Honey from the Bee Artisan Jewelry - whimsical for the adventurous woman

Wool Strips are Like Strokes of Paint

2015-01-05T04:00:00.000-08:00

With this completed hooked wall hanging of my springer spaniel I learned a few things and had some epiphanies. Here's just a sampling:

All art forms use similar elements and processes.

Colors in fiber can be used like colors in tubes of paint. Shadows are not gray, but blues and purples... or perhaps even green.

Pay attention to where the light comes from and where it hits your object to give your piece dimension.

Start with a good drawing and you have the framework to create something beautiful.

Don't be afraid to tear out something that isn't working, but walk away and come back before doing so.

Trust yourself and just create without judgement so you enjoy the process and are surprised by your own magic.

"Daisy" drawn by Laura Pierce
She used one main photo of mine, but incorporated a couple of others, too.

In any dog portrait the eyes are extremely important.
Tanya taught me the spit method (or felting method!)

I felt her coming to life and actually teared up.

I couldn't believe how much I got done at camp!

Since she's my favorite dog ever
I was so happy that I could use my favorite color,
periwinkle, for the background.

I had bought some furry yarn at the local yarn store in Mendocino with the thought of using it here and there on her ears to make them look soft and curly. Tanya Graham, my teacher, really encouraged me not to saying that she knew I could do it without it and it would be the better for it. I am so thankful that she was so encouraging as I love how she turned out!

I took this photo from the 2nd floor to show how the colors blend.
You're going to see her from a distance not close up.
It's a little blurry, but you get the idea.

Now that I have momentum I've sent off more photos of the dogs in my life to Laura Pierce of Flying Dog Hookery to draw up some more patterns. If I was hooking flowers I'd draw the pattern, but Laura is just so good at it!

Some Colorful Wool Rugs - Hooking for Art and Pleasure

2015-01-02T14:40:00.000-08:00

Actually why else would you hook these days?

Last month I attended the Little River Inn Rug Camp and was again blown away by the artistry in hooked rugs today. No longer are hookers confined to wool or traditional patterns. As you'll see in the photos one's subject can be anything you want and style ranges the gamut, too, from primitive to modern.

While taking classes one is surrounded by completed rugs being shown on the walls of the work space. When you take a pause from focusing on your own rug you can glance around and be inspired by color and technique. Some of the designs are originals by the hookers, others are designed by teachers, while others are commercial patterns that the hookers put their own spin on.

Aboriginal
Design by Sharon Smith; Hooked by LaRae Schneider

Paint Pots
Designed and Hooked by Gail Becker

We were treated to a slide show by Lara Magruder, a local artist that works with fiber. I was very excited to see her mixed media work and had the opportunity to watch her work, as she sat next to me during camp.

Wolves at the Door
Designed and Hooked by Lara Magruder

Last year we were treated to a slide show from Sarah Province in which she shared her life's work. I loved hearing her talk, as she's from Virginia and it brought back memories of growing up there. It was really nice to see her again this past camp.

Silver Spring Marketplace
Designed and Hooked by Sarah Province

Dick and Francie
Designed and hooked by Sarah Province

Since I was going to hook a dog portrait for my class project I was excited to see two rugs by Barb Powell. I thought they were both wonderful, but she pointed out that Scotty was her mother's dog and a real pain in the butt. Looking again I could tell the love she felt for Ozzy came through her hooking. I took that to heart.

Ozzy - the Aussie Dog
Designed and Hooked by Barb Powell

Scotty - a dog
Designed and Hooked by Barb Powell

My teacher for the camp was the delightful and very informative Tanya Graham. Although she lives in Canada now her English accent added charm. She was wearing a very cool silver skull pendant that her son created, but unfortunately the close-up photo I took of it was very blurry.

Tanya Graham

Bear
Designed and Hooked by Tanya Graham

We all made great progress during the week and I thought I'd share some of my favorites. I apologize for not getting the hooker's or designer's name on all of them.

Close up of part of Adam and Eve
Designed by J. Conner

Black cat on back of sofa

California, Here We Come!
Designed and Hooked by PA Webber

Designed and Hooked by Sarah Province

Picasso Cat
Designed and Hooked by Pat Merikallio

Stair Risers

Next post I'll share the rug I started at camp and completed today!

Merry Christmas and Good Will Towards All Men...and Earth's Creatures

2014-12-24T04:00:00.000-08:00

Worktable Wednesday: Knitting Scarves

2014-12-10T04:00:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd share a knitting pattern that I'm just loving. Half the fun is buying the two colors of yarn and then the other half is the knitting to see how those two colors complement each other.

The cowl pattern is called Embers and for my first one I duplicated the yarn featured by Madelinetosh, because I just loved how that yellow peaked through. It also was the perfect combination for a special person in my life.

After knitting two other cowls in a different pattern I decided to go back to the Embers pattern and create one for myself. The color in the photo is showing a lot of blue, but I think it's because I shot the photo so close and in weird light. The colors are Coquette (hot pink) and Black Velvet, which is greys and darker pink rose. When I finish it I'll take another photo in natural light, because it really is an amazing combination.

In my desire to get the other two cowls off to their surprise recipients I forgot to take photos! So... I'm going to beg that they take photos of themselves wearing them. If they agree I'll post those later. I used some lovely Malabrigo yarn for them and they're much longer. Anyway, stay tuned!

I haven't posted in awhile! I'll try to do better. My thoughts and feelings have been very internally focused as I worked through some stuff. My jewelry and fiber work has been meditative and I am thankful to have had it to keep me busy.

To my friends who have been so wonderful this past year, this is for you:

"A Friend should be radical,

They should love you
when you're unlovable,

Hug you when you're unhuggable,
And bear with you
when you're unbearable.

A Friend should be fanatical;

They should cheer
when the whole world boos,
Dance when you get good news,
And cry when you cry too.

But most of all,
A friend should be mathematical,

They should multiply the joy,
Divide the sorrow,
Subtract the past,
And add to tomorrow,

Calculate the need
deep in your heart,
and always be bigger
than the sum of all their parts."
~Billy Sprague

Why do I Love Art Retreats?

2014-10-31T15:58:00.000-07:00

As I start packing for a return to Little River Rug Camp near Mendocino I'm remembering my first Little River retreat last year and how it was a true respite.

So, why do I love retreats?

Sometimes the location is enough.

I am amongst members of one of my tribes. We all have them and know how comforting and fun it is to be with those that get us. Maybe they're your fellow Giants' fans, master gardeners, or hiking pals?

The myriad ways that colorful wool strips can transform burlap and linen into art wall hangings, rugs, and even totes reaches into that part of me that hums and dances.

And by the end the connection I've missed with myself and what matters most to me is restored.

Wheely Fun Jewelry Challenge Reveal

2014-10-01T04:00:00.000-07:00

Many of my beading friends like to challenge each other from time to time with interesting items we come across in our travels or shopping trips.

This past summer our local Ben Franklin store closed its doors. I'm real sad to see it go, as it was nice to have local access to art supplies and framing. Before it closed they had big discounts and the longer you waited the more discounted items became. Also, of course, the items became more and more obscure.

I saw these wooden toy wheels and thought heck, we could make some interesting jewelry with these! Like the good friends they are my beading friends agreed to participate. They all have reported back they're ready and actually sounded like they were excited to reveal.

Well, for me it was a real challenge. I set a wheel at my desk and fiddled with it off and on for weeks. The only consistent thought I had was to bezel a Swarovski rivoli in the center. I tried several colors.. then let it sit some more.

Then as time neared it dawned on me to create something that was just a desk top folly. Well, I'm not using folly properly, because it means a costly ornamental building with no practical purpose. But you get the idea, right?

I created something that is sparkly and pretty to fiddle with while coming up with new ideas or just meditating. It's a work in progress, too. I plan on adding more crystals and beads that move around the hub. I also want a better base to spin it on. I found it has to be just the right size to spin well though.

There's a lot of talent in this group so I'm very excited to see what they did with the wheel. Shall we go see?

Antiquity Travelers: http://antiquitytravelers.blogspot.com/

Beadsong Jewelry: http://www.beadsong.blogspot.com/

Crafty Hope: http://www.craftyhope.com/

One Kiss Creations: http://onekisscreations.blogspot.com/

Sally Russick: http://sallyrussick.blogspot.com/

Therese's Treasures: http://theresestreasures59.blogspot.com/

Three's a Tassel Charm - using patina

2014-09-28T08:56:00.001-07:00

It was as simple as coming across three golden tassels in my stash and seeing these golden daisy lampwork beads by Debbie Sanders. I'd bought them some time ago apparently, because I couldn't remember who the artist was, and when I was directed towards Debbie by another lampwork artist, she couldn't remember how long ago she'd created them either! I thought it was cool that another lampwork artist (Donna Millard) knew whose beads they likely were!

I really dislike making the same thing twice so I decided to play with patinas to subtly change the color of the tassels.

For the gift I gave a dear friend who is moving away I used one of Christi Friesen's Swellegant dye-oxides called milk white.

Although navy is my friend's favorite go to color she loves the glamour of white for accessories. Some of you may remember the beaded rope I created for A Stitch in Time 4 done in chenille stitch. I always intended to create a charm out of the cowrie shell for her since I found it on our Carmel getaway, but I delayed completing any of it in dumb hope that if I didn't finish it... she wouldn't move. Well, it didn't work and she gets two pendants!

The dye-oxide is like water so I sponged the dye-oxide on several times to build up the oxide until I was happy with the result, let it dry a couple of days, and then put the sealer on.

For the tunic length Daisy Tassel I decided to get some rosy copper look going since the vintage chain had glints of it. I used Rub 'n Buff Autumn Gold to give this tassel some dimension and glow.

Daisy Tassel - tunic length

Rub 'n Buff is easy to use. It comes in a small tube and it's like toothpaste. I just used my finger, but you could use a soft cloth. I did use a soft cloth to buff in between applications so I could control the level of patina on the tassel.

The third daisy tassel is given a patina with Baroque Art's Gilder's Paste. I used African Bronze since the chain I wanted to use was closest to that color.

Daisy Tassel in bronze

Gilder's Paste is the consistency of shoe polish that comes in a tin. It takes longer to apply which can be a good thing so you can go as subtle as you want.

I love how all three turned out. I played with lengths as well and found they looked great as a regular pendant length of 18-20 inches all the way to 34" for tunic length. Although they have a daisy theme, the metallics make me think of Christmas ornaments and holiday celebrations. Makes them pretty versatile I'd say!

Six More Days until the Wheely Fun Jewelry Challenge!

2014-09-25T11:30:00.001-07:00

Tune in on October 1st to see what the bead ladies created with a wooden toy wheel.

(that's bead, not bag...)

Butterflies of the Day and Night inspire New Pendants

2014-09-24T14:14:00.000-07:00

The butterfly counts not months,

but moments,

and has time enough.

~Rabindranath Tagore

Papillon de Nuit
Lampwork by Mandrel Beads
Fine Silver flower donut by Honey from the Bee (me!)
Swaroski Crystal

Le Papillon
Lampwork by Mandrel Beads
Fine Silver flower donut by Honey from the Bee
Swarovski crystal

Jungle Fever
Lampwork by Meital Plotnik
Fine Silver teardrop by Honey from the Bee

Okay, that last one wasn't a butterfly, but I was inspired by the habitat of many butterflies and moths.

Grateful for the moments that count.

Like a Flower's Petals, the Tree's Leaves Turn and Fall

2014-09-16T09:58:00.002-07:00

Autumn Portrait
vintage mourning buckle, vintage button
handsawn and forged copper leaf
vintage chain

Time Passes
lampwork by Donna Millard
handsawn, textured, and forged copper leaves
Swarovski crystals

First Snow
Texas Agate
Copper

Simply Autumn
vintage buckle
Red Agate
Swarovski crystal

Now Autumn's fires burn slowly along the woods

and day by day the dead leaves fall and melt. ~William Allingham

Must be Almost Harvest Time

2014-08-28T11:05:00.004-07:00

... because a walk to pick up the newspaper brings a bull moose in sight!

After reviewing last year's photos of a yearling in our yard and the information on this web site, I think he's the same guy who left his Mom last year after she showed him our neighbor's orchard.

Fortunately my neighbor gave us a head's up that there was a bull moose in the area so I was scanning the area as I walked this morning. I saw him on the side of the road not too far away so ran and got my husband and camera to get these shots.

Last year the game warden told us he and his Mom would leave after all the fruit was gone. They did after several weeks. I'm wondering if this guy came early to stake his claim and if he'll keep others away or at least welcome his Mom back.

Now our dogs will have to be taken out on leash to avoid any encounters. My Moose is no match for this moose.

Kiss the Frogs - Third's a Charm

2014-08-12T13:15:00.001-07:00

Last summer when I pulled beads for jewelry ideas I had 3 muffin cups with frog beads. That was a ratio that surprised even me!

I have no idea how I ended up with so many, but their adorableness got to me as did their counterparts' current fate in the real world. They each have their own personality, but they each became a unique whimsical creation!

Leap of Faith (left)
It's a Frog's Life (upper right) SOLD
Frogger (bottom right)

Frogger is my latest and quite possibly my last frog necklace. Never say never, right?

Frogger - tunic length artisan necklace
Bottom lampwork bead with frogs - Meital
Raku ceramic connector bead - Lisa Peters

Take a leap of faith every once in awhile. Otherwise you'll never know what you've been missing.

American Beauty - Royston Turquoise Cabochon becomes Wearable

2014-08-10T14:18:00.003-07:00

I think other jewelers must feel the same as I do right now. I'm in love with my latest piece. Yep, it's my favorite. I am fickle so the next one I create may push this one aside, but I think it's going to be awhile.

Last April I drew the pendant concept.

Royston Turquoise
(natural from Nevada)

When I started working on it I decided to go with the original shape, but make some adjustments.

Turns out designing the pendant was the easy part. I had the toughest time deciding what to use as the necklace part. I originally thought I'd create a chain, but that would've added to the expense of the pendant by quite a bit. It being American turquoise from the Royston mines in Nevada was already going to make it special.

I had some very cool chain that wasn't sterling silver... also thought about all leather.

I slept on it. Then my muse spoke to me and wow was she ever right!

American Beauty
Royston Turquoise, Sterling Silver, leather

I love how the leather picks up the brown in the turquoise matrix and also adds a feminine touch.

I almost forced it the previous afternoon to finish it and am so glad I stopped myself.

Listen to your heart, your gut, your muse... whatever you call your inner voice. That's when the magic happens.

Kelp Forest of Monterey Bay Inspires Silver and Chrysocolla Pendant

2014-07-21T12:21:00.003-07:00

Kelp Forest, Monterey Bay
photo by Fred Hsu
(photographer has given free use of this photo)

I am extremely lucky to live beside the Monterey Bay in California. It is home to one of the largest kelp forests in the world and much life, including my favorite animal: the sea otter. Kelp forests are recognized as one of the most productive and dynamic ecosystems of the world.

When I was sketching designs for some new stones I'd purchased this past spring I was immediately struck by how this Bluebird Chrysocolla cabochon looked like a kelp forest.

After posting the drawing on Instagram a friend responded that this better be the first one I create after getting my metals studio back up and running. Well, it wasn't the first, but it was the second! Perhaps setting a marquis cut stone was not the best idea for getting back to my bench, but the whole process was meditative and reinforced patience.

Kelp Forest
Sterling Silver
Bluebird Chrysocolla from a mine in Arizona that's been
closed since the 1980s.
The lapidarist purchased the rough from an old estate collection.

The result also gives me confidence to go running back to my stone storage and find my next victim!

Adrift - Ocean Inspired Necklace - with a little help from my friends

2014-07-11T13:40:00.001-07:00

My latest one of a kind necklace brings up images of mermaids and weddings by the sea.

I was inspired to create this necklace by both the sea anemone shell in its perfect symmetry and the lampwork bead by Canyon Echoes.

Creating it required fire and fumes though and I've been waiting for my garage studio to be completed before pulling those tools out of boxes. However, I just couldn't wait any longer.

Adrift
Sea Anemone shell
Canyon Echoes lampwork
Sonoran Beads Boro droplets
Argentium sterling silver frame
Sterling Silver, Resin
Starfish

This necklace took a small village to come to fruition though. The village of helpful teachers out on the web that is. I thought I'd share their generosity of knowledge with you, too!

A month or so ago I posed a question on Facebook about how to reinforce the sea anemone shell. I knew I wanted to fill the space in the back a bit, but safe materials were just not coming to mind. Diane Hyde came to the rescue. She suggested paper clay and in my mind it was like "Of course!" That was something I actually already had! I added a layer of resin over the dried paper clay and shell to really give it a protective shell, so to speak.

For more great ideas from Diane for using found objects and such check out her latest book Break the Rules:

One of my favorite books this year has been Behind the Brooch by Lorena Angulo. The idea is that no plane should go unfinished in a piece of jewelry. The brooch is special, because its back will only be seen by the wearer so it becomes a place to add a surprise or secret message for the wearer.

I thought this anemone shell was the perfect place to hide a surprise for the wearer, too. I've talked about the Starfish Wasting Disease that's decimating the population of sea stars along the west coast before. I decided to place a tiny preserved starfish in a tidepool filled with resin sea water inside the pretty frame on the reverse as another reminder of how delicate our ecosystems are becoming.

Finally, to create the setting for the shell I remembered watching a free video, posted on Beaducation, by Joe Silvera, one of my favorite silver teachers in the Bay Area, where he used these types of pronged frames to set found objects or stones that are best shown off outside a bezel. By simply following the steps I was successful!

Will it Go Round in Circles

2014-06-30T17:53:00.000-07:00

...Will it fly high like a bird up in the sky

Do you know that song written by Bruce Fisher and Billy Preston? It's from the early seventies, but the first part of it makes me think of YouTube and what makes a video or anything go viral these days.

No, my inspiration for my Circulo de la Vida statement necklace and Wholeness earrings were not inspired by this song. But they were inspired by circles.

Circulo de la Vida
Fordite, lampwork, brass chain, waxed linen

Actually it all started with my tornado earrings where the circles spin very fast.

I slowed those circles down and made them groovy in my Circulo de la Vida necklace. The Fordite cab reminds me of seventies music videos where even if you weren't high you kind got dizzy watching them. The colors reminded me of the colorful Mexican blankets that you fall in love with when you're visiting, but when you get home you realize they don't really go with any of your decor. Or maybe that's me.

Circles have likely been an important part of culture since the caveman. They bring to mind celestial orbs like the moon and sun. How about the water rings when you drop a rock in a lake? And what about that wheel?!

They symbolize wholeness, completion, and unity.

All good things.

Wholeness
Orbicular Rhyolite, wood, vintage French nailheads

Their simple form brings us together.

For a moment of happy (!) and a reminder for all of us to remember to dance like no one is watching once in awhile:

Break from Tradition Blog Hop - Spikes prove to be a Challenge

2014-06-22T04:00:00.000-07:00

Where some may see bat ears when given black howlite spikes, I saw bee stingers! Bees are my story.

Cynthia of Antiquity Travelers found these black and white howlite spikes and decided to ~~torture~~ invite her beading friends to participate in a hop using the spikes as the challenge component.

I first thought about doing a cuff with a bee tile centerpiece, but I just couldn't get excited about it. I still may do it, as I think it would be pretty cool, but for now it's a resting idea.

Instead, after tossing them in the corner of my work table, I ran with the bee idea in a different direction. The spikes landed next to one of Lorelei Eurto's Tin Snippets and I figured it was fate.

In another flight of fancy, last summer I'd placed a pressed flower and the brass hexagon beads with a vintage French crystal in a bezel and set it on the table, too. I was going to cover it in resin some day. So thanks to Cynthia I cleaned up some of the bits on my work table and created this new statement piece for myself:

One of the cells drifted a bit during the resin-ating process, but I think that adds to the story. The story of the plight of the honeybee.

Wait there's one more creation!!! Cynthia also gave us white spikes if we wanted them. I foolishly asked for both, but I finally in the nick of time came up with a design that makes me happy.

My Circus
Fairy Flowers by Mermaid Glass
Lampwork bead by Pink Beach Studios

I named these after a Polish Proverb that's making the rounds on Pinterest and Facebook:

Every time you feel yourself getting pulled into
other people's nonsense, repeat these words.

Thank you Cynthia for challenging me and including me in this fun hop. Ignore my whining, I am blessed to have you and the rest of the bead posse in my friends online loop. I look forward to the day we'll change that to just friends. I've got a couple of interesting items for us to play with next. Mwa haha!

Here are the Break from Tradition blog hoppers:

Therese (Therese's Treasures)

Bobbie (Beadsong Jewelry)

Christine (One Kiss Creations)

Janet (Honey from the Bee) - You are here!

Cynthia (Antiquity Travelers)

New Earrings Inspired by Tornados

2014-06-17T11:53:00.001-07:00

Ever since I bought these hollow lampwork beads by Alisha White I've known I was going to highlight the black spiral. This week I decided on how.

I did some wirework and created spiral beads out of sterling silver wire! Simple makes awesome this time!

Tornado Earrings
available in my Etsy Shop

I'm waiting for our rain and drizzle to stop so I can take some more photos for Etsy posting. In addition to the sterling silver spiral bead, the earwire is also sterling silver. These are very lightweight and fun.

The topic of tornadoes though isn't fun right now. Midwesterners live with this type of weather phenomena every year, but when I created these I was thinking of the shape and the thought of how we all know people that are just little tornadoes of energy themselves. My timing wasn't the best.

My good friend next door happened to come over to see what I was working on and I showed her the new earrings I was working on. She is from the Missouri and Kansas area so is very familiar with tornadoes. She asked me if I knew that the skies sometimes turn a pea soup green when a tornado is coming. Nope! We looked it up on Google to see why. Apparently due to the amount of water droplets in the clouds and the sunlight shining through create the green color. It doesn't always happen, but it was something they were taught to watch for.

Yesterday evening many of us saw the spectacle of two tornadoes touching down in Nebraska leaving one dead and $$$ of damage.

Best wishes and prayers to those recovering from the horrible weather you guys in the midwest have had this past year. Please take cover and stay safe with the tornado and hurricane weather to come.

Update on Where to Buy Honey from the Bee Jewelry

2014-06-12T10:05:00.001-07:00

Although there was so much about ArtFire that I loved as an online venue for my jewelry I've decided to focus on my Etsy shop. My ArtFire shop will be closing as soon as I can disengage some time today.

It seems the Google shopping engine doesn't like you to have pieces shown in two places so I was essentially reducing my chances of coming up in a search any way.

When I first started online I had my own Yahoo! shop on my own website, but that was before Google really became the main search engine and before I had a blog. I may return to hosting my own shop some day, but for now Etsy continues to be the premier online handmade marketplace. In fact folks that are just getting in to online shopping are just discovering it and the joys of having something unique and not mass produced.

To take a look at what's new and check out my Etsy shop, click on the graphic below:

You can also shop from your tablet and mobile phone on Etsy. There's an App for that!

Honey in the Hive: My Husband Can Still Surprise Me

2014-06-09T20:12:00.003-07:00

My husband and I have been married almost 24 years and together over 25. He can still stop me in my tracks and make me question do you ever really know someone?

For tonight's dinner I was fixing Chicken Parmigiana for two. My sweetheart decided he'd stick around in the kitchen and help where he could even if that was just to keep me company. I'm the cook in the family and soon you'll see why that works best for us.

It turned out great, but let me explain how he helped.

I was busy cooking the tomato sauce and asked him to run out and get some basil from our garden. Just a handful. He looked worried about how he was going to identify the basil plant so I told him there were five of them. What made him happy was when I said they were the only plants in which there were five.

So off he went and when he returned he brought me this bowl of basil leaves:

I'm learning, albeit slowly, that I shouldn't criticize any help he offers. I do like having him for company and he is handy at opening jars and barbecuing.

So with his basil offering I proceeded to try to tear off any healthy green parts I could find. I don't remember if it was he or I that brought up the condition of the leaves, but I think he noticed I was not using the bug bitten and brown parts. I was concerned that maybe my plants weren't doing so well in the garden.

Au contraire, he tells me he purposely tore off the worst looking leaves for me, because he didn't want to hurt the plant. He said these leaves looked like the ones the plant was ready to let go. That the dark green ones were making the plant happy.

How grateful and lucky I am to have a husband that worries about the feelings of a plant.

Poppy Tracks, my 2014 Memorial Day Jewelry Piece

2014-06-05T16:38:00.000-07:00

Every year I create a Memorial Day jewelry piece to honor veterans as well as those in the military that have paid the ultimate price with their lives.

Remembrance Day or Poppy Day has been celebrated since WWI by the Commonwealth of Nations. It is what we call in the states Memorial Day. The red poppy has become a familiar symbol for the day, because of the poem Flanders Field in which it refers to that battlefield being covered in red poppies after the war.

I designed Poppy Tracks a few months ago, but it wasn't til this week that I was able to bring it to fruition. Designing new jewelry with the red poppy is fun all by itself.

Poppy Tracks

The Flower Jasper stone hit me with its imagery. In a style reminiscent of art nouveau I created a vine of a bail out of sterling silver wire and added a traditional red poppy glass flower by Ellen Dooley to the top. It hangs from an adjustable sterling silver box chain.

To all that serve, thank you.

I think it's fun to see a sketch of mine next to a completed piece and thought you might like to see that as well. Below is from my sketch book:

Summer, I Dream of Tidepools filled with Starfish

2014-06-02T04:00:00.000-07:00

If you live on the west coast of the United States you've likely heard of or possibly even seen the results of what's called Starfish Wasting Disease. It's a massive die-off of starfish that get infected.

Summer Dreams pendant

Unfortunately scientists have not figured out exactly what causes it. The only thing they've come up with so far is it does seem to have a correlation to raised water temperatures.

It's not the first time it's happened. It happened in 1972 on the east coast and in 1978 in the Gulf of California which in many places it still hasn't recovered.

One of the joys of living by the Pacific Ocean is going tide-pooling. Not so much if you're seeing starfish disintegrating. Hopefully this past year's plague will pass and our warming oceans don't cause an increasing number of outbreaks in the years to come.

Summer Dreams available in my Etsy shop

So what's this got to do with such a soft and pretty pendant? Only the inspiration behind it!

A few years ago I bought this pair of cast and carved glass starfish from Gary B Wilson, my favorite lapidarist. I thought they'd make pretty earrings, but putting them both in a pair of earrings made for an expensive pair of earrings. So I waited.

I purchased the Starfish polymer charms from Humblebeads last winter and when doing some rearranging knew they'd look great together. Whether for a beach wedding or the summer pendant to wear with everything I think this one is a reminder of how beautiful and precious is our natural environment.

Art Bead Scene May 2014 Challenge - It's Italian!

2014-05-31T04:00:00.000-07:00

photo courtesy of Wikipedia (public domain)

Capriccio Padovano, 1741

by Bernardo Bellatto

Oil on Canvas

19.3" x 28.7" (49 x 73 cm)

This oil painting by Bellatto is so warm, peaceful, and inviting. I'd love to just step into it. It's Art Bead Scene's May Challenge inspiration.

I pulled a lot of art beads out that would've worked to not only bring in the colors represented, but for the mood and antiquity feel to it as well. However, I decided to focus on the buildings and bridge lit by the warm sunshine of Italy. So here's the simply elegant artisan necklace I was inspired to create:

Luce Del Sol is available in my Etsy Shop

I purchased Vicki Lee's focal lampwork bead many moons ago. It has shades of brown, cream, sage, and the texture and color of the fine silver she sifted on to the hot glass. I did some beadweaving in a spiral stitch to create the arch that hangs below the art glass bead.

I was inspired by what Bellatto created when he painted the reflection of the bridge arches. He created a portal to what could possibly come beyond that bridge. Bellatto grew up in Venice and something I found to be so much fun about Venice is that it's as much a walking city as a boating city. Taking a day or two to just go exploring and getting lost up the myriad alleyways while admiring the colors, sounds, architecture and uniqueness of Venice is something I'd like to repeat some day.

I hope to do more of the ABS Challenges this summer. I wonder what painting or artwork ABS will select for June....

Latest Blog Hop is a Mix of Metals and Colors of Teal and Garnet

2014-05-30T04:00:00.000-07:00

Today's jewelry blog hop challenge is being hosted by Lorelei Eurto and has all of us using the same beads and components from Stinky Dog Beads as a starting off point.

Here are the type of components we received:

photo from Lorelei's challenge post

When I saw the rich colors I was sold. There were only 7 spots so I was so glad I saw her post so quickly. They surely didn't last long.

I ended up creating three jewelry pieces: necklace, bracelet and a pair of earrings. They're not really a set, but they could be worn together.

For the Northwest Woods earrings I added lampwork from That Bead Girl in a lovely eggplant color to the beautifully made cones from Mykonos island. For the very tip-top I added a couple semi-precious garnet beads.

Northwest Woods Earrings

My San Juan Capistrano necklace features the sparrow charm dangling in front of the braided silver wreath. A fringe of rosary chain in garnet hangs below with more of the stamped leaves seen in the earrings. A reward for having so much stash was finding the absolute perfect vintage chain that was also just the right length. I wish I had more of it now that I see how wonderful it looks with the braided wreath. This necklace was inspired by the annual return of the swallows to the mission at San Juan Capistrano.

San Juan Capistrano Necklace

For me the English-cut Czech glass beads were the most intriguing of the bunch. I pulled some raku beads from Elements Pottery to see how they'd look with the antiqued teal and it was a go! My Steely Nights bracelet was born.

The bracelet is knotted on waxed linen along with a beautiful boro lampwork bead from Uvanomos that makes this a showstopper for sure. There's something very Autumn bonfire-ish about this one don't you think?

Steely Nights Bracelet

This is a blog hop that should be very interesting as the artist's hand will be seen in how they interpret the same bead collection. Let's go see shall we?

Beads for Busy Gals

Alice Dreaming

Smelly Nelly

Lucy Bejarano Jewelry

Bijoux Gems Joy

Spud and Mrs. Butters

Lorelei Eurto

Bead River
Jodie Marshall

Wordless Wednesday - The Heady Scent of Lilacs

2014-05-28T04:00:00.000-07:00