I’m STILL Blog Hopping for the Bead Soup Party – it’s taking me awhile to look and read. Thank you to everyone who left comments for me.
Meanwhile, I’ll be off to the Cottonwood Art Festival in Richardson, Texas this weekend. I’ve made a lot of new pieces, and if I can get to it tomorrow I’ll give you a peek. Otherwise, hope to see you there if you live in the area.
I’ve made a necklace and a bracelet using my soup mix from Barrie Edwards – and a few beads I added of my own. Barrie made the focal bead with reticulated silver set with a pink tourmaline (I think that’s what the gemstone is), and I decided to accent it with a triple strand of beads composed of pearls in pink and white, and sterling silver curved tubes and other beads. It seemed a shame to have the matching clasp she made hidden at the back of the neck, so therefore, I made a bracelet so that the clasp could be center stage.
For the bacelet I added some larger lampworked beads I made to compliment the smaller beads Barrie made. I tied it all together again with pearls and sterling silver. I am pleased with how the two pieces came together, and each can shine on its own – or they can be worn together.
There are more than 300 people at this soup party! You’re going to have some fun bouncing around to see what was made. Take some time, break the list up into segments if you need to – but whatever, go enjoy for beady creativity. Visit Barrie here to see what she did with the soup I sent her, and follow this link for all the party-goers.
I finally received my soup beads yesterday! Wow – they took a long time getting to Texas from B.C., Canada, but worth the wait. Barrie made the focal and the clasp herself, as well as those darling pink lampworked beads. A multi-tasker, that’s for sure. She also sent pearls – must be telephathy, since I sent her pearls as well. That one picture on the bottom right – not a bead, but a sticker. Nice inspiration though, got me thinking.
So now I am moving the beads all around on a white plate I pulled out for them, adding and subtracting things from my stash, and generally getting the visuals working on cooking up a new recipe for these fun ingredients. See ‘ya here on September 17th for the reveal.
P.S. Check out “What’s New” on my website. I’m gotten a start uploading the new jewelry I’ve made for my next show in Midland, Texas.
This poster for American Crescent Cycles is the inspiration challenge this month over at Art Bead Scene. I have been so swamped I haven’t participated in the challenges in months. I’m producing jewelry for an upcoming show in Midland, Texas (Septemberfest). So why not combine two projects? With that in mind, I made not one but TWO necklaces inspired by this poster. I’ll have them both for sale in Midland (unless someone snatches them up before then).
Anyway, here is the first one. I used faceted citrines as the necklace base, to pick up the color of the wonderful dress. I ran with the soft yellows, mustards, and ivories for the flowers and made all the glass beads. The glass leaves I made were a mix of not quite green and greys like those in the bottoms left of the poster. I’m not a “literal’ interpreter – I prefer just to use the general color scheme inspire me – and then I play. What do you think?
For my second necklace I was inspired more by the woman’s wonderful flowing hair. I made glass curly q’s and also used these georgous baroque pearls with grey/ brown undertones. I made some ivory glass flowers, and added little hints of the patterns on her dress around the faces of some of my glass flowers. Which one gets your vote? I like them both, and thanks, ABS, for the inspiration. Follow along for a blog hop on August 31st and see who else was inspired.
The Bead Soup is getting ready to go on the stove. Beads are flying back and forth across the county – and my beads are on their way to Barrie Edwards in Canada. Can’t show you yet what I sent. Dontcha wanna know? Barrie works with silver and gemstones. I’m really looking forward to this challenge. Meanwhile, look at some of her recent creations. Wow!
What on earth does Project Runway have to do with beads and the Bead Soup Party? They are both inspiring, that’s what. I have been hooked on Project Runway for years, and the new season nine has started. I don’t design clothing, and sewing is really not my “thing,” however, this show always gets my creative juices flowing. Did you see the first episode? The designers,(who are competing for some big prizes, by the way) were woken up very early in the day, told to keep on their pj’s or whatever they slept in, grab a bed sheet, wrap up in it if necessary for modesty, and follow Tim Gunn out onto the streets of New York City. They walked over to the design workshop and were given the challenge: Design something using only what you slept in last night, and the bed sheet (they could dye it if they wanted). Some of them slept in boxer shorts, or funky tee shirts, or itty bitty tank tops, or you name it – and these creative people turned their sleepwear and a sheet into potentially award winning outfits! Wow! I loved watching the process, and the final results were in most cases amazing. Check it out here: http://www.mylifetime.com/shows/project-runway
Bead Soup Party is like that: We participants don’t know what beads we’ll receive (we could hate them, they could be bad, bad, colors, the focal could be just blah, whatever) – yet rising to the challenge of making something wonderful out of materials we might usually never give a second glance to is such fun. I love seeing what other participants come up with, as well as seeing what I can come up with. Inspiration? Yes, big time.
So, go on over to Lori Anderson’s web site and sign up to participate in this design challenge. Watch this space to see what transpires with the beads I ship away and receive in return.
Meanwhile, here’s a little inspiration of my own – a recent necklace I made for the show in Ruidoso. Enjoy!
I’ve always been creative from the get go. I grew up way out in the country on a used-to-be chicken farm. The nearest neighbors with any children were miles away – so I played with what was at hand. I played “store” using leftover cereal boxes and cans to stock my shelves. I sold “jewelry” I made out of woven strings of dandelions and honeysuckle vines to any mice, chickens dogs or cats that I could herd into my vicinity. I cut pictures of people out of magazines, mounted them on cardboard to make my own paperdolls and created their clothes from other colorful magazine cutouts.
Where did these ideas come from? I don’t know. I do know that my mother always encouraged me to “make something up” – so I did. I’m still “making something up,” and ideas usually flow freely. There are times though, when I don’t feel too inspired. So what do I do?
If my well of creativity feels dry, I give it a break to replenish itself. I quit working. This is not easy for me to do. I must be an “A” type of personality, since I can barely stand not to be doing something, especially making jewelry. So I run around asking Jim for permission – “Is it okay to take the day off?” Knowing how I am, he always says, “Yes, you need a break. Go relax.” Somehow his permission helps, and I take my coffee (by a summer afternoon it is iced coffee) and sit in the living room staring out at the birds, the trees and the fields. I love watching our big Texas sky and if I stare long enough I will usually see an animal wander by – this morning a beautiful bushy tailed fox surprised me.
Other times I take a walk, water my garden, read, or nap – all things that my A type mind declares are just sinful to do during the midst of what “should be” a work day. Yesterday, after reading most of the afternoon, I went along with my sister to a music concert. I rarely allow myself much time off ( I’m a full time working artist), and it was wonderful. I enjoyed the music, – and lo and behold, in the middle of being immersed in listening, an idea for a necklace floated into my mind’s eye. Today I’m going to make the beads I envisioned in that necklace.
I still don’t know where the ideas come from exactly. I do know that if I allow myself to open up, to breathe, to be, that my creativity will appear.
Two beautiful plump Bob-White Quails drifted into my garden one day. Look at those feather patterns - ah, inspiration there!
My recent show schedule has been intense. Two weekends ago we were in Fayetteville at Art Walk, and last weekend we were in Dallas (Richardson) for the Cottonwood Art Festival. We applied to Cottonwood for six (!) years, and were finally juried into it. The show was fabulous. A beautiful park setting and the weather, except for some wind gusts, was perfect. We saw some old friends and customers, and met lots of new people as well. The good part – we sold a lot of jewelry- and the other part – my stock is depleted – adds up to more intense work ahead. In order to have great new jewelry for our upcoming show in Kerrville – the Texas Arts and Crafts Festival – Jim and I are both working long hours. He’s on his bench pounding away making silver settings, and I’m at the torch every day making beads as quickly as I can.
A two2 day show actually takes us six days. A day driving there, a day setting up, two days showing, a day driving home, and day six for recuperating and doing paperwork, order assemby, etc. But the time away from the torch and our benches sets our creative juices afire. The wonderful art we see at the shows inspires us, as do the sights we see while driving and visiting cities so different from our tiny town. By the time I’m home my sketchbook is brimming with ideas. So some fun new jewelry will be coming to Kerrville.
Here’s the e-mail ad. I’ll give you a real sneak preview later after I take some photographs.
Fayetteville Artwalk is April 30th – May 1st (starts day after tomorrow) and Cottonwood Art Festival (I’m in for the first time!) is the May 7th and 8th. Did you notice they are only one week apart? I did! Therefore I have been making beads and jewelry every day since I hit the house back from Lubbock. Hardly anyone has heard a peep out of me because I’ve been too busy creating.
What I have cooked up will need to stretch across both shows. (I promise I will hold some really good pieces back just for those of you planning to come to Cottonwood.) I’ve made lots of earrings, and double the amount of bubble necklaces with my new popular wire ” Scribbles.” Here’s a peek.
Lyn Foley at the Lubbock Arts Festival April 8-10, 2011
The Lubbock Art Festival is this weekend, and I’m photographing and pricing new jewelry today. I’m also hoping to finish our taxes before we leave, take a few pieces of new jewelry over to the Gallery at Round Top, and work on my display. I also need to get together with my sister Mary. I planted my vegetable garden, and since Mary takes care of Chica and the house while we are away, I need to show her what is planted where so that she can water it. Nothing like a lot to do today, is there? Somehow all the last minute things always get taken care of, so, I’m off to work.
Oh, I almost forgot: Go Anyway did launch last week. The e-mail I sent about the book signing may have been a little confusing. If you didn’t understand how to buy a copy from me follow this link, http://www.GoAnyway.net to purchase my book. If you want me to sign it,write a note in the shipping instructions. ( Shipping is generally media mail.) If you live near Round Top and want to pick up your copy, just leave off the shipping, and send me an e-mail seperately. I’m working on the digital formatting (in between making jewelry, can’t forget that), so the book will be available on all the popular sites for e-book downloads in about two weeks. I’ll keep you posted.
Go to http://www.GoAnyway.net to buy a copy of my book
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