Let's Go Back to the 80's

First, let me apologize for the lack of blogs this week. I ended up catching my brother's nasty cold and for most of the week I have moved off the couch solely for the purposes of getting more tea (decaff) and to use the bathroom because of all that tea! I'm working on catching up on life now though :) Still fighting the cold, but I'm functional again and that's what matters :)

Now to catch up...

One thing that makes me sad about this week isn't I haven't had a chance to promote this week's giveaway as much as I'd like! So make sure you head over there and check it out, and make me smile :D

My latest big project was a piece for the Etsy Beadweavers Monthly Challenge. This month was "Fashion Through the Ages" I tend not to be one who does these huge, fantastic, pieces, so the Victorian Age was right out. So what did I pick? The 80's!

80's Triangle Bracelet

This piece did NOT want to be photo'd. The colors wouldn't show up and have the picture look bright. The top picture required a lot of photo manipulation to get it to look right. I've got a couple ideas that I'd like to try in the future, but they won't be easy someone buy it from me so I don't have to! (no pressure guys, no pressure)

Make sure you go vote in this month's challenge. I'm down at the end - but only vote for me if I'm your favorite! Etsy Bead Weavers Challenge.

Sneak Peeks

I'm so excited right now I'm practically bursting! I'm going to have all kinds of new pieces up, and very soon too. I already posted a sneak peek of my first bead soup piece and now I have a sneak peek for you of the second one, and my project for the Etsy Bead Weavers!

You know copper is really underrated as a "bling" metal. I think of bling and I think silver or gold, but I made this piece and it suddenly hit me that copper can be just as bright! Not that this piece is over the top, I think the balance between the dark browns and the bright copper is actually perfect. I can hardly wait to show you!

I'm working on an 80's piece right now - and I'm loving it! I plan on submitting my bracelet for the current Etsy Bead Weavers contest, but I'm going to run with the theme and make a necklace, earrings, and rings too! Hey - when you've got a something your enjoying - you need to run with it! Hopefully I'll have the bracelet up by this weekend as well.

And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway! 

Featured Friday

Hi everyone! It's Friday - so that means my new blog feature - Featured Friday! I realized this morning the best part about doing this is that I didn't need to figure out what I was going to blog about! Yes, lazy, I know, but it does also bring some consistency to my blog, and I like that. Now...

Featured Facebook

Did you know that Facebook has changed a lot of their policy's recently? One of them is that you won't see postings from other people unless you've been interacting with their page. So...if you want to keep up with what I'm doing...come comment on my facebook page! Guess what? There is a surprise waiting for you over there...

Featured Giveaway

Have you checked out this week's giveaway yet? It's a lovely bracelet! And she needs entries! So come by and visit JPrideJewelry's Giveaway! I'm running this contest through Sunday Morning (whenever I wake up and get to it LOL) instead of Saturday! Yah, I was a bad girl and got it up a day late...

Featured Contest Winner

No - not my contest - the Etsy Bead Weavers!

Princess Montana Royal Necklace

Every month we have a contest and this month's contest was all about royalty! She won - and I thought I'd start featuring the winner each month. I love this team! Her piece was one of my top favorites too :)

Bead Soup - What will it Become?

I've had the beads for about a week now - so has my swap partner - but this is the first chance I've had to blog about them! Now that Shay has her beads I can show you what I sent her!

Bead soup is supposed to be a challenge - make something with the beds that you are sent - well I ended up being challenged by what I was sending! I don't do much with pink, but while I was looking at the cab I just kept thinking "this needs pink" So I went for it! I look forward to seeing what she makes :) Now for what I received....

The full set:

Breaking it down...

I haven't decided precisely what I'm going to make with this yet, but I know it's going to be at least partially bead weaving (well, I know I'm using embroidery on the focal) but I haven't figured it all out yet :)

For my second piece...

I have some more shells that I'll add to that and this one is going to be a bracelet. I'll probably start working on that one this afternoon. I have a lot going on right now! There are 10 projects in my work box right now. These two projects, this month's bead weavers, one for me, an earring project, key chain, the beginnings of my bead weavers swap project, and I'm forgetting the rest :P And there's more in my head! I made my self stop when the box was basically full though. I've spent the last couple days working on a project for Mom and this month's bead weaver project. Here's a pic I took a couple of days ago of the box.

Fun huh?

Etsy BeadWeavers - Royalty Themed

Every month the Etsy Beadweavers does a challenge - and this month's is all about Royalty! My entry was for the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland :)

Go vote! I'm #60 but don't feel like you have to vote for me unless you want to :P

And don't forget to enter in this week's Giveaway!

Etsy Beadweavers - Time to Vote Again!

I absolutely love the Etsy Beadweavers! This team is always pushing me to be a better beader, and I love the monthly challenges we do! I wasn't able to enter this one for two reasons. For one, I'm just not that familiar with Simon and Garfunkel (this month's theme!) and for two, I'm just getting back into the swing of things! I absolutely love everyone's entries and I haven't decided who I'm voting for. I don't think I've seen all of them... I know just from looking at the mosaic 9, 19, and 28 stick out at me! After I post this I'm going to go double check out all the entries again and decide once and for all!

Speaking of which - we need your votes! Each month's winner gets to pick one of the following themes, which I think is a great prize! So go VOTE!!!

Come Vote for Us!

It's time again to vote for the Etsy Bead Weavers Challenge! I'm in this one too :) I'm number 29 - but don't feel obligated to vote for me - just go vote for your favorite!

Fairy Tale

This month's Etsy Bead Weavers challenge was A Fairy Tale - and I so wanted to participate! It just wasn't meant to be with how crazy last month was. Oh well, I love fairy tales and I'm sure I'll end up with some fairy tale pieces eventually anyway! Go vote for YOUR favorite at the team blog!

Inspired by Trinity Designer Jewellery

As you've heard me mention time and time again I am a part of the Etsy Bead Weavers. I love this team for so many reasons! I love how supportive everyone is, and I love the inspiration I receive from looking at their work and listening to their stories.

This last week I've felt a little frustrated though. I've watched my team mates put up piece after lovely piece, and I've said to myself, "why aren't I getting that done?" Now the reason are pretty simple. Life has been a little complicated lately for me to get much beading done. It seems like whenever I'm feeling good I'm trying to catch up on responsibilities, and the rest of the time I'm on my back with migraines. Not a great combination.

I've tried not to get frustrated with myself, especially because I know I have a lot of stressful things going on right now, and that my body does not react well to stress.

Today was almost the limit though. I had a place I really wanted to go tonight, and I have about 6 different ideas for beading that I REALLY want to work on. Of course, that means that I'm having a massive migraine. Well, I'm supposed to be careful about how often I use caffeine to treat my migraines (there's a long list of reasons), but I decided to actually drink some regular coffee today.

It didn't help at all.

So I called my brother to tell him I wasn't going to make it tonight, and headed for the couch to curl up with a book, complaining to my hubby on the way that I really wanted to bead today! His response was, "Too bad we can't make you some sort of vertical beading thing." I agreed and curled up to read.

Then my mind started working. Recently one of my team mates, Lorraine of Trinity Designer Jewellery, was sharing with us her struggles. I've known for awhile that she deals with health problems more extreme than my own, and I marvel at the fact that she seems to get more done! In what she shared she mentioned that she beads lying down. My mind had kinda skipped over that at first thinking that there was no way I'd pull that off, but after my husbands comment...

Well, we figured out how to make it work! I've spent the afternoon alternating between working on a necklace and reading. I can only bead for about 1/2 hr before I need a break, but I can still bead :) That makes me really happy! I'm stretched out on the couch with a pillow propping my head up slightly and a lap tray over my legs. It took me awhile to get the coordination down for beading on my back, but I'm getting a lot faster now.

Thank you Lorraine :)

Since I'm talking about her being an inspiration I want to show of this piece named "Rachele" that she recently put up on etsy. I'm in love with the colors and the way this is put together!

Now I'll go retreat to my couch again because I've been sitting up for far too long typing this...

Voting for Peace

This month's Etsy Bead Weavers Challenge is based on peace and the Winter Olympics. There are soooo many incredible pieces in this month's challenge! I mean, there usually are, but I'm truly impressed by these entries. I highly recommend that you visit each piece individually andread the story behind it, because you'll be blown away by the inspiration! Head over to the team blog for the links and to vote between now and the 15th :)

Featuring Angleque Creations

Hey guys! It's time for Friday's Featured Artist again! This time I'd like to introduce you to a team mate of mine from the Etsy Bead Weavers. She contacted me about featuring me (thanks!) so I jumped at the opportunity to interview her in return. I'm so glad I did! I learned a lot about her, including that I need to stop complaining about not having enough space in my one bedroom apartment, I don't know how this woman does it, but you'll have to read on to find out what I mean! Click on any of the pictures to be taken to the listings!

1. What type of art work do you do?

I make jewelry from beads, shells, semi-precious stones,and Swarvoski crystals. I have also dabbled a little into wire wrapped jewelry.

2. How did you get started doing art work?

While I was working in Vancouver, BC I started making stretch bracelets for family and friends as presents. Last August my husband and I sailed our sailboat Angelique of Vancouver to La Paz, Mexico and I met a lady on Cetacian who had been beading for 25 years and she made amazing jewelry. She was my inspiration and taught me my first woven stitch the double helix. I was hooked and since learned a number of other weaves from the internet, books and looking at other artists work. I have only been bead weaving for the past 6 months since we got back with our boat to Vancouver.

3. Do you do any other crafts?

I cross stitch, knit and crochet, all these can be done in a small space as I live on my sailboat Angelique of Vancouver. Currently docked at Heather Civic Marina in False Creek, Vancouver BC.

4. Is there a story behind your shop name?

Yes, Angelque Creations is a hybrid of our boat name Angelique of Vancouver. My husband was setting up our cruising email address and misspelled the name hence we became Angelque for all our communications while away on our 10 month cruise. When I was looking for a name for the shop is was just natural that I use the hybrid boat name Angelque because I was inspired to create jewelry while in the Sea of Cortez.

5. What's your favorite piece in your shop right now?

My favorite piece currently in my shop is Sunlight Reflected (Raw) bracelet. I miss the warmth and sunshine from the Sea of Cortez. All my new friends that I met while on our trip have returned and are now heading further south. I wish that I was still with them, but circumstances changed for us and my husband Mike needed to go back to work.

6. Where do you sell your work?

I have an on line shop http://www.angelquecreations.etsy.com. and a web site http://www.angelquecreations.ca, and blogspot http://www.angelquecreation.blogspot.com. I have also set up at the Abbotsford Farmers Market in Abbbotsford, BC, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia Institute of Technology. I will be at the Make It Vancouver show Nov 20-22 at the Croation Cultural Center, 3250 Commercial Drive, Vancouver.

7. Do you blog?

Yes http://www.angelquecreations.blogspot.com

and twitter http://twitter.com/angelquecreatio

8. Are you on any social networks you'd like to share?

I am part of Etsy and the Etsy

Beadweavers Street Team as well as FFEST. I follow an number of blogs from artist of both these groups.

9. Do you watch or listen to anything while you work?

If so, what? JR FM9370, I am a country music fan.

10. Tell us one random fact about your self *wink*.

Mike and I have lived on our 34 foot sailboat for 16 years in about 200 square feet of space. You can guess it we are very good friends. Visit http://www.angelque.ca for details about our sailing adventure to Mexico and the Sea of Cortez.

Featuring My New Necklace

Today I posted my "Crystal Flowers Necklace." It's a new look for me, but then again most things are lately! I think one thing that defines my style (other than ecletic) is that I'm continuing to try and explore new things! This was inspired by the Etsy Bead Weavers challenge for an exotic flower. I think it falls far short of the other entries I've seen so far, but I'm proud that I came of something I came up with that I could achieve!

I want to learn to bead flowers that are realistic - it's on my list of things I want to learn - but I'll need to follow someone's pattern for the first few of those and that can't be entered into a challenge or even necesarily sold. I do have on pattern that I got permission to recreate and sell - but I haven't gotten a chance to start it yet. Oh well...maybe after Christmas? LOL

I was also featured in other treasury! Actually both of my shops were :) Thanks Cheryl! My "etsyholic" bracelet is in the top left and my mom's purple hair clip is in the second row all the way on the right :)

A different type of Crafty Work

The last couple days I've been working on a different type of crafty project - I've been working on decorating my apartment! That's right...I'm finally putting my pictures up!

This is what you see to the left when you first walk into my apartment, they aren't hung crooked, I just took a crooked picture :P My cousin painted them as a present for me!

Day one was putting up the clock and a few small pieces. Day 2 (today) was getting the big pictures put up with the help of my evil twin and brother, and a few more small pieces. Tomorrow (Day 3) I plan on doing the rest of the small pieces and working on cleaning. Then, once things are clean, I'll take a bunch of photos! I plan on doing a "virtual tour" of my apartment on my other blog (http://ajedismusings.blogspot.com) so keep your eyes peeled over there.

It's been really nice to get my pictures up! We did get a few pictures up at the last apartment, but we never did get fully settled in there. Here, we are truly settling in, and it looks like we'll be here awhile.

I have been working on my normal crafty stuff as well. I actually didn't get much sleep last night, I woke up at 4:30am for some bizarre reason, and even though I've tried, I haven't been able to nap today! So I've done some knitting (the scarf is 11 inches!), made myself a hemp bracelet (I'll show it in my next ADD post), and started on my piece for the current Etsy Bead Weavers challenge :) The only thing I haven't done is cross-stitch...and I think I'll work on that some after I'm done posting this and checking in with my teams...

Yes, I'm ADD, and an over-achiever...

Showing off Bead Work...

...And not just mine! But we'll get to that in a moment :)

I've been planning since last mont to make a special piece just for breast cancer awareness. I even got started on it at the beginning of the month! Then I ran out of beads... BUT I've finally finished it!

I have a new bust for my necklaces! Now I just need to work on a real light box so I can get brighter and better pictures...

Anyway, this necklace can be found both on Etsy and on Artfire and will be dedicated permenantly to Breast Cancer Awareness. This will be the only item in my shop left dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness after the month is over. 50% of it's sale will go to the Susan G. Komen fund.

Now to show off my friends! Christina of Good Quill Hunting put together an incredible You Tube video of the members of our Bead Weaving Team. It's long - but worth watching!

The Etsy Bead Weavers are Super Charged!

This months challenge was super-power jewelry! I had some ideas but not enough time to even start working on them. Fortunately the ideas are still there and might develop into some pieces in the future! There were 15 artists on the team that DID have enough time to put together their great ideas, and it's time to go vote for them! Go to the Bead Weavers blog and pick your favorite!

I have some ideas for this next months challenge - but I don't think I'm going to be able to work on them. More ideas for notebook I guess! Since my priority needs to be the baby blanket for my cousin I don't think I'll have the time to develop those ideas this month, but ya never know!

It's Voting Time!

That's right - it's time to vote in this month's Etsy Bead Weaver Challenge! I don't have an entry this time - but that's doesn't mean you can't go vote! There are some incredible entries and I had a lot of fun deciding! Go to the blog to vote.

And don't worry - I've already got ideas for next months challenge *wink*

Tuesday's Tips #9

Wind Dancer

We've been talking the last few weeks about inspiration. Today I want to look at one place you can find inspiration - other artists in your field.

Note of Caution: They say there is nothing new under the sun and the imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Both statements have truth to them, however, you need to be aware of copy write laws and how they affect your field of art. While being inspired and learning from other artists is fine, you don't want to steal their hard work!

Ok, on to cheerier thoughts!

I LOVE to look at the work of other jewelry artists. Often I just look and drool. After all, there are many forms of jewelry that I can never attempt. For instance, anything that involves a lot of fumes (like resin) is off limits because of my severe asthma. That doesn't mean I can't admire and be inspired by their work! Here's some places I go to look at other jewelry artists work - I think you'll find you can translate this to your particular field of art :)

Teams:

I'm on several teams and they all contain fellow jewelry artists. The one I gain the most inspiration from though is my Etsy Bead Weavers team because the team is very focused on that medium! The other teams are great - but their focus is different and so it doesn't provide as many challenges or as much inspiration for the art side of things. If your not on a team specific to your medium I'd highly encourage it!

Books:

I just got done going through the book "500 Beaded Objects: New Dimensions in Contemporary Beadwork" and I was utterly floored by the possibilities out there! Sometimes looking through the work of the masters can be humbling, but I found it both challenging and encouraging as I see how much I have left to learn! I also got some new ideas :)

Magazines:

I regularly read Bead and Button and even sometimes Jewelry Artist. Now this is an area you need to be careful. You can learn a LOT, but you don't want to recreate their patterns for sale without first getting the permission of the artist who created it. Sometimes they will be willing to let you, other times they won't. You can make the patterns for yourself (and you'll often learn a lot!) but don't ever sell them without permission.

There are many other places you can view artists work in your field, browsing the various selling venues for instance, but these are some of my favorites!

I'd love to hear from you guys. What are your favorite magazines, books, or teams in YOUR field? I'll compile a list from what you tell me and post it for next weeks Tips :D Let's help each other!

Friday's Featured Artist - Smadars Treasure

I'd like to introduce you all to a very talented bead weaver that I've had the pleasure of getting to know! I contacted her awhile ago with a question - and that conversation turned into a friendship that eventually led to me joining the Etsy Bead Weavers! There's so much more I could say - but I'll let her work and her words speak for themselves :)

1. What type of art work do you do?

I create jewelry, focusing on beadweaving and embroidery, but I also like designing other jewelry with assembled components and wire-work.

2. How did you get started

doing art work?

In 2004 I attended a beading workshop – simple stringing – and I realized that creating with beads was very relaxing for me. I continued beading for a few more months until I discovered the fascinating world of bead weaving.

3. Do you do any other crafts?

Ever since I was a child I liked crafting – painting,

knitting, scrapbooking, wood engraving and sculpting, but what I really love is drawing. Beadweaving took over my spare time (and my Muse) and I sometime miss drawing … This is my last drawing, from about two years ago, of an old Indian woman by a photograph of one of my most favorite photographer Wendell Phillips (please see the images at the bottom)

4. What's your favorite piece in your shop right now?

Note - I did ask her this question - but I'm thinking it must have sold because I can no longer find it! Congrats on the sale Smadar!

5. Where do you sell your work?

Most of my work can be found in my Etsy shop www.smadarstreasure.etsy.com

but I also have a shop on Artfire www.smadarstreasure.artfire.com and another one on Dawanda , where you can find my assembled jewelry. http://en.dawanda.com/shop/SmadarsTreasure

6. Do you blog?

Yes, I do have a blog http://smadarstreasure.blogspot.com . I wish I could post more often, but there's never enough time… I try to update my blog everytime I have a new work finished.

7. Are you on any social networks you'd like to share?

Not long ago I have joined Facebook, which is fun and lets you make new beady friends from all over the world. I am also proud to be a member of two beading groups – the Etsy BeadWeavers (EBW) and the Bead Art Originals (BAO) group.

8. Do you watch or listen to anything while you work? If so, what?

Sometimes I listen to a local radio station that broadcast non-stop music, but I prefer working in a quiet environment. That's why I usually bead at late night hours, when everyone in my family is sleeping.

9. Tell us one random fact about your self *wink*

I think I am a compulsive collector. :) Until I discovered beading, and to the resentment of my family, I used to collect many kinds of what people would call "junk", like boxes, pieces of wood, wrapping papers etc. in order to create something beautiful out of them. I now have tons of "materials" in my working room, waiting patiently to be reused. I stopped collecting junk materials, but now I am collecting beading supplies of all kinds..;)

The picture on the left goes with the link and is the picture she was working from as mentioned in question #3 :)

http://www.wendellphillips.com/india/05.asp

YART, EBW Challenge, and an Award!

So much going on it's hard to even know where to start! The first is that I'm participating in the YART sale on Etsy! What's that? Well, apparently if you marry the words "yard sale" and "art sale" to each other, you get YART sale. Don't ask - it wasn't my idea - I'm just participating! So what IS the sale?

I'm doing FREE shipping WORLDWIDE!!! PLUS if you purchase $25 or more - you'll get a FREE GIFT! Now how cool is that? If you've been looking to shop in my store - now is the time! www.roseworksjewelry.etsy.com Sale runs through the 14th.

Next - the June Challenge for the Etsy Bead Weavers is up! Go visit the blog and vote! I'm exctra-super excited about it this month because it's my first time entering! I'm entry number 5. Don't feel obligated to vote for me, but PLEASE do go check out the entries and vote for one of the team!

Lastly, I received a blog award! Thanks go to Teresa of Elegance by Mode for giving me the award. I have to admit that I'm a spoil sport and I'm not going to pass it on to the 15 people required... I tend to be lazy when it comes to these things :P

Oh! And I had my 70th sale in my etsy shop today! *dances*

Tuesday's Tips #5

Can you guess what today's tips are about? That's right - joining teams and guilds! I chose banners from two of my favorite teams to start out this post today. The Etsy Bloggers and the The Stalkers. I'm on several other teams (more on that later) but these two hold special places in my heart! The bloggers because they are the team I have been a part of the longest, they have some awesome people, and they feel like family :) I'm still pretty new to the Stalkers over on Artfire, but I love the mission of promoting others, without telling them what we're doing! 

Ok, enough about me, WHY am I bringing up teams and guilds? Because I think that they are a very important part of the selling experience. 

If you remember last weeks tips I talked about making connections through your blog. Well, another important place to make connections is in the communities that you sell in. Forums can be great tools as well, but I think that teams and guilds provide the core of the support you need.

Simply put, most teams exist for a purpose. It might be to promote a particular type of art or craft, it might be a unified passion, it might even be a common location, but whatever it is you are likely to be surrounded by a community of people who have similar interests. If you have a question or need support, these are the best people to turn to! I've learned a lot from my various team mates and I consider it to have been invaluable experience. 

I also know that MANY of my sales have been either direct sales too or trades with team mates. Now how great is that?

Before I say anything more I should say that I don't know as much about other selling venues. I'm on etsy and artfire - but look around whatever other sites your on and see if they have teams or guilds or something similar! 

So how do you find the team/guild that's right for you?

1. Location based is always a great way to start. It's the best way to find out about local events and resources.

2. Does your shop specialize in something? Like jewelry, paintings, cards, or knitting? Well there's probably a team all about YOUR medium! Which can be great for personal growth in your artwork :)

3. Do you have a passion like blogging, being a Mom, or living green? That's right, there's teams for that too.

Things to look at when choosing teams to join:

1. What are their requirements? Do you meet them?

2. What do they require of active members? Is it going to put to much on your plate?

3. Is it an active team? Or is it just kinda sitting there doing nothing? A team that's really active might be too much for you if your schedule is full, but on the flip side there's really not much point in joining a team that's completely stagnated.

Now since I'm talking about teams and guilds I want to give a shout out to my teams and guilds! Before I do...just be aware that I'm a stay at home disabled woman ... therefore I have more time on my hands than most of you!

On Etsy:

 ~ The Etsy Bloggers - because we love to blog and we love each other! Search "etsybloggers team" to find our stuff :)

~ Team Big Damn Crafters - geeks who love the show Firefly and love to create new items inspired by the show! Search "teambdc" to find our stuff :)

~ The Etsy Bead Weavers - because we love to work with tiny little beads to create beautiful creations :) Search "ebwc" to see our monthly challenge item and follow our blog to vote in the challenge each month! Search "ebw" to see the rest of the teams incredible work :)

On Artfire: Still getting to know these guys - but having fun!

~ The Stalkers - Not as scary as it sounds! Each week our fearless leader picks a different shop - and we all go out to promote it! I love doing this :) 

~ Pacific Northwest - There's that local connection I was talking about!

~ Blogfire - Um, did I mention that I love to blog? I missed the last carnival and I was sooo sad :(

~ Artfire Beadweavers Guild - Haven't really had a chance to get to know these guys yet, but I love to weave beads so there I am!

So what teams are YOU on?