Korean Dragon continues

My dragon from Korea is beginning to take shape. I'm happy with the pearls and orange on the forehead. I like the goldstone "horns" and the nose came out really great. The swoops in the background will be shades of green as seen in the picture below.

I'm currently working on the eyebrows and the eyes. I really LOVE the way that this piece is working out.

Korean Dragon

I am working on this also - it's a temple dragon taken from a photo that I took in Korea in 1999.

Have to blow.....

...my own horn here. Here I am with my boot-leg photo (there was a "No Photography" sign) of four of my seven pieces in the Down River Council of the Arts (DCA) show. I took my husband to the show last weekend to see a large collection of Barb "Bent Needle" Davis - her beadwork is awesome! As soon as we have photos from the collection for the web page, I will post in the link. But here are four of my pictures - Lord Ganesha, Allah, Star of David and Om. I am very proud of the way that they look - like real art.

What next??

Not that I don't have about 4 projects going - ones that I actively work on, but I am thinking, thinking thinking.... I've been looking at pictures of my dog Molly. Molly is the amusing, lovable, entertaining dog and would be good to put in a bead embroidery piece. I have several pictures of Molly that would be good. Above is Molly and my niece, Isabel's feet. Below is Santa Molly - which would be cute, but I don't think that I can leave it out year round....

I'm certain that one of these days, the picture will just JUMP out at me, like Casie on the Rocks did.

Another another starfish

So now I have a little starfish with arms (or legs) about 2.5 inches long - that's better (and much quicker)! I did a row of purple beads up each leg (or arm), to give it a little more body. The center worked out exactly the same as the last one that I did - with using RAW, and a count of 5 beads. I still don't know what stitch that would be. It's not exactly RAW, and it's not chevron, but something between them. I don't know - Liz's stitch?

Another starfish

I worked on this most of the week. I still used the chopsticks for the legs and they are slightly shorter, but I adapted the middle and it worked much nicer. Now, to write up the directions. Yikes! That's the hard part for me......I am not a technical writer. I used RAW in the middle, but actually used it with a group of five beads, instead of four. Is that still RAW?

September refinished.....

I didn't give up, I did it again with slightly different colors. That was only because with the mess on my desk, I couldn't find the ones that I used the first time. I left the bit that Chloe didn't eat, because that's now the history of the piece. It's cute. I decided to leave the piece the way that the dog left it, with the roving pulled out a little.

It's taught me to put my beading away - in a box or drawer.

October Bead Journal Project.....

Dear Cristina: My goodness I miss talking with you. The office just isn't the same since you left last June - was it June? How much longer until you and Deep come back to Detroit??? You brought these little doves back from Peru and told me to make something with them. They have been sitting on my work bench, until I grabbed them a couple of weeks ago and started working with them.

I wish you and Deep all the happiness that I have had in my marriage. I hope that your bad days are just seconds compared to days and weeks and months of happiness.

When I first learned that you and Deep were a couple, I thought "Deep? And Cristina? No way" But after getting to know you during your chief year, I realized that it wasn't as silly as I thought that it was.

Hurry back to Michigan, don't be sad to leave Nebraska. It's getting lonely!!

Moose with a Rose

I'm doing a couple of bead embroidery pictures for Jeanette Shanigan for her bead quilt. She has a rose theme this year. Roses. Me? I can't do flowers. So I did a moose with a rose in it's mouth. What do you think?

September after......

....ah, new dog, I just wanted to throttle her, but she doesn't know what she did. She's just 1 1/2 years old and this piece just smelled to good so she jumped on the dining table and ate it. My bead journal piece for September was no match for Chloe, the rat terrier/Jack Russell mix that was adopted two weeks ago. I get to start again......

September finished early

Just something a little different for Liz. I felted some wool on the Pellon backing. I had a wishbone from Thanksgiving several years ago - I guess I do save this junque for a reason! I covered the wishbone with right angle weave in three colors and mounted that on the felted Pellon. Simple. Clean. I really like the simplicity of this month.

September teaser

Any guesses?

Bead Journal Teaser for September

Working on a start for September. I lied. I lied. I am working with size 15 seeds in RAW. Marcia - look what you have done to me!!! I don't know if it's the size 15s, the RAW, the DeCoster patterns that I have come to love or just what I am doing for September. It's different. Very different.

August Bead Journal Page - finished (at last)

Whew - I was worried!! I didn't think that it would be done. Even finished the 3-bead picot around the edge. I like the fact that the design is fairly simple. Done all in beads from my vintage/antique purse. Now, my idea for September? Not going to tell you. Different, I think.

August Bead Journal Page - continue

As I bead this journal page, there is a little song that goes through my mind. It's the song from the "Wizard of Oz" movie - not my most favorite movies, but one that I do enjoy watching every year. Some childhood memories die hard, don't they?

You're out of the woods
You're out of the dark
You're out of the night
Step into the sun, step into the light
Keep straight ahead
For the most glorious place
On the Face of the Earth
Or the sky

Hold onto your breath
Hold onto your heart
Hold onto your hope
March up to the gate
And bid it open

It shouldn't be took much longer - just a couple of evenings. Then I can start on September, which is just a vision in my head. Especially since I lost my note with my "most brilliant idea" - that's a bummer.

But the end is in sight and the dog wants out.

Herringbone colours

Quite a story with this necklace. I think that I started it in 2003 or 2004 after the Bead and Button Show in Milwaukee. I bought a kit from Buy the Kit and started working on it. I love the lariat that designer Nikia Angel made with it. After 19 inches, I just didn't like doing it! It sat in my stack of UFO's (Un Finished Objects) for several years.

In late July, I went to my friend's house in Ohio and met up with several beaders who have been on the Bead Cruise with me. They saw the piece and ooohed and aaahed over it. Now this is a piece that I took with me because I was going to take it apart and reuse the beads!!! Estelle, Shelly and Lynn - I finished it over the weekend and I am going to try and sell it at the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild Bead Bonanza on October 14th. I wouldn't have finished it at all, if you hadn't threatened me with bodily harm!! Thanks!

Casie on the Rocks - Finished!

I was camping in northern Michigan (well, it was actually Mid-state, in West Branch, but anything past mile market 200 on I-75 equates to being "Up-north") for the last 8 days. What great weather - not too hot, not too chilly, just wonderful.

My beads and I did a lot of work this week. I finished "Casie on the Rocks" while sitting in the sunshine, watching Casie and Molly check out all the dogs that walked by their jail - er, pen.

I'm pretty pleased with the way that this piece turned out - I might do a little more on the rocks, but then again, I might not. I used an adaptation of the Nepal or Biva chain to add textural leaves to the piece.

Casie on the Rocks - part 5

My work on "Casie on the Rocks" has continued this week. I promised myself that I would complete some projects before I start something new. I have been working on the rocks - browns and greys, with a little black thrown in. I also re-beaded Casie's one leg - the back one that is to the right. I didn't like the other texture and colour that I beaded it in, so out it went. The new one, on the left looks better.

Progress!!

August Bead Journal Page

This is the start of my August Bead Journal Page. I am using size 20 seed beads from a vintage bag that was just shredding. I've been taking the bag apart slowly - even though almost 1/2 the bag was missing, there are still a lot of beads, especially the "dirty" grey colour for the background. I like the start of this project.

Guesses, part drei

Well? I used mostly orange size 11 seed beads, with an occasional purple bead. My inspiration was an orange and purple starfish picture that I found on the internet. I worked the legs in right angle weave around a chopstick, with decreases along the stick. It's drapy and flowing and just really fun.