Hello Everyone!Welcome to Fini Friday!It's a day when many end their work week and look forward to a few days off! I, too, am looking forward to some time to relax! I have not had an overabundance of patience today, for no specific reason that I can fathom. I decided that this ties in perfectly with Fini Friday as one of the ideas behind showing you-all my creative process was to show the good, bad and the frustrations!So! Here it is...the source of a bit of my frustration today....
Doesn't that look so sweet and innocent? Hardly a thing to be frustrated about, I know... This was originally inspired by a celebration of Spring and I do love the soft colours, flowers and sparkly of the Swarovski crystals! This is a simple bracelet design and I think that is adding to my dissatisfaction. Something so simple shouldn't be taking so long to grow into completion! Yet, you can see, on the left-hand side, that the cable was cut too short (kinking, crimping and other problems are to blame) and so I'll need to restring and recrimp all of this again. And so I have decided I am going to let the frustration go and leave the creation be for now and return to it another time.As a finish to this post, I have a set of old friends in new digs to show you! The earcuff:Title: Fire FaeIngredients: Swarovski crystal (Fire Opal), Czech glass, antique brass-coloured copper wire, gold-plated metal earcuff.
Title: Fire FaeIngredients: Swarovski crystal (Fire Opal), Czech glass, antique brass-coloured copper wire, hypo-allergenic surgical steel earwires.
These earrings and earcuff creations would make a lively and unconventional ensemble! Interestingly enough, they are both in my Etsy shoppe now!So, here we are, at the end of the post and looking forward to whatever our week-ends hold!I wish you much fun, warmth and beauty and I'll see you on Monday!Ciao!
Hello Everyone!Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday!I have more Squinkies to show off as well as reacquainting you with an old friend viewed in new ways!The Squinkie creations are both earring pairs and one happily coincides with the Fusion Beads March Blog Challenge for today!
Today's Blog Challenge is to make a piece inspired by an animal and here is my contribution!
Title: Penguin Pair
Ingredients: Squinkie Penguins, Bali silver, Czech glass, metal, surgical steel earwires.
I love the fact that these penguins are two different colours!Title: Pas de DeuxIngredients: Squinkie Penguins, Bali silver, Czech glass, metal, surgical steel earwires.
I'm so thrilled with the title! It is an old ballet term that popped right into my head as I was pondering this creation! It is literally translated from French as "steps of two", and is a type of duet in ballet! Awesome!And now, an old friend! You might remember this post where I shared some of the nifty backgrounds I picked up on my adventures out and about! I've already found a creation that is a natural match for that wonderfully vibrant sun and moon background!Here he is....Title: A Little BattyIngredients: Hand-carved boxwood flying bat ojime, fine pewter bat (Green Girl studios), Czech glass, Swarovski crystal, metal.
The focal 
The clasp and other detail...
Does this look spookily fabulous against that background?By the way, all of the small-linked segments are 13 links in length! Isn't that fabulous?!So, there you have it, all sorts of animals abounding today!All of these will be up in my Etsy shoppe by tomorrow!See you Friday!Ciao!
Hello!! Welcome to Magical Monday and the work week for many!I figured humor and beauty would be greatly appreciated on this day and so I've found some humorous photos and a beautiful video to share with you today!I feel like this could be a good view of life and the perspective of being the architect of your life....
Personally, I think this elephant is wise. Why not use the resources you have at-hand (or perhaps at-trunk?), rather than fighting everyone else for a spot at the river?...And I just love the look on it's face as the photo was taken!
This is just beautiful to me! Seeing the tiger in such graceful, powerful motion, projected all around Paris on a wonderful contrast of backgrounds is just awesome! As is the fact that someone(s) thought of this idea and made it happen! Clicky for video!.So there you have it!Have a fabulous Monday and see you for Whimsy Wednesday!Ciao!
Hello Everyone!Welcome to Fini Friday!!I've had a busy and productive latter part of this week and I hope the same can be said for you-all!I did take some time for a WalkAbout today and I have a few nifties I picked up on my adventures to show you!
I found two sheets of scrapbooking paper that I just adore and that you will likely see as backdrops in future photos of creations! The beautiful midnight blue paper in the background is full of stars and moons and so forth! Just like the night sky! The nearer paper is has a small batch of faux old medicinal labels on it. I love all the textures and colours in this one! I'm even pondering what I might do with this should it prove to be too "busy" of a backdrop for my jewelry creations! YAY OPTIONS!The little bits of metal you see in the middle are scrapbooking brads. They are very similar to rivets that are used to secure metal, leather and etc. I've a few ideas for those and have wanted to play with them for some time, so now I have them and that adventure can begin! Stay tuned to see what I do with them!In excellent Fini Friday fashion, I finished the bracelet I had laid out for my friend's breast cancer fundraiser I mentioned a few Whimsy Wednesdays ago! I'm pleased with how it grew into completion and am happy to share it with you-all now!Title: Adventures in Healing and GrowthIngredients: Hand-made (by me!) pink ribbon, Swarovski crystal heart (rose), rose quartz, amethyst, Czech glass, sterling silver, lead-free pewter, upcycled metal chain.
Rose quartz is thought to be a healing stone and legend has it that amethyst helps with healing, spiritual guidance and celestial connection. the rose in the round bead on the right and leaf on the left symbolize the cycles of life and growth! The rose is a mature flower and the leaf is a sign of growth and collector of life force (sunlight!). I actually cut and hand-stitched the pink ribbon in the center! Isn't it wonderful!?! And, this creation is eco-friendly as the chain is recycled from a vintage necklace! So much nifty! This and two pairs of earrings are all ready to be delivered tomorrow! I'm excited to think that these creations may be of some help to those who are in the middle of a rough patch of their life adventure! And with that, I wish you a lovely, warm and wonderful weekend!See you on Monday!Ciao!
Hello Hello!Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday!I hope the weather where you are is as beautiful as it is here!I've two creations to show you that were inspired by the Fusion Beads March Blog Challenge and also enabled me to play-yet again- with wire!I am proud to show you this creation that was inspired by the Fusion Beads Blog Challenge to create a ring! I've a good bit of experience with wire-wrapped rings and so I wanted to challenge myself by using something that had no holes or obvious means of securing it to the wire-wrapping of the ring. I found a lovely glass cameo in my studio stock and decided to play with it and the wire! I'm so pleased with how it grew into completion! Have a look!Title: Lady in WhiteIngredients: Glass cameo, antiqued copper wire.
And a view of the right side...
I love the contrast of colours and styles. Some of the wire-wrapping pulls this a bit towards the Steampunk style, which is fabulous! This ring and it's colours are reminiscent of the in-between time of warm sky and rich earth-tones, just before the little shoots of green peek through the ground!And speaking of green peeking through...I created this pair of earrings on the same day as the Faerie Lanterns. To me, these earrings celebrate both Saint Patrick's Day and Spring!Title: Forest JewelsIngredients: Czech glass, glass, Artistic wire, gold-plated surgical steel earwires.
I love the mixtures and textures in these earrings! The mixture of greens, the texture of translucent, faceted glass with opaque and variegated textures, and the geometry of the faceted beads with the organic loops and tendrils shaped in the wire. With all the hues of green in these, I'd say they are bursting forth into Spring (rather than a more modest peeking through!) Even better is that these are now in my Etsy shoppe!Well, I hope this encourages a Spring (HA!) in your step, a sunnier outlook to your life and I'll see you on Friday!Ciao!
Hello Everyone!I hope your weekend was wonderful!I've three bits of inspiration for you today, centering around conquering your fears! Let's start with the photos first!The image below is courtesy of Your Soulful Nature. This scene reminds me of where we all start with goals we want to achieve. We often sit and contemplate them from a safe, sometimes beautiful, quiet place. From that vantage point, all looks to be possible, or at least more secure that what we see we are about to risk in hopes of achieving our goals and conquering our fears.
I can't seem to find the photographer to credit for this spectacular photo, but I do know it is of a bridge in Budapest.
We see where we are clearly enough, in this photograph, but our fears can cloud our resolve and vision what is on the other side or what we want to achieve. The bridge is our hope, courage and determination... and the action that we must take that proves our fears wrong. The young lady in the video below takes us through all of these steps and the elation that follows when we realize we can break through our limitations! Click here for video!
Hello Everyone!Welcome to Fini Friday and the day before Saint Patrick's Day!
However you celebrate this holiday, be safe! I'm so pleased that this blog post is again in perfect step with the Fusion Beads March Blog Challenge! The challenge a few days back was to make a multi-strand necklace and this fit perfectly into my Fini Friday goal of finishing existing creations!
I've had the idea to use a small herd of non-matching Squinkie animals in some way and I call the finished creation a success! I wanted to approach the idea of a multi-strand necklace in a little different way and so I used fiber rather than chain or cable for the multiple strands! The result is something very soft, very colourful and very playful! Take a look!
Title: As Yet Unknown
Ingredients: Squinkies, fiber, Bali silver, aluminum, lead-free pewter, metal.
The Squinkie animals are, in order from left to right: Squirrel, Mouse, Giraffe, Frog, Puppy. Isn't this just fun!?! Look for this in my Etsy shoppe as soon as I discover it's title!The earring creation I have to show you next follows the Blog Challenge for today, which also celebrates Saint Patrick's day... by creating something with green!Title: Faerie LanternsIngredients: Czech glass, vintage acrylic, brass beadcaps, Artistic wire, surgical steel earwires.
I love taking the opportunity to play with wire and I think you can really see it in these earrings! I've wanted to create something with these crackle-finished round beads for quite some time and here they are! FYI:These are in my Etsy shoppe now!And with that, I wish you all a Happy Saint Patrick's Day and lovely weekend!
Be smart and safe about this holiday and I'll see you on Monday!Slan! (That's goodbye in Gaelic... if I could find the accent key!)
Hello Hello!
Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday!
I'm back in sync with the Fusion Beads March Blog Challenge of the Day! The challenge for today is to take apart existing jewelry and create something new with it! I picked up this damaged bracelet a while back because the raised hearts caught my eye and I wanted to see what I could do with it and some resin!
The bracelet is originally a gold-toned, soft metal.
Here is what it looks like with the resin hand-painted on!
Once the resin part was complete, I disassembled a few links from the bracelet and created earrings with them!
See?
Title: Brilliant Hearts
Ingredients: Upcycled heart links, painted with hand-coloured, non-toxic resin, Czech glass, metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires (hypo-allergenic).
I love the flash of luminescence, texture and motion the faceted Czech glass beads lend to these earrings!
I have a second pair of earring creations to show you! These are part of a donation for a friend who is a breast-cancer survivor and is raising funds to further breast cancer research! Many of the folks in her family are or have served in the U.S. Armed Forces and so one of the fundraising events is at a V.F.W. Post. Why is this relevant? The night of the event just happens to coincide with NASCAR night at this particular V.F.W, and so naturally, wrenches have to be involved with at least one of the donated creations!
Title: Heart-Wrenching II
Ingredients: Swarovski crystal hearts (Rose), metal, lead-free pewter, sterling silver earwires.
Aren't these just fun? It always amuses me to combine Swarovski crystal in traditionally feminine colours with unusual and unexpected materials!So there you have it! A heart-felt post! (ha!)I hope the rest of your week is filled with joy and I'll see you on Friday!Ciao!
Hello Everyone!!!Welcome to Magical Monday!My weekend was fabulous and I hope yours was as well!I have all sorts of nifty to show you today and I think I'll start with the beautiful and ethereal and end with the awesomely surreal!So! For the beautiful and ethereal...
This image courtesy of Your Soulful Nature on Facebook! I have no idea if it is altered in any way but it looks so inviting, relaxing and nourishing all at once!On to the still ethereal and shifting to nifty, I present 
Cloud Lights by Wedding High! This includes a DIY tutorial so you can make it yourself (which I might just do...hrmmm...!)And lastly, to the awesomely surreal!Darth Vader in a traditionally-inspired kilt, playing the bagpipes on a UNICYCLE!!!! Clicky!And yes, yes that *is* the Star Wars theme he is playing on the bagpipes while riding the Unicycle down the street! For the Win!!!So, I hope this helps infuse some Magic into your Monday and I'll see you on Wednesday!Ciao!
Hello Everyone!
Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday!
Whew!! This has been a busy, busy week so far!!
As I mentioned earlier, I've been participating in Fusion Beads March Blog Challenge and have a few creations inspired by that to show you today! Both of these creations incorporate chain in what I feel are innovative ways and I'm pleased to show them to you!
Let's get started!
Title: Fairy's Secret Garden
Ingredients: Artisan Furnace Glass, Mood Bead(Secret Garden design), upcycled chain, lead-free pewter, aluminum.
That wonderful chain is diminutive enough that the artisan-made furnace beads, Mood and lead-free pewter beads slide freely along it! Instant fidget toy!!! Isn't that awesome? Also! The centre bead is a Mood Bead in the Secret Garden design! I finished the bracelet with vivid violet-coloured rings and a beautifully detailed toggle clasp that has a star-shaped opening with Dream imprinted on it as the toggle and a wonderfully-detailed Faerie (in flight!) as the bar. There is so much I love about this magical creation!I love the play of colours and textures in this next creation!Title: Dragonfly At PlayIngredients: Aluminum, metal, lead-free pewter.
Upcycled chain in silver, gold and copper tones are playfully weave through a recently-created electric blue aluminum chain in this eco-friendly creation, reminding us of the path a dragonfly might take as it weaves through the currents of air and stalks of grass! And speaking of dragonflies... all of this fabulous chain culminates in an enchanting dragonfly clasp! I love that this necklace is so sleek and modern, yet has a whimsical and fairy-tale feel to it!Both of these creations are available for adoption in my Etsy shoppe now! So, there you have it! A Wednesday full of wings and whimsy! I hope the rest of your week is fabulous and I'll see you on Friday!!!Ciao!
Hello Everyone!Welcome to Fini Friday! As some of you may know, Fridays are all about the creation process, particularly when I finish a creation that has been languishing in some state of growth for much too long! A 30 Day Challenge came across my email inbox a few days ago from the folks Fusion Beads in celebration of March as the Craft Month and thought it would be fun to do this! I doubt I'll be able to complete every day, as I have other things lined up for the month of March, but I'm almost always up for a challenge! The Challenge schedule is here for those that are curious! As we Challengers complete each day, we post on Fusion Bead's Facebook page, so you're welcome to check out the challenge there are well!Ok! I've combined Day 2, 3 and 4 both because I'll be out and about this weekend and they dove-tailed nicely with my Fini Friday post! So, you'll get to see a bit of everything in this post!Day 2 Challenge was to use leftover beads and so I have! Title: Fascinating Ruby and Her JewelsIngredients: Swarovski crystals, Glass (Czech&India), brass beadcaps(USA), metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires. 
Those luscious ruby-coloured glass beads were actually hand-selected for me by a friend, who used them to wrap a birthday present a few years back now! How thoughtful!! I simply had to create something with them, and today's challenge of using left-over beads was the perfect springboard for that!Day 3 encourages us to learn a new technique. I've chosen to expand on my wire-wrapped ring skills with this technique. The creation that unfolded also fit perfectly into Day 2's challenge of using leftover beads and Fini Friday, since I'm always on the lookout for ways to use my existing bead stash in different ways.Title: SmolderingIngredients: Cut glass, Artistic Wire (permanently-coated copper wire, USA).
And last, but not least, Day 4's Challenge was Organize Your Bead Area. This fabulously fit into my ongoing Studio Reorg, so I took the opportunity to clear out another drawer in one of my Creation Cabinets!
Everything that was in the drawer found appropriate homes or were recycled and now I have another empty drawer with which to play! YAY! So there you have it, a Ringing start (get it? A pair of earrings, a ring = ringing?) to the Challenge and a fabulous Fini Friday! WHEEE!!!Have an awesome weekend!See you on Magical Monday!Ciao!P.S. These earring and ring creations will be in my Etsy shoppe by Monday!
