Thursday, January 28, 2010

2010 - Week #4 Peyote Design

It's week number four in this new year, and I'm managing to keep on target with my goal to create a new peyote cuff pattern every week. I've realized that I need to keep better track of all my ideas, better than usual, so I don't lose track of them when my attention is grabbed by something else. Even though I have bits of scratch paper lying around, and a multitude of notepads, I finally dedicated a single pad to keeping track of ideas for my designs.

Although I didn't intend it, I've also found that it's a handy way to keep track of the details about each design -- number of rows, delica colors, size, and any notes about the inspiration for a particular design -- before I add all of that to my spreadsheet. "What?" you say. "Spreadsheet?" Well, yes. I'm a bit of a spreadsheet NUT. So I have all of my jewelry designs dutifully recorded in a spreadsheet. If nothing else, it's a great way to see the progress I've made over the relatively few years I've been doing this.

This week's design was inspired by, of all things, of those swirly things you see all over blogs, websites, banners, and business cards these days. They're all so pretty, and although I don't use them on any of my sites, I thought it would be fun to create a cuff design with all those swirls and swoops. So here it is: Fanciful


The colors I used for this version, bright opaque white and yellow, with frosty pearl gray and shiny silver-lined yellow gold, were suggested by a fellow member of Bead Art Originals for the next color mosaic. The mosaic will be posted sometime next week, and I can hardly wait to see what my fellow beady people have created in this set of colors!

In light of some recent events, I must point out that THIS DESIGN IS MY ORIGINAL, COPYRIGHTED DESIGN. It is not to be copied in any form without my express permission. I should have the pattern ready for purchase in a few days; so if you want to create one of these for your own personal use, check my Etsy shop. Thank you for respecting my copyright!

Monday, January 25, 2010

More Hearts for Tanya...

In less than a week, Tanya Boden (aka AardvarkSilver) goes in for her life-saving surgery, and lots of her friends and cyber-friends are joining forces to raise money to cover the costs. The Tanya fund is getting closer and closer to the $12,000 goal, but it's not quite there yet. Thanks to some of my fellow beadweavers, I've been able to donate more than $60 toward the fund, as I'm donating half the proceeds from every peyote cuff pattern I sell by January 31 (I extended it a week). (You can read about Tanya on her AardvarkSilver blog.)

So if you're a beadweaver and you'd like to try out one of my designs for yourself, you'll get to do that and help someone who really needs it. Check out the Patterns section of my Etsy shop.

It occurred to me that not everyone is a beadweaver, so not everyone needs or wants a peyote cuff pattern. But everybody loves beady things, right? And hearts? So I'm also going to donate half the proceeds from every piece of beadwoven jewelry in my shop that features a heart, from now through January 31. Some of the heart pieces feature beautiful focals by Lisa Peters and Kristie Roeder.

While you're out there shopping, stop by Carol Dean Sharpe's blog and bid on the beautiful Promises of Spring necklace she's auctioning. The auction is right on her blog, and she's donating 100% of the proceeds from it to Tanya's cause. It's a beautiful necklace that features an incredible focal made by Kristie Roeder.



Now it's time for me to get back to beadweaving. So many beads... so little time.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Free to Be...

It's been a long time since I did any freeform. Whenever I go back to do it, I wonder why there are such long lapses in between freeform pieces. But I guess that just fits in with the way I do everything. My gnat-like attention span makes me move from project to project, and sometimes from technique to technique, at the drop of a hat. There are just so many FUN things to do and not nearly enough hours in the day! Peyote, freeform, ndebele ropes, bead crochet... and that doesn't even take into consideration my wanting to learn new techniques and new art forms (polymer clay, ceramic/porcelain, etc., etc., etc.).

Well, the freeform bug finally landed long enough for me to finish a new and VERY colorful cuff. I didn't intend to do anything freeform, but I was digging through some "bead soup" looking for beads of a particular color and decided that I needed to use some of the soup.

So here's Free to Be. Free to be what? Well, I guess that's up to the wearer to decide. I almost named this one "Fly, Be Free" because I kept thinking about Robin Williams throwing an egg into the air and telling it, "fly, be free" back when he was Mork from Ork. I like the Free to Be name though.



While I'm thinking of it, I should give credit to the maker of that lampwork disc I used as the closure (isn't it perfect?!?!). It was made by MaryAnn of LindenAvenueDesigns. She has LOADS of great discs in her Etsy shop, just in case you're looking for such things. They're fun.

Time to put the bead soup away (yes, it's still sprawled all over my beading board) and start on a new project. Or maybe I'll work on getting another pattern ready.

In case you're looking for peyote cuff patterns, I now have 20 of them in my Etsy shop! I just released the pattern for Daisies yesterday. You can find all of the patterns I've published so far by clicking here.

A couple of people who've purchased patterns from me have posted pictures to my Facebook fan page. Yay! I love seeing what others do with my designs!! Keep 'em coming.
:-)






One last thing before I sign off and get back to beading... I'm still donating 1/2 of the sale price for every pattern sold toward the fund raising effort for Tanya Boden (aka AardvarkSilver), to help cover the cost of the surgery she needs to have in the very near future. So if you've been ogling any of my patterns, now's the time to grab one!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Have a Heart for Tanya...

Have a Heart for Tanya...

From now through midnight EST on Saturday (1/23), one half of the proceeds from every peyote pattern sold from my shop will be donated to the fund raising efforts for Tanya Boden of
http://AardvarkSilver.etsy.com. Tanya is in need of surgery to save her life. Visit her blog to read more about her life-threatening situation: http://aardvarksilver.blogspot.com

If you'd like to contribute but aren't a beadweaver yourself, join the Facebook group dedicated to helping Tanya raise funds for her surgery: Have a Heart for Tanya

Every little bit helps.

Be thankful for your health.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Monday's New Peyote Design

One of my resolutions this year was to try to create a new peyote cuff design every week. It's ambitious, but so far I'm on track. It's only week three, I know, but this will be a good challenge.

So here it is! Cat Prints on a Lime Green Quilt. Because one of my friends sent me a picture of one of her cats. I've always said inspiration can come from just about anywhere. :-)


It's not really a new design (I love doing these!), but I also finished a new caterpillar/anemone bracelet. I named this one Fringe -- partly because it's made up of hundreds of fringes and partly because I was watching an episode of Fringe on hulu when I started it (great show, BTW). Coincidence? Well.... yes it was!


This bracelet is just downright FUN. All those colors are like a celebration for your wrist. Someone told me it looks like confetti.

Wonder what next week's design will be... I'm watching The Big Bang Theory right now. Think I could do something with that? :-)

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Pink!

I'm not a "pink" person. Not by any means. But every once in awhile I venture outside my color comfort zone and create something using pink beads.

Princessa is such a piece. Pink and frilly and girly. All things not me. But fit for a princessa. :-) And this week, Princessa is my Bead Art Originals Item of the Week -- Purchase and pay for this frilly beadwoven bracelet before midnight on January 21 and receive free shipping on your entire order.


Be sure to check out the BAO blog for the other members' items of the week. There are some beautiful pieces there!

Friday, January 15, 2010

Beadweaving - "Not Just for Old Ladies"

What a hoot. I got such a kick out of that comment, part of a blog post by LemonJitters called Beadwork Love. She included one of my new pieces, my Peacock Feather cuff, to demonstrate that it's NOT just for old ladies. She's absolutely right, you know. Beadweaving can go from ornate to simple and everywhere in between, so there's something for everyone.

Of course I had to go check out her Etsy shop, and I must say I really like her style. She uses lots of vintage bits and pieces in her creations, giving new life to jewelry that was worn and loved by someone years ago. Check out these Twinkle and Wink earrings -- aren't the blues wonderful?


Personally, I lean more toward the simpler side in my beadweaving (I'm very left-brained that way); but I can appreciate the art and the workmanship demonstrated by some of my fellow beadweavers who create elaborate, one-of-a-kind pieces.

I'm busy trying to make sure I keep up with my own personal resolution to create a new design each week this year -- trying to stretch my creative muscles. So far I'm right on track with two new designs, Two Hearts (perfect for Valentine's Day) and Feather. I've even made a second version of the Feather design because I just couldn't resist pairing some shiny silver-lined crystal beads with some matte white ones. This is Angel Feather:


And for those of you who love to beadweave yourself, I've listed the pattern for Feather (personal use only).

One last thing... speaking of patterns and original designs. I was copied again. By someone who was my "friend" on Facebook. She copied my Piano Man design and then had the audacity to post a picture of her version on my Facebook fan page.

Copyright infringement is just stealing!!! It's not "the sincerest form of flattery." Not at all. So if you see a design that you really really really like, and you want to make one for yourself, contact the designer to either (1) purchase the pattern from them, or (2) ask their permission to copy their design. Don't steal it. Respect the artist whose work you admire.

Monday, January 11, 2010

Monday Newness

I've decided. I'm going to try something new this year. I'm going to try to create a new design every week. Ambitious? Truth be told, I have no shortage of ideas -- just time to execute them. We'll see how this works out.

So far I'm on track. It's week #2, and I have two new designs.

The first one, Two Hearts, was obviously inspired by Valentine's Day. It's a relatively simple design with two hearts facing opposite directions, separated by a swoosh. I'm thinking of making another version of this one using more than just two colors. Any suggestions?


My second new design is this stylized Feather. It's simple and modern and oh so much fun, and I've already created a second version of this one (no photographs yet). I just love the look of it, don't you?


Do you have any special goals for this year? Resolutions? If you do, and you feel like sharing, and you're on Facebook, join the 2010 Beady Resolutions group! Lots of people have already joined and are sharing away. There are even some great discussions going on about organization and storage and several other topics.

And... if you're on Facebook, become a fan of my page: time2cre8

:-)

Friday, January 08, 2010

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Our future neighbors are blaming us for bringing all the cold and snow from Illinois down here to the Smoky Mountains. It's not our fault! Honest!!

It is cold, though, and it has been for about a month now. Maybe that's what's inspired me to create so many pieces that look icy. Or maybe it's just because I like the metallic delicas so much, but I just keep going back to these beads. (In fact, I'm going to have to order more of them soon!)

I guess it's fitting that my Bead Art Originals item of the week for this week is my Ice and Steel cuff. Purchase and pay for this cuff before midnight on January 14 and receive free shipping on your entire order PLUS a 10% coupon good on your next purchase - just by mentioning "BAO" in the Notes to Seller.

And for those of you who are beadweavers yourselves, if you want to create your own version of this particular design, you can purchase the pattern! It's the same as my Fruit Cocktail cuff, just showing what a difference it makes to choose different colors. (In fact, I have 17 patterns listed now, and I'm working getting more of them ready.)

Continuing the theme of ice and steel, although I didn't really intend it to be a "theme", I just listed two new pieces that share this same icy look:

Galactica
(an ndebele rope, 48" long, that can be worn as a necklace or as a bracelet!)




Now I'm off to play with some beads. I think I'll try some WARM colors now -- maybe that'll help with the weather.
:-)