A HUGE Thank you to Maryse of GlassBeadArt...and Reflections

Back in September of 2013, I started my own little "campaign" to raise funds for a charitable organization that is near and very dear to my heart....Miracle Horse Rescue.  This horse rescue, located outside of Las Vegas, is run solely by a wife and husband team - no volunteers.  These horses are basically "throw aways"...abused, some slaughter bound.  They live in contentment now, free to be horses, as God intended.  I had the pleasure of meeting Stephanie and Rob Pierce earlier this year, and I can attest that these two souls live for these horses (and their brood of dogs, too)!  Thank you Stephanie and Rob, for devoting the past 13 years of your life to this most wonderful cause!

I started donating proceeds from my Etsy sales and my craft shows to Miracle Horse Rescue.  I received a HUGE stash of gorgeous artisan lampwork, donated from Jan Onipenco of Molten Mayhem.  This woman makes AMAZING lampwork beads- I have 3 left in this special stash!  They are incredible beads and I am trying to create a design worthy of the beads themselves!  Thank you again, Jan!

Then, Jeannie Dukic of JKD Studio donated a boatload of her artisan polymer clay beads - these beads are fantastic!  Her beads are created in layers - quite laborious. Her polymer beads are like no other - distinctive, little wearable works of art from an artist with a heart of gold. I have two of Jeannie's pendants waiting  - again - for a design worthy of the beads themselves.  Thank you again, Jeannie!

Very late yesterday, my mail carrier knocked on my door to have me sign for an international package from Luxembourg.  I have been on a self-imposed bead buying budget (at least until the end of 2013- 1 day and counting..whoo hoo!), so  I had to ask myself, did I order beads from Maryse Fritzch-Thillens (GlassBeadArt) on one of my late night/can't sleep buying binges and forget?  No...I did not.  Along with an incredibly huge stage of artisan lampwork was a lovely note from Maryse asking me to use these beads in designs for Miracle Horse Rescue! Her daughter rides horses - and Maryse's family rescues rabbits! :)  Animal lovers unite!

The package included these beauties:

An entire set of lovelies with silvered ivory striping (my favorites) that will make an incredible bracelet,  as well as striking iridescent purples, blues...you name it - if it's a color in the rainbow, it's in these beads!

6 sets for earrings...6!!

Focals - incredible focals!  That red one, bottom left is just stunning in person!  

I have used Maryse's beads in many of my designs - here is just a sampling of recent jewelry made with her glorious beads:

I truly cannot thank Maryse enough for her incredible donation of artisan beads!  Please visit Maryse's shop here on Etsy and give her some love!  

These very special artisans donated these beads without even being asked...I find that so heart warming that words fail me.

Along with these three very special ladies, I have to thank each and every one who has made a purchase from me.  I am very happy to report, that since September, I have raised and donated - through my Etsy sales and 4 craft shows - over $5,350 to support in the feeding and care of the beautiful horses that live at Miracle Horse Rescue.  THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART!

I mentioned in a blog post a few weeks ago that my jewelry designing started as a hobby.  I retired from the work force about 3.5 years ago - that's when my mother moved in with me.  Though she in no way requires any sort of constant care, it was a sacrifice for her to leave ALL HER FRIENDS IN FLORIDA and move in with her stubborn and opinionated daughter in Northern Virginia.  The least I could do was be a presence in the house for her (yes...I also take her shopping!)  

So, while my mother sews in her sewing room EVERY.SINGLE.DAY., I am in my basement studio happily wrapping beads or banging on metal or singeing the hair off my knuckles every now and then with my torch in the hopes that the proceeds from that piece of jewelry will buy another bale of hay for the furbaby residents of Miracle Horse Rescue.

2013 has been a wonderful year - thank you!  I hope and pray that 2014 is just as special!

I wish everyone Hope, Peace, and Love for 2014.  Stay Safe!

Thank you for stopping by!

xo

Patti

Countdown!

For the past few years, I have been a vendor at a friend's house in Arlington, Virginia for an open house she holds to raise money for a cause near and dear to her heart - Borromeo Housing, Inc. (BHI).  BHI serves homeless mothers, ages 16-23, who are pregnant with their first child or have one child.  They provide a safe and loving home environment and the opportunity for full-time scholastic endeavor for young mothers who are interested in striving for a brighter, self-sufficient future.  My friend, Dani, selflessly opens her beautiful home to many vendors and offers a comfortable, holiday-themed environment to kick off THE Shopping Season.  In addition to the myriad vendors, her sister Cathy provides some of the most awesome food throughout the entire day (that is reason enough to attend!)  Fortunately (or unfortunately for me!), my table is situated right smack dab next to the kitchen....score!!

On Saturday - 2 days later - I am attending for the second year the St. Timothy's Catholic Church Fall Craft Fair, in Chantilly, Virginia.  The majority of the over 100 artisans attending this event feature handmade goodies- I hope I have time to shop!!!

I am hoping and praying that I did not over-extend my self!  Luckily, my sister has volunteered her time for Saturday (thank you Lori!)!  Anyhoo, I have been busy trying to make enough stock! First up, last week, Jeannie Dukic posted a picture on FB of one of her stunning polymer clay pendants and matching charms.  I no longer make Christmas-themed jewelry 'cause I don't wear it!  But, this is winter themed!  I pounced on them and ripped the package open on Saturday morning!

I just LOVE the Ice Blue color - winter sky blue! In my head, the pendant did not need any other beads, so I made a chain with one of Cindy Wimmer's links from The Missing Link. Simple links between the tri-wrapped link work perfectly with this design.

I kept the earrings super simple - I did not want them to compete with the necklace.

I have found myself playing with hoop designs, too.

Donna Millard had a slam dunk when she chose this particular shade of green for these beads - they have a black base, and are so, so pretty in person!

Lovely porcelain from Jenny Davies Reazor, paired with faux sea glass.

I bought these tiny little charms at artBliss from Diana of Suburban Girl Studio. They are so sweet and tiny, I wanted to keep it simple.

The pattern and color on these charms instantly reminded me of Pfaltzgraff - Yorktowne pattern...anybody else grow up with these dishes????

Source:  www.replacements.com

I am putting my Etsy shop on vacation today to prep, and will reopen it sometime on Sunday.  I cannot believe Thanksgiving is right around the corner...and you know what that means?  Black Friday...ugh!  I will not be anywhere near a big box store - or any store - starting November 29th through the Christmas Holiday!  The wonderful folks over at Love My Art Jewelry have been writing some awesome posts lately, specifically related to Handmade. If you are a handmade artist or jewelry-related designer and have not done so yet, scroll through the posts this month - there are some awesome tips for artists selling their wares this season.   So, I leave you with this image:

Thank you so much for stopping by - have a wonderful week!

xo
Patti

The beautiful work of Jeannie Dukic

A couple of weeks ago, I was gifted some lovely polymer clay beads by artist Jeannie Dukic.  All proceeds from the sale of the jewelry made with these beads will be donated to Miracle Horse Rescue, a 501(c)(3) non profit organization that is very dear to my heart.

Well, I have made a bit of progress with these lovelies!  First up, these polymer beads are from Jeannie's new line called Polarity. Look at that shine and intense color!

I went all out on these - I had only four Karen Hills Tribe handmade silver barrel beads.  These are so nifty - there is a dimple on each side of the hole of the barrel, so any beads you add snuggle up next to the silver.

Love, love, love this bracelet!

Next up, these incredible little charms.

You would really think that these are antiqued copper - but they are clay and so darn incredibly lightweight!  Though I could have easily slapped a jump ring on these babies and hung them from ear wires, they needed something different.  I wanted a mixed metal look.  So, I made a hoop of sterling silver, and wrapped it together to create a frame for those most awesome charms.

I oxidized the silver first - buffed and tumbled, and then added the charm.  I just LOVE these!  They are large enough to create a statement for your ears without the weight! Win/Win!

Last up is this set of Jeannie's Polarity Beads - again...faux lampwork!!

Purple, Pink, Green, and specs of gold - so pretty!  My eye goes right to the purple, so I paired them with some faceted Amethyst that I have been hoarding for at least 4 years now.  I have a whole strand of them - must.use.stash.!

I added sterling silver bead caps and a single Bali bead to the mix.

Thank you again, Jeannie, for your incredible generosity!

Have you visited Jeannie's shop lately???   If not - click here now!  So much awesomeness....so little time!

By the way jewelry designers - Jeannie' is having a give away on her blog - go now to enter!

I would also like to take a moment to thank all the Veteran's and their families for their service - I would not be here today without them...so Thank You and be safe!

Source: YouTheDesigner.com

Thanks for stopping by today - have a wonderful Monday!

xo
Patti

A Mish-Mash of Goings On....

Well, my Fundraising efforts on behalf of Miracle Horse Rescue have yielded just over $2,500 from September 5 - October 31st - $2,543.00 to be exact!  Thank you to everyone who shared my photo bombs on Facebook, including my Sales Ads!  

I have decided that I want to continue my efforts, and revamped my listings a bit.  From now on, 50% of all proceeds from sales in my shop will be donated to Miracle Horse Rescue.  Except, items made from the generosity of those artists who have donated beads to me - I am donating 100% of the proceeds from those sales.  Many thanks to Jan Onipenco of Molten Mayhem and Jeannie Dukic of  Jewelry by Jeannie!  

I am very slowly working through my stash of lampwork beads from Jan.  Specifically, this set:

The focal bead is quite large 1 1/4" - and the colors are just fabulous!! I made a necklace with  - yes - a link from Cindy Wimmer's new book, The Missing Link.

This link is the Corona link - I love the bare wire and coils together in one link!

I had EXTREMELY bright sunshine this morning - so taking Lolita outside for a photo session was not going to happen.  So instead, she stood in front of my closed basement door in natural daylight - I think this picture looks passable!

Yep - I made earrings with the two smallest beads in the set - these are so lightweight!

I have managed to carve an hour here..an hour there...to make other items as well.  I have 3 shows coming up, so time is of the essence!

Cute little lampwork birdie and matching beads by Donna Millard.

This sweet bronze flower charm by LeAnn Weih was begging to be attached!

I added another link from Cindy's book here - it's double hoops wrapped together.   In her book, the links are larger - these are teeny tiny!

Matching earrings with hand cut bead caps. Love the rustic finish on these beads.

I finally made the ear wires for my fold formed leaves!  Those are actually garnets nestled inside the leaves - another stone that just not photograph well!  They are actually a deep, deep red.

Tiny (4mm) Sun Stone cubes.  I added a teeny weeny tendril in copper.

More gorgeous lampwork from Donna Millard.

Instead of plain hoops, I added coils to these - very small!  The rustic rounds are by Jody Brimhall of Inspire Glass Studio.

I had two of these lovely, turquoise lampwork beads by Lynda Cogbill of Lyndas Lampwork left over from my bracelet I gave away a couple of weeks ago.  This is my favorite style of earring, made from heavy gauge wire and a large loop at the top.  Perhaps I like this because I get to bang the metal and let out any frustrations...I dunno...

I still cannot believe it is November 2nd!  Halloween was a relative bust in my neighborhood.  Although the forecast was for rain to hold off until well after 9:00 PM, it starting coming down in buckets by 6:30 PM.  Poor kids! And, someone had the audacity to post on Facebook that there are only 9 Sunday's until Christmas!  Ugh.....

Well, I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Thank you to Jeannie Dukic!

Another wonderful artist has yet again donated to me some gorgeous handmade beads!  These beads will be hopefully finding their way into one of my jewelry pieces, and proceeds from the sales will be donated to Miracle Horse Rescue.

Artist Jeannie Dukic contacted me last week and offered to send me some beads.  Heck yeah!! Jeannie  makes the most incredible polymer clay beads. Peeled paint, faux stoneware, faux basha beads, charms, pendants - the famous gin blossom - and now, her newest creations which she has entitled Polarity.

These babies will fool your eye for sure - they look just like lampwork!  

Look at the incredible depths of color and the shine!

I am a sucker for blue and green!

I just love the texture on the pendant above!

Look at the gorgeous metallic finish on the Eternity Charms above!  You would swear they were a copper bead that had a liver of sulfur bath and went through the buffing and tumbling process to achieve that gorgeous color!

I actually finished one piece of jewelry already, as I could not wait to see these beads in a necklace!

I generally do not sketch - I cannot even read my own grocery lists, much less draw out a design.  I usually just sit down at the bench with my beads of choice (that is half the battle, as my stash is huge and I want to use every bead RIGHT NOW!!) and start bending wire.  I could not do that with these beads, as I tend to add patina to my wire AFTER my design is complete. I did not want to ruin the polymer, obviously, so.. I sketched! Kinda.  Then, I made my links, jump rings, lengths of wire, etc., gave them a bath in liver of sulfur, buffed until my hands were black...I even tumbled the wire prior to final construction.  Then I prayed.  

Why yes, that happens to be a link from Cindy Wimmer's new book, The Missing Link.  That is one piece of wire all swirled into one link.  Very cool link, Cindy!!  It looks delicate, but that's 18 gauge wire and once it is tumbled and hardened, that baby keeps it shape!  I love that link!

The best part about this necklace is how lightweight if feels when worn!  I made it choker length - so it could peak out from the collar or lay right atop the neckline.

I dragged Lolita outside for her model shot late this afternoon, as there was still a bit of sunshine.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Jeannie, for your generous contribution for my efforts to raise funds for Miracle Horse Rescue!  The equines thank you, too!

Please be sure to visit Jeannie's shop and grab some of these beauties - you will NOT be disappointed!  Her shop can be found by clicking here. 

Thanks for stopping by today - have a wonderful weekend!

xo 

Patti