Trying... Feb, March take 2

Ok, so here's the pictures, in a form that should enlarge. I was trying to play around with uploading the pictures in html and then typing, but guess whatever I did didn't work! I've tried typing and then adding pictures, but it still adds them at the top, so I have to move them around. Sigh. That means the other post I've got ready to post won't enlarge either. Crud. At least I checked these, they should enlarge.

March projects

I've finally gotten whatever glitch my pictures files had taken care of. It's frustrating when the computer freezes when I'm trying to upload pictures! Now, I've learned they won't enlarge. It seems to have a problem with the pictures I took that month - when I go to load them, it makes IE freeze. Sigh!



This is a necklace I made for my sister. She showed me a picture in a magazine, I took a picture of the page and this is what it inspired. Not exactly like the original, which is good! It had goldstone chips, copper beads, glass beads in a couple sizes, charms and freshwater pearls. The necklace has 2 extensions, so it can be worn short or long (or in-between). I made earrings to match. I don't normally do stringing, let alone multiple strands, so it was a nice stretch for me. I've got one for myself on my project list now, and maybe one in bluestone for my Mom!



This pendant is made with stone cabs from a local valley. I got them from a mom who's becoming quite the rock-hound, and she gave me some cabs to "play" with! This was her thank-you. I backed the cabs with foil so the background didn't show through the stones. It's backed with grey ultrasuede, and strung on satin cord that's tied in 2 sliding knots, so it's uber-adjustable. Now I know why some of the beaders make pendants like this - they are fairly quick, a nice instant-gratification kind of piece.
She gave me a piece of petrified wood, and lots of clear-ish cabs from the local rock-hound valley, which is near to where she lives. I'm going to have fun seeing what they turn into!

BJP for Feb, March

I have actually been able to keep up with my BJP pieces so far (grin). It helps that they are fairly tiny! My button for Feb started with a red double spiral with a gold dragon charm sewn on top. I love dragons. I even had a big latex mask of a white dragon head, that I put on an armature and displayed like a trophy head! I kept it until the latex started to deteriorate. If I find another one, I might have to buy it to put in my "studio" (that's such a pipe dream!).

March's button started with a small ceramic orca, that I wanted to have leaping out of the water. I'm using my scrap beads (that's my challenge for the year), and don't have many color choices at the moment, so the water is greens and blacks. I did a small (minuscule) section of Ndebele for the "spray" from the leaping orca. What is up with spell check not knowing "orca"? Calling them "killer whales" is like saying a racial epithet for me!

April's button is started. It has a crab claw that I found at Padilla Bay. The girls and I hung out there one afternoon over Spring Break. The tide was exceptionally low, little brown shells everywhere, and we flew a kite that hung out like a balloon, just followed along whoever was holding it. A few days later there was an explosion at one of the refineries across the bay from there - killed 6 people. (Update - it's now 7) It's horrific to think about what those people went through. I will definitely be using the black beads I have left in my scraps.