Beads - Beads - Sick (you know like, " Duck, duck goose ! )

I know it's the same ole' same ole' but it's what I do and love doing.  Still, the last week and a half it's been no beads, no torching I should say, nada.  Sick and more sick is the way it's been at our house.  Yuck.  Still feeling it but starting to ease up.  What bothers me is within 48 hours of going to the doctor, who INSISITS everyone MUST come in every 6 months whether or not we need to, I was sick.  Yep, went in healthy and 2 days later, sick.  This is just ridiculous.  I need a new doctor.  Hard to find one that's even likable where we live.  Anyway, that's the last time I do that.  It's happened before.  After going to the hospital once for a mammo.  Within 48 hours, sick.  It's crazy.  Doctors offices and hospitals are for sick people.  We need places to go to if we are NOT sick and just need an xray or bloodwork done, we can go and not have to worry about what strain of flu we're going to catch or when will the cold kick in - or worse.  No, I'm not a clean freak or sterilize everything freak, I just want to be able to go into a doctor's office and feel at ease that I won't get sick.  lol !  Yeah, I know, it ain't gonna happen.  Oh well............

I am getting a few things accomplished this weekend.  Finally getting my bead bowl cleaned out.  Have a nice little bowl going for BOC.  It's been a long time I sent in any beads and it's about time to get moving on it.  Back to making at least one bead each torch session for BOC kids.  I know they need them.  They always do.  It also means I'll get back into sculpting a little again.  I love to sculpt the little dino's I've done in the past and teeth.  Those are fun to make.  So that is my mission - at LEAST one bead per session for the kids.  :)  The few photo's below are what I have done in the past for them.  Fun stuff. 

I am anxious to get back on the torch.  So what's new right ?  lol !  Can't help it.  Looking forward to trying something I've never worked with before - gold leaf.  Have used silver foil, leaf and powder many times but never gold.  Mainly due to the cost.  That stuff is EXPENSIVE because it IS real gold.  And we all know how much gold is per ounce these days.  So, will be very careful about using it.  First, I'm going to "build" a little tool that will help me work with it better.  A fellow lampworker posted a free tutorial on how to make this tool on her blog here Hot Glass Chick's Blog .  It will hold the gold leaf in one place in order to make it easier to use.  That stuff just literally flies away.  This tool will keep it from doing that.  So if you're a beadmaker and have never seen this, check it out.   Well worth the pennies you'll invest in it.  :)  Thanks to Shawnette for sharing this.

 

Time for me to sign off for now.  Thanks for coming by.  I hope you come back again soon !   Have a great week ! 

Cool - Crisp - Autumn Air = Making Beads !

Indeed it does !  Equal making beads that is.  This is the time of year when I can and do make beads ALOT.  At the torch most every single morning.  I love the fall weather leading into winter.  Winter is THE BEST time of year for me.  If only I could live in a snowy area, I'd be in heaven !  lol !  The colors of fall are what inspire me.  When I went to bed last night, all I could think about was making fall color beads.  And that color palette is more wide open than people might think. 

Fall and winter color palette's are truly wonderful with so many deep, rich and vibrant colors to choose from.  Think of the changing of leaves on trees in the fall.  Rich oranges, bright yellows and reds, soft and mutted browns and tans and green in just about any shade you can imagine.  Even purples are considered fall and winter colors.  There is a website that's pretty much indispensable for color combinations.  Here's the link  http://design-seeds.com/  and as you can tell it's called Design Seeds.  You can get inspiration in your email daily if you choose.  I was doing that for a long time until I took a break from making beads.  I'm starting it up again as there are times I do need that inspiration.  I am one of those people that I can try to make the same color combinations and sometimes I do however I have found that when I do, I get very bored and most of the time the beads just aren't the same.  I am no good at "production" work.  Anyway, fall and winter colors are the prettiest in my book.  I feel "at home" when making them.  Don't get me wrong, I love bright colors too.  Oh and of course blues and reds..........oh brother, I admit, I pretty much love all colors BUT fall and winter colors truly are my favorites.  

So onto some eye candy.  I have been busy at the torch lately but did manage to remove myself from that torch for a few mornings last week.  Life gets in the way of torching mojo sometimes.  lol !  The days I did torch were mostly test beads.  Trying different color combos and playing with my new toys too.  :)   I did get a few sets done along the line. 

         This first set I love !  Made on one of my new toys called the Baroque bead shaper.  LOVE !  This set has 3 graduated sizes of the baroque shape with donut spacers.  The color is actually 2 fairly new glass colors and each rod is a mix of two colors.  A good size set to be sure.  This is available on my Facebook page  https://www.facebook.com/AllMyBeads

This set is quite organic.  With chocolate brown, silver, ivory and turquoise all swished, swirled and twisted about so it has no set pattern . I like that. :)  Sorry but this one is not available but I can make more !  This one I wouldn't mind redoing at all.  This sort of  technique is always fun to do.  You can contact me on my Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/AllMyBeads if interested. 

Yes, I'm pushing my Facebook page.  It seems to be the way these days.  So come on over and check it out. 

I am having a sale in my Etsy shop.  EVERYTHING expect the hand dyed silk cords is on sale for 15% off !  Come on over and do some shopping !  The link to my shop is on the right.

Time to start my day.  Thanks so much for coming by.  I hope you come back again soon !

Cleaning Things Up & Flowers

Yeah, it was time to do a little "updating" to my blog.  Deleted some things and updated others.  It was time.  Still a bit more to do but that's for another time when I actually have some time.  lol ! 

It's torching weather at last.  It's about time !  This was one of the hottest summers I remember since moving to Georgia.  Little rain too but we're getting it now. 

With the great cool weather I am back to torching as often as I can.  Usually in the mornings, early.  The best time of day for me.  I get a lot accomplished then.  I do try to limit myself to no more than 2 hours tops but sometimes I will end up in the middle of something or want to test out just one more color combination.  :)  I've been into making sets these days which is something I never really did liked to do.  Different time- different year.  lol !  Back when I first started making beads, it was sculpting.  Hardly anything but sculpting.  LOVED it.  I still do actually but my hands do not.  I don't remember the last time I actually sculpted anything really.  I really never did "production" work.  Never wanted to so never did.  Sets were an on and off thing.  Made them here and there.  Got into making LONG beads for a long time.  Still love to do that when I can.  So many things you can do with a long bead.  :)  So sets it is for now which is fun and of course can be very frustrating.  lol !  

Since I've had a little time with my new "toys" I have been playing with one in particular, the baroque bead roller.  I enjoy that shape of bead.  Fun to play with.  I don't have any new beads of that shape photographed yet but they're on the way.  I've also been making more bellflowers.  I got some brand new glass and ooooooo are they gorgeous !  Those flowers are in the kiln cooling now.  In the meantime, I managed to "conquer" Rubino !  That is one glass color I used to have fits over !  Hard to work with but finally got it figured out.  Second photo, gorgeous blue and the last photo is pinks and purples.  Some opaque, some transparent and one translucent.  Nice.  Bellflowers are such fun to make.  Having the proper tool is very important.  I use nothing but the best which is the Carlo Dona bellflower press.  A work of art in itself.  There isn't another bellflower press on the market that compares to the quality of the Carlo Dona tools.  They come in a variety of sizes and flower points.  I have and use the 12mm 6 point - 14mm 6 point and the 20mm 8 point which is what the flowers below are.  I will be getting another press when available in the 16mm 6 point size. 

So did I only make bellflowers this past week ?  Nope but again, I need to take photo's of everything.  It's not that I didn't want to get that all done, I just haven't had time.  lol !  Such is the way sometimes.  :) 
 
                           Stunning cranberry color in these flowers. 

 
These flowers are done in a wonderful shade of transparent  brilliant dark blue.  Gorgeous ! 

 

This set of flowers are in purples and pinks.  Quite lovely really. 

 

It's time to sign off for now.  Thanks very much for coming by.  Please come back again soon.  I'm trying hard to post on a regular basis.  :)  

 

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