A bit quiet but real busy!

I know I have been quiet lately and I am getting a better handle on the managing my time thing but I have been very busy.

I finished my grommet necklace and let me tell you I love it.  It is such a soft necklace to wear and the compliments I get when wearing it are so blush worthy.  So here it is.....

I used 15's and 11's for the chain.  I know most of you think I am nuts using such small beads but I was lucky in the fact that I took it with me on our trip to Ohio so most of it was done while riding so it didn't drive me too crazy.  Isn't it awesome?  I have also been working on picture taking.  No cool backgrounds yet just a focus on getting good pictures of the pieces.

I am also back to my wine themes again.  I started this one in January but I was having so much trouble trying to put it together the way I like it and OMG I am having even more trouble getting clasps I like and that enhance the designs.  Here is Cabernet.

I feel really terrible that I have lost the pattern to this as I found it while searching through blogs.  I had it printed but it seems to have vanished.  It was in a different language but the diagrams were awesome.  If anyone does stumble across it please let me know so I can give her props, she so deserves them.

I also fell in love with the Honeycomb Bangle by Cynthia Rutledge that I had to make it.  I will tell you that I did not have the faceted roundels that it called for or the 3mm pearls so I used 11/0 rounds and 4mm pearls and smooth roundels.  It came out sweet.

I think I will call this one Strawberry Wine just because I am in that kinda mood.

I am also participating in Pay it Forward but I will be posting a revised version as soon as I am clear on what I want to do with it.  You know I couldn't just plain follow the rules didn't cha.

One more somber note.  My heart aches for the Japanese people and the.....well let's be honest...the Hell they are going through.  Please keep them all in your prayers, blessings or thoughts.  They need all the positive energy we can send.

Hugs and Blessings

KK

BTW...OOPS its Thursday!

I know, I know its Thursday and this was supposed to be posted on Wednesday!  What can I say meeting deadlines is not one of my strongest qualities.  And before I show my bead table I am going to remind all of you that organization is a necessary evil with my sweet Derek around so "Don't hate me because I am Organized"  is my qualifying statement.

I only have two projects on the tray right know because just before Christmas my sweet hubby was vacuuming and got a little too close to my bead tray and........you guessed it he sucked up an almost completed bracelet!  The problem with that is well you know fireline is strong well apparently it is so strong that it wraps around the brushes and snaps all the beads in half.  I really liked the bracelet and it was my first time using charlottes and now (sighing) they went to bead heaven along with some amazing champagne colored drop beads.

Ok so lets take a look at these projects!  Remember my friend Amy over at Spyder Jewels sent me this magazine for inspiration....

She loves my bracelets and wanted to give me some more inspiration and boy did she!  While flipping through it (and loving all the eyecandy from before I began beading) I came across a Dulcey Heller pattern called "Grommets Galore"  OHHH I so have a funky side and I do love finding cool stuff at the hardware store (see this one) and I did so love her pattern but as I started it I got a creative strike and I went with it.  So here is what I bought at Lowe's and then what I made with them....

I love these!  They are perfect for a little funky touch and yet I do think there is a little elegance to them (but no one ever accused me of being a fashion maven!)  So Carol this is what I did with them!!!  I know I am such a tease but was it worth it?

This is my other project and I had so much fun making the elements but I am having trouble with pulling it all together my way.  Also there is that pesky bead diet to contend with.....

I found this pattern through the Bead Pattern-book blog but how I got there I have no idea!  This pattern is called "Capture" by Mu.  I think it is in french but her diagrams were fantastic!  I just need to find something to spark up the centers.

Well that's it for today!  I hope all is well with everyone and I ask that you keep "Queensland" in your prayers, thoughts or wishes that they will be safe during all this terrible flooding!

Hugs and Blessings

KK

What's with the wine theme?

I have this wine theme going and generally I don't even drink wine?  Go figure.  Anyway this is the bracelet that was inspired by Marcie's previous "Margie and Me" challenge.  I was having trouble with the inspiration part until she posted this gorgeous picture of Marie Antonetta's Sparkle gown and bingo it hit me AND I had the colors that I needed to do this.  I kinda pulled this one out of my...well you know.  But with no pattern to follow I winged it, and winged it again, and winged it again.  Now I so love this simple yet oh so elegant bangle.  First I will show you the picture that inspired me then the PAIRING!  Yes a finished pairing!  I know it has been a while but it was so well worth it.

 Isn't this gown just stunning!  Thank you so much Marcie for this inspiration because I am so pleased with my interpretation!

  It is a bangle done in RAW with Czech 8's, 11's and pearls from my mothers jewelry collection.  So now I also have a piece I wear and think of her!

I have also been working on my second piece to frame Juls gorgeous bead.  I will tell you that when I first saw it I thought it had a beautiful olive color, but when I received it I was so thrilled that it is actually the most beautiful hot dog relish color and as I said in my previous post the beady goddess was good to me and I had matching beads!  Now I did show you this bead before and I was starting a twisted herringbone rope which I liked doing but.......

It just didn't seem to be the right look for this. So Dawn to my rescue once again with her showing me the Russian Spiral (which I am totally addicted to making and wearing) and a hunt through my unorganized bead stash and now LOOK LOOK LOOK

This is exactly what this beautiful bead called for!  It will be a challenge finishing is because (which seems to happen to new beaders all the time)  I did not buy enough of the transparent smoky gray 15's to make the size I wanted.  No worries though because that will be fun trying to finish this necklace.  I will be making a bail but that is a whole nother can of worms I am not ready to open yet!

This is the last picture I am going to show of my beady fun and I am making it for the silent auction at Derek's school.  I think this bracelet is coming along nicely and has a very seasonal theme.  It is from the latest issue of Beadwork magazine and since I don't have it at the moment I will have to tell you more about it later!

I think it will go for a good price (at least I hope it does as it is part of our fundraising goal this year)

I hope all of you are well and as usual I took too long posting this so I will have to wait till tomorrow to check out all your recent posts.

Hugs and Blessings

KK

A busy weekend and a little Merlot to top it off

Ok first I still want to say that the response from my awardees (still not sure if I'm just making up words now but hey this is my blog so I guess I can)was awesome! I loved getting this award and passing it on was such a bonus! It was the lift I needed to get me out of a funk! Thank you to all of you!

Now I am sure if you have been reading you remember my Chardonnay pairing. Well Shelby has taken the bracelet from me and refuses to give it back (I'm still not sure how I feel about this cuz there are good and bad points to it) Well this forced me to come up with another bracelet so when we were in Mystic I visited a bead shop. (I wont reveal the name because I did not get the warm fuzzies while I was there but their stock was nice and they had a sale) Needless to say Shelby thought it would be fun if I found another wine themed mix and made another bracelet (still not sure if she wanted it for me or another one for her) I found Merlot mix and I loved it! But....believe it or not I did not have a shirt to pair it with (I know I didn't think that was possible either) anyway when we came home and did the normal no food in the house shopping we stopped at BJ's Wholesale and there it was a shirt! Now this one is a bit of a stretch I think so I need as many opinions as possible to make sure this is not to out there of a pairing!

So here it is...TA DA

Well as I did say in the title this is a busy weekend and I will be checking in to all my sweet blogger friends tomorrow!

Hugs

Kristen

Getting our silly feet on!

Derek thinks bare feet is cool so he says that "we are wearing our silly feet!"

I was so chillin on our first boat ride of the season and it was a gorgeous night for it!  The lake was not rough at all and we checked out the replicas of the Nina and Pinta that were docked at the Port of Rochester.  We even went to dinner by boat!  I was a fabulous family night!  

Another funny thing that happened is that I saw a Lighthouse that I have never seen before. I have lived in the area all my life and never saw it! I love lighthouses and this one was hidden from me for some reason. The picture isn't the best (cuz it was taken with my cell phone on a moving boat) but I had to post it anyway.

I did get into the veggie garden and thinned out some stuff on Saturday and my Michael's Father's Day gift showed up early (a pretty nice rope hammock from NC) so he put in posts for it. It was very humid and nasty so I came in and attempted to finish my Nancy Cain bracelet. I must have restarted this 4 times before I finally got it to work (I guess I blew both the 3 hour and $12 description for this one) anyway it was also my first time twisting wire so don't look too close. I did finish it yesterday and even though I used a drop mix (called Chardonnay) I think it looks pretty good. So here is my newest pairing.

Always Believe,
Kristen