I’m finally back in business with the beading, and I have a lot of new stuff to write about. From now on, I’ll be writing at my new blog, please follow the link here to get there.

Thanks!

I know I’ve been gone for quite some time, but now I’m back to (finally) reveal my Bead Soup Blog Party pieces! This fall has been really tough. I had to go through hand surgery, which took some time to recover from, and then my boyfriend got a relapse of cancer. Thankfully it seems he will be ok, but as I think you can understand, it was kind of hard for me to focus on beading.

Well, ehough with the bad news. Here they are, my Blog Party Pieces! I had originally planned to make only one piece, but ended up with two. They are quite different.

The first one is a heavy, sparkly necklace featuring the focal that I recieved in my Bead Soup.

I matched the pendant with crystals and shell beads from the Bead Soup, and then I added some czech glass, stones and tibet silver from my own stash.

The second piece is a bracelet.

I combined the copper toggle from the Bead Soup with copper components and Soochoo jade from my stash, and then  made two collage links to match.

I wanted an “old” look so I went for a crackled glaze finish. I also didn’t seal the images before putting the glaze on, which causes the ink to leach a bit. Sometimes the not-so-perfect finish adds more personality to the jewelry, and in this piece I think it worked out nicely.

Thank you so much for looking – and I hope you all will have great 2012!

My partner Eszter sent me a huge pack of beads in wonderful tones of amber. I am really excited to get started working with my bead soup!

I’m sorry for the poorly composed picture,  I really can’t seem to take good pics of bead soups in general. I got a great mix of crystal, glass and shell beads. There was also a huge amount of seed beads (someting like 80+ grams in total!) so I can make a load of jewelry with this!

I really like the focal as well. It’s a glass (I think) heart, quite large – I love the color shifts.

Don’t miss out the big reveal on September 17th!  Please check out Lori Anderson’s Bead Soup Party Blog to learn more.

Meanwhile, I have been doing some regular beading too. I made this simple bracelet with some luscious agate beads.

I had two leftover agate beads so I also made a pair of matching earrings.

I really like how this set turned out. The combination of deep fuchsia, black and brass – and not to forget, the lampwork bead – really speaks to me. I put them in my Etsy store here and here.

I also decided to put all of the bangles I made (pictured above) for the Rings & Things’ Design Challenge in my store!

Ok, I’m off to do some metal clay-ing – and also, which is very important, to put together my bead soup kit for my partner in the Bead Soup Blog Party! So excited about the party – it has to be the most exciting social beading event ever!!

I ended up with six bracelets, some made with techniques that are completely new to me. I also had to incorporate a little bit of beadweaving in two of them – I think it worked out pretty well!

Thanks for looking!

The random number generator has chosen a winner, and it is…

Cheryl at BeadRoe!

Congratulations, Cheryl. I’ll email you to get your mailing info.

Oh, and don’t forget that the sign-ups for Lori’s Bead Soup Party is just 8 days away! This is the kind of beading event you don’t want to miss!

Here is a full description of what you can win:
2 brass sheet metal bracelet stamping blanks, size 6 x 0.25 in.
1 copper sheet metal bracelet stamping blanks, size 6 x 0.25 in.
6 raw brass rivet nail heads, length 0.25 in.
1 large round rose quartz bead, approx. diameter 20 mm
20 pcs 5 x 3 mm petro tourmaline rondelle beads
9 tiny 3 mm round tiger eye beads
1 large 35 x 35 mm rounded square wood jasper donut
4 pcs hollow raw brass look round beads, approx. diameter 20 mm
2 pcs pink fake pearls, 10 mm diameter
20 pcs raw brass look 11 mm bead caps
13 pcs 9 x 6 mm lucite flowers in shades of pink
1 brass look dragonfly charm, 40 x 25 mm
1 brass look oak leaf pendant, 68 x 52 mm
2 cords in shades of brown

And here is the photo:

The giveaway is open until midnight the 3oth of July, and the winner will be revealed the day after. To enter,just leave a comment to this post. Please keep in mind that I need to be able to contact  you if you win, either by email – or you can leave a link for your blog in the comments form.

Good luck!