Successful Serpentine Bracelet Workshop!

We had a wonderful workshop this weekend on the Serpentine Bracelet.  I again got to teach another great group of ladies!

 Entire group left to right clockwise: Barbara, Sidney, Clara, Gerry, Diane, June, Evelyn

Evelyn and June making good progress.

Gerry zipping up the bracelet body.

Another colorway: Bronze Raspberry

West Virginia in July 2010

Visited my family in Pendleton Co., WV for a week recently.  It was great--I really miss the mountains!

Teter Gap, Pendleton Co., WV

Queen Ann's Lace

Sugar Maple by our driveway -- my favorite tree!

Our barn that my Dad and brother built from white pine harvested from our property.

Bead Class: Serpentine Bracelet

The first bead class that I taught seemed to go over very well and I've been invited back to teach a couple more!  Yippee!  This is again organized by Gerry of ClayDesignsbyglee and she also has beads and supplies for sale in June Bugs Checkered Cupboard in Picayune, MS.  June Bugs has lots of neat antiques and yummy artisan made dips and sauces.  We got to taste some of June's delicious treats during our last workshop.

Details:
Serpentine Bracelet Workshop Date: July 17, 2010 - Saturday
Location:
June Bugs Checkered Cupboard
120 W Canal St, #B
39466- 4508 Picayune, MS
(601) 798-2226
Time: 10-2pm
Cost: $30 plus supplies*

Serpentine Bracelet in Coral and Golden Seashell:

Barbara's Jeweled Honeycomb Bracelet

This is Barbara's finished bracelet from our Jeweled Honeycomb bracelet workshop.  It looks great! 

I must have done something right as a teacher or most likely I just had really great students!! : )

Pattern - Jeweled Honeycomb Bracelet

This is the pattern I just taught at my workshop and is now available for purchase in my etsy shop.  This is a great bracelet to make because you get to create a bunch of smaller components that are like potato chips--you can't have just one!  This pattern also includes a beadwoven toggle clasp that can be adapted to a variety of different projects.  I've used it in at least 4 different pieces of jewelery.

The patterns includes more than 40 different photograph and illustrations along with a very detailed narrative. I am more than willing to give help to those who need it, if any problems arise when the piece is being made!  Just drop me a line through email.

Successful Workshop!

Yesterday, I got to teach my first beading workshop since 2005 and it went great! The workshop was held at June Bugs Checkered Cupboard in Picayune, MS and was organized by 2 wonderful ladies: Gerry of Clay Designs by Glee and June of June Bugs.  Gerry has her work and beading supplies for sale in June's shop.  I got to meet and teach a great group of women; we worked all day on the Jeweled Honeycomb Bracelet.  A couple of the ladies figured out how to make the bracelet reversible with a different color on each side.  Another of my beaders had an interesting variation on the round part of the toggle clasp that I want to incorporate into a design.

A few of the ladies hard at work. Clockwise from left: Estelle, Barbara, Evelyn, Gerry.  

Missing from the photo: Sidney, Laura, June, Alice

I hope to post photos of some of their finished bracelets for show and tell in the near future! 

Cliantha Necklace

In this necklace I wanted to incorporate beaded beads with a mandala and decided sections of silver chain and wire wrapping would be the perfect way to connect everything.  This was also an exercise with color and bead finishes to unite the piece. The AB finish on the blue drop beads helps to do this.  Margie Deeb's books are excellent references on how to use color in your designs.  She also offer's online classes at CraftEdu.

Salvaging Garish Beads

I have beads in my stash that I've acquired over the years that have garish finishes or colors.  I read an article (can't remember where...) about salvaging some of those gaudy beads.  It suggested using fingernail polish remover to change a color or finish and then giving them a good rinse under running water.  For this to work, the finish/color has to be non-permanent.  You can test the permanence just by dropping a few beads into the remover; the color or finish should begin to come off with in a few minutes.  I decided to try this with some peach bugle beads of which I wasn't too fond.  I soaked them in the remover for a couple of hours and they went from being a pastel peach to a beautiful pearly, satin white.  I'm very happy with the results and will try this on other beads that could use a color/finish boost!

Native Orchids

Some of our native orchids, not to mention pitcher plants, are blooming right now in south Mississippi. I love this time of year!

Rose Pogonia Orchid

Grass Pink Orchid

Purple and Yellow Trumpet Pitcher Plants

Some beaded flowers I did a couple of years ago of Grass Pink, Rose Pogonia, and Upland Spreading Pogonia Orchids.  I really need to write patterns for these! They are made with a combination of French and Victorian beaded flower techniques.

Pattern - Victorian Filigree Bracelet

I've been working on a bunch of patterns for various pieces of jewelery lately and I just finished the pattern for the Victorian Filigree Bracelet.  It is available for purchase in my etsy shop.  I hope to have more patterns finished very soon.

The patterns includes both illustrations and photographs along with a very detailed narrative. I am more than willing to give help to those who need it, if any problems arise when the piece is being made!  Just drop me a line through email.

Serpentine Bracelet: Golden Seashell

Another colorway of the Serpentine Bracelet: Golden Seashell

Bead Class!

Exciting news!  I get to teach a bead class!  I haven't taught one since Hurricane Katrina flooded the local shop where I used to teach in Gulfport, MS.  Gerry of ClayDesignsbyglee is the organizer of this class and I am very happy she has given me this opportunity.

Details:

Jeweled Honeycomb Bracelet Workshop
Date: June 12, Saturday
Location:
June Bugs Checkered Cupboard
120 W Canal St, #B
39466- 4508 Picayune, MS
(601) 798-2226
Time: 11-3pm
Cost: $30 plus supplies*

Another version of the Jeweled Honeycomb Bracelet: Vineyard:

 

I haven't managed a post in the last 2 weeks due to a hectic work schedule resulting from the Deepwater Horizan oil spill.  I've been doing tons of field work and have been completely worn out in the evenings.  As of today, we have small tar balls washing up on MS beaches and barrier islands.  We don't have an oil slick in the area, which, for the moment, is very lucky.

Victorian Filigree Bracelet - Blue Green

Victorian Filigree Bracelet - Blue Green: 11/o and 15/o seed beads, firepolished beads, sterling silver findings

Victorian Filigree Bracelet - Soft Pink

Victorian Filigree Bracelet - Soft Pink: 11/o and 15/o seed beads, firepolished beads, sterling silver findings

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

My regular day job is as a fish ecologist at the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.  It is a really neat place to work and I enjoy my job very much.  The Deepwater Horizon oil spill could have terrible effects on the reserve and surrounding marshlands in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Over this last week, our staff has been working very diligently to gather as much data as we possibly could before we are impacted by the oil. Many agencies in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Alabama have been doing the same thing.  Today we can smell oil fumes at our home in Ocean Springs. If you are interested in more information, NOAA keeps an updated website with forecasts and trajectories of the spill.

I want to share photos of our beautiful reserve prior to this environmental disaster.  Now we are just waiting to see how bad it will actually be.

Bayou Heron

Pt. Aux Chenes Bay, northern portion

South Rigolets

Salt marsh at sunset

Serpentine Bracelet in Coral

Serpentine Bracelet:  Coral Swarovski pearls & crystals, 15/0 seed beads

What's On My Beading Table?

Bev of No Easy Beads asked the question "What's On Your Beading Table?".

Here's what I currently have on my table:

Multiple versions of Jeweled Honeycomb and a yet unnamed mesh-type bracelet.  I'm in the process of writing instructions for both of these.

The Art Deco inspired bracelet--trying to figure out a good closure for it

And where I have too many ideas at once and need to do a bit of cleaning!!

Jeweled Honeycomb: Golden Berries

Another version of the Jeweled Honeycomb bracelet: Golden Berries

 

Jeweled Honeycomb Blue-Green: Toggle

I decided to try a different toggle closure on this bracelet.  Now the piece is much more cohesive. 
Before:

 
Final:

Bead Shipment!

A shipment of beads I ordered has finally arrived!! Yippee!  Now I can finish some projects that have been on hold for a while. Can't wait to use the coral fire polished beads--they are the best color in a deep rich hue.