In the Mail - Pepita's Blogoversary

I love to get something other that bills in the mail. Over the last few weeks I have gotten some wonderful things in the mail.

Here is my first post about the amazing things that have arrived in my mail box.

Almost a month ago Alenka over at Pepita handmade post about her 1st blogoversary. To celebrate she invited fellow bloggers to sign up for a creative challenge. She would send us one of her amazing handmade components and we would have until August 11 to make something with it.

Here are all the components she made to share

Here is the curved turquoise bar that I received

This is going to a fun challenge as I many ideas to play with over the next few weeks. Come back on August 11 to see the final result.

Thanks Alenka for the chance to celebrate with you.

Jean Power class update

Wow, it has been two weeks since I spent the weekend taking classes with British bead artist Jean Power.

I have actually finished two of the projects that I started during the classes.

Friday's class was the Zinnia Flower class. Once I started working on it at home I finished up the petals at the front of the flower.

For the back layer of petals I switch the placement of the colours. The blue is main colour of the petals with an edge of silver.

Here is the back of the flower. With the band across the back you can wear it in many ways. I think this will look great pinned to my grey winter coat. Or I may make the beaded chain which was include in our instructions.

On Sunday we started our geometric stars. I would have gotten further along in class if I had not run into problems with my counting.

I completed the last two sides and zipped them together to the other three.

I am looking to do a series of these stars with just changes in the placement of the colours as I did with my sea anemone boxes.  I am using the same colours for the stars.

Happy Beading!

ABC's of Creativity - June review

With the year have over, here is my quick review of our June entries.

It started with K is Kits which I did. It includes this vintage Rypan Designs kit.

I also included some of my favourite kits and how I create my our person kits for project I want to do, like this. 

Later in the month Maria was scheduled to do L is Loomwork, but blogger was not making it easy for her. She sent me the information it posted the blog posting for her. I love the loomworked Kimono which was on display at Bead & Button show.

She also covered various styles of looms. My favourite Vyacheslav Kalejnikov, a Ukrainian beadwork artist, who makes his own looms for large scale projects. He uses whatever he can find to make his loom.

Maria will be teaching her loomwork series later in the fall at beadFX.

Happy Beading!!

5 years on...

I was looking back through some posts recently and notice that today, June 26 marks my fifth (wooden or daisy) blogoversary!! Original blog combined beading and book review. I decided to do a mostly beading a few years later.

Let's take a look back.

In 2008 I made this trio for foxgloves designed by Kerrie Slade.

I also did my very first box in a class with Julia Pretl.

In 2009 I was able to take classes with Margie Deeb, including her Around the colour wheel workshop.

During a week at a cottage with my family I did some beading with my nieces.

I also started my Smaug box in my dragon series.

In 2010 had an amazing trip to Ottawa with Maria, including visit to Museum of Civilization.

In July I took a number of class with Marcia DeCoster. Here are my beaded beads.

I also made a few things from her book Beaded Opulence. I love this Urchin bead.

I finished a series of boxes inspired by the lampwork of Amy Waldman Smith.

Blogging was a challenge in 2011 but here a some favourites. I was able to take classes with Diane Fitzgerald in March at beadfx. Here is my Moorish tile beaded bead.

My love of owls is well known by my friend Maria. She gave me the owls that are the focal of this Owl Trio necklace.

After almost a year without blogging I got back to it in the spring of 2012. It was a year of many beading challenges and triumphs.

I decided to participate in the  Designer Style Challenge hosted by Creativ Festival for their 25 anniversary. Here is my inspiration.

I also participated in my first Bead Soup Blog Hop, hosted by Lori Anderson.

In August I found out that both my beadwork and paper arts entries were semi-finalists in the Designer Style Challenge. At the show in October I won third place in the beadwork catergory. Both pieces were on display during the show.

2013 has been a fun year so far with bead challenges and blogging adventures.

Maria and I have been doing a series of blog post on her blog called the ABC's of Creativity. I have done many of the post and enjoyed sharing inspiration and resources with fellow beaders.

I participated in my second Bead Soup Blog Hop in the early spring.

In March I finished the Tomcat box from Julia Pretl's book Little Bead Boxes. I had now made at least one of every box in the book.

Triangle boxes

Square boxes

Pentagon boxes

Hexagon boxes

I have many more challenges to come this year with three more blog hops that I will be participating in and many started projects to finish.

Thanks to those who read and comment on my blog. A special thanks to those that have taught me  and inspired my beadwork.

Happy Beading!!

Geometric Stars class

Today was my last class with Jean Power at beadFX.

Jean and her book (photo from S. Dixon)

 Today's class was her geometric stars.

 Here is our very full class of busy beaders.

Photo from S. Henry

One of my distorted squares in progress.

My star with three of distorted squares zipped together.

Here is almost everyones in progress or completed stars.

Thanks to Jean for coming to teach us and to the wonderful staff at beadFX for a fantastic weekend.

Beaded Frames Bangle Class

Today's class with Jean Power @ beadFX was her Beaded Frames Bangle.

Here is on version of the project.

 I had brought two different colour combinations. The first was a ruby red rondelle with a matte slate grey.

The second was turquoise rondelle with bronze.

The frames are joined with brick stitch (my least favourite). I am going to work on finishing both colour combinations later this summer.

Tomorrow is geometric stars. I am going to take a few different colour palettes.

Zinnia flower class

Today was the first of three classes that I am taking at Beadfx with British beadwork designer Jean Power.

Today was the zinnia flower class, included interchangeable cuff.

We started with an amazing Swarovski 30 mm flat back that we set into a beaded bezel.

Once it was in and secured we added a simple band of stitching that will allow it to be worn in many different ways.

Then we added the first layer of petals, step by step as we go around the bezeled Swarovski. I almost completed first layer.

Here is beadFX's blog post about the class.

Here are the flowers of myself and fellow classmates.

Will work to finish it soon.

Looking forward to tomorrow's class.