Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Finally!

I finally pushed the publish button on my website. I haven't got it completely done, it is a work in progress....but everyone who would like to see should go to www.libeadobeadwork.com . If you have any comments or suggestions, let me have it. All input is welcome. I will also keep adding pictures, so check back frequently!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Beaded Face Pin Swap 2008

I decided to join the Fourth Annual Beaded Face Pin Swap 2008 . The rules were simple, make a beaded face pin (only human faces, no animals) that is no bigger than 2.5 inches by 2.5 inches by September 26. Send in one pin, get one back. Send two, get two and so on and so forth. I decided to try out another of these face molds that I have. The face is actually a porcelain white, but somehow I cant seem to take a clear picture of lighter colored things without screwing up the brightness of the photo. I think I'll name him "Jack Frosty" because I used a pale blue to make the snowflake pattern he is bezeled in (my own design I might add).

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Bead Artist Trading Cards

I finally got all my Bead Artist Trading Cards done! I decided to participate in a swap on All About Beads for the BATC's. I was supposed to make 10 cards that had to have at least 1 bead on each card, and the measurements should be 2.5 by 3.5 . For some reason, this gave me the biggest case of artist block that I have had in a very long time, but after about 2 weeks of "thinking about it", I decided that I had so much fun doing the Pink Ribbon Turtle in monochrome, that I thought"what the hay..." and chose to do a theme of monochromatism(is that even a word?) So here they are in all their beady goodness...


I had a really good time digging through my stash, to see what I could find in each of the colors. For the black, I found a single button that was on clearance at Jo-Ann Fabrics for $0.75, and I cut the shank off so it would sit flat on the backing. I was delighted to find the 2 cat heads in my goodies. A friend of mine stopped by when I was working on this one and commented "its amazing how many different blacks there are..." and I agree. The white card seems to be the favorite of most people that I show the cards to. My Mother(whose favorite color is white) really loved this card and tried to convince me that maybe she needed one just like it...hmmmm...her birthday is right around the corner(hehehe). The face is from a mold that I bought but never actually have used for anything yet. I think it turned out well and I will be using it again soon.
When I started the grey, I thought it would be the most boring of them all, but I am kind of partial to it now that it is done. It looks a lot better in natural light then under my Ott Lite though, which is rare.
I had a hard time with the brown card. I found the skull beads first and had decided to use them, but finding something to go with them was a task. The mouse is a bit large, but once it popped into my head, it had to be done. Thank heavens my stash is under a bit of photographic memory locator which led me directly to it. I have no clue where I picked it up at, but I'm glad it finally found a home!
The hardest part about the purple, was which shade of purple to use. I might've ended up using to many shades, but I am satisfied with the results. The big shell piece has a lot of different shades throughout. I think I got the little bear fetish back in the early '90s from a friend. I still feel bad I never actually made her what she wanted, and I have no clue where she disappeared to. It ended up finding a good home here though.


I owned lots of blue seed beads, but can you believe I only had one larger blue bead for interest, the heart. I actually just bought the heart recently for the Pink Ribbon Turtle, but didn't use it because it wasn't the right shade for that project. Works perfectly here!

Green is not one of my favorite colors(at least not bright green). I still own a million green beads though! I really like the pattern I laid them in. I see a barrette in my future a lot like the center section here...not so much green though!

Yellow is such a bright sunny color! I had this glass starfish that broke of a Pier 1 swizzle stick back when I worked there 8 years ago. I am such a packrat. I'm glad a few of these weird odds and ends have finally found homes(outside of mine!).

I am very surprised how much orange I found also. A color I use only in moderation. The cute little orange snake got my boys very interested in this one. They both wanted a necklace with one on it, but I only had one.

And finally red. Red always makes me think of hearts, so what better then a great big one smack dab in the middle. I am so happy to have all of these done, and in plenty of time to make sure they get mailed off on time also.