It's a Dark and Stormy Night

This month's Art Bead Scenetheme is a Dark and Stormy Night. Whether you go with a Halloween theme, autumn-inspired or channel your inner goth girl, the theme is open to your interpretation. Pull out your favorite fall art beads and join in this month's challenge! I think the Skele'Bowz are perfect for this challenge.


How to enter the Monthly Challenge:
1. Create something using an art bead that fits within our monthly theme.This challenge is open to jewelry-makers, fiber artists, collage artist, etc.The art bead can be created by you or someone else.The challenge is to inspire those who use art beads and to see all the different ways art beads can be incorporated into your handiwork.

***Beads by themselves and beads simply strung on a chain or cord will not be accepted.***

2. Upload your photo to our flickr group.Detailed instructions can be found here and click here for a tutorial for sending your picture to the group. If you can't upload to Flickr, send your entry and information to Heather.Please add the tag or title OCTABS to your photos. Include a short description, who created the art beads and a link to your blog, if you have one.

Deadline is October 31th.



Photos are approved by our moderators, if a photo hasn't followed the guidelines it will not be approved. You may upload 2 photos a day.

What is an Art Bead?
An art bead is a bead, charm, button or finding made by an independent artist. Art beads are the vision and handiwork of an individual artist. You can read more about art beads here.*** A bead that is handmade is not necessarily an art bead. Hill Tribe Silver, Kazuri ceramic beads or lampwork beads made in factories are examples of handmade beads that are not considered art beads.

p.s. If you have a blog, post your entry and a link to the ABS challenge to spread the beady goodness.

Plug Ur Bud: ABS The Trendy Bead

Plugging my buds at ABS today. ABS Founder, Heather Powers has a new feature called The Trendy Bead which made its debut last week. Check out this one using one of my bling links!

Check out Studio Saturday!

I'm keeping quiet today so you all can go over to Art Bead Scene and read Studio Saturday! C'mon back tomorrow, I'll have some good stuff for you!

I'm off today, sort of.....

I'm off today, sort of...I wrote a blog entry for Art Bead Scene today - As the Bead Turns - a post full of what's up in the jewelry/bead designing world. Take your cup of coffee over there and catch up!

Alternatives

(These beauties are available)
Here are some alternatives to the alternative week styles I've been blogging about this week. Art Bead Scene is one year old this week! ABS celebrates art beads of all media and inspires those who create with them. To add to the fun, ABS hosts a monthly challenge with free giveaways each month. Art Jewelry pieces are posted on the ABS Flickr group



Another alternative is Ornament Thursday - a group of awesome craft creators bringing you a new theme on the last Thursday of the month. Not just ornaments but crafts and jewelry to ornament your life all year!



Last month, I posted a two part tutorial on ABS and here as part of Ornament Thursday. So if you're looking for a good alternative to the usual, check out ABS and OT!

Plug Ur Bud

Today is "Plug Ur Bud" - if you've got a favorite beadmaker you want to shout out to, post a comment and leave some linky love. Today, I want to plug my buds over on ABS. An awesome group of beadmakers in all media! Go on over there and check out the awesome-ness that is ABS!

Which bud do you plug today?

Halloween at ABS!!

Happy Halloween! Hop on over to ArtBeadScene to add your Halloween art bead creations to this month's drawing. I'm one of the sponsors so there are lots of cool handmade art beads to be had simply for entering an art bead piece.

Where's my USB cord....

I've been looking around my office for the USB cord to my camera. I've been promising some pictures of Corning and I have new glass soap dishes to show off. Admittedly, I'm messy in my office and studio. I want to have everything out and at my fingertips - that translates into a mess. So, every so often, I "lose" something that I really need to have and it's that event that forces me to re-organize. This time around, it's my USB cord for my camera.

While I'm at it, I've uploaded pictures I took 2 weeks ago of the Niagara Skies series. I'm featuring them this month on ArtBeadScene. The August ABS Challenge Theme is "Midsummer Night's Dream." Go to Cindy Gimbrone Beads and click on the Featured on ABS for special pricing.

Reminder: I'll be on vacation August 10-19th, 2007. Orders may be placed but will not be shipped until August 20th, 2007.