Sparkle & Shine

2009-03-29T21:53:00.001-07:00

I usually try my very best to be organized and detailed about my knitting. Like I always keep track of my rows and color changes and add little extra notes, etc... I don't know how or why it happened but as I finished the second sleeve to my coat, I realized that there's two sections that I did differently than on the first sleeve. Snot wad!! Though they're close to the end so it's not that bad...but at the pace I work it'll probably set me behind another two nights. Plus I'm working on a lacy shawl and I want to start working on designing a pattern for legwarmers (my mom's encouraging me to sell them...but maybe a pattern would be better?).

In addition to these projects, I wish I could find some sequin or lame (wish I could add the little accent, lol) fabric (preferably silver, iridescent, or even holographic) for "dirt cheap" so that I can make a dress... That would be grand.

2009-03-26T20:14:00.000-07:00

Er, ok so I'm on the last section of each sleeve (I changed the section around but I don't think it's quite working out so I'm going back to the pattern). I started sewing up one sleeve (ugh!). My dad bought the zipper for me. I'm not sure if I'm going to machine sew it or not. I reeeeally want to get this coat done but I think I dread the yarn sewing/piecing together more than I do the actually weaving in the loose ends.

I also need to crack down and finish making some pom-poms made for another project (that's been finished forever minus the pom-poms). Seriously, my pom-poms fail. No matter how much yarn I add to them they're so...pitiful! I want nice full pom-poms that don't resemble a wilted fern!!!

2009-02-23T20:39:00.001-08:00

Tonight I finished knitting a washcloth that I've been putting off on completing. I don't know what it is but knitting wash cloths is just so...blah! I'm not knocking 'em but I just don't enjoy making them. :/

Recently I learned how to make crocheted flowers! It's kind of pitiful that I never really tried until recently, but I can do 'em! Er, and that makes me happy.

Since I finished the body of the coat (well finished knitting, I still have to weave in the ends and sew the plackets) I've been working on both of the sleeves. I'm about half-way finished with each sleeve so yay for that!

I can't wait until I'm completely finished with the coat so I can showcase it and be all ~*pippinsnazzle*~ (oh yeah!!)!!! Haha, and also can't wait to start some new and exciting projects. I'm on a shawl kick right now. I've found 3 patterns that have caught my eye (but nothing has really jumped out and screamed "Make me!!!!" yet). I need to go through my yarn and try to organize and designate what I want to use for certain projects.

Nevermind!

2009-02-08T13:35:00.000-08:00

Ok, nevermind the last post! I did some deleting and reorganizing of my blogs (er, kind of...) and decided on another new blog. I think this one will continue to be mainly my jewelry and probably knit items. My new blog is just a bunch of random whackiness, which can be found here. Alrighty, so there we go! :D

Change of Plans

2009-02-05T15:21:00.000-08:00

I think that I am going to use this as a "general life" blog. I don't know. I have several other blogs that I like to dedicate to specific topics but sometimes it's just overwhelming to keep those up and to keep on topic. This one in particular was supposed to be a "fun" blog. Then along the way it became my beading blog, and while that was going on I created a seperate "art" blog. Also during all of this I came up with the idea (which I haven't really shared the actual idea and concept for it) www.FierceDesigners.com which in turn became its own blog and has since gone nowhere. Annnnd, in addition to everything I created a makeup blog ('cause I love me some makeup)...but yet again, I've done squat with that one as well. Who knows! Maybe I'll change my mind again. Just buckle your seatbelts, sit back, and try to enjoy the ride. Heh...

2008-08-25T23:07:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about this for many months now...

Earlier this year I bought (more like I'm renting for 1 year) the domain www.FierceDesigners.com . I was doing a project for a business class and came up with this whole complex idea that would be called FierceDesigners.com, and I even went ahead and bought the domain because I thought I would actually make it happen. I came across some complications, and also realized that it would be too time consuming as well as a hassle so I felt the plan abandoned and came up with a new idea for my project.

This domain has been pretty much abandoned for all of these months (I've even had it for sale but no takers). I have several blogs altogether but two in particular that are closely related. Anywho, this is what's going to take place, from now on (well at least until my domain expires) all of my would-be postings on here and on my artsy blog are going to be posted on FierceDesigners.com. This will most-likely be a temporary thing since I doubt I'll renew the domain next year...but it'll make things easier for me (and hopefully for you all) to keep track of. I'll leave this blog as-is but I'm not planning on updating it during that time (and I know that I lack updating this one too often).

www.FierceDesigners.com

Something

2008-06-09T22:53:00.000-07:00

Several months ago the Seed Bead board on the Bead & Button forum (http://cs.beadandbutton.com/bnbcs/forums/) was holding a "Different Strokes For Different Folks" challenge. The idea was to take this pattern for the Star Bracelet designed by Ruby (btw: she has a lot of wonderful patterns!): http://www.rubysbeadwork.com/StarBracelet.html and then pretty much do our own thing using her pattern as the basis for the item. So I was all excited about joining in on this. I had nearly completed the bracelet according to her pattern and was going to add my own embellishments to it and then a clasp but then more health issues struck the family so I came to a halt on a lot of things I wanted to do while dealing with that. Anywho, I also missed the deadline during that time and the bracelet was still unfinished. I decided not to add anything and just went ahead and made a simple clasp just so that the bracelet would be finished. And now I've finally gotten around to actually taking pictures of it, haha.

It's made all from a Toho mixture called Pink Frost.

The other night I "finished" this little free form thing:

Nada clue what I'm going to do with it. Maybe I'll continue adding on to it...or maybe I'll attempt to turn it into some kind of focal for a necklace...ah, who knows!

Oops

2008-05-26T22:34:00.001-07:00

Obviously I've been terrible about keeping this blog up to date...my apologies to anyone who cares.

In the meantime I'll just post this fun picture I took of some of my beads while I was playing around with the camera.

Well anywho, I thought it turned out to be a cool pic, lol.

Yes, it's been a while

2007-11-30T11:35:00.000-08:00

This will probably be pretty short.

I finished the "clasp" on the blue and green bracelet several months ago. Yay. Though I really just don't care much for the bracelet as a whole. :(

Oh well, at least it's "finished!"

I also finished my golden "pirate" inspired bracelet. I wish I could get better pictures. Despite the "cheap" beads, it's actually pretty spiffy looking in real life!

And now for my latest project....I am working on a bead embroidery piece. When I complete it, I'm going to turn it into the front of a purse. This should be interesting...

The skull thing is made from polymer clay (FIMO) and has Swarovski crystals for the eye sockets.

Two recent things

2007-03-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

School is keeping me busy again (blah!). Here's two things that I've been working on lately:

This is my little mermaidish (colorwise) bracelet, that is obviously incomplete. I plan on finishing the clasp and then adding more textures to the base. This is what I had spent a lot of my beading time on during my Spring Break, haha.

Now this next bit is just my messing around with some bead embroidery. No clue what it'll exactly turn out ot be...lol. (Though in the picture and colors aren't all that clear)

Once again, I cannot wait until this semester is over!

.

2007-03-17T23:31:00.000-07:00

I finally received my beads on Tuesday (ha). Oh, but I love the beads so much! I noticed that since I received my order, artbeads has changed their prices on some Swarovskis. There are several that I ordered that have had the price go up from 1 cent to over 14 cents, and another type, the price has fallen by 6 cents...Oh well, but what bums me is that the ones I really want to order now are out of stock. At this rate, I might be able to receive them by summer, lol.

Violet/blue/green Iris Delicas are my new love in the seed bead world! I find them to be extremely pretty.

I cannot wait until this semester is over!

Slow mail

2007-03-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

Is it just me or is the postal service (still) extremely slow? I'm starting to wonder if my latest beads I've ordered were intercepted before arriving to me because I still have yet to receive them (and I would have received them this past Wednesday or Thursday under "normal" circumstances). I guess I'm just being extremely impatient.

This week I've been on Spring Break...I don't want to go back to classes. My mom started chemo on Wednesday and that was a long day spent at the hospital. At least I had some sort of bead work to take with me to work on (instead of studying for a test on Monday, even though I lugged the book around with me all day). :)
But since then, I've been running little errands for my mom.

I'm sad that I missed out of the Taylor Hicks concert Thursday night...that would've been fun. Oh well, some other time...

Bracelet

2007-03-02T21:05:00.000-08:00

Well it's about time that I posted. It's also about time that I finished this here bracelet.

Things have been a little hectic lately so I'm slowly coming along. Though it is extremely nice to finally finish this peyote stitch bracelet. Weee!

Now, time to tackle my next project!

Blah!

2007-02-04T13:49:00.000-08:00

I have a Copyright Law test tomorrow...oh joy.

I'm stumped with my beading. So many ideas but so much limited time. I wish I could just quit school and work on all my little projects all day long, but that wouldn't be too smart or wise (plus it'd put me in a HUGE financial hole).

I want to get back on Etsy again. I started working on my "shop" during the summer and was on top of promoting on LiveJournal...though I really had a limited amount of items and limited audience. Now I've gained a little bit more knowledge and want to try out some new stuff, but once again the ideas are coming faster than the actual work. Boo.

I'm also really bummed out about my Cadillac. I almost want to just cry. The poor thing is sitting...wasting away. I really would like to get it fixed, especially since I've put more money into trying to get it fixed since November than what I paid for it. Though a lot of the money was wasted on a guy who really messed it up, causing more damage and more money to be spent on it. I wish I had just taken it to an actual mechanic to begin with. Gah, and I still have to put money aside to pay off the little Saturn. Though it'd probably be worth it to have the Cadillac driving again because me in a little Saturn = driving hazard. The design of the '93 SC1 is funky...can't see when making a left turn because the frame at the windshield is so wide and blocks the view. The windshield itself is slanted at an angle that it reflects the dash, and even though I now have a dash cover (that's supposed to stop the glare) it reflects the color and makes it look like I'm driving through a dust storm. The headlights are aimed at an upward angle (though that was due to a accident by the previous owner)...and I'm so low to the ground that oncoming headlights are at eye level with me (which = blinding at night). The passanger side mirror isn't even a mirror, it's some sort of "reflective" plastic that makes everything a big blob with no details. Plus it's so tiny and I'm still used to driving a big Cadillac. I want my Cadillac back. :(

I simply need extra funding to get my Cadillac fixed (easier said than done). :/

Yay!

2007-01-26T21:07:00.000-08:00

I received my order from Artbeads.com today! The mail seems to be incredibly slowly lately. Anywho, I am (maybe a little too much) amazed by the Delica beads. Perhaps it's because I'm used to seed beads that are all wonky and inconsistant, but the Delicas lay almost perfectly when workin on the peyote stitch. I'm also in love with the long English beading needles. I've been using stubby beading needles from Walmart, which are sturdy but don't quite work with all projects. I'm not sure why...I felt the need to take a picture of the beads, lol.

I really need to finish up my other projects that are just sitting around unfinished.

Fillers

2007-01-22T20:54:00.000-08:00

Our DSL is messed up, boo.

In the meantime (or down time), I've *gasp* actually began reading the manual to my camera (that I've had for quite some time, erm). So hopefully I'll have some better pictures from now on...heh...

While I've ever so patiently been waiting for my Artbeads order...I began using one of my mixes and came up with these random bits:

I plan on making some more random bits and combine them together and work a little magic. It should be fun.

I've also been working on this little number:

Not sure exactly where I'm going with it...and honestly I'm getting bored working on it, but there's still a lot of work that needs to be done to it. Maybe I'll just put it away for a long time.

Sighs

2007-01-19T21:14:00.000-08:00

I don't think I'll be making the trip to Pulaski. :(

I was bad today. I went to Michael's (the one that's staying open) and bought some bead mixes. Though I only did it because I realized lastnight that my previous mixes that I purchased from there have seed beads that were a. Czech glass, b. fun colors, and c. uniform in shape/size. Plus I have this fear of running out of beads during a project...so i wanted to make sure that I had more than enough to go around...and then some....more. I also got a pack of Mill Hill beads to play with and to if I like them. Plus the MH beads I picked up were a shiny metallic pink...hehe, they actually match some heels that I have, wee!

Today I was browsing, looking for more information about bead embroidery, and came across many inspiring websites. I am amazed at how far beaders go with seed bead creations. I'm at awe at how beautiful the pieces are that people create...and how unique the ideas are.

Anywho, on the topic of bead embroidery...I know how to do the beading/stitching (I once started working on a beaded art doll, but I was just using plastic pearl beads)...but I had recently noticed that artists who make bead embroidered jewelry tend to back it with (ultra) suede or leather. I never thought about backings for jewelry pieces (then again, I have never seen a piece in real life) and so I'm trying to figure out how the backing is added/secured. Meh, can't really find instructions for the process online (atleast I didn't have any luck). Maybe I can find a book at the library....though I do think I have an idea as to how it's done. Eh, maybe I'll just get some of the thin leather from Michael's and play around with it.

Outside the Box

2007-01-18T16:12:00.000-08:00

Here is the funky little bracelet that I mentioned earlier (the tween who liked it).

Totally outside the box for me, haha. I'm so anal with pieces being symetric that I usually go nuts trying to create something free form...and I suppose that this truely is free form.

It was fun to make though....kind of freeing in the sense that I let go of being obsessed with everything matching up.

The seed beads are a result from a manic "shopping spree" at Walmart. I went a little overboard with the 99 cent beads...though my only real complaint about them is that the darker beads (I tried to avoid using them on this piece) seem to have the color washed off of them when dunked in water several times. Though I did use mostly the lighter pastel shades, and they seem to hold up fine, so yay.

Anywho, I'm not sure if I'm too keen on the way it looks, but *shrugs* I'll wear it anyways just for the heck of it.

Sleeeeeeepy

2007-01-17T22:15:00.000-08:00

First day of classes = not so bad. I found 3 of the 4 to be interesting. Also, the word of today was "creative." Almost in every class I heard that we, the students, are a creative bunch. Being in the Recording Industry and a Music Business major...I had no clue that my first day of classes could be oh-so inspiring in more than one way, haha.

I ordered some Delicas and some decent beading supplies (no more big box store supplies!). I cannot wait until everything arrives, wee! Then I'll be goin' to town beading to my little heart's content!

I'm thinking about pulling out my little beading loom and actually complete a piece (I've got so many unfinished pieces that are now horribly tangled after neglect). I suppose I never finished a piece because, well, I'm really not sure how...or atleast a good way to finish off a loomed piece. I've been meaning to do some research on that, haha. I'm pretty sure I'll find a method and have it imprinted into my brain by the weekend.

And speaking of the weekend, I might take a little trip down to Pulaski. I actually seem kind of excited about that. MMC's homecoming is taking place and one of my friends is on the court. The two years I attended that college, never went to a single homecoming event (I always rushed to get back to Nashville, and far far away from that place on the weekend) and now that I've been away from there for two years, I'm actually looking forward to visiting it again. And I am actually admitting all of this without a gun pointed at my head...I must be loosing my bitterness towards MMC. But then again, as my luck tends to have it...it might just end up like all my other failed attempts to visit down there, haha. Eh, whatever happens, happens.

I feel like beading at the moment (nothing unusual there), la de da.

Gaah

2007-01-15T19:56:00.000-08:00

Ok, first thing's first- Golden Globes...Depp was robbed! That's all i will say about that, however, I still love you Johnny! *mwah*

Second thing- My dsl connection is sooo freakin slow!

Anywho, I've been working on several new pieces. Ideas are flying all around. I guess I'm definitely over my "crafter's block."

A young little lady (family friend) was over today and saw one of my bracelets and told me how pretty it was. Now that's a nice boost of confidence for me, especially coming from a tween.

Classes start Wednesday *gags.* Goodbye free time, I'll miss you dearly. Maybe this time I won't fall into an uncreative depression slump. I can't wait until I'm through with college.

Two Things

2007-01-14T17:07:00.000-08:00

Meh, here's just a couple of things for now...

The hemp choker I made a couple of days ago (haha, nothing special or fancy, but hey)

Now, here's a choker I made...um...more than 4 years ago (I can't remember when I finished it...butI was still in high school). It was my first big, intricate, seed bead project. I used a pattern from a "Jewelry Crafts" magazine that I got back in 1996, but I ended up altering it a bit as I made it. I made so many mistakes....and the knots are showing where I would end and begin a new thread....but I did learn a whole lot from making it.

Boo!

2007-01-12T22:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I discovered that my local Michael's is closing (lease was up). Everything was marked down to 50% but there were absolutely no beads to be found (except maybe in some kiddie kits). I couldn't find anything that really interest me. Man, atleast I have another Michael's that isn't too far away...

Lastnigt I got an idea for a bracelet so I spent the later portion of the day (on and off) working on it). I rarely get ideas for "unqiue" jewelry anymore so this makes me extremely happy that I could actually envision this piece that's somewhat intricate and that it's actually turning out like i want it to look like. Yay for things going right.

Peekture Post Time!!!

2007-01-10T17:15:00.000-08:00

Ok, just for the heck of it, here's a sampling of some things I have made in the past.

Beaded memory wire with a polymer clay cupcake I made.

Swarovski dangle earrings.

A bunch of little Czech glass (seed) beads strung as a single strand and worn layered as a bracelet.

An "opal" heart pendant made from polymer clay (I love me some polymer clay).

A Swarovski necklace I made for Swarovski's contest....however, their system never accepted my entry, boo.

Well, that's enough for now, hehe.

La la la

2007-01-10T13:25:00.000-08:00

Lastnight I decided to start working on a hemp choker. I forgot how much I enjoy doing macrame.

I'm itching to get some new beads. Though school starts up next week, blah. I need to buy textbooks, oh joy. Ah, but soon I shall upgrade my seed bead supplies (no more Walmart, Michael's, and Hobby Lobby brands for me) and also get some Delicas and more Swarovskis! Oh how I absolutely love Sarovskis!!!

Projects

2007-01-08T17:53:00.000-08:00

Ok, I am currently working on:

-"Fairy/Faerie Ice" peyote cuff (need to go to Hobby Lobby and buy more beads for this, arg).
-"Pirate's Gold" peyote cuff.

It recently has dawned on me (especially after getting into the peyote stitch) that there is a major difference between good quaility seed beads (such as Delica) and cheapo glass seed beads. The cheapo ones are so annoying because they make the whole pattern all wonky and blaaah. I think i'm going to "invest" in some Delica beads very soon.

I think I'm going to mess around with hemp/macrame soon. I have a ton of hemp and haven't done any macrame stuff in over a year. That should be a nice little change for a while...plus it'll help me use up some of the funky glass beads I have.

I also want to start on an amulet pouch and a business card holder. That should be fun...yep yep.

Haha, and I shall accomplish of all this while watching the complete 21 Jump Street series. Oh how I love love loooooooooove Johnny Depp!