The key to my designs.....

I promised yesterday I would follow up the State of My Studio post with the inspiration for the new faux wood painted hearts. Really, it was Andrew Thornton on his Thursday giveaway post that got me thinking when he characterized my work this way:

What I love about Cindy's underlining design principle is that she's not afraid to explore new materials and is constantly investigating new ways of doing things.

Andrew's gone to the core of how I approach beadmaking. I'm always working on a new media, a new technique to expand my ability to express a design. Different media lends itself to different techniques and I'm on a constant quest to expand my abilities in all media.

That quest usually finds me buying books. Today, I'm going to share which books have taken up residence on my workbench and are serving as the inspiration for the new faux wood carved painted hearts.

First up is Christi Friesen and her latest book,  Steampunkery.

I'm really taken with idea of hearts, hinges and bezels. It was her steampunk inspired hearts that was exciting to me and I just had to learn how to make them! I bought the book because of the hinged heart on the front. I didn't realize she had a Steampunk Heart free download on her website or a youtube video on how to make a heart.



But you shouldn't get the impression that I'm sorry I bought the book. The book is a jewel of humor and technique - right up my ally. I get to laugh while I'm learning a new media. Steampunkery is full of useful information for the less experienced (like me) and beautiful to look at with a story woven through it.

Christi's design aesthetic is distinctive and quite different from my own. So after playing with a few of the heart projects in the book, I wanted to go off in another direction with the hearts.

The other book occupying my workbench has been there awhile. Back in January, I reviewed Cynthia Thornton's book, Enchanted Adornments for Art Bead Scene. It's been on my workbench ever since.

Wanting to create a heart in a style of my own, Enchanted Adornments was the go to book. I've said how Cynthia's book is full of tips and techniques unique to her style and aesthetic. I love her style but again, it's very different from my own.  It's how she creates that style I'm interested in learning.

Pages 38-39 lie open on my workbench, the section is entitled, "Texturing Clay."  A quote kept going   over and over in my mind:

 "Unique textures will keep your work exciting and completely your own."

 

Spurred on to make a heart that is completely my own, I made some texture tools.  But sometimes the simplest can be just what you're looking for.

This one looks like an large old nut or seed found in the woods with small natural holes that has been carved into a heart. The texture makes me want to reach out and touch it. As it sits on my workbench, I can't resist picking it up and turning it over in my hands.

Each path to a new bead series is a passage to learning new techniques and exploring another media. It's the key to my designs.

Looking for Unusual Design?

There are those of us who design with the glass beads we make so we're always on the look out for new design books as a resource. Stephanie Sersich is a glass beadmaker and jewelry designer so how could she write a book I wouldn't want?

Stephanie has a signature style full of color and fun. She describes her inspiration on her website:

"My own combination of experiences helps to shape my work. My experience of color is from handling textiles, studying art history and from spending time in my mother's garden. My excitement about texture comes from admiring the lush world on the bottom of the ocean, combining clothes and materials and again, exploring the wonders of flowers and the entire plant kingdom."


I've had the pleasure of taking the Spiny Knotted Bracelet class with Stephanie at Beadfest a few years ago. She's very "hands on" and is able to coach students through even the most difficult instructions. Once you learn the technique, each bracelet or necklace using the technique is unique, that's the beauty of the technique.

There are a number of other techniques in the book and profiles of various beadmakers. In the present economy, money can be tight so everyone wants to spend their money wisely. Investing in Designing Jewelry with Glass Beads will be money well spend.

From my winter workbench

I was talking yesterday about when it's below freezing, I work on jewelry designs and ways to use my beads. I spent Saturday working on designs and yesterday with my budding photographer son, taking pictures. Something about how he photographed the bead inspired me to write a little bit of prose with it. Art beads are about the art and creating something beautiful to enjoy -

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!

On the spot designing....

It was a gorgeous weekend in New York City! The sun was bright, the art beads were fabulous and the customers were cheery! Thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hello and/or purchase beads!

I had made one shawl pin with one of the Chakra Hands as a foray into selling them. I demonstrated the shawl pin to many but one woman showed a particular interest. She though it could be used as a hairpin. Being game, I took it off and we put it in her hair. Voila! It WAS a hairpin! She bought it and walked away happily with it. I was just as happy because I now had a new item in my inventory thanks to her!

Yesterday, I received a lovely email from her:

"Just wanted to let you know how well it works out as a hair ornament. I found a simple way to just secure it inside the bun on top of my head, and just the hand sticks out, totally visible. It's really a cute conversation piece. And all the energy is really now centered in my head, ha!

So now you have a new item to sell -- a hair pin.

Sincerely,
Evelyn"


Thanks, Evelyn!

So if you have bought beads from me and designed a piece of jewelry or home decor with them. Please send me an email and let me know - better yet - send me a picture so I can post it on my blog and website. I'd love to see what you're making!

What to do with a Spiral? Instant fashion!

I've made spirals with the high twist in different places on the bead, middle, end or even all the way around - that lends itself to being worn horizontally rather than vertically. These spirals are made on a 3mm mandrel so you can run a purchased necklace through it. Voila! Instant fashion! You can interchange the spirals to suit your mood!