Couple more camping photos

Check out these woodcarvings that were near the campground entrance. Aren't they awesome? The turtle is actually carved into the stump from the old tree that fell over. It was massive! Here is the picture of my husband and dogs showing how large the tree was.

Bead Journal Project - September 2008

I have my idea for the first month. It hit me when I was driving home today for certain. I work in a very urban area - downtown Detroit. But as I was entering the expressway to come home, I saw a hawk/falcon sitting on the lightpost over the road. OMG! It was such a clear sign - and ties in perfectly with the square that I started on Monday and should have done for October.

Here's my September square and yes, I am going to sign this year's pieces as I complete them. As artists, we don't give ourselves enough credit and my co-worker Kathy actually fussed at me and told me that I need to start "autographing" or signing my embroidery. The first piece that I did was the Korean Dragon.

August Beadwork

While I was camping, I did find time to work on a couple of projects.

The first is an ID badge holder for my bead society. Maybe I'll actually remember to wear my tag so that the guild members know who I am. That is, assuming that they want to know who I am. Funny, some people may not want to know. But that could just be the voices in my head.

Then I worked on a heart for Jeanette Shanigan's bead quilts for breast cancer that are auctioned off every year at the Bead and Button show. I'm happy with the way that this worked this year. Jeanette wouldn't know what to expect if I didn't put a moose in the square - so it's in there, with the required heart. Imagine Jeanette's surprise when she sees that I actually followed the instructions this year - without veering too far outside the box!

August Camping and another dog story

Yes, another Chloe story - my dogs.....endless amusement....

Alan and I spent the last week about 48 miles from home at the Brighton State Recreation Area in Brighton/Hamburg, Michigan. It was a great week with good weather, not too hot nor cold and we had a really nice campsite.

Well, see the grass behind the camper? That backs onto a forest. I was woke at 4am one night to watch the racoons trying to eat the scraps in Alan's potato chip bag. That was cute to watch the two of them.

The dog story. On Wednesday, Alan opens the camper door to let out the dogs before I go to bed and Chloe bolts out. Bolts. Like the greased lightening she can be. And bolts back to the camper just as quick. Alan yells "oh no!!" as he sees the black and white "kitty" that Chloe saw. I came out of the camper and grabbed the dog - my first mistake: the kitty was a skunk and now it's on my hands.......

....Alan makes the 10pm run to find an open store in the wilderness - tomato juice isn't the answer any more. It's woman's douche - vinegar and water variety.....Man, does she stink. Man, do my hands stink. My eyes are watering and I am thankful for once for my allergies - if she stinks that much for me, she must really stink.

Alan returns with his feminine hygiene products and Chloe gets an 11pm bath with douche and cold water. She still stinks. It's close to midnight and it's going to take us at least an hour to pack up and go home (which neither of us wanted to do). We couldn't leave her chained outside to find another kitty and we didn't want her in our bed. Gods, no!

The travel kennel that Patty (from work) bought me! It's under the bed in the camper. We pop that open and lay a dog bed in it and hope for the best. She still stinks, but she's now 5 feet from the bed and can't jump on us.

I crawl in bed, nauseated from the skunk smell, and curl up in the bed. Gods, my hands stink. No curling them up under my chin......nasty. The next morning Chloe gets two more baths.....she still stinks....but it's better. We stayed at the campground until Sunday morning - just a wonderful week.

Except for the stinky dog.....the picture is pre-stinky.

p.s. My hands don't smell like skunk anymore. Either that, or I have gotten used to it.....

New stuff - it's been a while....

Dogs in the Tub

In an email to my buzzard friends, I mentioned a story about my dog Molly in the bathtub. Bead artist Bev Herman directed me to her blog at No Easy Beads where there is a story about her dog and the bathtub.

My dog story (yes, another one): Al's working midnights this week. He got home from work on Tuesday and only two dogs met him barking and happy at the door. His first impression was that "Liz locked her in the bedroom" - nope no dog in the bedroom.

He hears a small bark - and finds Molly in the...............bathtub. Where she obviously was in there for hours - sometime between 6:30 when I left for work and 12:30 when he got home, Molly jumped in the tub - she loves to lick the water off the surface. And then she couldn't get out.

Alan said she looked so pitiful.

That was on Tuesday. Tonight Alan and I went out to dinner tonight. We came home to: At least Chloe was keeping her company. Thanks for the chuckle Bev! Dogs will be dogs.

Loomatics Sighting in Mid-Michigan

There was a group of Loomatics that descended on East Tawas, Michigan over last weekend. No bead was safe for miles and miles. It's easy to spend time with friends when you have a sunset like this to inspire you.

Thank you Sue for opening up your cottage to us. And thank you to my friends who made for a great weekend: Jeanette, Joan, Diane, Madeline, Sharon, Sue and Linda! And thank you for putting up with my crazy dogs.

You know me.....

....and you know how much I love my dogs, nicht wahr? Even the one that ate my Bead Journal project back in September. But how can I love a dog that destroyed three pairs of earrings? Swarovski briolette sterling silver earrings?

I know that I should forgive her, and she knows that she did bad. But damn, I was taking these to a neighbor who ordered them.

I wonder where the other two earwires are. Hold it. No, I don't.

ID Badge holder

I've been making some of these for the girls that I work with. Here is my newest - and most colourful!! I love the crayon colours that are in it. These are some beads that I purchased at the Bead and Button Show in 2007 from Queen Beads. She has some of the most delicious bead mixes that I have seen.

It's July 4th weekend and we will be leaving for the campground in about an hour. I have my beads packed - my round robin project (this month I am working on Kate's Egyptian inspired necklace) and a couple of lariats for Jenny and Zeina, two of my Chief Residents this year).

Also, the August Bead & Button magazine came out this week and has one of my pieces in it - on page 26. I'm thrilled to see it in print and need to work on how to frame it as it's a little larger than the others that I have done.

Well, what do you know.....

...You know when you go to a trade show of any kind and there are all sorts of people demonstrating different items, and you fill in the card to get information (or what ever they might be giving away free)? Well, I can't believe that I have actually won something.

I just received my pair of Swanstrom Wire-Looping Pliers and accessory kit from Rio Grande. I was so stunned to when they called me - and today the box was in the mail. I'm anxious to try them and see if I can actually improve on some of my techniques.

Thanks Rio Grande, for making me a winner - and thanks for the M&Ms too.

Dallas Lovett Earrings

I think that I did pretty good, eh???

Bead and Button Show Report

I arrived on Wednesday for the Bead and Button Show, via Northwest - decent short flight. I was able to turn in frequent flyer miles, which is really cool for me. After checking into the Hilton and letting Marcia know that I was in town and alive, I started meandering through the Midwest Center and ran into Rachel Nelson-Smith. I was heading to lunch at Subway and offered to get her lunch before I wandered to the open beading area of the Hyatt. Luckily she wanted sustenance, and I took food to her room and received a preview of a new bracelet called "H. Liliripes Cuff" - very cool looking in person and on her web page. I am in awe of her talent; loving her Bhangra Fusion bracelet and the Sea Star Bangle especially. She is a very sweet young talented woman....(did I flatter enough??). Thanks again, Rachel - and you didn't have to.

On Wednesday night it was the "Meet the Teachers" reception. When Dallas Lovett was in Detroit in February, we made arrangements that I would help him during this reception. Working with him and his assistant Glenn was alot of fun and I met many, many interesting beaders that night. The pieces that caught my eye were Phoenix Rising, and his new piece the Venetian Bracelet. Can you say awesome?? Thank you again, Dallas and Glenn, for the pleasure of working with you and for my wonderful gift - I will wear it and think of you!

Thursday, I worked through about 1pm, then met Marie - who I know from the Bead Cruises that I have been on. Marie, from the twin cites, and I relaxed with some beading, shopped a little, had Thai for dinner and shopped some more. I am so glad that I had the chance to get to know each other a little better. We were even mistaken for mother and daughter by a woman who took our picture! Thanks for a great afternoon and evening!

I love working with Marcia (I'd say that even if she didn't read my blog to see what trouble I am getting into) - I learn alot about teaching beading, working with students, I can see my strengths and my weaknesses (which I need to work on). I will say that we had an awesome group of students on both days which really helps with my responsibilities.

Enough gushing - here's what I came home with:

• Strand of coral
• 3 strands of pearls
• 4 packs of seed beads that were 1/2 off
• 35 rivolis that were scratch and dents for $1 a piece. Once they are bezeled, no one will know.
• 4 strands of a strange shaped Chinese crystal that I love
• Spool of the new Beadalon thread called "WildFire" - gee, I wonder who they are competing with?
• Lots of 5301 bicones!
• Add-a-bead wine stopper
• Sample of the Toho beads
• David Christensen glass
• Dallas Lovett earring kit (he said that I could do it)
• 12 blue and cream lampwork beads
• Soft Touch samples
• Big honking crystal for my desk
• New Miyuki sample colours
• Rachel Nelson bracelet kit
• Marcia Decoster kit
• 2 tubes of seed beads
• 2 tubes of 1.5mm cube beads
• Rivoli ring kit

For those who know me - it's not a lot!!!

Bead and Button 2008

(sold)

As I leave for Bead and Button (or Bead and Butts as Cristina calls it) in the morning, I just wanted to show a couple new things that I made.....

What am I working on?

Neuschwanstein Castle bead embroidery

Crystal Collage with pattern by Marcia Decoster (homework for Bead and Button)

Gail Crosman Moore felted bag (need to determine how it's going to hang or be carried)

Etruscan Necklace with pattern by Marcia Decoster (I'm swapping with a Loomatics friend)

Commission wire wrap piece for Heidi (she saw something that one of my coworkers wore and wants a similar piece)

Robin Atkins Bead Journal Project - working on 2008-9 ideas in my head (a most dangerous place to be)

Amerikas bead embroidery

Right Angle Weave brown starfish

Right Angle Weave wishbone

Frame options for Bead Journal Project 2007-8

Clean up and organize my bead zone. I really, really need to do this.

Need to mail tank top to Sherry (from the Beady Friends Cruise)

Published!!

Check out Nicole Campanella's new book called "Flatwork; Beading Techniques from Old to New Elegance in Tradition" - I'll brag: I have 4 pieces in the inspirational gallery #4 and I am very exited as I received a copy of this book in the mail today!! Thank you Nicole for selecting some of my work to be in your new publication.

May Bead Journal Project

May's Bead Journal is in loving memory of Audrey Sunburn. Audrey was a generous and loving beader whose heart was as big as her smile. She made these little "cocoon babies" for a swap that our Buzzard (Bitchen Biker Turkey Buzzard Beadin' Babes) group was doing several years ago. I thought that she would love them in the piece. Also is a shell and a piece of coral - Audrey loved the sea and I though she would approve of these. I used a different fabric base this month - this is EazyFelt (sp) from the craft store. It comes in large sheets and some wonderful colours.

It wasn't my intention to do two months in a row as memorial pieces for Jim and Audrey, but life does things to us. I was going to use this piece for May. It's a sampler of different bead stitches that I have learned from a variety of places. Over the weekend, my good friend Joan and I were looking at the pieces and I told her that I wasn't going to be able to use this because it's now number 13. She just chuckled and said it's for me - it's your Baker's Dozen. Joan's last name is Baker.

So, the over achiever that I am - I have 13 pieces - my baker's dozen.

Audrey Sunburn

I received this email over the weekend:

"Hi, Those of you who already know, I am sorry for repeating the information. My name is Paula, I'm Audrey's daughter. I'm emailing you all to let you know, my mom passed away.
She passed on Friday May 2nd. They believe she had a heart attack, we had no idea this was coming. She wasn't ill. She was just having a terrible back ache. I know that she has many friends from her beading community, and she cared for you all very much. She had a gift, and enjoyed beading, knitting, and getting together with her beading buddy's. Please know that she spoke of you with affection. Thank you for being a friend to my mom, she was fortunate to have found soul mates in crafting."

I've been an on-line friend of Audrey's for years - we first connected on the forum "Bead Talk" We have met for the last several years at the Bead and Button show in Milwaukee. Above are several pictures from our meetings over the years (the third picture was taken by Bev Herman).

I will miss her.

Thank you to my visitors

I have a tracker on my blog that shows me where my visitors come from. Just a shout out to my international visitors from (no particular order!):
India
United Kingdom
Thailand
Turkey
Brasil
Argentina
Yukon Territory (that's pretty far north and the only thing that I know about that area is from the CBC show "North of 60" that used to air)
Switzerland (been there)
Spain
Sweden (saw Sweden when I was in Denmark)
Singapore (Raymond, is that you?)
Portugal
Germany (lived there for three years - who is the person from the Stuttgart area?)
Netherlands (been there - very cool B&B which served chocolate with the coffee)
France (been there)
Mexico
S. Korea (Eun Sook, is that you?)

Welcome everyone!

April Bead Journal Project

April's bead journal project is a little harder emotionally than any I have done. This is for my brother. My brother, Jim, passed away four years ago from complications from his liver transplant (received in 1991). I acquired a piece of snakeskin that he cured a long time ago and it's been hanging on my bulletin board since shortly after his death. I thought that it was time that I do a piece for Jim.

I cut the snakeskin to basic triangle shapes to fit on the background and glued them down. I bezeled around a 1907 Indian Head penny that I am pretty certain that he provided to me at one time or another, and I have put the picot edging that I have on all my journal pages.

But I know that it's missing something and I just can't put my finger on it. Colour? Jim wasn't very colourful, but he appreciated the beauty of nature. He enjoyed being outside, loved camping, fishing, and hunting (at least until his body told him that he couldn't do it anymore). Jim collected coins and stamps also.

It's kind of interesting that Jim will be gone 4 years this summer and I think I have been more emotional about it in the last month than I have since shortly after his death. Hormones on my part? I don't know what it is (I'm sitting here with tears blinding my typing - good thing I know where the keys are) all about.

But back to my project - I am going to have to search through my stash of beads and find some that Jim would appreciate being on his own month - kind of makes him a calendar boy, eh?

p.s. April 20th - After thinking it over, I must have taken the picture and written about it for a reason. This piece is complete.

Thank you Mary.....

I’ve been challenged by Mary, from Bead Fluff with the following challenge. I haven’t really done many of these before, some small ones, but this is really going to make me think. For those of you that know me personally, you know that I am a pretty even tempered person, I do blow, but I don’t think that’s bad, because then I don’t hold it in an dwell on it…...

Let’s see what I come up with:

List one has to do with 5 strengths you have, for example persistence, courage, friendliness, creativity.

1. I am a loyal friend (as Mary said); I still have many friends from my earlier years. I try not to let them slip through the cracks.
2. I am creative. In fact I'm very creative. If that is a talent, then I need to face it.
3. I am usually pretty patient (or am I persistent?). I’ll explain the same thing to the same person multiple times. At work, I deal mostly with persons from other cultures, countries and religions and our “norms” are not there “norms” – it’s imperative for them to understand that to get along with nurses, patients and techs, they may have to bend from what they know into slightly unfamiliar territory. I hope that I help them.
4. I am willing to try almost anything once, usually twice (the first time could just have been a bad experience and it might require a “do-over” to see if I really didn’t like it). My most recent experience was that I have said for years that I don’t like pea soup with ham. My mother didn’t like it, didn’t make it for the kids, I never tried it. At a ham joint two weeks ago, the waitress heard me talking about that (this place serves ham sandwiches, ham breakfast and soup – that’s it) and brought me a cup to try. It’s one of those foods with a really strong colour – kind of scarey… I learned that it’s really, pretty tasty.
5. I am a strong person in a crisis situation. I usually don’t fall apart when the S**t hits the fan. I buckle down and I do what needs to be done. I don’t often hit the panic button.

Now list 5 things you admire about yourself.

1. I believe that I have become a pretty decent artist with this medium that has reached out and grabbed me. It doesn’t define me, but is a huge part of who I am and what I have become in the last 12-13 years.
2. This is pretty close to what Mary said about being an ear to those around me. I listen.
3. I believe that I can make people relax around me. This may be a reason why my home has become a regular meeting place for my group of beaders. It might actually be because I have a huge dining room table, but I bought the table so that we could actually fit more people around it. The friends were coming over before that, and I like to believe it’s because it’s a relaxed, come as you are atmosphere.
4. I am extremely tolerant of religious values and cultures which are not what I was raised with. I can count Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, and agnostics amongst my closest friends and will respect them completely. To this, I believe that my friends respect my beliefs (or lack there of) in return.
5. I love and I am loved.

Now list 5 of your greatest accomplishments in your life so far:

1. I married the perfect person for me. The fact that we connected through a singles ad still floors people.
2. I have been able to do a few things with my art – acceptance into Bead and Button (Feb 2007 and Aug 2008) Readers Gallery and the Downriver Council for the Arts (Nov 2007) gallery showing.
3. I have adopted and given a good life to two cats and two dogs. I wasn’t able to have kids, and this is what I ended up with. I’m happy with it.
4. I’ve taken a high school education, with some college and made a career out of what could just be a “job”. I am a Residency Program Coordinator for one of the largest Internal Medicine residency programs in the country. I work with training physicians who work around the country and around the world.
5. I had the courage to divorce my first husband, even though family tried to convince me to do otherwise. I walked away from him, a guaranteed retirement, health benefits, etc. Even when my mom passed away shortly after we separated, I didn’t go back to him.

List at least 10 other Accomplishments (okay, I changed it to 10):

1. I have a great relationship with my younger brother – and he actually likes my husband.
2. Growing old is something that I can’t change and I am working to embrace it. I may not like it, but the alternative sucks.
3. I can swear in multiple languages. I don’t know if it’s an accomplishment, but I can do it.
4. I've taught myself to sew.
5. I volunteer with the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild in the Detroit area. I am currently the webmaster for the guild (which reminds me I still need to work on that one page).
6. I volunteer on a website that prepares foreign doctors on how to apply and interview for residency positions in the United States. Why do we need foreign doctors? There are many areas of the country where Americans don’t want to work and people need doctors.
7. I don't take offense quickly.
8. I'm hardly ever late.
9. I'm easily amused.

List 10 thing you do to treat or reward yourself, that don't include food or cost anything.

1. I curl in the bed with three dogs all trying to show that they love me.
2. I can see the beauty in a sunset; either in my backyard or on a trip.
3. Reading a new book, with one of the dogs in my lap.
4. I bake cookies for those I love.
5. Chatting with an old friend on the phone.
6. Watching the baby birds that are just learning to fly.
7. Counting the birds of prey that I see while in the car.
8. Sipping a cup of coffee on the patio in the morning on a summer day.
9. Chatting with new neighbors over the fence.
10. “Now Voyager” over and over and over.

List 10 things you could do to help someone else and make yourself feel good about yourself.

1. Give money to a friend who was unemployed for 10 months and not expect it back.
2. Give something I've made to someone who has said they would like to have one of my pieces of work.
3. Cook Korean food for my husband when he gets a taste for it.
4. Learn more than the bad words in a language.
5. Invite friends over.
6. LISTEN.
7. LISTEN.
8. LISTEN.
9. LISTEN.
10. LISTEN. Okay, I know that writing listen multiple times is a cop-out, but sometimes it’s more important to listen than it is to speak. Politicians should learn this.

Neuschwanstein Castle - seite drei

Und wir haben Schloss Neuschwanstein, with (mit) much (sehr) more of the castle (schloss) completed. This castle is being done in layers, with many of the towers being two (zwei) to four (vier) layers of interfacing thick. The towers (turm) that are not completed are a different layer than the brownish red charlottes that is in between them. The stone colour (farben) around the door (tur) is also a different layer. The outline that you see in red (rot) is placement lines for some of the trees (baum) that will be in front of the castle.

Not far from the castle is the great Bavarian town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, where I learned that I don't care for skiing on the Zugspitze. When you are skiing for the first time - yes, even on what they considered the "bunny hills" - and you fall; when instructors kick their skis off and come running to see how you are, you know that you should be really hurt (I was) and that you don't belong on skis. I spent the remainder of my ski week in the resturant "Sonn Alpin" with Colonel Check, drinking hot spiced wine and expressing our dislike for skiing.

Bead Journal Blogs

Do you know what I think that I might love the most about the Bead Journal Project? It might just be the links on all the other blogs, that carry me to other blogs, that link me to more blogs. Since joining Robin's project last summer, I have seen more cool beading throughout the world than I have seen before. When I get a block, I visit blogs. I see things. I see bead work that I wish that I had done first. I get inspired, I get refreshed. Okay and I do get jealous of the talent of all these wonderful women. Below is just a sample of some of the sites that I have seen (yes, I liberated this from another site - Arline has a great list of links on her page - I hope you don't mind that I did this).

AKP Beading
Another Country
Artfulmuse
Artntheheart
Bead Inspired
Beader's View-Jen
Beading at the Beach
Beadlust
Beadnik's BJP Blog
Beads n fibers
Beadweaver
Bits of Beads and Fibers
By Char
CC's Artblog
Clevelandgirlie
Confessions of a Bead Counter
Dolliebead-Ellen
Dreambeadr
Dulcey Heller
Enchanted Wolf Beading
Erthafae-AJ
Focus on Fiber
Freebird Sings
From the Magpie's Nest
Fruitabeader
Girl Gone Thread Wild
Grace Beading
Heidibeads
Jann Beads
Kathy's BJP
LunaC
MotherHenna
Mountain Salt Studio
Nancy's Bead and Misc.
Papercatspage
Phantasmagoric Peag
Quilts, beads and other such
Sammystuff
Sassy Art Goddess
Serious Beader
Speediebeadie
The Lone Beader
The Wingedneedle's Nest
Wild Spirit-Jos

March Bead Journal Project

March! March is a month that is completely unpredictable in metro Detroit. It could be nice and sunny with beautiful temps or it can rain every day or it can snow the entire month. This March was pretty cold, with lots of snow; but we always celebrate the coming of spring. For my March Bead Journal project, I looked at the celebration of spring with my Goddesses that were designed by fellow Buzzard, Debb Pflanz. The background is a mix of vintage sequins and size 15 seed beads (and a few size 18 seeds).

Neuschwanstein Castle - seite zweit

When I was taking art classes in high school, my work with perspectives sucked. As an adult, 30 years out of high school, my perspective still sucks. The difference is that I don't really care now. I love my castle. And my friend Sandy called me a "queen" today - she titled me the "Queen of size 15s" - although we all know that the title belongs to her.

When you go to Bavaria to see Schloss (Castle) Neuschwanstein, don't forget to stop in a nearby in nearby Linderhof to see another to the famous castles in the area.

Neuschwanstein Castle

This is Neuschwanstein Castle, located in Bavaria, Germany near the village of Fussen. The foundation stone was layed in 1869 and construction was finished in 1886, after King Ludwig II untimely death. The castle receives over 1 million visitors per year, and during the years 1984-87, when I lived in Germany, I can't begin to count how many times I visited the castle. My first visit was during the summer of 1981, when I traveled to Germany with my friend Tricia. Want a great meal in the shadow of the beautiful building? Check out The Hotel Mueller and check out the views from the Sun Terrace. It's wonderful.

My castle is about 6x4 inches, pretty small for such a grand castle. With the background, I think it will end up about 8x10 inches or so. The castle beading will be completed using all size 15 seed beads.

Do I dare????

February Bead Journal Project

Ah, February - it was a short month, and flew by quickly. I didn't finish this until last weekend, and I still have March to start. February is a dancer. She is a glass piece by Ann Hoke, from Oregon. I beaded her arms and then attached her and all her fancy hair to the orange background. She's joyful, playful and a happy piece to look at.

Joe's Spirit Doll

Joe is a co-worker of mine at the hospital. He and his wife are in the process of trying to adopt a baby from Vietnam. This is a picture of the spirit doll (a class that I took years ago from Robin Atkins through the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild) that I have made for them - with all sorts of Eastern good luck charms on it. The vines represent a "growing" family.

Joe, I hope that the adoption is successful. You are a great guy.

Whew!

Finished putting up pictures on the GLBG 2008 Bead Daze classes that were held in February. As computer un-savvy that I am, I think that I am doing okay with the web site. I try and keep it as updated as I can.....

The above picture shows bead artist, Rachel Nelson-Smith and a very clear diagram showing a precise thread path. Clear as mud??

Schwartzenbeader Blog

Check out Sue's Blog about the Round Robin Project!

Urchin Bead with Lentils

Look what I did to Marcia DeCoster's urchin bead! I took out the 3mm crystal and added a small lentil bead in a coordinating color!

Loomatics Round Robin Project

I am really excited about this project. The Loomatics are a study group of the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild and we are working on a round robin project. This is something new for us and I know that every piece is going to turn out wonderfully! Above are two pieces that I have worked on. I know that you can't tell what they are, but I don't know if they read my blog.

Basically, we all started with a design on a piece of fabric to work our bead embroidery on and we beaded a portion of it. Then we hand our treasure off to the next person. My piece started on it's journey with Madeline, then onto the next person. We won't see the piece until this time next year. We are allowed to put some guidelines for the other beaders (no pink, no flowers, no penis beads, etc), but once the project is out of our hands - we have no control.

When we meet on a monthly basis, we talk about our work and our visions. The person who "owns" the piece leaves the room for a couple of minutes to let the beader of the month talk about it. The laughter that comes from the room really makes you wonder "what are they doing to my beadwork?" but I know that it's going to turn out wonderful because I know that none of the women involved would do anything ugly or hateful.

I've had Sue's and Deb's work come through me and added my little touches to their visions. Because of my sense of humour, and the fact that I started off with a moose, I know that mine is going to have little pieces of my personality through it and I can't wait for it to be finished!

p.s. It's pronounced "loom-a-tics" with the emphasis on the loom, not loo-matics.

Bead Daze Classes in Michigan

As a member of the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild, I have the opportunity to work with some phenomenal bead artists such as Dallas Lovett, Rachel Nelson-Smith, Huib Petersen, Marcia DeCoster and Stephanie Eddy. The Guild just sponsored 4 days of intense beading classes for its members.

I volunteered to be classroom monitor (classroom 'ho, classroom angel, classroom assistant will all work) for Marcia DeCoster. I worked with her last year and learned so much from her, that I was very excited to have this chance again.

I had my friends Sharon Hessoun and Maggie McCloud come up from Ohio to stay with me and take classes. We spend the evenings around the dining room table, talking, giggling and ..... well, you had to be there.

The guild members that I have had a chance to talk with all really seemed to enjoy all the classes that were offered. Linda and I chatted a bit this morning - I think that we will talk about them for a couple of months, especially as our projects are completed.

Being the over achiever that I am, I just finished my Etruscean Treasurenecklace, which is something that I normally wouldn't ever make or wear - it's very polished and proper - not something that the "Bad Liz" would have on. But it's gorgeous! I love it. Silver and purple - dainty, little peyote bands on the armature - so not my style. I'll edit a post and let you all know what my co-workers have to say when I wear it tomorrow. My only decision - cream or pale pink turtleneck?

Bead Daze is a week of classes that are so wonderful that I wish that I could have cloned myself to be in all the classrooms.

(The only downside of the whole week was that I had to report for jury duty on Thursday morning, but I wasn't wanted - the only time in life that you don't want to be wanted. I was in class by 12:30 p.m.!)

p.s. Vicki - thanks for the conversation hearts - they really are my favorites!!

Amerika revisited.

The Amerika's was started back in April, and I started working on it again when I finished Soraksan Dragon last week. This will be the largest tapestry that I work on at 8.5 by 17 inches.

I still need to work on my February Bead Journal Piece.....but this UFO (un-finished object) told me it was ready to be picked up again.

Soraksan Dragon

I love this piece.

Especially when I know that it's from a photo that I took

during a trip of a life time.

I started on November 2, 2007

I finished on February 8, 2008

with approximately 240 hours.

It's 7.75 inches by 13 inches.

I used seed beads, in size 11 and 15s.

I used a few pearls and some vintage sequins.

Playing with Wire

That's wire, not fire.
This is a bead that I received in a Focal bead swap on my recent bead cruise.
Looks good to me.....

Beady Friends Bead Cruise – January 2008

With temperatures in Michigan hovering in the teens (or lower), it was a perfect time to go on a cruise with 18 of us – bead crazed babes and hubby. Poor guy! Although it is funny that one of the woman asked a friend of mine if that was the same husband that I had last year (he is – he’s lost 30 pounds and cut 14 inches off his hair). We left out of Fort Lauderdale and headed to ports in Jamaica and Grand Caymans.

Shelley, Lynn, Estelle, Sharon, Terri, Mikee (all from Ohio), Deb, Sherry (both from Virginia) Brenda, Tina (both from Florida), Marie-Minnesota, Caroline-New Mexico, Carol, Margaret (both from Chicago area), Connie, Jennifer (sorry, I don’t know where they are from!) , Jill and myself (both from Michigan) were eager participants.

Our first day on the Navigator of the Seas (Royal Caribbean), we had workshops, not organized classes. This was really good for those who wanted to have a spa treatment or hang out in the pool, or just bead on their own. Our “goodie bags” were fill of items donated by different vendors/companies in the bead world – Bead and Button publications, Beady Eye Girl, (remind me to fill in more names).

In Jamaica, there were several members that decided to go on the White River raft trip – Estelle, Margaret, Sherry, Sharon, Alan, me, Deb, Brenda and Tina – what a cool trip. We had a guide named Clayton who gave us a little history of the area. He did little to dispel the myth that Jamaicans say “yah Mon” after every sentence (although I wonder if he did it for us tourists). We were all outfitted with a life vest, jumped in a tube in a cool Jamaican stream, and away down the river. Some of the rapids were a good white water, some were ripples. We laughed and sang our way down the river.

Being that Alan and I do a tubing trip in Michigan every year for 4 hours – this 1.5 hour trip seemed way to short. But at the end of the raft trip in Michigan there isn’t a fully stocked bar with double shots!

Following that trip, we ended up back at the port where Estelle, Sharon, Shelley, Alan and I had lunch – which included a Red Stripe beer. I couldn’t leave Jamaica without having a local beer. As we were getting back on the ship, a few raindrops came out of the sky – just like the country was sad that we were leaving.

The next morning we found ourselves in the Grand Caymans – beautiful blue seas!!! We got on the tender for a little shopping and then joined our excursion on the Nautilus – a semi-submersible boat with huge windows. We toured over a couple of shipwrecks, and coral reefs to an area where we could snorkel. I enjoyed this, but since I couldn’t wear my glasses, I don’t know if I would do this again. I came out with a monster headache – partly because I had to squint to see anything, and partly because I was hungry. After our return to shore, we decided to head to lunch (we being Lynn, Caroline, Mikee, Terri, Alan and I) at Senor Frogs – great nachos, large enough for 3-4 people. Also, it had great cocktails!!!

Our dinners were reserved for the later dinner – which I think we learned that we didn’t care for as much as an earlier dinner. Several nights we ate at the buffet, which is where we learned that they have SUSHI every night. Open beading went on several nights until midnight or later. Many people went dancing and drinking in the evenings.

I sincerely enjoyed myself – as I have every bead cruise that I have gone on. I know that I got to know many of the beaders better this year.

Also, this year, I have inducted Lynn and myself to the “baby bling” category of jewelry buyers – this just means that we purchased jewelry, but not enough to be in the “Bling Diva” section of the cruisers!!!

January Bead Journal Project

January 2008.

I was on a cruise with a bunch of bead crazy women.

I picked up the little dolls in the Grand Caymans.

Along with the shells and starfish.

So, imagine yourself walking along the beach.

Sunset behind you a delicious magenta colour.

The perfect end to a perfect trip.

Beady Friends Cruise returns home

A few of the participants line up for a photo.

Liz, Marie and Estelle in front
Sharon, Mikee, Terri, Caroline, Carol and Margaret behind.

December Bead Journal Project

I am almost finished with December's Bead Journal page,

so I thought that I would post it.

I just need to complete the black picot edging.

Knowing, me, I will continue with the peyote bands

until the fabric is just a hint of what's underneath.

My inspiration was from the bright green fabric

and the glow-in-dark face that my friend Audrey made

(I think it was Audrey) several years ago.

I plan on taking my January page

on my BeadyFriends Bead Cruise

when we leave on January 19th.

This is a 5-night cruise of the Western Caribbean

with ports of call in the Grand Caymans and Jamaica.

I'm very excited as I haven't been to those

ports again.

And I do work to support my vacation habits.

(My other blog!)

Korean dragon - progress report

The Korean/Soraksan Dragon continues.

I've had some progress since my last picture.

Decision time approaches for the background colour.

Pale blue or continue the green colour?

Decisions, decisions.

I've said the pale blue since I started, but looking at the photo

again, the green is the background colour.

Beady Friends Cruise leaves on January 19th from Fort Lauderdale.

It's a different one from last year.

The last two years I went on this cruise: Bead Cruise

It's a great cruise, with formal classes, etc.

But this year, if I was going to cruise,

I needed to find something less expensive.

After all Michigan's economy does suck.

A friend told me about this cruise: Beady Friends Cruise.

It's less expensive, doesn't have the "famous" teachers or formal classes.

It features workshops by Caroline Beihl, Sherry Grove,

Connie Harty, Sharon Hessoun and Liz Thompson

Wait a minute....that's me!

The Bad Liz...

How on earth did I get roped into teaching a workshop on Bead Embroidery?

After all, my friends know that I hate bead embroidery.

(I learned to never say that I hate something,

because your friends don't let you forget it.)

More Dogs.....

When I sit in my studio and work on my beading,

there is usually one or two dogs under my feet.

After all, it is right near a heat vent, and the dogs aren't stupid

(they stay with me, don't they?).

Last night, I looked down and saw a "ball of dogs"

Casie (brown) was curled up, with Molly on her butt.

Chloe (in the middle), with her head on both of the dogs.

Just give me a big "Awwwwwwwwww" and I will be happy.

Less than two weeks to the cruise....