Featured in the ABS Challenge Blog Tour!

What fun! My first entry into the ABS challenge... and it ends up featured in the blog tour with so many oh-so creative designs! I am so honored! Thank you Erin for your kind words... and all of ABS Blog... you made my day!!



I'll be back for sure! I don't know why I never joined in before... it is so much fun!

You don't want to miss out on what everyone else made! Go here to see it all and to take the tour.


Bead Soup is in the mail!


Pam's soup is winging its way to her now! I so enjoyed picking out goodies for her. I sure hope she has fun with it all!

Here's your sneak peek...
... and that's all you get to see until Pam sees it all first! ;-)


Brier Rose ~ January ABS Challenge

This is my first time participating in the Art Bead Scene monthly challenge. I've always enjoyed seeing how everyone translates the chosen art into something wearable. I just hadn't taken the time to try it myself. But when I saw William Morris on Art Bead Scene this month, I knew it was finally time for me to make something...

Trellis by William Morris, 1862

For this challenge, I decided to try to make something for myself. Something I would wear... on any day... with any outfit. And this is totally it! It started out as a bracelet (bracelets are my go-to jewelry and also one of my favorite things to make), but when I had more beads than would fit on a bracelet, I just kept on wrapping wire and turned it into a necklace.


The rose beads are my own polymer creation. I started by sculpting a single rose and then used it to make a few silicone molds. Then I cast several beads and painted them to match the colors of the palette. (I have more roses in the works now... look for them in my shop shortly! :-)



I used some black onyx and I dug through my bead stash and found some Russian serpentine that I've had practically forever. I'm glad I never used them before! They fit in so perfectly with the squares of the trellis in William Morris' wallpaper.


I finished it off with a simple suede cord tied in a knot -- it's long enough to easily slip over my head. I love a long necklace! And as a finishing touch I added tiny wire wraps to the ends of the suede.

Go here to see the other entries of the month: http://www.flickr.com/groups/artbeadscene/

...What will Art Bead Scene challenge us with next month? I can't wait to see!

Wild Asters ~ 52 Earrings: week 4


It's the end of week 4 and I'm just getting my earrings finished... at the very last minute! I had another design planned, but it will have to wait until next time. It would have taken a few more days to finish. So, I chose two Aster Wheel discs from my latest batch (I'll have some listed in my shop very soon :-) and did some quirky wirework with a couple czech glass crystals... and there you have it: Wild Asters. They're a little different than what I usually make, but I really like the look.

Check out the Flickr pool here to see what everyone else mixed up for week four.

See you next week with another pair!


New in the Shop

And just in time for Valentine's Day...

Winged heart connector bead sets.


And pretty little rainbow heart beads.




New Earrings for Me

Just for fun this year, I'm joining in on the 52 Pairs of Earrings a Year challenge started by Anke Humpert on Flickr.

Here's my first pair
Polymer clay rounds, czech glass flowers, and antique brass beads and bead caps.


Yeah, I know, it's now week 3 of the year, but that's okay. It's all about having fun and having more earrings... no stress!

In 2012 I will challenge myself: I will make more art - regularly!
To stick to it, I will make a pair of earrings each week (mostly polymer clay, but not exclusively!).
So 2012 is going to be a year of 52 pairs of earrings for me....! Earrings are relatively small and who does not like to have more earrings, right?
Like to join the challenge??
Just come in and show what you have made each week!

It's not too late to start. Join in on the fun here. See you next week with another pair...

I can hardly believe it... I'm in!!


I've watched the Bead Soup Party from the sidelines for quite a while. I always had so much fun seeing what everyone made... this time though, I will be making something too! I'm so excited!

My bead partner is the talented Pam Hurst.

Just look at what she makes...





My first thought when I saw her work was "wow! I'm so lucky! I never thought I'd get paired up with someone who makes such neat stuff!" And then the nervousness set in and I was thinking "what in the world am I going to send her"! We've chatted back and forth a bit and have gotten to know one another better and now I have sooo many ideas I don't know what to chose!

This is going to be sooooooo much fun!

I'll be posting what Pam sends me as soon as it arrives. And don't forget to come back for the reveal and hop on March 3rd!

(For those of you who might not know about the Bead Soup Party, you can go here to learn all about it... and maybe you'll want to join in on the next go round. :-)