I'm a winner!!

That's winner, not whiner! Look what I won! Isn't it just me!?

(I know, I know; it's me and just a little over the top! But it's a sassy passport cover - that's why I had to try to win on Ebay!)

Better late than never

I am a member of two bead guilds in Michigan - the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild and Saginaw Valley Bead Society. Last November, three beading buddies and I travelled five hours north to Traverse City, MI and the Saginaw Valley "Beading Fantasy Weekend." What a nice weekend. We have done this three years in a row and each year is a lot of fun. Sharon, Jeanette, Diane and myself share a hotel room overlooking Grand Traverse Bay.

On Friday, the program begins in the evening and we spent the day visiting downtown Traverse City where Sharon found these great "S.L.U.T" cups - it stands for "Stressed-out Ladies Unwinding Together" - which were great for the hard cider and wine that we bought.

We also went to several of the local wineries - which are wonderful! While leaving one of the vineyards, I asked Jeanette to stop the car so that I could take a photo of the wonderful grapes on the vine.

Awesome! And the woman at Chateau Chantel was nice enough to take a photo of the four of us.

The Saginaw Valley Bead Society does a really nice job putting this small retreat (55 persons) together. The "goodie" bag is wonderful and full of great items. They have small classes for all levels of beading, sell their kits, have an open beading area from 11am to 6pm - then a group project for everyone to enjoy. It's a nice group of ladies to know.

We found a great place for carryout for dinner on Saturday - it was a small market on the main road into town - and they had shrimp - boiled shrimp - OMG! The Bayside Market also has jerky, cheese, a deli, wine, spirits; on certain days they have BBQ ribs and chicken - grilled right in front of the store. We had the shrimp on Saturday and received some jealous glances from the other beaders!!

And all good times must come to an end - on Sunday, we packed up the car, Jeanette waved goodby to the Bay and we drove home...can't wait for next year

Progress...but not in beading

I am doing the Happy Dance in Detroit (it's like the Electric Slide, but without all the people watching)!! My blood pressure is down from 160/90 in August to 121/71 in October - which made me very happy. My change? I switched from diet Mountain Dew to Caffeine Free diet Mountain Dew (I have to say I am sorry to everyone who I have laughed at over the years for drinking the Caffein Free diet Mountain Dew) and I have cut out about 1 mug of coffee a day.

The rest of my numbers are getting in the right direction, and since the start of Weight Watchers (yeah, again), my next fasting blood numbers should be even better. My LDL (good cholesterol) is acceptable (do you think its the cup of Cheerios almost every morning or is that a coincidence?), blood sugar acceptable, and I have lost 10 pounds since January 9th.

Ten pounds lost, only ten more pounds - about 9 times. Progress is slow, but heading in the right direction.

2009 in Review

I saw this over on Melissa & Kris's blogs (I bet you two didn't think that I read them...) and hmmmm, some of these questions really make me think. Here I go!

1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before? Alan and I had the opportunity to go on a cruise to Alaska. ALASKA! It's magical. Also, I won first prize for designing a bead pattern for a starfish for the 2010 Bead-A-Day pattern. Thank you Sharon for FORCING me to do this!

2. Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? For the most part, I don't make resolutions, but I will be making one for 2010. I need to loose weight. Not I want to or I should. I need to. My BP was 160/90 in August and down to 121/71 in October.

3. How will you be (did I) spending New Year’s Eve? The same way I spend most weekend evenings - beading and watching old movies. I actually stayed up until after midnight.

4. Did anyone close to you die? My father passed away in February. Enough said.

5. What countries did you visit? Canada (and two states that I hadn't been in before: Washington and Alaska)

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009? I'd like for my health to be better.

7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? May 2009 - the vision from my Alaskan cruise. Those who know me, know that I am not a religious person. Something in this trip changed inside me to a little more spiritual - not necessarily religious - but spiritual!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? First place in a contest for a beaded starfish. The best part was that when I wrote the instructions, I didn't realize I was entering the contest - I just did it.

9. What was your biggest failure? Not sticking to "lifestyle changes" the way that I should have.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? This damn getting older stuff is rough on my body. If I would just feel older mentally, not just physically.

11. What was the best thing you bought? The camera that my husband bought me and I have become a believer in Bare Minerals line of products. I never thought that I would really like a brand as much as I like these...

12. Where did most of your money go? Home Mortgage.

13. What song will always remind you of 2009? Detroit 67 by Sam Roberts

14. What do you wish you’d done more of? Keep in touch with family a little better. I get together with friends, but forget about family. We have never been real close, and I don't know if that's bad, but I should keep in better touch.

15. What do you wish you’d done less of? Eat.

16. What was your favorite TV program? Turner Classic Movies.

17. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Actually, yes I do. Hate might be too strong of a word, but there is a person who I don't care for as much as I used to.

18. What was the best book you read? Beading books of course ... Marcia's, Rachel's and Diane's

19. What was your greatest musical discovery? None.

20. What was your favorite film of this year? I think that I went to one movie in 2009 - Sherlock Holmes - just after Christmas. It was good.

21. What did you do on your birthday? Worked, what else?

22. What kept you sane? My husband, my friends and my beads.

23. Who did you miss? Dad

24. Who was the best new person you met? Several of the new Beady Friends on the Bead Cruise - Ruth, Beth, Jodi, and more...

25. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009: Just because you can eat it, doesn't mean that you should...

Bead Journal Project - January 2010

True to my promise, I'm back! I had an idea for my first couple of beaded knobs.

The first knob is a modified "Terracita" style medallion from my friend, Marcia's book. It was modified to fit the knob, which is wood and was painted with pink nailpolish (why buy paint, when I have nailpolish?).

The next knob is just a simple swirl of colours with beads that are leftover from a kit that I have. I love the texture that the swirl evokes.

Back when I have something else going on!!

January projects

I will admit, since I joined Facebook, my blog posts have taken a second row seat to FB. Why is that? Instant comments? Need for mass appeal? Since I don't know the answer, but recognize the deficiency, I will do my best to stay active here.

So....bones are progressing. All the fingers have been finished and I am starting on the handbones (connected to the wrist bones, wrist bones connected to the arm bones...). While I work in my head how to do that, I have been making....

FANS!! I need to make about 38-40 of them for a new bracelet. Whew!! It's taking about 45 minutes a fan - now it's brain-dead beading which I can do easily!

Skeletons in my closet

Last year I was given a hand. Literally, it was a hand and lower arm.

What was I going to do with it? I have been debating about it for a while and even posted on Facebook about it.
Over the holiday, I started doing something about it.

One finger completed at first - did I like it? I did, I did.
As of this morning, I have three fingers worth completed. Two more fingers, a ring, the hand and arm bones need to be completed....

Why?

Why not?

Merry Holidays

What a nice holiday.

Gift certificate to my favorite local bead store, Stony Creek Bead,

pedicure from my brother

new Birkenstock's from my brother and his

girlfriend, and new jammies from

Joe Boxer!

We have very quiet holidays.

Today, lunch with friends;

Tomorrow, a date with my husband.

Below, a picture of my niece, Isabel who told me that

my beads were a mess and I need to straighten them.

So she did.

December Gathering of Beaders

December found our merry gang of beaders in Southfield, Michigan

at Jeanette's home. I don't know how much beading we did,

but we did a lot of laughing and talking.

Here's most of our gang:

front: Sharon, Joanne, Madeline, Sharon and Susie

back: Jeanette, Linda, Liz, Diane and Deb

missing: Sandy, Kate and Joan

Last year we worked on our Round Robin Bead Embroidery project.

This year we are working on Beaded Beads for each other.

Ladies - it's been a fun year! I hope that we all have a great

holiday season and a fantastic 2010!

Rings of Saturn

I've been working on Rings of Saturn (designed by Marcia DeCoster) most of the summer and through the fall. I made the base once and didn't like the way that I was doing it and took it out. Then out again. This last time, it came together nicely. I adapted the chain for a Russian Spiral - time consuming but well worth the results. This is a wonderful kit - nice mix of RAW, peyote and embellishing.

Combination Bracelet!

I was playing with beads the other day, and I do love this turquoise and brown combo, when I started making the modified right angle weave stitch that Marcia Decoster used in her Romantica Lariat. Using two strips of units, with one thrown in with crystals, and a clasp from the Quadrille Medaglia to make this bracelet. It has an unexpected and cool curve in the bracelet that I wasn't expecting, and I do love it.

Black Romantica

Here is my version of Marcia's Romantica Lariat. I used mostly black 8/0, 11/0 and 15/0 seed beads. I bezeled around a vintage snap that I bought at Bead & Button this year, added a vintage round and a Swarovski button. Below is a close up.
I might have to make one of these for my ID badge holder at work. I will just have to determine what colour will go with most of my clothes.

Marie Dressler - finished!

Finished it! Here is my inspiration: a movie still from "Dinner at Eight" with Marie Dressler. I noticed this necklace on her and said to myself "Hmmmm, that looks interesting. I found the movie still and enlarged the necklace (don't you love the computer some days?) to study it.

Here is my completed piece - completed with 10 large rivoli's and seven smaller ones. I used a combination of right angle weave (Thank you Marcia), peyote and herringbone spirals (thank you Amy Katz). Don't adjust your colours - the background is black, and the necklace is all in silver and crystal.
For those who have known me a long time, you know that this is so outside of my comfort zone. I am thrilled with the feel and look of this piece. Isn't it regal??

Starfish and Stuff

It's a hazy, autumn day in Michigan.

I didn't have anything new to update, so I thought that I would show how I am

displaying my beaded starfish. It's a a beautiful piece of amethyst which I

pulled out of the rocky soil of northern Ontario, Canada.

The starfish drapes nicely over the sides of the rock.

Above is a group photo of the Beady Friends from our Alaskan Cruise 2009

This isn't the whole group, but a good portion of it.

Aren't we a good looking bunch?

Work on my mystery necklace is progressing - working on the clasp now.

Should finish over the weekend (with luck) to show it off.

Mystery necklace progresses

Look Marcia - components!

See? I was listening even though my lips might have been talking!

Some serious bling happening

Starts to take shape, but it's missing something..... That's right - more components and sparkle.

Although what made me believe that I could bezel a small rivoli like that?

Oh, yes, it was a third margarita. That's what did it.

More to come now that I have only one other deadline piece to make.

Well, two.

Instructions for Sunday's class at Stony Creek Bead Gallery &

Use the Muse.

(which I have started and might actually finish)

Liz and Denise go to the Beach

I joined a Collaboration Project with Glass Act (Southeastern Michigan Glass Beadmakers Guild) and the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild. The theme, being that this is Michigan, "Water All Around Us." I was paired up with a wonderful bead artist, Denise Billups-Walker. We met at Bead and Button in Milwaukee in June and played some ideas off each other. Denise ran with the ideas and created these wonderful glass bathing beauties and other wonderful pieces (above are some of the little cuties - little flip-flops, clam shells, starfish, fish, palm tree and lighthouse - and bathing beauty below!).

I turned in my piece on Sunday, at the Great Lakes Beadworkers Guild Fall Bead Bonanza, and while I was happy with the piece, I was pleased to see that others loved it also. So here is the first peak of "Liz and Denise go to the Beach" which will displayed at the Lawrence Street Gallery in Ferndale, MI from November 1 to 30th. Opening night reception and announcement of awards is on November 13. See you there!

I confess.....

....I did it. I threw beads away.

Yup. I was so pissed at these size 11 beads that I didn't even feel like taking them apart. I was working on a "frame" about 3x5 inches, about 1/2 inch thick and it just wasn't doing what I wanted it to. It kept warping out of square. Figures that it's for a project that was due yesterday and it's now overdue. I started "debeading" and decided, bump it - toss. Naturally, anyone who knows me, knows that I didn't say "bump" but a much worse word. Yes, keeping it clean for family viewing.

Do I feel bad for throwing away about 15 hours of work? Work I did while sitting on the patio during my Fridays off during the summer? Yes, I do. Damn.

Back to the drawing board. Late.

More progress.....

I've been working on this almost exclusively all week and look what's happening....

Sunday morning....

I am getting ready for class this morning in a couple of hours, but find time to post here:

My necklace is moving along - I am pretty happy with the way that it's turning out. This is the front center of it. I have more rivoli's going along each end - I know there will be two more, maybe three. The 15/0 seed bead is exactly the color that I was looking for - an antiqued silver color. Below is a close up of the rivoli's and connection. I have used RAW and peyote stitches.

Finally, I think the next picture would make a great tattoo, since I have been dreaming about one for a while.....I love the simplicity of the Pacific NW Native American designs and this one By Ben Houstie is really beautiful. Anyone who knows me well would know that something flowery or "pretty" just isn't Liz - but this is really quietly beautiful.

Now I need to shower and dress, drive to class, and thank my mentor for helping me with my skills.

Newest Project

I know, I know, I have been ignoring my blog and that's not a good thing to do. But I have been writing directions for a large project - that I am keeping under wraps for now, and I have been working on directions for the classes that I will start teaching soon at Stony Creek Bead Gallery. Yikes, that's on Sunday.

But here is something that I have started working on in the last weeks. It's based on a necklace that I saw in an old movie - you know, the Barrymore era - an old movie. When I get closer to the finished project, I will show the inspiration photo still from the movie and my necklace. Proto-type one didn't work so well. Good idea, but the scale was way off so it's been renovated and restarted. As you can see from my two teaser pictures, large rivoli's and 15/0 seed beads are involved.

What else is going on? Hmmmmmm, hubby is in California for an extended weekend as his cousin from NYC is getting married. I'm home letting the dogs out and in and out. I know several friends that would care for the dogs, but it's just my excuse. It's not the easiest time to leave work.

Summer is coming to a close, I have time for one more pedicure before I give up my Birkie's for the summer. Now, on a quiet Thursday evening, I am going to watch one more episode of "True Blood" (which isn't half bad) before calling it a night. Maybe I can get one more rivoli finished...