Sarajo's Honey Do Challenge

So, Alison (of Alison Adorns) and I are always looking for a couple of fun challenges each month and we were really excited to learn that our Inspired by Reading Book Club members Sarajo and Eric were challenging themselves to a monthly creative contest!

Of course we had to play along!!!! And thanks for inviting us.

My necklace is made up of a strand of really fun colored pretties from Allegory Gallery which could either be jasper or a dyed marble and some funky wooden beads from a friend's antique store in town.

The focal beads are some porcelain bits that I sourced from Andrew Thornton on one of his epic Destash events on FB.

I have yet to come up with a clasp, as my clasp selection has dwindled and I need to source some good ones.

Do you ever get sick of using the same old same old? That is the rut that I am stuck in...

However, not in a rut for creative challenges. Thanks Eric for challenging your lovely wife to get into her stash! And thanks Sarajo for inviting us along!!!

Can't wait for next month!

Cloud bridge reveal!

Today is the big day! 

It has been so exciting seeing what everyone has created so far, so I am keeping it short and sweet.

My pieces are based on some really cool Indonesian Manik Manik glasswork beads. Andrew and William have some really cool strands of these for sale at Allegory Gallery and I have had a really good time using them in my Monday Basic Beading classes.

This is my first piece. I couldn't get a great shot of the Manik bead in the middle, but it is REALLY cool! The white beads are a frosted glass and they are really heavy, but I am in LoVe with this necklace!

My second piece is based on this 'crazy little pill' bead which is also Manik Manik. I need to find a clasp that is dainty, as the blue and pink seed beads are small, as are the tiny jump rings that connect the looped wire.

Lastly, this is the what I made from the strand of rough rose quartz that was in the kit. This is part of a muffin tin challenge that Alison Adorns and I challenged ourselves to in January.

And if you think you have seen those hearts before, you have! They were Andrew Thornton originals for a bead kit last year! Lucky me, right!?!?!?!

I am still busy working away at it (the muffin tine challenge) and in my spare time (ha ha- I need a clone) I am chopping away at my beading to-do list! (See my previous post about all the challenges we are working on this month!!!)

Ok, so that's it for me! See you all soon!

My next project will debut on the 22nd and it will be my piece for the SJ Designs Honey Do challenge.

I have my piece complete, and cannot wait to show it off!!!!

Spoiler alert: I used some funky beads!

Be well my friends!!!!

Muffin Tin Update

So excited to show off another project from the muffin tin!

It also helps that I LOVE VALENTINE'S DAY, so I am super excited about this set.

I have had these beautiful polymer heart focals by Andrew Thornton in my stash for almost a year. 

I scored the smaller sized ones on a destash and am so pleased to have paired them with the larger one to have a complete set of earrings and a bracelet.

This is a secondary challenge to myself as I typically tend to make necklaces vs. bracelets or especially earrings.

Thanks muffin tin for getting me out of my comfort zone!!!!

P.S. Don't mind my kiddo's homework in the background. It was on the counter and I snapped a pic just because I wanted to get an update on the big bad blog!

Stay tuned: more goodies from the tin to follow this month in addition to the following:

Feb 18: Allegory Gallery Design Challenge: Cloudbridge (featuring Pantone's Colors of the Year)

Feb 22: SJ's Honey-Do List Challenge

(Each month her hubby will give her a concept to work with and she has asked her bead buddies to play along)

Feb 24: Michaels/Halcraft Pretty Palettes Feb Challenge

(Let's see what Alison (of Alison Adorns) and I come up with based on a few strands of pre-selected beads and whatever we add to it from our collections)

Feb 24: Inspired by Reading Book Club Meet Up- A Wrinkle in Time. We reveal our pieces on our blogs and blog hop to check out what everyone else made based on imagery in the book

Feb 27: Art Bead Scene 

This will be my first time participating!!!

Criteria is to follow the theme from the web page/blog and use your stash of art beads for the challenge. 

Support a bead artist and play along!!!!

Inspired by Reading Book Club: The Magicians

Short and sweet post....

You know me, I don't do a synopsis of each book SO.....

This month's design was inspired by the trip that Quentin and the Physical Magic kids took to Antarctica to be 'schooled' in the ways of a professor who operates Brakebills South.

Needless to say, one of the most 'visual' parts of the story is when the kids engage in a teambuilding/magic experience where they're turned into foxes.

No need to tell you anymore, you can read the story and/or watch the show on Mondays at 9 on the syfy channel.

Join me next month for A Wrinkle in time by Madeleine L'Engle. 

Pretty Palettes: Halcraft/Michaels Stores January Challenge

It has been a while since Alison from Alison Adorns and I have done a Pretty Palettes Challenge. But she knows how much I LOVE snowflakes, so we both agreed to do it!

I loved the color scheme this time around, and I knew I had a bunch of fun beads that would work for this piece, so I ended up using a strand of AB finish rounds from the Challenge specs and added the majority of the other pretties from my stash.

I recently acquired the focal from a friend and I was really excited to use it on this necklace. Another thing that I like about my design is that I used jumprings for the snowflakes and they can come off of the piece to wear more seasonally.

This necklace probably won't be mine for long though. Don't tell my daughter but I am using it as an incentive for her to get her room clean and keep it that way as well as get a hairbrush through her almost natty dreads...

Can't wait for tomorrow, as the next Pretty Palettes Challenge will be announced! Join us!!!!!