Wednesday 28 August 2013

Indian Creek Art Glass


A few months ago (probably more!) I was lucky enough to win a giveaway by Julie of Indian Creek Art Glass on her blog. I can't tell you how excited I was. All those gorgeous lampwork beads...all mine!

Well, I got in contact with Julie, and she very kindly and quickly sent my parcel full of treasure. But...after a while, the package was sent back to Julie! I gave her the wrong address by accident, and boy, did I feel stupid...

Julie very kindly sent a replacement which I received a few days ago. WOW! Lots and lots of beads...


Julie sent me a huge string full of gorgeous spacers. There are a few pairs I'm going to use for earrings, and I love using mismatched beads in bracelets. There's everything from pretty pastels to dark, rustic beads. The striped orange pair and the ivory and blue are my favorites...


The parcel was full of a mix of spacers and Julie's disc beads. They're all simple, pleasing shapes, and have a lovely organic feel. But the real beauty is in the extra detail Julie adds. It seems like each of the little spacers has something extra special...a flattened edge, an extra flash of silvered glass, or swirls of color. I love them!

Julie's disc beads are a great example of that subtle detail. Check out that 3 disk bead. Red circle on one side...




And orange on the other! The two gray ones are going to be earrings, I think. I might use the larger one as a button clasp or maybe connectors?

 
I can't say thank you enough to Julie. She was very generous and understanding after my little mistake...which we will not speak of anymore. :-) Now it's time to bead!

Sunday 11 August 2013

The Beading Glass - Nature for August

There's a new issue of The Beading Glass for August. It's nature themed and packed with beautiful designs and inspiring artists, including some of my all time favorites. I hope you'll enjoy reading!

Saturday 10 August 2013

Giveaway winners announced!

The giveaway is now closed and I've chosen 3 winners with a random generator. Thank you all for entering my giveaway! Here are the lucky winners...


Wendy Smith

Gill Snape

Cory Tompkins


The winners have been notified by email, so check your junk folders! Your personal discount codes are there. If you haven't received the email, let me know, and I'll send a new one.

Thanks again for entering!

Monday 5 August 2013

Giveaway for three!

I've had a fun idea for a little while and with a variety of new beads in Beady Eyed Bunny, it's the perfect time! So here's how it works...




CLOSED


I'm giving away 3 discount codes to 3 lucky winners. The discounts will be 10%, 20%, and 25%. Plus each winner will receive an extra freebie in their order! Beads for free! Does it get better?

All previous customers of my shop will be entered into the draw. If you're not a returning customer, you can put your name in the hat by commenting on this post.

Gain an extra entry by going to my shop and choosing your favorite item. Come back here and leave another comment letting me know what it is.

Make sure you leave your email address or have your email address on your blogger profile. I must have a way to contact you!

Simple! Good luck!

Winners will be announced here and on my Facebook page.




Saturday 3 August 2013

Fun with clay

July turned out to be an incredibly busy month. That left me with little time to blog and share with you what I've been up to. Between custom orders in my shop and squeezing in a camping trip, I've been making lots of new polymer clay beads. There are the old favorites - bunnies, birds, and bright colors, but I've also had a little adventure making more rustic beads. I love, love, love rustic beads and have always leaned towards that style in my beads.

Let's start with cute and colorful. Besides bunny beads, I've started making a new style - guinea pigs!




And since we've had a few delightfully Autumnal days already here in England, I couldn't resist making a few Autumn pieces. The little birds remind me of apples. They're luscious apple green with touches of russet and flecks of yellow for a mottled look. Like real ripe apples!



These next ones have beautiful colors like Autumn leaves. They were made to resemble batik prints and vibrant silks. The first pair has a bright yellow base with rust red and a bold splash of black.

The second pair is lime green with a touch of acid yellow and rust red. They're both printed with floral filigree designs and perfectly lightweight for earrings.




And now for those rustic beads I promised! Not only have I been making beads, but I've caught a bit of a bug for headpins, and connectors...and chandeliers, and just about anything I can make out of clay! I had my first try at a double sided bead. Again with that beautiful floral filigree print, but this time with dark, rich colors - purples, blues, and raspberry reds.



The headpins  have been lots of fun to make. The possibilities seem endless, and I love the organic shapes. They're all on solid brass wire. The second pair below is one of my favorites. The colors are subtle, but there's something deliciously earthy about them. They remind me of little chunks of wood covered in moss. I've printed them with Celtic-styled swirls and circles. I can just imagine a little fairy carving them long ago...





These headpins are a little bit different. They have a similar floral filigree print, but I've added a brass metal coating to these and just a hint of color with bright red and yellow.



Ok, I know this is probably a picture overload at this point, but I promise I'm almost done! I've been playing with new techniques. I had this idea to make some little donut beads with printed sides. I came up with these faux ivory beads. They have shades of brown, orange, and touches of mossy green to resemble old, worn pillars or pottery.





These last few beads all came from the same idea. I love the combination of blue and brown, and since I've had birds on the brain recently, I had to make some nests. This first one says "whisper" above the eggs.

 



I made a few Southwester styled pieces with simple carvings and patterns. This is one of them - a pair of rustic daisy chandeliers.





Phew! That's not everything, but some of my favorites. I hope you liked them too!