playing with clay

digging through some of my unpacked boxes, I ran across some poly clay, from about 15 years ago, when my son and I tried our hands at making beads (really ugly beads)......well I decided to see if it was still good, so I kneaded it for a while and rolled it out and used some of my new rubber stamps to put a textural design on it, then used a plastic tube that a pair of ergonomic tweezers came in,( it is square shaped with rounded edges) to cut tiles out with.....then put holes in to one corner of each tile, and baked them....they looked ok, the design  on them looked good, but they were just plain matt grey colored, not too interesting. so then I went to my local michaels and got some Rubn'Buff, in antique gold, and used some of that to high light the raised portions of the pattern, it looked much better, but then decided to cover the edges and back as well.
Now I am happy with them, and plan to use them as dangles on earrings, I even made a pair to try them out.
  I just got my beads from Juls from Juls beads, I bought her skills on the torch for a day, and all I can say is wow, wow, wow!!! they are so beautiful! I used one of the earring pairs I got from her to make the above mentioned earrings and will post pictures as soon as I get some taken......

.waiting isn't easy

last friday I contacted Juls Cannon, about her offer to sell a days worth of her talent on the torch, I have ordered beads from her in the past and love them......so thought I would really love a whole days worth of beady suprises from her, I am so excited to see what she has made!!! because I really have no idea what she might come up with, other than I requested some focals and earring pairs-I will combine the earring pairs with the copper domed disks, I am planning on making as soon as all my supplies get here..........I found out my hubby has to teach a class on Saturday.........so my new work area/ storage  armoire won't get done till maybe Sunday, if I am lucky....it sure isn't easy waiting, but I'm sure one of these days I'll be doing the happy dance all over the house!!!! if the wait doesn't kill me first

getting back to my beading

I was checking out someones blog recently, and she was showing her studio, and her work area and storage....she mentioned she had gotten several or her studio items from overstock.com.........so I checked them out, and found  something called a workbox crafting  cabinet, I think it was intended for scrapbooking, but I thought it would fill my needs for beading and jewelery making as it has lots of storage and a work desk all in an armoire so I bit the bullet and ordered it, ..........it was kind of scary, as it was more money than I have ever spent on a single piece of furniture, and it was just for me, hard to justify, but I did it ......then had second thoughts a few days later and tried to cancel, but it was already on its way to me..........then I got a call from the company trying to deliver it to me, only to find out it would be coming in a semi truck, my house is in a neighborhood not accessible by a semi........so I had to have my hubby pick it up in Portland at the airport, and bring it home to me here in Longview..........so now it is sitting in the garage waiting for time when my hubby can take apart the big corner computer desk I have been using to bead on, and then put together this new cabinet........it will be beautiful, as it is nice quality furniture.........not some particle board type thing, its real wood, and an amazing amount of storage...........my only concern is lighting for the work area, but I guess we will deal with that after its all done.........I am anxious, to get it together......I want to start creating again.....I have bought some books on metal work, and want to try my hand at etching copper, and making some of my own jewelery findings......maybe even learn to do enameling.......I am slowly getting  my tools and other equipment together to do the etching, I have ordered the chemicals, got some copper blanks and a dapping block, I have a permanent ink stamp ordered, and have some really nice stamps, and I am getting excited...........I guess my muse has resurfaced!...........come on weekend hurry up and get here, I have some  honey- do's for hubby, and I want to create!!!

cute pumpkin bead give away

Raida  from Havana Beads is having a give away for these beautiful little pumpkin beads......I just love them!