Dec BJP

Finally got a picture of my finished Dec BJP! I think it looks pretty tree-ish. The side view is to show how the ruffles stick out. The left side of the ruffles are tacked down, but not the right. In order to have really curvy ruffles you either need to put lots of beads in between the posts or have a long line - short lines don't do much curving. I put the same number of beads in-between the posts in each row - you can see the bottom row is way more ruffly!

This is the pickings for January. I'm not sure about a subject yet - snow is what keeps coming to mind (It doesn't help that they are calling for more later in the week again!) but January is also about reflections on the past and looking to the future to me. I have a hummingbird feather that I'm fairly certain will make it into this one. I know I need to sit with myself a bit to find it's voice.

I put the crocheted pieces on my green man necklace - all it needs is a clasp. I was thinking magnetic, but it does have some weight so I think I'll put a toggle on it. I'm starting the straps for a silver and blueish piece I did at the same time, but am running into trouble. The thread I used isn't strong enough, and I've already strung the beads! It's ok doubled, and the beads fit, but I'm going to have a heck of a time with it, figuring out how to manage 2 strings. I've started doing a little bit as a Cellini spiral instead, but I'm not sure the 15's I'm using can take the string mass. I strung all the beads I had to make sure I'd have enough for both straps - it's quite the nice mess!

This is a teaser shot of the drawing I did to figure out what I was doing with my doll.

In general, I've been doing less beadwork than I could, but I'm not beating myself over that. I've not been sleeping well, and I'm hoping a check-up will have a simple remedy. I can't focus on beadwork when I'm tired. The girls have been enjoying the snow (which we've gotten more off, but now it's raining instead, until later in the week - more snow!) but until now it's been powder, not good for building much of anything. They've enjoyed helping Daddy shovel the driveway!

I really want to use some of my quiet moments this week to look at how far I've come artistically, and where I want to go, what I want it to mean in my life. The BJP has helped by making me have a concrete example of my beadwork throughout the year - how much will I have changed by the end of this one?

December Snows

I've finished my December BJP piece, but haven't taken a picture of it yet. I do have a pic of what it started as. The colors that were drawn were clear silver-lined bugles, red ab and orange beads. I added a wooden bead, 4 purple ceramic beads, a mother-of-pearl button and a blue star. The material is red and green swirls, very festive. The wooden bead is the trunk of a tree, the four ceramic beads represent my family growing up (orange and purple were my high school colors), the button became a tree star. I've done an off-center pine tree by making ruffles using the bugles and red ab - try to picture it, and see if it's close in reality when I post the picture!

The snow picture is of my front yard, with my oldest. It has since gotten more snow, drifted over, more snow, and they are calling for more snow over the weekend. The icicles coming from the roof are looking like shark teeth - the snow slides, so the icicles start angling towards the house, and another row starts to form in front of them. With all the snow the kids don't want to stay outside long, so we're getting a little cabin crazy. I did manage to finish the other green and brown crochet piece to finish my green man necklace, now to put it together. I've also worked on the doll some, I'm working on the back of the torso. I drew sketches of what I want to do, so I'm not working blind, and that actually speeds me up - otherwise I was spending a lot of time just staring at it, wondering if I was going to get the effect I want.

Hopefully I'll get another post by the end of the week - but Jenna's birthday is tomorrow, and then Christmas, so don't hold your breathe, you may pass out!

Dec BJP start

This is the start of my December BJP piece. The colors selected are clear silver-lined bugles, opaque orange and AB transparent red. The red is actually being used on the doll, so I don't get a break from that! The extra's I've picked are a wooden bead, either a gold or mother of pearl button, a star, a heart, some matte goldish 8's and 4 ceramic purple 8's. The purple beads represent my family. The wood bead will be the trunk of a tree, the button the top of the tree. I'm hoping to do a representative of a pine tree. We'll see - the colors aren't exactly conducive for Christmas!

December Already?!

I've been working on my doll, and doing some bead crochet for a necklace. I managed to finish the other leg for the doll, and make the armature for the legs. I am so looking forward to being able to put the body and legs together, and see her stand! The bead crochet is a nice thing to work on while I'm watching TV with DH - I can't do embroidery while I watch TV. It's my first attempt at a patterned crochet, using various sizes of beads from 15's to 8's. I bought a bracelet from Another Country for my sister's birthday, and it inspired me to try it.

The other picture is of my haul from Peacock & Periwinkle. Robin mentioned them in her blog, and it turns out they are next to the Boy Scout office in Everett, which I occasionally need to visit! The left side are cotton batiks, the right Dupoini silks. There's also a green felted wool and 2 cool buttons that I can readily see being clasps for freeform peyote bracelets.

My Christmas present this year is a new computer monitor. The old one is a 17" CRT, clunky and slow. The new one is a 19" LCD, thin and speedy and much easier on the eyes, since it can sit back much farther on the desk. Now I can really see the details in the pictures on everyone's blogs! Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving, and wishing you a Christmas season full of grace.

This is a piece of crocheted rope I made this week, as part of a strap for a pendant I've made. It's the first time I've done the crochet bit with a pattern and with different size beads. These range from 15's to 8's. I have the other half strung, just need to crochet it. That's one of the few beading activities I can do while watching TV - everything else, I need to pay attention to what I'm doing, and the TV just gets in the way. I used Gutermann top-stitching thread, and it works nicely, except for stringing on a needle to thread on the beads. The brown beads I used did not like the needle that was big enough for the thread - oddly enough, they are 11's, the 15's had no problem (also they are Czech versus the 15's are not). I'm slowly making progress on the second leg. I bent the armature for the legs from a wire hanger, and I'll need to open the sewing a bit more to get it in, so I'll probably do more beading now that I'll be able to reach it! I'd feel better if I could just figure out what to use for weight in her feet!

November BJP done

November's BJP piece is done - it's supposed to look like swirling winds, which we have a lot of this time of year. We also have swirling water, as this is the start of flood season, with a flood watch having already happened. The colors picked were 2 kinds of red and pearl white. I stitched black felt strips on the ends, and did not follow those lines with the beading. It's hard to see, but the beading bulges in places from the felt underneath, adding another element.

I'm still learning to use my new camera - the first picture isn't focused well, but the detail shots of the top and bottom are! I'm considering taking pictures of some of my stuff for art print - my friend Sue (see website here) made me some cards with pictures of some of my BJP pieces from last year. It's definitely cheaper than buying the actual artwork that takes a really long time to make, and it's another way to get something for your work! I'd like to get a really good picture of my split salmon cuff to sell as a print.

I've gotten behind on my doll - life keeps getting in the way! I'm hoping in a few weeks things will calm down again so I can make better progress. I'm also working on neck straps to go with some pendants I've made. I received one of Carol Wilcox Well's books for my birthday, and it was hard deciding which technique I wanted to use! What I have ready to start is a crocheted rope using different size beads for a curve, and a more complicated patterned crochet is probably looming on the horizon!

Halloween

I haven't done much beading these last 2 weeks. I've made 3 pinatas, a gingerbread haunted house, and had a Halloween party with 11 kids!

The gingerbread house was a first for me. I got it constructed ok, but when we went to decorate it I made the icing too runny. I was too tired to mess with it, so everything I put on it ran! It's supposed to be frightful anyway, and the kids had fun helping.

The pinatas turned out great again. This is the 2nd time I've made pull pinatas, versus bash'em ups. I don't like the idea of teaching little kids it's ok to beat anything! So the streamers are attached to the strips holding the bottom on, and one string is actually tied to the bottom, so as the kids pull them off, the bottom lets go, and out come the goodies! The one for our party didn't open, but it's easy enough to poke a finger in and pull it apart. The oldest kid there wanted to keep it, he might try and make a body for the alien chicken!

This is my first casting of my plaster bust mold. It stuck a little, I need to seal the plaster more, but it's ok - I'm going to put thin cardboard strips on the back stiffen it, close the neck area off, and probably put some expanding foam in the back. You at least get the idea that it's not flat chested! It's really going to help check the lay of my neck pieces without having to continually getting up to look in a mirror - I've already started using it!

I didn't finish my installment on the doll this month - I ran out of brown Nymo! So I should be getting some tomorrow (I ordered from CCBeads) - I have about 10 more hours on the leg to finish, then start the front or back. I need to get armature wire to start constructing her legs and torso, and I still haven't figured out a good small but heavy weight to put in her feet to give her ballast. Hopefully next week I'll have my BJP to share too!