Sea of Glass

Happy New Year!

2012-01-08T07:48:00.000-08:00

Hello all!!! Hope you are all doing great and having a wonderful new year. It's been too long since I have posted on my blog. Over Christmas break I finally had some time to make some beads. I just added several new boro bead sets and some earring pairs to my website. You can check them out here...

Earrings are here...

Bead sets are here...

Open House!!!

2011-11-10T18:57:00.000-08:00

Reminder ~ Tomorrow I am having my Jewelry Open House at my studio in Wellman!!! Hope some of you can come. I didn't send out invites in the mail, so please forward on to anyone who might be interested!

OPEN HOUSE!!!

2011-11-03T19:46:00.000-07:00

I am getting ready for my open house next weekend. Can't believe it is here already!!!! Here are some new pieces I have been working on... More to come soon. If you would like a postcard with directions to my studio, let me know. My open house is next Friday, November 11th from 3-7 and Saturday, November 12th from 10-12.

Finally...New Jewelry!

2011-10-22T13:21:00.000-07:00

Some new jewelry I have been working on...

OPEN HOUSE!!!

2011-10-22T07:02:00.001-07:00

For all you local peeps, I wanted to let you know I will be having my annual Open House on Friday, November 11th from 3-7 and Saturday, November 12 from 10-12. Would love for you to come. I will post some pictures of new jewelry soon! Have a great weekend!

I'm still here :)

2011-09-18T06:55:00.000-07:00

OH boy, what a crazy month this has been. I wish I had some great new beads to show you, but I don't :( As most of you know I started a kindergarten teaching job. It really has consumed my life and I have no time for anything else. I know it is not always going to be like this, but right now it is really overwhelming. I PROMISE I will have some new beads to show someday, just not right now. I am doing a trunk show in Cedar Rapids at Bead Haven if you are local and would like to come. It is on Saturday, October 22nd.

Here are a few pictures from the first day of school. Lukin and I started Kindergarten :), Cana 2nd grade, Amerah 4th grade and Jayls started the big middle school, 6th grade. Everyone is adjusting well and liking where they are at. I will try to update a little more often than once a month.

Hope I am not loosing you...

2011-08-04T07:40:00.000-07:00

Oh my, how time is getting away from me. I am so sorry about not keeping this fun and interesting, but I have just been so busy with school stuff. I am getting ready to teach Kindergarten for my first year and it is a but overwhelming getting everything ready. I got all the introduction/invitation to ice cream social letters out yesterday, so that is one thing marked off the list. I have to start back the 19th, kids not until the 29th.

I will say that I am going to start downsizing my website. I have a few more weeks to make beads, but after school starts, not sure how much time I will have, especially this first year.

Here are a few pics of the photoshoot the kids had with Nala the other day. She is such a good puppy and we just love her. Gonna be hard to leave her when school starts. Enjoy the pics :)

New pendants

2011-07-28T07:30:00.000-07:00

Just added some new pendants from Jayla. You can see them here...

Hope you all are enjoying your summer. Sorry for the lack of posting. Very busy wee this week with swim lessons in the morning and bible school in the evening. I am getting lots of teaching planning done though with the kids gone a couple hours :)

Stained glass supplies for sale

2011-07-23T11:19:00.000-07:00

If you aren't interested in stained glass or dichroic glass, you can skip this post ;) I have been working all morning on taking pictures of all these items that I will no longer use because I will be teaching. I am just showing pictures because of time right now, but if you know anyone or you are interested, please email me and we will work out a deal. I really want to sell ALL of this stuff. All of the glass is 90COE.

Thanks!

Super Saturday

2011-07-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

Added 4 new sets to the website. Busy day ahead, trying to do some cleaning and get ride of some items. If you are into stained glass or dichroic glass, I have a set up for you. Will add pics and details soon.

Have a great weekend!

Boro 40 Boro 18
Boro D
Boro E

4 new bead mixes

2011-07-20T11:22:00.000-07:00

Love these new color schemes!

Bead Mix 16
Bead Mix 14
Bead Mix 17
Bead Mix 15

Reminder~ Sale ends tonight

2011-07-19T06:48:00.001-07:00

Read below for details ~ but the sale on the ribbed beads ends today!

Jewelry

2011-07-18T06:49:00.000-07:00

A couple pairs of earrings and a necklace I made with some of the 7th Heaven beads.

Reminder ~ sale till tomorrow night on the new ribbed beads!

Have a great week!

3 Day sale on 5 ribbed bead sets

2011-07-17T06:55:00.000-07:00

I have been doing lots of work on my website. Here are 5 new ribbed bead sets I just added and the best part is I PUT THEM ON SALE. Normally they are $26 and for 3 days I have them on sale for $22.

Have a great Sunday!

Ribbed beads

Website update!

2011-07-11T06:57:00.000-07:00

Doing lots of inventory on my website, checking to see what I have and what I sold at the Bead and Button. I have the borosilicate beads all updated! Yeah! Here are some of the new sets that I added over the weekend. Next up are the bent beads and focal beads.

Thanks again for all the orders!!! I am almost all caught up, then hope to make some new sets for you ;) Have a great week!

Interview with Jayla

2011-07-05T06:42:00.001-07:00

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July. Now it's time to get back to reality. Are we ready for that? Seems like after the 4th, I start seeing and hearing "Back to School" talk and I am surely not ready for that.

I haven't really made anything new to share. I am working on all the orders coming from the Vintaj promotion ~ Caribbean Sunset. I am about a week out on orders ~ just a heads up if you are planning on ordering.

Lori Anderson, the lady who organizes the Bead Soup Blog Party, among many other things, emailed me one day and wondered about doing an interview with Jayla. She was so thrilled and couldn't believe it. She posted it on her blog yesterday. Anyway, when you get a chance, check it out and she would love to read any comments!!!! Have a great week!

Dawn's necklace

2011-06-22T06:50:00.000-07:00

One of the many perks of doing shows and having an online business is ALL the amazing and nice people that I have the opportunity to meet. Dawn is one of those people. She is so kind, always sending me messages or posting comments on my posts. She lives in Wisconsin and came to the Bead and Button. It was so fun to be able to meet her. She bought one of Jayla's pendants and made this necklace within days of buying it. She wrote up such a nice little note about it on her blog. Isn't it amazing??? Thanks so much Dawn!

All about Vintaj!

2011-06-20T20:06:00.001-07:00

I hope I don't repeat myself here too much, can't remember what I have said in previous posts (yes, I know I could scroll down and read through my previous posts, but I am too tired to do that right now) Anyway, from June 15th to July 15th I was asked to be Vintaj's Art Bead partner and of course I jumped at the chance. The theme is Caribbean Sunset. They sent me a swatch with 6 colors to design some beads to match. I will admit I was super nervous as I was packaging up the beads to be mailed away. I wasn't sure if what I was sending would match, or would be what they were hoping for, etc. I was so relieved when Jess let me know she got them and they were perfect. As I look at the home page and the colors, I think it is a perfect match. There was a team of 4 ladies that split up the beads and designed some necklaces, bracelets and earrings with them. They made some amazing pieces. Throughout the month they will be showcasing them on their blog and you can also see some of them on their website. Today they posted about a giveaway and how to win some free beads, some of my lampwork beads and some of the Vintaj products. I wake up each morning and can't wait to see what they are going to show us.

I made a category completed dedicated to this theme. You can check it out here.

Bead kits posted this weekend and MORE

2011-06-17T06:01:00.000-07:00

This year at the Bead and Button I made up some kits that included one of my focal nugget beads along with a mix of various matching beads. They sold really well and I have some left over that I will be adding to the website this weekend (that's the plan anyway ;)

ALSO, I have some super exciting news. I am Vintaj's Art Bead partner for the month July. The theme is Caribbean Sunset and the colors are just wonderful. I will write more about it on Monday, but in the meantime make sure to check out their blog and website for inspiration.

What I found...

2011-06-16T06:44:00.000-07:00

So this year at the Bead and Button I had planned on saving my money and not doing much shopping. I didn't even really have the desire the first few days, but after I started I the urge came back and I just couldn't stop walking the isles. I didn't spend as much as I normally do so I was proud of myself for that, but I still spent a fair share. Hope you enjoy seeing my stash and what I got ;)

Here are some patterned brass sheets that I make for my hollow metal capped beads.

A couple kits from Vintaj, goldstone to make beads with, silver daisy spacers (the only silver I bought at the show), metal hole punch and some dichroic glass.
Various beads

Glass shards that I make beads with.
I bought a hole punch (see below) to make earring cards and a template to make this neat little stand.

Some polymer clay pieces from Heather Wynn
These stone etched beads match Heather Powers from Humblebeads creations perfectly.

Some great fibers from Fiber Goddess and polymer clay from Heather Powers.

Back from the Show

2011-06-14T07:36:00.000-07:00

Well I survived yet another year of the Bead and Button show. It is always so much work to get ready for and 4 long days of talking/selling beads, but it always ends up to be so worth it. Here are a few pics for you to enjoy. I didn't take as many as I would have liked, but did remember to get a few.

The place is super big with lots of vendors!

My helper friend Kim. This was her first year at the show. She helped me out so much!
The Vintaj team picking out some beads.

People loved JetAge's rings...

And I am off!

2011-06-08T06:44:00.000-07:00

I am finishing up getting ready for my show. I will be at the Bead and Button show from Thursday to Sunday in Milwaukee. For the past few years I have sold some of Renee's murrini from JetAge Studio. This year she sent me some amazing ring tops to display, along with the murrini. Hope I can sell lots for her. They are so fun to look at.

Orders placed through Sunday the 12th will be shipped when I return home.

Some news...

2011-06-01T08:10:00.000-07:00

Wow, so here we are ~ the last day of school for the kids. I can't believe how fast this year went. Next year I will have one starting middle school and one starting kindergarten. Lots of emotions will fly this fall. I also want to share with you that this fall I will have a new responsibility added to my list. I am going to be the new kindergarten teacher here in my home town. I am super excited, but really nervous. I am feeling super overwhelmed at the moment with all I have to do, but know I need to take it one step at a time. As I was going through the process of trying to decide if I should apply or not, then after I made the decision to apply, I just kept praying that the Lord would bless out family with what is best for all of us. I never really prayed to get the job (although when I thought of not getting it I did get disappointed) So now that I have the job, whenever I start to feel that I can't do it or won't do well, I try to remind myself that the Lord would not have blessed us with it if I was going to fail. What does this mean for my beads and jewelry??? Well, I am not quiet sure. I am gonna work hard this summer (with 4 kids at home it will be challenging) and make LOTS of beads. I will keep my website and update as time allows. I want to keep making beads because I love it so much, but needed something more financially steady for our family. Thanks for all your support through the years and your comments.

What's on my agenda right now?? Getting ready for the Bead and Button show which is next week!!! Can't believe it is here already. I have lots to do so I better get moving. Enjoy some new boro sets I added.

Boro 32

Boro 31
Boro 25
Boro 24
Boro 21

Howdy

2011-05-26T06:14:00.000-07:00

Where does the time go??? Can't believe we are at the end of May already. The kids just have a couple more days of school, then they are off for the summer. Not sure if I am completely ready for that, but am excited for some summer fun.

I am getting ready for the Bead and Button show which is coming up quickly, June 9th - 12th. Here is my pile of beads that I just got strung and is waiting to get priced. I have so much to do yet ~ order a banner, receipts, get lights, postcards, boxes, etc. The list goes on and on.

I do have a few new boro sets and will update the blog when I get them on my website.

New mixes

2011-05-13T11:24:00.000-07:00

A few new focal bead mixes that I made up yesterday. Hope you like them ;)

Drizzle

Haven
Open Air
Aqua and Champagne
Jester
Dichroic