Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Gem and Bead Storage

If you are looking for the Bead Soup Blog Party, please click here. 

While participating in the Clean-Up, Fix-Up Challenge, I had to find ways to store some of my gemstones and beads.  Whenever I purchased gemstones, I would keep them in the bag from the store or gem show and stuff it in to a large shoebox (no pic of this mess, thank goodness).  Soon, I had no idea what I actually had.  After much searching through hardware, bead and department stores, I finally found a solution - boxes with bottles inside.  I found these boxes at a small bead shop and at Walmart.


These boxes and bottles come in two sizes.  The shorter boxes are great for the smaller beads or small amounts of beads.  The taller boxes work for larger gemstones or a larger amount of small beads.  I further organized by sorting the bottles by color in the boxes.   


I also discovered that I could hold the box and bottles to the light and look through to see the color of the beads.  This makes finding the stones I need or auditioning for color much easier.  I also put a sticker on the bottle lids showing the kind and price of each bead, which saves time in pricing a finished piece of jewelry. (Hint:  Put the sticker on the jar, not the lid, as the lids can get mixed up. Don't ask me how I know.)


The boxes stack together and fit neatly in my desk drawers or on shelves.  So one storage issue solved. 

Organize for creativity,
Carol     

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Bead Soup Addendum

If you are here to visit the Bead Soup Blog Party, please go here.

I have beads left in my soup, so I am still coming up with ideas.  First these sparklers have been planned for a while but are just now finished.  Perfect for a prom or special night on the town?

 
Then I decided that the dragonfly necklace from my Bead Soup needed some earrings.  So pulling out more of the blue beads and a couple of the small gold flowers from the soup, I put these together. 


I think they coordinate without trying to compete with the necklace.  What do you think?


I still have the black buttons with the rhinestone centers that I am trying to fashion in to a bracelet.  I just can't figure out how to make them sit properly.  Stay tuned to see how that turns out. 

Keep those creative thoughts,
Carol 


Saturday, May 10, 2014

Bead Soup Blog Party

It is now time for the Reveal of the finished jewelry in the 8th Bead Soup Party hosted by the lovely Lori Anderson.  The idea is to be paired with a partner, send each other a gorgeous bead soup that will stretch the imagination, make some fabulous jewelry with the bead soup you receive and share on the Reveal day.  This year there are nearly 500 participants so if you like jewelry, you can view to your heart's content.

I was honored to be paired with Cathy Buckley, a mixed media jewelry artist, at Cat's Meow.  Here is the bead soup, with some of my lampwork beads and handmade clasp, that I sent her.  Can't wait to see what she has done with it. 
  
 
And here is the Bead Soup I received from her.  Lovely gold, black and brown components that are definitely different than what I am used to using.
 

 So here is the first piece that I created.  I took 2 of the fan shaped pieces and drilled a few extra holes to be able to join them in a new way and wired a bead to the top.  Then using the rest of the animal print beads I finished the bracelet and added the clasp.



Then here is the second piece I made, although it is the one that I have pondered since first seeing the dragonfly.  The whole bead soup reminded me of Art Deco pieces I have seen.  So that was my inspiration.  But I have to say that this piece changed several times before I finished it.  These blue beads were not my original plan, but when auditioning choices they won out.


I still have more beads and will be adding a pair of earrings on here later today.

Hope you have enjoyed your visit to my blog and the Bead Soup Party.  If you would like to see more, go HERE for the list of participants.  

Thanks for stopping by and keep creating,
Carol    

Bead Soup Reveal coming!

Building suspense for the Bead Soup Party reveal today! ...


Really, I am not quite ready.  So please come back a little later today to see what I have cooked up. 
Thanks for your patience.

Love to create,
Carol


Sunday, May 4, 2014

Finished Project

In case you are looking for the Bead Soup Party results, Lori Anderson, the organizer, has delayed the party till next Saturday.  So please come back on May 10 to see the results of this jewelry challenge. 

In the meantime, I have another project to share.  My sister had a big decade birthday so I had to make something special just for her.  She is a great seamstress and is on the road a lot.  I had been contemplating this travel sewing caddy for a while and this seemed like the perfect time to make it. 

It has zippered pockets, pencil slots and a sleeve to hold patterns and such.  The caddy holds a lot of tools, thread, and pins necessary for handwork.  It folds up compact to drop in your tote bag or purse to use for projects on the go. 

 
I found this sewing themed fabric - how appropriate is that.  Striped fabric makes great binding and the interior fabric is bright red.  What's not to love?  So this has been mailed off to the birthday girl.  I hope she will enjoy it and find it useful and maybe remember her sis when she sees it.   

And since I liked this caddy so much, I just made one for myself.  Right down to the same fabric.  Just a little perk for me.

Keep creating,
Carol

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