Indian Summer

It’s November… not that you could tell by looking at the weather we are having here… the temperature has dropped slightly… about 3-5 degrees… it’s so unbelievably hot still!!! but at least the nights are cooler than they were in the summer… and thankfully it isn’t as humid!!! 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m NOT complaining… I love the summer, and am not too crazy about the winter… but it would be nice if the temperature would drop a little bit… I don’t know, down to maybe 20-22 degrees.

The thought of Autumn but the reality of what we actually have makes me think of Indian summers and inspired me to create this necklace and matching cuff.

Indian Summer OOAK Necklace

What I’m most proud of in this piece is the beaded caps and closure.  I love wearing leather necklaces but don’t really like how they are usually finished, so I tried to improve on the finish by creating beaded end caps, I think they smarten up the whole look and I’m really pleased how they turned out!

Indian Summer OOAK Cuff







I really love how this cuff turned out! I love using the metallic silver leather!!! and I love the edging, it came out so pretty and the cuff looks amazing on!!!

More silver leather cuffs to follow as soon as I get around to working on the photos!
Till then… happy beading!

Belt Buckles

I’ve been very quiet… and absent… just finding it difficult to be a fulltime single mum and manage the rest of my life at the same time… I think it was easier when my son was little and had naps during the day but he’s 8 now and between homework, taking him to his extracurricular activities, dealing with the mountains of washing and dishes… and lets not forget simply loving him and being with him… there comes a point when I just can’t do more… so this year I guess I reached that point and although I may not have been terribly active on my blog it doesn’t mean that I have not been beading!!! :-)

During the summer I managed to make quite a few pieces and I have finally gotten around to taking  photos… and here are two of my newest pieces!!!

I’ve been meaning to make belt buckles for the longest time…. for two reasons, first, I love them and wanted to make some for me to wear with jeans and second, because they are fun quick projects to make and best of all I can use all my left over beads and don’t need to worry about quantities… I have a lot of leftover beads… so expect some more belt buckles in the future!!!

So here are my first two belt buckles:

Southwestern Belt Buckle Bead Embroidered in Silver, Black, Turquoise, Coral and Ivory

    

Large Boho Belt Buckle Bead Embroidered in Brown, Turquoise, Orange and Ivory on Brown Leather

    

There are loads more pictures of new jewellery to post (and loads I still have to take)… Hopefully after the weekend I’ll be able to put some more up.

Wishing all a fantastic weekend ahead!!!

Fiery Warrior

Where to begin… seems like…. feels like… I'm being pulled 1002 ways… don’t know why!!!! I stopped smoking almost 5 months ago…. and I somehow feel like I’ve lost my mind and replaced it with 10 kg!!!!  shocking!!! but I digress… again… which is why I can’t seem to get anything done lately… my mind is just everywhere!!!…  did I tell you I just turned 45!!!!!!!! 45??????? almost as shocking as the extra 10 kilos I put on since I stopped smoking!!!! so before I change the subject… again… here is what I manage to finish and photograph… these are the pieces where I tried to combine my newfound metalwork skills with my less new beadwork skills :-)

 

Fiery Warrior – OOAK Necklace

 

 

Fiery Warrior – OOAK Leather Cuff

 

  
The photos really don’t do these pieces justice…. but after 3 previous failed attempts due to massive sand storms which blocked out the sun for about a week (on and off)… this is the best I could do….

 

I sawed and textured the copper myself…. I’m soooo proud!!! :-)

 

If you want to read more about materials used and see more photos, click on the titles or pictures….

 

Ok… if I can keep my head straight for the next few days I should be able to work on the photos of my new metal pieces and then I’ll hopefully post them here ASAP!!!

 

In the meantime… let me know what you think of this metalwork/beadwork combo… happy beading!!! :-)

Leather Cuffs – Special Offer

I’m having a pre-holiday SALE on all my bead embroidered leather cuffs.

From today till the 27th December 2011 I’m offering 20% off all leather cuffs in my shop!

   

  

 

In addition…. exclusive to my blog readers… enter code WORLDFREESHIP at checkout to receive free worldwide shipping on ANY item in my shop!!!

This offer expires on the 27th December 2011!

For the Leather Cuffs SALE, please see: http://www.etsy.com/shop/triz?section_id=7653830

For other SALE items also check out: http://www.etsy.com/shop/triz?section_id=5361311

What’s Been Going on + New Tutorial

Where do I begin???? I’ve been busy doing bits and pieces…  some custom orders… some classes…  some metal work… and a new tutorial!!!

First of all let me show you how my first pair of metal worked earrings turned out! :-)

 
Not bad, considering I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing!!! :-)  These earrings are made of copper, sawed, filed and textured (battered) with a hammer and then shaped with a wooden thingy majiggy (don’t you just love my technical jargon!) I think it’s called a dapping die set :-)

What I learnt from making these?  well… I’m not very good with the saw… I am very good at breaking the saw blades…. it’s going to take me a much longer time than I expected to make things… I guess my learning curve is pretty abysmal… I wish I could go to some classes :-)

Then… I got really excited because I found instruction for how to make those really cool leather wrap bracelets… I've wanted one for years!!! and now I have about 7!!! :-) I’ve been making one after another, some for me, some for friends, some as gifts for my son’s teachers for the end of the year…. some still have to be made… but in the meantime here are some of the ones I already made.

These are soooo much fun to make!!!! and I just can’t stop!!!! I even started making buttons for the closures out of copper…. with my newly found metalwork skills :-)

And finally I taught a workshop last week for my Rosette Earrings and now the tutorial is available in my etsy shop:

 

I think that’s it for now… I’m still working on finishing a bead-embroidered bag… I think I’m about 5 or 6 months into it!!! It will be finished soon… I hope! :-)

Wishing you all happy beading! :-)

Glam Rock

I’ve been so quiet lately… but I have a great excuse… I was in hospital and had an operation a month ago… the recovery is six week… all is well and as I'm regaining my strength I started to bead again!!! :-)

During my time in hospital and for the first 2 weeks thereafter I read everything I could find on metal smith, soldering in particular and some hammering… yes, my next new craze!!!! I’ve decided to expand my jewellery making repertoire into including metals… I have no idea what I’m doing, but have ordered all the tools needed to get me started… they should be here in about 2-4 weeks!!! :-) I’m so excited… and nervous… a bit scared of the torch… but I’ll give it a go! :-)

So my mind has been occupied with metals… which would explain the new pieces I created… very bold, very geometric and very clean design…

Here are three new pieces I’ve been working on for the last few weeks… yes I’ve been working/beading at a snail’s pace! :-) but my pace is picking up as I continue to feel better with each passing day! :-)

Glam Rock Black Leather Cuff 

Glam Rock Necklace

 Glam Rock Silver Cuff

 

I’ve got another necklace… but just as i was finishing it… I notice a mistake, so had to chop off some of it to redo it… but it will have to wait… hopefully I’ll finish it off tomorrow… in the meantime… I’m happy to be “back”! :-)

Wishing everyone, happy beading!!! :-)

New Tutorial! Marie Antoinette and Bloody Mary

My workshop went really well the other day… it was nice teaching again after a really long pause and I’m looking forward to teaching more in the future! :-)

The students made some beautiful variation of the leather cuff in lots of colours; khaki, black, red on black leather, brown… it was really nice seeing everyone pick their favourite colour and come up with a totally different look for their cuffs

Here is the tutorial for that class:

PDF Tutorial - Bloody Mary Bead Embroidery Leather Cuff - Instructions ONLY

This tutorial will show you how to embellish around a cab using Swarovski crystals and pearls. Here are two versions I made:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cabochon used for this tutorial is a vintage (c. 1940s) glass cab.  I have a few of these cabs available for sale (contact me for details) if you want to make the exact cuff, but you can substitute the cab with any other similar sized cab.

I think I’m going to make another colour today…. hmmm maybe a black version…. :-)

Wishing everyone happy beading and a great weekend ahead! :-)

Bloody Mary!

I was introduced to a Bloody Mary on a plane journey on the way to Las Vegas with friends who described it as the best drink to have for breakfast! :-) I wasn’t convinced, as I really don't like tomato juice… but I took one sip and I was hooked!!! My first a.m. drink… and now every time I fly it’s the drink I ask for! :-)

The richness of the reds used in my new cuff reminded me of that drink and a great time in Las Vegas! :-)

Bloody Mary – Red Leather Cuff

I will be teaching this cuff at the workshop tomorrow… so excited!!! and will be making kits for this as soon as my order of Swarovski crystals and pearls arrives… so stay tuned!:-)

Happy beading!!! :-)

A Touch of Royalty – EBW February Challenge

It’s that time again…. time to go and check out the beautiful entries for this month’s EtsyBeadWeavers Challenge!!!

My entry for this challenge is # 31 on the list:

Marie Antoinette – Pink Leather Cuff

There are 62 incredible entries for this challenge, so your challenge will be to pick just one as your favourite and vote for it before the 15th February!!!

So don’t put it off, go and check out the amazingly talented EtsyBeadWeavers Team and vote for your favourite entry!!! http://etsy-beadweavers.blogspot.com/

Happy beading!!! 

Chocolate Cuff - Workshop

After a long absence from teaching workshops, I’m happy to announce that I will be teaching a workshop on Wednesday afternoon 16th February at Bogal Ltd. in Ranana.

The workshop will last 3 1/2 hours where I will show how to bead-embroider around a cabochon, embellish it with crystals and pearls and how to construct a leather-covered metal cuff.

The workshop is open to all levels and no previous experience is necessary. All materials will be supplied.

For more details and to book a place please contact Gloria, details found by clicking on the following link: http://bogal.biz/149465/CHOCOLATE-CUFF

Looking forward to it!!! :-)

Happy beading! :-)