Newly made: Blue Sprees, a lovely use of scraps, and a sweet little owl

My beads often remind me of candy, and this big blue necklace here reminds me of Sprees, if they came in blue, which they don't. And if they did, they would probably be gross, like all blue candies. (I still curse the day they added blue SweeTarts. Blech.)
The one on the far right in this top picture is one of my all-time favorites. It's made up of a little of this and a little of that, which makes it difficult to replicate and therefore difficult to part with.
I'm still working my way through the giant pile of vibrantly-colored agate pendants that I bought last year (far right). The necklace on the left is glass, crystals and pearls, and the one in the middle is a mix of quartz, crystal, and glass, and is prettier in person. It sparkles.

How cute is that owl? Add him to the phoenix, and I've got the start of a Harry Potter collection.

Made in Chicago

I brought almost all my beads when I went home to visit last month. One suitcase was nothing but beads, and it weighed almost fifty pounds. That many supplies plus a week without my kids should have resulted in major production, right?
Nope. Four necklaces and three pairs of earrings. It's the same story every time I go. The allure of hanging out with my family, and doing very little, is too great. And I'm ok with that. My craft supplies will still be around when I'm retired.
I love that phoenix! I don't think I'm ready to sell it.

The pink crystal pendant is pretty too. The back side has a nice design.

Skulls for Halloween!

Summer 2011

green + yellow

Spring colors

I'm getting ready to do a little jewelry show this week. Here are the newest things I've made, mostly using the stuff I bought over the weekend.

This one is my favorite, and it will probably not be for sale. It reminds me of a perfectly dyed set of Easter eggs that I hope to make some day. Also, I think that I am forever going to be eight years old when it comes to loving colorful things arranged in rainbow order.

A strange thing I've noticed is that while I often admire dainty, subtle jewelry on other people, in stores, and in magazines, when I sit down to create, it usually ends up big and bold. I am going to try my hardest to add a couple delicate pieces to the collection today.

Week two

I'm trying to keep making something every day. Here are the results of the last few days.
This long brown necklace has wood beads and freshwater pearls. I like it so much, I might not put it up for sale.
This one feels a little out of the ordinary for me; I'm not sure if I like it.
Necklace with wood, glass, and faceted coral beads:

Bracelet with lots of different stones:

Necklaces made of imperial jasper (L) and shell beads, wood, pink coral and crystals (R).

Necklaces made with lots of pearls and crystals. The one on the right has so many great colors, but I couldn't get a good photo of it. It's very bright and sparkly in real life.

Right now I'm working on a big non-jewelry project that is taking up several days, so I probably won't have anything new for a while.

Crafty New Year

One of my New Year's Resolutions is to create something every day of the year. For the most part, I was thinking of crafty stuff, but I'm also going to count it if I make a new recipe, write a letter, and maybe a few other variations of creating. Probably as the newness of it wears off, I'll give myself credit for "creating" a peanut butter sandwich or a basket of folded laundry. But for now, I'm going strong.

Day one: earrings and a red coral necklace.

Day two: I sewed a carrying roll for my jewelry. (Day two also included writing a letter to my brother in Argentina.)

Day three: Graduated yellow glass bead necklace and dangly crystal earrings.

Day four: Chunky black necklace and glass flower earrings.