Friday, September 16, 2011

Too little time...

My sincerest apologies to all the Bead Soup Blog Party participants and especially to my partner JJ Jacobs and swap hostess Lori Anderson.

I've been working 14+ hours a day on a new job and suffering creative block.  As a result, I just haven't been able to finish creating anything in time for the big reveal tomorrow.  :(

I still have a couple of designs in the works on my bead board and I'll post them here when I've managed to complete them.  I'm just sorry it won't be in time!

Friday, September 2, 2011

"Octavia" and new tutorial!

My latest tutorial, Byzantine Triad Chainmaille Weave is now live!  This chainmaille weave is a variation on the Byzantine chain weave and it is necessary to have previous experience with Byzantine in order to be able to construct Byzantine Triad.




"Octavia" is my newest piece of jewelry, and my first major piece of jewelry since my second son was born more than three years ago.  It sure is good to be back creating again!  She was constructed in the Byzantine Triad chainmaille weave using 14kt gold-filled rings and top quality rainbow obsidian beads.  I've always loved movies/shows based on ancient Rome and when I devised this variation of the Byzantine chainmaille weave it reminded me of the elaborate jewelry worn by the women of ancient Rome.

Octavia the Younger (69 BC – 11 BC), also known as Octavia Minor or simply Octavia, was the sister of the first Roman Emperor, Augustus (known also as Octavian)...One of the most prominent women in Roman history, Octavia was respected and admired by contemporaries for her loyalty, nobility and humanity, and for maintaining traditional Roman feminine virtues. (Wikipedia)

Both "Octavia" and the "Byzantine Triad Chainmaille" tutorial are available in my Etsy shop now!

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Just a quick update!

So I've been a bad blogger...but I do have an excuse!  :D

Seriously, the summer is so busy for me since we go camping every weekend and the internet connection there is just about as fast as molasses flowing uphill in January.  ;)

But I did want to post that I received my Bead Soup package of beads from my swap partner, JJ Jacobs!  I haven't had a chance to take a pic yet, but I'll get one up asap.  This little batch of beads will really be pushing me out of my comfort zone for reasons that I'll elaborate on once I can show you the beads themselves.  It should be lots of fun though...I just hope I can do them justice!

Another thing that I wanted to mention is that my newest tutorial "Byzantine Triad Chain Weave" will be coming out very soon...as soon as I get the final touches done on the pdf!  Look for it in my Etsy shop by the end of the week.  :)

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Hello world!

Welcome to my brand new blog! Here you'll find posts about the creative things I'm up to, as well as links to my tutorials, items for sale, etc.

As indicated up top, my creative doings are quite diverse! Some of my creativity is expressed through polymer clay and various fiber arts such as dyeing, felting, spinning and knitting. I also have several wire and chainmaille tutorials available through my Etsy store alongside my finished jewelry and polymer clay art!

I've been very busy the last few years raising my two young boys, but now that they're a bit older I've got some time to get back into my creative things so look for new tutorials coming up over the next few weeks! :D