Art With Heart, Cycle 3 VOTE NOW! #16!!! Viewer's Choice

It's that time again!!!!  What time, you ask?  Time for the Art with Heart Cycle 3 Viewer's Choice contest!!!

Not too long ago, ya'll helped me win the Cycle 2 Viewer's Choice Contest.  Let's see if we can do it again!!!!

My piece is Number 16, and it's a complete set: necklace, earrings, and bracelet.  Here's some pics:

Falling Leaves

A not quite as good pic, from a different angle...

I had a blast making this, and the colours are just so me...  I love them.  Here's a close-up of the bracelet:

An embellished spiral rope...

And the earrings:

Simple was definitely the way to go with these....

I love the spiral rope pattern.  It's so easy to embellish, and so much fun to play with (and easy to do, as well!)

I hope you'll go vote!  I'd appreciate it an awful lot!

Jewelry weekend

I had a good weekend!  And now I should be reading essays, but I'm not feeling it, so I'll do them later.  Instead, I want to blog about the fun stuff I made!  :D

So, I started last week playing with the resin beads I won as part of the Art with Heart Viewer's Choice contest (thanks again, everyone who voted!)  I absolutely love these beads, and it's especially cool, because I doubt I would ever have bought them for myself.  Here they are:

Resin Beads from Happy Mango Beads

So, I've been pondering these beads for awhile now, and the very cool Softflex: Trios™ Color Wire Set I received as well, in the Harmony colors (I'm so going to have to get some more of this stuff.  It's great!!)

Finally, I decided it would be fun to make myself a set.  So I did.  Here's all 3 pieces:

Resin Jewelry set

  I absolutely love the earrings and bracelet:

They look like little purses! (I have since been told, by my students, that they're reminiscent of Jolly Ranchers Watermelon)

So feminine and light!!! I tell you, it weighs nothing! (and the bracelet, according to my dad, looks like candy...)

But the necklace, I just don't know about.  I mean, I like it.  I just don't know if I like it for me. You know?  Here's a close-up:

It is a lot of fun, this necklace, but I just don't know.  This one may make it into the shop...

So that was the week.  This weekend, I worked on bracelets that some ladies I work with ordered.  I'm not done with the one order (4 African Helix bracelets for Christmas gifts) but I got a pretty good start on it.  Here's some of what I did:

I love the topaz shades against the mossy green here.  Such a fun color combo!

Black with silver. The customer I made this for wants it to match a necklace she already has.  I'll find out this week if she likes it!

Something I'm playing with--a Spiral rope with gradations of color to emulate a blooming tree. I kinda like it!

 Here's a close-up of that last one:

I love Spiral Rope.  For all that it's a relatively simple stitch, it's so variable!  There's literally, from what I can tell, no limit to what you can do with it!  I plan to play with some more spirals this week, while also working on some more helix bracelets.


Hope you like the new work!

Biggish day for lil' ol' me!!!

So, last week, as I begged my boss and all the office ladies to vote for my Art with Heart piece (which they did!  So, yay!!!) they also asked to see what else I made.  So, today, or I guess, yesterday now, I took all my work in so they could see.  And guess what!  I sold a pair of earrings, and have orders for five, (yes, FIVE) African Helix bracelets. YAY!!!!!!!

I know it's not much, but it makes me happy! :)  And now, I get to play on Artbeads and buy some new seeds and druks. Whoo-hoo!!!!!

I also ordered the kit for Art with Heart Cycle 3, and I cannot WAIT to get that sucker!  Here's a link; check out those colours. How gorgeous are those!  And that focal!  I'm tempted to get a few of those just to have on hand. I can feel a fabulous piece in the offing!

Well, that's it for my quick update.  Look for some new pieces in the shop in a few days, and have a great weekend!

R.Wilson

What's been happenin'?

Well, I haven't done much specifically jewelry-related lately, but I have been playing.  I've decoupaged a table and a box, my iPhone's case (twice, actually) and I made a whole bunch of cards.  Plus, you know, there's that pesky "real job" business that I've been trying to take care of.  And, speaking of that, I just got another class!  woot!

So, what's in store for Definitive Designs?  Well, I have this multi-chain earring idea stuck in my head, and I'm dying to try some steampunk-y stuff... And, I want to try making frames for some of my work, so they can be displayed on the wall. It's something I've been pondering for ages for the pieces I have in my own collection, and Melody, over at Brave Girls Club blogged on it a few days ago. So I'm feeling inspired!

I also joined Creating the Hive, and have been very much enjoying getting to know people over there. And thanks to all of your help, I won the Viewer's Choice portion of Beads-n-Blessings' Art with Heart Contest.  So, you know, go me! (and you!!) Cycle 3 of that contest will be starting soon, and I'm very much looking forward to working with that kit, as well.

So, that's just a quick update for you!  Hope you're all well!

R.Wilson

What a week!!

My, my, my, what a week it has been!  And you know, this week started out all sluggishly and stuff, what with the holiday and days off and really havin' trouble getting back into the swing of things.  Some of my students really had a bit of a hard time; and I honestly can't blame them... Long weekends are nice. But, that all worked out in the end.  And now, it is Saturday, September 11th, and we all have to remember the horrible events of 9 years ago. Not that we could forget.  I mean, come on--the first major attack on US soil in how many years?  Yeah, we're not gonna forget that.  So, if you haven't yet, take a few minutes today and think back. What were you doing that day?  Yeah, for my generation, this is like Kennedy's assassination or the moon-landing for our parents' generation--we all know where we were and exactly what we were doing when we heard the news.  And we'll never forget.

Now, on to happier thoughts! And back to my week!  So, this was the last week of Beads-n-Blessings Art with Heart Viewer's Choice contest, and I have awesome friends who helped me win that!!!  And I have to say, I am in some gorgeous (!!!!) company!  I mean look at those pieces!!!  I want the Twister necklace (well, really, I'd rather know how to make the Twister necklace myself...)  So hey, I have bragging rights now!  And as a friend pointed out to me yesterday, I am now an Award-Winning Artist (yeah, I have trouble really taking that seriously... LOL! after all, I'm still working on considering myself an artist!)

And, I managed to complete 3 projects this week!  The new phone case, the patchwork table, and another piece that I'm still waiting on it drying fully.  I'll post pics and the story on that as soon as I get it all done.

And, I woke up today to learn that my little table has been featured on Creating the Hive!  How cool is that!!!!! And people like it !

Okay, yeah, I'm having a "They like me! They really like me!" drama moment here...



And I think I'll just leave you with that.  Have a great day!

RLW

OMG I AM SOOOOOOOO CLOSE!!!! Please Help!!!!!

Okay, Art with Heart's Cycle 2 Beading Viewer's Choice contest ends in exactly 1 day.  I am so close to winning that!  Please help!  Here's the link:

http://www.beads-n-blessings.blogspot.com/

My piece is #12, the watch, which I had a blast making and I really love. It has danglies, even!!!! And the best part? Well, the best part you can't see in the pics--it has a magnetic clasp!  So easy peasy!!! No more fumbling with silly clasps that aren't meant to used one-handed!

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So, please, please, please, with cherries (or a fruit of your choice) on top, help me out with this if you can, and ask your friends to vote, if you wouldn't mind (yes, I'm annoying, I know...)

Love ya!

RLW

VOTE VOTE VOTE! Please?

Art with Heart Cycle 2 is finished, and the pieces are posted!  Mine is a very cool watch (it has a magnetic clasp--awesomeness!!!!) I call it "No time to be Blue" and I love love LOVE the dangly bits!

Here's some pics:

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So here's the link to vote, and my piece is #12.  I had a great time making the piece, especially because I had to ponder for so long before I got inspiration on this one!

So go vote!  Please? Pretty please? With, like, cherries on top and stuff? LOL!

Thanks!

Rana

I'm stumped...

So, I've found I enjoy entering beading contests.  I like that someone else chooses the beads and other materials, and I have to figure out what to do with that kit.  I've entered 3 so far, the Use the Muse IV contest back in the spring, and both Art with Heart contests.  Use the Muse and Art with Heart Cycle 1 are both complete, and I had a lot of fun working on those pieces. Here they are:

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So now I'm working on Art with Heart 2.  And I'm clueless...It's a beautiful kit, but... yeah...  I got nothin'... Here's a link to the project kit. Pretty, yes?  The focal bead is gorgeous, that blue teardrop. So I can't decide if I should do links for a necklace, or if I should do some bead weaving or what.

I'll figure something out.  After all, I have until August 18th to get it all done!

R.Wilson

What have I been working on?

Well, mostly, I've been working on school. What with four classes, I'm a bit busy at the moment.  But when I'm not doing that, I am still making jewelry.  Still haven't sold any from the Artfire shop, but jewelry making is something of a reprieve from real-world work for me, plus it's fun!  I haven't made any more contest pieces, but I have entered the Art with Heart Cycle 2 contest, and the kit looks great! I should get the kit sometime next week.  I've made a number of key chains in the last few weeks. Those were fun.  Actually, I made the first of the key chains ages ago, but they didn't work out to well.  At least, not yet. I'm not quire ready to give up on that idea--key chain bracelets.  You know, to make things easier when your hands are full. So when that fell through (or, more properly, fell apart), I made the first of the more traditional key chains I've been working on.

[caption id="attachment_59" align="alignleft" width="225" caption="The first of the "real" key chains. This is mine, with a Chinese dragon focal. "][/caption]

I've been using it for a while now, and it seems to be working out fairly well. For the next batch, I started out just trying to make something nifty, then remembered I had the animals from my nephew's necklace left over, so I started what my friends are calling the "Safari Collection." I've already managed to sell two, both to friends...

[caption id="attachment_82" align="aligncenter" width="470" caption="On the left, Loving Giraffes, in the center, the Lion!, and on the right, a pretty keychain I made with a fancy jasper nugget, and the Oraphant. "][/caption]

I've also been making lanyards, which has been a LOT of trial and error.  he first was actually one of my very first projects as a beader, and admittedly, it wasn't very good.  Hadn't ever used thread, didn't know how to make a necklace without a clasp, it was heavy, and the silly thing kept coming apart.  I remade that one a few months ago with actual chain (bright copper, very cool looking, totally impractical) and it actually FELL apart in the middle of the hallway at SPC (managed to find all the beads, though... go me!) By that time a friend had requested a lanyard, and I had already been using thread for bead-weaving, so I much more comfortable with it.  And really, for lanyards, it works SO much better than anything else...

[caption id="attachment_83" align="aligncenter" width="342" caption="The top images are the lanyards I created for a friend, and the bottom are mine--on the left, the frog focal, and on the right, the flowers..."][/caption]

Since those lanyards, I've made a few more, and I'm actually designing one for my best friend now (who just got a new job, go Ame's!), and I have a plan I want to try for my other BF--Sara the nurse.

I've also been working on some earrings, and hope to get pics made and have the pieces posted on my Artfire page.  And I'm in the middle of an African Helix bracelet.  I found a tutorial for it from Auntie's Beads designer Karla Schafer (here). Here's some pics:

[caption id="attachment_84" align="aligncenter" width="339" caption="On the left, the current bracelet in progress (you have to build it on a pencil or dowel); on the right, a completed bracelet I made for my sis-in-law..."][/caption]

I love this stitch.  It's kind of a pain in the butt to work, since you have to build the bracelet on a wooden dowel (I used Karla's suggestion to use a pencil, and I've since marked out the inches on the pencil, so I can more easily control how long the finished product is.  A full bracelet, though, takes the whole pencil.) And, you have to pull each stitch WAAAAAAAAAAAAY tight, so when I get to finishing off the bracelet, I'm going to try wrapping my index finger in medical tape, to protect it from the thread (yeah, I got thread cuts... in fact, I had to stop working on it to let my finger heal up, and then got sidetracked by homework... :() I've also tried a pair of earrings, and I'm going to continue that effort, since the first pair ended up being completely different lengths (that's why I scored inches on the pencil...)

So there ya have it--the major projects I've been working on... School's out in  about a month, so I'm hoping to have more time to work on some things. I have a lot of ideas floating around inside my head, and they tend to not leave me alone until I get them created. Very annoying....

Have a great day!

RLW

Art With Heart Viewer's Choice Contest!!!!!

Hey there!  Please vote for my piece in the Art With Heart Viewer's Choice Contest!  There are a lot of gorgeous entries, and I'm a bit humbled by the company I get to keep... but hey!  You're reading my blog, so vote for me!!! :)

The voting page is here, and my piece is number 17. I've included more pics below.  Voting ends on June 16th!

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Thanks!

RLW

End of Term Mania

Well, the end is nigh. the end of the session, that is.  And as usual, I can't get motivated.  So instead, I started working on a beading project!  Cuz, you know, I don't have ENOUGH work, let's make more! I mentioned in my last post that I had finished the piece for the Art with Heart contest, but the piece I ultimately created wasn't AT ALL what I had originally planned.  Normally, I'm okay with that.  But this time, the idea of the original design just will not leave my head! The original plan was to have the cab-and-filigree focal hanging from a beaded arrow-shaped bib-type necklace thingy... I can see it in my head, I promise. And it was awesome!  But as I worked on that piece, as will often happen, I just kept changing my mind and redesigning. So I ended up with the crazy cuff-type bracelet instead (speaking of that piece, I still need to name it.  I suck at names...)

So, this idea is stuck in my head, and I'm trying to realize it in actual beads.  I've started with a square stitch, done in sections to make it good and tight.  It's about 4 inches long, and every few rows, I'm decreasing it by a few beads.  The kinda fun part about this one, though, for me, is that I'm literally using every color seed bead in size 11 that I have.  All of them.  Even the black.  Initially, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it, but the more I play with it, the cooler it looks. Now, to consider the focal.  I have a vague idea that I'd like to play with the skulls (I have a lot of skull beads.  I love them... apparently, it's kinda my thing...), but I really want to do all the shades of pink with my little wooden skulls.  Another project I can see in my mind, and let me tell ya, it looks cool.  But what to do with this one?  Since I'm totally not sure, and I have a feeling this will be an ongoing, evolving project, I'll just have to keep pondering. In the meantime, I have a request for a lanyard I need to ponder, and several sets of essays and whatnot to grade over the next week.  Oh, and lets not forget getting ready for summer session! oi....

RLW