Done! Almost.....

I thought I would add a picture of my (almost) done bead embroidered bracelet from the ATTS7 challenge, and get some feedback from all my wonderful beader friends...

I have declared the bracelet "DONE!" at this point. 

Here is a picture of Sherry's original from the magazine....

As you can see, after the brick stitch border, she added picots using 11's and drop beads. I actually have the drop beads I intended to use for this....but you know what, I decided it's just too OTT for my taste. I vastly prefer the neater and simpler plain brick stitch edge, so I am leaving mine that way.

I feel hers takes away a bit from the focal.  

Another conundrum I'd love your opinion on...as you can see, the ends of my bracelet are scalloped (I'm guessing she filled hers in with embroidery to square them off, none of which is discussed in the pattern), and I like mine scalloped...but it does present a bit of a problem attaching a closure. 

I don't want to add to much extra length, as the bracelet is about the right length already (with about 1/2-3/4" for closing). Sherry's bracelet uses a slide clasp...any other ideas?

A Time to Stitch 7

I was so excited when I actually saw the announcement for this round of A Time to Stitch! There were many times when I would have liked to join in, but missed the announcement.

Sadly, my best intentions were hijacked by a fall at work and a commitment which happens every year....but needs to come to fruition a bit earlier this year than it normally does.
In any case, I have done my best to finish, and although I didn't quiiiiiiite make it...I hope you'll all forgive! So, on to my (mostly) finished bead embroidery piece....
It still needs the edging finished and a clasp attached obviously, which I will finish next week. 

I learned a lot doing this!! This is a pattern by Sherry Serafini from Beadwork June/July 2011 which has been on my to-do list for...about four years! Hey, don't judge, it's a long to do list ;-)....

Things I loved:

1. Doing the bead embroidery itself...like many beady things, it's very zen; when you need something to do while you're watching TV or thinking through something else, bead embroidery is perfect. Some may find the repetitive nature boring...I didn't. I will definitely be doing this again, and in fact have an idea I'm working out as we speak. So, thanks, Therese and Christine, for involving me in a technique which I love!

2. The outer border on this puppy...in this particular case, the black and brass line enclosing the ripples...I will definitely use this again, I love the look of it...it is raised a bit from the rest because the beads are larger, and looks like a twisted bead rope.

3. Working on the backing...I used Lacy's Stiff Stuff and really like it. Being able to make markings on the backing to guide your embroidery I found very helpful as I am somewhat *cough* AR. It also helps me to not get carried away and find myself with a belt instead of a bracelet *g*. Next time, I will colour the backing somehow so it doesn't show through the beading. In the (closeup) picture it is quite apparent, not so much in real life. 

Things I didn't love:

1. Proportions...I'm not sure what Sherry was thinking here; I followed the specifics of sizes in the pattern, but the cabochon is completely out of proportion with the size of the bracelet in my opinion. It is much too large, and next time, I would definitely use a smaller cabochon, likely 15-20 mm. (This one is >25 mm). The 4mm pearl rounds used as the centres of the ripples are also mis-proportioned...they stick up way too far from the size 15 beaded background for my liking. Next time, I would go with 3 mm pearls instead.

2. Coloring...just because I'm crazy like that, I wanted to work in a colorway that is not my usual. I am very much a colorist, and choosing the colors is 75% of the fun for me. These I think are a "miss". I would have to play around with coloring the ripples themselves, but I haven't had time to create alternatives just yet. Next time I would definitely make several variations of the ripple before stitching it finally down, to see which works best. I think it's not the colors themselves here, as it is their placement that bothers me.

Would love to know what y'all think!

3. The lines of dividing 15's between the pearls around the cabochon...although there are EXACTLY the same number of 15's in each round, some of them are "falling away" from the top of the work, so that the thread shows. I'm not sure what's causing this, but it is unsightly and bugging the crap out of me! Ideas? Solutions?

However, 10 years from now when I'm an expert at this *g* it'll be a good "first piece" to show where I started out!

I'm excited to see what the other participants have created...I hope you'll visit them all to see!

1.       Therese (Host) 

2.       Christine  (Host)

3.       Amy

4.       Lola

5.       Lori F

6.       Kim

7.       Becky Pancake

8.       Karin G.

9.       Debbie (Kepi)

10.   LizE

11.   Maryanne

12.   Paula

14.   Wendy

15.   Janet

16.   Jasvanti

17.   Ginger

18.   Alicia

19.   Bobbie

20.   Shirley

21.   Sarah

22.   Cynthia

24.   Lizzie

25.   Samantha

26.   Sally

27.   Niki

28.   Karen W.

January block for CQJP 2015

Here I am, running up to the finish line with my block.....phew!! 

This block was a bit of a challenge to get completed this month, as I had a bit of a slow start, having to come up with a block shape and theme for the year before starting. 

Against others' probably good advice *g* (but what else would you expect from me?) I am going with a true "journal" block; each will be done on the theme of the preceding month's activities and moments and weather, so that I have in future years, a memento of each month of this year. 

Here is the "nude" block; I kept it in the dark blues/grays colour theme, as the month was a dreary one of constant rain and dark days leading up to the Winter Solstice. Dec 21st is always one of my favourite days of the year; I hate the winter and especially the darkness, and knowing we are now on an upward path to Spring is so cheering! 

Here it is just started, with my favourite day starting out the stitching:

The star and lamb represent Christmas (a very quiet one for us this year), the fabric to the left of the Christmas patch is New Years (also quiet)...and the rest is likely self-evident. 

Here's a closeup of the center portions showing the detail of the stitching:

Thanks to Valerie Bothell, who is leading a Facebook group called "Joyful Embellishments", giving us a stitch a week to try...the two feather stitches you see here are two of the ones she's shown. 

Please do come join us if you're a stitcher, or would like to be!

I'm not Dead Yet!

Well, it's been about two weeks of reduced hours of work...and I'm LOVING it, and I haven't starved to death yet...stay tuned! :-)

I have been working away on some of my current projects...finished a couple of things which were Christmas gifts requested late, so needed to be completed after the fact. Here's the first....

This is a double Half Persian 4-in-1 reversible (whew, that's a mouthful!) necklace for my son; I am letting him decide about the clasp, and he hasn't chosen one yet, so that is to come. I suspect I will be hand tooling a hook-and-loop closure out of the same bronze the small rings are done in. 

This was an enjoyable piece to work; it may become one of my favourite weaves. It moves quickly, is easy and rhythmic to do, and the result is quite spectacular. 

Here's a picture showing the reverse colourway, which is different, as you can see.

This is a project from Karen Karon's ChainMaille Jewelry Workshop book, if you would like to give it a go. 

I've also gotten some work completed on my CQJP 2015 block:

The middle cream blob there will turn into a lamb for my Christmas section when it is finished. I'm doing the motifs in each area first, and then will embellish with seam stitching around them later. 

Hope you're having a productive start to the year as well! 

May??!

May2014!! 

How could it possibly be MAY since I've been here....well, the post tells the tale unless someone has been deleting stuff on me....and no, I don't think they have. 

Suffice to say, it's been a very busy but fun year. Several things on my bucket list have been checked off in 2014, I'm happy to say. Good stuff and bad stuff. While it's still holiday weeks and I have a bit of time, I will try to expand on that in another post. 

At the moment, I'm prepping for CQJP 2015 (see blog badge), which I have signed up for and hope to be able to keep up with in 2015. That should be possible, as I have once again SEMI-retired. I've told my job that I would like my hours to be reduced to 3 days a week (from 5-6). It's time...after 51 years of retail, the extreme physical and mental stresses of the job are just not doable any more. Although my health is good and I keep active, lifting 50-60 lb on my own and pushing a dozen shopping carts is just not something I can do every day. So~keeping my fingers crossed I can do this without starving! 

Onward to CQJP 2015 and (some) time to play! *happydance*

Re CQJP....it is suggested that we do a theme for the monthly blocks we will be working on through 2015; mine are going to be truly a "journal" of my year. I plan to work on Dec 2014 in Jan 2015, Jan in Feb 2015 etc. So, my first block will be all about our very unusual December this year....it's Dec 28th and we're still green! No snow on the ground....BUT it is currently snowing lightly, and that looks like it might change quickly. 

Here is my first base block for January...unfinished and unembellished, but I wanted to have a pic from the start. It'll be all about grey days, early long dark nights (the Winter Solstice), and a bit of Christmas. 
The colour in this picture is a bit deceptive...the patterned fabric at the upper right and the plain one directly below it are both silvery greys; on my screen, they look quite yellow. 

My blocks, as you can see, will be octagons~I chose that shape as I think it will give me lots of flexibility to put them together when the time comes. 

Today, I'm hoping to get that outer chalk line hand basted, the block trimmed, and then I will be ready to go for January. 

It's Tiiiiiiime!!

After a slight delay in the reveal date for our Bead Soup Blog Party this year, the date is finally here!

Here's a little reminder of what my partner Sarah at Pookledo sent me to work with:

Sarah's soup has arrived!

I absolutely fell in LOVE with the colour combination she sent me. Normally, I work with brights and cool colours in the bright spectrum, but the soft turquoise and soft pink that Sarah sent worked amazingly well with my *cough extensive cough* stash. I started pulling...and pulling...and pulling...

The first idea that came to me as I was dozing off one night was this....a collage necklace, not symmetrical, and including some of my beaded beads for a little piece of "me". 

Julie Powell definitely inspired my thinking there...in this piece, I used one of the turquoise focals, and several of the rose quartz beads. 

Here's my Julie-and-Sarah-inspired collage necklace:

I also created my first-ever hand-hammered clasp for this necklace:

Once that was off the design board, I decided it really needed a bracelet to go with, as I hadn't used the beautiful clasp Sarah sent me...it seemed a shame to waste it at the back of someone's neck, y'know? 

So this evolved...using the other turquoise focal, the turquoise beads, more of the rose quartz, and of course the beautiful clasp. 

And then, you know, I still had a bit of time (BEFORE the date changed), and I wanted to use some more of those sweet pink quartz roundelles, and the other cute little owl focal:

The chain is handmade chainmaille, with insertions of the quartz, and the lariat can also be worn as a triple-wrap bracelet. 

AND, I couldn't forget these, so I went very simple with a pair of earrings:

The chain supporting these little swingers is also handmade chainmaille. 

Sarah, thank you! I hope you had as much fun with your soup! I managed to use almost everything Sarah sent me~AND a few pieces I had been sent in prior soups as well. 

Please visit the rest of the participants in Bead Soup as well! It's such fun to make the rounds....you can find their links HERE at Lori's blog

I will apologize in advance, as I am working a 4-day stretch starting Friday May 9th right through Monday May 12th (doesn't it just figure!), so my visiting will be delayed by a few days. 

Ooops! It's been a while!

Oh my, I just looked at the date of my last blog and realized how long it's been! Oops. After almost a month off work due to illness, I went back to work shortly after the prior blog, and it's been kicking my butt. 

I had several time-sensitive projects on the go during this same period. I'll do a little catch-up...

Here are the first two blocks I did my part for, in the Under the Sea CQI block exchange:

1. Chris from Australia's block: I added all the work you see on the block at this particular point. 

2. Donna from Montana's block: I added the jellyfish, featherstitch bush, critters in the sand, the anemone border behind the jellyfish, and the button border to the left. 

I have now sent these two blocks along to their next stitcher, and am awaiting the third one for me to work on. There are four in total. 

During this same period, I completed 12 chainmaille bracelets as giveaways for Dancing Like the Stars, which is a major fundraiser for the foundation I volunteer for. I'm delighted to say that we raised the most money this year, in the history of the program! You can read all about it and see some of the pictures: HERE:

And now....it's almost Bead Soup Blog Party time! My pieces are all ready for publication. I had a lot of fun with the soup my partner, Sarah from Pookledo sent me...loved the colour combination!...and created four pieces, using almost all the beads she sent me and adding a multitude of things from my own stash. 

We've just had an announcement today to say that Bead Soup Blog Party reveal has been set back a week, while our fearless leader Lori Anderson recovers from a bout of illness. So...I hope you'll stop back on May 10th to see the reveal!

Here's a little teaser: