I'm Dreaming of a Bandanna Christmas, Part One

Bandanna Greetings...you sick of this yet? I'm not...hehehe! Part one of the Christmas Class was last night. Considering everyone left with a basic "kung fu" grip of the white pen in their hand, wanting to doodle and "bandanna" anything not nailed down, I think it was a success. Every one's got their homework (finish embellishing, then "glass and tape"), soldering will be going strong next Tuesday before I leave for vacation-Tim's Holiday Hideaway! The victims, er...students were, from left, Teresa, Michelle, Bonnie, Pattie and Debbie. See? They're still smiling, and that's before I got the pizza!

Everyone decided on the Wrinkle Free Distress Technique as their background, followed by a flurry of stamping and doodling. Debbie did an awesome job of creating monochromatic, primary sets of papers...I just loved them...hence the photo.

While some decided to make gifts for others, I'm so glad that some, such as Patti, decided to do her name for a change. I'm my own worse enemy on things like that (except when it comes to my jewelry!)-god forbid we make something for ourselves, right? So, yay to those that did, but yay for those that are getting some presents under their belts.

Here's a nice before and after of "pre- and post-" doodling as completed by Michelle. She, as do I, loves hearts...most if not all of these are from Hero Arts and are perfect for these types of backgrounds.

Some of my other all-time favorite images are the flourished created by artist Leigh Hannan and some of her designs licensed into stamps by the wonderful Mitra Friant of Impression Obsession. Teresa made some great color combinations. One of the reasons I love to teach these techniques is I learn, too! One combination that Teresa made, I'm dying to do: Broken China and Vintage Photo; it looked like a swirl of water and sand...the best!

For those that have never taken a class with me, my exuberance will show when I see something I like and I think it should be shared. I don't get excited just because I'm teaching...if I love something, I say it. If I don't like something, I won't come out and say it, but I may gently recommend some ideas...in the end, if you understand the technique and like what YOU'VE made, that's all that counts, right?

Well, back to work. I'm home today getting some things done. I had to take the Oliver monster to the vet because of some itchy skin thing...fun, fun, fun. He was giving a shot of cortisone and he should be fine. I was just glad it wasn't mites or other legged things....ick! He tolerated it, as usual! Their office just loves him. He's quite the celebrity because of his famous disappearing needle trick, but, that's for another day.

Also, big furry hugs to one of my best buds, Tammy, who lost her beloved Shar-pei, Bufford suddenly yesterday. I wish I could have just blinked myself (ala Jeannie or Samantha) to Ohio to be there (I'm thinking of you, Tammy!) to give real, rather than internet and phone hugs! As she said, be sure to give hugs to your furry friends today!

Enjoy the day,

Robin

Christmas in November?

Hello and Happy Tuesday! Where did Monday go? I'm zipping along, working on ideas for the 2008 CHA show as well as wrapping my head around other ideas...it never ends, does it? That's the fun of it.

As the years have gone by, I've become less of a crazy shopper for getting presents for everyone. It's an evolving thing, that's for sure. One of my better ideas is taking place tomorrow. Last year, instead of buying gifts for the women in my office I taught them a class and provided all the materials for them to make a Knotted Macrame Necklace. They eventually all finished theirs and I'm always happy to see when they wear it or make another one. This is quite the crafty bunch to begin with, so why not teach them something they did not know before rather than try to find some Tchotchke that they may or may not like?

For 2007 I've opened it up to the others in the office, so tomorrow night, after work, I'm teaching 7 or 8 of the ladies here how to make a Bandanna Plaque. That's what I've finally decided to call these things! Many have said they'd love to learn to solder and it will give them a chance to possibly get a gift made to give or create something for themselves. It may take 1-2 nights, depending on how much we get done tomorrow night, but I'm excited about it. I actually got it all prepped last night and brought everything in today...what a concept!

So instead of doing the schlep to the store, why not share your talents with a group of friends and give the gift that keeps on giving? And there's the fun of socializing before the craziness of the season truly gets in high gear. I'll be sure to report and share the finished creations.

Holiday Hugs to all!
Robin

Thanksgiving Leftovers...better than ever!

Happy Sunday! I'm sure most of the leftovers are gone and it's slim pickin's in the fridge and the reality of the impending Monday is a bummer, so enjoy these fun bits of info and eye candy!The four soldered pieces above have been my latest bit of fun. I've been so wanting to play with these Red Lead Paperworks stamps and I finally had some time to do so. Love the vintage looks and adore the little sayings. I'm word crazy as it is, and to have little words stamps to add to the backgrounds (words are already on them!) and these cute kids...can't go wrong! For the kids I made Tim's Distress Ink(tm) Wrinkle Free Technique, but with a Mini Mister spray of water and Perfect Pearls(tm) to create the pearly sheen. I then cut them out and did a mix n' match of their outfits; since it's on watercolor paper, they seem to have even more dimension. I added the little bit of white opaque pen to "bandanna" them a little bit. I created Distress Crackle Paint(tm) Bandanna Backgrounds. The crackly background makes a wonderful contrast to the pearly color of the Distress inks. All I need to do is add some charms to the bottom (maybe some Swarovski crystals!) and chain on the top, and they're ready to go. These are likely headed to the Red Lead sisters, but I know I'll be making more. If anyone's interested in them, let me know.

Yesterday I spent a day with my buddy Jen Starr and took her Ranger Layout Extravaganza Class. It's quite the class. We made some suggestions and a few tweaks. It was fun to take a class for a change! Now it's my job to pick the pictures to go with the pages and put 'em together.

This picture just makes me smile from ear to ear. Thanksgiving was so wonderful because we were all together-my parents, both my sisters...so all of the kids were together. So they suffer through my begging them for me to take a picture. This was on the first go-even the dog looked forward. How's that for luck!?!?

I also wanted to tell you about my friend Aleida Taddei-Thomas. She's a graduate of Ranger University, both Perfect Pearls and Ink/Embossing. She's extremely talented. She became as obsessed with my Bandanna Technique...she even created Bandanna Stamps from real Bandanna designs! Check out Aleida's Blog to see what wonderful things she creates-she also travels to teach. Here's the Bandanna Plaque I created...she's seen it and it's on its way to Aleida in Texas. Here's some closeups of the letters:

Before I get to the Beady Links, if you've not seen the Bandanna Plaque I made as a surprise for Wendy Vecchi, here it is:

It's not a surprise that it's been done in the only colors that Wendy uses: Vintage Photo and Faded Jeans (only teasing, Wendy!). I also picked up the key from somewhere...I liked its swirly looks and thought it would be neat to allude to it being the "key" to creativity...which Miss Wendy, as well as Jen, Aleida and the Red Lead Sisters Chris and Sharon have-all locked up! Check 'em out! And speaking of checking things out, enjoy the following Bead links from these talented artists. Enjoy the day!

• About.com Jewelry Making Give a double whammy of beads this holiday. Tammy has discovered a group that has great beaded jewelry to give and get that also gives to needy young women.
  Art Bead Scene Only a few days left to enter the Art Bead Scene challenge with the Coffee Haus theme! Get your caffeine on and get moving on a coffee related design using art beads!
• Bead Arts Cyndi is ga-ga over the pictures and information she found recently on Kanzashi, Japanese hair ornaments.
• Jewelry & Beading Two of Cyndi's pieces are in the latest issue of Jewelry Crafts.
• Naughty Secretary Club Grab a left over turkey sandwich and tune into the DIY Network Holiday Special this weekend with oodles of different craft projects. One with Jennifer Perkins making a chunky charm bracelet and necklace using decoupage.
• Pearlesq. Check out Robin's closeup photos of Distress Crackle Paint along with tips and techniques to get the best "crackin'" results!
• Savvy Crafter Last week Candie found herself in a maze of seed beads in Kathmandu. See pictures of her visit to the Indra Chowk bead market…
• Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! It's not too early to start stashing away those hand-made teachers' gifts for the Holidays! You will be glad you did later when the rush is on! Jean shows what she decided to make the teachers (shhh! It's a secret!) this year!
• The Impatient Blogger If you're feeling the holiday stress, take a moment to enjoy a delicious little gem of a movie that'll spark your creativity and make you smile. A kinda movie review from your pal Margot!

Closeup: Crackle!

I survived the "'round the county" dessert run and have been having fun with my buddy Jen Starr sending me "Elf Yourself" which is freaking hysterical! In the course of 20 minutes I had made one of my nieces, nephew and the new pup, Charlie, and there is also a "Scrooge Yourself" where I put Brian's picture in it...initially he didn't know who it was...! Here's another one, with Pearl, Oliver, Minnie and Foofie Toes, a.k.a. Moxie. It's off the charts!

Tim and I finally caught up on a new Tips and Techniques Sheet on the Distress Crackle Paint(tm). I am having so much fun playing with this paint. I know we've only scratched the surface on this so far...I get crazy imagining the possibilities. Here's some examples of some freshly painted tags. You'll note that the paint is initially quite shiny. It is self-leveling, minimizing the look of the paint strokes. I also like to paint in different directions or in a wavy pattern, such as here:

When the wavy paint dried, it created such a neat look, with the cracks "wavy"! How cool is the crackle? One thing that many people think is that the crackle they will achieve is such as that seen with other crackle products that are out there. Those pull away the paint to reveal what is underneath. This just cracks! Remember that the thicker is it applied, the bigger the cracks. Remember, though, that we're not talking the Mojave Desert-type of cracked earth-but crackled. It's a tactile, textural look and experience. Here's some closeups of crackle..they almost look like those things you see in magazines and on kids' shows: "Guess what this is?" Isn't it just neat to see hot it looks closeup? How I love my camera!

This is just too much fun! For some references to finished projects I've made with the Crackle Paint, look here, here and here on my blog! Have fun with family this weekend and hopefully have time to play and enjoy the time...

Crackly Hugs,

Robin

Thankfulness and Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake

I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving. I think not having kids and not being responsible for the cooking in my family, it is more surreal. That's why I so look forward to going to my sister's for her and her husband's wonderful hosting of our Thanksgiving.

Growing up we used basically had Thanksgiving at my Uncle Skip and Aunt Bet's house (my mother's brother). They had two girls that were within the same age as my sister Tracy and I. I was the oldest, Beth was 3 months younger, Barb a year younger, Tracy 2 years younger than myself and bringing up the rear, Stephanie, my grandmother's pride and joy (my mother had her when she was 30-gasp! My grandmother thought she should have stopped at the 2 of us, but when she was born, watch out! She was the apple of her eye-and for good reason!) We all lived in the same town, so went to the same schools once we got into middle school and high school. Beth has been married since she was out of college and has two handsome boys, one in college and the other in high school in the Raleigh-Durham area, and Barb with her beautiful girls, now about 14 and 12, living in the Allentown, PA area. Anyway, we always had Thanksgiving at their house, and Christmas was at my parents (we always thought we got the better deal!) The one thing I remember about Thanksgiving dinner was that we always had Green Giant Niblet Corn. It never changed...isn't that a weird thing to remember? And I always wondered what the heck Mincemeat pie was, that my cousin Barb loved. ugh.

Thanksgiving this year will be fun. My sister Tracy and her son Ryan will be there. I love it when the kids are all together, as they don't get to see one another as much. Alex 13, Madison 7 and Ryan almost 9-it will be good. I'll probably get some Webkinz stuff for them, as the younger ones are more into it, and Aunt Robin makes sure to either take care of Ryan's garden or send things to the kids in their Kinzmail. Madison is proud to tell me she has about 30 or 31 of them...!

My responsibility is desserts. My mom always makes a pumpkin pie. I used to cook and bake; one of the things on my lengthy "to do" list on the house is to update the kitchen. My oven, very outdated, is not working properly. That's okay, because the pies at Tinton Falls Pastry Chef are awesome. There has been a specific request this year, though. A Godiva(r) Chocolate Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory; my mom thinks I'm nuts to cave into the request, but hey-that's what aunts are for, am I right!? Brian's with his family for Thanksgiving this year (he'll be having Christmas with mine!) and I'm getting him a Sugar-Free Apple Pie from the All Seasons Diner. So, tomorrow, it's over the river and through the woods to: Eatontown, Tinton Falls and Freehold! That song just reminds me of my grandfather-who sang or whistled it throughout the year!

As much of a crabby pants that I can get from time to time (as we all can be), I am thankful that I have a job, a house over my head, a family (warts and all!), wonderful friends and a support group of people out there (you know who you are!) that makes me really smile and take a breath and just say: "Thank you!"

Thankful Hugs,

Robin

Fairy Wings and Beady Links

Hello and Happy Sunday. I'm enjoying the movie Fairy Tale: A True Story on the SciFi channel. I then sit on the computer and look up things to see what it's all about. IMDB is one of my favorite sources; Brian and I many times bet on who was or was not in a movie and then race to the site to see who is right (I hate to say it, but he usually is!).

I'm busy working on some things for the upcoming Holiday Hideaway my buddy Tim is having in a few weeks. I'm so looking forward to seeing so many of my friends in a fun, artistic and relaxing atmosphere...I love Prescott, AZ and the surrounding area.

Off to Dunkin' Donuts for my daily cappuccino and then back to my "stuff" (can't say what I'm doing, don't want to spoil the surprise!) Enjoy the beady links of the week!

• Art Bead Scene Pull up a Cup 'o Joe and warm up with our little gallery of coffee related bead treats made by the editors of Art Bead Scene


• Bead Arts A maple leaf on top of a maple leaf! Cyndi has created a necklace that features both a full sized and a miniature leaf. Can you spot the big leaf? :-)


• Jewelry & Beading Artist Wendy Van Camp has shared with us about her inspirations and creative process in making her beautiful wire and gem jewelry.


• Katie's Beading Blog Katie's been a busy blogger this week! Get links to instructions for a fun necklace & earring set, vote for your favorite thing to bead, and check out Katie's new CafePress shop!


• Naughty Secretary Club Have you seen the new issue of Altered Couture Magazine? Look for two pieces of jewelry by Jen and a 3 page spread about her sister Hope Perkins and her hand painted dresses.


• PearlEsq. Robin just wants to show you her nieces' new puppy Charlie, go "awwww!" and have a good smile.


• Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean shows a bracelet she made for the November Art bead Scene challenge: lots of fun--coffee is the focus!


• The Impatient Blogger Margot shares some thoughts about the transformative power of the creative force in this thought provoking post.

Fairy Wishes, Robin

Frustration & in Search of the Silver Lining

Frustration, also known in the thesaurus as: annoyance, bitter pill, blocking, blow, bummer, chagrin, circumvention, contravention, curbing, defeat, disgruntlement, dissatisfaction, downer, drag, failure, fizzle, foiling, grievance, hindrance, impediment, irritation, letdown, non fulfillment, non success, obstruction, old one-two, resentment, setback, thwarting, unfulfillment, vexation. The antonym is: encouragement.

It's one of those days that I'm hitting the veritable brick wall. Why do we do what we do? Is it ingrained in us, the 'ole work ethic, to keep on going, chugging along, reaching for that brass ring? It's on the days that I feel (pick a word above), I must become my own cheerleader. Rah, rah, sis boom bah (note, I was only a cheerleader when I was about 9 or 10 and that didn't last long!) That's what needs to be done. Otherwise, we'll just wither away on the vine. While the (see antonym above) is always appreciated, one must learn that others have not been brought up in the same universe as you have. What makes the most sense and what you would think would be the "best thing" is not always what happens. (Looking for the pom poms now...) If I can look in the mirror and say to myself that I did the best that I could do and did what I (plus me and myself) felt needed to be done to complete the day, then that's what matters (Insert cartwheel, flip and handstand here).

Don't get me wrong, there's still that devil sitting on my other shoulder, saying "stick it to them", "why bother?" and "what, are you stupid?" That's when one of my favorite idioms sticks in my head: "what goes around comes around". Or, as "My Name is Earl" says: KARMA. That's when I shake that devil's hand, go back to finishing what I'm doing and get a good night's sleep.

Pleasant dreams to you all!
and Good Karma! R.

Puppy Love!

Awwwww...that's all that I can say! This is my nieces' Alex and Madison's new puppy. They got him on Sunday. My nieces have always wanted a dog and I think it's great that my sister and brother-in-law finally "caved", although I think it was just a timing thing. He's a Peekapoo and is just adorable. I just had to share the pics. My buddy Nadine took this delectable picture of him. Here's another picture of the pup and Madison...she's not too happy, is she?!? His name first started out as Oliver, and names such as Bailey, Stanley, Elvis were bandied about, but the winner was Charlie. A nice two-syllable name for a cute as hell puppy. I wish them all the best with him. If I didn't travel like I did, I would like to get a dog again. I love my kitties, but something about a dog that can be just so cuddly and sweet. Hanging around with Foofie Toes, I miss the puppy kisses! It will make the upcoming Thanksgiving at my sister's all the more fun!

Puppy Hugs,
Robin

A Knotty Weekend!

As usual, the weekend is almost over-where does the time really go? I had a blast teaching a group of 9 women from MOCHA, the local Monmouth/Ocean County group of stampers the Knotted Macrame Necklaces. All they had to bring was an Ott Lite, a necessity when you're doing a class with a lot of little beads (I know there were a few from time to time cursing me out about the itty bitty beads!). Everyone really did a great job. I'm glad they all liked the bead mixes...I love to make them to go with specific focal beads. That's my excuse as to why I have so many beads; that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

The first pic shows Arlene, Jamie and Patti knotting away. Below is a close-up of Patti's finished necklace. I had some extra focal beads that I'd collected over the years and Patti picked that one. I get these beads and sometimes never seem to get them, so I offered a certain "pile" of them for sale back; I'm happier seeing them on some, even if it's not me, instead of being in a box. Arlene regaled is with her many true stories of her life. If you ever want to know what a golf ball and a duck have in common, ask Arlene! Here's Oksana on the right. Those that are not used to small beads probably wished they were wearing that magnifier. She had wanted to learn how to do this and her husband apparently thanked me for being able to show her. I'm sure other husbands were rolling their eyes at me when they saw a new craft...but this one you can wear...c'mon!
Yvette was a wild woman. She reminds me of...me! Once she got into the zone, she was on a mission to have a finished piece that she could wear home. She's got the sweater all picked out at home that she's going to wear to temple next week and now can't wait to get some more done. I know, I know, it's very addicting! I have to say, though, that this is one of the fastest ways to get a beautiful focal bead on a beaded necklace. That's why I have so many of these darned necklaces, with another one now a third of the way done!

Patti also did such a great job. They're going to be posting their finished pieces on their Yahoo group site, so I'll be sure to pull more to do a show and tell. I love to teach this class, so anyone interested, just give a holler.

Today "Foofie Toes" and her mommy, Nadine, are on their way down. I'm going to share my Ranger supplies for her class that she's teaching at Lasting Memories, in Somers NY. Although I've just showered, I know I'm going to be "showered" with doggie kisses. Oliver and Minnie know something's up, because I've been cleaning...little do they know!

Everyone have a very knotty, beady and/or inky week! Here's the Beady Links of the Week!

Art Bead Scene Cindy tells us about how she has merged some of her favorite obsessions (beads, books, and blogging) in her new Bead Lit Blog
Bead Arts Bead Arts brings you another artist profile, this time of Olivia Competente's gorgeous mixed media jewelry.

Katie's Beading Blog Check out this idea for a fun, versatile necklace and bracelet set using gemstones and Swarovski crystals.

Naughty Secretary Club In her quest for continuing education in the business world Jen attended a Women in Command breakfast where the key not speaker was jewelry designer Kendra Scott. Read the recap with oodles of tips on running a successful business.

PearlEsq. Robin's got more frames to show off from the recent Ranger U class and some tips and techniques on how to work with your stamps!

Savvy Crafter Candie crochets the day away with her students to make multi-strand necklaces. Bead one, Crochet two, anyone?!?!

The Impatient Blogger Did Margot finish spinning her daunting straw pile before her tropical getaway? Click here to find out and to read about the Swarovski Tucson Event this year!

Don't Frame Me In!

Hey, all! I've been going crazy at work...Excel sheets, numbers, addition, subtraction....yikes! Because math is not my forte, I always stress over it....so let's look at more frames from the recent Ink/EP Ranger U. I'm so glad every one's still letting me know what's going on. Inquiring minds want to know what all of the Ranger U grads are up to! If you are interested in having someone come teach at your local store, or if you want to find out if one of your local stores has certified teachers there, check it out here!

Here's Claudine Hellmuth's aquatastic frame! She worked with all different techniques on the tiles using the various types of Coordinating Adirondack(r) Colors...she used lots of Aqua/Pool/Stream, as well as some Juniper in there...and then she UTEE'd her little heart out. Here she is double gunning it with two Heatit(tm) Craft Tools! She created a "kitty" silhouette in the middle of the frame with Adirondack(r) Embossing Powder in Stream...it's so great how you can create all different effects with the same colors! The cute Maya Road crown tops it off and gives anyone who looks into the mirror the King Kitty treatment!

Here's one from the very talented (and bratty) Wendy Vecchi! I'm very proud of her not going to her usual color palette of choice, Vintage Photo and Faded Jeans...Wendy, do you have any other color Distress Ink? (hehehe) She did some great effects with Tim's Shabby Chic on chipboard and Distress Crackle Painted the Maya Road Scroll Corners. A neat little trick I showed her was with the little polka dot stamp. To "soften" the defined look of a texture or background stamp, after inking it, stamp off just the outside edges of the stamp on scrap paper. When you stamp it multiple times as a background, it won't look so "block-ey". This is a great technique I learned from the immensely talented Kevin Nakagawa of Stampscapes fame. If you can ever take a class from him, please do. There are so many neat little tips that I learned from him years ago that I still use all the time in all of my stamping projects.

Well, last, but not least for this post, here's Lynne Forsythe's beautiful frame. Lynne's from NH way, manager of the store Generations of Memories...so much fun and quite the spunky one! Lynne's got some wonderful vintage ribbons and lace, which she included in this frame, creating a wonderful collage of Grungeboard, chipboard and ephemera. You can't beat that...plus the flowers! Good job, Lynne!

I'm all ready for my class this Saturday. I love to pull out my beads and make bead mixes...once I get going, then I feel obligated to make them in other colors...just in case....! I hope these ladies will be ready for me...remember, you don't get inky, but man, those beads look tiny after you've been working with rubber! ;-)

Beady Hugs, Robin

On the Soapbox...

I usually don't like to get all "political", but tonight, I watched Michael Moore's most recent documentary Sicko-I usually take a lot of what he says with a grain of salt, but I have to say that this film was quite profound to me. Maybe because of the necessity of having to utilize my health care in the past few years as well as the ongoing changes of health care over my years of employment and the ultimate necessity of employers having to continue to review and change health care providers depending on cost. The ongoing confusion...generic? Non-generic? If you get a chance to see this film, do-if anything, whether you agree or not, it makes you think, and that's what counts.

One of the things that has really irked, surprised, astounded-pick an appropriate word, was a recent mailing I received from MY insurance company. A "voluntary" program...contact your doctor and see if he/she would agree to double your prescription. Thus, if you take 10mg, ask to get 20mg and if you call the number provided you will be sent (FOR FREE!?!?!) a pill splitter, thus extending your prescription an extra 30 days. On my one prescription, if it is indeed "splittable", I could save $180 a year...do you know how many beads that could buy? In doing a little bit of research, there is discussion about it, but it still amazes me that there is this whole rigamarole regarding prescriptions and that they are TELLING you to get a higher dosage. What is the deal? There just seems to be something wrong here.

Well, now back to our regularly scheduled programming. I had fun today with a chat room at Scrap-a-Faire; Tim's going to be on tomorrow, 5:00 Central Standard Time. I remembered when he did the chat last year. Tim was in NJ and he was at my computer, and the questions were coming at him fast and furious. I was reading and he was responding as fast as his hands could go. Today I sat and turned off the TV and typed, typed, typed (I am so thankful that I learned how to type in high school)! There's some neat deals that I'm tempted to take advantage of....but I'll try to be good!

Well, I can't believe it's basically Wednesday already...have a great day!

Soapy Hugs,
Robin

Monday, Monday, Bandanna Style!

Where did the weekend go? Even with the extra hour thrown in there, poof! It's Sunday and almost time for Desperate Housewives! I did get a lot done with my soldering, as planned. I'm on such a roll. I Photoshop Element'd a bunch of the letters from the various plaques I've made...I don't want to show the actual plaques because some of the intended recipients will see what they're getting!

For anyone interested, I can make these plaques customized in time for the Holidays...feel free to email me and I can give you my pricing. Each is custom-made and will be ready to hang! I do have fun making them.

I'm also so proud of my niece and her field hockey team! The Oceanport Chargers won their league and district championships on Saturday. I was able to see her play. She is the captain of the team and they are a very, very talented group of young ladies! Congratulations Alex (#16) and team!

This will be just another week of plugging away with paperwork and figuring out stuff for CHA and 2008...I can't believe it's around the corner!

Wishing everyone a good and productive week!

Robin

Beady Friday

Happy Friday! I'm going to making bead mixes tonight for a knotted necklace class I'm teaching the local stamping club. If anyone is ever interested in me teaching this, give me a holler! Then I'm determined to solder. On my way home I headed to my local bead store, The Birds and the Beads and as usual, I couldn't help myself. I somewhat restrained myself, but it was tough. So, now no food for the rest of the week and just pay the bills! lol...

This is one of my favorite necklaces, from one of the most awesome beadmakers out there, Kim Miles. I'm always astounded by the detail in her work and have a nice little collection of her beads.

Here's the beadblogger links of the week...check out the wonderful techniques, samples and insight from the beady ladies. Have a great weekend!

Here you go!

• Art Bead Scene Stop by Art Bead Scene this week to see the winner of the October challenge and the theme and prizes for the November challenge. We are sure it will "wake up" your creativity!
• Bead Arts Never throw anything out! Not even Chinese fortunes...
• Jewelry and Beading Blog Is it a trick or a treat? If you are passing out these beaded Halloween cards discovered by Tammy over at the Jewelry and Beading Blog, more than likely your friends will think they are the perfect treat this year. Plus, no calories or cavities!
• Katie's Beading Blog Are you selling the jewelry you make? Katie compiled a list of links to articles that are full of helpful tips and info. Check them out or just add yours to the list.
• PearlEsq. Robin's added another Technique of the Week, showing some fun ideas with Adirondack Alcohol Inks, Embossing Powders and Color Wash, all products that work as wonderfully on paper as for mixed media jewelry designs!
• Savvy Crafter Not sure what to do with that handful of cloisonne beads? Head over to Candie's blog for some inspiration!
• Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean just keeps loving to make those crazy little spiral seed bead bracelets. This one has a funny name!
• Stitch Austin / Naughty Secretary Club Jen writes for several blogs, one of which is for the Stitch Fashion Show and Indie Craft Bazaar that she produces. Stitch is Nov 10th at the Austin Convention Center and Jen blogged a roundup of all the amazing jewelry designers you will find at the show!
• The Impatient Blogger Got a restless streak a mile wide? Enjoy Margot's musings on how she's turned her 'creative adhd 'into a career. Impatient? Well, yes!