AND THE LUCKY WINNER IS....

THANK YOU, everyone for all your lovely comments.

I, like everyone else who took part in the Bead Soup Party, had a wonderful time. I have visited almost all of the blogs and was amazed at the awesome collection of jewelry created for this party. I still have a few blogs to visit and will do so in the next few days. We have been having terribly strong thundershowers and lightning almost every afternoon/evening this past few days, and sitting at a computer is not something I like to do in the middle of such a storm.

Tonight, using the random number generator I chose the lucky winner of this pair of earrings made from beads given to me by my bead soup partner Missficklemedia, Shannon.

52 wonderful people stopped by to comment and the one lucky winner is

RockerJewlz

Congratulations!

Please email me your address and I will mail your prize to you.
I leave for a 4th of July Family Reunion on Friday, so I will get the earrings in the mail to you on my return.

Thank you again, Lori, Shannon and all of the bead soup party-goers.
Looking forward to the next Bead Soup Party!
Have a great weekend and a Happy 4th of July to all!

Now, it is my turn!

What a great weekend it has been. 

Lori Anderson of Pretty Things and event coordinator, had this great idea to extend the Bead Soup Party over an 8 day period allowing us to visit with all of the 97 bloggers who took part in the second bead swap party. I have been blog hopping since Saturday, and then again on Sunday having a wonderful time. On weekdays, my day time job gets in the way, but I get back to blog hopping in the evenings!

It has been great to be able to stop and savor the unique soups of all my fellow cooks, and now it is my turn.....

As you already know, Missficklemedia, Shannon is my bead soup swap partner, and here is what she sent me...

Please check my previous posting for the delightful details of the goodies I received from her.

After I recovered from my swoon, I could not take my eyes off the glorious Shibuichi clasp from Green Girl Studios and the stunning Artistic Jasper focal.  I saw it in my dreams. I wanted to capture the warmth and grandeur of the clasp and the beauty and richness of the jasper in my necklace. So I searched my stash of beads and found wine red burgundy freshwater pearls, both round and horizontal stick shaped, then some dark bronzy green round freshwater pearls. I decided to use these darker jewel-tones in my necklace, and here it is....

I also threw in some hand-cut faceted Garnets for an additional sparkle.

And some bronze chain to one side.

The clasp had to come out front, I was not hiding it in the back.

I hope you like it! I am very pleased, no, I am thrilled with it.

Thank you Shannon.

Shannon reveals her creations, yes she made four of them on the 24th, can't wait to see them!

I am saving the other beads I received from Shannon for another time as I did not have the time to make any more pieces for this round of blogging.

But I did make a pair of earrings from some of the beads I received and I am going to give them away to one lucky blogger.

Please leave a comment on this posting and you will be entered in the drawing to win this pair of earrings to commemorate this wonderful 2nd Bead Soup Party.

The earrings are made of pink Rhodonite teardrops and rondelles, brown Chalcedony faceted rondelles and champagne colored round freshwater pearls, all dangling from gold-filled ear wires.

Good Luck and thank you for visiting.

Thank you, Lori for putting together this wonderful event.

ANNOUNCING THE WINNER!

The winner of the lot of Vintage "Twinkle Buttons" is 

Lisa of Lucid Moon Studios.

Congratulations, Lisa!

I will be in touch with you Lisa for your address to mail these out to you.

Thank you to all those who visited my blog and left a comment.

Watch for another giveaway along with the unveiling of my soup creation tomorrow June 22nd.
See you all then!

Its my turn to Giveaway - Vintage Buttons!

A few months ago my sister-in-law and her husband came down to Florida for their annual Spring vacation. They usually rent a cabin for a week or two at Long Boat Key along the Gulf Coast of Central Florida. She is a fellow beader and sells her creations at Farmer's Markets and home jewelry shows in the Seattle area, and we talk about beads, and beading, and more beads, and more beading. While she is in Florida we always try to visit a bead show in Sarasota, usually a day long buying spree, leaving the two husbands to fend for themselves.

Why am I telling you all this, well, because she found these mirror backed Vintage Buttons in a little gift shop on Long Boat Key. The owner of the shop told her that she got them from a circus family in Sarasota. Sarasota and the circus, of course. Sarasota, FL is the home of the American circus, if you are interested in reading more about the history of Sarasota and the circus, just step right up!

Here they are.... I searched online for some additional information on the type of buttons, but really did not learn much. If you know more about them, please feel free to share.

The buttons are gold tone 10 mm rounds, in fairly good condition, they have a flower filigree in front that has a mirror backing. The back is fully covered and has a 5mm high shank. There are 15 buttons in the lot. Would this be something you would be interested in?

If you would like a chance to own these buttons, you can do so my leaving a comment on my blog. Please make sure you add your name so that I can announce it should you win.

If you follow my blog, you will be entered twice, just let me know when you post a comment to make sure that I count you twice.

If you post about my Vintage Button giveaway in your blog and link back to mine, you can get your name in thrice! Just make sure you come back and leave me another comment about it.

That's a lot to ask, I know. That is why I am giving everyone time till June 20th.

International bloggers are welcome, I will get the buttons to you via USPS International Priority Mail.

I will post the winning name the evening of Monday June 21. I will ask for the winner's address at that time.

Enjoy!

Great Giveaway Goodies from Green Girl Studios

Make sure you visit Andrew Thornton's blog and get your name in for this great giveaway before the deadline on Monday June 7. He is generously giving way these five gorgeous beads from his family's famous Green Girl Studios. The beads are part of their new line of pewter beads and they will be at the Bead & Button Show in Milwaukee from June 10 to 13. If you are in the neighborhood, make sure you stop by and say hi and get yourself some of these great beads. My favorite ( if I had to pick just one) would be the baby-faced owl charm. 

I love using these Green Girl Studios charms in my jewelry designs, check out some of the ways that I used the little bird charm in a necklace and in a bracelet; and also their unique Flower Fairy pendant. I am now working with one of their Shibuichi clasps which I received from my bead swap partner Shannon and you can stop by to see this on June 18th when we have the big Bead Soup reveal. 

Have a great weekend everyone!

Soup, Shannon and Shibuichi

As some of you already know, my Bead Soup Swap Partner is Shannon LeVart aka missficklemedia. Shannon is a multi-talented lady, a wife and mom, who hosts three online shops for her wonderful creations. Her innovative and colorful jewelry components can be seen for sale at missficklemedia.com. Her unique jewelry findings are of hand forged metal and display colorful patinas, her speciality! Her finished jewelry can be found at her shops Slevart and themoonlitforest. Get to know Shannon (like I did) and her creative thoughts better by reading her blog and the interview with her at Beads of Clay. She also is one of the finalists in the Bead Star 2010 contest, check out her entries, and if you have not already voted, now is your chance.

Let me now show you what the mail man brought me from Shannon. The packaging says it all! She is comfortable creating with any medium, hence the name missficklemedia. I felt honored, and a twinge of guilt for my run of the mill packing - sending my goodies in little polythene bags. But the package was well received and she liked my selection and that is all that matters.

And inside was......
a strand of cream freshwater pearls,
some Rhodonite teardrops,
some brown Chalcedony faceted rondelles,
a grand oval focal bead of Artistic Jasper,
and the crown jewel..
a beautiful Shibuichi Sunflower and Leaf clasp from Green Girl Studios. I just about swooned...

I have shopped at Green Girl Studios for their Pewter focal beads and clasps and wondered what Shibuichi was all about. I had never heard that word before I visited GGSs. Having received this clasp, I figured now was the time to find out. Shi-bu-ichi, means one fourth (or quarter) in Japanese. Traditionally this alloy contained one fourth silver (and three fourths copper), hence the name. The Copper oxidizes and creates the beautiful patina, the silver, I understand stays pretty much unchanged. Just magnificent!

Now got to sit down to create...

Thank you, Shannon, I love my stash. Check out what she thinks of my jewelry styling (kind words, indeed) and see what I sent her at her blog. Can't wait to see what she creates! 

OMG I Won!

Got home from work and there was an email from MaryAnn saying that I was the lucky winner of her most gorgeous pendant. Yippee!

Photograph courtesy of MaryAnn

Does it not remind you of Boulder Opal or Pietersite? I love it and I cannot believe I won! I have had MaryAnn's ceramic beads on my wish list and looks like my wishes are beginning to come true!

Check out MaryAnn's wonderful array of ceramic beads at her Etsy shop it would be hard to choose which ones to buy. You can read all about her creative process in her blog. If you would like to check out the wonderful jewelry designed with MaryAnn's beads, take a look at her website.

Thank you MaryAnn.

Remember!

Memorial Day 2010

Let us...

Remember, honor and pray for those who died so that we could live free!
Remember, honor and pray for those who served so that we could live free!
Remember, honor and pray for those who serve so that we can live free!
Remember, honor and pray for their families who sacrifice so much so that we can live free!

Remember to say Thank you!

Calling all Etsy Sellers and other Online Shop Owners!

That caught your attention, did it not? Good. This posting is for all beaders and bead makers who sell on Etsy and who have their own websites. Did you know that Ruby Lane, where I have my shop, has launched Ruby Plaza an exciting new home to individually-owned shops offering home decor, jewelry, fashion & accessories and handcrafted items? 





Check it out, they have opened it up to pretty much anything you want to sell online and you can be sure to reach a market that maybe different to those you reach through Etsy.


To all my friends that create beads and findings, they even have a section to sell components and other handcrafted items.


Ruby Lane says that there are still some Flagship shop slots available, so hurry. What are flagship shops, you ask? Follow this link and check it out. The fees and costs associated with a Flagship Shop are reasonable and well worth it for the marketing that Ruby Lane provides you. Ruby Lane was rated the highest by the 2010 ratings of auctionbyte.com, an independent trade publication for online merchants.
I have been selling my jewelry since 2004 on Ruby Lane and love the site. I would be glad to answer any questions that you might have.


For the sake of full disclosure I am not being paid by Ruby Lane or Ruby Plaza for this posting. I just want to share what I think is a great site with all my beading and blogging friends. I only ask that should you decide to open a shop on Ruby Plaza, please let them know that Sundancegems referred you.

A Delightful Summer Giveaway

Time is soon running out... so fly over to Andrew Thornton's blog for a chance to win this happy, sunny, cheerful, and lip-smacking collection of Lucite beads that Andrew is offering as this week's Thursday Giveaway from The Hole Bead Shop. The dead line to get your comment in is Monday 24th 2010.

Also do not forget to vote for your favorite designs at the 2010 Bead Star design contest. Many of our blogging buddies have been selected as finalists (Andrew Thornton, Lorelei Eurto, Melissa J. Lee, Mary Harding, and Shannon LeVart) and are counting on your votes. I have voted, have you?
Congratulation to the finalists!
Did I mention that Shannon LeVart better known to the beading world as Missficklemedia is my Bead Soup Swap Partner? and I received the most gorgeous stash of beads from her yesterday, but more about that in future posts. I hope she likes the beads I sent her.
Enjoy the weekend!

Happy Mother's Day

All you very special ladies, have a very special day!

Happy Cinco De Mayo

Happy Fifth of May everyone!
Enjoy the Fiesta!
Watch the Margeritas!

To set the mood for the celebration, I chose my Fiesta Bracelet from my SOLD collection. Would you believe it? This bracelet was bought by a beautiful Brazilian lady at one of my jewelry shows. She was in Tampa on business and loved the bracelet and the colors. No surprise there. I also made her a pair of matching earrings.

Enjoy the night!

It is time to Party again, Bead Soup Party, that is!

Lori Anderson of Pretty Things just announced another Bead Soup Party! This is the second one and she is inviting fellow beaders to join.  The deadline to join is May 7th. If you are interested you better hurry over to her blog and sign in.

The first Bead Soup Party was so much fun, that I have signed up for the second one too. For the first time around I partnered with Mary McGraw of MK's Creative Musings and received a wonderful package of beads that resulted in this pretty necklace. 

Well, my Bead Soup Party story has a very happy ending. I donated the necklace to some of my co-workers who were taking part in the Tampa Bay's Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) walk that took place on April 3rd 2010. This was a cause very close to their hearts and they told me they raised an additional $150.00 with my necklace. Thank you Lori and thank you Mary, your gift to me made many people very happy. What a great way to meet people, make new friends, share creative ideas and have a lot of fun in the process.  See you at the party!

It is Warm Again in Florida

We floridians are still remembering how cold it was this past winter. I do not think we will complain about the hot weather again! Today in Tampa, FL it is 81 deg F, sunny, few clouds, and all in all a beautiful day. The kind of day that makes you want to find reasons to get outdoors. So what am I doing at the computer? Well, I wanted to share my latest Spring Beauty with all of you.

As a Design Partner for Artbeads.com I have used this opportunity to work with materials and beads that I am not too familiar with and incorporate them into my designs. Artbeads.com has introduced me to the wonderful world of Venetian Glass Beads, love them!  Can't get enough of them!

Today I post about their Stoneware Beads and Pendants. Such vivid colors and I loved working with them. These beads are made with stoneware clay, fired at different temperatures depending on their color, making for a durable and beautiful bead. Here is what I made with my selection of stoneware beads...

The centerpiece is the Blue Daisy and Ladybugs Pendant joined by a single bead of the same design, add in strands of green freshwater pearls and then an array of round Stoneware beads in all available  colors and the result was this eye-catching celebration of Spring! These beautiful and durable stoneware pendants are handmade by skilled Bulgarian artisans and Artbeads.com has such a wide selection, you can spend hours trying to make up your mind. Honest, it was hard to choose just one.

The stoneware beads have large holes, and I found that bead caps are necessary to keep the bead in place. But for the same reason, they would work well with leather or ribbon or any other wider stringing material. I used Copper bead caps, and Artbeads.com carries a similar design of bead caps in Copper-plated Pewter. The necklace is closed with a Trigger clasp and extension chain. 

Check out Artbeads.com's recent additions to their stoneware pendants, a must for every beader's stash and Spring wardrobe!

Disclosure: Some of the beads described above I have received free of charge from Artbeads.com.

I have been asked to review these beads/supplies and give my honest opinion of them.  I am not being paid by Artbeads.com for my endorsement of any of the products received and reviewed in my blog postings.

The Beauty of Spring continues to unfold...

I continue the celebration of Spring (and the end of the tax season!) with my bouquet of Swarovski Elements Flowers that I received from Artbeads.com as part of their 'Beauty of Spring' design campaign. I have noticed that many beaders have used and written about these beautiful delicate flowers.

I received a pair each of Jonquil (yellow), Aquamarine (blue), Light Rose (pink) and Violet (purple) flowers. These five petaled crystals have their hole drilled slightly off center and so perfectly dangle when threaded or wire-wrapped.
What better way to use this perfect posy, than a pair of spring hoop earrings.

To the flowers I added leafy green Peridot Swarovski Crystallized Elements Roundelles and a brightly colored Fuchsia butterfly also from the Swarovski Crystallized Elements collection.  Oh so pretty! The crystal flowers are lightweight and come in a variety of colors, perfect for earrings and other delicate designs. Think of the sparkle the clear or AB Crystal flowers would add to any bridal design... I see endless possibilities.

Talking of this being the end of the tax season and everyone breathing a collective sigh of relief, check out the Tax Relief Sale now on at Artbeads.com. Hurry to make your pick from the storewide selection. Sale ends April 22, 2010.

Check out my previous 'Beauty of Spring' design and watch for more Spring delights. Also take a look at the more than 200 jewelry designs by fellow beaders all celebrating the joy of Spring.

Disclosure: Some of the beads described above I have received free of charge from Artbeads.com.

I have been asked to review these beads/supplies and give my honest opinion of them.  I am not being paid by Artbeads.com for my endorsement of any of the products received and reviewed in my blog postings.