Alternative Styles: Plug Ur Bud

Alternative Styles lends itself to amazing creativity in the beadmaking world. One of my beadmaking colleagues, Melanie of Earthenwood Studios took two full weeks in February to open her studio and show us her process towards creating her Steampunk line of beads. An in-depth look at what Steampunk is and great beads to boot! Surf on over there with a big cup of coffee so you can sit and enjoy the read!

Today's Treat

Today marks the beginning of a repeating blog series called, "Today's Treat." I'll showcase a piece of jewelry or a special bead with a story behind it. The art beads and jewelry I create has a story behind it, a reason it was created and I'll share those stories with you.

Today's Treat showcases pendants I created with Earthenwood Moon face and Green Girls Studio Dryad head . I have a personal stash of Earthenwood beads - Melanie imbues her beads with her personality, sensitive, earth conscious with attention to detail. Each Earthenwood bead is finely crafted. I sense the same feeling from Green Girl Studios work - each bead has significance - when you create with a Green Girl bead, you're making a statement about the natural environment. Both of these face beads carry their own message so I wanted to create pendants that would stand alone on a single rubber cord.

I paired the face beads with my Glass Spirals and sterling silver. While the moon face and the dryad head speak to the natural world, they're also whimsical. They needn't be too serious. I wanted to create a fantasy pendant and in order to achieve that, I needed wings. Glass wings were created at the torch using silver foil and dichroic glass to make them shimmer. The "wing" beads are versatile and look like wings or tail fins depending on how they're strung. A sterling silver crown completes the fantasy.

Artbeadscene hosts a monthly design challenge with fabulous themes - so hats off to ABS for inspiring me with their August Challenge - Midsummer Night's Dream. This is my midsummer night's dream, what is your midsummer night dream like?

Collaboration Exploration

Do you like to go exploring? I used to explore in the woods on my parents' farm when I was a kid. As a beadmaker, I found another way to explore - through jewelry!

I got together with terrific beadmaker and budding designer, Melanie Lukacs of Earthenwood Studios and awesome jewelry designer, Jean Yates to do a design challenge. Melanie and I put together a selection of beads and sent them to one another and Jean. Our goal was to create a piece of jewelry incorporating our selection of beads.

We've been working on our pieces and are ready to unveil them - but not yet. The three of us will be blogging and showing our pieces this week. Too excited to wait?!? (I know I am!!) As a teaser, here are the beads that we've chosen to include in the Collaboration Exploration:

Spirals in Amber and Seafoam Green:









Melanie's Terra Trinkets


Stay tuned for the unveiling of the Collaboration Exploration jewelry design on our blogs this week!