Thank you!

If you know me, you'll know that I can be a little slow on the uptake at times. Which explains why it's only just dawned on me that this little blog of mine has actually been read by someone other than lil' 'ol me. At least, that's what the Feedjit Live Traffic Feed says. To those of you who have dropped by, I can't thank you enough for visiting my little corner of the Web - even if it was for just a second or two. And to Mellisa - thank you for going beyond reading and leaving a comment. I'm so used to being the only one who visits my blog (haha) that I only just realised (ie. today) that someone left a comment on one of my posts. So to my lovely readers - yes, all three of you - I'd just like to wish you Season's Greetings and may the new year bring you much joy, good health and beautiful beads!

Beads and more beads

I ordered a whole bunch of beads and things the past 2 months and have only just unpacked them. They're now in their little storage boxes waiting for me to use them. I got several artbeads this time around. Yes, they're a luxury I probably shouldn't be indulging in - but they are just so darn pretty. Enough talking...here's my loot :-)

Aren't they lovely? Here are some close-ups in case you're curious.

From the top: enameled yummies from Gardanne Beads, scrumptious Keith O'Connor ceramic beads, followed by a length of enamel chain - it's actually a lovely pastel blue although it shows up as white in the photo (must be the lighting) - and some rubber o-rings..both from myElements. 

Back.....finally

...and with pics to show off.

Yes, I've been away for what seems like ages. I was on vacation and then came down with the flu when I got back home. Actually fell ill towards the end of my vacation. But I'm better now, and finally feeling like myself again.

Which means I got around to making something :-). The bracelet below is a replica of the green vintage bracelet  I mentioned (and showed off) in an earlier post. I made it for a friend who wanted something very much like my bracelet but in blue. The bracelet fits her perfectly and looks gorgeous against her beautiful tanned skin. I hope it brings her much pleasure and joy. Hmm, Rhapsody in Blue would be a great name for it.

New autumn jewelry

Even though there aren't seasons where I live, I've always been partial to Fall. I think it's all those lovely warm colours that appeal to me - and the cooler weather. Anyhow, I was inspired last week to make this necklace. It's part of my bid to slowly  but surely use up my bead stash. So that I can buy new beads LOL.

I used some leftover faux suede cord, 5mm Swarovski crystals in a range of autumnal colours (burgundy, topaz, smoked topaz etc), fire-polished rondelles and an antique brass dragonfly pendant. I actually like how it turned out. It's now in my Artfire and Etsy shops waiting for someone to give it a home.

What to do with this pendant?

I'm stuck. I messed around with Diamond Glaze last weekend and made this pendant. I had some issues with air bubbles but in the end everything turned out pretty well. I don't like the pendant frame however. It reminds me of Star Trek somehow - very sci-fi like. Which doesn't quite seem to go with the floral design of the paper (which I love btw). So - my question now is....what do I do with it? Stick a pin on the back for a brooch? Or use it in a necklace? Maybe a bag charm? Hmm, that might be an idea. A kooky bag charm is easier to carry off I think.

Contest Giveaway at The Beadin'Path

Just so you know, The Beadin'Path is having a great contest giveaway right now. You can find out the details here. It's super easy to enter and you stand to win a $150 gift card. Yup, that's right! $150! That's a whole lot of moolah. I could buy lots of vintage beads with that amount of money, not to mention a good handful of Keith O'Connor ceramic beads.....sigh, a girl can dream......

So, anyway here's my bid to enter and win. Below is a pic of a bracelet I made many moons ago using some vintage links and faux pearl clasp I bought online from The Beading'Path. I love it and think it's one of the prettiest things I've ever made. Also, the simplest. Off now to email the good people at TBP the link to this post. Wish me luck!!

Additions to the shop

Apart from completing my commissioned work, I also made 2 new items that I've listed in my Etsy and Artfire shops. A cord bracelet and a pair of earrings. Both feature beads I bought in Tokyo in 2007. I've been hoarding them ever since and finally got round to using them. I have to admit that I'm a little sad at the thought of not being able to stare and drool over them anymore. I hope both items find good homes. 

Coral Ring

Productive

I've been ill with the flu these couple of days, but in between coughing and sneezing, I've managed to make a number of items. First up is a long necklace which a friend wanted me to make. She left everything up to me, except to insist that it be long. I came up with this. Here's a close-up of some of the details.

And then, out of the blue a friend's father called to ask if I could make a necklace. He was going to visit a friend overseas and wanted to give her a special gift. He asked that the necklace include coral and/or bloodstone as these were his friend's birthstones. I found some lovely coral nuggets and combined them with powder blue seed beads which I've had in my stash since 2007 and some beautiful sterling silver beads and rondelles. I hope to goodness he likes it. It's the first time I've made something as important as this, and using gemstones no less. I didn't get very good pictures but for what it's worth, here they are.

The silver clasp is from a wonderful friend who gave me several clasps and pendants for my birthday this year. She's my enabler LOL. I also made a wire-wrapped ring with the one coral nugget that was left over. This post is so pic-heavy, I'll show the pic of the ring in the next post.

Another special request

It's been more than a month since I've posted any pics. So here's one. This is what I made for a friend who wanted a red bracelet. It's a prototype; I re-did it to make things neater and also, to shorten the bracelet. Despite what my friend says, her wrists aren't quite elephant-sized :-).

Little things that mean so much more

As you can see, I've been away for far too long from this blog. It was the usual culprits - work, illness etc - that kept me away. But I'm back and can't wait to get started on new projects. Being away from the blog didn't mean I was bead-free however. I've spent the past few weeks fulfilling some special requests from friends. But silly me - I forgot to take a pic of what I made. So I may have to get my friend to snap a pic of the bracelet I made her. I also repaired a couple of necklaces and just today, I was asked to make a necklace which this person wanted to give to a special friend. I felt really honoured that someone would think enough of my skills and work to ask me to make them a piece that was meant to be a special gift. In keeping with the good news on the jewellery front, I opened my email account yesterday to find that someone had bought one of my necklaces on Artfire. EB (you know who you are) - all I can say is 'Thank You!' and I hope you enjoy your purchase. 

That purchase - coming out of nowhere - means more to me than I can express. To be honest, I've gone so many months without having a sale or any interest in my designs, that I contemplated giving up jewelry-making. My love for beads won out though - I can't seem to stop buying them. But I was starting to get resigned to just making items for myself and friends. This Artfire purchase and new commission have renewed my faith - at least a little - that perhaps what I make is pleasing to people (well, some of them at least). Battling self-doubt has been the hardest challenge for me so far, so things like purchases and requests for commissioned pieces go a long way in helping me believe in my work and the value of it. 

Woo-hoo!

My new beads finally arrived. All of them. And I am ecstatic. For a while there, I thought some of them had gotten lost in the mail. Lucky for me, they were just delayed. So, what do you think?

Aren't they gorgeous? They're all artist-made lampwork beads that I bought from Etsy and Ebay. The purple, blue and cream spacer beads as well as the blue-and-orange discs are from River Oak Acres while the smaller rondelles in the middle - with swirls of colour - are from Etsy seller Outwest. Here's a close-up so you can see the swirls of green and purple and I don't know what else:

I'm loath to use any of them in a piece of jewellery since I just want to hoard them LOL. I'll have to think long and hard about how I'm going to incorporate them in my work. I'm leaning towards maybe a bracelet with cord. Any ideas?

By special request

An old friend surprised me a few weeks back by asking if I would make some jewellery for her. She's started being a little more adventurous in terms of her fashion and was lamenting that she didn't have jewellery that could match her new clothes. She specifically wanted a long necklace. And if I could come up with some earrings, that would be great too.

I decided from the start that I would stick to a silver/neutral tone for the pieces so she could wear them with almost anything in her wardrobe. And I also knew that the pieces would have to be fairly simple and understated, while incorporating some 'bling' if possible. This is what I came up with. 

New stuff on Etsy

I made a couple of new pieces and have added them to my Etsy store. I personally love the earrings. The beads have been with me since last June when I bought them in Tokyo from a little bead store tucked away in the wholesale beads district - Asakusabashi. I love that area and can't wait to get back there again. I think I'll do a post on the wonderful shops there soon. As for the bead caps in that pair of earrings...well, they've been with me even longer. I picked them up when I was in Bali in late 2008. They're gorgeous Bali silver and cost me a pretty penny.

As for the washi pendant, I've been dabbling in making pendants using washi paper and cache of bezel settings I bought on a whim. I was supposed to start using them with resin but have been putting it off since to be honest, I'm a little scared of all the mixing and care that resin seems to need. Anyway, I quite like how the pendant turned out. The chiyogami design is suitably cheery for this time of the year.

Selling on Etsy

If you look at the sidebar on the right, you'll notice that I've started selling my jewelry on Etsy. Yes, I finally got around to doing it. I hesitated for a long time before I took the plunge. It was partly the listing and transaction fees that put me off - what can I say? I'm cheap. But mostly it was because I'd saddled myself with a less than stellar name. I started the Etsy account mainly to buy items, not sell them, so I thought up a name quite hurriedly thinking that it was cool. How wrong I was. So you'll have to pardon the oddly embarrassing name of my Etsy store. I hope it won't put you off visiting. I'm going for a more classic, understated feel for this store - so you'll find a lot more sterling silver and gold-filled pieces than on my Artfire shop. The pieces I list will also be more of what I would personally wear....simple, pretty pieces that aren't too over-the-top. Of the 4 items I listed, I think my favourite would have to be this necklace. I'd wear it in a heartbeat. What about you?

Yet another..?

I'm amazed at myself. I actually got inspired to make a pair of earrings after visiting my Artfire Store and seeing the rather miserly collection. I seriously need to beef up my offerings. So, without further ado, here's my newest piece. I call it 'Heart of Gold'. I used pewter spacer beads and brass heart charms - both in antique gold - and 10mm fire-polished rounds in Transparent Champagne Luster. Another addition to my store...way to go, me!

PS. Any photo-taking tips you might have would be much appreciated :-).

Pics...finally

Ta-dah! Here's a photo of that necklace I mentioned in my previous post. Finally. I don't think my photography skills are getting any better LOL. Anyway, hope you like what I made. I'd love any and all comments. For the record, the beads are natural white wood with a laminated banana bark finish. I got them from Fusionbeads about a month ago. The chain is gold-plated and I finished the necklace off with a gold-filled twisted toggle clasp. The necklace has quite a heft to it, thanks to the sizeable beads. I think it'll look great with a white tee and jeans. Off now to add it to my Artfire Store.

New jewelry

I had some time to spare yesterday so I took the opportunity to mess around with my beads. I recently bought some huge beads from Fusionbeads.com and have been stumped as to how to use them. This happens a lot. I get seduced by all sorts of beautiful beads I find online. I usually end up buying them, even when I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to incorporate them into jewelry designs. I figure I'll come up with something. Anyway, I opted for a really simple chain-and-bead design, using some gold-plated chain I bought from Japan years ago. I haven't taken any photos yet - it was too late at night when I completed the necklace for any sort of photo-taking. But I'll take one soon and post it here. I draped the necklace around one of my coat hangers and I like how it looks against the backdrop of my black jacket. I'll probably add it to my Artfire Shop at the weekend.

Something new

I made this for a friend who recently got married. I used Swarovski glass pearls, freshwater pearls, gold-plated pewter spacer beads, gold-plated crystal rondelle and a vintage faux pearl clasp. I think it turned out quite pretty after all. I haven't given it to her yet. I hope she likes it.

Check out my Artfire store if you want to have a peek at my other jewellery.

Beads, beads, and more beads

Here's a better (?) pic of my banner. What you see is just a teeny portion of my bead stash. Aren't they lovely? My favourite has got to be the butterfly beads. They look and feel like glass but they weigh hardly anything so I think they might be acrylic. I bought them in Tokyo over 2 years ago and am loath to use them. They're just so pretty. I guess I'm waiting for inspiration to strike since they deserve to be showcased in a spectacular jewellery design. What do you think? Do you have ideas on how I should use them? I keep thinking they'd look stunning in a necklace but I'm not quite sure. Leave a comment and tell me what you think I ought to do with them. At the moment, they're sorely neglected. They only see the light of day when I take them out - every month or so - to ooh and aah at them.

PS. I'm known for taking crappy photographs. So do bear with me. I'm hoping all this blogging will help improve my photography

Finally...

Yay! I finally got off my butt and started a blog. I also started an Artfire shop - thanks to a dear friend who's been pestering me (or should that be encouraging me?) to do something about my jewelry-making hobby. This blog will be about my on-going obsession with beads and the battles I have with creativity - or lack thereof.