Bead The Change

Join me on my new blog!

2011-02-06T09:42:00.000-08:00

Hi beady buddies!

Just thought I would remind you that I have moved blogs to http://aprilisforever.blogspot.com/

Sarahx

Moving blogs to April Is Forever

2010-04-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

Just to let you know that I am in the process of setting up a business to sell my jewellery and hopefully soon my own patterns called April Is Forever and have set up a blog for it here
http://aprilisforever.blogspot.com/ . I will now be updating April Is Forever with my new designs and creations and of course Operation Tackle That Bead Stash with my continued efforts to whittle down the stash, although past content will remain here for the time being. Thank you for all your support and comments and I hope you join me on either April Is Forever or Operation Tackle That Bead Stash http://tacklethatbeadstash.blogspot.com/

Sarahx

Slightly Obsessed with Beaded Rings!

2010-03-22T13:39:00.000-07:00

This weekend I have become increasingly obsessed with making beaded rings. I think that this is mainly because they tie in neatly with my 2 main current areas of focus, making quick items for April Is Forever to sell at Saturdays Vintage Pretty and using up all those leftover beads n pieces for Operation Tackle That Bead Stash. I like the fact that you can make a finished
piece of jewellery quickly and they are also a great way to experiment and try new designs without investing too much time.

Rainy Days, Podcasts & New Techniques.

2010-03-19T11:17:00.000-07:00

It's raining cats and dogs here today, it has come as a bit of a shock after the beautiful sunshine we have been having lately and scuppered my plans to take lots of photo's for the blogs. I have had a nice day, coffee with a mum from school this morning and this afternoon has been spent in the dining room with my beading supplies spread out all over the table, listening to the Craftcast Podcast and trying a new to me technique of making beaded wire flowers. Not a bad way to spend a day, kiddo was over at a friends house after school so I have had a very relaxing day.

Here is a link to the Craftcast website
http://www.craftcast.com/

and to one of the tutorials that I have been practising today
http://jewelrymaking.allinfoabout.com/features/flower.html

A Round Up of the 1st Week of Operation Tackle That Bead Stash

2010-03-17T13:13:00.000-07:00

Just a week ago I set up Operation Tackle That Bead Stash, we already have 1 other contributor, 16 posts and 8 followers! Every week I'm going to post a round up here of the highlights from OTTBS. Ha ha, I love that acronym, it could stand for so many other things!

So this weeks highlights are;

Welcoming Bobbi from the Bead Goes On to the team! Bobbi has made some great posts and beautiful projects, she has already completed her 3rd goal!

Finally using 2 tubes of bugle beads that have been languishing in my stash for about 3 years, to make this red lariat.

Bobbi's fab beaded eggs

http://tacklethatbeadstash.blogspot.com/2010/03/bead-stash-beaded-eggs.html

Tulip Beaded Ring

2010-03-15T05:16:00.000-07:00

I am about to add some new beaded rings to the April Is Forever blog but thought that I would also feature this one here as I am particularly proud of it!

The tulip ring is a result of an ongoing experiment in increasing/decreasing netting to create a 3d ring top and I love this version. I am also really happy with the colour combination, the zingy lime seed beads really complement the fuschia swarovski crystals.

If you want to see more of my recent rings, please check out April Is Forever, the link is on the right.

Sarah

Leaf Bracelet - Kit review

2010-03-12T11:31:00.000-08:00

Last October I visited the Welsh Bead Fair in Cardiff and bought some kits from Spellbound Beads. I chose this leaf bracelet as it reminded me of the Saraguro beadwork that I had seen exhibited on the Beadworkers Guild stand that I really loved, except it looked a bit easier!

I can't find the name of the kit right now as the bag I kept the instructions in is packed away while decorating & I couldn't see it on the Spellbound Beads website either but I still wanted to write about it before I forgot!

The instructions for the kit were really comprehensive, nicely laid out and easy to follow. There were plenty of beads and the colour choice is beautiful, I know there were other lovely combinations too. The patter itself was much easier to work than expected and went very quickly so a win-win! I bought other kits there too and after doing this bracelet I'm glad I did because I felt that this was good value for money and an easy way to try something different. Here is the link to the Spellbound Beads website, but don't click if you don't want to be tempted to spend lots of money!

Operation Tackle That Bead Stash!

2010-03-09T06:23:00.000-08:00

Today I decided to sort out my bead stash, expecting it to take about half an hour, it took over 2 hours! I was mortified at the amount of beads I have had in my stash for a long time and not used so I have decided to do something about it!

I have set up a blog to post my goals for using up the stash and the projects I make with it. I would love some company on this stashbusting journey, so please let me know if you would like to join in and post to the blog and I will make you a member of Team Operation Tackle That Bead Stash!
http://tacklethatbeadstash.blogspot.com/

Let's make 2010 the year we tackle that bead stash!

Kaliedescope

2010-02-15T06:07:00.000-08:00

Here is a new multi-stitch necklace that I finished this weekend. I wear a lot of purple and teals so I wanted a necklace that would work with both colours. I used a variety of stitches, including dutch spiral, circular peyote and spiral rope. It was a lot of fun to make the components and then decide how to piece them together to create the necklace.

Valentine wash out.

2010-02-15T02:04:00.000-08:00

Husbeast & I were supposed to go out for Sunday lunch together yesterday as my son was at my mum's for the day. Typically I have come down with a bad cold/flu whatever & couldn't go out. I am still languishing on the sofa with a sore throat, puffy & teary eyes, blocked nose & ears and aches all up & down my body, I have not yet noticed a snout growing, I'll let you know!

Luckily my mum said she'd take kiddo overnight soon so we can go out for an evening meal together, that will be fun, the last time we did that was my birthday in October, so at least we have something to look forward to.

OWOH Winner!

2010-02-15T01:22:00.000-08:00

The winner of my OWOH Giveaway is Lennie from eat.write.create! Congratulations Lennie!

The OWOH has been amazing fun, I have really enjoyed visiting blogs that I would not normally come across & I have greatly increased my must read blog list.

Thank you to all the wonderful people who commented on my giveaway post! I have only had time to briefly view each blog but over the next week or so I will be visiting you all properly.

Special thanks to Lisa Swifka from A Whimsical Bohemian for organising such an amazing event!

One World One Heart Giveaway - Now Closed.

2010-02-06T07:55:00.001-08:00

Hop on board the magic carpet, take a virtual journey through almost 1000 blogs and get the chance to win treasures from across the Globe!

Welcome to my stop on the Magical Carpet Ride! My name is Sarah and I live in the small but beautiful country of Wales, Land of Song & Rugby, unfortunately I cannot sing a note and we lost the match to England yesterday, boo hiss! If there is one thing we Welsh hate it's losing to England! Apart from being Welsh, I am also married with 1 son and I work part-time for a government department, I am lucky to have an interesting job that I enjoy and my work colleagues are all lovely so I don't begrudge the time it takes away from doing the thing that I love, beading. I have been beading for eight years and have tried many techniques including stringing wirework and chainmaille but beadweaving is my favourite. I love the colours and finishes of the tiny seed beads and the fact that you can make almost anything out of them if you have the patience!I hope you enjoy your visit here and I am looking forward to getting to know you all through visiting your blogs!

The One World One Heart Giveaway event was started by Lisa Swifka in 2007 as a way for bloggers across the world to connect with each other and make new friends. Click on the link to the right to find out more and to see the list of blogs taking part in the event, there are almost 1000, so there are lots of lovely goodies to win!

I am offering this flower brooch as my giveaway, it is made with delica beads and Swarovski crystal pearls using brick stitch and peyote.

To enter the giveaway all you have to do is comment on this post by midnight 14th February, making sure that you leave an e-mail address in your comment if I can't link back to you through your comment. I will be randomly drawing the winner on the 15th February.

Good luck and don't forget to check out the list of blogs hosting giveaways, you may find a new favourite and some new friends!

A favourite necklace.

2010-02-05T11:58:00.000-08:00

Referred to my one of my work colleagues as "your amazing necklace"! I had originally overlooked the pattern for this necklace in Bead & Button but wanted something fairly easy to accomplish during the busy build-up to Christmas so chose it while flicking through some back issues in search of inspiration. I have been going through a real monochrome phase as you can see from the main colours and added the lovely tortoiseshell effect glass beads to jazz it up a bit. I really like the finished piece and it was fun to make, I may well add more rings to it at a later date.

Grrr, flipping technology stuff!

2010-02-05T05:13:00.000-08:00

There has been an alarming lack of photo's on this blog lately. So I thought I'd take some today as it is nice & sunny & there are no boys around to aggravate me with their "helpful" suggestions and in the case of the kiddo their demands to take the photos, wear the jewellery and be fed all at the same time. However, I somehow could not find picasa and saved them to the itunes folder & now can't work out how to save them elsewhere. Sigh, no wonder the husbeast is astounded that I can actually post a blog.

Let the good times roll.

2010-02-01T13:17:00.000-08:00

Watching Glee, surfing Folksy and eating salt and vinegar Chipsticks, not rock n roll but I like it!

Money for nothing & your books for free.

2010-01-27T11:17:00.000-08:00

I can't help out with the money part but The Book Depository is currently offering over 11,000 titles as free e-books, here's the link http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/free. I'm thinking about downloading The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, I loved the Frank L. Baum books when I was a kid.

You know you are soppy,

2010-01-25T11:50:00.000-08:00

When you cry at the end of Space Buddies because the dog with the dodgy Russian accent gets home to his boy. I was very embarrassed.

Thank you!

2010-01-13T14:46:00.000-08:00

Ladies, thank you for your kind comments on yesterday's post, I really appreciate them! We are all feeling a bit better today although I'll be laying off the crafting for a few days as my right hand is pretty sore. At least my son is happy, lots of sweets & DVD's for him today, all is now right with his world!

Scary Experience

2010-01-12T12:57:00.000-08:00

On the way home tonight, our car lost control downhill and we crashed into 2 cars. Thankfully we are all OK. The damage to the cars doesn't seem too bad & the insurance were pretty good on the phone. People saw us careening from their windows and came out to help with mobiles in hand ready to call the ambulance, I think they were shocked that we didn't need them. I'm not normally big into religion or spirituality but I truly do believe that someone was watching over us tonight, it's amazing that we weren't hurt!

The 3 B's - Beads, Boots and Ballet.

2010-01-02T13:55:00.000-08:00

I have had an amazing day today, girly day out with friends! First was a trip to Crystals & Ice bead shop in Cardiff as I wanted to get some bigger beads as I am teaching 2 visually impaired ladies to bead next week. I decided to teach them a basic RAW bracelet using 6mm druks and 8mm fire-polished as the difference in size and texture should make it much easier for them, I managed to pick a few things for myself too, including gorgeous galvinised gold miyuki cubes.

Next was a spot of shopping, whilst in one department store I spotted a pair of Carvela boots that I had wanted in October but at full price they were out of my budget, but they had my size(which can be difficult to find as my feet are canal barges in disguise) for half price so I snapped them up quick!

Then there was the ballet, the first I have ever been to, the ticket's were a birthday gift from my friends. The ballet was Sleeping Beauty performed by the Russian State Ballet and it was wonderful! I especially loved the bluebirds! I shall certainly be going again. We finished up with a lovely meal and a few drinks, including a glass of champagne in a lovely hotel bar. I feel very lucky, thank you to those that shared the day with me, and the one who was too ill to come, you were missed. We'll just have to make sure we do the same again next year!

It's snowing!

2009-12-29T05:42:00.000-08:00

I spoke too soon Sam, as I type the nasty white stuff is falling outside. Kiddo is thrilled, me, not so much. I am legendarily unco-ordinated when there is slippery snow & ice around and once dislocated my shoulder when I fell in school. I think I'll stay in & give in to kiddo's demands to do some arts and crafts. I'm also in the process of setting up a shop on folksy, so I've got a lot to do for that.

The calm after Christmas.

2009-12-28T09:27:00.000-08:00

Phew, Christmas with a five year old is very exciting but very tiring too! Santa brought everything my son wanted and a few extra too, where to put it all now, though? Some highlights of the day were Kiddo exclaiming that it was the best Christmas ever when opening his stocking before he had even seen the rest of his pressies and him singing an alternative version of jingle bells that had the line Uncle Billy lost his willie and didn't know what to say, at the table in the middle of Christmas lunch with my all his grandparents in attendance. My mother-in-laws face was a real picture!

Now that things have calmed down, I have actually been beading hooray! It'll be nice to get some new pics up on the blog soon.

If you are curious about what I look like there is a picture of me with the lovely Sam on her blog
http://themusingsofsamboy.blogspot.com/2009/12/party-pictures.html, I couldn't work out how to copy it here, bless me! Sam is about the only person I know in real life as well as blogland and she takes great photo's, check out her photography blog too!

Hope you all had a fab & peaceful holidays!

Belated Show Review.

2009-11-24T08:13:00.000-08:00

I realised that I didn't really say much about the Welsh Bead Fair that I visited on 4th October and since I haven't taken any photo's for a while I thought I could break my blog silence with a quick post about it.

The Welsh Bead Fair was held at the Village Hotel in Cardiff and is run by Stitch n Craft Beads which is one of my favourite online bead stores. The show was smaller this year as there was a larger Fair being held in England on the same day & a lot of traders had obviously decided to go to that one instead.

There were about 15 stalls which included 3 great seed bead stalls; Stitch n Craft, Spellbound Beads and Oaktree Crafts, I bought from each of them of course, my favourites being some matte denim blue 11's from Oaktree, cranberry lustre 11's from Stitch n Craft and some lovely kits from Spellbound which I plan to blog about as they are completed. The lampworker Ray Skene was there and I bought a few beads from him, he was very nice to talk to and gave me a lovely leaf pendant for free with my purchases! There were various other stalls there including one showcasing knotwork, Wellhead books with an amazing selection, Anita's Beads and Precious Sparkle Beads which had wonderful semi-precious strands but I stayed away from there as I wanted to focus on the seedy side of beads. Another highlight was the Beadworkers Guild stand which had some lovely Saraguro style beadwork. I love the Saraguro collars that I have seen, in particular the ones designed by Chris Prussing and I plan to make one one day, maybe when I am retired, as they look like a serious amount of work!

While it was smaller than many other bead fairs, I still had a lot of fun and bought too much! I love the fact that it is so close to my birthday as it gives me a good excuse to treat myself!

Catch up!

2009-10-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

Wow, a month has flown past since I last blogged! I don't have much work to show, but I have been very busy as it was my 40th birthday and I had lots of celebrations and lovely things to do! I went to the Welsh Bead Fair & bought far too many seed beads, I also had some beads for my birthday including a fab set of lampwork beads by Lush Beads from my lovely friends (you know who you are & I know you read this!) and Rachel Nelson Smiths fabulous book Seed Bead Fusion. I will share some photo's of my new goodies later this week.

Copper Rose Pendant.

2009-09-20T05:39:00.000-07:00

I love Eastern art and architecture and was influenced by these when I was designing this pendant. I chose the pink to remind me of cherry blossoms and added copper.

Flowers at Midnight.

2009-09-14T10:37:00.000-07:00

I am still on my self-enforced bead ban and frantically trying to make space for the new goodies I intend to buy at the Welsh Beadfair on the 4th October. I have had these flower beads for a couple of years and wanted to make something a bit different and special with them. After flicking through lots of magazines for inspiration, I decided to string them in an asymmetrical bracelet with onyx briolettes, swarovski 4mm in jet ans some black crystal pearls.

Calypso Flowers

2009-09-10T13:54:00.000-07:00

I wanted to try a totally different colour scheme for this piece. I used swarovski crystals in Caribbean opal and lime and a pumpkin orange delicas. The pattern is a favourite motif from Suzanne Cooper's Victorian and Variations. I'm glad I tried it but I don't think the colour combo is successful and won't be using it again. The great thing about beading is that you can frog it & use the beads in something else.

South Western Strands.

2009-09-08T11:22:00.000-07:00

This is a slight twist on the traditional brick and strands bracelet. I have added ladder stitch bars so that I could vary the length of the strands and have added a centre medallion which was made from instructions in Suzanne Coopers Victorian and Variations book. Turquoise and brown are a favourite colour combination of mine but I wanted this to look a bit different so, inspired by south western jewellery I added the red.
I love the vibrancy it brings to the other two colours.

My Version Of A Slant On Bails.

2009-09-07T05:26:00.000-07:00

Life is back to normal after the school holidays, so hopefully normal blog service will also resume. My son is happily back to school in year 1, apparently his new class is super-fun!

As I mentioned in my last post I decided to make my own version of Mary Champions A New Slant On Bails from the latest issue of Bead Style Magazine. So the next night I sat down once kiddo was in bed and hubby at the gym to work out how I was going to do it.
First of all, I decided to add spirals at each end of the wire instead of bead covers as I didn't have enough. For the bails I thought delica tubes with a loop would work and decided on crystal shadow twist beads and bicones and hematite seed beads and delicas for a monochrome look. I even drew a quick sketch with notes which I will do more often as it made the actual beading process more easier and quicker.

The delica bails worked well in the design I thought but I think that next time I would add some embellishments to make them more ornate. I enjoyed the process of translating the design into something I could make with what I had on hand and I really like the shape.

I have managed to keep to the bead buying ban but I will soon need to order some more findings.

Holiday Necklace 2 & Making Do.

2009-08-14T11:11:00.000-07:00

Here is the 2nd of my holiday necklaces. The shell beads were previously in another necklace which I cut up to reuse the components. I much prefer the new version.

I have been seed beading like mad but yet again have been far too lazy to take photographs. I have also been flicking through lots of my old beading mags and have sorted out a pile to get rid off just not sure what to do with them yet.

I got the latest Bead Style mag today, there are some interesting shapes that I plan to make up replacing some of the components with seed beaded ones, starting with Mary Champions A New Slant on Bails, which is a really great design, I'd love to make it as is but I don't have the required components so I'll have to try & make do with what I've got.

I don't know about you but despite the fact that I have loads of seed beads and a fair selection of accent beads I always want to buy new things and not use up what I already have. My bead box is starting to look like a personal tribute to consumerism. I have recently started watching a cookery show called Gastronomy Economy, at the end of the show, they whip up a three course meal for four by creatively using up ingredients in the cupboards and spending only 10 pounds to buy extras. I have decided to try using this philosophy in my beading for the next couple of months til the 4th October. I will buy findings & thread if I need them, but no more new beads til the Welsh Bead Fair. I know it's not a long time frame but hey it's a start and its my 40th Birthday on the 7th October, you wouldn't expect me to face that without brand new sparklies now would ya?;-)

So hopefully I can get inspired to use what I have to make some interesting new jewellery. In the interests of full disclosure, I must admit that I deliberately waited til after I'd ordered Marcia DeCosters new book to announce this new make do philosophy. So fingers crossed that I make it since I'm already off to a shaky start!

Loops and Ladders..

2009-07-30T11:50:00.000-07:00

This is the 2nd loopy necklace I made last week and is from the pattern Luxury Loops and Ladders from the most recent Bead Magazine. I much preferred making this one to the other. It worked up very quickly and easily. I love the colours too.

My neighbour has expressed an interest in learning to bead and really liked the style of the Through the Loops collar which is why i beaded it, so that I could decide if it would be a good first project for her. I didn't think it would be the best first project so I tried this one, which I think is suitable for a total beginner.

Holiday Necklace 1.

2009-07-28T12:33:00.000-07:00

I bought these beautiful hand made lamp work beads
from Julie Fountain at Lush Beads when I saw them at
the Chepstow Bead & Gem Fair earlier this year.

As my holiday wardrobe leaned heavily towards the turquoise
& blue range they were a natural choice along with some hematite, turquoise & aventurine for a nice simple lightweight necklace to slip into my suitcase. Along with the other 4 or 5 nice simple lightweight necklaces I just had to make:-)

Through the loops

2009-07-27T06:03:00.000-07:00

I am an avid collector of beading magazines, in fact I'm fast running out of space to keep them. I collect Bead & Button, Beadwork, Bead Unique, Step-by-Step Beads and Bead magazine.
Despite my huge collection, I don't very often make something from a current issue, I seem to keep them a while, ruminate on the projects and make something months after I have had the mag. This week has been an exception though. I got my B&B about 2 weeks ago & instantly wanted to the through the loops collar, I think this is for two reasons, 1. it reminds me of the simple lace collars that I made when I first started seed beading & 2. The materials needed were readily available, just 3 tubes of seed beads, sometimes it's hard to get hold of the more unusual supplies, here in the UK.

I like the finished result but I have to say I found the beadwork a bit fiddly and repetitive, this is not a fault of the instructions, which were excellent, it's just not a technique that I warmed too.

Summer, really?

2009-07-26T14:09:00.000-07:00

The weather today has been dreadful. Lots of rain & grey skies so no photo's again. I hope it's nicer tomorrow, it's school holidays & kiddo has a friend coming over for the day and I was hoping to picnic in a local park. I admit that I do have a contingency plan which involves a dvd player, sweets and some scissor fun, these look like they will be lots of fun for a pair of five year olds, http://www.scissorcraft.com/masks.htm

While checking my e-mails I came across beading daily's earring swap. Although earrings are the item of jewellery that I wear most, I hardly ever make them. I think that this swap would be a great opportunity to stretch my earring design skills and also it would be great fun to receive a surprise in the post. I think I will sign up, is anyone else participating? Here's a link to the post
http://www.beadingdaily.com/blogs/daily/archive/2009/07/24/join-beading-daily-s-first-earring-swap.aspx

Wow - the last month has flown by!

2009-07-25T11:12:00.000-07:00

I knew I was overdue for a new post but I really didn't realise that it was a whole month since I had posted. I don't have much of an excuse except having been on holidays. The main reason I haven't posted is that I have been feeling too lazy to take photo's of my work. Things seem to have been very busy here and about the only time I have actually felt like taking phot's was really bad rain & the light was awful.

I do have quite a few things to photograph, apart from the gold shoes;->, I had a stringing extravaganza before my holiday and made quite a few necklaces to take, frankly I am amazed I was within my luggage allowance. I had a bit of a break from beading after hols but am back with a vengeance this week, I have been feeling very loopy! I have made through the loops from Bead and Button and loops and ladders from Bead magazine, photo's soon I promise.

Our holiday in Cyprus was wonderful! The hotel was in beautiful grounds & our veranda opened straight onto the beach, it was heaven! My son turned into a total water baby & his swimming improved hugely while we were there. We met up with my family and had a wonderful time, particularly on our weeding anniversary when they took us to a fantastic restaurant that grew all it's own veg and served organic homemade wine, the mezze was delicious and even my son tried some.

Tag, I'm it.

2009-06-24T09:18:00.000-07:00

I was very excited to see that Tantra flower has tagged me, it's my first one, so here goes. I'm not going to tag anyone else yet because I'm not sure who too choose, but I really wanted to post my answers.

Here are the rules:1. Respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention & add one more question of your own.
2. Tag eight other people

What is your current obsession?
Entering online competitions, especially for shoes, handbags and make-up, what can I say, my shallow side runs pretty deep!

What are you wearing today?
A white top, multi coloured skirt, a studded wide belt & enormously high gold wedges. Plus yellow beads and gold circle earrings. Today was a work day.

What’s for dinner? - Ahem, I would decide to do this the one day hubby promised Kiddo he could have chips from the chippie wouldn't I? So very unhealthy cod & chips with lots of bread & butter for chip butties. Can't wait! We don't usually eat like this, honest! I would normally have a can of Coke with this, but I said on Tantra Flowers blog that I would try to give up the pop so I won't be having one today.

What’s the last thing you bought? The previously mentioned enormously high gold wedges, they are so pretty and much admired at work today, although one colleague did comment that I had an Imelda Marcos thing going with the shoes, I think she's just jealous that they are mine & not hers.

What are you listening to right now? Nothing, it's blissfully quiet, I am home on my own after a visit to the Osteopath so there is no tv, no banging of doors or cries of Mu-uum. Heavenly!

Which language do you want to learn? Japanese

What do you love most about where you currently live? It's a great location, near to a good schol & close to independent, grocers, butcher and bakers, there aren't that many around these days. It's within walking distance of the town centre & fairly short drives to beaches and beautiful countryside.

What is your favorite colour? Purple

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe? My new gold wedges, are you seeing a pattern here?

Describe your personal style? Calmly chaotic.

If you had $300 now, what would you spend it on? I'd use it it as spending money for my holiday in Cyprus next week. yay!

What are you going to do after this? Read a book with my son.

Your favorite smell? Fresh bread, mouthwatering!

Do you collect anything? Not really.

What makes you follow a blog? Lot's of things, in the case of bead blogs lot's of pretty pictures, other than that someone who shares other interests of mine such as meditation etc.

Do you like to comment on blogs or just lurk? I do like to comment when I can but often I feel a bit rushed so I don't. I should make more time for commenting.

What’s one thing you dream of doing? Visiting Japan, apart from the cherry blossom trees, the beautiful temples and art they have huge bead shops which I would love to go to.

What is your biggest regret? Listening to that little voice in my head that tells me I can't do something even before I try it.

What is your favorite thing to do on a rainy day? Lounge on the sofa with my son watching a fun movie.

Do you have a tattoo? No, much to the dismay of my husband who has a lot of them. A few weeks ago my son came down to the kitchen saying very proudly "Mummy look what I drew" I turned expecting to see a beautiful picture of a house, tree, sun/whatever, to see that he had gotten a black marker pen & scrawled a pretty good copy of a celtic design up his forearm. Guess how happy I was about that.

Are you left handed, right handed, ambidextrous, or a little of both? Right-handed

Do you play an instrument? No, not any more. I played guitar when I was younger & would like to learn again.

The question I am adding is:

What song takes you instantly back to those carefree school days when all you worried about was whether you'd get away with the "interesting" modifications you made to your school uniform and whether the boy you liked already had a girlfriend? Mine is Rio by Duran Duran.

Hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about me & thanks to Tantra Flower for tagging me, it was fun!

Brick and Strands Bracelet.

2009-06-06T08:11:00.000-07:00

The brick and strands bracelet is a pattern I saw on on about.com years and years ago when I first started beading. I never made one at the time but I wanted a quick and easy pattern and to use up some beads that were in my leftover's box. It worked up quite nicely and I have some ideas for variations too.

2nd Crystal Bracelet.

2009-05-28T14:44:00.000-07:00

Here is the 2nd bracelet I made using the pattern from Bead & Button's Brilliant Crystal magazine. I used Dark blue pearls and hematite firepolish beads for this one. the band is such a lovely fit and great fun to make that I want to make another one but I think 2 is enough for now!

Crystal Bracelet.

2009-05-27T11:19:00.000-07:00

I fell in love with this bracelet and the colour combination when I first saw it in Bead & Button's Brilliant Crystals magazine. I really enjoyed making the bracelet and the colours are great, I have made another one which I will post later.

A Sight For Sore Eyes.

2009-05-25T12:02:00.000-07:00

It's been a lovely Bank Holiday weekend here and me, my husband & son spent some time at the garden centre today looking for some new plants, we bought some bright orange & spiky magenta plants for one of our borders so hopefully in a few months I'll be posting a picture of a vibrant corner. In the meantime here is a picture of my gardens pride & joy, not many blooming just yet but if the last few years are anything to go by we've got a real treat in store. I'll take another photo when its in full bloom.

Forest Crystal Burst Ring

2009-05-24T09:06:00.000-07:00

So like many of you out there I'm now completely in love with bezelling rivoli's. This ring is made using Laura McCabes Crystal Sunburst method. The surrounding crystals are some amazing jet abx2 crystals that my husband bought me as a surprise. The abx2 effect is beautiful, I can't get over how different the colours are in this finish. I am running out of Rivoli's so I'll have to try something else for a while until I get some more

Rivoli Earrings.

2009-05-22T05:51:00.000-07:00

In the pursuit of expanding my earring collection, I made these simple bezelled rivoli earrings using instructions from Laura McCabes book. I used steel grey delicas and galvanised silver size 15's. I like the simplicity of these but I think I will need to also have a pair of Crystal Burst earrings, after all a girl can never have too much sparkle!

Crystal Blue Earrings.

2009-05-11T10:58:00.000-07:00

Last night I sat down to watch the Da Vinci Code on TV. I didn't have a project ready to work on so I picked up the beads left over from the little black dress earrings and started playing with right angle weave. I tried using different sizes and created a lovely curve which I then joined together and strung on the earwire with strands of 3mm crystals.

I quite liked the film, it was diverting at least, I much preferred the book though.

Little Black Dress Earrings

2009-05-10T11:29:00.000-07:00

Although I wear earrings almost everyday, I make very few of them. I thought it was about time I rectified the situation, so for the next few
weeks I am going to try & focus on expanding my earring collection, apart from the rings I am making as gifts of course.

These earrings are from a design called Little Black Dress Earrings by Marcia DeCoster published in Beadwork Magazine Dec/Jan. You can find a link to Marcia's blog on the right.

These earrings were a real delight to make! Relatively quick & easy and they use just a small amount of materials to great effect. These are for me, but I think they would make a wonderful gift for someone who loves earrings.

Uh-oh! Been bead shopping

2009-05-08T05:37:00.000-07:00

It's two of my friends birthdays soon and I will be making them some rings. I have to be careful not to say too much because they sometimes read this blog. I went online to pick up the supplies but of course I bought more stuff for myself too! Not too much but enough to feel a bit guilty! I bought myself the supplies to make the X's & O's bracelet from Brilliant Crystal Jewellery in the same colours as the middle bracelet pictured on p22. I don't usually follow colour combo's exactly but I really love this one, can't wait to make it!

Serengeti Ring

2009-05-06T11:30:00.000-07:00

Here is a ring I made using Phyliss Dintefass's
pattern published in the most recent Beadwork
magazine. It is an interesting technique which I
enjoyed making but I didn't like the colour combo
enough to make another for an earring. It makes
a nice big ring though.

Red Daggers Necklace.

2009-05-04T11:43:00.000-07:00

The inspiration for this necklace was the Beadalon Daggers necklace that I mentioned in an earlier post. Mine is slightly different, the pale grey triangles are 2 drop brick stitch with matte grey ab delica's with large red glass drops, the dark grey triangles are made with size 11
hex seed beads in single drop brick stitch. The necklace strap is peyote. It was a fun necklace to make and it drapes very nicely
around the neck.

Dutch Spiral Version 2

2009-04-29T11:29:00.000-07:00

I loved doing the dutch spiral so much that as soon as I had completed Safari, I tried another version. I'm quite into beadwork on neckwire's
at the moment so I made a shorter version using purple, grey and white ab seed beads and accented it with a silver crystal shadow square ring. I love it but if I'm honest, it doesn't
really suit me so this will probably be going in my present bag. I have a nice collection of beaded items all ready made up stored in a nice gift bag that I dip into for birthday presents.

I haven't blogged much the last few weeks as I have been pretty busy, going away, searching for holidays online & various other things. I haven't done a lot of beading either as I have been reading instead. I read a great book called PopCo by Scarlett Thomas, it was a really interesting read and quite fun too, I have another of hers to read which I am looking forward too, The End of Mr Y.

Safari Dutch Spiral Necklace

2009-04-22T11:03:00.000-07:00

I have never taken much notice of the Dutch Spiral Stitch but after seeing Belinda's amazing Necklace Symphonie de Tulipes I really wanted to try it out. I also decided to break out of my usual colour combinations and was inspired to use this scheme of greens and oranges after taking this photo at Longleat Safari Park last week. I used 2 colours of green size 8's, Topaz 4mm crystals and orange size 15's. I graduated the size of the loops towards the front. I will be making something else with this stitch, there are so many possibilities! Thank you to Belinda for introducing me to it!

Link to Belinda's amazing necklace -> http://beadfetish.blogspot.com/2009/04/symphonie-de-tulipes.html

Some links to free projects.

2009-04-13T11:36:00.000-07:00

My beading mojo seems to be taking an Easter break this weekend, I have started a few projects but nothing looked good, what with that & running out of beads for my green & magenta flower necklace and this peyote tube necklace, I felt the need to trawl the net for some inspiration. I found a lot of free projects,some I had seen before and some new to me. Since I don't have a new project to share, I thought I would share some of the projects that I have added to my beading to do list instead.

Beadalon Free Projects

http://www.beadalon.com/designworkshop.asp

There are lots of great free designs on this website, but these are the ones I think I will actually make;

http://www.beadalon.com/argyle.asp A necklace featuring beaded cube beads, designed by Nicole Schlinger

http://www.beadalon.com/daggers.asp Another necklace by Nicole Schlinger, this one has 2 drop triangles as the main element & looks really fun to make & wear.

http://www.beadalon.com/sparkleflower.asp A departure for me, these wirework earrings by Meredith Roddy caught my eye when they were featured in magazine adverts a while ago.

Beaded Bead Projects

I love beaded beads. The 1st ones I ever made were the spinning top beads from Florence & Gwen at Bead Infinitum and I still make them, they are quick, easy & extremely versatile. If I am stuck for a special last minute gift idea, I invariably use some swarovski crystal pearls for a few of these and then string them with more pearls and 4mm crystal bicones for a bit of sparkle. unfortunately I don't have any pics as they are usually out of the door as soon as I make them. I really must make one for myself.

Bead Infinitum's Spinning Top http://www.beadinfinitum.com/Kits/SpinningTopInstructions.pdf

I found a few other links to some beaded beads that I would like to try as well;

Janie Warnick's Versatile Bead

http://www.angelfire.com/tx3/janiesbeads/versatile.html

Cathy Lampole Perla Perle Beaded Beads

http://cathysbeadwork.blogspot.com/search/label/directions

I hope you enjoy the links, I'm off to gather supplies for the dagger necklace.

Mardi Gras Bracelet.

2009-04-12T09:13:00.000-07:00

Like many of you I'm sure, I have a large collection of beads leftover from other projects. They have been staring at me reproachfully every time I open my bead box. Last week I came across a large packet of headpins and decided to do something about them. I made a lot of wrapped loop dangles and threaded them onto the beading wire in colour groups with some large green firepolish beads to create some resting places for the eyes. I wore it today to Easter lunch with my family, it is fun to wear and great to know that I have made something pretty with leftovers.

Fringe Bracelet

2009-04-11T11:46:00.000-07:00

I seem to have a bit of a crush on the purple/pink colour combination, shock horror, how girly! Could I finally be getting over the brown & turquoise that is usually my staple? This bracelet is made with the fringe technique & delicas & drop pearls. Another quick & easy project to appease my instant gratification demands!

Simplicity Ring

2009-04-10T04:24:00.000-07:00

The easiest ring ever! A peyote band with a swarovski square pendant attached. This just took an hour or so while watching tv. The turquoise seeds are miyuki 11's and the square is bermuda blue. I am looking forward to wearing it, I love big rings!

Taking shape.

2009-04-08T10:48:00.000-07:00

A 2nd photo of this piece, I bezelled 7 8mm swarovski pearls, attached them on to brick stitch triangles and sewed the triangles to form a flower shape. It was a fairly labour intensive task, I'm quite proud of myself as I have recently become fairly lazy & focused on instant gratification projects in my beading. I am hoping to change that though as I would like to improve my skills and take a step up. I am hoping that committing to this multi-component piece will help me move towards that goal. I have hit a stop at the moment as the green 11's which I bought to make a rope really don't look good with the green in the flower and I only noticed in natural light at home. I have to buy more of the delica's and that way I'll be sure that the base of the necklace and the other bits work well together. In the meantime I am back to the instant gratification projects!

Red & Silver Bracelet

2009-04-03T05:29:00.000-07:00

This herringbone variation bracelet was in Beadwork magazine a while ago. It was a lot of fun to make, it's a very lightweight bracelet. I would like to make another in some richer looking colours.

Another Pearl Spiral

2009-03-29T10:36:00.000-07:00

Here is another pearl spiral rope, a bracelet this time made with top drilled cream pearls and a mix of size 11's in cream browns etc. This was a nice quick & easy project, I love spirals ropes, they are so versatile and adaptable to different shapes/sizes of beads.

My green and magenta project is coming along slowly, I'll have another picture to post of that tomorrow.

A Teaser

2009-03-23T05:43:00.000-07:00

Here is a teaser of my current project, it might take a while because I need to make lots of different components for it. Lately I have been making lots of quick & easy projects but I now feel the need to create a larger piece. I am hoping to incorporate lots of stitches & beads into this one. So far I have used peyote to bezel the 8mm swarovski pearls, fringe & herringbone. I am using swarovski pearls & crystals, delica's in various pinks & greens & I have green 11's that I might use for a rope for the strap.

Rivoli Cuff

2009-03-17T12:37:00.000-07:00

Blue netted cuff with a bezeled rivoli centrepeice. The seed beads are a matte ab & they have a great crunchy feel to them!

Monster Pearls

2009-03-15T10:34:00.000-07:00

I bought these organic looking blister pearls at my LBS last week. I wasn't sure what I would do with them until I saw these lovely size 8's. I made a 2 drop peyote band, edged it with picots and then sewed the pearls on top. It makes a nice chunky cuff.

An Old Favourite

2009-03-14T10:47:00.000-07:00

While I was photographing my latest work I also re-photo'd this piece which I made a while ago. The centre rope is picot embellished tubular raw and the other ropes are spiral. It also has beaded beads and a peyote stitch cabochon. I used a variety of beads from size 15's to 8mm swarovski pearls. It was fun to make & I really must make another multi-stitch necklace soon.

Hematite & Pearl Raw Bracelet

2009-03-13T04:39:00.000-07:00

Yay for sunlight! I managed to get some decent photos of my jewelery today. I made this bracelet last week using hematite ovals, little blue grey pearls and blue size 11's. It was quick and easy to make, and used up some beads I have had for a while. My favourite kind of project!

A busy beader!

2009-03-11T12:12:00.000-07:00

I have had a busy week and done lots of beading but there has been no decent light to take photo's. Hopefully I can take some Friday.

In the meantime I have been enjoying beadspace, which is a social networking site fot those of us who are addicted to beads. It's a very friendly site & there is a wonderful gallery to enjoy.

Celtic Connections

2009-03-04T10:04:00.000-08:00

Here is a brick stitch bracelet that I made before Christmas. I beaded it in sections and connected them together. I love delicas for brick stitch, they are so neat. I must try another one.

Blackberry Ring.

2009-03-02T11:20:00.000-08:00

I had some leftover fringe beads so I decided to
make a matching ring to the spiral necklace. Another
peyote band with simple fringe. So fun & easy to make.

Blackberry Swirl

2009-03-01T08:19:00.000-08:00

I have had these beautiful pearls for a while but haven't had quite the right idea for them. Last week I was sorting out some of my beads and pulled out some amythest rounds, purple velvet swaro's and some lovely 6mm pale lilac abfirepolish that add a lovely shine into the mix. I started out beading the embellished section by adding the pearls as a fringe when making the spiral. Once I liked the length of the focal, I then beaded the main part with japanese 11's. I then added a tassle which probably took as long as the rest of the necklace! I think it really makes the peice though, so it was worth it.

Pink & Black Peyote Bracelet.

2009-02-28T11:36:00.000-08:00

I'm loving picasa! I've only been using
it for 15 minutes though. Imade this bracelet
a few weeks ago using single drop & 3 drop peyote.
I was trying to break out of my usual colour combo's
of brown & turquoise & various shades of purple. I'm
not sure that it works though.

Slightly Better Photo of the Crystal Burst Ring

2009-02-28T11:23:00.000-08:00

I discovered Picasa, it's still not great but the
colours are are truer representation, on my monitor anyway.
I've got some time on my own on Monday, so I think I'll play
more then.

Crystal burst Ring

2009-02-25T11:24:00.000-08:00

Last week I finally treated myself to Laura McCabe's book Creating Crystal Jewellery with Swarovski. I've been wanting it for ages and I was not disappointed, it is a beautiful book 7 I wish I had more money to go out and buy a truckload of crystals to make every project in it! The instructions for this ring were easy to follow and it was a lot of fun to make. The photo is dreadful though, I wish I was a better photographer.

Herringbone & Medallion Necklace

2009-02-23T04:49:00.000-08:00

I am a big fan of Suzanne Cooper's book Victorian & Variations and have made many versions of the medallions from it. I made these 3 to dress up a strip of herringbone that I made by experimenting with different size beads to create curves, the pendant is strung with onyx beads for the neck strap. I like the colour combination of the dark red, bronze and matte & shiny black in this piece.

Spring Tickle.

2009-02-22T08:58:00.001-08:00

I loved these lime delica's when I saw them at Chepstow, so I snapped up a couple of packets. This bracelet is spiral peyote, which is a technique that I have wanted to try for a while. I liked it, I'll probably use it in a bigger project one day.

Knuckle Up.

2009-02-20T07:48:00.000-08:00

I don't very often wear dress rings as they aren't usually big enough for me & I am usually focused on making necklaces. I have recently organised my stash & found a few odd beads leftover from other projects and I thought rings would be a good way to use them up and would expand my finger wardrobe nicely.

These rings are simple peyote bands with fringe to embellish, they take little over an hour & are great to do in front of the TV or when supervising a four year old bundle of fun. I think I'll go through the stash & make up a few kits for these so that I am ready to go when I want to do some beading but don't have any inspiration or time to think up a new project.

Unanticipated Exercise.

2009-02-16T01:04:00.000-08:00

So my 4 year old son has a play date over for the day while her mums in work. They are having great fun putting things together all over his bedroom floor to make pictures of different things. It's really very cute & I am thrilled with their creativity, but, they keep calling me upstairs to look, it's only 9.05 & I am already worn out! Heaven help me by 4.30 when her mum is picking her up!

Random Facts about me #1

2009-02-14T04:44:00.000-08:00

So far I haven't included much personal information, I thought it would be fun to occasionally post a fact about myself and what makes me tick. Here's the first one, it may seem trivial but it's something my friends learn very quickly!

I firmly believe that Celery is the Devil's vegetable.

Seriously, only give me something that includes this vile and heinous substance if you truly want to punish me! My husband says that it has a bland taste but to me it's really strong and the flavour that I hate most. I am not the only female in my family to feel this way either, it must be a genetic trait.

Friday Favourites

2009-02-13T14:39:00.001-08:00

These are my favourite beads that I purchased at the Chepstow Bead fair. They are handmade by Julie from Lush Lampwork. Sorry about the poor photo. I am currently working through loads of ideas in my head to use them, but so far nothing is good enough for these beauties!

Simple Peyote Tube Pendant

2009-02-12T12:21:00.001-08:00

Peyote tubes are a great way of using up those little amounts of beads left over in the tube when you have finished a project. I made 5 beads of varying sizes, increasing the length of the strips by 4 beads each time. I then stitched them together and strung them with some freshwater pearls. I couldn't get a great picture of this one though.

My favourite flower.

2009-02-09T01:57:00.001-08:00

A few years ago we were doing up our garden and I was desperate for an oriental poppy, we searched three garden centres and eventually found one beat up half dead plant at the last one. I bought it not expecting it to survive but with a lot of tender care that year it did actually flower. From then it has grown huge and lush and I have a profusion of enormous bright red flowers that make me happy to look at them when I am doing the washing up!

So when I saw Kerrie Slade's poppy pin in the latest issue of Bead magazine I had to make one straight away, it was a lovely pattern to make, quick & easy to follow, I then stitched the flower to a flat netted cuff and I can't wait to wear it! Thanks Kerrie for such a great pattern! You can check out more of Kerrie's work by clicking on the link at the right.

Photo catch up part1

2009-02-08T07:58:00.000-08:00

Well it's a very cold Sunday here. We had 3 days of snow this week, my son was happy as he had 3 snow days off school. I was not so happy because there was only an inch of snow with us and I think its crazy that the school shut for that.

The last but one issue of Beadwork had a great triangle project by Phyliss Dintenfass which I really enjoyed making. . The 1st piece uses Toho 11 seed beads and is flat triangles of 2 sizes stitched together, you might notice that turquoise & brown is my favourite colour combination! My 1st piece is using size 11 delicas and followed the directions exactly, I made 5 triangles and stitched them together, I then beaded a strip in the blue beads and wear it offset with the toggle in front, it always gets lots of compliments

Back online.

2009-02-01T09:00:00.000-08:00

First of all I'd like to say thank you for the kind comments on my previous post. I very much appreciated them,

Our computer went kaput so I know have a shiny new laptop. Yay! It's nice to be able to sit on a comfy sofa and be online at the same time. Hopefully it'll help me post more often. It's going to ages to build up my bookmarks and favourites up again. Not to mention my itunes, ugh.

I have being doing some beading, mainly peyote stitch, I am really enjoying the triangles that were in the last but one Beadwork by Phyliss Dintenfass, they are so much fun and quite quick to complete. I am hoping to get some time to take photos tomorrow.

Yesterday I attended a Bead Fair in Chepstow. It was my second visit to this fair and I was a little disappointed. The stalls there had lovely things on offer but there was a decreased selection to previous years. I had been hoping to buy seed beads in various sizes but all that was on offer was 11's and delicas, I did by some of those though! I also bought some gorgeous handmade beads from Lush Lampwork, I'll take photos of my purchases too.

2008 -Thank goodness it's over with

2009-01-03T09:45:00.000-08:00

2008 was a rough year. I have been offline for a while as my beloved grandmother who raised me from age 7 spent 6 months in hospital culminating in her death on 1oth December.

While her illness was difficult for all of us visiting 5-7 times a week depending on her condition at the time did keep me going, there was no time to sit and worry as I also had to fit in as much quality time with the kiddo and a busy part-time job in too.

Now she has passed away, the funeral is over, most of the paperwork is done and her flat almost cleared I find myself feeling lost, she was a great influence in my life and I now feel adrift, especially as the madness and excitement of Christmas with a 4 year old is now over.

Over the last few days I have been able to return to the comfort of beading and have been reminded of my poor long neglected blog. I have managed to write down some future ideas so I hope that things will get a bit more lively around here soon.

So I'll end this post by wishing you all a Happy and Peaceful New Year and sharing a link to the ART Bead Scene flickr pool, I just found it today and am amazed by the wonderful jewelry shown there.
http://flickr.com/groups/artbeadscene/

The worst year.

2008-09-23T13:37:00.000-07:00

Haven't been around in a while because I have been dealing with a serious family illness. Again.
What with my fathers death in January, my step dad's heart attack in April and the ongoing deterioration of my maternal grandmothers (who raised me from age 7) health since July, this has probably been the most stressful year of my life. Thank goodness for a supportive husband, a beautiful son, good friends and of course beads. They have all helped keep me sane over the last few months.
Here's a photo of one of my favourite recent pieces, a spiral rope made with size 8's, freshwater pearls and tiger eye accents.

Must Buy....

2008-08-20T11:05:00.000-07:00

Purple clothes, I'll show you why soon!

Silver Mist

2008-08-18T13:14:00.001-07:00

I am currently obsessed with tubular netting. Here is my latest fo, Silver mist, the centrepiece is made with freshwater peacock pearls.

It's a fun technique.

Tonight I Will Mainly....

2008-08-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

Wind 950 yards of Malabrigo laceweight into a ball for Juno Regina Knitalong with the manic purl podcast. Well actually half wind, I've got no chance of finishing it. Why do manufacturers do this to us, it's downright cruel. I just want to cast on!

Flaming Florida Fawkes.

2008-08-01T09:48:00.000-07:00

I actually manged to get a photo of my 1st entry to the Summer of Socks Yay!

Pattern: Fawkes by MonkeyToes

Yarn: J Knits Florida

Time - if only I had any.

2008-07-31T13:39:00.000-07:00

I would:

Blog every day, with pictures even.
Knit the Hanami Stole.
Actually decide on which colours of Socks that Rock to buy, there are so many I can never make the decision.
Commit to a large freeform beading project.
Exercise every day, Tae Bo(sp), & weights

What would you do if you had more time?

Fawkes are finished!

2008-07-22T14:53:00.000-07:00

Yay! I finished my flaming florida fawkes socks tonight. Light no good for pics though. Will try tomorrow. It's about time they was proof of an fo around here.

Double yay! I've got the day off tomorrow, I am hoping to get at least one piece of jewellery made.

A distraction from crafting

2008-07-20T13:10:00.000-07:00

I've been hearing about the Twilight series of books by Stefanie Meyer for a while, but have been resisting as I prefer to make stuff than read stuff in my so called spare time. This weekend however the local bookshop had a 3 for 2 offer so I decided to go for it. Needless to say there has been absolutely no beading or knitting in this house. The 1st book in particular was really engrossing, I love finding a new book that intrigues and excites. So much on TV these day seems to be recycled ideas, it was fun to find something new. Maybe I should try & make room for more reading instead of making.

I year smoke free for me!

2008-07-16T13:33:00.000-07:00

Yay, shame hubby can't say the same. He smoked 2 cigarettes on Friday. I am so upset with him.

I must have been nuts

2008-07-15T11:25:00.000-07:00

To think I could knit 20 pairs of socks in a year. Not with all that's going on. I'm scrapping that idea , sans the guilt complex, and will instead attempt to document my progress towards Summer Of Socks 2008.

My first completed pair of socks for SOS 2008 were my 1st ever pair of toe-ups, anklets in Regia that ended up looking like they were knit for Hobbit feet. Comfy though. I am 3/4 way through a lovely pair of Fawkes socks (designed by the late Gigi Silva, wonderful pattern) using J Knits sock yarn in Florida, it's bright yellow and orange and knits like butter, I love it!

This weekend my Gran had a heart attack, she's recovering , but to deal with the stress I cast on & ripped out 4 different patterns. I finally settled on Primevera socks In Regia Silk, lovely bright stripes in blue, purple pink, orange & yellow. It's a super simple pattern & knitting up a treat, think I'll give them to nana when she gets out of hospital.

We interrupt this blog fade

2008-07-15T11:21:00.000-07:00

To say Hi. Blog fade after 10 posts must be a record. Family issues and a bad back have been responsible. Hopefully things'll perk up around here soon.

Monday Update

2008-05-05T14:55:00.000-07:00

Good Grief, that week went by superfast! In my defense for not blogging, I did have a big seminar for work last week to prepare for and a wedding this weekend.

So on to update time, jewellery wise I have made good progress. The collar base has been unpicked because I misread instructions, I think I will start the bracelet first! I have made some necklaces this week, more info tomorrow with pics. Knitting wise startitis continues. Started & ripped out the Azure sock pattern now knitting Salto socks from Knitty. I think the 20 pairs in 12 months was a bit too ambitious!

Monday Update

2008-04-28T12:53:00.000-07:00

I have decided to start the week off with an update of what I've completed (or not) & what I have in progress, it will help me keep track of whether or not I'm achieving anything.

Beading - I made a really quick & cute necklace with a peyote & brick stitch leaf pendant & a plated neckwire. No pics yet, will post in the week. I have also started a larger project which is an embellished peyote collar with flowers & fringe etc. The design is by Lynn Davy (Nemeton) & is called the rose garden from Bead magazine issue 8. I am using a mix of lilac/purple beads and I am happy with the work so far. I hope to get pics soon for that too.

Knitting - Ah yes knitting , apart from buying yarn I haven't really done much except rip out a perfectly pretty half knitted dublin bay sock in a snit fit last week and cast on for a pair of jaywalkers, better get a move on.

Ahem....

2008-04-23T15:17:00.000-07:00

So I might not be able to go to Wonderwool but I can still shop online. Hellooo, Loopy Ewe. I ordered some Lime n Violet, Chameleon Colourworks, Shubui Knits, Fleece Artist, Jay Knits & Hand Maiden. Woohoo, can't wait for it to get here!

Don't Forget - Pay it Forward

2008-04-23T12:28:00.000-07:00

I've loved the whole concept of Pay it Forward ever since I first saw it appearing in blogland, & now I can join in. I have signed up to Freebirds PIF and here is mine. The 1st 3 people to comment to this post and pledge to Pay it Forward to 3 readers on their own blogs will receive a handmade gift from me within 365 days of signing up. It might be beaded, it might be knitted or it might be something completely different, who knows?As my blog is very new and as far as I know I have only had one visitor, I will periodically copy this post until I have reached my goal of three sign ups.

Waaah!

2008-04-23T12:26:00.001-07:00

Can't go to Wonderwool after all. NOT HAPPY!

Only 5 days to go!

2008-04-21T02:56:00.000-07:00

to Wonderwool Wales!

I can't wait. I am trying to decide what I want to buy. My budget had severely decreased as I went shopping for an outfit to wear to a wedding yesterday. I can almost hear my bank manager weeping! In order to make the most of my money I thought I should make a list of patterns I want to make and just buy what I need for those. Bit depressing though since the Natural Dye Studio, Posh Yarns and Fybrespates will all be there with yummy sock yarns!

Here Goes Bold means I need to buy at ww)
Corazon Mitts (Knitty) - Yarn in stash , red & cream rowan pure wool
Foliage Hat - Malabrigo Worsted, First4 Yarns will have some
Hedera - Natural Dye Studio Merino Tencel, Orange or Yellow

Gotta go bath the squidlet now, will edit and add more later.

Socks Mad

2008-04-19T12:42:00.000-07:00

3 years ago I had a serious bout of beaders block, I didn't bead for about 6 months and started to knit instead. Thankfully I got back to beading but still kept knitting on the back burner. Last November I decided to have a go at knitting socks, BAD IDEA! I am now just as obsessed with sock-knitting as I am beading which makes it difficult to balance the 2 time-wise. So far I have knitted 2 pairs of Monkey socks, 1 pair of simple rib socks, 1 pair of Hedera (for my Aunt), 1 pair of Primavera socks and I currently have a pair of Embossed Leaves and RPM's on the needles. So when I have finished the 2 pairs on the needles I will have knitted 7 pairs of socks. I would really like to make 20 pairs by November, that's 6 months to go, so I'll need to double my sock output to reach that goal. Yikes, that's quite a challenge, oh well nothing ventured nothing gained, I see quite a few pairs of child's socks in my future!

Pay It Forward

2008-04-18T03:16:00.000-07:00

I've loved the whole concept of Pay it Forward ever since I first saw it appearing in blogland, & now I can join in. I have signed up to Freebirds PIF and here is mine. The 1st 3 people to comment to this post and pledge to Pay it Forward to 3 readers on their own blogs will receive a handmade gift from me within 365 days of signing up. It might be beaded, it might be knitted or it might be something completely different, who knows?

As my blog is very new and as far as I know I have only had one visitor, I will periodically copy this post until I have reached my goal of three sign ups.

Back to Basics - Black & White & Red All Over

2008-04-17T13:29:00.000-07:00

This week I decided to go back to basics with my beadwork . When I first started beading, peyote was the bane of my existence & I absolutely dreaded learning tubular peyote, but it turned out not to be too scary after all! I haven't used the stitch for a while so I decided to make some beaded beads using black 11's & red & white size 8 Toho's, I made 5 and then threaded them onto some knotted suedette cord. So simple but pretty effective!

My next back to basic tubular peyote is using silver lined crystal 11's & blue delica's, the size difference is not so obvious and therefore the tube doesn't have the nice sculptural quality of this piece, might just have to be a test piece destined for the scrap box!

My Reason for Being (well blogging at least)

2008-04-17T11:12:00.000-07:00

Since September 2007, it seems that my life has been out of control. Some serious family illness and the death of my father have obviously had a huge impact on me. I have been seriously stressed out and struggling with my creativity.

I have recently returned to my meditation practice as a way of seeking calm and clarity and learning to live in the moment. Even when I am crafting, I often focus on negative issues in my mind instead of simply focusing on what I am creating.

I am hoping to blog about the progress I make in developing my creativity and I will also discuss my meditation practice or lack there of.

Wish me luck!