Blog

Loving Trade Beads and getting back to my roots

3/14/2019

One of my earliest memories is of sitting on a mint-infested hillside stringing together tiny beads with a needle and thread. I was 2 or 3 years old at the time, can't remember exactly. My grandma used to watch me while my parents were at work and grandma was busy too so she gave me the beads and thread to occupy me.
I can hear the gasps of horror right now, a 3 year old with a (sharp) needle and thread. Well, I am 72 now so I did survive it. That sparked something in me though that made me want to be creative and over the years I was in one way or another. Some years it was with paper or wire. Other years it was just my clothing and lifestyle (hippie in the 60's dontcha know!). The past decade or so I've been messing around with all of it making glass beads, polymer clay and junk journals. But my biggest love has always been collecting (okay hoarding) brightly colored beads and stringing them together.
So after a lot of soul searching I am returning to just that for awhile. I am hoping it will clear my head which is always trying to do 15 things at once. My biggest love is african beads, trade beads and anything tribal looking. I came up with a few new designs that I listed on my etsy shop and have many more in the works. Enjoy!
~Kathy

Ravens, Bones and Poe

1/3/2019

Tuesday Morning is an obsession with me, I love the place! They have so many things that I use in my crafts and at such a good price. I'm sure I spend more than I should there. My ex gave me a gift card for Tuesday Morning for Christmas so I went this morning and treated myself. I got several card stock stacks, some coffee, gummies (for my granddaughter) and some Graphics 45 ephemera. When I got home I started playing around with the card stock and made a folder to carry with me for notes and some place to tuck little things like receipts. I keep a regular journal at home but it is too much to drag around all the time. This little folder will be just the right size to tuck into a purse or just toss in the car if I'm not carrying a purse.

The card stock I chose is Moonlit Manor by Recollections. It has mystic, magic and Poe quotes. It is actually black but my camera didn't pick it up too well. It is a simple folder that opens to two pockets, one on each side. In it I put a smaller folder for my business cards, a few stiff cards with "Notes" stamped on top and a little folded booklet of paper for additional writing. Just a fun little project to get back into things after the Christmas stupor. If you think you might like something similar I will be making some and posting them on my Etsy shop. If you have a particular theme let me know and I can do a custom order for you. Have a great day!
~Kathy

Happy New Year 2019!

1/1/2019

It's the first day of a brand new year. A clean slate, an opportunity to start fresh; what will you do in this coming year? A blank page can be very intimidating. I often find it easier to improve upon an existing piece than to start a totally new project. Perhaps that's why I prefer making the parts rather than the whole thing. I love making individual beads but struggle making the entire piece of jewelry. I do and often enjoy the process but it's more fun making the beads or pendants and seeing what others add to it as they make their own creations. I also like making journals but find it more fun to make the components of the journal than the finished product.

My granddaughter says that I suffer from the shiny ball syndrome and that is true to some extent. I think it is also that like many makers I just want to learn everything, try everything and just do not have enough time to do it all. This often leads to lack of follow through in my rush to try yet one more thing. One of my biggest hurdles is social media. I have good intentions but then just get caught up creating one more thing. So this year I will be focusing on posting all the things I have already made that are waiting to go to new homes. I'm also in the process of changing my studio from an upstairs room to my converted dining room. At some point I'll post pictures of that as well. As I said these are my intentions; no promises from this magpie!

Happy New Year, everybody!

Product Photos

12/30/2018

One of the struggles that many makers have is taking a good photo of their product. Disclaimer here: I have no idea what constitutes a good product photo. Yes, I've read the tutorials, tried different ideas and have seen loads of gorgeous photos from many artists. I have also seen shops that have total crap pictures and scads of sales. My mind says that good pics = sales but my heart is still on the fence about it. I recently posted a picture of a new background that I was trying out. I acquired a fantastic, funky organic coffee shipping bag.

It is made of a coarse burlap with a cool design on the front. I thought this would make a good backdrop for my Urban Grunge bracelets (coffee, hip, urban, organic -my mind wanders). So I did a shot with it and posted it. I got a lot of good feedback though one of my besties said I should stick to white and send her the burlap! The next picture is of my bracelets on the burlap background.

I do like it but I feel it is distracting from the funky nature of the cuffs. Having read in the past that white pictures are easier to see and not distracting that is what I have been using in the past. I started adding a gold border, not sure why, I just like it. So this is what the same bracelets look like in that format.

I think my friend is right; I should stick to the plain, white backgrounds. Looks like she will be getting some burlap in the mail soon!

A Small But Mighty Christmas Journal

11/5/2018

Here is the latest in my journey with journals. I love the old-fashioned Santas and Vintage Christas cards. So this is my compilation of all those elements. I used a printed canvas cover, and of course the pages are coffee-stained and distressed. I just listed this in my Etsy shop. Thanks for looking! Link: https://www.etsy.com/listing/656024285/christmas-junk-journal-blank-books?ref=shop_home_active_1

Seems like a long time, seems like a very long time...

9/20/2018

Well, it actually has been along time since I checked in here and so much has gone on that I don't know where to start. I've had a bunch of surgeries; two hand surgeries, the repair of a shattered shoulder and cataract surgery. I have been trying to work but you know...best laid plans etc.
I have a new obsession but I don't know how far I will be going with it. I started "Junk Journals" or Mixed Media Journals. I have always liked to journal (odd that I can't keep up with my blog) and I always doodle in them. I figured an art journal or junk journal would be fun to put together. And then I actually sold one! I got bit by the bug...So here are some pics of the things I have been doing...

This one is made of card stock, vintage sari fabric, vintage jewelry and rhinestones. I have put lots of ephemera into it including vintage post cards from India. So far all the journals I've made have been for sale on my Etsy site but one of these days I will make one for myself.

Feathers And Fat Girls, Faux Bone And Birch Bark

10/11/2014

Finally I crawled out of the creative void I was wallowing in and found some new inspiration. If you couldn't tell I love all things ethnic and the funkier the better. So I spent some time pouring over pics of ancient beads, binge watching old movies while I conditioned clay and absorbed atmosphere. The resulting beads are fun and certainly funky! The tribal pendants have a carved wood look with a mysterious circle inscribed on the front. The pudgy ladies each hold a bit of ceramic mosaic tile and eventually they will be affixed to a copper backing for use as a pendant. The feathers are fashioned into components for use as earrings or necklace parts. They come already wired with either recycled African glass beads or bits of blue green sea glass. I will be listing these on my etsy site next week.

Lightweight Ceramic Faux

7/25/2014

Vintage ceramic beads add a rustic note to designs but are sometimes too heavy for wearing comfort. This is where the faux bead is really useful. Todays friday offering is faux ceramic with a vintage or antiqued look. Additionally the beads are hollow so that makes them even lighter in weight. I used a color on these beads that had a more retro feel and it highlighted the distressing/antiquing. I just love the crackles veining the bead; no two beads are alike.

I've made these beads in three sizes and two different colors. If you would be interested in purchasing some for your own designs shoot me a message!

TGIF! Thank Goodness It's Faux!

7/18/2014

Faux Friday & A Bowl 'O' Beads

7/10/2014

Today's faux offering is a tutorial from Lynda Moseley of DivaDesignsInc. I have been having so much fun with this tutorial that I've barely come up for air. Since I have a bead show that I am trying to prepare for I need all the help I can get. Once I got started on this tutorial I couldn't stop - I was making faux turquoise morning, noon and night.
What's so great about it (aside from Lynda's great knack for instruction) is that you don't have very much waste clay, especially when you make it look like a mosaic setting because it allows you to use up all those tiny bits. I am such a nut for the rustic look and even though Lynda is known for her excellent polished finishes you can adapt this to whatever look suits you personally. I even changed some of them to have a granite or stone appearance.
Now I have this huge bowl of beads that need to be priced and strung, then packed away for the upcoming show. I will be listing some of them on etsy, so you can either buy Lynda's tute and make them yourself or if you are impatient check and see what ones I will be selling at my store!