Winner TIMES TWO!

That’s right! I don’t just have one winner of 30-Minute Necklaces- I HAVE TWO!!

According to the Random Integer generator,
Numbers 56 and 23 are the winners!

Congratulations goes to

BETH!

and……

IMAGINATIVE JEWELRY!

Send me your addresses, and I will send out your signed copies of 30- Minute necklaces! woot!

I puffy heart Keith O’Connor

Beware, this may be a jealousy- inducing post!   Ceramic bead artist, Keith O’Connor had some business yesterday in New York State, and offered to stop by for me to be able to have my own little personal trunk show. I have never seen all of Keith’s beads all in one place and was amazed at the scope of his work, that I had no idea about. Did you know Keith makes buttons!? and Cabs!? And may different pendants and shaped beads? 

So he arrived last night and pulled all the trays out and laid them on my dining room table, for me to peruse. It was all I could do to not climb up on the table and roll around in them all- they were so beautiful all together. Keith agreed that pictures would be cool and so, here you go.

I know, it’s pretty amazing isn’t it? I could have died.  Unfortunately I didn’t have a whole lot of cash to spend so it probably wasn’t really that worth it for him to come here but I bought what I could and am happy with what I chose, and know the beads will be put to very good use.

I have to say, there is nothing quite like shopping for beads in the comfort of your own home, with a glass of wine in hand. 

This pic above is my favorite, of all of them that I took. There is something so calming about seeing long skewers of beads in every color of the rainbow. I basically took 2 beads of almost each shape tried to pick colors that were in a variety of shades and not just the teal and greens! 

Below, are some of Keith’s newest beads, I am LOVING the floral patterns on these and did buy a few in red and teal, and a few purple too.

Keith told me last night that The Beadin Path, of Freeport ME, now has a large selection of Keith’s new beads. You can see them on their website here.

It was somewhat daunting having so many choices all at once.  It took me quite a while to actually pick which ones I wanted- trying to think of how I would use them, and what colors would be cool to have on hand.  


I tried to get Keith to just take them all upstairs to my studio and he could go on his merry way, but that didn’t fly. 😉

I am looking forward to buying more of the small rounds in many colors, after my show next weekend. 

And here is most of the selection that I purchased last night….

I’ll be away from my computer for the weekend so I’ll meet you all back here on Sunday evening when I pick the winner of the 30 Minute Necklaces book giveaway!

Oh, you didn’t know about the giveaway?

Go here and ENTER!

30- Minute Necklaces- A giveaway!

30-Minute Necklaces: 60 Quick & Creative Projects for Jewelers by Marthe Le Van is available through Lark Books.  A 136-page paperback book, with interesting and thought-provoking projects that should each only take about 30 minutes to create. This is my kind of beading book, especially since I don’t generally like to take a lot of time to create my designs!
I love the inspiring projects, and the fact that there is a little bit of everything, for the beader or the metalsmither. The projects are clear and easy to understand, and the photography is stellar, showing an overall shot of the finished piece, and a nice close up for each piece.
A few of my friends are in this one as well, Erin Strother (who I’m sure you’ve seen in Stringing magazine) and also author Brenda Schweder!

I have one Author-signed copy of this book, and am giving it away! All you have to do is leave a comment on this post!  I will draw a random comment to win, on Sunday evening, Oct 31st! Happy Halloween!

i wanna go to raleigh

update: I’m going to Raleigh!! Thank you all so much for shopping the sale. The sale code is now expired.
1. i have never been there. but i know a lot of people have moved to that area and really like it. so i’m thinking it would be a cool place to visit.

2. my dear cousin carey lives there, and i haven’t seen her in like oh i don’t know, 20 years or something crazy. i would love to be able to hang with her and meet her husband, and see her kids who are the most adorable girls ever.

3. i need to go to my favorite online bead store- ORNAMENTEA because that is where their brick and mortor store is located. i may even get to possibly meet Elaine Ray who is one of my favorite bead makers ever.

And so, to raise some money for my plane ticket, I am having a flash sale in my shop. Type RaleighBound in the notes to seller on Etsy and I will take 35% off your purchase- I will send a revised invoice but if you forget and pay, i’ll just refund the 35%.
 And if you are shopping on Big Cartel, the coupon code for the 35% is also RaleighBound

Treasures found

Sunday morning I headed out with Joe to a small town about 40 minutes away, to go to one of my favorite antique malls- I was on the hunt to find either wooden boxes, or some sort of rustic props for my display table at my upcoming show. Remember last year, when I used the old window? I’ll be using that again this year as well- but I want to also use some more vintage finds instead of manufactured jewelry stands. 

Joe had the eye that day and found this really awesome time card slot. Ooookay. Can you believe how cool this is??  AND the color is amazing!! I think it will be fab just hanging on the wall when it’s not in use, but I have visions of this holding timecard-size cards punched with holes, holding earrings. I plan to make some cards for it, and then stamp the prices and maybe an owl on each card for a bit of character.

 

I thought I could use these small manila tags, but when I slip them into the slots, they slide all the way down preventing them to showcase the earrings clearly.

So, I’ll have to make my own. I could get fancy and create eyelets, and add string to the ones I make, not sure if I will put all that time into it though knowing that people may just ditch em when they get home.

I also found this cute little wooden bench. When displaying jewelry, I like to have things at different heights so that people have a variety of things to look at when shopping. It adds nice dimension to the table and the rustic look of this will work perfectly. I also think it might make a pretty cool photo prop so I may try that out today.

And then lastly, I found this old wooden toolbox, the best thing about it, the leather strap handle! How cool is that!? I haven’t seen anything like that before, and this piece is really kind of “off” which I also love. I’m unsure how I’ll use this one in the display, maybe if I had prepackaged earrings on cards or something- who knows. Leave a comment if you have any ideas, I’d love to hear them.

From a previous antiquing adventure, I also have this long wooden tool box that has a long metal pipe type handle. I think I might use it, and attach bracelets to the handle for a display.  Next thing on the docket, to find some appropriate non-fancy, rustic lamps for the table. And table coverings. And then I should be well on my way!!

Weekend Bead Blog Links

A Bead A Day Need help embracing seasonal change? Lisa uses a bit of swarovski sparkle to make the leap!
About.com Jewelry Making Tammy has a collection of crafting Halloween project ideas as well as an adorable monster pin for you.

Art Bead Scene A free jewelry project by ABS Editor, Cindy Gimbrone.

Barbe Saint John Barbe ‘s finally a Cover Girl!

Beading Arts Are you interested in adding found objects to your bead embroidery? Cyndi has just released the fourth chapter of her e-book, which shows you how to go wild!

Carmi’s Art/Life World Carmi whips up a new necklace with a “Day of the Dead” theme.

Cindy Gimbrone, The Lampwork Diva It’s time to get educated and Cindy provides some stats along with rainbows.
Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Check out the goodies Melanie found at an antique mall…What would you craft with these items that are full of history?

Lorelei’s Blog: Inside the Studio Lorelei is teaming up with designer Erin Siegel, to write their first beading book! Come on over and learn how you can sign up to submit work for the book!

Snap out of it, Jean! There’s beading to be done! Jean has contributed a one of a kind jewelry piece which she made to help raise funds for Andrew Thornton’s medical bills. She is delighted to help, on behalf of her family. Please come and see the piece and consider bidding. Thanks so much!

The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton Three of Andrew’s necklaces are amongst the gorgeous finalists in Soft Flex Company’s “Flex Your Creativity Beading Contest”. Check out all of the Steampunk-inspired designs and VOTE today!

BOC EVENT- don’t miss it!

This event held by the Beads of Clay group is so fun, you should definitely attend if you are around this afternoon. I am definitely going to try to be there. There are giveaways and great sales on ceramic beads- a great time to stock up on all of your favorites!

Hope you are all having a great weekend.  Yesterday I made this:

I love how it turned out, very earthy and feminine. I am going to have to get more of that cool  brass bicycle chain, it’s the coolest.

I went around the house and took some pictures, thought I’d share some of my home with you. Maybe they’ll be inspiring photos, who knows.

TGIF

What a whirlwind of a week it’s been. I am looking forward to a nice quiet, relaxing weekend. One thing I’m looking forward to is finally chatting with Erin to see how it all went this week, she had her baby girl on Wednesday!  I don’t know any details, but can’t wait to find them out! I hope we can maybe Skype and I can actually see the baby too! That will be such a treat. Gotta love technology!

I am loving the beautiful and positive response to our big announcement this week! I am already seeing some really great submissions in the Flickr group, I can’t believe you guys are SO FAST! I want to reiterate the fact that if you have any specific questions about the submission process, please feel free to email me. I would be happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have.

The jewelry pieces above are now available for sale in my big cartel shop.

have a great weekend!

coming soon: a few great book reviews and giveaways!

making him smile

 this is me with my 15 yr old brother, Bren

bren doesn’t say much.

he hates talking to me on the phone.

and i can rarely make him smile.

that’s why i bought him this ugly doll.

 i mailed it to him today.

so if the doll doesn’t make him smile….

maybe these photos will. 😉

have you made someone smile lately?

Important Announcement that surpasses all other announcements

 

We want this to be fun and exciting for you as well! We are sharing this opportunity with all of you here in this beading community. We are looking for jewelry designers to contribute projects to our book! Yes, that’s right, YOU could be apart of this with us and have YOUR work “out there” and published in a BOOK and get paid for it!!! What could be better than that! We have chosen one contributor already, but we’ve decided to open the field up and give some others a chance to be part of this project. We are looking for one other designer, possibly two. If you are chosen to contribute to the book, you will be paid on a per project basis. We would like up to 5 projects from each contributor. Your jewelry designs and complete instructions will be printed in the book along with your name and contact info. You will also receive a free copy of the book when it is published. We are excited to be able to take an opportunity like this and share it. We hope you will be really enthusiastic about this upcoming book project! So, now you want to know what the book is about, right? Well here it goes:

ABOUT THE BOOK:
Title: A Jewelry Accord: 50+ Innovative Styles Using Leather, Lace, Ribbon & Cords
A fundamental jewelry-making instruction book with a focus on the use of alternative materials in beaded jewelry such as, leather cord, suede lace, waxed linen cord, cotton cord, silk cord, ribbons and other cords. This book teaches how to incorporate these materials into jewelry designs using basic jewelry-making techniques such as stringing, wire-wrapping, knotting and braiding.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

Do you enjoy using cords, ribbons or fibers in your jewelry? Would you be super excited and pumped to have your designs published in a book? If your answer is YES to these questions, then you could be who we are looking for!
There are some rules and requirements, so please read carefully.

• Please US residents only. We are very sorry, we wish we could invite absolutely everyone. 😦

• We can not accept any projects that have been previously published.

• Your projects must represent original work by you.

• You must create your projects using basic jewelry-making techniques such as stringing, crimping, wire-wrapping, wrapped loops, knotting, simple braiding, etc. Think Stringing Magazine. Look through the techniques section to get an idea of what would be appropriate for this book. You may use more than one technique in a single piece.

• Necklaces and bracelets only please.

• Your jewelry projects must incorporate at least one type of cord or ribbon material in each design.

• We encourage you to use various cord and ribbon findings to finish off your pieces such as crimp-style or fold-over style cord ends, glue-in style cord ends, cone findings, clamshells, knot cups, ribbon ends or clamps, etc. Please look around and see what’s out there on the market today for options.

• We encourage you to use art beads and/or artisan made findings and jewelry components, if you want to, although this is not a requirement.

• We also encourage you to try incorporating more than one type of cording material in a single piece. Try mixing suede lace with silk ribbon or linen cord with leather cord or whatever combination you can come up with! Have fun with it! Use your imagination and don’t be afraid to experiment with the materials! 

• If you are chosen to contribute to the book, you will be responsible for supplying a complete materials list, list of tools used, complete instructions and a resource list for each of your jewelry projects.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE DO THE FOLLOWING:

1. If you think you might be seriously interested in this opportunity, please fill out this form and send it ASAP.

2. Please join the Jewelry Accord Flickr Group and start submitting your jewelry designs that fit the above mentioned criteria. To be considered for the book, you must submit at least 1 jewelry design. You may submit up to 5 designs. We ask that any and all interested individuals to please have your jewelry designs submitted to this flickr group by December 1st 2010. Thank you!

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us. My email is in my profile. We are looking forward to hearing from you! Please feel free to spread the word on this CALL out! Happy Beading! 🙂

OH! and here is Erin’s link!!
doh!