Someday Beads

This will be a short entry ..........have a little (?) insomnia, so I'm cruising around on the web.  Michell Mach announced that she will be participating in Jeanie's Do-Over Challenge #3 . I signed up....can't wait to get the mystery piece of jewelry.

I promise to post pics of this challenge, along with pics of my Bead Hoarder's Curiosity's box, and pics of my Ugly Necklace contest piece....and pics of something else that I can never remember to do......

Don't hold me to it, but I promise to do this......someday

~pamela

Once again, Michelle Mach presented a bead challenge..... Suddenly Spring Challenge .I forgot to take a pic of the beads, so click on the Suddenly Spring link to see what we had to work with.
 


I found it difficult to photograph this watch......I wanted to capture all the elements of the band in one pic......I used the rondelle spacers and a few of the blue faceted beads.....
 

 I also made a necklace.  I tracked down some silver wire mesh ribbon tube....don't think that's the exact name for this stuff, but you get the idea.  I purchased seed bead mixtures from Spirit Bear Beads  I love the way she mixes a palette of seed beads! I used the faceted beads from Michelle Mach along with some really cool Iris lamp-work beads I bought (a very long time ago) from Bead Party

I struggle with lighting my jewelry pics......there were lit with a mag-lite.....very high tech....please feel free to follow my lead in mag-lite photography aids....
These are my submissions.....I hope the links for the other blogs work :)

 Michelle - Beads & Books
Andrew - The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton
Christa - Adventures of One Beady Woman
Dita - Alankarshilpa
Donetta - Simply Gorgeous
Erin - Erin Siegel Jewelry
Heather - As I Bead It
Jean - Snap out of it Jean There's beading to be done!
Karen -Over the Moon Design 
Kate - We Can Make That At Home
Kay - Palm Coast Art
Kim - Cianci Blue
Kristina - Wild Roses and Blackberries
Linda - Lindy's Designs
Lisa - Pine Ridge Treasures
Marlene - Amazing Designs by Marlene
Michelle - Reverie & Revival
Pam - The Crazy Creative Corner
Renetha - Lamplight Crafts
Sharyl - Catchenthesun
Terry - Pink Chapeau Vintage Jewelry
Therese  - Therese's Treasures

I promised to post pics of my Bead Hoarders box from A Grain of Sand ....haven't done that yet..  I entered my first jewelry contest The Ugly Necklace Contest ....I promise to post pics of my submission after the deadline has passed....don't want anyone stealing my ugly design.  I promise to post pics of other projects I've been working on......

I promise to do all this..........someday

I did finish the repair jobs and custom requests since my last post.....and I managed to get a couple pieces completed for me :D  This is what my bead board/coffee table looked like 1-1/2 weeks ago.  I had pulled all my pink beads to make a custom pink bracelet.  The vintage glass pearls and pink aventurine flower bracelet/choker is intended for me....I had to push that  idea into one of the wells so I could complete the custom project ....sometimes the creativity process is a distraction to the REAL project I need to complete.  This picture really shows the uber-cool-ness of some beads I found on Etsy.  They look like ordinary....even boring...vintage acrylic beads until you position them just-so under the lights and then you get this AWESOME glow effect.  One friend said she nearly wrecked her car trying to look down at her necklace when the beads would glow in the sun.

This bracelet was a birthday present for my Aunt.  


These earrings were to cheer up a discouraged friend :)
Custom requests......

.....and I found these beads for $.50 a strand on Yardsellr
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A Grain of Sand is offering subscriptions to a monthly bead hoarder's club.  I purchased  a 1-month subscription to see what it would look like.  I like mystery bead packages if they aren't swept off the floor of the delivery truck.  I won't mention any names, but I recently bought a "grab bag" from a bead company only to send it back to them.....I actually separated the scuffed, broken, dirty, useless beads from the order to show them this wasn't acceptable.  The two box clasps would have been really nice if they had the snap-in end .....it was missing for both of them!  I am eagerly awaiting my bead hoarder's package and will post pics!!


I have purchased Michelle Mach's Spring Challenge kit.......I'm tossing around a few ideas....the deadline for her challenge is March 13.  The deadline for the Ugliest Necklace Contest is March 15......


I need to start on those projects.........someday

~pamela

My first blog entry........ 1/25/2012

Secret Snowflake Challenge

I had entered a bead challenge recently (Secret Snowflake Challenge hosted by Michelle Mach ...more about her bead challenges later) and was inspired by the participant's blogs.  At the time, I didn't have my own blog, so Michelle Mach graciously allowed the blog-less to post our creations on her site.  With my awesome niece's help, I now have my own blog to post my pictures and be a REAL blog-hopper.  It's the little things in life...

A few years ago, a friend showed me how to make a pair of simple earrings and I was hooked....french-hooked ;)  I wanted to make earrings with every imaginable and unimaginable bead that I could find.  I poured over bead and jewelry magazines......bought books.....viewed jewelry-making YouTube videos...spent hours looking for bargains on Ebay and Etsy.....and lurked in the jewelry aisle at Hobby Lobby with my 40% off coupon clutched in hand.  I soon moved on from making earrings to making necklaces and bracelets.  I wore my "creations" to work and soon caught the attention of a co-worker who asked me to make a necklace using her authentic ancient Egyptian cat pendant as a focal piece.  Each time I presented this necklace to her.....yeah, EACH time....it would fall apart.  I was MORTIFIED......I had accepted money from her!!  I test-pulled that necklace....shook it....and each time the wire near the cat pendant would snap when she took it out of the packaging.  She was convinced the cat was cursed......I suggested holy water.  Finally, I fixed the cat pendant with a clasp to be removed at her descretion.....put the necklace in a  package...put the cat in it's separate packing (with a stern talk about attitude adjustment)....and the necklace finally stayed together!  Because I was mortified and this was a paying gig, I made a few free bracelets for her.....all of which have stayed together....all of which have nothing to do with anything feline in nature.  I ain't stupid.....

My love of making jewelry...playing with beads....and learning new techniques has borne a sub-hobby.....collecting some-day-beads.  Thus, the name of my blog.  



This picture shows a smidgen of my some-day-bead collection.  The large rondelles are Pink Peruvian Opals.  The Opals and the 5x6mm crystal sparklies were purchased from the lovely ladies at Happy As Can Bead.  They loaded me up with coupons during my last visit to their store.  I must have looked overwhelmed because they said when I come back, I can hand them all my different coupons and printed special offers and they will figure out the best deal.  Works for me.....
The white flowery lampwork rondelles are from a local Hobby Lobby...my second home.  The lampwork iris beads were purchased from a shop on Etsy Beadparty
I have an Etsy shop, but it is neglected....or perhaps I'm being too hard on myself.  I haven't posted new jewelry in a loooong time.  I am motivated to create, not sell.  I would rather make jewelry for friends (sans the feline factor) or help friends with jewelry repairs...I am a poor business-woman :)



This picture shows a recent purchase from A Grain of Sand
I found this vintage bead store after reading a bead magazine article about her purchase of a hoard (understatement) of vintage beads and findings.  The lucite "apple juice" earrings obviously aren't beads, but they were a STEAL....I just had to have them.  The bright yellow faceted triangles? to the left of the earrings are .....of course.... vintage dangles.  This picture doesn't do them justice.  The light pumpkin colored hex-shaped ring beads are West Germany celluloid (rare).  The beads in the middle are West German ruby red crystal encrusted beads.....a gold foil bead with red crystals that are encased in a faceted acrylic......awesome and FUN!  The two small cameos are Limoge and the larger cameo is Italian, turn-of-the-century, hand-carved shell.  I find myself holding my breath when I hold the Italian cameo.  There are new listings posted frequently, so check out A Grain of Sand

So, how was my first post? too long?  I'm looking forward to gaining followers and to reading your feedback....mean people will not have their comments posted.  What some-day-beads do you have?  What some-day-projects do you have scattered on your bead board?

My some-day-beads will remain as such for a little while.....I have one necklace repair, one bracelet repair, one custom pink bracelet order, one custom wire-wrap bracelet order, and one birthday wire-wrap bracelet present to complete.....some day.

~pamela