Wrapped Fabric Bead

The weather outside is frightful! Hovering a few degrees above freezing, and rainy. On days like this, when mother nature seems indecisive, I would just prefer snow. The Georgia mountains to our North are supposed to get some snow as the evening progresses, but just what they term a "wintery mix" here in the city.

Don't these beads remind you of snow?

I was excited to have time for one of my Build Zone workshop lessons today. Using recycled sari silk, I created a wrapped bead. I added seed beads randomly as I wrapped the fabric with wire. I really like this technique, which I had never tried before. When I saw beads like this before, I thought it might be more difficult to achieve the spacing of the seed beads, but you just periodically add beads as you wrap and they remain in place.

Hope you all are keeping warm out there as winter tries to come early.

I hope all my lovely readers had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had a house full with extended family like my mother, sister, and in-laws. Aside from your standard turkey, we had apple-raisin stuffing, sweet potato casserole, corn bread, mashed potatoes and turnip greens.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, I have been chomping at the bit to get back into my jewelry studio. Deryn Mentock and Sharon Tomlinson are now offering another online workshop called Of Towers and Turrets.  Since we are also doing a lot of Christmas shopping, I was not sure if it was really in our budget. However, my very supportive husband (enabler??) told me I should definitely enroll. So I did.

I am definitely looking forward to getting back to both blogging and jewelry!

Tea Box Swap Reveal

I am very excited to give you an update on the fun altered tea box swap I was a part of. My partner, Tammy, and I asked one another a few questions to have a better feel for our personalities and what we might enjoy receiving in our boxes.  Then we got to work!

Here are some pictures of the box I altered for Tammy. In retrospect, I feel like I should have added more ephemera to the lid.

Here is what the inside looked like. 

And here are some of the goodies inside! 

Here is the beautiful box I received in exchange:

 This butterfly detail is one of my favorite elements of the box.

Look at all the fun it is packed with!

Thank you, Wanda, at Mixed Media Art for being the hostess with the mostess! Thanks to my partner Tammy, and the ladies at Mixed Media Art for such a fun experience.

I have a full house for Thanksgiving, so I will not be posting for another week.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Altered Tea Box Swap

I belong to a mixed media website called Mixed Media Art. As part of one of the forums there, I am taking part in an altered tea box swap. (For an example of an altered tea box, click here). We take an empty tea box and alter it, then fill it with goodies for our swap partners.

My starting point . . .

I am all done with mine, but cannot post until my swap partner receives it. I will definitely be posting pictures in my altered tea box "big reveal," as well as reporting on what I received- so keep those eyes of yours peeled!

In other craft news, my son, Liam, is obsessed with weaving potholders using a plastic loom kit. Often when a woman my (very young!) age sees him with it, she immediately lights up with a big smile and tells me stories of how much she loved weaving pot holders with a very similar kit. I would imagine this would have been kits sold in the late 70s and early 80s. For some reason, even though I think I did almost every craft known to man, I have no memory of doing this weaving one.

Do any of you have memories of using a kit like this?

Finding Time for Jewelry (and Maybe Some Icons)

Lately, I have been feeling frustrated and a bit unsure about whether I truly have the time I will need to devote to selling my jewelry, or if this will just be a craft for pleasure alone. My husband travels a lot for his job (not to mention his additional full time job volunteering for various church activities *wink*). This leaves me flying solo more than the average mother.

Public Domain Image from Wikimedia Commons

Because I work part time, I thought I would have more than enough time when my son Liam is at school to craft to my heart’s content. However, I guess I forgot that I also need time to maintain our house, cook, clean some more, plan meals, run errands, hem clothes, make lunches and organize Liam’s back back/homework, oh, and, make sure there are clean clothes. Between all this and work, I have been dropping many of the balls I juggle and keep falling behind in the workshop I am taking.

What works for all of you out there in terms of balancing work and family obligations with crafting time?

In other news, I am excited to receive a copy of the book, A Brush With God: An Icon Workbook  to learn a bit more about the process behind painting Icons in the more traditional Byzantine style. I have been extremely curious about trying out Icon painting and know it follows a specific formula. So, I will probably be posting more about this as well soon! 

Icon pictures public domain images from Wikipedia Commons

I look forward to hearing about the ways you all manage your time.

Check out the Feature article and Giveaway featuring my Sister-in-Law's Ornaments!

My sister-in-law was interviewed and her awesome Etsy ornament line is featured for a giveaway at Thompson Family-Life Product Feature, Interview & ...:

Definitely check out the interview and fun giveaway!