Color Challenge Blog Hop - REVEAL !

The last two months have been... Well. Kind of heretic, as I scramble with balancing work while my dad is trying to find out what is wrong with him, so I've been quite a bit out of it.

Which is exactly why, when Lisa posted her reminder on Facebook, The first word that came to mind was 'well'.

The second word was 'SHIT !'

Needless to say, I had nothing done and about six hours to do something. For someone who is usually done a week in advance, this was a little terrifying. I also got red beads, and red is not a color I use often.

Well.

I think I managed to do justice to Shelley's adorable little owl.

I seem to be in a tassel mood lately...

Enjoy, and please visit everyone else, too !

Your Hostess: Lisa Lodge, A Grateful Artist

Chris Eisenberg, Wander Ware

Audrey Belanger, Dreams of an Absolution

Mary Govaars, MLH Jewelry Designs

Melissa Trudinger, Bead Recipes

Monique Urquhart, A Half-Baked Notion

Beti Horvath, Stringing Fool

Charlene Bausinger Jacka, Clay Space

Tara Plote, The Newbie Beader's Blog

Renetha Williams Stanziano, Lamplight Crafts

Leah Mifflin Tees, My Beady Little Eyes

Kathy Zeigler Lindemer, Bay Moon Design

Toltec Jewels, Toltec Jewels for Jewel School Friends

Molly Alexander, Beautifully Broken Me

Alicia Marinache, All the Pretty Things

Laurie Vyselaar, Lefthand Jewelry

Eleanor Burian-Mohr, The Charmed Life

Julie Lockhart, Copar Aingeal

Dolores Rami, CraftyD's Creations

Elizabeth Bunn, Elizabeth Beads

Mowse Doyle, Mowse Made This

Veralynne Malone, Designed by Vera

Candida Elkins Castleberry, Spun Sugar Beadworks

Shaiha Williams, Shaiha's Ramblings

Christie Searle Murrow, Charis Designs Jewelry

Andrea Glick-Zenith, ZenithJade Creations

Color Surprise Challenge - REVEAL !

Welcome, everyone ! For those not familiar with this blog, my name is Audrey, and I got one of Lisa's blue destash kits. Today is the reveal date for Lisa's color surprise challenge... which ended up taking me quite far out my comfort zone, actually. It was pretty fun !

For one, I rarely do work with beads like the one I've got. I work mostly with gemstone, shell beads... if I use crystal, they're usually clear. There was a ton of amazing glass in there, and some plastic. I did ponder what to actually do for quite a while... and the project came out a little unusual... for me, at least.

Okay, I can hear you say. Audrey, shut up and get to the point !

Yes, yes... As a reminder, this is what I started with :

And this is what happened...

I MADE A RING.

I know. Minds blown. But I loved this perticular bead... And it was all alone in my kit. It had no twin. Im usually pretty symetric in my designs... But I still wanted to use it.

And I had brought a mandrel not too long ago...

Now, im not seeing it's flawless. It's a little loopy. But it is my first ring... I don't think it can really be helped. It still came out pretty nice~

Well then, I hope you've appeciated this post ! Please go see the other blogs below...

LOL JUST KIDDING ! 8D Certainly that can't be all, you must think, and you would be right. I gave you the entree... so now for the main course !

I saw this whole assortment of lovely, different beads, and saw MEMORY WIRE BRACELET instantaneously. It had been something I was meaning to try, after seeing B'Sue's video where she made one. I had gotten some memory wire from one of my blind boxes orders from UnkamenSupplies... I was just missing beads that worked. And I got beads that worked !

Most of the beads on this bracelet are from Lisa's destash. The exception being two faceted blue agates I got as freebies, the impression jasper circles, the daisy spacers and the big silver and blue lampwork beads. I am quite in love with the tiny purple and blue beads... Need to find out where to get more << Ohoho.

Experienced memory wire workers willl probably go "wait... that doesn't lay quite right" at this picture. And they would be right. I couldn't get the big turquoise (or is it impression jasper ? Hmm.) bead to go through the coils, and I kept cutting my wire too short in spite of counting my rings right. So I had two too-short coils of wire, and one giant stone I wanted to poink in the center anyway.

HMMM.

At first I had it glued in... but the glue overrun was horrible. Removing the glue overrun made everything fall apart. So in the end, I just let more wire exposed and stuck each side as far in as they would go. It holds just fine, thanks to the natural curve of the memory wire, just as long as you don't go juggling with it or something. The wrist supports the weight of the stone as you wear it so it's solid when worn.

But that's me... Always finding a way to cheat an end result, LOL !

And no, I did not end up using the focal. Strange twist of fate... But I will find it an home soon. <3 Hope you've enjoyed this and be sure to pay everyone else a visit !

Your Host: Lisa Lodge

Audrey Belanger <<< YOU ARE HERE

Lisa Boucher

Eleanor Burian-Mohr

Marlene Cupo

Marla Gibson

Alicia Marinache

Inge von Ross

Stephanie Stamper

Diane Valasek

Color Surprise Challenge, Summer Lovin', and what's in a name ?

((Don't forget that I have a giveaway going until June 24th, midnight EST ! If you havn't entered yet, please don't forget to do so ! <3))


The Bead Soup Blog Party partners are going out as I type this ! Again, I need to tip my hat off to Lori for her dedication to this swap, and all of the effort she is putting into it... You rock, lady. What a superstar <3

As of today I am one week + a day (I work next saturday. BOOOO.) away from my vacation. And oh lord do I need this vacation. The east coast has been good and toasty and humid for the last two week and here up north is no exception, so I am poooooped. I also do not take any vacation in the winter, so I have more or less been working non-stop (with a looooot of overtime, thank you flaky co-workers) since last august.

I am certainly due. And I have a whole month off work coming to me. WOOOOO !

I will keep busy, of course. Im not a big traveller - I don't drive, which doesn't help there - and depending when my brother does get his vacation, I might not go anywhere at all. That means loooots of biking, looooots of pool time... and a lot of beading !

Certainly nothing wrong with that, no sir.

I am currently taking part in three other challenges, two of which involves kits. I got the kit for the second one today, so I figured I would slide in a word about them, through sadly neither kit challenges are still open for more people. I believe the written blog hop is still accepting people !

The first blog hop is a simple one. Shelley of Fabric Of My Life wants to know - what's in a name ? The name of my blog, of course ! Now, im keeping my lips zipped on this - no use giving away the punch ! But I will simply tell you that the answer is a little more personal than one might think.

Shelley is still taking participants and the posting date is July 17 - her birthday ! Come play with us ! <3

Then next...

Lisa of Pine Ridge Treasures came up with a fun way to run a destash - turn it into a challenge ! The Color Surprise Challenge is aptly named because each one of us brought our kits blindly - knowing roughly what we would get, bead-species wise, but not what color we would get ! I got blue, which is... kind of funny, because I was so afraid I would end up with yellow and not know what to do with it. Doesn't that focal look yummy ? And that turquoise ? Oh, yes. I will do yummy things with that delicious set indeed. It will be glorious.

The reveal for the Color Surprise Challenge will be July 21 !

And finally, for now...

This is the Summer Lovin' challenge, held by Amy of Amybeads Sandra was the one to find this, and well... look at that focal. I did not need much convincing at all to leap into this <<

I have a few ideas already.... I fear my piece will not be very summery.  BUT ! It will be lovely. It will be lovely indeed. Yummy silvers and golds and... lucite ? That's all you're getting out of me. 8D

The reveal date for the summer lovin' challenge will be August 1. See you all on these dates !