Bead Soup Blog Party 8- My Soup from Jael's Jewels!

Hello friends!

I am excited to share my amazing bead soup from Jael with you!

So you know how I like to show you photos just like you were there unwrapping it with me, right? Well I had so many I decided to go a collage in the order of how I opened the package so I could really do some close-up's of the amazing beads below :D I love how Jael made me packaging out of recycled magazines with sweet little notes :D

I received some beautiful batik fabric strips! Love batik fabric and these bright colors!

A beautiful Tierra Cast toggle clasp that is just perfect with Jael's beads!

Some strands of semi-precious stones: bone, coral, and turquoise.

The first package of beads I opened was the one that said "From my ocean to yours" Thank you gift. Isn't it wonderful?! I just love the waves and ocean surf with a sandy beach and shell accent. You can even see bits of glitter :D

The next bead in the box was this AMAZING heart!! I just love the huge size! Jael combined 2 of her styles in this heart just for me! Isn't it incredible?!

Here is the back side! I just love all of the intricate details!

Next were these amazing pair of wooden looking sun faced hearts! Just look at all of the amazing little details. The beads are so delicate with so much texture! I love the antique wood grain look!

 Even the back side is amazing! The cane looks like wood grain with little scratches and pits!

Next were these amazing egg shaped oval beads! WOW!! Just look at all of the colors, texture, and antiqued parts. Each one is a little masterpiece with details on every side!

Jael also sent me these amazing rounds!! Can you see the sparkles?! Wow did she spoil me rotten or what?! Now to dream up something amazing! I hope to be able to make some matching beads to compliment her work!

Now to brain storm!

See you soon!

xo Genea

Bead Soup Blog Party 8- My partner Jael Thorp from Jael's Art Jewels!

Hello friends!

Bead Soup Blog Party 8 is upon us! Meet my partner, Jael Thorp of Jael's Art Jewels!

Meet Jael!

She makes the most amazing polymer clay creations!

Check out her GORGEOUS "Mandala Style Doodle" hearts! These are some SEXY beads huh? HUBBA, HUBBA! ;)

Check out these beautiful face tiles! They look like little boards of wood embellished with a flower sun looking face!

I just LOVE these bezel set pieces as well! LOVE the hearts and love the wonderful flow of the circular and rectangular pieces in the middle row. They are all gorgeous!

I am really lucky to have such a talented partner!

You can check our her Artfire shop here.

I can't wait to see the serving of soup she sends my way!

Stay tuned!

xo Genea

Bead Fest Philly August 23-25th 2013- Genea Beads & S L Artisan Accents!

Hello friends!

OMG, OMG, OMG! It's ALMOST here! Can you believe it?! I just received the info from Dana Groves(our event sales manager. Who is amazing, btw!)! So here is some quick info for you. Now I personally have not been to or vended at a bead show this large before, so I am SUPER EXCITED! Can you imagine this bead show is SO big that they have a map like this and you may actually get lost and not be able to find us without this information??!

So here it is! Staci and I are at booth 371 over by Artisan Alley. You can view the entire Bead Fest Map here.

I would hope by now that from our blogs you would know what Staci and my work look like, but here is a quick collage of some newer work ;)

  We will be sharing a corner with our friends, Karen Totten of Starry Road Studio and her daughter Nellie Thomas of Spin-Culture! Yay!! Oh and our across the way neighbors will be Patti Cahill of Dyed in the Fire Designs and Joan Miller Porcelain! Wow! Did we luck out being surrounded by some amazing artists, or what?! :D

So what other news do I have for you? Well how would you like to save $10 on your ticket entrance to Bead Fest?! Just print out the coupon below and bring it in for your discount! That makes your entrance fee only $5! Just think of all of the wonderful beds you can buy with that extra $10! You're welcome! :D

So come and be our guest! Are you singing the "Be our Guest" song on Beauty and the Beast now? LOL I am. Well in my head at least! 

For any more info you may need you can check out the Bead Fest Philly August 2013 page!

Thanks for stopping by! Can't wait to see you there!!

xo Genea 

PRE-SALE for LIMITED EDITION COLLAB SETS ON CBC(Creative Bead Chat)!

Hello friends! 

It's just around the corner for our LIMITED EDITION COLLABORATION RELEASE, but we decided to offer up 5 of our AMAZING sets for PRE-SALE on Creative Bead Chat!  Not a member? Just hop on in and join! 

Here is what we have up for pre-sale!  To find out how to claim your set, click on the photo in the CBC gallery of the set you would like and follow the instructions. 

We hope you find something you can't live without!

xo Genea

Happiness in a box

Hello friends!

I sure do love getting mail! The other day was no exception! I received another wonderful box from my dear friend, Staci Smith! Wow the treasures that were inside my box!

 

So on the top of the box were our collab bead sets! I was SUPER excited to look at each and every one! I can't wait for us to reveal them to you! You are going to LOVE them!

So let's take a look inside my box!

Awww how sweet of Staci! Look! She sent me some beach glass, urchin spines and mop sticks in the bag on the left. She even sent me a little diamond bit for me to drill the glass! What a sweet girl!

Ooooo and look at all of these pretty semi-precious stone chunks and shell! So pretty!!

 

OMG! I LOVE these oils from Scent by the Sea ! How sweet of my hippy girl to send me some wonderful oils! I was so excited to receive these because when I was in high school I used to wear this oil by a company called Airs. They make the most wonderful smelling incense. Well, they had this oil called, China Moon that was my favorite! The moon bride made me think of it. Wow do these oils smell amazing! They wear really well too. I could smell the oil on myself throughout the day :D

 

Yay!! Sea glass! I just love this simple necklace and aqua blue!

 

Look at this amazing beachy goodness! She sent me some of her new "Sea Bones" head pins and one of her amazing connectors called "Poseidon's Fury"(I think that's what it was ;)! They are so gorgeous! I just LOVE the pendant she sent me from Marsha Neal Studio! Did you see the sweet stripey shells like the ones she used in her AIW necklace from our Curious Design Challenge?!

 

Isn't the necklace gorgeous! You can read Staci's post here incase you missed it ;)

 

OMG look how beautiful these beads are!! I just love every single one of them! I can't wait to design with them!

 

OMG and look at these!! I just love them!These batiked connectors are to die for!  The donut is BIG too! It must stretch across my palm! It's going to make such a cool focal in a necklace!

 

Awwww! Look she sent me earrings like hers!  Staci posted these gorgeous earrings that are going to go in her shop soon.I just raved and raved about them, maybe she thought I needed some too :D:D:D

 

Here are her earrings! Gorgeous huh?! I just LOVE them! She used my midnight jewel headpins for the drop.

 

Here is her whole set with her necklace she made with my "Ancient Pebble" focal as well! I just love the look with her cute hippy do rag!

 

Here are the earrings I made with my components from Staci! I assembled them and put them on right away when I went out Friday night :)

 

Here is the INCREDIBLE necklace she sent me as well! OMG, it is SOOOO PRETTY! It makes the most wonderful noise when you move around too. All those layers of metal and chain!Mmmm!

 

Here I am wearing my new jewelry :D

Thanks so much for stopping by to celebrate with me! 

Have a wonderful evening and see ya soon!

xo Genea

Curious Design Challenge- Components for Creating

Hello friends!

Why is a raven like a writing desk?? Did you ever wonder about this question that always seems to be asked, but never answered? Well I have the answer for you! A raven is like a writing desk because Edgar Allen Poe wrote "The Raven" on a writing desk! Ah ha! Isn't it nice to know the answer? :)

How are those ideas coming for our Curious Design Challenge?

I have been cruising around Etsy for some handmade goodies to add to your designs! 

 

Check out these amazing vintage Alice in wonderland stampers! You could stamp these images onto a shrinky dink to make some charms, or do an image transfer onto a scrabble tile!

 

Look at this wonderful Cheshire cat pendant.  

"Alice: But I don't want to go among mad people.

The Cat: Oh, you can't help that. We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.
Alice: How do you know I'm mad?
The Cat: You must be. Or you wouldn't have come here."

 

Look at these amazing keyholes!  Do you remember the scene in the Disney Alice in Wonderland cartoon when Alice looks through the Keyholes mouth to see if the white rabbit has gone through the doorway?

 

Look at these wonderful tear drops by Suburban Girl Studios. Remember when Alice leaves the key to the door on the top of the table and cries those giant tears?   

"Doorknob: I forgot to tell you.

[laughs]
Doorknob: I'm locked!
[laughs]
Alice: Oh, no!
Doorknob: But of course, you've got the key, so...
Alice: What key?
Doorknob: Now, don't tell me you've left it up there!"

 

This gorgeous heart by Staci, would be perfect for the queen of hearts!

 

How about these fanciful mushroom buttons that could be used for a clasp? 

"Caterpillar: By the way, I have a few more helpful hints. One side will make you grow taller...

Alice: One side of what?
Caterpillar: ...and the other side will make you grow shorter. "

I hope these wonderful components gave your some inspiration for your pieces!

Happy Curious Creating!

xo Genea

Introducing Barbara Bechtel

Hello friends!

I would like to introduce to you my friend, Barbara Bechtel of Floridity and Second Surf! Barbara is really amazing! She is so sweet and talented. I have really enjoyed writing back and forth with her during our trade. So speaking of talented. She does it all! Yep, from her packaging, to her beads and even her prints!

 

Here you can see her lovely stamped cloth bags and her super cute 2S tag. I love that the bag is hand stamped with this aqua glittery paint? Everything is carefully packaged with detail and care!

 

Here is a close-up of the wonderful little print she added to my package! I was super excited to not only receive beads,but some of her artwork as well! It even came in one of those wonderful shiny bags, which I really think showcase stuff so well ;)

 

So Barbara and I got a little carried away in our swapping and it had that extra element of surprise because I didn't know exactly what I would receive from her when I opened the package. I was FLOORED by it's contents! Everything was carefully labeled with it's name and price all in their own little bags. Can you believe ALL of this was in that little cloth pouch?!

 

In the box I received these AMAZING items! I was really excited that Barbara sent me so many of her little treasures! She even sent things that all went together :D

I LOVE everything she sent, but thought I would take a few close-ups of things so maybe you could get a better idea of the details that go into her work...

 

Just look at her "Carved Rainbow Nuggets". They are so colorful and "painterly". They look like little water colors carefully faceted. The wonderful rainbows contrast well against the white facets!

 

I especially LOVE this new style she is doing. They have this wonderful "scratchiness" to them. They look like the are dry brush painted, but they also have these teeny tiny scratches in their surface as well giving them this wonderful visual appeal. 

You can't really tell without holding the pieces in your hands to inspect them, but all of the pieces are very carefully cut and beveled. The edges are smooth and the holes are perfectly cut.  You can tell each piece is lovingly detailed through each part of the design process.

I hope you enjoyed getting to know Barbara a little more through my post and that you will stop on by her shop and pick up some gifts for the creatives on your list this holiday season!

Thanks for stopping by!

xo Genea