Birthday Giveaway Winner Announcement

Thanks everyone for participating in our birthday giveaway.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Bead Table Wednesday

Working on Beads for March ABS Challenge

Where does the time go?  Can you believe it is another Bead Table Wednesday??? 

It is spring break at the college campus I work at and I use to take the week off while I was taking classes.  Since I am not taking classes anymore I thought I would just take Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off.  I thought I would work on beads, maybe saw some things out or work on the junk room (which I really don't think will happen).  Today I am working on making beads for the March ABS Challenge.  Tomorrow I will clean the beads and work on putting the necklace together.

Here are some of the other projects we are working on:

Projects on beading trays



Pieces to be photographed and posted on Etsy

Enameled pendant for March ABS Challenge



Necklace Project - enameled pendant and beads

Pieces to be sawed out and bowls to be filed and sanded

I want to have another large enameling session this weekend so I will probably work on sawing these pieces out for this weekend.  Mom and I have shows coming up in the next month so we need to make sure we have enough inventory.  It is back into production mode now that it is starting to be warmer outside.  Today is gorgeous; nice and sunny and I am actually not freezing in the garage - happy day :)

Just a reminder about our "Birthday Giveaway".  You still have time to participate - just head to our "Birthday Giveaway" post and leave us a comment.  We will be drawing a name out on Sunday, March 20th.  Have a wonderful beady Wednesday!

Birthday Giveaway

Well, it is that time of year again, our birthdays.  Today is my birthday, and I turned a young 38 and tomorrow is mom's birthday, and she is turning 60.  Though she sure doesn't look like she is 60!!!!!  Mom says the only time she really feels her age is when someone mentions how old I am, and then it hits her.

In celebration of our birthdays, mom and I thought we would have a giveaway.  This time we plan on giving away an enameled copper heart bowl, an enameled copper eagle pendant, and some of our lampwork "Spring" beads.

Here are individual shots of the giveaway pieces:

Ok, the rules for our little birthday giveaway.  All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post.  Mom and I will randomly select from the comment section of this blog post on Sunday, 20 March.  Make sure you leave a way to contact you if doesn't appear next to your comment.  Anonymous comments will not qualify to win our birthday giveaway.

Bonus points:  You can earn extra chances to win by posting on Facebook or blogging about our giveaway.  Make sure you add a separate comment for your additional entry to win.

One last view of our giveaway.

I had a wonderful birthday with mom and working in the studio.  Tomorrow I hope mom has a great birthday too.

Postscript - March 14th Mom's Birthday.  Today I decorated mom's office.  It was a circus trying t get into her office because mom now works across campus and trying to find someone who could let me in was fun.  I didn't want her boss to come in early, so one of her custodial staff helped me out this morning.  This is what I did to mom's office, and no, I wasn't too mean to mom :)

See...I wasn't too mean.

BTW - Bead Table Wednesday

It is another Bead Table Wednesday (BTW).  Here is what is on our table right now.

This is my torching area last night.  It is so good to be able to work out in the garage and not be in several layers of clothes and still freezing.  Last night was a very enjoyable night of torching and I am really happy with the beads, except for one.

These are the beads I worked on most of last night.  I am in the mood for spring, so the beads are reflecting that mood.  I am also playing with new frit mom and I ordered a couple of months ago and I am loving it!


First Student Show of Jewelry - 2004

While mom and I have been working on our portfolio, for juried shows, I came across this photograph of my first jewelry pieces.  I like the beads but the necklaces are atrocious! Yes, you may cringe along with me; I was making it up as I was going along here people :)  I stopped making those beads once I started making more and more challenging beads even though I liked to make them.  I thought I was suppose to keep pushing myself to do more difficult beads, but as I am getting older, I am learning I need to do what I like and not think I should do more challengeing beads because I have been torching so long.  So, last night I thought I would give them a whirl again and I am so happy I did.


Green Dewdrop

I am calling the beads dewdrops because they remind me of dewdrops haning on a leaf and the water is reflecting the flowers from the flower gardens.  I am really loving this frit "Japense Maple" on the light green glass.

Now on to my other cringe worthy bead.  I have been wanting to make female forms again.  I learned how to make the female torso from taking classes from Lucio Bubacco (in morretti) and Emilio Santini (in boro).  I have always made the female form off the mandrel, but last night, for some odd ball reason I wanted to try and make the female form on a mandrel.  Yes, you may laugh hysterically when you see this bead.  I am going to have to use the hammer to get it off the mandrel because the bead release released as I was making the female form.  You can also see cracks down by the legs because I wasn't flashing the bead enough in the torch.  Oh well, practice, practice, practice. 

I wanted to make the female form as part of the March ABS Challenge.  We will see how this turns out because we have a pattern we want to also saw out for the March piece.

And last but not least are some patterns that need to be glued down on copper so mom, and maybe myself, can cut them out.  One is the pattern of dog (Great Pyrenees), the piece we want to saw out for the March ABS challenge, and a piece we are working on for a submission.

That is what our table looks like right now; a pile of beads that need to be cleaned, a bead that has to be smashed to get it off the mandrel, several patterns that need to be glued down and then sawed out and more beads to be made.  Have an enjoyable Wednesday night everyone!

Jane Perala Designs Pay It Forward Giveaway

Beads by Jane - part of Pay It Forward Giveaway

Miscellaneous Beads - part of Pay It Forward Giveaway

Seriously you all, if you have not been to Jane's blog or Etsy shop head over there now.  She makes some of the most gorgeous beads that make you drool all over your keyboard, seriously!!!!  Jane is also this month's featured Cup of Bead Soup on Lori's blog.  You have to see what Jane sent Lori for goodies and I am on pins and needles waiting to see what Lori creates.

Okay, I guess you are tired of me delaying about the details for the giveaway, so here it goes.  Jane is doing her turn in the Pay It Forward (PIF) Giveaway, which was started by Staci Louise of Staci Louise Originals.  If you would like to participate you need to head over to Jane's blog and leave a comment.  You tell Jane how someone has touched you with kindness when you needed it the most AND the winner promises to do their own Pay It Forward.  The drawing for her goodies will be on Sunday.

Accomplished A Lot and Party

Enameling Set Up

Yesterday all mom and I did was work on paperwork and prepare our portfolio to send out to be juried for shows we want to participate in this year. 


Eagle Pendants

Today I worked on enameling a commissioned piece, a Great Pyrenees head pendant, and the initial pendant for Courtney.  Mom and I made two different types of initial pendant for Courtney to choose from. 

Mom also finished putting together the necklace called "Spring".  Mom sawed out a bird pendant for me which I then enameled in the colors of a finch.  I used the last of my "egg" beads from Kelley (very sad day for me using the last of the egg beads) and ribbon from Jamn Glass.  We accented the egg beads with blue Czech beads and they are connected with Sterling Silver wire.  I am so happy with the way the necklace turned out.

I am so glad we were able to accomplish all of this before we head to my cousin's house for his birthday party.  He turned 21 on March 2nd.  I still remember when that boy was 11, when I came home from the Army, where does the time go?  We had a nice time with our family and had fun playing with my cousin's dogs.  I keep talking myself out of buying a puppy because there would be all and out war in my house with my five cats.  But I so want a puppy, oh well.

I also wanted to share some goodies mom and I received from Bee Tree by m.e.  Mom and I sort of went shopping after we hit her site during the Bead Soup Blog party.  We did have about 10 items at first but we had to wittle down our choices to four. We have to be frugal right now until we have our first show of the year, the checking account is starting to be a little bare.  Here are the gorgeous goodies we received!

Andrew Thornton's Thursday Giveaway

Beads from Golem Studio

This week's giveaway are beads from Golem Studio at Andrew Thornton's blog.  Aren't these beads just scrumptious!  The Golem Studio is a family-owned and operated business by Vladislave Ivanov and Kremena Ivanova.  The giveaway this week are a set of three beads and one focal pendant.

To learn more about the prize and to enter head on over to Andrew's blog and see all the goodies and how to enter.

This weekend is going to be a busy weekend.  Mom has finished sawing out pieces for a commissioned pendant and I can't wait to enamel them because just the sawed out copper is awesome, mom is so good!  We also have to saw out the pendant for Courtney and get that sent off to her and I want to work on the torch too.  Plus haircuts, lunches with friends, birthday lunch for my cousin who turned 21, and, and, and...

I hope you all have a wonderful Friday and an awesome weekend!