Tree Wings Studio

A little bead just for me!

I have some extreme cuteness to share with you today! It's not very often that I buy beads for myself… but I was looking for a little doggy bead to remind me of my Pepper girl and so when Lauren of Maybeads on Etsy offered to make her for me, I was beyond thrilled. For a girl who loves beads and her dog (and misses her dearly), what could be better than that??

Here she is…

Lauren did such a wonderful job. I knew I would love the doggy she made for me, but when she showed me my finished Pepper bead, I gasped with delight! She couldn't have made her any more perfect—she capture all the details—the spots of pepper on her ears (the only place that her many spots where actually visible), her stumpy tail, and her sweet eyes.

I asked Lauren to make her in a standing pose. I love her poised stumpy little tail… reminds me of how Pepper envisioned herself to be a fierce protector. She always tried to be fearless and her bark was so much larger than she was, but in reality she was so sweet and gentle, and actually rather shy.

I know by now you're probably amazed by the sheer cuteness that Lauren captured in a little glass bead, but when you see just how small my Pepper bead is, you'll be even more amazed—I know I am! Take a look…

Yes, I'm so happy with her! Eventually, once I come up with the right design, I plan to make a necklace with her, but for now she's in my studio by my computer brightening each day with her cuteness—one more way to be reminded that my Pepper girl will always be with me in my heart no matter how much time separates us.

Thank you again Lauren! I've never had a more special bead!

Old colors, new colors… new beads!

I've taken a little break from critter sculpting and have been working with colored polymer instead. I have tons of baggies filled with bits and pieces from past projects, many are from back when I was making decor—too pretty to just turn into bead cores or to make molds out of—and so I turned them into new beads.

Faceting is one of my new favorite beads styles. It works so well with cane pieces and the added bonus is I don't have to sand, and if you know me, that is an enormous bonus… just the thought of sanding will keep me out of the studio some days!

I also experimented with texture. These did require sanding and polishing, but I'm really happy with the way they turned out, so it's fairly easy to forget how bored I was while sanding them!

More texture, but no sanding. These are for a new jewelry project I'm working on. Yes, it's my first jewelry project of the year. It's time I get back to jewelry making again.

Some fun little charms. Have you remembered orange is my favorite color yet?

These are probably my most favorite of all my recent beads. I love the soft colors. I was tempted to keep them for myself!

Those above were all made with old colors… now for the new! I've been doing a lot of color mixing lately and working on new color palettes. Here's what's just starting to come of that…

These chunky beads bring to mind scarabs… for me anyway. I'm going to be doing more colors in the same shape.

And these I really like! But they're not quite finished… sadly they need sanding and polishing still, but I wanted to go ahead and show them to you.

I made some faceted rounds in the same colors. No sanding required! As soon as I make some more of these they'll be in the shop too.

I also made carved bead set. This one was the result of more texture experimenting.

And finally a couple dragons that made it into my shop recently. I had actually made these over a year ago—they just needed a splash of paint to make them happier. I do love painting!

* sold *

And I think that's it. Most everything here is listed in my shop now. I hope you enjoyed my latest bead journey. If all the new ideas floating around in my little beady brain right now turn out like I imagine, I'll have more to show next week!

Have a lovely weekend!