Santa Came Early!

Or maybe it was the Easter Bunny. I can't tell because it came in the mail and it was from Karen Hardy. If it had come in a basket or a stocking I would know for sure but it came in bubble wrap. Or if it had said "From Santa." I suppose Karen could have been acting on her own, with no direction from either Santa or the Easter Bunny, but it just FEELS so much like Christmas, or Easter morning, that I'm just not sure. However, since all the evidence is subjective (it feeling like Christmas), and there being no OBjective evidence that Karen was acting under the direction of a powerful and influential person (like the Easter Bunny), I'm willing to believe (for now) that it was a thank you gift. A SERIOUSLY ROCKIN' thank you gift. A KICK-ASS thank you gift. A gift from the QUEEN of ROCKIN' thank you gifts. No, the GODDESS of ROCKIN' thank you gifts. (Goddesses are higher than queens, right?) These are like WAY better than an Easter egg. Or even a Cadbury egg. Or Peeps. Better than Peeps. Blows Peeps out of the water. Peeps just don't stand up to prolonged fondling. Look at these BEADS!!!! It's like she saw my letter to Santa!!! (Hmm, that makes me think that it WAS Santa). And all I had to do was turn her on to Happy Mango Beads. I admit I was pretty happy myself when I found that site, but I stumbled across it myself out of sheer dumb luck.

Karen says she is now inspired to photograph and list the "oodles" of beads she has apparently been hiding from us. There could be a potential explosion of new beads in her Etsy shop, which I encourage you to visit regularly until beads begin appearing. If beads do not appear in the immediate future, I encourage you to convo her repeatedly until they do.

The Sea Dragon

I bought two strands of these gorgeous teal-dyed quartz rounds at a local beadshop when they were on sale--I had no idea what I was going to do with them but they were irresistible. (I don't know why I have this lust for teal, but I have an aversion to actual blue. I mean, are they really that different?) I had multiple scenarios for using these beads, none of which resembled the pictures below. First I was going to get teal ribbon and knot it and dangle them in between. But can you find teal ribbon to match? No. I even inquired about a custom order but was so frustrated by the seller's garbled non-response I said screw it. Tried some sea green silk cord--gah, NOT. Tried teal blue satin cord--again, GAH! OK, black then. Maybe Greek leather. No, too stiff. Black silk then. Huh, the dangling thing isn't going to work. (Where have I heard THAT before.) Which also would probably conceptually disqualify black satin cord. Finally decided to just wire wrap the damn thing. And I nearly fell out of my chair when some of my new boro beads actually coordinate nicely with the quartz. Well, I guess good things DO happen to bad people.



Et voila! Some handmade nickel bead caps pounded flat to fit the boro beads, a little amazonite roundel to finish off one side, and some antique silver-plated rolo chain from Ornamentea.

The two larger boro beads are from LAJewelry on Etsy, and the smaller is from BeingBeads on Etsy (my local supplier). Unbelievable how close they match! The holes on the boro beads are pretty big and I had to drop a few 8/0 seed beads in there to pick up the slack with my 20 gauge wire. Seemed to work fine.



The pewter dragon pendant is from Happy Mango Beads. They have an awesome selection of ethnic-inspired pewter, free shipping, and they ship fast. They also recently started carrying a selection of gorgeous pewter beads. I'm sure you'll be seeing them on here pretty soon.

In other news, I got my Fusion Beads order with my vast assortment of blue and purple seed beads, so I am theoretically prepared to start my project with Pat's blue beads (see below). I should have that wrapped up in about a month. If I don't get sidetracked. Or if I don't decide I don't like it. If we win the lottery it'll be longer because I'll be in the desert playing golf. The watered part.

New Boro Beads from Pat!

Pat stopped by yesterday to bring me the beads she made for me for my special project. Here they are!







Aren't they lovely? Even though I suck at photographing boro beads? The lighter set is in a more denim/cornflower blue, with hints of plum and light sage, and splashes of rich cerulean blue. The darker set has a deep midnight blue ground, with varying shades of cerulean blue and cobalt, with hint of deep red plum and soft green. My photos just don't capture all the color variations. Just what I had asked her for! I'm super excited because there's a bunch of other gemstone beads I can combine them with, beyond my "special" project ("special" meaning I didn't have any of the items necessary to make it and had to go out and buy them all. It's a compulsion, like becoming unbearably thirsty as soon as the plumber turns the water off. I keep getting fab ideas involving materials I do not possess.)

Pat Redinger of BeingBeads on Etsy makes really lovely boro beads--really eye catching patterns and wonderful combinations of colors (see my previous post). She also sells them singly! How great is that? Sometimes you don't need a whole set, or you might want to mix and match. Check out her shop!

My New Local Dealer Lampwork Provider

I was feverishly scrabbling through Etsy the other night looking for a place to get my next lampwork fix some beads (I like to spread my business out between dealers artists, you know, so they don't think I have a problem feel all pestered) and lo and behold there was a lampwork artist in the town where I work. Holy crap, I said. Score! I said. No way! I said. I wonder if she's still awake right now? I said. Etc.

So I sent her a convo asking if I could shop with her in person. Of course she said yes.

Everybody, meet Pat Redinger of BeingBeads! As described in her profile, she is a self taught glass beadmaker and has studied with Kevin O'Grady, Al Janelle, Andrea Guarino-Slemmons and Jim Smirchich. She has also studied wire work with Lynn Merchant. I have no idea who any of these people are but I am sure you glass types will be impressed. She is also a delightful lady, and I'm not just saying that because she has boro beads.

I arrived at Pat's house a little after noon on Friday, and after pawing through her stash, I clutched the beads below to my breast and wrote out my check with my other now less trembling hand. I drove back to work, with the beads clutched tightly in my hand (it was kind of awkward because I drive a stick), enjoying a mellow glow. The glow lasted well into the afternoon (these beads pack a punch), until I saw Barbara Lewis' enamel giveaway. Then it was shot all to hell. Thanks Barb.







Loving this "lizard skin" pattern. I love lizards.





I forced myself to buy these blue ones. They're gorgeous, but I'm at a loss with blue. Might have to just hoard them.



Fortunately, taking photos of them brought some of the glow back. This instant gratification shopping--being able to actually fondle the beads BEFORE you buy them, and WHILE you're buying them, and then IMMEDIATELY AFTER you buy them--is beyond compare. I highly recommend it. Pat is going to make me a special set for a project I have in mind. But shhhh--I'm not telling you what it is. I don't want you all breathing down my neck if I don't do it right away. You're like that.

Look What I Bought!

I just couldn't wait. I started circling over Kelley's shop this morning and there were GORGEOUS BLUE BEADS!! I've been neglecting the color blue and that was going to be my next thing. I warned her. Or tipped her off, rather. And there they were. ADD TO CART.



There was another set of beads in a barely-there palette of cream-to-creme brulee, lavender, and sky blue. I love subtle shades, and these beads are so versatile in their coloring I could combine them with all sorts of things and they would be spectacular. I love how clear they are--I think it will be a nice contrast to the usual opacity and semi matte finish of the types of gemstones I use. ADD TO CART.



And then to just really cement my dedication to using lampwork, I bought a couple more from another seller, LA Jewelry Designs.



I've been really into this slatey teal color lately. Haven't used it yet, just...collecting things. I love colors with a lot of gray in them. ADD TO CART.

OK, just had to share. Best go get busy with the pendant I'm making with the first of Kelley's beads.