BEADFEST

I attended my first Beadfest this year and I have to say it was the Best EVER! A few things I learned, 

take more MONEY!

schedule more TIME!

and take a CAMERA, if you want to get some photos of the people you got to finally meet!

It was a great time, and wow what a wealth of beads and products, and wonderful people!

This is just a bit of the great loot I got, some of it is already in use and scattered all over!

I wanna go back right now!

STILL MAKING ART

Feeling the need to do some artwork recently drove me to these two journal pages. I will never tire of working with images of woman, using vintage pages, napkins, scraps, and fibers. This piece I used some paint, vintage newspaper, a pretty image of a woman,  napkins,  butterfly image, gesso, and a couple secrets thrown in!  Actually, every time I start one I never really know how they will turn out, and that is what makes them so much fun and so relaxing to me!

This piece I used an original page from an old flea market book I found, a beautiful book, but my feeling is if you can't use it for something, what good is it, so I do tear out pages and use originals, they are so beautiful. I enjoyed stitching around the page in my haphazard way, and I will not bore you with all that it means to me, what matters is what you see and what it means to you! 

I am always thrilled that you took the time to stop by and leave a comment, thank you so much!

UNIVERSAL

I have found the perfect companion to work with when creating necklaces and that is using the components made by Staci Klinger Smith! I recently purchased this polymer clay ring focal, and I have discovered such an ease of working with her designs. It is just one of those things you can't put into words.....it just works for me, and that is a wonderful thing!

 Staci also gifted me with the lovely sea urchin stick.....I found that perfect of course!

This crusty tangerine glass bead is the perfect accent and was gifted to me by the incredible Kimberly Rogers of Numinosity Beads!

I am loving this artful journey  these necklaces are taking me on.

Thanks for joining along !

NATURE COLLAGE

I thought I would share some small nature collages I made recently. I belong to a lovely art group on facebook called The Studio. Any artist can join and participate. It is a very easy going and encouraging community of artists sharing their work, talents and information. The group is run by the fabulous April Cole, and she does an outstanding job of organizing swaps, prompts, and themes to keep your ideas fresh! There is something for everyone. You may want to check it out! So, the theme in July was Nature, so I did find time to do these two collages using some favorite papers, vintage and new,  napkins (oh, how I love napkins, paint, stamps, .........

I really enjoy collage, it has to be my favorite type of art to create.....it constantly challenges me in design and color, and product!  I know these won't be my last!

Thanks so much for stopping by, I always appreciate your visit!

BLOSSOM

 

I'm taking hints from the garden trying to interpret that into my jewelry, and my job is made easy with some of the beautiful artisan pieces made by this incredible jewelry making communit ! I made the etched copper and sterling stitched piece here, but the long lovely rustic polymer clay shard dangling from the bottom was made by Staci Klinger Smith, who works wonders with her polymer clay magic at turning clay into ancient tribal treasures!  She also gifted me with the beautiful tumbled green glass bead....so time worn, soft, and pretty, what gardens are made of.

Another artist that I admire a lot is Kimberly Smith of Numinosity Beads. She makes these incredible "criffles", that teal colored wavy disc that you see in the photo below, that are really beautiful and unique. They lend themselves well to my garden necklace, the wave of the disc resembles the petals of a flower, at least that how my mind might work....today that is......

Thanks for coming on this week's walk with me! I always enjoy and greatly appreciate your visits!

SUMMERTIME

           We are deep into summer and I am trying to enjoy it and steal the moments that I can.

 

 

I am enjoying the colors of the season, they make me happy!  

Of course no week would be complete without making some earrings!

          Crusty goodness with glass headpins made by Kimberly Rogers that I combined with pewter spacers, patterned beads, and picture jasper. I love the melding of patterns and colors, it felt very rythmic to me.

How was your weekend?

Here is wishing you a great week!

I LOVE METAL

              

             

            As is par for the course, I tend to fall into a rut with my style of jewelry making, or a certain train of thought, always choosing the same colors, doing the same things over and over, etc, etc, blah, blah, blah, at least that is how I feel. That feeling starts to nag at my soul terribly until I cannot stand it and I have to do something about it! For a few weeks I have been mulling over the idea of playing with metal again, which for me, is like going back to my roots, or the very beginning of my jewelry making, except I didn't know a lot then. I only know a little more now. It is just so refreshing to do something different and new, to open your mind to new ideas, and once you start that process, and the ball starts to roll, it is such an incredible rush when the ball becomes a huge snowball , or a runaway train, and you can't keep up!
           So, I spent the weekend playing and creating new metal pieces in a style that is a bit different for me, but I am liking the cleanness and the lines and am happy for now to see where it will go.

         
              Thanks for taking a look. I hope this week brings you a happy new adventure!