Free Christmas Bracelet and Earrings Tutorial

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

In the spirit of giving I created a free Christmas bracelet and earring tutorial.

It is available as a pdf file and can be downloaded from my dropbox account by clicking on "This Link":

 I pray you will all have a peaceful Holiday, full of good tidings.

Merry Christmas and Happy Beading!

Book Review: Beadweaving Beyond the Basics, by Kassie Shaw

It was an honor to be asked to review Kassie Shaw's new book, "Beadweaving Beyond the Basics."  I was sent the preview pdf file of her book and have spent several hours thoroughly enjoying it. 

The book includes 24 beading designs and each design has beautiful photos and clear instructions.  But it is so much more than just a book full of patterns.  In her introduction, Kassie states that her goal in writing the book was not only to teach readers how to create the designs, but also to inspire everyone to discover their own creativity and ideas.  She certainly accomplished this goal with me.  I can hardly wait to finish up my current projects and begin exploring with the ideas that came to mind as I read each chapter of her book.

Kassie writes that the main purpose of the book is to teach some intermediate level variations on basic stitches, and then use them as jumping off points for readers to create their own designs.  Her purpose is very clear in all three chapters of the book as she takes us from a "primer" that explains the basic bead weaving stitch through her thought process that led her to create the next design.  Beaders who want to create their own designs will find this book a very practical and inspiring tool to help them become designers of their own original work.

The primary beading stitch Kassie teaches is Right Angle Weave (RAW), but instructions on other basic stitches such as Herringbone (Flat and Tubular), Cubic Right Angle Weave (CRAW), Peyote (Even and Odd Count), and St. Petersburg Stitch are also included.

The three main chapters explore variations of Right Angle Weave (RAW):  1)  Double Diamond RAW,  2)  Faux RAW, and 3) Layered RAW.  The way Kassie explains each technique and explores the possibility of new designs using these techniques inspired me as a designer and I highly recommend this book to others.  

SuperDuos and Hiding Thread

I recently published a new tutorial for my "Night Out on the Town" Necklace and inside it I revealed a trick for hiding thread when creating a beaded rope using SuperDuos.

Most everyone knows that when using SuperDuos, you somehow need to get from the bottom hole to the top hole of the bead in order to connect it to other beads.  There are two methods for accomplishing this.

Method 1 - The most common way is to pass the thread along the side of the SuperDuo that the thread is exiting and then pass through the top hole. 

This method will cause the thread to move in the opposite direction around the circle when adding the next beads.  The thread can be seen along the edge of the SuperDuo.  

There is nothing wrong with the above technique. In fact, there really is no other way to do it when beading flat bead work (like a bracelet).  But as I was beading my rope, I really didn't like seeing the thread laying on the side of the bead.   

It suddenly dawned on me that I could hide the thread!  So here is the method for hiding the thread when creating a rope.

 Method 2 -  Instead of going up the same side of the SuperDuo that the thread is exiting, move the thread across the “back/inside edge” of the SuperDuo and pass through the hole of the SuperDuo on the opposite side from where the thread is exiting. 

When the SuperDuo beads are pulled together into a circle forming the rope, the inside of the SuperDuo where the thread passed over will not show.  It will be on the inside of the rope and you will continue to add beads in the same direction each time. 

This also works for making Beaded Beads which are explained in my Night Out On the Town  necklace Tutorial which can be purchased in my Etsy shop.

As always, I wish you Happy Beading!

OK, So It's Been a While!

Yes, life happens and blogs get put at the bottom of the list.  But I'm still here and am going to try to keep up with blogging a little better in 2015.  It's a New Year with new goals.

Mainly I want to share about my jewelry business which continues to be a big part of my life.  For the past year I've been concentrating on designing bracelets and took a good part of 2014 learning Adobe Illustrator so that I could write tutorials using diagrams to explain the process.  I'm happy with my progress and plan to continue on this pathway, expanding into necklace and earring tutorials.

I'm a member of the Beadsmith Inspiration Squad which keeps me learning about and designing with some of the new beads being manufactured.  So I'll be sharing some posts on all of these new beads and what I'm creating with them.  Here are a few things I've designed over the past few months.

Bezel and Chain using Half Tilas

Hex Pyramid Beads

New Duracoat Silverlined Delicas

African Turquoise SuperDuo Mix and Matubo 8/0 Seed Beads

African Turquoise SuperDuo Mix and O Beads

I have not yet written tutorials for any of the designs shown above, but I did just finish writing a tutorial for my "Night Out on the Town" necklace that uses the new Silver and Gold SuperDuo Mix.  I used beadweaving and stringing techniques in creating this necklace.

The tutorial can be purchased on either my Etsy site or my Artfire site.

Here's to a good 2015 for you all!

Thoughts on Competing

Do you ever enter contests where you are challenged to create something that will be compared to the creations of other brilliant artists?  I entered the Battle of the Beadsmith 2013 challenge this year in a rather naïve kind of way.  I thought I had a good attitude about it being an opportunity to grow as a bead artist, but in the back of my mind I was pretty certain I wouldn't make it very far - and that was perfectly OK with me. 

 

Perhaps it is the normal artist's self doubt that is ever present when creating.  Perhaps it's also a legitimate acceptance of reality of where I think I am as an artist.  Let's face it, when we are being compared to some of the world's best beading artists, it's a bit intimidating and it takes a good deal of persistence to continue on - knowing that we are going to face all kinds of emotions. 

What if "they" don't like my piece?   Can I take the rejection?  How will I handle it?   Please God, don't let me be embarrassed.

I would have been quite content to have ended the battle at Round 3, believing that I had created something I liked and that lots of other people liked - satisfied that I didn't embarrass myself in the eyes of the beading world.

To my amazement (as well as to the amazement of lots of other people) I won the Round 3 battle by the hair on my chinny chin chin!  This beautiful artistic creation called The Phoenix Collar by Helena Tang-Lim was my competition in Round 3.

 I think Helena's piece is incredibly beautiful and had my vote hands down.  To find out that it was a very close race and that I won was not only surprising, but also confusing.  I'm having to deal with some pretty strange emotions - like guilt, shame and sadness.  Very strange emotions for a "winner," huh?  Food for thought that perhaps I am more comfortable with "losing" than with "winning."  I know my self worth does not come from the outcome of these battles, but when there are comparisons going on, those feelings do come to mind and have to be dealt with.

I am more than aware that there were some beautiful pieces that were eliminated in each round, not because they weren't awesome and worthy, but simply because they were paired up with an equally awesome and worthy entry.  Part of moving on is simply due to the luck of the draw - a reminder to be humble.

I think it best to not question the outcomes or my abilities, but just to accept the results and go on to face the next battle and finish the race.  In Round 4, I am once again up against a formidable beading artist, Tamuna Lezhava who created this amazing piece called Treasure of Topkapi.

You can view all the remaining 24 entries in this facebook album created by Tamuna.  Just click on this link.  If you want to find out more about the Battle of the Beadsmith, join the  B.O.T.B. '13 Facebook group by clicking on this link.  Voting for your favorites will begin soon.

To those who have "fallen in battle" and to the remaining 24 battlers, I salute you all.  I encourage you to not grow faint and to be an encouragement to all.  We truly are all united by our love for beads and we can make a difference for good and beauty in our world.

Here are a couple photos of my entry called Crystal Volcano.

 

       Crystal Volcano - front                                 Crystal Volcano - back

 

Thank you to all the people who voted for me in the battles so far.  I appreciate your support more than I can say!

B.O.T.B 2013

The Battle of the Beadsmith 2013 contest is well underway.  Round 1 battles have been fought and the survivors have moved on to Round 2.  Whew!  My Crystal Volcano necklace is a survivor.

 



Each round, participants are randomly paired, and then voting takes place.  The participants and specially invited judges, as well as the public are invited to vote for the piece they feel should move on to the next round.

There are three groups (A, B and C) and in Round 2, there are 16 pairings in each group.  Participants come from many different countries all around the world.  And what better way to introduce them than on Facebook.  If you'd like to see all of the wonderful creations, click HERE.  It will take you to the Group page and if you are not a member of the group, just request to become a member.  Then click on the "PHOTOS" button at the top of the page and you will see all of the beautiful and creative entries.

While the name uses the term "Battle" it is not the bloody and ferocious type.  It's a fun-loving, creative, worldwide expression of Bead Art.  It's just that only one Beading Queen can reign at the end.  Come join in the fun!

Taming the Long Magatamas

I love long magatama beads, but their wonky hole and odd shape can make them a bit difficult to use with the common beadweaving stitches.

  

The holes go through the beads at a slant so they don't sit all nice and neat like cylinder or seed beads.

But still, I wanted to use them and like a design challenge.  I found they play pretty nicely using the spiral stitch so I created a pair of earrings.

The long magatama beads are the white beads that spiral gently down around a center core of size 8 seed beads.

Somewhere along my beading journey, I learned a trick to tighten up a spiral stitch so that the beads don't hang all willy nilly.  I experimented with my earrings and discovered that with a small change, I could tighten up the magatamas and really show the spiral effect.

I've created a tutorial for the earrings as well as a matching bracelet and have now listed it in my Etsy shop.

I hope you'll give the long magatamas a try!  Happy Beading!

Happy Mother's Day to Moms Everywhere!

Mom turned 100 years old last January and is still enjoying life.  She walks a little slower and her eyes are growing dimmer, but her mind and wit are still pretty quick. Here she is with all four of her kids, from youngest (on the left) to oldest.  Yes, we are still kids at heart!  My younger brother claims to be Mom's favorite but I'm not so sure about that.

Each year I make Mom a necklace for Mother's Day.  She's wearing one in the picture above, but it's hidden by the flowers.  This year is no different.  I created a beaded bead from Cindy Holsclaw's Fiberoptic Dodecahedron pattern and then hung it from a Russian Spiral beaded rope. 

I hope I will get to see her wear it in person at her next birthday!

Give your Mom some love for Mother's Day!

Innuendo - Metal Beads and Swarovski Bling

A while back (ok, many months ago), I finished a new bracelet I called Rhapsody.  I used 24k gold plated metal beads to create a right angle weave base and added some Swarovski bicone crystal embellishment on top.

I had every intention of making my Rhapsody bracelet in silver and then creating a tutorial showing them in both colorways.  Somehow during the beading, the plans changed and I ended up with a simpler bracelet.  It uses the same techniques, same right angle weave base and craw embellishment, but there are some differences I'm sure you can see.  I omitted the diamond cluster of crystals in the middle of the bracelet and those going down the sides.  I used round vitrail crystals in the same grouping of four down the center of the bracelet.  Here's how it turned out.

 

Since I'm a silver kind of girl, I like the silver one best.  I created a tutorial for it and the Innuendo pattern is now available in my Etsy shop.

 

I also sell the size 8 silver plated metal beads and the Elegant Elements clasp used in the project. 

 

 

If you like the gold one best and you know cubic right angle weave, it would be very easy to add the extra embellishment.  Whichever you like best, I hope they inspire you to create something today.

 

Happy Beading! 

Metal Beads, Super Duos and Rizos

The challenge was to use three of my favorite bead shapes in one design, Super Duos, Rizos, and Metal Seed Beads.

I've been using metal seed beads for some time and love them for their consistent shape and size.  They work so well with right angle weave and I've used them in several different bracelet styles.  Here's my Trinity Bracelet using size 11 metal seed beads.

The super duo beads have two holes and have an unusual shape.  Here's a bracelet I made using super duo's.  I called this one Cinnabar because of the unique picasso finish on the beads.

 

 

The third bead is called Rizo and it is pretty new on the market.  It is shaped like a tiny grain of rice and has one hole in one end of the bead.  Here is a pair of earrings combining super duos with rizos.  The rizo's are used at the tips of the bottom triangles.

 

 

The design using all three types of beads with their own unique shapes and sizes was an exciting challenge.  My Luxury Squared bracelet is the result of the challenge.  Of course, I also had to add a bit of Swarovski crystal bling to the mix!

 

 

The moral of the story?  Don't be afraid of challenges.  They can inspire and bring out your creative muse in some very interesting ways.

 

 

Fun with Super Duos

Just a quick post to share some fun things I've been making with the new Super Duo beads.   I created these earrings for a fun earring exchange this Christmas.  These are the earrings I sent.  I'm still waiting to receive mine from an unknown Santa.

 

I also made a necklace for my Mom for Christmas.  She's told me at least 35 times how much she likes it which makes me very happy.  Mom will be 100 years old Jan 11 2013 so I called this necklace Centennial.

 

I love the Super Duos.  They have two holes (one in each end) and are very uniform in shape so they are easy to use in many different ways.  There are lots of new colors to play with too.

 

Happy Beading!

New Beginnings - Part I

Has it really been 3 months since I last posted?  Arggghhhh!   I'm so glad there are no blogging police that monitor such things.  I am sorry and promise to do better from now on.

Much has happened in the past three months, both personally and business wise.  I moved from Jacumba to Santee, CA in October.  I bought my own place - a double wide mobile home in a 55+ park.  It's an older home, but has lots of upgrades and most importantly, I believe it is the home God has provided for  me.  I feel safe and am content here.

 

 

There is a wonderful deck that goes along the side and back of the house with sliding glass doors in both bedrooms giving easy access.  This is the picture before I moved in.  I have since added pebble gravel in between all the pavers and hung hummingbird feeders along the edge of the deck top.  The previous owner left all the plants you see in this picture - so nice of her!

 



I moved in with high expectations of having everything organized within a few weeks.  I'm still living with piles of stuff, especially in my spare bedroom which is in the process of being transformed into my business/art/jewelry studio.   You can see a glimpse of the sliding glass doors midway down the deck.  I sit each morning looking out those patio doors while I'm visiting with friends on facebook and reading e-mail.  Every once in a while, hummingbirds will stop by for a drink.  I've yet to capture them in a picture, but I'm sure I will when Spring arrives.

The blue home behind mine is where Lenore lives.  She has become a wonderful friend who welcomed me into the neighborhood and invited me to go with her to attend the clubhouse breakfasts, soup lunches, potlucks, and clubhouse events.  Here's a picture of the clubhouse and pool area.  I haven't tested out the waters yet - perhaps when it becomes a bit warmer.

Enough for this morning.  I'll share more in Part II.  Thanks for stopping by and sharing time with me.

New Peyote Bracelet Pattern Available

I finished another peyote bracelet pattern that I call Navajo Rug.  I designed the pattern and Alicia M. Hartley did the beading.  I created the red design.  Alicia created the blue one.

It's available in my ArtFire and Etsy shops.

 

Alicia created both bracelets in a style she likes.  Instead of adding a clasp, she zipped the two ends together and created peyote bangles!  Quite clever.

Crochet Ribbons Bracelet Tutorial

Seems like forever since I've been able to design and create a new bracelet tutorial.  I just listed this new bracelet pattern in my Etsy shop.  It's a very easy pattern using 3-drop peyote stitch.

Cycle of Seasons Etsy Treasury

Thanks to NikaGalleryArt for including my Going Green Bracelet in her beautiful Cycle of Seasons Treasury on Etsy.

BOTB Etsy Treasury

Some of the Battle of the Beadsmith entries have been listed for sale on Etsy.  Sharayah Sheldon (see her Etsy shop here) created the treasury.

To find out more about the Battle of the Beadsmith, you can go to their group page on facebook and see all the entries that made it to Round 3.

2012 BOTB Round 1 Winners Announced

The first round of the Battle of the Beadsmith is finished.  Congratulations to the 40 winners.  Four "battles" were decided by 1 vote.  Twelve battles were decided by 10-15 votes.  You can view the entries HERE.  This is the list of those who are going on to Round 2.  In Round 2 they will be paired by random drawing and the voting will commence again.  Only 20 will go on to round 3.
 
Battle 1 Irina Chikineva

Battle 2 Annie Hatvani

Battle 3 Alla Maslennikova

Battle 4 Christine Boyer Maj

Battle 5 Hannah Rosner

Battle 6 Melissa Ingram

Battle 7 Ulyana R. Seryankina

Battle 8 Nancy Dale

Battle 9 Linda Roberts

Battle 10 Ibolya Ingesne Barkoczi

Battle 11 Heather K. Heath

Battle 12 Sandra Dokter van Esveld

Battle 13 Olga Shumilova

Battle 14 Ella Des

Battle 15 Christian Rodriguez

Battle 16 Ann Braginsky

Battle 17 Callie Mitchell

Battle 18 Maryanne Villialba

Battle 19 Kinga Nichols

Battle 20 Olga Petterson

Battle 21 Guzialia Reed

Battle 22 Marsha Wiest Hines

Battle 23 Cynthia N. Daniel

Battle 24 Betty Stephan

Battle 25 Mikki Ferrugiaro

Battle 26 Ekaterina Kalinina

Battle 27 Miriam C. Shimon

Battle 28 Sue Horine

Battle 29 Anneta Valious

Battle 30 Katalin B. Nagy

Battle 31 Helena Tang

Battle 32 Laurence Dethier

Battle 33 Eliana Maniero

Battle 34 Amy Katz

Battle 35 Kathy King

Battle 36 Julia Turova

Battle 37 Lauren Macregor

Battle 38 Terri Richards

Battle 39 Sigifredo Contreras

Battle 40 Noel Wyres

 

Those who did not get voted through to Round 2 should be given a huge round of applause.  There were so many amazing pieces that did not make it through simply because of who they were paired against.  Everyone who competed is a winner!

At Long Last!

Finally, the day has arrived!  Almost all of the gorgeous 2012 Battle of the Beadsmith entries have been posted and I must say - they are breathtaking!

You can see all of the entries in the group page on facebook.  Click on this url:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/edit/a.2468982920008.2109259.1115392815/#!/groups/274053372682035/photos/

My entry was held up being posted until almost the end because my competitor's entry was not received and they are unsure if the e-mail was lost or not.  I have no misgivings about being a finalist, but I did have a lot of fun making my piece.  It features cabochons created by Vladislov Ivanov and Kremena Ivanova, married owners of Golem Design Studio.

I had so much fun creating this necklace.  I love the zentangle nature of the cabs and knew I needed to keep the beadwork simple because of all the design and motion going on in the cabs.  I'm also excited that the artists who create these amazing cabs are making smaller sized cabs - providing jewelry designers with even more creative possibilities.

Golem Design Studio also has an Etsy shop.

The Battle is Getting Fierce!

The Beadsmith is beginning to post the "Battle" pieces on their group page on facebook.  I cannot share the beautiful pieces, but you can see all of them here:

http://www.facebook.com/groups/274053372682035/photos/#!/groups/274053372682035/photos/

There will be 40 groups of photos.  Each group will show the amazing and creative beadwork of two of the 80 talented beadweaving artists from around the world.  After they are all posted and we have time to pick our jaws up off the floor, then the judging will begin.

Out of the 80 entries, only 40 will remain after the first round.  These 40 will again be paired up with another "battle warrior" and the 2nd round of judging will begin.

Who will be the winner of the battle?  Stay tuned!!

Battle Update

Another quick update on the Battle of the Beadsmith.  Here's who's competing with who in Round 1.

1) Jacquie Champion-Canada vs Irina Chikineva-Russia

2) Anastasia O'sarantseva-Ireland vs Annie Hatvani-Hungary

3) Lea Palickova-Czech Republic vs Alla Maslennikova -Russia

4) Christina Neit-USA vs Christine Boyer Maj-USA

5) Hannah Rosner-USA vs Kassie Inman-USA

6) Olga Haserodt-Germany vs Melissa Ingram-Australia

7) Ulyana Rakcheyeva Seryankina-USA vs Joanne Browne-Australia

8) Mouna Marini-France vs Nancy Dale-USA

9) Nella Moskvichjova-Russia vs Linda Roberts-USA

10) Denise Kangas-Czech Republic vs Ibolya Ingesne Barkoczi-Hungary

11) Heather Kingsley Heath-United Kingdom vs Katherine Gezey-Ukraine

12) Alla Vizir-Ukraine vs Sandra Dokter van Esveld-Netherlands

13) Olga Shumilova-Russia vs Patrick Duggan-Australia

14) Ella Des-Belgrade Serbia vs Neva Brown-Australia

15) Christian Rodriguez-USA vs Marta Koudelova-Czech republic

16) Ann Braginsky-Israel vs Edgar Lopez Disenos-Dominican Republic

17) Susan Brackett-USA vs Callie Mitchell-USA

18) Jill Thomas-United Kingdom vs Maryanne Villalba-Australia

19) Tammuna Lezhava-Georgia vs Kinga Nichols-USA

20) Iva Jar-Czech Republic vs Olga Petterson-Sweden

21) Guzialia Reed-Japan vs Katka Vaclavikova-Czech Republic

22) Marsha Wiest Hines-USA vs Eva Dobos-Hungary

23) Orsolya Fuzesi-Hungary vs Cynthia Newcomer Daniel-USA

24) Betty Stephan-USA vs Elka Leonhardt Rath-Germany

25) Eva Csizmadiz Lajosne-Hungary vs Mikki Ferrugiaro-USA

26) Jennifer Chasalow Van Benschoten-USA vs Ekaterina Kalinina-Russia

27 Sharayah Sheldon-USA vs Miriam Cielo Shimon-Israel

28) Sue Horine-USA vs Misan Tejre-Sweden

29) Anneta Valious-France vs Lynn Day-United Kingdom

30) Alexandra Sydorenko -USA vs Katalin Budaine Nagy-Hungary

31) Rosita Pisarchick-USA vs Helena Tang-Singapore

I am doomed to losing the first round, but being a trooper, I am putting on my battle gear and will fight to the death. lol