Beading from the Heart

Madieke Necklace

2012-01-04T02:04:00.000-08:00

I hope that you had a lovely holiday season, filled with the things that you like best. I got to enjoy a week at home with my boys. We had a good time together for the most part. Seems like 4-5 pm is the witching hour with them where they can't get along anymore. So I would just separate them into different rooms and by the time supper was over things seemed to settle down.

It was a good week for me in that I was able to finish up some bead projects that I needed to get done. Now my table is clear of the must do and I can focus on creating again. I am looking forward to taking some of the ideas I have and "playing" with my beads. I am hoping this year may be more conducive to beading than 2011 was. No regrets though, as my time was well spent in what needed done.

Anyway, at the end of November I share the Madieke Necklace with you. I have been able to make a couple more and tweak the pattern. It is now available for sale in my lulu store here or at A Beadaful World. In the last one that I made (see image above) I substituted 4 mm fire polish for the 11/0 seed beads in the last step. I think it was a very nice substitution and really added to the necklace.

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a very happy New Year!

~Nancy

Merry Christmas

2011-12-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

It has been a busy year for me with lots of time with my husband and my kids. I am looking forward to a week off to spend with them and relax & enjoy the end of this year. It is one that I think I am glad to look at through my rear view mirror.

Christmas time is one of my favorite holidays.

It is a time to just sit back and enjoy with family & friends.
It is a time to live in the moment and make new memories.
It is a time to remember the birth of a child who changed the world and changed individual lives one by one. I know that He changed mine forever.

I just wanted to pop in before our Christmas gets rolling to wish you a very Merry Christmas. I pray that it will be a wonderful time with family and friends. May you find your time blessed and your days be filled with good memories.

~Nancy

Madieke Necklace

2011-11-29T03:53:00.000-08:00

While the Madieke Necklace pattern will not be available for sale until next year, I will be teaching it at the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville, PA in December. You can contact the store to sign up at 570-426-9168. I would love to have you join us!!

Madieke Necklace

Saturday, December 17th

10:30 am to 2:00 pm

3.5 hour class

The first step in this necklace is a right angle weave base. To get the most out of this class, a supply list and worksheet for the first step is available in the store for those that prepay for the class. I would recommend that you have the base complete before coming to class so that we can focus on the embellishment.

Thankful

2011-11-26T08:25:00.000-08:00

It has been a crazy and sometimes rough year. There is much that I could complain about, things we have struggled with this year but lately I have been focusing on my blessings instead. All things considered I am truly blessed. I have a wonderful family who loves me, a home to keep me warm, food and clothes. My basic needs are met each day. Sometimes I think that we lose sight of that in our everyday life. We worry about what is coming around the bend, how do we pay for this or we know this big expense is coming and how will we take care of it. It is GOOD to sometimes just step back and see how many blessings we truly have. So today I am going to count my blessings (tomorrow my worries may take back over, but today...)

I would like to share with you a favorite picture of mine that is a blessing in many ways. A good friend (Rose Finley) of a good friend graciously offered to take our family picture. We had it scheduled at the end of October. It turned out to be the day that a nor'easter hit the northeast (we ended up with over 12" of snow). We rescheduled for the morning since the worst of the snow was after lunch and at the end of our time, she asked if we wanted to take pictures in the snow which had started to fall. My boys and I were game and I love this picture! I hope you take time to appreciate what you have and those who are in your life. I so appreciate all of you who come and read my blog and enjoy my designs. Your kind words and visits here mean so much to me. Thank you. Have a wonderful day today!! I pray that God will bless you greatly.

~Nancy

Alrighty then....

2011-11-15T02:30:00.000-08:00

Apparently the web address for my lulu store has been changed. The new addy is http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/NLPBeadDesign. I apologize if this has been an inconvience for anyone.

I have finally gotten back to beading and am in the process of finishing up and writing a couple of lovely necklaces. Here is a sneak peek at one of them!

This year has been an different one for me. I have been involved with my boys and their activities and had less time to bead than I did last year. Maybe it is just me and not managing my time well or maybe it is just me! :-) Anyway, life seems to be slowing the pace a little and I am looking forward to more time with my beads. First, I need to find my beading table!! Hope you are having a great day! Thanks for stopping by.

~Nancy

MIA

2011-10-06T02:01:00.000-07:00

We are fully in the midst of soccer season! Both of my boys teams are having winning seasons. My oldest plays for his school and my youngest on a local league. Between all the running and getting back into the school groove I haven't had much time for beading. I have four projects laying on my table in various stages of progress and two more floating around in my head waiting to be put into beads. It helps to be home for more than sleeping to get anything done, right? We have two more weeks of soccer and then hopefully beading season will begin! How has your fall been?

~Nancy

The one on the left is my son.

Bead Soup Party Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzing!

2011-09-17T00:10:00.000-07:00

Happy Bead Soup Hopping Day!! I wasn't sure that I was going to be ready today. My pieces were ready, the photos taken but my computer was MIA and still is. My husband was kind enough to lend me his laptop so that I could get my post ready before I headed away for a couple of days (Fri-Sat). This is the first time that I have edited my photos on a laptop. The screen is so different than my monitor. I hope that they are ok, forgive me if they aren't.

Anyway, to get to the point of this post!! I love the beads that Nan Emmett sent me. She made such a beautiful selection of her clay beads. I loved just letting them run around in my hand. They are very tactile. As usual I had one idea for what I was going to do but the beads had a mind of their own. My original thought was for a strung piece that combined beaded beads, some chain and my bead soup mix. I planned to bezel the pendant and tie it into the strung necklace. I had ordered a nice selection of seed beads to coordinate with the bead soup so I set to work. I started to make some herringbone beaded beads that had spirals of teardrop beads. Another day I will go back to them but they just weren't right for this project. So I started another strand of herringbone incorporating the teardrop beads into the herringbone on one side. This turned into the beginning of the bezel for the pendant. I have never done a bezel with herringbone before. I really liked how it turned out. The bezel ended up being the catalyst for the necklace. I haven't done a truly beadwoven piece for the Bead Soup Party before but I can't say that anymore. I created a lovely chain using seed beads and the teardrop beads. I love how it all came together. I will be creating something new with this chain in the near future. It is sparking lots of ideas in my head.

I loved all the rounds that Nan made and wanted to make a bracelet to go with the necklace. I added some copper bead caps and some bone saucers mixed in with Nan's lovely beads. I had a really good photo session with this bracelet. It made up for having a hard time photographing the necklace, which was tricky because the necklace has a definate curve in it which I had to work with.

I hope that you enjoyed seeing my Bead Soup. I will be do my blog hopping starting Sunday if I get my computer back. Rest assured though, I will be hopping around because I can't wait to see all the wonderful soup!! To make it easier, Lori has set up this great web page on her blog with all the links, so click on over and hop around! You can also click on the Tab above that says Bead Soup Blog Party Hop for a clickable list of participants.

Thanks for stopping by.

~Nancy

PS I love & appreciate comments and want to let you know that I have comment moderation turned on. I will not be on the computer as I will be away this weekend so comments will not appear till I am back. Thank you for your understanding.

Aisling Bracelet

2011-09-03T03:39:00.000-07:00

Last month I showed you the Aisling Necklace.

This month I have a companion bracelet to share with you. It is another one that I have fell in love with. It works up quickly and has a lot of potential for color choices. Today I am sharing the one that I made to go with this necklace. As soon as I get some photos taken I will show you other colorways I have done.

I am also working in earnest right now on my Bead Soup piece. It always amazes how I start in one direction thinking I know where I am going with a piece and it takes its own turn into something different. I had envisioned a beautifully strung piece with beaded beads that complemented Nan's wonderful clay beads but something very different happened. It has been a challenge and not so much of a challenge. You will see what I mean in a few weeks when we have the big reveal.

Back to the intent of my post, here is the Aisling bracelet:

Thanks for taking a peek at it.

Have a great day! and thanks for stopping by.

~Nancy

The pattern is available at www.lanaikinsky.com and http://stores.lulu.com/nlpbeaddesign

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, My Bead Soup is buzzin'

2011-08-22T13:16:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful mail day today!! My son got the mail and wanted to know if he could open the package I received today. Now often I will let them open my packages for me when it is something I am expecting but NOT TODAY!!! I wanted to savor open the package from Nan! What a delightful group of beads.

Nan sent me two focals, one without a hole that I can use as a cabachon and one with a hole. I love the aqua color in the accent beads that she made. These colors are so perfect for me, this will definately be a piece that will remain in my personal collection.

I am really looking forward to the challenge of working with these beads. I hope that I can do them justice!!

On as side note, one of the things that I love about the focal is that it features a bee. Thelma Wells, a popular speaker, always wears a bumble bee pin. She does this to remind her that while bumble bee is not properly proportioned for flight, its wings are too small for its body size, it flies because that is what God created it to do. So often I apply this to my own life because I feel inadequate to the challenges that are before me. The bee reminds me that I can do anything that God wants me to do because He is the one who will enable me to do it. I don't have to do it on my own.

Thanks for stopping by. Be sure to hop around and visit the other participants in the Bead Soup Party to see all the lovely beads that have been shared. (You can find the list here)

~Nancy

Bead Soup Party

2011-08-10T03:53:00.000-07:00

Sorry I didn't get a chance to share this earlier with you so that you could join in but I have jumped on the Bead Soup band wagon again. Due to a lot of other things going on, I missed the last one. So I am really excited to participate in this challenge again. For those of you who don't know what the Bead Soup Party is, the fabulously talented Lori Anderson hosts a Bead Soup Party. Anyone can sign up and she pairs up the entrants. You exchange a focal, clasp and some coordianting beads and receive some back. Then the fun begins, you create! There is a deadline for when your piece has to be done and there is a lot of blog hopping to check out all the wonderful creations. I have the utmost respect and awe for Lori - there were over 300 participants this time that she hand matched! For more information, check out Lori's blog here or specifically about the Bead Soup Party here.

I love the challenge of having to created with things that I may not have chosen myself. It stretches my imagination to go outside my box. These are my creations from past Bead Soup Parties.

I am truly blessed again to be partnered this time with Nan Emmett, Spirited Earth. Nan is a very talented artist. She makes wonderful clay beads. I having been browsing through her blog post and her Etsy shop. She had a post from last December (12-6-2010) where she shared this awesome ornament. I love this pendant! I hope that maybe she will make more for this holiday season so the I can make some ornaments like this. Anyway, I digress.... I have been having fun picking out beads to send her that I hope she will like but also will challenge her to think outside her box. Well back to my regularly scheduled day, hope yours is wonderful!

~Nancy

Aisling Necklace

2011-07-28T16:28:00.000-07:00

I was visiting different websites awhile back and was admiring how a bracelet was constructed. It was a way that I hadn't tried before. I am so sorry that I cannot remember which website that it was because it was the inspiration for a few new designs for me. What I created is in no way like the piece that I saw but it inspired me to play with my beads in a different way. This necklace is one of the designs that came out that time of playing.

What I love about this necklace is its dimensionality. It is hard to see in the pictures but the centers where the cream beads are along the chain and pendant are raised. This makes for a very interesting weave. The other aspect that I love is the sparkle from the pear teardrops. I have been eyeing up all sorts of fun top-drilled teardrops at my local bead store to experiment with in this necklace. Later this fall I will be teaching this necklace. I can't wait to see what my students will come up with colorwise.

I had my husband snap a couple of pictures of me wearing the necklace. (I should have chosen a better top to show it off) I can tell that I will wear this a lot this winter with my higher necked shirts!!

I have finally been getting back on the designing bandwagon. I went through quite a dry spell this year between our schedule and some other issues. It feels so good to get the beads back in my hands and feel ideas happening.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek at what I have been up to.

The pattern for this necklace is available at A Beadaful World and at NLP Bead Design.

Cherish Bracelet

2011-07-21T02:28:00.000-07:00

When I taught this class I purposely picked an odd collection of colors. It wasn't though until they were together that you could see how they worked together. In a lot of ways, this bracelet reminds me of a stained glass window with all its colors working together. (Click photo to enlarge)

Elpseth's Collar

2011-07-15T03:53:00.000-07:00

As I have mentioned, my Elspeth's Collar was featured in the June/July Beadwork. I had a lot of fun teaching the pattern at the Garden of Beadin'. This is a very comfortable collar-style necklace to wear. I made this one in class to demonstrate with. I love browns and pinkish reds together. It is very vintage looking.

I hope you come back to see more designs reinvented with new and fresh colors!

~Nancy

Canterbury Bracelet

2011-07-11T03:24:00.000-07:00

Here is another remake of a pattern I love. The Canterbury bracelet is such a delicate bracelet that works up in a short time frame. These two soft purple bracelets were made during a class at the Garden of Beadin' a few months ago. There are so many options available for this pattern by alternating different colors in the rows.

Magdala Bracelet

2011-07-04T12:29:00.000-07:00

The second bracelet that was featured in the current issue of Beadwork is the Magdala bracelet. I love the whimsical laciness of this bracelet. The side remind me of fretwork on old Victorian houses. There is a kit available for the blue version of this bracelet at A Beadaful World.

Later this month I will be teaching a companion necklace to this bracelet at The Bead Hive in Coopersburg. I would love to have you join us. You can go to the "Classes" tab at the top for the store's phone number and more information.

Radiance Bracelet

2011-07-03T12:21:00.000-07:00

The latest issue of Beadwork is out. I have two pieces that have been featured in this issue. I will share them over two posts. The first is the Radiance bracelet. This is a component bracelet that comes together nicely. It is full of sparkle! I have kits available for the gray and blue versions shown below. They are available at A Beadaful World.

Radiance Bracelet

I made a companion necklace to go with it. The pendant has a unique layering to the components. The strap is a fun lacy chain. It is called Radiance as well. The pattern is available at A Beadaful World or at NLP Bead Design

Indian Princess

2011-06-29T15:26:00.000-07:00

I have some projects that I have made as a result of teaching a class. I like to remake projects that I teach to show other colorways. Over the next week or two I would like to share a few of them with you. A few years back a yahoo group that I was part of had a fun challenge. People would submit names to be used as inspiration for a jewelry piece. Anyone could participate. One of the names suggested was "Indian Princess". This one resonated with me because as a child, my dad and I participated in the YMCA's Indian Princess program. It is a very fond memory to me of time spent with my dad. Below is the original Indian Princess necklace. It is made with a combination of tubular peyote, tubular herringbone and stringing.

I taught this project at the Bead Hive earlier this year. I made this one using bronze, tan and khaki matte metallic beads. I love the earthy feel it has.

I hope you enjoyed this a peek at this remake. Please stayed tuned for some more!

Have a great day.

~Nancy

The pattern is available here (A Beadful World) or here (NLP Bead Design)

2011-06-25T12:19:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much for still stopping by to visit my blog. This has been a very busy year for me and it seems like I haven't been able to find time to write very often. My kids are out of school for the summer, which means that our crazy convoluted schedule has begun. I am hoping that I will be able to bead on a more regular basis. I have some new designs that are being worked up into patterns and once the rain stops, I hope to be able to take some pictures to share with you. Back toward the end of May, I took some pictures of the Mountain Laurel that blooms in our yard. (Click on the photo for a better view.) I don't think that I ever took the time to really look at them up close. They go through such interesting phases as they bloom. Someday I would like to explore some of the shapes in beading. I think it will be a fun challenge. I also included a photo of one of our peonies. We finally were able to actually enjoy them this year. In the past few years, they would bloom and it would rain. They were destroyed in the rain. This year we had several days to enjoy them. They are such a lovely flower. I am hoping to be able to photo some jewelry this week and be able to share. Keep your fingers crossed, every time I think that I will be able to get to it life gets in my way!! LOL.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope that you are having a wonderful day!

~Nancy

Endurance and Encouragement

2011-05-19T04:10:00.000-07:00

This is a non-beading post. I hope you don't mind. Much to the chagrin of my eldest, I need to brag a little. I won't be offended if you quit reading right now. My oldest son has always enjoyed sports, watching, playing and competing in them. He has played soccer since he was old enough to join the local league (my younger son as well.) He is in 6th grade this year and was able to sign up for the middle school sports teams. Of course he wanted to play in everything but we told him he could do two this year.

So in the fall he played soccer. He decided that he wanted to do track in the spring as his other sport. This was all new to him, the different events that there are. He thought that he wanted to be a sprinter but coach thought that he would be a better distance runner. So he practiced and practiced. The first time that he did a timed mile his time was 7:56, which was good. Coach said his time should be about 8 minutes. He was happy to beat that goal. His coach is a great encourager, explaining that in track you are competing against yourself to improve your own stats. Everyone has different talents and some are going to be faster or throw better or that may be you but the important thing is to beat your own personal scores. I think this is an awesome attitude to have because to me, just getting out there and trying is winning.

They had a total of four meets that they competed in. In every meet in at least one event, he beat one of his personal bests. By the last event, he had shaved over a minute off his time for the mile. His other main event was the half mile and he took 24 seconds off his time. There were lots of other events that he did once because the coach needed him to. In everything, I could tell that he tried his best.

The picture below is one of my favorites from all that I took. During one of the meets, my youngest decided to run along to encourage his brother. I just happened to hit the shutter at the right time (dumb luck, couldn't do it if I tried) to catch them running together.

I think that there is a very valuable lesson in this that applies to beading and life in general. Often I hear people in classes say "Oh I couldn't make that" or "I don't think that I could ever come up with a design on my own" or "How lucky that you were published but I couldn't do that". I find that attitude disheartening. Everyone has something that they excel at, something that they can do better than someone else. I have a dear friend who sings beautifully. I can sing ok, but I will never be able to sing like she can. That is ok though because that is the talent that she has been given. She will be the first to tell you that she doesn't have a creative bone in her body. She makes beautiful things if someone shows her how but not coming up with it on her own. The point is this... Each of us needs to just compete with ourselves, to work to beat our personal bests. We each have talents that were given to us and we need to put our time and energy into what we do do well instead of using that energy on wishing for what we don't. Today take the time to enjoy doing something that you do well. Encourage someone in what they do well. Let go of the need to compete in something that is not your strength. Be yourself and do it well!

Elspeth's Collar

2011-05-08T12:41:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day! I hope that you are having a wonderful day. My oldest son and I are spending a quiet afternoon at home while my husband and younger son helps some dear friends who are moving from a rented house to their own.

I am honored to have one of my necklaces featured in the current issue Beadwork Magazine (June/July 2011). It is a lovely collar necklace. It has such a nice curve to it that lays beautifully! For the first time, I also have made available kits using the colors featured in the magazine. They are available at www.lanaikinsky.com or click here for a direct link.

There is also a pattern set that coordinates with the necklace. Here they are shown in a soft green and aqua. The pattern includes detailed diagrams and directions for making earrings, a ring and bracelet. They are available at www.lanaikinsky.com as well (click here)

Have a wonderful week! ~Nancy

BEADWORK Favorite Bead Stitches

2011-05-04T03:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I spent a lovely spring day at Messiah College watching my older son compete with his school at the MASCA track meet. They did great! I am so proud of all of them. My son took 6 seconds off his best time for the 800m. The girls team took first place. Watching how fast these kids can run was just amazing. Today I am struggling a little as I did not apply sunscreen quite often enough. Fortunately I can stay out of the sun for a few days which will help.

When I got home yesterday, I found a package in the mail from Interweave. To my surprise and delight, I found the special edition of Beadwork's Favorite Bead Stitches inside. Even more to my surprise I found my "Pretty Picots" necklace had been included in this special edition. I am so honored to be included! I also see that my dear friend Lanai Kinsky had her beautiful Royal Amethyst Collar included as well. This is truly a lovely special edition with little advertising and LOTS(!!) of great beading projects. I love that it is divided into sections by bead stitch (hence the name, duh). I hope you will check it out and maybe learn a new stitch in the process.

Have a great day.

~Nancy

Karina Necklace

2011-04-14T02:21:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned on Tuesday, life has been very busy. It seems like the theme of my life this year. I am finding it hard to stop and catch my breath. I have had to let go of some commitments that I truly enjoy but hopefully when things settle down I can pick some of them back up where they used to fit in my life. I am sure that many of you face this same issue. With a job and two pre-teen (almost teen, did I really just type that) boys, life is full. A good full. My oldest is currently on the track team and I have just been amazed at his endurance. Between his first practice timed mile about 3-4 weeks ago and his first meet this past Saturday, he shaved a minute off his 1600m time. I am so proud of him!

Last month someone dear to me lost a baby. My heart broke. Having been through the same experience it just grips you in a way that is hard to explain. I wanted to create something in honor and remembrance of that child. As I was thinking about it, the image of a baby being carried in a blanket held at the top, like the stork carrying a baby, came to mind. This necklace is my version of that image. The name Karina means "Dear Little One". I thought it so appropriate for this necklace.

Thanks for taking a peek and have a great day!

~Nancy

The pattern is available in my lulu store (click photo in side bar)
and http://www.lanaikinsky.com/.

Happy Birthday to me!

2011-04-12T05:13:00.000-07:00

I know that I have been MIA. I really miss posting and beading but life right now doesn't allow for that. I am hoping to have a new project to show you this week but no promises. Anyway just wanted to pop in and say Hi. It's my birthday today and to celebrate I am putting the Shaitana Series on sale in my lulu store (here) for 20% off. It will be on sale for the remainder of this week. Hope you have a great day and I hope to be posting regularly again soon.

Like a lion

2011-03-23T15:02:00.000-07:00

Last week we had wonderful warm spring like weather. It felt so good to feel the sun. I have been getting over my second bout of bronchitis this winter and the warm air was so "healing". March is tricky though because it usually lulls you into thinking that spring has finally arrived and then gives you an abrupt reminder that it is still March. We had a snow storm on Monday that left the roads in the worst condition that I had traveled on all winter, an icy slushy snowy mess. Yesterday the weather was calling for 1" overnight with an additional 1-2" today. When I woke up at my usual early hour, there was already 3" on the ground. Since it was my turn to stay home with the boys if there was no school, I went back to bed. When I finally got out of bed, the snow was about 7-8" deep. It was beautiful. The trees had 3-4" of snow on their branches. Because the snow was so thick on the branches, you really could not see through the trees to the neighbor's houses. It was a beautiful white wonderland. Hope you enjoy these pictures. Spring is coming, I saw the crocus' blooming just last week and my bulbs have popped through the dirt but I have to honestly say that I enjoyed this winter wonderland kind of day.

Bliss

2011-03-10T02:32:00.000-08:00

Hello from rainy PA! We have had a rainy week this week. The streams and creeks are just amazingly full of water. Between the rain and snowmelt at the beginning of the week and the storm that we are having today into tomorrow, it should be amazing to see the high water. Here is hoping that there won't be any major flooding.

I have another bracelet to share with you. I called this one "Bliss" because it just makes me happy when I wear it. It is really sparkly and the photo doesn't do it justice. It is a new style of design for me. It is made with components that are joined together. I normally tend toward a project that is woven together with a single thread. It is hard to tell in the photo but there is some curving in the bracelet back and forth. I can't wait to make another one of these soon. The pattern is available in my lulu store (click on picture to the right) and will be available in Lanai's store soon. I also will be teaching this project in April at the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville, PA in April so keep an eye on the classes tab if you are interested.

Thanks for taking a peek!! Have a wonderful day today.

~Nancy

I don't know either....

2011-03-06T07:20:00.000-08:00

I often have friends ask me how I work full time, take care of two growing boys and my dear husband, serve in church and find time to bead, write patterns & teach. I don't have a good answer because it all just seemed to fit in somehow. I have always been somewhat disciplined with my time. I have to honestly say that this year I don't feel that way at all. I know that I have mentioned it multiple times here but my time and what I have to get done in it is just getting away from me. I have tried to only commit to things that I know I can do and I have learned to say no and let go of certain responsibilities. I think that some of it is also the fact that my boys are getting older (9 and 12) and are getting involved in different activities and sports. I truly feel that it is important for them to do these things and support them in them. Anyway, how do you make it all fit into your schedule?? I look forward to hearing how you overcome time challenges.

I have been squeezing in some beading in between everything else. As you know I have been enjoying being on Bead Infinitum's Design Team. It has really helped me in my personal beading, reading another's directions and using stitches in new ways. I have always loved their patterns and have quite a few from when I started beading because I love intricate designs. I made an Infinity Donut. Actually I have made several, working through different color combinations and bead sizes. I finally gave in and went back to working with the "little beads" because I like intricate. It is just my style. I paired this Infinity Donut up with some lapis, copper and glass accents for this lovely "Denim" necklace. I love the rustic feel it has like a pair of well-worn comfortable jeans.

Infinity Donut beaded bead

I kept with the denim-y colors and made these lovely Hour Glassy beads. I added some surface embellishment and paired them with some denim lapis to create these barrel earrings. These were a really neat beaded bead. I love how Gwen and Florence used herringbone to create the edging on the bead. It was a truly unique application.

Hour Glassy beads

I hope you have a great week. I look forward to hearing how you handle your busy life and its challenges. Happy Beading.

~Nancy

Almond Drop Earrings

2011-02-23T04:13:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it is helpful in the midst of working on bigger more time consuming projects to stop and just make something quick. I love these earrings by Bead Infinitum. They work up quickly in a very short amount of time and have endless possibilities when it comes to color. I am still trying to figure out how best to photograph earrings. I just can't seem to do them justice. Thanks for stopping by! Happy beading.

Margie and Me - February Color Challenge

2011-02-19T00:30:00.000-08:00

Well, it is that time for the reveal of this month's Margie and Me challenge. I have grown so much through these challenges that I look at how I use color differently than just using whatever strikes my fancy. This month I chose to use Colors of Constructivism (#102). I love the subtly of the colors in this coloring.

For mine, I made this flat bracelet with lots of matte metallic gray seeds and accented with different shades of blue and green. I probably threw in more blue than the palette called for but I am happy with the results. This bracelet is called Acotas. Be sure to check out Marcie's Blog for a list of participants and see everyone's creations!

In addition to my challenge piece, I made a second version of the Acotas bracelet using softer spring colors as well. Thanks for stopping by. Have a great weekend. ~Nancy

Cherish Bracelet

2011-02-17T15:14:00.000-08:00

I am so excited! Not only did we have another full week of school but we have been having some spring temperatures here in the northeast. I know that it is only temporary but it sure has done a lot for my sense of well being to feel the warm spring-like air and the sun on my face. Our driveway is starting to thaw from the 2 inches of ice that has been on it.

I am finally finding time to bead again on a sort of regular basis, which has also done much for my mood. This is one of the bracelets that I have made. It started out with Valentine's Day as the inspiration and is very sparkly and fun (click on either photo to enlarge). I made it again this time altering some of the bead choices and came up with the lovely alternate option that is included in the pattern.

I am planning on teaching this pattern next month at the Garden of Beadin' and wanted to make a sample using just fire polish and seed beads for those that may need a more economical option. I think that it is my favorite of the three! It is a wide bracelet, approx. 1-1/2" wide and very comfortable. Thanks for taking a peek. Be sure to stop by Saturday for the Margie and Me reveal.

Have a great day!! ~Nancy

Something fun to share

2011-02-10T10:45:00.000-08:00

The wonderfully awesome Cherie Morris, who owns the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville, PA, wrote this fun story to go along with the Magdala Necklace that I am teaching this month at her store. I had so much fun reading it that I asked if I could share it here. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did (and you too can make your own by coming to class on Feb 19th, see the classes tab for details, or you can find the pattern here). Enjoy! Thanks, Cherie, for letting me share your whimsy. ~Nancy

Once upon a time there was a beautiful Slovenian princess named Magdala. She was forced out of her kingdom by the evil Count Chokulawski, and she was banished to wander from village to village begging for food and shelter. She had only a ragged and thin coat to protect her from the elements. In many villages she was turned away because of her appearance.

But finally an old man, very poor himself, took her in and gave her food and a warm place on the floor of his hut by the fire. He watched over her while she slept and noticed that under her ragged coat, something blue sparkled as she turned in her sleep. But he said nothing. She stayed several nights and gained her strength to continue. When it came time to leave, she wept because she had nothing to give the old man to thank him for his kindness. Then she remembered her pearl and crystal necklace and told him it was all she had, but it might be worth something. The old man recognized the necklace as the royal jewels and knew the young woman was Princess Magdala. He refused the offer and instead gave her his only horse to continue her journey and his warm coat to wear, leaving him with none. The Princess was so grateful because the necklace was all that was left of her happy memories. Suddenly (you knew this was coming) the old man, who had been aged prematurely (by a Forest Witch named Wilma) because of his greedy ways as a young and handsome prince, turned back into his original form. He dropped to his knee and asked for Magdala's hand in marriage! Maggie, who was smart as well as beautiful, had heard of this stuff happening before. So she first asked to meet Wilma and after a brief consultation, the witch created a huge army and with the Prince at the head, the army road to Maggie's castle and ousted the evil Count Chokulawski. The Count shortened his name to Chokula and learned to make disgusting chocolate cereal from demented squirrels in the forest. Maggie returned to her family home, made Wilma CEO of the Castle. The Prince became the butler and pool boy (hey, it's better than the old guy in the hut,) and Magdala lived happily ever after wearing her jewels and beading more to sell to other nearby castles on the shopping network.

Yea!!! A week with no snow and ice

2011-02-10T05:27:00.000-08:00

While for some of you this may not seem like a big deal, I am celebrating the fact that my boys will have a full week of school this week. They have not had a full week of school since before Christmas due to the series of snow and ice storms that have been occuring every three to four days. I truly do enjoy snow but I am tired of it this year with all the juggling of schedules to cover school days.

So in celebration I thought I would share a couple of lovely spring photos with you!

Have a great day.

~Nancy

Margie and Me - January Challenge

2011-01-29T06:10:00.000-08:00

This has been a busy month, which is a little unusual for us in January. I decided that I was going to apply my color choices to the projects that I would be teaching this past month. So please forgive me for seeing designs you have already seen. I ended up doing both color challenges. The first is the Rainforest greens. I made this one using the Persian Lullaby pattern (you can click the photo for a larger view) and did some slight random shading again with the fire polish. This is currently one of my favorite patterns.

Persian Lullaby Bracelet

The second colorway was the bright store front in Mexico. I used the Softly I Go pattern for this one. It never ceases to amaze me how varying the colors in a pattern makes it look so different. (You can see the original here for comparison.) I love how this one captures that Mexican flavor like the store front.

Softly I Go Bracelet

As I said, this has been a crazy month for us between deadlines at work, a cold going through the family and just life in general. I haven't had much time for beading. I have a new project that I am trying to finish up to show you hopefully next week. My goal is to try and carve out more time for beading in February. Meanwhile, I will continue to pop around and be inspired by what you are up to. Please be sure to visit Marcie's Blog to see the other challenge pieces! Hope you are having a great day. Thanks for stopping by.

~Nancy

Rose Garden

2011-01-18T07:16:00.000-08:00

It is yet another snowy day here in the Northeast, with some freezing rain thrown in just to keep us on our toes. I have been sick with bronchitis for the past three or four days and I am ready to feel well again!! I discovered, yet again, that I really don't like to be still. I haven't even felt up to beading. I am hoping that by the middle or end of today I will at least feel like picking up my beads and doing something!!

I want to share with you a necklace that I made before the illness set in. I have seen so many lovely necklaces made with ribbon lately that I wanted to give it a try. For this one, I made three "Infinity Dodecahedron" beaded beads (pattern by Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour) in shades of pink with touches of green. (Feel free to click the photo for a better view.) I strung them on an 18" piece of organza ribbon. The dodecahedron beaded bead gives it such a delicate feel. With all the snow we've been getting, I must have spring on my mind!!

I hope all is well with you and that you have been busy beading! I would love to see what you've made. Feel free to send me a picture of your latest creation. Have a great day.

~Nancy

Snow and Petal Bloom Necklace

2011-01-07T09:07:00.000-08:00

We are enjoying a snow day here in Northeast PA today. We only have about 2.5" of snow but it is so lovely to look at (since I don't have to drive in it today). The boys just headed outside to play in and sled ride. I am sure they will have lots of fun and then come in ready for some hot cocoa! This is their first official snow day of the school year. Not too bad getting a Friday off!

I have a necklace to share with you today. I have been making longer necklaces lately. It seems like I make shorter necklaces in the spring and summer and then once the cold weather hits I switch to longer ones. I love the chain on this one. It is so delicate and pulls your focus back to the rivoli. I think this one has a lot of potential for multiple colors within it.

Well I am going to do some beading now that my chores for the day are done (at least till it is time for supper anyway). I hope you are having a great Friday. Stay safe and happy beading!

~Nancy

PS Just popped outside for a couple of snow boy pics!

Infinity Dodecahedron

2011-01-03T12:57:00.000-08:00

For this month's design challenge for Bead Infinitum, I chose the Infinity Dodecahedron pattern. This pattern from Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour really offers a lot of adaptability. I love small things. I started off with the smallest bead option listed on the pattern, 11/0's and 15/0's. You can also adjust the scale of your beaded bead by which beads you use. This pattern can also be made with 6/0's and 8.0's or even 3 mm fire polish.

After practicing the pattern to get the feel for how the beads work together, I jumped in with a light center of white and gold. For the surface embellishment, I used blue and green beads. For the accent beads, I made cubes and strung them diagonally. I had some vintage white chip beads that I bought a few years ago when we were visiting my sister-in-law in Florida. I love how light and airy and delicate the necklace came out.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek. I hope that your New Year is off to a good start!!

~Nancy

Margie and Me - Year End Throwdown

2010-12-30T02:47:00.000-08:00

It is hard to believe that another year has come and gone. This has been a year that I am glad to say good bye to. There were many joys this past year but there were also a lot of difficulties. I am praying that this coming year will be a good one. Hopefully the country in general will start to pull itself out of the slump that we've been in for a few years now. For a change, I feel that we may be finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I hope so. As one who is and was affected by the downturn in employment in my family, I am praying for a more stable 2011. Anyway onto some beady fun!

This challenge was a challenge for me in a way that I didn't expect. The color wasn't the problem. (I chose Winged Lions of the Ishtar Gate - #46) I had made some great components (the beaded rivolis and the circle) but I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do with them. First it was one style of bracelet. Then that didn't work so I tried something different as a bracelet. Then the components were sitting on my table in such a way that I wondered about adding a drop to them. So I ordered one and a bunch of other related beads. When they came, I started playing again. This worked, this didn't. Finally I had the "bottom" portion of the necklace with the components. It took me a week to figure out what type of "chain" to suspend it from. I love the end result but it felt like pulling teeth to be able to put it together. I am going to make a second one in the upcoming weeks to refine the design. (I am looking for a name for this necklace, please feel free to leave me a comment with suggestions!! Thanks.)

As I have said before (and will probably say yet again), I love this challenge. I hope all who read my blog will join in. It is always good to stretch yourself and try colors that are out of your comfort area. The challenge is about color, not design. So don't be afraid to try your favorite pattern in a new colorway.

Be sure to check out La Bella Joya to see all the wonderful entries in this challenge contest that Marcie has sponsored. It will be hard for me to pick one to vote for!!

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great end of the year and I wish you the most happiest of New Years!!

~Nancy

Merry Christmas

2010-12-22T03:46:00.000-08:00

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. I appreciate all those who visit my blog so very much. Your kind words and encouragement mean a lot to me. I look forward to the upcoming year and pray that it will be one that is full of joyful memories, laughter and the things that really matter.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

~Nancy

Last Margie and Me Challenge of the year

2010-12-10T03:35:00.000-08:00

Well!! As if it weren't already a fun challenge, Marcie Abney just had to go and throw down the gauntlet and make it even more of a fun challenge.

Marcie has made the latest Margie and Me challenge a "Throw Down", her words not mine. What a challenge she has thrown out. There are multiple color palettes to choose from and PRIZES thrown in. It should be lots of fun to see which color palette everyone chooses and how they use it. I can't wait to see all the entries.

I hope that you will come and play along. You have all month (till December 28th) to get your entry ready. Be sure to check out Marcie's blog for the color palettes.

This is just one of the fun color palettes to choose from.

Radiance Necklace

2010-12-06T03:20:00.000-08:00

It is such a lovely and busy time of year. My older son's birthday is tucked in between Thanksgiving and Christmas and keeps us rolling from one celebration to the next. We got our Christmas tree this past weekend and our house looks so festive and warm! I enjoy the warm glow that lights on the tree give a room.

I have been making some longer necklaces lately. I wear a lot of turtlenecks in the winter and long necklaces are just perfect to dress them up! I love how this necklace uses 12 mm Rivolis to create such a sparkly impact. This pendant features a cluster of layered rivolis. It has a light airy chain that accents the pendant. The first one that I made was the blue one. Then I made it again with these lovely gray seeds and black diamond rivolis! The seeds are a metallic matte bead!! I can guarantee that you will see this color again. It goes well with so many things!

Hope you are enjoying the Christmas holiday season! Thanks for stopping by.

~Nancy

Margie and Me Challenge

2010-12-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

I wish I would have had more time to play with this color challenge but with Thanksgiving thrown in the middle I didn't get to play as much as I would have liked!! My niece has a large hole bead bracelet that she adores. I wanted to try to make some beaded beads that would work on that style of bracelet or on a necklace (which is what mine are shown on). You should see the pile of rejects that are on my bead table from my various attempts. Maybe I will get brave and show them to you one day. I ended up with three different styles of beads. I decided to use the color challenge to experiment with them a bit. These are my challenge beads! I have them suspended on an 18" black silk corded necklace.

Of course, I had a hard time stopping making them because they are so fun to make. I decided to make a set using Christmas colors for a more whimsical everyday Christmas necklace. I can tell this one will get lots of wear this Christmas season. I have gotten many compliments on it already!!

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit the Marcie's blog for a list of links to other's who have participated in the Margie and Me challenge!

2010-11-30T13:26:00.000-08:00

I hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! It seems like the past week and a half for me have gone by so quickly. Our refrigerator started to act up the Monday before Thanksgiving. It isn't quite fixed yet but the part should be in soon and the repairman at least got it working again temporarily! Hopefully the part will be in soon and we can put this behind! Lucky for me we had planned to go to my parents for Thanksgiving so the fridge wasn't full! We had such a nice time with all my siblings and their families. It is not often that our schedules all work out that we can be home at the same time. I really treasure those times!

I have a bunch of things that I will be sharing with you this week. I am so excited about this set! This is going to be my "holiday" set this year (well my fancy set, I also have a more whimsical one to show as well later this week). I made a second set of the Shaitana series jewelry. We have a December wedding to go to and I wanted something fancy to wear to it. The pictures do not do justice to how lovely and sparkly these are. I love the gold pearls and the Golden shadow crystals that just make these glow!! You can find the whole Shaitana series here. The earrings, which are my favorite of the group by just a smidgen (you can find just the earrings pattern here), work up very quickly and are so very versatile. I think that I have at least 4 pair of them in different colors.

Be sure to check back this week as I have some other projects to share. The Maggie and Me color challenge reveal is on Thursday and Marcie has a list of links on her blog to check out as the day goes by.

What have you been up to? Have you been busy making any gifts for Christmas this year? I would love to see and hear what you have been up to.

Bead Happy! ~Nancy

Lili Bracelet...

2010-11-19T03:44:00.000-08:00

...is now available in the lulu store. You can read more about this special bracelet here.

Oh no I am so addicted to these!!! HELP!

2010-11-17T03:54:00.000-08:00

I started to make my teacher gifts for my son's teachers. I have a real problem though! These Diamond Net beaded beads (from Bead Infinitum by Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour) are so addicting to make. I get one finished and then I say, well how about these colors and then those colors! ARGH!! HELP! They are just so pretty. I have a feeling that there will be a pair of these in my ears soon as earrings!

New Margie and Me Challenge

2010-11-15T16:39:00.000-08:00

I love the colors of this challenge!! Be sure to go to Marcie Abney's blog to check out all the color samples she pulled for this challenge!

READY, SET, CREATE!!!

PS Be sure to congratulate her on her latest bracelet in the current issue of BEADWORK magazine. It is perfect for winter, reminds me of snowflakes!! WOOO-HOOO MARCIE!!!

Margie and Me Challenge

2010-11-13T01:00:00.000-08:00

Three Drop Earrings
Design by Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour

I struggled a bit with this challenge. The color combinations that I pulled together looked great when sitting in their tubes and strands on my table but when put together ended up softer than I anticipated. As I mentioned earlier this week, I am part of the Bead Infintium's Design Team and thought that their pieces would be great to use in this challenge. I love the green and red combination in unakite and made these lovely Three Drop Earrings with it. I like them and the picture doesn't do them justice but I didn't feel that it met the color challenge even though it incorporates colors in the painting.

Next I made the Seven Sisters beaded bead, again design by Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour. This one was more on with the painting I felt. I love how this one looks like a flower with the placement of the green at the edges. I am going to suspend this from a chain to wear.

Seven Sisters beaded bead
Design by Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour

Last but certainly not least is my favorite of the three that I made. Please feel free to click on the picture to see the detail in this Night Sky Bracelet, design by Gwen Fisher. I love airy-ness of this bracelet. The pattern also comes with directions to make this pattern into two different pendants that are stunning. While this is my favorite, again I don't exactly feel that it met the color challenge of the photo, it ended up much softer than I expected.

Night Sky Bracelet
Design by Gwen Fisher

Not too bad overall I guess. When all is said and done though, I enjoy this challenge!! Hopefully the next round I will feel more in tuned with!

Have a great weekend everyone!

~Nancy

Diamond Net Bookmark

2010-11-09T02:56:00.000-08:00

In case you haven't noticed my fancy new icon in the side bar, I was selected to be part of Bead Infintum's Design team! Who is Bead Infinitum you might ask? They are the talented team of Gwen Fisher and Florence Turnour who make wonderful beaded beads and other great designs! When I started beading, I came across their website in my search for patterns to teach myself beading. Their patterns really intrigued me with the intricate designs. I am very honored to be a part of this team and look forward to sharing with you what I will be making. I have a couple of things made up to share on Saturday for the Margie and Me challenge but I wanted to share these bookmarks with you today. Cindy Daniels, who is also a team member, made a wonderful bookmark, using the Time Machine bead, for her grandmother who turned 104. I borrowed that idea as my DH's grandmother is turning 101 in a week and a half. He is going to be visiting her soon and I thought this would make a great gift for her. I used the Diamond Net beaded bead for mine. I made a second one to give to his aunt, whom he will be staying with. In these I used round lapis and unakite as the base beads. The netting is done with 1.8 mm cubes & 11/0 seeds on the lapis and 10/0 triangle beads & 11/0 seeds on the unakite.

Margie and Me Challenge

2010-11-03T15:43:00.000-07:00

Marcie has posted the new color challenge. Check it out here. She chose The Adoration of the Magi by Lorenzo Monaco for this two week challenge. She has a color swatch generated for the challenge in her post. What rich colors are present in this painting, lovely and rich jewel tones. I hope that you will play along!!

Margie and Me Color Challenge - Softly I go

2010-10-30T01:00:00.000-07:00

I loved the soft colors in the fresco for this challenge. The whites and golds really spoke to me and I used those and the base for my bracelet. I added in splashes of pastels in and around the bracelet. It is a really soft and pliable bracelet. It is about 1" wide.

I can't wait for the next one!! Thanks Marcie for hosting this color challenge.

Be sure to check on Marcie's blog (click here) to see other entries in this color challenge.

Have a great weekend. I am off to watch my son's soccer championship games today!!

~Nancy

Persian Lullaby Bracelet

2010-10-28T13:11:00.000-07:00

I was anxiously stalking the UPS man at the beginning of this week because I had ordered some luscious beads to make another Persian Lullaby bracelet with. I wanted to play with using two colors of 3 mm fire polish in the bracelet. I am so loving how rich looking this bracelet is! For those that are interested, the pattern is available here.

Your turn now

2010-10-18T14:22:00.000-07:00

Marcie has posted her next challege. Click here to check it out. I hope that you will come and join the fun!!! I love the soft colors of this one!!

Lili bracelet

2010-10-17T10:34:00.000-07:00

I have a dear friend who has gone through some very difficult times in her life. She amazes me with her resilence and her faith. In the face of adversity and circumstances that to me would be overwhelming, she is able to still have such a joy in her heart. Everytime I see her, she makes me feel special. Just being around her, you can't help but smile.

I named this bracelet after her. The dark band reminds me of the challenges that she has faced and overcome. The brillant rivolis remind me of her joy and faith that have sustained her and which she radiates to others.

I also made this bracelet using just one color seed beads. This one is just bright and fun!

Thanks for stopping by!

2010-10-17T05:18:00.000-07:00

Just a quick follow up, I did take my finished pieces back to the bead store. My friend shook her head again and said that she shouldn't have doubted me! She thought the piece turned out beautifully.

Margie and Me challenge

2010-10-16T01:00:00.000-07:00

I like to be challenged every now and again, especially when it comes to beads. It helps me to try things that I would not normally try, whether it is colors or beading materials or a new stitch. I was really excited to read about Marcie Abney's color challenge using Margie Deeb's colorings.

I went to my LBS to find the right beads. I knew what I wanted to do (I just hoped that it worked out the way I envisioned it). I was so happy that they had just the beads that I was looking for. The shop owner, who is also a dear friend, kind of just shook her head when she saw my beads laid out on the counter and said she just couldn't see how they were going to work together. What do you think?? Does it work? I even made a pair of earrings to go with it.

I can't wait to bop around and see what other's have done with this challenge!

Have a great beady weekend!

It is a lovely time of year

2010-10-13T03:31:00.000-07:00

I love this time of year...the multi-colored leaves, the brisk cool air of evening following a warm afternoon, the smell of wood stoves burning, fall sports. It is a busy, happy time of year. Even as I enjoy these beautiful fall days, I am also reminded of the upcoming winter months when I will be indoors and can do the things that I enjoy there also... baking, beading, snuggling up with a good book in front of the fire. There are things that I enjoy about each season. I hope that you are having a wonderful fall!

I hope that you are busy working on an entry for the Margie and Me challenge that Marcie Abney is having. That is my project for today. I have my idea ready to go but I need to sit down and pull beads and make it happen. I can't wait to see what everyone else does!!

I noticed that I left the tutorial for Midnight Muse off the sale list. I will leave this tutorial on sale through Sunday.

2010-10-12T03:26:00.000-07:00

Check out this awesome birthday celebration giveaway!!

Did you notice.....

2010-10-04T04:06:00.000-07:00

We had a beautiful fall weekend here in Northeast PA. The weather was just right for watching soccer on Saturday. The boys did a great job playing for their teams. I love that our local soccer club gets the teams World Cup style shirts and each team is a "country". My older son plays on Germany. He usually plays goalie and forward or wherever the coach needs him. He is a versatile player in that aspect.
My younger son plays for Japan. He was in at goalie for half the game and then as forward. Again he is versatile and can play wherever the coach needs him to. His team is currently undefeated. It will be an exciting playoff season this year.
I love fall soccer. It is so exciting to watch my boys play. This is one proud mama!!

I also just wanted to point out that I added a section to the right for some free patterns. I will add to this area periodically but wanted you to notice the ones posted there. One of my favorites of the three posted is Deborah's Flourish. I have been making jewelry for my nieces for their birthdays for a few years now. The youngest of my sister's children last year informed me that she was old enough to have a necklace! I think that she was three. So I wanted to make her something special. I made this spiral and added pearls to it. She was in heaven to finally have her own necklace!!

Have a great day!!

~Nancy

Exciting News

2010-09-30T04:11:00.000-07:00

I have long been a fan of Lanai Kinsky and her beadwork. She is such a talented bead artist. Her Spring Rose pattern is one that I have drooled over forever!!

She is featured in the latest issue of BEADWORK magazine (Oct/Nov 2010) with a beautiful bracelet and earring set that is just wonderful.

She has her own website in which she offers her patterns and kits for her designs. She has most graciously offered to include my beadwork patterns on her site! I am so excited. I hope you will go and check out her wonderful site!

Have a great day!

~Nancy

Glimmering Necklace

2010-09-28T03:32:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post to share with you another necklace. I have been wanting to make a beaded link chain and have been playing with options. This chain is made with a continuous weave, meaning the links are not separate but connected even though they appear as individual links.

I made this a long necklace, it is 26" in length, to wear with high neck tops. The pendant is just a little bit of beaded flash. I encircled a rivoli with lots of 11/0s, 15/0s and 3 mm crystals and then suspended it from the beaded chain with another link. i have a bracelet in the works that includes rivolis within the chain.

It was a fun project to work on! I hope you enjoyed seeing it!

Have a great day. ~Nancy

Creative Musings

2010-09-23T03:43:00.000-07:00

Marcie Abney wrote a great post on Creative Musings (click here). It got me to thinking. I think so many of us have been there, in many different craft areas. We see something and say "oh I could do that" without really acknowledging the creator.

I remember going to a craft show years ago with two friends. We noticed these really cute candy trains made out of wrapped candy (Lifesavers, Nerds, etc.) At the time I was teaching 3rd Grade Sunday School and thought they would make a cute little Christmas gift for my students. My one friend whispered not too softly “Oh you can make that yourself” to which my other friend said “Yes but you should buy one if you are going to copy the idea” or something to that effect. Now I realize that the person who made it may or may not have been the originator of the idea but the concept has stuck with me. We need to give credit where credit is due. By purchasing one of the candy trains, I would have acknowledged the person who made it, instead of diminishing them by saying that I could do it without their help (by having the item). I am not saying this very well, sorry.

I think that it is important to acknowledge where we get our ideas from, even when we are taking inspiration from another source. Sometimes I will see another’s work and it will inspire me not to copy their work but to play with a new stitch or explore an old one in a new way. I like to acknowledge where the inspiration comes from!! For example, when watching the movie "Indiscreet" with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, I was inspired by the necklace that Ingrid Bergman wore in one of the scenes to create the "Maricot" necklace. It is a simple but elegant necklace that reflects the much more stunning necklace in the movie.

Marcie also talks about how she found her own style and originality. This is really important because it is hard to create something that is not inherent in who you are. I try to break out and use new colors but they usually don't inspire me because it isn’t who I am and I get bored and walk away, often not even finishing the project. It is so important to be who you are and make that special and unique to you. That is really what will draw people to your work because your passion will be reflected in your work!

I hope that you take the time to read her post. It has given me lots of food for thought for how I do things and why I do things.

Have a great day. Happy Beading,

Nancy

Ideas

2010-09-12T15:27:00.000-07:00

I know it is only the beginning of September but my mind is already working on my Christmas list and what I would like to make for family, friends, teachers, etc. I was going through some of my patterns and pulled out a few past and recent designs that work up quickly to share with you if you are looking for some ideas. (If you are interested, I included a link to the pattern by clicking on the name of the pattern below.)

First is Thryza's Charm. It is a neat right angle weave project that goes together in an evenings work. It has a unique bangle shape to it and is lots of fun!!

Verity is another fun right angle weave project that is very elegant with its netweave overlay!! There is even an option that incorporates a dangle with.

Elspeth bracelet and earrings work up quickly and adapt well to many colorways. Both work up in an evening.

The Shaitana earrings are one of my favorite. It is a very elegant and adaptable pattern. It is a great pattern for learning how to bead around a rivoli. Again these work up in an evening and make a beautiful gift.

A few years ago I made a series of peyote bead bracelets. One of my favorites was this Back to School Wishes bracelet. With A, B, C peyote beads and delightful ceramic pencils and apples it is the perfect teacher gift!! For a limited time I am going to have the pattern for this bracelet, the Christmas Wishes bracelet and the Valentine's Wishes bracelet available as individual patterns. Of course the best deal is to get all 12 Wishes bracelets available in one file.

Among my favorite bracelet projects this year was the Canterbury bracelet. I have to say that it is an addicting pattern to make. It works up in an evening and has so many possibilities. These are two of my favorites of the colorways that I have made!!

And last but not least is this bracelet made with far-falle beads or peanut beads as they are also known. Far-falle beads are fun to work with and give an added dimension to your beadwork. I am going to be picking up some more soon to play with so I am sure that they will make another appearance here soon. This was my first project with far-falle beads. It is a lovely bracelet called "Far-falling bracelet". I know hardly original but fun! This was another bracelet that I was addicted to making. What I like about wearing this bracelet is the substantial feel it has due to the dimension of the far-falle beads.

Well I hope that I have gotten your minds thinking about what lovely things you can create for your gift-giving or at the very least enjoyed another peek and these projects. I will be sure to share with you which I choose to share with my friends and family this year!!

Have a great day!! Happy Beading.

~Nancy

Crystal Rhasody

2010-09-05T05:36:00.000-07:00

Over the summer I stopped in at The Bead Hive in Coopersburg. This is the former location of My Father's Beads. I am going to be teaching there and I wanted to refresh my memory on directions to the place before my first class in September.

While there and perusing all the lovely beads that they have, I came across some 1.8 mm cube beads. It is a bead that I haven't worked with and thought there was a lot of potential there. This project is the first one that I finished. Crystal Rhapsody has a raised edge on both sides that forms the perfect channel for the 6 mm crystals that float down the center. Of course I rarely make just one of anything anymore so I sat down last week to play with another set of the cubes that I bought. This time I used a darker blue bead and alternated the fire polish crystals in the center of the bracelet. (It's all Cindy Wimmer's fault that now I am playing with black and gray beads!! I am sure there is a beaded necklace and bracelet coming in those colors! hehe)
As I finished it up it just seemed to need something!
So I tightened the center by pulling the sides in with seeds and adding a sweet little edging along the sides. It worked out perfect! Both bracelets have a very substantial weighty feel to them when worn.

I mentioned that I am going to be teaching at The Bead Hive in Coopersburg. I am rather excited about it. I am going to be teaching a combination of old and new patterns there. I am starting off in September with one of my favorites that I designed when I was first venturing into design. It is called Sage Gold. I have made this in several colorways and it is a great beginners project. If you happen to be in the area, I hope that you will join us!! I will be teaching this project on Saturday September 25th from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

School is back in session and we are in full swing with soccer season. I will leave you with a couple of pics of my boys getting into the swing of things! Needless to say I am proud of them both!

Have a great day!! ~Nancy

Canterbury Neckalce

2010-08-15T15:32:00.000-07:00

I have been having a bit of beaders' block this summer. I think that a lot of it had to do with so much going on. I can tell that the spell seems to be ending as I am starting to have visions of beads again and my desk at work is being covered with scraps of paper that have ideas to try on it!

This necklace is one that came about as I was playing with the beads. I will do that sometimes. Just sit down and decide that I am going to start with a particular base and see what happens from there, which way the beads lead me. I find that some of my favorite designs happen this way. A few months back when I shared the Canterbury Bracelet with you, it was a bracelet that happened in the same manner, just playing with the beads. I think that these two designs work very well together, hence the necklace being named Canterbury. I hope you enjoyed seeing this necklace! Have a great start to the week everyone!!

Celebration Winner!

2010-08-14T05:56:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for entering and for your kind comments. I really appreciated reading them. Without further ado, the winner of the Cranberry Pretty Picots Necklace is Lynn Catnes! Please email me your address so that I can put your prize in the mail!

Celebration Giveaway!!

2010-08-07T06:01:00.000-07:00

To celebrate my first design in Beadwork magazine, I am giving away one of the necklaces that were featured in the magazine. This lovely cranberry necklace is perfect for the fall!

There are lots of ways to enter! If you leave a comment including your email, you will be entered. If you blog about the giveaway leave me a comment and you will get an extra entry! If you are a follower or become one, leave me a comment that you are a follower and you will get an extra entry! The winner will be selected from the comments area. (Duplicate non-valid entries will be eliminated.)

I will draw the winner next Saturday August 14th! Thanks for stopping by and helping me celebrate!

~Nancy

Please if you are also a follower, leave a separate comment as I am new to this and wouldn't want someone to be deprived of a chance!

Marbrae Bracelet

2010-08-02T12:43:00.000-07:00

I don't know if anyone remembers but back in June I started to play with the herringbone stitch. I made a bracelet that was good for learning the basics of flat herringbone, which is this bracelet, Braenock.

I had worked up a second bracelet that was the next step up that is good for learning to increase and decrease in herringbone but I didn't have time to take a picture of it and share it with you! This is that bracelet, Marbrae. I love the way that it forms soft ripples with the increases and decreases.

Life here has been very busy. Once the boys got out of school, life took over! We were busy getting my husband ready for a missions trip to South Korea to help building a language school. He just got back at the end of last week. While he was gone, I was picked to serve on a jury for a homicide in our county court. That was an interesting experience and one that I would prefer not to repeat! Once was enough. The boys have started their soccer practices and that keeps us hopping at night. I think though that things may settle into somewhat of a routine and I can get back to beading. I haven't done too much beading this summer and I am ready to jump back in!

I hope you are all having a good summer!!

Happy Beading,
Nancy

Silly Me

2010-07-16T02:10:00.000-07:00

In my excitement yesterday, I forgot to share with you that there is a companion bracelet that I designed that goes with the Pretty Picots. It is called "Paragon Bracelet." The pattern is available here. (click the word "here"). Have a great day!

Pretty Picots - Beadwork Aug/Sept 2010

2010-07-15T09:23:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to share with you that one of my designs has been published in the Aug/Sept issue of Beadwork. I remember what a bright spot in a sad weekend (my husband's grandmother had passed away and it was right before the funeral) when I found out they accepted this necklace. I have been anxiously awaiting getting my hands on the issue and was able to do so today so I wanted to share my joy with you!! Be sure to keep an eye out for a giveaway that will be coming up once I receive the necklaces back from Interweave. I am going to have a giveaway for one of them. Thanks for sharing in this excitement with me.

Happy Monday

2010-07-12T12:15:00.000-07:00

Just sharing a couple necklaces that I have made in other colorways. The first is the Sweet Squares necklace made with Swarovski Indian Sapphire and two shades of Peridot. I love the subtle shading of the two greens in the necklace. The Indian Sapphire is just to die for. I can't wait to use it on my next project.

The next two photos are of Naomi's Sweet Garland necklace. I used a sand color farfalle (or peanut) bead along with a matte blue seed bead and sapphire fire polish. I love the beautiful subdued nature of this necklace. I included a close up so you can see the detail better.

Thanks for taking a peek!! Happy Beading.

Fireworks

2010-07-09T17:01:00.000-07:00

I have always had a passion for trying to take good pictures. I even started out in college as a photography major. One of the things that I love to do when we go to the fireworks on the 4th of July is to try and capture is some small way the beauty and elusiveness of fireworks. If you have ever tried to capture fireworks with a camera, you will understand what a challenge this can be. So as I watched I started with one set of settings on my camera, then changed to another, and then yet another along with switching to ones that I thought might have worked better. I picked out four of the myriad that I took to share with you. They aren't fabulous but I like how they turned out.

Elspeth Series

2010-07-04T12:17:00.000-07:00

I hope that you are having a wonderful summer weekend. I have been enjoying this holiday weekend. Tonight we will be heading out for fireworks and a picnic supper. What a great way to celebrate the 4th of July!

I also wanted to share with you this series I've done. It is made up of a bracelet, ring and earrings. The bracelet goes together quickly and is a perfect summer accent.

The earrings are my first try at making a layered earring. I had a hard time getting a photo to show the two layers but what is particularly nice is that the second layer gives the earring a lot of stability and makes it hang nice.

Last but not least is this lacey ring that finishes the set. It makes a very nice accent ring. It is great for a index or middle finger ring. I love the shadow in first picture that highlights its lacy-ness.

I hope that you are having a great summer and enjoying the warm weather. Happy Beading!!

~Nancy

Bead Soup Party

2010-06-21T02:20:00.000-07:00

First off, I want to apologize to those who have posted on Saturday and Sunday. My weekend has been so full that I haven't had much time to sit at the computer to enjoy everyone's soup. I will be catching up today when I have some time planned to sit here and enjoy everyone's creations.

I have to honestly say that the bead soup has been really hard for me. I am a seed beader at heart and just don't have the talent for stringing except for a few lucky attempts. It is so much easier for me to sit and play with seed beads than be challenged by all sorts of bead sizes and shapes. I have enjoyed everyone's pieces and have strived to create something worthy of the person who took the time to choose beads to send me.

I loved the beads that Norma sent me. They were a departure from my normal colors. I was drawn to the black beads along with the open heart she sent. I created a multi-strand braid with the beads she sent and added in some seeds and bugles and crystals that I had. In the center, I made a herringbone tube that I embellished and then suspended the heart from the tube. Norma sent me some lovely caps that I used at each end of the braid. This is a very different style for me but I like how it came together. I have a few ideas for the other beads that she sent but haven't had time to make them happen yet. I will be sure to share when they are complete.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek at my contribution to the party. Thanks Lori for hosting another wonderful bead soup!!

~Nancy

Margolyes Earrings

2010-06-20T15:33:00.000-07:00

These earrings are the result of another challenge from my LBS. They received these fabulous findings from Gordon's and challenged me to do something with them. The first project that I made was the Cherie ring which I showed you a few posts ago with the Beaded Rings. I had so much fun playing that I came up with these earrings. They are much simpler to make that they look. I love the vintage look that the finding gives the earring. They work up quickly in a couple hours. Thanks for taking a peek.

Simplicity - a Mother's Ring

2010-06-14T15:59:00.000-07:00

My sister and her family came in this past weekend for a visit. We had such a lovely time. I love to watch all the cousins interact with each other. It is one of those things that I treasure up in my heart. I have such fond memories of playing with my cousins that it is so nice to see in the next generation!!

While they were here, I made this ring for my sister. She has 6 beautiful children. When I made the original Simplicity ring, one of the things I thought almost immediately was what a great mother's ring this would be. The next thought was that I would have to make one for my sis!!! Hope you enjoyed seeing it.

Have a great day.

~Nancy

Braenock Bracelet

2010-06-10T16:58:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have been playing with the herringbone stitch. In one of my beading classes, I asked what stitch they would like to learn in an upcoming class (I was in the process of planning my July-Sept class schedule). Herringbone was the answer I got. That was the impetus to play with herringbone. This is the first project we will do. I have another in the works that will be a step up in technique that I hope to share with you soon.

What I love about this project is its fluidity when worn. It has a nice suppleness to it. The surface dimensional detail finishes it off nicely!

As you can see, I liked this project so much, I have made three colorways with it. The center blue one is the original.

I hope you liked seeing my herringbone project!!! Thanks for taking a peek.

~Nancy

Busy

2010-06-08T03:51:00.000-07:00

It never ceases to amaze me that come the middle of May how life runs away from me. Not even adding any unexpected challenges into the mix (and there have been a few) time just slips away from me. We are in for a busy summer this year and one that will not have any kind of routine to it for the majority of the summer. That should make things quite challenging also. My boys like routine. When there is a lack of routine, it definately unsettles them but we will muddle through and enjoy the summer anyway.

I have been working on a couple of herringbone projects that I hope to show you soon as well as some earrings and a new ring. They are all quite fun and the one herringbone bracelet pattern I am addicted to and currently on my third version of!! LOL.

Just for fun I am adding a picture of a project that I did last year that was a great summer project. I love the whimsical-ness of this Forget Me Not necklace. (This pattern has a great price too as it includes the earrings pattern and was before lulu increased their share of ebooks.)

I hope that you have a great day today!! Happy Beading!

~Nancy

Still MIA and Beaded Rings

2010-06-01T03:11:00.000-07:00

It never ceases to amaze me how life can just take control and leave me running to catch up with it. Sometimes I think that I have overcome the hill only to find that it was just a foothill to the next. Almost two weeks ago now we discovered that one of the boys had head lice. I have never had to deal with this situation before and there was a big learning curve for my husband and I. Everytime we thought we had him clear, a day or two later we would discover more. I felt so bad for him. He loves school and had to be out about 4 days. We were fortunate in that it stayed contained to him but it was a very long week until we finally said enough is enough and buzzcut his hair very close to the scalp. He had a hair cut right away to about a 3/4" length. The second haircut was the one though that did the trick. Can I just say that I am tired of cleaning and deep cleaning and LAUNDRY!! I know that this is very minor compared to what a lot of people face but it was definately a stressful period for us.

We were able to get away for the weekend and spent a lovely time with my family in and around Pittsburgh. It was a really good thing for us and helped us start to feel back to normal. I did some beading for a new project on the way out and back that I hope to show you soon but in the meantime....

I want to share some more beaded rings with you. These are another group of three rings I designed. My favorite is the Simplicity ring. The picture doesn't do it justice as to how cute this ring is. I am going to make one for my sister who has 6 children. In place of the vintage rose bicones, I am going to use the birthstone colors of her children and make her a mother's ring. Eventually I want to make one for myself as well. The Cherie ring is named for my dear friend Cherie who owns the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville PA where I teach each month. She often will challenge me to use a new beading or finding that she got for the store. I also made a pair of earrings using that finding that I will be showing you soon as well.

I hope that life will settle into a routine again soon and I can get back to regular blogging. Feel free to leave me a comment. I love to hear what you have to share. Have a great week.

~Nancy

MIA

2010-05-16T13:50:00.000-07:00

My life has been very hectic at work and home this past couple of weeks and shows no signs of slowing down!! I just wanted to pop on for a little bit and share a couple of things with you. If you haven't check it out yet, head on over to Lori Anderson's Bead Soup Party (click the photo at the right). Beads have started to arrive at their destinations and the design ideas are filling everyone's heads I hope.

I was overwhelming blessed by Norma who sent me this awesome stash of beads! My head is spinning with options for the pink and black beads. Feel free to click on the photo for a better view of the stash.

My local bead store had a fabulous trunk show and I was able to find this focal and coordinating beads to send her. The downside to being a seed bead artist is that you don't tend to have a lot of "focals" on hand. She has already recieved her beads so here is what I sent her. I forgot to include the clasp in the photo but it was a neat sterling silver heart clasp.

I can't wait to see what Norma and everyone else cooks up with their Bead Soup.

Finally I wanted to share this cuff bracelet with you. It called Midnight Muse. It is a combination of 2 drop peyote and netweave.

Well I hear my busy life calling me back to it. I hope to surface again soon in blog world!! Have a great week everyone.

~Nancy

Peyote Rings

2010-05-05T14:20:00.000-07:00

I finished the first e-book on beaded rings. This book has three beaded peyote rings in it. As I said previously when I first started experimenting with beaded rings I didn't think that I would like them personally very much. I was very wrong. They are very comfortable to wear! I find myself now whipping up a ring to go with a jewelry set or using the pattern to use up those couple leftover beads from a project!! My favorite of these three is the top one, Whisper. It is such a nice little flash of crystal on my finger!!

Thanks for taking a peek!! Have a great day!

~Nancy

Playing with color

2010-04-29T13:04:00.000-07:00

The beads that I ordered have arrived and I played with this lovely soft green 6 mm bead. I substituted a second color seed bead in steps 4 and 14 to create this version of the Canterbury bracelet. I found these lovely mulit tone 4 mm that are a combination Light ruby, green and silver to accent with. Depending on how they turn gives you a different look, more soft green or more pink.

I recently bought a few new tops and I don't know about you but to me it is always an excuse to make something to go with it!!

I made another Maricot necklace in this soft turquoise color to wear with one of my new shirts. Not that I "needed" an excuse to make something new of course.

I have also been busy making rings. Here are two of them. I was so surprised at how comfortable they are to wear.

Canterbury Bracelet

2010-04-20T14:09:00.000-07:00

I have a new addiction. This is a quick to make bracelet. I made three in two evenings. It is very versatile and its looks change just by the combination of colors.

This one got its name from the first bracelet I made at the right. When you hold it up to the light it reminds me of a stained glass window and brought to mind the Canterbury Cathedral with its elegant windows.

This bracelet is made using the ladder stitch enhanced with net weaving.

Sweet Petunia

2010-04-18T11:53:00.000-07:00

This post is a little late in coming. I wanted to share some photos from my beading class on April 10th. One of my favorite parts in teaching is seeing the different color combinations that are chosen and how each student makes the project their own. This is the first time I remembered to take my camera to class with me but I am so glad that I did. The last photo is my original Sweet Petunia necklace. We only finished about two-three inches of the necklace in class.

Shaitana Bracelet and Ring

2010-04-13T03:02:00.000-07:00

Here is another in the "Shaitana" series. This is the first series of jewelry pieces that I actually have a complete set of.

There is a necklace, bracelet, earrings and ring. After I made the bracelet, I was playing with it on my hand and thought what a great ring it would make. So I adapted the bracelet pattern into a ring and it turned out wonderfully. It is very comfortable to wear.

I have actually been working on several ring designs lately. They have been really fun to do. I didn't think that I would really care for beaded rings but they are extremely comfortable when worn.

Hope you are having a good day today!

~Nancy

Happy Birthday from me to you

2010-04-12T06:45:00.000-07:00

To celebrate my birthday this year, I am going to give you a present. Click here to download the coordinating necklace to Esther's Garden Bracelet.

I hope you enjoy it!!

Nancy

Garnet Sweet Squares

2010-04-05T13:49:00.000-07:00

In a couple of months, I will be teaching the Sweet Squares necklace. It has about 400 crystals in it. I originally made it with Swarovski crystals. I wanted to make a sample using fire polish as a more economical alternative for those taking the class. I think that both are stunning!

Naomi's Sweet Garland Necklace

2010-04-05T09:38:00.000-07:00

The farfalling beads (or peanut beads as they are also called) were calling to me. I really love how the farfalling bracelet came out and decided to make a necklace (click to see a larger version) to go with it. When I was done, an earring idea occured to me as well. This is one of my favorite sets to wear in its springy colors.

A Blue Esther's Garden

2010-03-30T12:48:00.000-07:00

The weather people say that we will be having some warm weather this coming Easter weekend. That must have been on my mind when I taught Esther's Garden Bracelet this past weekend at the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville. I decided to make my teaching version with two shades of blue seed beads instead of the plethora of spring colors that are in the pattern (you can see original here).

When I got it home (because with teaching I don't finish in class, mine is for demonstrating purposes), I saw some lucite flowers on my beading table. I decided that I would add those to the center instead of just the little seed beads accents.

I used two sizes, 6mm flowers and 7x12 mm flowers. These I got from Shipwreck Beads. I anchored the 7x12 mm flower with a cream colored 4 mm bead and a seed bead. You can see in the bottom photo how I arranged the flowers with a small seed bead picot for accent in between.

Now I am already to get my spring/summer wardrobe out of the closet!!

Ahhhh SPRING!

2010-03-22T02:55:00.000-07:00

It has been absolutely beautiful here the past week or so and this weekend was no exception. I am just so ready for warm weather to be here! It was so nice to be able to be outside without a coat and go for a bike ride with my family. I know that things will start to turn green here soon as the buds are out on the trees.

I don't know about you but my jewelry tends to be seasonal. There are some things that I wear with my fall/winter wardrobe and some that I wear with my spring/summer. I thought I would share a few of my "spring/summer" wear with you.

This one is called Jelly Bean Pie. Awhile back I participated in a Designer's Challenge where group members sent in names for a project and it was up to us to pick one and design a piece of jewelry for it. This was one of those pieces.

It was really fun to take the name and see where it took you.

Here are two others from that challenge as well.

This one is called Waterfall Wonders.

I love the way that it dangles and have so much free movement when worn.

Another from the challenge was this project called Indian Princess. I combined different stitches for this project. This one has a special place in my heart as it reminds me of when I was part of the YMCA's Indian Princess program with my dad. I have such fond memories of the things that we did together as part of it.

Last but not least is a fun bracelet that I named after my niece, Esther's Garden Bracelet. It is a fun, whimsical bracelet with lots of dangles. I included a picture of how it looks when worn. It is just one of those fun, easy projects that just reminds me of spring.

Well I hope that these projects have given you some spring inspiration!!!

Have a wonderful day today!!

~Nancy

Magdala Necklace

2010-03-13T14:15:00.000-08:00

The Magdala necklace is another in my experiments with right angle weave. I love the combination of right angle weave with net weave.

This necklace is very versatile depending on the colors it is made in. With the navy pearls, I think that it has a very dramatic look. If you made it with a light pearl and a soft rose seed bead, it would have a soft feminine look.

One of my favorite things about beading is how when you make the same pattern in different colorways how different the results can be. This is also one of my favorite parts of teaching. At the store that I teach, everyone chooses their own colors for the same pattern and it is so fun at the end of the class to see the different variations of the same pattern.

Bead Happy! ~Nancy

Having some fun

2010-03-07T11:53:00.000-08:00

I love to teach. There is something so fulfilling about seeing a student grasp a beading concept and just run with it. I have had the privilege to teach at the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville for about 2 years or so now. I truly enjoy it. Many of my students I count as friends and I look forward to seeing them in class and hearing how things are going. Here are a couple of the projects that we have done in the past couple months, these are the colorways that I did in the process of teaching the class. I have to remember to take my camera with me to class next time to share their beautiful work with you as well.

Golden Shadow (I wanted a bracelet to wear with my Troika necklace):

Upsy Daisy:

Farfall-ing Bracelet:

Bead Trends - Midnight Muse

2010-03-03T09:10:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to share with you that one of my necklaces has been featured in this month's Bead Trends magazine. This necklace is the necklace that I created for the Use the Muse Challenge II and then suspended the fabulous Lilly Pie donut muse from. It was fun to mix up beadweaving with the ribbon and a beaded strand.

Farfall-ing Bracelet

2010-03-01T03:22:00.000-08:00

My local bead store, the Garden of Beadin' in Bartonsville, PA, got these fabulous new beads in called "Farfalle" beads. I love the shape of them. They are butterfly shaped with a hole in the middle and they stack together to create dimension in your work. I made up this fast and fun bracelet with them.

It has a wonderful weight to it when worn and it just sparkles!! This is another one of those that I have already made several of in different color combinations.

If you are in the Northeast region, I will be teaching this bracelet this weekend (March 6) at the Garden of Beadin'. You can call the store for more details at (570) 426-9168.

2010-02-24T15:56:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that it has been two weeks since my last post. Life has been moving quickly here. Work (my day job) has been very busy and stressful. I love what I do but it can get quite stressful as deadlines approach. I have been busy beading but I can't show you quite yet what I am working on. I decided to try for a publishing challenge that I came across. It is something that I haven't tried before (the subject of the challenge) but I have to say that I have been pleased with the end result.

We are in for some snow here in the next couple days (on top of the surprise snow we received yesterday) and I am hoping to finish a bracelet and necklace that are half done and write patterns for them. I rather put them to the side when I started working on this other project.

I also was lucky enough to receive this week a package from Beverly Ash Gilbert. She does some amazing freeform beadwork. She asked for help choosing the name for her latest bead soup and the name that I and another suggest (we suggested the same name) was chosen. Be sure to click through her blog at the lovely photography that Beverly does as well.

I have a rather frustrating and sad post that I want to share with you. (Click Here) Charms were purchased from Green Girl Studios and then used to reproduce the wonderful original work that they do with no credit or compensation to Green Girl Studios. Please read the post at Cynthia Thorton's blog for more information. We all need to stick together when it comes to people reproducing other's work.

I will leave you with this picture of our snowfall from a couple weeks ago. I quite imagine that it will look like that again by the end of tomorrow, into Friday.

Stay Safe and Bead Happy.

Nancy

Bead Soup Party Time

2010-02-10T00:50:00.000-08:00

LET THE BEAD SOUP PARTY BEGIN!!

Be sure that you check out the entire party list by going to Lori's Blog. I am anxious to be able to see what everyone did with their soup!

This has been a lot of fun, visiting everyone's blogs and being challenged with materials that were chosen for me. Thank you so much Lori for this PARTY!!

I didn't remember to take a picture of what I sent ahead of time to Beth or to take a picture of what she sent me before I started working. Fortunately Beth did!! You can see the original materials that she sent me and that I sent her in this post on her blog.

As I said in an earlier post, the materials that Beth chose for me really challenged me. I like beadweaving and it is where I am most comfortable. For the life of me though an idea didn't present itself to me to incorporate beadweaving with the great focal. What it did do is make me drag out some of the beads that I have been hoarding for awhile and put them to good us. It was a process of laying out the beads, stringing the beads, taking them all apart and looking for more beads or different beads. It was a really good exercise in balance. I love the little touches of labrodite that I added. I found some at my local bead store that just had some great fire within. Well enough of my rambling, here is my bead soup challenge piece!! You can click on the photo to see it enlarged.

Shaitana Earrings

2010-02-06T14:27:00.000-08:00

Toward the end of last year, I was asked to teach a class on how to bead a rivoli using tubular peyote. The class was just supposed to be a basic technique class. I don't know about you but I like to be able to "do" something with what I learn when I learn a new technique. So I came up with these earrings so that they had something to "do" with the beaded rivoli if they wanted to.

I have to say that I really like this pattern. I have already made several pair of these earrings to go with some of the different jewelry pieces I have made. I haven't really made many beaded earrings so I really like that I have this pattern to use.

I just love how the rivoli reflects back the beadwork!! Anyway.... I hope you are having a good weekend and if you are in the northeast stuck in from the snow, I hope you are having a good beady time.

Nancy

Troika Necklace

2010-02-01T03:10:00.000-08:00

I made this necklace for a submission challenge. It wasn't chosen, but that is ok with me. I love it!! It is a longer necklace than I typically make. I have found that it is perfect for wearing with my turtlenecks or if I wear a layered outfit.

It was relatively easy to make, using right angle weave, net weave and tubular peyote. I love the softness of the colors and since it is in a creamy colorway goes with just about everything!!

Blog Play

2010-01-27T13:45:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I have done anything new with my blog. I hope that you like the changes. I was trying to make it easy to read. It is funny to me because I am a "blue" person and yet I was drawn to a softer pastel palette as I worked. I really like how it came out. Change is nice every once in awhile. Now I have to go and get back to work on the necklace I am doing.

By the way, I can't wait to show you my necklace for the Bead Soup challenge. It was a stretch for me but I am pleased with the results. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone's designs. This has just been a lot of fun checking up on everyone and reading what they have posted about the Bead Soup.

Have a great day everyone!!

Nancy

This is a project that I made last fall that I haven't made up my mind if I like or not. The overall length is about 26"-28". Any thoughts?

Bead Soup - Hmmm or Argh

2010-01-22T02:57:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I received my lovely package of beads from Beth (you can see it here). Secretly I was hoping to not be pulled too far out of my comfort zone, which is beadweaving. I was thinking I would get this great focal which I could incorporate into some beadweaving and that would be that. Well I got a great focal but..... it is not one that I could think of a good way to incorporate into my beadweaving skills. Mind you, this is not a complaint post or a whine post. I joined the swap to be challenged. This has challenged me!!! I know how fabulous the others in the contest are in delightful non-beadwoven projects. I sat down last night and laid out beads and strung beads and took apart beads and laid out beads and strung beads and took apart beads and laid out beads.... well you get the picture. I think that I am getting closer to something that I think is presentable but we will see what I think when I go home today and look at it again.

The bottom line is I am having a great time and stretched way out of my comfort zone. Thanks, Lori, for this bead soup challenge. This has been really good for me!!! And thanks, Beth, for sending me a focal that REQUIRED me to think outside of MY box!

Have a great day everyone.

Fairy Dust

2010-01-16T14:00:00.000-08:00

I hope that you are having a wonderful weekend. We took part of our afternoon to go to our local park and hike along their trail. It was so good to be outside and stretching my legs. I have been feeling the inactivity in my body lately and since it had been bitterly cold there wasn't too much that I could do about it. Hey I guess that explains why I have been busy beading!! (Not that I need an excuse!!)

Here is another necklace that I made while staying out of the cold. It is just perfect for St. Patrick's Day! I love how the the vitrial coating on the peridot firepolish crystals make this necklace sparkle. I was able to make this necklace in an afternoon. The lovely wooden bowl that it is resting on was made by my Dad!! He and my brother make wonderful wood bowls, wine stoppers, wine glasses with turned wood stems. You should check out their beautiful work (www.jmncreations.com).

I hope the weather is as beautiful where you are as it is here! Enjoy!!

Shaitana Necklace

2010-01-11T03:48:00.000-08:00

After a bit of a dry spell (as I've mentioned before), I had fun playing with my beads and came up with this necklace. I love the simple elegance of this necklace. I've been trying to use some of the other materials that I have in my stash and I love these round pink luster beads that are highlighted in this design.

I hope that you are staying warm where you are. It is awfully chilly here. Have a great day today.

Ruffles Bracelet

2010-01-09T11:30:00.000-08:00

This is a bracelet that I made awhile ago (the top one). I was wearing it recently and decided to whip up another one in lighter colors. I just love how changing the colors on a pattern gives it a whole different look!!

Have a great weekend.