Creative Endeavors

I just decided to expand this blog to include all the stuff I make. What I'm working on now is an Autumn Angel on blue cloth. I purchased this kit several years ago and hadn't gotten around to starting it. I'd forgotten how long it takes to just do a little bit with cross stitch, but I'm doggedly working away at it. I don't want this to be one of those projects that goes by the wayside and then I find it 15 years later still not done.

Things I'm doing with this particular project are that I counted out and identified all the pieces of floss in the kit. I punched holes with a hole punch in a piece of card stock and tied the floss into each hole with a half hitch knot. I labeled each with their coded and written color.

Then, as I began working on the project I found the only way I could keep on track was to use a green highlighter to mark off the squares I'd already worked. A couple of times I've gotten lost, but was able to correct easily enough. At least, I'm not doing her face yet, which will likely need to be just as the pattern indicates. Otherwise, the folds in her gown can go one way or another and not ruin the picture.

I'm looking forward to having this finished by Christmas. At the rate I'm going I'm going to need every minute I can spend on it between now and then.

What I've got in the works (means I haven't started yet) are a couple of purses. Right now I have a Teddy Bear tote and every time I want to find something I just can't do it. My other purse had 3 separate compartments where I had the same thing going on and it drove me mad. I figured one big bag would solve that problem, except it has not. What I'm thinking about now is a purse with little pockets all on the inside...sort of like a cargo pants purse. A place for my phone. A place for my breath mints. A place for my keys. A place for a pen and a pad of paper. All the things I can't find easily now. That should work.

Not Quite Done

The following photographs are of bracelets that I haven't yet finished. I sat here one weekend and played with beads and made all these lovely combinations. What I'd like is for my sister, Betsy, to have a look and let me know if any of them catch her eye. The next watch I make is for her.

Red and Gold Watch

Red and gold. That's what I had a yearning for. And, I satisfied it making this watch for myself. Funny, I haven't been keen on wearing bracelets, but I always wear a watch. Now, the watches I wear aren't the same day after day. I've been alternating between the blue one and the green watch and, now, I have this one.

It worked up pretty quick. I handled the half clasps better. Maybe the gold is different. Maybe I'm just getting better at it. I don't know. Time will tell. I love these beads. They are called miracle beads. I got them from FireMountain Gems. This is the first time I've used this magnetic clasp. I like it better than the plain one I've been using. And, I love this watch face. That came from WhoHasTheTime.com. The safety chain and a boatload of helpful advice came from the ladies at Bead Inspirations.

Orange and Purple Watch

This is a watch I just made for a young friend. She said, "Purple and Orange". It's actually quite interesting. What I learned with it was that the safety chain I'd gotten from FireMountain gems that, at first glance, looked too entirely small to use for anything could actually be used if I stretched out the last loop with a pair of pliers. It was a very delicate operation, but I felt quite a lot better that I was going to be able to use the 5 feet worth of silver chain I bought with these watches that I'm making.

I am getting a little better at this. With this watch I began beading from the clasp to the watch and I sized it to my own wrist by temporarily anchoring everything with a crimp bead. In the past I've just plowed ahead and ended up being surprised by the fit. So, I'm making progress.

What I still need to work on are the half shell clasps covering the crimp beads. No matter how I do them (these are 4mm sizes) I still leave "tooth marks" on the beads from the crimping tool. It's not hugely noticeable, but I know it's going on and it doesn't please me. Practice? Maybe. I sure would like to use the 3mm size half shells, but they are too small to fit over the #2 crimp tubes. I've got smaller crimps, but the once I used them they didn't hold the wire at all.

Knotting Between Beads

This weekend I learned how to knot between beads! This is something I've wanted to know how to do for many years. I bought the knotting tool from FireMountain Gems. It didn't take long. I followed the directions and voila I had knotted a loverly bunch of beads.

Tubular Peyote

I am very laboriously trying to teach myself to do tubular peyote. I’ve recently seen some examples of it at Ruby’s site (also bookmarked to the side) and fell in love. Unfortunately, I’ve got this block against having whatever I do turn out looking good. So far, I’ve dismantled the bitty pieces I’ve worked up 3 times only to start over. Last night I cut two pieces of different diameter dowels to use and today, after work, will hie myself off to the hardware store across the street to purchase a little bit of rope. I think the rope is going to work better incorporated into a watchband than a dowel will.

I finally found some directions that I could follow at my beadchat group forum at Yahoo.

Anyway, I will continue to work doggedly at the project because I think watches made with this stitch are going to be really pretty.

More Beading Supplies

Well, I did it again. I went and bought $74 worth of stuff at FireMountainGems. Yikes. Anyway, what’s coming and the main reason for the order was that I wanted some more silver chain. Got that and why not the rest of it? Right. There’s a reason I quit drinking. I suppose it could have been worse. Anyway, I justified it all by saying to myself, “Hey, I have a job.” However, I do need to remember we also have other bills. I’ll need to get busy at PayPerPost. That’s what I’ve been using for my bead money.

Also, in the order is a knotting tool. I’ve been eyeballing them for years. Now, I’m going to have one. I also got a bunch of beads. Some gorgeous Lapis Lazuli 8.5 to 9 mm grade C round beads. I always think that is “my” color…for writing and for speaking and for the work I do spiritually. It’s the blue in the throat charka and I wanted some. It was one of the more expensive things in my order and twice I took it off only to put it back into the cart again. I really wanted them! Anyway, I took the order to 15 items and the price on the Lapis Lazulis went to $7.36 for a 16” strand.

I got some head-pins and some more magnetic clasps, some cloisonné beads and then I said I was done. As I went to checkout and signed into my account they found the shopping cart I’d had the last time I’d prepared an order. I didn’t realize that they saved them, so I’ll remember that for next time.

Reworking the Watches I Make

In learning how to bead I have found that my creations do not always stand the test of time and of everyday use. Also, I need to learn to be able to gauge sizes for people. But, for now have been concentrating my efforts more towards just getting the pieces to not be falling apart every time I turn around.

I've given several away, but I've only actually heard back from one person with her experiences wearing the watch. It has made me think that the other people might also be having trouble with their watches, but for whatever reason have not said anything to me. And, I'm thinking there must be at least something wrong with those watches because I've had trouble with the two I've been wearing myself.

So, this is one of those cosmic universe lessons for me. What I should do in my quest to become a good beading artistan is to go and ask the people I gave watches to how they've been holding up. That's me conquering shyness. That's me putting myself on the line and being prepared to take whatever comes my way in the way of negativity (or praise). That's the next step.

And, it also points out to me that what I should do when I give a watch away in these early days of me learning this craft is to plainly say to the folks, "I'll be checking back in with you periodically to see how the watch is holding up. I want you to wear the crap out of it and I want to see how it does."

Blue Watch

This is a watch I made yesterday. This one is for me. Blue has to be one of my favorite colors. I've made other watch bands using these marbelized beads from A Touch of Glass. I get them at Beverley's in Alameda, but I have yet to find a mail-order source for them where I might find other colors available. Click on the pictures for close-up views.

This watch was made with 49 twist wire. I used the clam shell half beads to cover the crimps. I still need work practicing with them. One got so mangled I had to start over with the project. Luckily, I had only just begun that side.

These watches are getting easier to make. However, I still need work on how to exactly size them for other people. I don't have a bracelet mandrall, but figured I might use a tube of stiff paper rolled up to the proper size. Maybe.

Lavender Watch

This is a watch I made yesterday for a friend. Her favorite color is lavender and, although, all of the beads in this watch are not exactly lavender, they come close. I hope she likes it. Click on the pictures for a "close-up" view.

I made this watch with the 49 twist wire. Although I thought I would have more flexibility using the 19 twist wire the little crimp tubes slid all over the place. So, it seems I should stick with the 49 twist.

I still need some practice with the half open beads that cover the crimps. Once I am done there are bitty crunch marks on them from the crimping tool. I wonder if there is a way to cushion them while I'm trying to get them closed?

Once again I used the silver filled chain as a safety chain. This is more expensive, but it will not stick to the magnetic clasp. All in all, this watch worked up quickly. I got Phil, my neighbor to come over and help me select the beads. He knows what Suzie likes.

Making a Bracelet - Video

This is from Aunties Beads. Karla shows how to make a bracelet using a bead board especially made for bracelets. She talks about the crimp beads, how best to measure, how to make sure there is play in the bracelet before you end it off. Just a terrific video for somebody (me) who is new to beading.

Green Watch

Here's the watch I made for myself. I've worn it two days. It feels good on my wrist. Nothing pinching or catching. However, I think the crimps I used are slipping. These were not the tubes I used with the other projects, but very tiny bead like crimps. In fact, as I worked up the piece one crimp didn't make it through the squashing and squishing process with the crimping tool and I had to put a new one on. I noticed movement this morning along the strand of beading wire up at both sides of the watch face. So, I'm betting that those bitty little crimp beads have worked their way loose.

This time I used a 19 strand twist. The gave more flexibility than the 49 strand twist, but I was hoping would be strong enough. Looks like the crimps are going to give out sooner than the beading wire.

I just placed an order for more supplies at FireMountainGems. They've got a really interesting ordering process. Their stuff is all priced in a tiered system. If you buy 15 or more you get a better break. I realized that my prices were going down because it counts everything you order no matter what it is rather than 15 of any one single thing. I saved about $25 or so on the order. I decided I'll use the PayPerPost money I make on my other two sites to pay for this stuff.

PS. I ended up re-working this watch using the 49 twist wire. The crimps would not hold on the 19 twist stuff.

Cloisonné and Green Bead Watch

This piece is finally ready! Clicking on each picture will enlarge them for you.

I purchased the watch face from Who Has The Time. The cloisonné beads came from Bead Inspirations in Alameda, California. The green beads came from Beverly's in Alameda.

At Bead Inspirations they recommended that I use a 49 strand twist wire which was stronger than the 7 strand twist I used when I first worked this piece. Using the 7 strand twist the bracelet broke after only a few weeks of wear at the point where it joined the watch face.

The safety chain was necessary because although the magnetic clasp is terrific, it tended to get caught on things and open up. Losing the watch became an issue. The first chain I used was an inexpensive gold plated version. That didn't work at all because it was magnetically attracted to the clasp. Not pretty. So, another trip to Bead Inspirations and they told me I needed to use a gold filled chain. Now, it hangs freely.

When I originally worked this piece up I didn't leave enough room for play between the face and where the beads began. With this version of the watch I left more jiggle room.

The lady at Bead Inspirations showed me how to use a crimp tube and a special bead to cover the crimp. I have to say, if it had not been for her great advice I don't think this watch would have turned out as nicely as it did.

This watch is for a friend and I plan on making the next one for me.

Red Bead and Pearl Watch

This is a pearl and red marble bead watch I made for my neighbor's daughter. Click on the picture for a larger view.

Marble and Pearl Watches

These wataches were made with Stretch Magic. Click on the picture for an enlarged view.

It was difficult to thread the cord through the beads so I used those special needles that have the hole in the middle. It took me a bit to get used to using them and I managed to really mangle the first one trying to force it through with pliers. Not sure how well these are going to wear.

I gave both away, so I'm going to need to make one for myself and wear it everyday to give it a "good" road test.

Where I Bead

Wow. Another blog, this one will be devoted to the beading I do. I'm going to be one busy person. This feels fabulous.