December 2010

This is crazy! We have had snowfall every day since December 1st! This type of snowfall is normal for oh, late January or February! Hopefully it will let up enough for me to do some Christmas shopping this weekend. This is what our yard looks like:





This is a pattern I beaded based on the accompanying photo. The colors were chosen by my program to best match the photo, but I'm not happy with the results. I'll be trying it again, but I'll change out the colors to make it closer to the photo.






The second pattern based on the next photo turned out better, though it went gray rather than the green/blue of the photos. I am also working on a series of patterns for cuffs based on textures and nature. I like how they're turning out and I think they'll be fabulous when they are beaded!

Starburst Snowflakes...

This is the latest cuff. It's Starburst Snowflakes and is 7" long and 1 1/2" wide with a three button and loops closure. The buttons have a pearl finish on the top and silver-tone shank. I love the matte cobalt blue with aurora borealis finish. Then I've added medium navy blue and a very pale blue along with a matte transparent white and crystal clear to create the stars.

I've created a lot of patterns lately, too. I've been fascinated with creating patterns from the photos from our Alaska trip. Then I went through photos from our trips up to Chautauqua Lake in NY and started a lot of patterns with those. Then I turned to the gorgeous flower photos I took this past spring and summer. And now I'm playing with natural patterns like those in quartz, marble and agate! It will take me forever to get through all these patterns, but it'll be a lot of fun! Currently, I am working on a pattern based on this photo:

Someday...

Someday I'm going to be able to create for a living. Well, that is what I'd like to do anyway. I've had a mental boost lately with a couple of good sales and when that happens, I feel like, yeah, I could do this for a living. I've wanted to bead as my livelihood for years, but there's always been that pesky little thing called money getting in the way. I'm just too old to be a starving artist.

I am having a creative problem lately...I can't seem to focus on one project at a time. I have so many ideas and patterns that I've created, it's tough to get through one because I'm thinking about the next. I've just finished a chocolate brown, cherry red and cream colored argyle patterned cuff, and I have a pattern for swirling water (based on this photo) that I want to work on, but then there's this streamer/confetti looking cuff I created a pattern for that is, of all things, based on a pillow Izzy had on "Grey's Anatomy". I've been seeing patterns for new cuffs in a lot of things lately, thus the lack of focus. I suppose there could be worse things...like no ideas at all.

Oh yeah, then there's taking pictures! I have three cuffs I haven't photographed or listed yet! Hopefully it'll be bright enough tomorrow to get some good photos.

New Patterns

I haven't posted any new pieces since my entry into the July EBW Challenge, but I am working on new patterns. OK, so they are for the August EBW Challenge "Art Deco", but the theme has really inspired me! I have about three different takes on the same geometric pattern using different color palettes from the Art Deco period. I would have loved to do something along the lines of the beautiful statuary and nudes from the period, but I just can't seem to translate them into beadwork. I think I'll have to work on that some more...