to cut the bottom of the tassel loops with scissors. If they don't cut evenly, no worries! Gently, trim the longer strands and even it all up.

Enjoy!

2012-10-03T00:02:00.001-06:00

H E L L O....!

Drop flower beaded pendant - a borrowed design

I haven't written in a L-O-N-G time. Not that anyone missed me.....and that's okay! I have been through a MAJOR life change this last year; in fact the last two years have been pretty bad. But, here I am. I'm in a new part of the Country; Phoenix, Arizona; I'm healthier and working on getting happier. I've been teaching art at my kids' school, teaching workshops and birthday parties, working at night, trying to work on my studio during the day and just trying - overall - to move on from everything that felt familiar and that I loved so dearly.


Dragonfly Dreams - Cheryl Payton

Two summers ago I went and taught at the Teton Bead Retreat with my friend, Amy Loh-Kupser, and had a great time. I made this little dragonfly pendant from wire and a mix of gemstone and glass beads that was meant for beginning wireworkers.

I've since taught it for a couple of groups here in Arizona and have been well received.

Geometry - Cheryl Payton

Here's a piece I did with seed beads - Right Angle Weave - a double layered triangular pendant. I did the cord with tubular peyote and just scattered gold wherever.

I like to work that way the best - just outside the lines. I'm not good at following or reading directions - so I like to work from a picture in my mind and modify as I go. If a design isn't going well, I'll tear out what I've done - maybe even cut it all apart altogether - and then start all over.

Cellini Spiral - Cheryl Payton

Sea Urchin - a borrowed design

I'm So Blue - Cheryl Payton

Hey, I know it's not earth shattering beadwork here folks! Art is a process. For me, it's always been THE process by which I pull out what's inside of my stupid head - or how I calm the inner storm. When I'm emotional, I don't spend time doing what I'm supposed to. It's been a tough year emotionally. I don't think you really want to hear about it - and to me it's probably too much whining anyway. Right?!

I thought I'd share some photos of my classes at Teton Bead Retreat and also from a class I did in Tucson. I love teaching - - I just love it!!

TEACHING IN TUCSON - 2011

Here is the palette of a student who is just starting to put together the pieces to her necklace - the pendant takes the longest. After that, you assemble the components. Connecting the pieces together and stranding the necklace is where the magic happens and you begin to see the finished piece!

Deedee Stockman - the gal in yellow - is a wonderful person, a great hostess, and a kind person. These gals at the Tucson Embroiderer's Guild were amazing! The nicest group of ladies I've ever had the pleasure of teaching.

And they were all smiles!

TETON BEAD RETREAT - 2010

Gorgeous sunset behind Amy's house, over the fields..ahhh!

Amy is a great helper!

Looking over DeeDee's shoulder :)

Buffalo Peeps!


Great glasses!

All of Us! So MANY!

Larry and Kee!

What's New?!

2011-06-04T15:11:00.000-06:00

"Voice" in artwork........What the hell is that?! Well, I'm not Webster's, but my take on "voice" is the aesthetic or elements in YOUR artwork that speaks to who or what you are. "Voice" is your fingerprint! Your personality! Your influences! Your style! Your taste! Your life experiences! And, "voice" is how it all shows through your work and specifically speaks to you - the Artist of the particular piece of artwork. The "voice" in your work should be completely and thoroughly individual to you. People should see your work and immediately identify it as being your 's. HA! Fat chance of that!

Finding your "voice" would seem to be a natural and organic part of everything you do......IT'S SO NOT! In fact, my "voice" in my work has been incredibly hard for me to find. I'm not entirely sure why. I think I have gotten caught up in what I like about other peoples' work (and there is so much incredibly amazing work out in the world) that I haven't spent enough time discovering what I love about MY work. NO MORE!

I want to show you a bit about what I love! My hope is that if I focus on those "bits" of me, maybe I'll be more aware of them the next time I sit down to create something. So, here goes!

I love the feeling of warm sand on my feet, the smell of the ocean, the feeling of the cool breeze sifting through my hair and against my skin; the feeling of the warm sun on my face. I believe I love these feelings because those times I spent close to the Ocean just might of have been the healthiest times of my life. I might be associating "feeling good" with the Ocean. (I wish those were my toes in the sand!)

I identify readily with the beauty of the Ocean and its daily landscapes, its rhythms are contemplative and relaxing. There's nothing better in the world if you're upset, than walking on the beach. Some of my favorite colors are associated the the Ocean. I mean, look at that sunset! My favorite color is mauve......but WOW.......how many colors of purple can you pick out in that picture?!!! Amazing.

I challenged myself to learn to scuba dive when I was in my 20's. Lots of people do it as a sport, right? Me? I decided to learn because I carried so many "fears" inside. They were crippling me! And, I determined I was tired of being fearful; I had a plan! My plan was to DO the things I thought I couldn't do. To conquer them. One of them was Scuba!

Scuba opened up a world of landscape, of colors and shapes I didn't even know existed! It is so beautiful underneath the water. Empowering! I think Scuba, and Kung Fu (yes, I learned that too), opened me up to parts of myself I'd buried. I discovered I am strong, and can be determined. When I follow through on something, the outcome can be surprising and amazing. I learned I am truly loving and very maternal. Isn't discovering oneself part of the artistic process? I think so.

I am also inspired by other artists. (Like, who isn't?!) My favorites are the French Impressionist's. De Gas and Monet being the ABSOLUTE TOP. To the right: the Four Dancers by Edgar De Gas. It's the color, movement, and light. I Love it!

This is Monet's Woman with Umbrella. Look at how he captures form with light and movement. Wow.

Monet's Water Lilies. Sumptuous.

De Gas' Woman Drying after Bath. Lovely use of light for form. And moving on...

Frieda Kahlo!!! Need I say more? My "determined strong woman" influence. Her story is incredible. Briefly, She was a Mexican surrealist and communist during the 40's, 50's. A beautiful, strong woman, who survived a horrific bus crash, and was never able to have children. She married to Muralist Diego Rivera.

Some of my "iconic" influences are: paisley and flowers. I am, at my core, an earth mother. I love to plant and garden. I believe in herbal remedies, and that the earth will provide.

I love Stargazer's! Their color, shape, smell! What more is there in life?

That's parts of me in a nutshell, I guess. Here's some of my recent work. I think you can start to see, my "voice" peaking through. Can you? I'm trying. But, tell me what you think. I am interested in knowing good or bad.

It may be simplistic or idealistic...I think of it as puristic...but, I truly believe that you are not a real artist and don't embody the essence of what creating and being an artist is until you put yourself out there, into the world, and let others view your work. So here I am world, pick away!

Dragonflies - the symbol of rebirth, renewal, metamorphosis, profound change. Something you will see again and again in my work.

I stick with wirework for the most part. I enjoy wirework because how sculptural it can be. I do a lot of jewelry still, but am starting to pick up felting, sketching, painting, and pastels again. I love creating exactly what is in my mind with wire: flowers, bugs, symbols, etc.

Wet felted flowers. I do a lot of flowers. Wire flower pendants, drawn flowers, painted flowers, felt flowers. One can never have enough flowers.

Oh look, dragonflies again. Hmmm, seems to be a trend here.

You can go to my website: Dragonfly Beads, and see a lot of my work. I do a lot of pieces I donate to or do specifically for charity that are like "object's d'art". I love painting murals! You'll see some of those on my website too, and you'll see a lot of my jewelry.

Art Fiber Earring Challenge

2011-03-20T21:37:00.000-06:00

The challenge is to create art fiber earrings. The challenger?! My good friend Pat Reisenberger: http://thecraftyretailer.blogspot.com/.

I love paisley. Paisley is a symbol for me, along with the dragonfly. For me, it's a symbol of beauty and renewal. I love it in my work and has been lending itself well to my wirework for over 10 years. Love it! So I incorporate my favorite elements: wire, paisley, art fiber. Cool.

The process involved in discovering a way to meld the two is often times my favorite challenge in my work. Lately, my process often involves multi-media. Off loom weaving, wirework, art fiber are my most commonly visited elements.

So, the three incorporated nicely here and I love the finished earring.

In this photo, I have finished the wire framing and have wrapped it once with hand-dyed silk ribbon. I am in process of wrapping one earring with crystal and seed beads.

In this photo, both earrings are done and wrapped with beads and silk. Cool. They look awesome.

Next, I am playing with ideas of how I want the finished earring to look. Dangles? No dangles? More wire, maybe chain? I don't know?!

In this photo, you can vaguely see I have added a bit of chain and have dangled off of them 8mm fuschia AB Swarovski crystal facted rounds with some teal crystal rhondelles.

Finally, I add some amethyst 4mm bicone in the upper curl as well as a sheppard's hook earwire. All in all, a nice effect.

Here they are finished in the sun of Phoenix, Arizona. Still hard to see, and so I add the final photo.

IT'S ALL GOOD!!!!

2010-10-05T00:01:00.000-06:00

Hello! It's been a long time since I have had enough time to "blaaaaag" to you!! Ya know how it is....kids, work, kids, work, husband, kids, work - kinda in that order too!

I recently attended the Teton Bead Retreat! Wow, it was awesome! To have an entire week to make friends, bead, sit, visit, bead, share wine - dinner - and stories, and to bead some more - we all had an amazing time, and we all got along so well. Mega-bonding was had by all! Okay, truth, I started this blog post in August and now its October. What?!! Welcome to my life. Hey, I still want to talk about the Teton Bead Retreat - and I have pictures!!

Let me just start this blog off by telling you all that the Teton Bead Retreat was first class all the way. My friend, Amy Loh-Kupser, held it in Driggs, Idaho. The view from her HUGE, HUGE studio was amazing!

Here's a photograph of the Grand Tetons from the Idaho side of the mountain range. What a great place to take a week off. And, the town of Driggs was so cool. There were great restaurants, a great bead and fiber (yarn) store, an amazing grocery store (the cook in my loved this place), and so much more. It was fabulous! I wish I'd taken some photos of the town. Next time.

This photo was of the moon coming up over the Teton range one of the nights we were there. It was beautiful; there's no way the photograph does it justice - but it was gorgeous.

Okay, so moving on. The accommodations, the food, the beading (and kits), the setting, the studio we all worked in -- all of it was great! Better than I expected. Not that Amy is a slouch at organizing. She's not! I just didn't expect what we got. Amazing.

So I have some photos that show Amy's studio. The studio is over 3,000 square feet of beautiful, perfectly lit, gorgeous-ness (is that a word). So check the photos out!

Looking to the right.

Looking to the left.

Looking down into one of the Dormers.

I'm pretty sure there were six large Dormer windows down the length of this studio. I have Dormer-envy! I swear!

I've never been to a bead retreat or taken a class from anyone - so I did not know what to expect. Yep, that's right. Besides the two how-tos my mom gave me years ago, I've not taken classes. Self taught here --- all of it!

Anyway, the "pro" that Amy brought in for all of us (besides herself) was Jeanette Cook of Beady Eyed Women - all around beading guru, San Diego fellow resident, goddess of the artsy-fartsy, and all around cheap wine connoisseur. God, she walked in with 6 bottles of wine and made a joke and I just knew I was going to love her! Jeannette is funny, talented, and saucy as hell. What a pleasure she was to get to know; and I do love her work so much. I took a few snaps of stuff she brought with her. Wow.

Some of Jeanette Cook's Work!

More of Jeanette's Gorgeous Work!

And Yet a little bit more of Jeanette's work!

Oh, look, it's Jeannette - ain't she cute?!

Some of my fellow classmates. I worked really hard and didn't finish any of the classes, except this medallion bracelet. It was a gorgeous bracelet.

So the question really is, what do you do after a long day of beading. Well, you decompress by helping Jeannette drink all that wine she brought with her. God bless Jeannette!

And here we all are doing just that!

Sharing stories and laughing.

Visiting!

My friends! Jeanette in the glasses; Amy in the tank top!

Amy's gorgeous work. She does the best patterns in the business. If you haven't seen her work firsthand, you need to. Go see both Amy and Jeanette whenever and however you can. Artistically speaking, it is so worth the time to do so. The inspiration has been incredibly worth it for me.

This is a design Amy made for me. I couldn't speak after she showed me the kit. I've never had a friend "do" for me. I'm usually the one doing all the giving. Amy, I can't thank you enough for the love, the thought and effort that went into this surprise. It blessed me. Thank you so much!

Okay, everyone stay tuned for more good stuff. More to come and hopefully (if it all goes to plan) sooner than later! Ha! And, I promise that if I actually finish the Jeanette swirly noodle thing she tried to teach me that I will post the results here for you!

ENDING IT ALL!

2010-05-30T22:44:00.004-06:00

Hey everyone! I'm here to finish the Nuno felted scarf!
(Before I get started, I just want ya'll to know that the scarf I have been working on was a kit by Pat Reisenburger of Aussie Threads & Fibers.com. She's the amazing master of my creative universe right now! (I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy!) You can see her projects and crazy thoughts at: www.thecraftyretailer.blogspot.com.)

Learning a new media (for me) is not always intuitive. I ALWAYS need new ideas spoon fed to me to understand the process. (I guess I'm a visual learner.) Since there isn't anyone who Nuno felts in Casper, and seeing as how Wyoming can be a barren wasteland of creativity, I had to teach myself. So, here I am!

This kit was a two part process...for me. Mostly because I have kids. NOTHING is simple with kids!!

The project required a time commitment and......the lethargically-challenged need to stop reading now and immediately turn on the TV........I had to split that time into parts. I think I spent a total of 15 hours on this project over 4 or 5 days.

Before today, I had already spent time the month before felting the ribbons that get embellished to the top of the scarf. Now, I'm ready to finish felting the edging of the scarf and felt the ribbons to the surface of the scarf.

I laid out my project to arrange and begin "shingling" it. Shingling prepares it for the "jelly roll," which is the precursor to NUNO FELTING! Or, as Linda would say "a shit load of rolling back and forth." Entirely, too much for her, I might add.

(Okay, and something else. If you all are lucky enough to have an awesome friend with lots of extra room that you can totally dowse with water - take advantage of her and say thank you!)

You can see how I rolled back the ribbon and shingled underneath it. You will shingle wool wherever you want to "stick" together two pieces of silk, or "hem" an edge. The wool fibers will mesh together and bond to the silk. Cool, huh?!

And in the picture to the right,
I have laid out and shingled the
entire scarf.

After you shingle, you cover the entire project with mesh. The mesh prevents things from sticking together that shouldn't.

The entire project was laid out on bubble wrap, its shingled, then its covered with mesh.

After all is covered with mesh, you pour soapy hot water over all the "shingled" wool. You can vaguely see in the pic to the left the lines of soapy hot water that cover all the stuff that's getting felted. You don't have to dowse the entire scarf!
Just wet the areas you have shingled with wool.

You roll the entire thing up and tie the ends with pantyhose. Like this! Looks like a jelly roll,don't it?!! I have it sitting on top of an old towel, because now I start the rolling back and forth process, and as you roll water squishes out. So, you roll, and roll, and roll.....and roll. Actually, it's not that much. I rolled on and off for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Minus a few small steps, you end up putting the entire project into a bag for the "fulling" process. Fulling is what puts the felting process into overdrive. You do this to make sure the felting is fully "cemented" and starts to pucker the silk. Puckering is good. Puckering is what gives your project natural ruffles and adds waviness to the fabric.

Fulling is the fun part. You must wad the project into a ball and throw it against the table and knead it like dough many times. It's aggression therapy! If you don't mind soaking everything around
you, you can full without the bag. I use the bag.

You let it all dry.

Then you sew on trimmings, beads, crystals, etc. with whatever your heart desires!

And here's my finished project! Cool, huh?! I'm hooked.

I finished mine off with sequins down the light green ribbons, and I fringed the edges with seed beads and crystals. It's sparkly. Yes, it's simple. One must begin somewhere. I hope to dazzle you soon with my next project!

My Introduction to Nuno Felting

2010-02-20T16:55:00.009-07:00

As promised, I have started Nuno Felting. Not my first attempt at wet felting, but my first ever attempt at Nuno Felting. What's the difference, you ask?! (For those wondering: Yes! I did ask myself that question! It's the hair!) With wet felting, you hand work wool roving (a squishy pile of wool fibers) into themselves with hot water and soap. With nuno felting, you work the wool fibers into silk (100% silk).

I have not explored all the ways wool fibers can be felted into silk - or what kinds of silk - but judging by today's self-taught class - I'M LOVIN' IT!!!

I started with the ribbon strips that will be felted onto my silk shawl. The ribbons are a gorgeous chartreuse silk with wool of the same color. I took a photo of the items all rolled up. Once all the materials are wet down, I roll them into a "jelly roll." I then will roll this jelly roll back and forth 300 times. I stop between every 100 rolls, realign pieces, roll it all back up and keep rolling.

My next photo is the ribbons completed and soggy. After rolling, which takes about 1/2 an hour, you unroll it all and "full" it. Fulling is the process that realigns the wool fibers and completes the felting process. Fulling is fun! It's my new "aggression" therapy because you get to whack and throw this wet soggy mess all over the place! Yeah baby! For those of you who need to play it safe (and you know who you are), you can put the soggy material into a gallon zip lock baggy. But, it's more fun the other way. Then, I hung them in a dryer to dry.

When I get back to town, I will finish felting the ribbons onto my silk shawl. Taking photos along the way. (So those are yet to come.)

Something else I started that same day, were the felted flowers for the shawl closure. These were easy. I used a much smaller jelly roll set up, but I think I could have done these by hand (without bubble wrap, etc.). But I've got a picture here of them felted and in the dryer.

My next photo is my beading mat set up.

And, finally, a photo of the finished flower. They are gorgeous - about 2 1/2 to 3 inches across. I beaded the edges, sewed a pin back on, covered that with a piece of spare felt, and beaded the centers with Swarovski crystal. Gorgeous.

Yes, the flower will be a class. The shawl will be a workshop. I have ordered the wool tops and they are on there way as we speak. I have also ordered embellishment fibers like silk tops, silk throwster's waste, craft sequins, and much more!

Stay tuned for more creative crafting, instructions for all, class and workshop offerings and new store items.

My Beading Isn't Always Great Either!

2010-02-20T16:12:00.000-07:00

I've been working on a project recently myself! A peyote stitched flat bracelet. It's a project from the recent issue of Bead & Button. Of course, things don't always go as planned, and my plan has gone astray!

I've done everything per the letter of the article, and still it sucks! And, no, it's not the project instructions or the Article. It's me. I've done this bracelet 3 times. Because of the bugle beads I chose (a frosted multi-colored mauve bugle), I've had to restitch this project .... going on the 4th time now! I get close to the end, and then it all breaks!

But why!? I think I've finally figured it out. I think the bugles are cutting my "uncut-able" weaving line. Okay, so some things apparently cut this line.... I've just never seen it happen until now. So here's a picture of my 3rd attempt! Gorgeous, right? I thought so. Until, I was sewing on my clasp closure (the final step in my bracelet) then it breaks! Ack.

So, stay tuned. I've got many other projects coming up that I know will be more successful. Nuno Felted Shall, Needle Felted Door Hangers, Recycled Couture, and, of course, some beading too!