Goodbye 2011!

Wow! It is so hard to believe that in a few short hours 2011 will be a thing of the past and 2012 will be here. Me, my husband, and my best friend Gina decided to spend New Years at the beach this year. We could not have asked for more perfect weather! It was 70 degrees today! It felt so great and I actually got hot in my sweater. We did some shopping, went to watch New Years Eve, went to eat at The Mellow Mushroom as well as PF Changs, and we hit the 2 bead shops that are here at the beach. We had a great time today and the night is still young. My husband says that he is going to jump into the Ocean at midnight. He wants us to jump in too but I told him that he was crazy! I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the next 2 hours hold in store for us! I hope that each of you have a safe and Happy New Year. I start my earring challenge tomorrow so you guys will hopefully be seeing a months worth of earrings over the first few weeks of the new year!

New PDF pattern done and listed!

As previously stated in an older post beaded beads have been my obsession over the last year. I finally got the step by step pattern finished and the instructional DVD made. I love these beads because you can use them on earrings and in your beaded jewelry designs. As you can see from the picture, I have started making a whole necklace with the beaded beads. Who knows if I will ever get it finished but it is looking good so far!  You can purchase the Pattern and DVD at

http://www.etsy.com/listing/89426692/pentagon-beaded-bead-dvd-pattern

What I love about Christmas Break!

One of the things I love most about Christmas is the fact that my sister in law is home from College. The picture above was taken at Thanksgiving and is of my husband Sammy and his sister Sarah. Sarah goes to Appalachian in Boone NC and even though it's only 2 hours away it feels like she is worlds away. She was in the 3rd grade when I met Sammy and it's so hard to believe that she is now a sophmore in College. I love it when she's home on break because even though we don't get to see her alot when she's here it's nice to know that I can go 1/2 mile up the road and see her or hang out. I am going to enjoy the next week or so because then she's off to college until sometime around April.

First Kit from Christmas finished!

For Christmas this year my Mother and Fater in law purchased and gave me a beautiful kit from Nikia Angel.  I love Nikia's work and have been a fan for about 3 years now. Three years ago I went to the Bead and Button show to work for the Preciosa company and discovered Nikia's work. I was hooked at first look and am ashamed to say how much I really spent at her booth. I could have fed a small army with the money I spent on kits. It was money well spent though because I learned how to make some beautiful pieces from her kits. A majority of her work is all crystals and you know how much I love a little bling! I sat down Christmas night and started working on it because I thought that it wouldn't take too long to whip up. I ended up having to stop and so this morning I was late for work trying to get it finished. I was super happy with the results and I can't wait to make another.

Check out Nikia's etsy shop here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Nikia

Earring a day Challenge

Have you checked out Beading Daily lately? If not then you are missing out on a great challenge that they are starting at the beginning of the year. Starting in January they are going to do an earring a day challenge for one month. I was reading it and I think i'm going to join in. I love to make earrings. With my hair being short I have the oppertunity to really showcase my earrings so this challenge seemed fun. Beading Daily has quite a few free earring patterns that you can download to get you started. If you get a chance check it out and bead along with me!

You can find the challenge and the patterns here:

http://www.beadingdaily.com/content/Bead-Along.aspx

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! What a blessed day it has been! Our Christmas's are always crazy but I wouldn't have it any other way. My day started at 5am when it was time to wake up and open gifts with my husband. I tried to get him to open them last night but he has never done that and he didn't want to start this year. My husband spoiled me by surprising me with quite a few beading patterns and not one but two beautiful rings. He got me a beautiful infinity ring with black diamonds in it and then he surprised me with a Swarovski ring that looks like a buckle. It sparkles like nothing I have ever seen before.

After we finished we had to be at my parents house by 6:30 to eat breakfast and open gifts. My parents surprised me with a krueig coffee maker. That baby is going to the shop!

From my parents house we travel to Sammys Parents home so that we can watch his younger sister open gifts. This is the first year since i have been in the family that we have not had to get there at 5 or 6 in the morning to see his sister open gifts. She is a sophomore in college now and likes to sleep late so we didn't have to be there until 8am! His parents surprised me with more beading patterns and a flat nose Lindstrom plier. Last year that got me the round nose and cutter Linstrom plier so this year they finished up my collection. If you have never used these pliers then you are missing out because they are FANTASTIC. I went to the Bead and Button show 2 years ago and all the teachers were using them. I immediately wanted a pair but was too cheap to buy them myself. Now that I have them I wouldn't use anything else!

Once we finished up at the Dale house then it was off to church. Christmas was super special this year considering that we actually got to go to church and celebrate Christ's birth.

After service we traveled to my moms twin brothers house to have Christmas with moms side of the family. My favorite tradition about Christmas with moms family is that my Aunt Carolyn always buys us towels for Christmas. I always look foward to these towels because if your like me this is an item that I don't want to purchase. I want to spend my money on other things.

Leaving Uncle Rays house we then travel 20 miles to Sammys grandmothers house to celebrate with his side of the family. It's always nice going to her house because she always has a fire going in the fire place and it's so nice and cozy.

Our final stop for the day is to my Grandmothers house to celebrate with my dads side of the family. All in all it's a really long day with lots of stops but one day all of those stops will be gone and I will miss them greatly. I try to enjoy every minute of them now and hope for them again next year. Sammy and I both have been so blessed to still have 2 grandmothers and our parents. God has truly blessed us and that is the greatest gift!

I hope that each of you have had a blessed and great Christmas no matter how you have spent it. Over the next few weeks you will get to see some of the new goodies I am going to make with all my new patterns. First though I am going to take a few days and go to the Beach to rest for New Years. So excited to see what 2012 is going to hold for me.

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Pentagon Beaded Beads

In 2011 I got on a Beaded Bead Kick. I love beaded beads and I have made tons of them this year! I think it is just simply amazing how you can take beads and stitch them together to make a totally different looking bead. My current obsession are these Pentagon Beaded Beads. I am planning a class on them for January and I couldn't just have a few beads to display...oh no! I am working on a necklace of all beaded pentagon beads. Here's a little sample of some blue beads that I am working on.

4 Days until Christmas!

I cannot believe that there are only 4 days left until Christmas! All year long I look forward to the holiday and then....bam it's here and gone in no time! I actually got my shopping finished the weekend before Thanksgiving and it's a good thing because we have been slammed at the store with custom orders. I love to watch guys come into the store and try to order something for their wives or girl friends. It is commical! They come in and have no clue what they want or what size it needs to be. Heck half of them don't even know their wives taste in jewelry. We just do the best we can and hope their their other half will be as excited.

While doing all of this I have had to come home at night and finish up Christmas gifts for people on my list. I have gotten them all finished and am hoping that after Christmas I can get back to other projects that I already have started. Meanwhile I plan to enjoy the next 4 days, soak up the holiday, and then celebrate 2012 while on the beach!

I thought you guys would get a kick out of this picture! Darlene, our Polymer Clay teacher, made this huge flower back in the summer and I tried to tell her that it would make a fantastic hair piece!


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Busy Busy Busy

Sorry  I have been absent lately. I have been sooooooooo busy getting gifts ready for my family and getting special orders done for customers. Everything in my life has had to take a back seat the past few weeks until I get the Christmas rush over. I have taken the time to watch my favorite show though....Project Accesory. This past week was one of my favorite episodes. The cuff listed above was absolutely FABULOUS! I want to make one of these....just not as wide. I think after the first of the year I would like to purchase some sew on stones and play with some new designs.

Fun and Easy Holiday Jewelry

Every year around this time I am busy preparing for our Annual Christmas Open House and Sale. Our sale is always the first Saturday in December so that we can help customers save some money on supplies for making gifts. Along with the sale I always try to have lots of fun samples in the store of jewelry that can be made for the holidays or adapted for year round wear. These are some pieces that I made yesterday to put on display.

This first pair of earrings are made using a very simple cross weave technique. It is very similar to the base on the Pearl Montee Bracelet that we have on our youtube channel. I used 11/0 Galvanized Gold Seed Beads as well as 4 & 6mm Metallic Red and Green Beads.

This pair is made just like the first pair but I used Galvanized Silver Seed Beads and changed up where the colors were at.

This third pair is a sample that I found on Firemountaingems.com and I worked my magic and made them the way I liked them. These are made using lots of tiny chain, 3mm red and green glass rounds, and silver plated basket bead caps.

This pair was a sample that I found on fusionbeads.com. I thought that they were so cute. I used 24ga wire and added 4mm round beads. Then used 4mm Siam Swarovski's to dangle in the center.

These are my version of Christmas Bulb Earrings.....which I love because they sparkle and dangle so pretty!

This necklace is a version of a necklace that is in the current issue of Stringing Magazine.

I started making these bracelets last year and they flew off the shelves! This is a snowman bracelet. Each snowman is seperated by one 4mm Bicone. This bracelet is great because it can be worn all of december and January.

And finally this bracelet is made using some new Acrylic Beads we got in last week. I put one 6mm round on a head pin and made a loop. I made enough of these that 6 would go inbetween each bead. I liked how it turned out and I loved the red color.

I hope this gives you some ideas of fun jewelry that you can wear this holiday season!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Today is the day in America where we stuff ourselves with Turkey and take the time to be thankful for all the things God has given us. Today I am most thankful for my Family, Friends, my wonderful husband, and above all Jesus Christ. Please take a moment today and let the people you love KNOW that you are thankful for them.

Do you have someone in your life who is your biggest fan? Well that person in my life is my moms sister....my aunt Carolyn. She has always been proud of me and she is super supportive of my beading talent. Every time I see her I try and have her something special made. I will see her today and since I have been making Trillium flowers I figured that I would make her one in red and green. It turned out really cute but I wish I would have had some silver lined emerald here at the house for the back of the flower. Anyways heres how it turned out....






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Step by Step Beads

Wanna know what magazine I really miss...Step by Step Beads. That was the best magazine and they had some of the neatest projects. To my suprise I got a magazine shipment in this week and when I opened the box it was Volume 2 of Step by Step Beads. Let me tell you....it does not disappoint. I love Step by Step Beads because it has some pretty quick stitching projects and it is easy for beginner beaders to understand. If you get a chance be sure and pick up a copy of this issue because it is fantastic! I made the pictured earrings in no time.

Busy Busy Busy

No progress on the Trillium necklace this week so far. This time of year brings lots of custom orders for my shop. Here are two pieces that go with a large order that a customer is coming to pick up tomorrow. The first picture is of a Rose Rivoli Ring. I love to make these because they are super quick to make and no one ring ever looks the same. The color choices change the look of the ring dramatically.

The second picture is a pair of my new favorite earrings. The rings are actually supposed to be a necklace that was on the cover of Super Bead work earlier in the year. I made myself a pair in cream and gold and wear them with everything. One of my volunteers loved them so much that I ended up making her a pair. When my customer came in and said that they needed a really unique pair of earrings as a gift these came to mind. I used black delicas and 15/0 seed beads as well as 3mm white pearls. They turned out really pretty so I think that after the holidays I might have to make myself a pair.

Hopefully I can get back to the trillium flowers tomorrow. I have got my voice back and am finally starting to feel better.





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Day 5 Trillium Necklace - Another one bites the dust~

Another one bites the dust!

Day 3 & 4

Well after a fun day on Monday someone decided to give me a cold on Tuesday. Not sure who that person was but I sure wish that didn't like sharing! Anyways, I started the next flowering Tuesday night and finished it up tonight. I decided to make the center biggest flower so that I could get it out of the way. The flower turned out really pretty! It is made using Matte Turquoise and Lime Green delicas. Now I just have to decide what colors to do the background. I'm thinking that pink will defently make an appearance. Below the first picture is a picture so you can see the size difference of the medium and large flower.





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Mummies

So today Sammy and I had to spend the day in Charlotte. Sammy had to go to Court for a hearing early and I thought that since we were in Charlotte we might as well make a day of it....and boy what a day! I read last week in the Charlotte Observer that the Discovery Place Museum was getting a new exhibit....Mummies of the World. So, after the hearing we headed on over to the exhibit and let me tell you...it was amazing! There are 150 mummies and artifacts on display and it is simply a sight to behold. I think the thing that amazed me the most was that they had Jewelry on display that Egyptians had made to put on Children that had died. They said these were talismans to help the children in the afterlife. What blew my mind was the detail in these pieces and how thousands of years ago they could make such beautiful pieces. They even had a necklace on display that was made of glass beads. They had a beautiful look of gold stone and there were other yellow and brown colors of beads.

The whole exhibit was something that I will never forget. And, after all these years, I finally know why the Egyptians used Scarabs! They used to put a scarab over a persons heart between the layers of wrap to protect the heart and make sure no one stole the heart. Pretty crazy huh?

If you live anywhere remotely near Charlotte then you need to plan a trip to see the exhibit before it leaves in April. Kids and adults will love it!

Its back to the grind tomorrow!

Day 2 Trillium Necklace Progress

Well at the end of day 2 I got the back of the first flower finished and got it attached to the flower. Only 4 flowers left to go!

Day 1 Trillium Flower Necklace

I have a slight problem....I am a procrastinator when it comes to making something that I know will take me FOREVER to make! I have a customer from TX that has been ordering jewelry from me this year and her latest request is one that I have been procrastinating on. Diane Fitzgerald wrote a great book last year called Shaped Bead Work and it has a pattern in it called the Trillium Flower. Stephanie requested a necklace made out of the Trillium Flowers. The necklace is going to be FABULOUS and when I finish it I will feel like I have accomplished something great but construction is another story.

I sat down Thursday night and decided that I needed to discipline myself and each work day I was going to start sitting down and working on the pieces for 1 hour. I started yesterday and I got 1 flower constructed. I still have to make the back triangle for the flower and then this component will be finished and then there will only be 4 more to make.  Here is what I got done:

Episode 2 of Project Accessory

Ok so I finally got to watch Episode 2 of Project Accessory and I am just facinated with that show. To say that I love watching it is an understatement. This week contestants got to go to the Swarovski Store in NYC and pick out a piece of jewelry that inspired them. How hard would it be to pick only 1 piece?

The contestants were sorting through bins of Swarovski and it was just the greatest thing to watch. Once they left the Swarovski store they then had to go back to the work room and create a shoe and another accessory to go with the jewelry piece they picked out. This was my favorite piece for the show:

This Swarovski Cuff was amazing! I can't say that I would wear one that big but boy does it sparkle! As they say...it's not the size...it's the sparkle. I wonder what this weeks episode will hold tonight?

Sunday's are the best!

At my house Sunday is our favorite day of the week! Sammy and I work such long hours through the week that we look forward to Sunday's because it is our day of rest. Here is a list of why I love Sunday:
1. My daddy, who lives next door to me, fixes breakfast every Sunday morning. He fixes my favorites and this is the only day of the week where I eat a big breakfast.
2. Sunday is the day my family goes to the church house. I teach Sunday School for the 5-7 year olds and I love it. I don't have any kids of my own so it's a great way to be able to stay connected with the kids at church.
3. In my eyes Sunday's were made for naps! I take a nap almost every Sunday!
4. I have been on the Weight Watchers plan since January and Sunday is what I call my free day. I eat the Weight Watcher way all week and then on Sunday I take the day off and eat whatever I want. So normally we go out to eat at my favorite restaurant on Sundays.
5. Football.....need I say more?



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My new favorite show!!!!

http://www.mylifetime.com/shows/project-accessory

Ok so I have a new favorite show. Lifetime presented a new show last night called Project Accessory and let me tell you....It was AWESOME! If you love purses, shoes, jewelry, etc you will love this show. I think that this show is going to be great for the beading business because the jewelry they made last night was Fabulous! If you haven't watched it yet you need to head over to the link above and watch the premiere episode. I got lots of great ideas for new jewelry last night. Here is my favorite look from last night:

Sometimes things just don't work out!

When new magazines and books come out I ooh and ahh over each of the patterns and I try to get the time to work on them. I finish most all the projects I start. Every once in awhile though I find pattern that I think I am just going to love and then once I start it the project looks nothing like the picture. This happened to me this weekend. There was a beautiful necklace pattern in the new Bead and Button Magazine that I thought I would just love! I pulled the beads and started on the "large medallion" first. The large medallion was not large by any means! I then thought I would continue so I made one of the smaller medallions. Well guess what......I hated it! Thus my pretty necklace has now became a pendant! Sometimes things just don't work out the way you think they should. I'm sure that somewhere out there someone will make the necklace and they will think it is the prettiest thing they have ever made or seen but to me.....it was a thorn in my flesh!

What you can make out of $25.00 in beads!

I have been busy today getting Fall Inspired Jewelry made for the store. I got 4 strands of beads that totaled less than $25.00. I wanted to see how many pieces of jewelry you could make on a limited budget. Well here's what I came up with....I made 2 necklaces, 3 bracelets, 3 wire wrapped rings, 3 pairs of earrings and still had beads left over! Once made and priced, if I sell all the pieces, it will total $125.00. Pretty good huh? Below is a picture of the beads I had leftover. I can still make a few more pieces but I was sick of working with those color of beads.

Here is a picture of the earrings I made.

The Rings

Rockin Red Velet Pancakes

Here is a new recipe that I found in the Hungry Girl cookbook and I had to share because it is decadent!

Rockin Red Velvet Pancakes
Entire Recipe makes 2 Pancakes with Glaze - 273 Calories, 3g Fat, 46g Carbs, 7.5g fiber, 17.5g Protein

Ingredients:
Icing: 2 tablespoons Fat Free Cool Whip Thawed
          1 Tablesppon Fat Free Cream Cheese - room temp
          1 No calorie sweetener packet
Pancakes:
          One 25 Calorie Packet of Hot Cocoa Mix
          1 tablespoon sweetened cocoa powder
          1 teaspoon mini chocolate chips
          1/3 cup whole wheat flower
          1/2 teaspoon baking powder
         3 drops red flood coloring
         2 no calorie sweetener packets
         dash of salt
        1/4 c. fat free liquid eggs substitute
        1 tablespoon vanilla soymilk

In a small bowl combine all icing ingredients and mix until smooth. Set aside.

In a tall glass combine cocoa mix, cocoa powder, and 1/2 teaspoon chocolate chips. Add 1/4c. very hot water and stil until ingredients have dissolved. Set aside.

In a bowl combine flour, baking powder, sweetener and salt. Add cocoa mixture , egg substitute, and soy milk. Mix thoroughly. add food coloring and mix well. Stir in remaining chocolate chips.

Cook 2 pancakes

Microwave icing until warm, spread over pancakes.

Fabric Flower Crazy!

Ok so a few months ago I bought a great tutorial from aSundayGirl on Etsy.com on how to make fun fabric flowers. Since then I have become fabric flower crazy! I started out making just a few and made necklaces out of them. I priced them and put four out for sale. The day I put them out I sold three of them! I have been busy since then trying to get more flowers made so that I can made more necklaces. I have my assembly worked out pretty good. I take one afternoon and cut out all my circles, iron them, and then pin them together. Then I put all my pinned pieces in a bag and while we are at the ballgames. Then once all flowers are made then I take one day and put all of them together for necklaces, pendants, or hair clips. I love these flowers!

Ring

A lot of my favorite blogs are doing 365 Blogs where you blog about a certain topic for a full year. One of the blogs is a blog about rings. The lady is making a ring for everyday of the year.  Those of you who know me know that I am obsessed with rigns. I love them with a passion. In my opinion a girl can never have enough rings. In honor of her blog I wanted to show you a pic of my favorite ring. I used an 18mm Rivoli and peyote encased it then embellished it with 3 and 4mm bicones. This is a statement ring and I wear it all the time!

Nutella...where have you been all my life?

I can't believe that in 30 years I have never tasted Nutella! Real Housewives of NJ star Carolyn Manzo posted a Nutella pizza recipe on her blog today. It looked pretty darn good so I went to the grocery store tonight and purchased the ingredients. I made the pizza for a dessert tonight and let me tell you....this pizza was amazing and....I discovered that I love Nutella! To see the recipe check out carolyns blog at http://www.carolinemanzo.com/blog/

Enjoy!

New Projects I'm working on

Last week when my grandmother was in the hospital I started working on a few projects. These cute pink and green earrings were originally a bracelet pattern that I found in the April/May 2010 BeadWork Magazine. I started on the component for the bracelet and when I got it finished it just didn't phase me. There was no pizazz in my eyes! So I started doing a little bit of embellishment and was much happier with the results.  I still think that I may go back and add a few tweaks in the next pair I do but I was happy with the way these turned out.

 I also started working on a kit that I purchased from Nikia Angel two years ago at Bead and Button called Guivevere. The necklace had these cute triangle components that you were supposed to make and connect together to make a necklace. When I got a few of the components finished I realized that she didn't give me enough of a certain bead to finish the necklace. I started working trying to figure out something I could make with the components. What I ended up with was the earring on the right.  After I got it finished I didn't like it. I didn't know if it was the colors from the kit or the shape of the earring. Thus, I went to work on the second one yesterday (the one on the left) and I was much happier! Both are cute but the oblong shape suited my fancy. I am going to get busy in the next few days writing a pattern for the earrings.

I have had a few emails lately about people, patterns, and copy rights. A lot of people have been coming to me and asking "When you make something and you change a few things about the pattern when can you call it your design?" I really wish I had an answer for you but its a really bad gray area! My friend Pauline told me that her silversmithing teacher told them that if you change 20% of the pattern then it can be considered something that you came up with. My feelings are that if you make something from someone Else's pattern and you want to make it yours then it needs to look completely different from theirs. When someone looks at the two pieces side by side yours should not look exactly the same or the same with just a few simple changes. Take the earrings above for example. The original components are triangle shapes. If I were to make a triangle component and put it next to the earring on the right then you could see the shape and see that the earring is simply two of the components sewn together with a few embellishments. If I made one and put it against the earring on the left then you would have a harder time seeing the triangle. Even though I have made a piece completely different from Nikias design I will still contact her and ask her blessing I guess you would say to write the pattern. This is just common courtesy to the original designer.

When I do my videos online I try to do projects that I have come up with or that are free patterns that can be found anywhere. If I want to teach a pattern that I have found of someone Else's then I will contact the designer for permission. Some say yes and are glad to. In that case I always give credit to the designer and always put on the video where people can find there projects or designs. On the other hand, if the designer says no then I put the pattern to rest. I never want to do anything that would jeopardize my videos or the beading world. I don't however need to get permission to do videos or certain techniques such as Peyote Stitch. The reason being is that this is simply a technique and trying to give credit to the person who came up with Peyote Stitch is impossible. It is the same with other projects such as some rings that I do. They have been around for so long and have been adapted so many times that it would be hard for me to give credit to a designer because trying to find that information would be like me trying to find a dinosaur. Some things just aren't going to happen.

These are simply my feelings on copyright and if you have any other comments or suggestions please be sure to leave them!

Finished!

I finally got the bracelet finished today! I was a happy girl. Now onto the next project!

Can't believe I'm finally getting to this!

Like most beaders I like to hoard my beads and in my case I like to hoard kits.  I have went to the Bead and Button show for the last two years and have had an absolute blast! This year I decided not to go and in hindsight it was a good decision as my grandmother had a stroke the day I would have been set to leave.  Anyways, I was feeling down and out about not going this year so I decided to look at my kit stash. The last two years I have bought tons of kits at the show. I don't even want to know how much money I have put into these kits! I looked through and pulled out this great kit that I purchased from the Wire Lace Company.  It is called the Flight of Fancy bracelet. I started on it and have been working on it on and off this week while visiting my grandmother.  This is what I have done thus far and I only have about 2 steps left to finish and I will be done. I had the length made and then I had to re-adjust it since I have lost so much weight. I can't wait to get this kit finished so I can wear the bracelet! Alas the kit will have to wait until tomorrow night or Wednesday night before it gets finished because I have to get some glue from the shop to finish the last step. I will post pics of the final piece as soon as I finish.

As I said above, I was totally bummed out that I didn't get to go to the Bead and Button Show this year. It did give me time, however, to set a few goals for myself before the next show. First, I am going to get my directions written better for a ring that I came up with and I am going to submit it teach at next years show.

Secondly, I am going to work this coming year to get published in a major beading magazine. Last year I was published in Bead Trends and the sheer excitment of looking in a magazine and seeing my name above a project was far more than I could stand. To push myself though I need to come up with new goodies and work to get published. I am no longer contest just being Kelly the store owner. I want to be Kelly the store owner and published designer! Its all a matter of getting the right thing in the right persons hands and thats exactly what I'm going to work on doing!

New project coming soon!

Wow! I can't believe how long it's been since I've blogged. I am going to start back up this week with a new tutorial tomorrow on a great pair of simple and fun earrings. Plus we have a great new ring video that we will post on our YouTube site later this week!

Great 2011 Jewelry Article

I was surfing the web for 2011 jewelry trends today and I found this great article at http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5648034/jewelry_design_ideas_for_spring_2011_pg2.html?cat=46
I wanted to share the article with you because if your a jewelry designer then this is a great article for you.

Every season some things change and some things stay the same. Defining what aspects of your collection to continue and which to renew and refresh is the daily challenge of professional jewelry designers. Below you will find key inside tips for success in creating a fabulous jewelry collection for spring 2011.

Let's look at the top fashion jewelry trends for Spring 2011 and break it down. The subtle differences in color are important to capture for your designs to look and feel updated. Color palettes that will be strong for spring are Black/white, blue/green, brown/coral, white on white. So not earth shattering news here. However, by using indigo blue and Kelly green, adding bright orange to coral, and mixing white with burnished metals, and black with artisan textures, you will find these basic color palettes to look brand new. Tip: Best selling color fashion jewelry is usually a rich mix of tones, finishes, and textures. Vary your hues, and mix transparent, opaque, metallic, and matte beads into your Designs.
Don't underestimate the beauty of brown this season. I believe the strongest way to include a brown story into spring 2011 jewelry is to maximize the 'animal' patterns trend. Use faux tortoise shell, printed animal patterns under clear or transparent colored epoxy, animal printed ribbons, or metal pierced with crocodile and zebra open work. Tip: When working with animal print patterns use soft geometric shapes to display them.Simple discs and orbital earrings are always very strong selling silhouettes to include in your selection.

Slick and bright color is hot for spring 20111 fashion jewelry. Use epoxy and enameling to achieve a high gloss finish on metals. Use hombre colors across a surface for a very chic 'butterfly wing' look. Epoxy

is a great way to add a lot of bold color without a lot of expense. While cuffs are a hot look, and multiple bangles look great on the runway, it is comfort and style that wins at the register. If you are targeting a higher end consumer, then be sure to maximize the boldness at the wrist. However, for mid-tier to missy customers I suggest creating a wonderful collection of color, metal, charms, pearls, and textures that create a layered wrist that is comfortable as well as dramatic. Earrings for Spring will have movement, lightness, and color. Multiple parts linking together to make larger looks without a lot of extra weight. Tip: Earrings are business drivers, so identify your best sellers and update them in very subtle ways. This way you have a few 'sure things' mixed with your new ideas.

Silver tone fashion jewelry looks to be a very strong selling category for spring, summer, and even on into fall. The rising cost of sterling silver will most likely influence consumers to purchase the 'look' of silver at more affordable retail prices. Historically the best all metal fashion jewelry is polished and very simple. What I am seeing for this season is a subtle hint of interesting details. Fine beading, engraved pattern, woven wire, and imagery are very good ways to define this category. In general 'critters' are popping up everywhere. Bees, birds, snakes, and butterflies are the most predominant images to emerge for spring.
The last important detail is to make sure that everything you design is authentic. Your designs should reflect your personal style, and stay true to the vision you have in your mind. Your passion for a particular look will be evident and that is what makes your collection unique. The way you speak about your jewelry, present your jewelry, and wear your jewelry, are the best way to sell your jewelry. In an industry with so much available authenticity is the key to success.

More Snow

Woke up this morning to more snow.  Believe me when I say that I am not complaining at all!  Growing up we maybe got snow once a year.  For the past 2 years we have gotten more snow than usual for where we live.  We took our dogs out for a walk this morning and I couldn't help but get ticked at lilly our beagle because she was digging like crazy.  Oscar, our wennie dog, could care less and wanted to go back into the house.  With all this snow, I will be busy at my work table today.  I am trying to get the February Class Schedule finished so maybe since i'm stuck indoors today I will put a good dent in it.  If you live in my area, I hope you enjoy the snow today.  If not have a blessed day.

Busy first week of 2011

7 days into the new year already?  Gosh it seems like time is flying!  I had a great break at Christmas and New Years but this first week of the year has been really busy.  There is a show coming up at the Visual Arts Guild that I am trying to get jewelry made for.  We sold a ton of jewelry at Christmas so on top of trying to get things made for this show I need to be working on Jewelry for the store too! But as they say, if theres not feast theres famine.

On another note, I started Weight Watchers on Tuesday.  Not because it was the first of the year but because I need to do something about my weight for my health and it just seemed like the right time.  I would say the hardest part so far has been giving up my sodas.  I hate to even admit this but I was drinking 6 to 8 Coke's a day.  And now on the Weight Watchers plan 8oz of Coke is 3 points so needless to say, i only allow myself to have one 8oz can of coke a day now.  I miss the taste of coke but most of all right now I miss the caffeine.  My body is screaming at me for some good caffeine and sugar. I just feel really blah this week so it has made getting my work done much harder.  I am on day 4 though so hopefully my withdraws won't last too much longer and I can get back to business as usual.

Happy New Year!

I spent most of the afternoon trying to change the look of my blog.  I though new year new look!  It is amazing that 2010 has already been and is gone.  I had a great time in 2010.  I threw a few suprise parties, made new friends, and made tons of great beaded projects.  It is my hope that 2011 will be as good as 2010. 

At the beginning of the year it is customary that people set up a list of Resolutions.  Well this year I am going to post a few goals that I would like to accomplish because if you set a goal, it makes it easier to keep the eye on the ball.  Plus, if i post it on here then I will be accountable to all who read this.

First, I would like to grow my online presence.  Meaning that I would like to keep up with the blog more adding great projects for everyone to try, and make more great videos to be uploaded on youtube.com. 

Second, I would like to be able to do more craft shows and get my store name out a little more.  This may come as a challenge though as I read today that by 2012 they are expecting gas to be up to $5.00 a gallon. That is so hard to believe because when I first started driving gas was .99 a gallon.  Inflation sucks!

And thirdly, I would like to strenghten my marriage to my husband.  The past few years have been a test for us and we have withstood the storm but I would like to grow my love for him and remember that he is my life partner and that I need to quite looking to others to find my happiness and I need to find it in him.

I hope that 2011 brings each of you lots of love, laughter, joy, money, and lots of great beading projects.