Chicklets Blog Hop!

Wow! Talk about a challenge! I was very excited to sign up for Toltec Jewels blog hop using the oh so sweet chicklet beads made by Sue of SueBeads. I even sent off to her and bought more of them because I like them so much. However once the bead arrived from Rita last month my muse deserted me and  try as I might nothing with this bead worked. The soft,greyish green colour just wasn't doing it for me!

Believe me,  I tried every combination I could think of. Contrasting colours, complementary colours, no other colours  ( just clear glass), metal including copper, brass and silver, adding other art beads, making something in polymer clay to go with it, wire wrapping, symmetry and assymmetry, lariat, sead beads, sari silk, waxed Irish linen and so on.  I truly believed that I was going to fail this challenge due to lack of inspiration. 

A couple of years ago I bought Stephanie Eddy's  Lazee Daizee  and played around with viking knit for a couple of months. It didn't turn out great and was time consuming so it's been tucked away until now. I have an idea to make something for a friend's birthday this summer so I pulled it out to use. I came across this coloured wire in my wire stash and it reminded me of my green nemesis bead so I thought I'd give it a try. I hadn't done viking knit for a long time so I did a trial with the seafoam green before pulling out the pricey silver for the gift. 

Guess what? I really liked how the green seafoam viking knit turned out so it became my bracelet for this challenge.

I used the Chicklet bead as the focal and framed it with two oval blue green azurite ovals that I've been wanting to use for months. The sterling flower spacers are from my Bead soup sent to me last year by Rita of Toltec Jewels so it seemed appropriate to use them in this challenge. I still haven't figured out the fastening and I have to do some work on the wire ends of the viking knit but I am happy to have made this. And I didn't fail the challenge!!!

Thank you Rita for hosting this great Blog Hop. It was a great idea and definitely a challenge for me! Thank you for sending me the bead and for pushing me yet again outside my comfort zone. I'm looking forward to seeing what everybody else has made.

Here is the amazing list of all the other talented artists in this hop so please hop along and check out their creations. I know it's a bit overwhelming but do what you can and be sure to go to Rita's and Sue's blogs to see their work.

Guest of Honor & Featured Artist:  Susan Kennedy

 

Sue Kennedy's blogs:                               SueBeads...A Beady Girl's blog

                                                            Art Jewelry Elements

Sue Kennedy's website                            SueBeads

SueBeads Art Beads                                SueBeads

 

Hostess:

 Toltec Jewels                                           http://www.JewelSchoolFriends.com

Artists:

Linda Anderson                                       http://fromthebeadboard.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Reno                                           http://jenrenjewelry.blogspot.com/

Shirley Moore                                          http://beadsandbread.blogspot.com/

Kristen Stevens                                        http://kristen-beadjourney.blogspot.com

Marybeth Rich                                         http://forestofjewels.blogspot.com

Jael Thorp                                                http://jaelsjewels.blogspot.com/

Melissa Trudinger                                     http://Beadrecipes.wordpress.com

Andrea Glick                                            http://zenithjade.blogspot.com/

Nan Smith                                                http://wirednan.blogspot.com

Blanca Medina                                         www.peru-medesigns.com

 Shai Williams                                            http://shaihasramblings.blogspot.com

Carolyn Lawson                                       http://Carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com

Rana Wilson                                             http://Ranaleadesigns.blogspot.com

Robin Reed                                              http://willowdragon.blogspot.com

Robin Showstack                                     http://heartsdesiresjewelryforyou.blogspot.com/

Sheila Prosterman                                     http://catswithbeads.blogspot.com

Karla Morgan                                          http://Texaspepperjams.blogspot.com

Kari Asbury                                             http://hippiechickdesign.blogspot.com

Kelly Rodgers                                          https://www.facebook.com/BeadinBlackBlue

Jayne Capps                                            https://mamasgottodoodle.blogspot.com/

Mischelle Andrade Fanucchi                    https://micheladasmusings.blogspot.com/

Heather Richter                                       http://desertjewelrydesigns.blogspot.com

Chris Eisenberg                                       www.wanderware.blogspot.com

Kathleen Breeding                                            http://www.zibbet.com/99BottlesofBeadsontheWall

Linda Landig                                           http://lindalandig.wordpress.com

Crystal Thain                                           http://beaddragons.blogspot.com/

Cheri Reed                                              http://creativedesignsbycheri.blogspot.com

Heather d-Entremont                               http://frugalmadougall.wordpress.com/

Dini Bruinsma                                          http://angazabychanges.blogspot.com/

Lori Schneider                                         http://www.beadaddicted.blogspot.com/

Tammy Adams                                        http://www.paisleylizard.com/blog.html

Melinda Orr                                            http://bandanagirl.indiemade.com/blog

Lennis Carrier                                         http://windbent.wordpress.com/

Cynthia Machata                                     http://antiquitytravelers.blogspot.com

Elizabeth Hodges                                    http://thewhisperingseas.blogspot.com

Debbie Rasmussen                                  http://kepirasmussen.blogspot.com/

Tanya McGuire                                       http://tanyamcguire.blogspot.com/

Charlie Jacka                                          http://clay-space.com/blog/

Ev Shelby                                               http://raindropcreationsbyevelyn.blogspot.com/

Sharyl McMillian-Nelson                        http://sharylsjewelry.blogspot.com/

Jasvanti Patel                                        http://jewelrybyjasvanti.blogspot.com

And the winner is........

I've been very neglectful of blogging lately but I will explain why later in the post. Right now I owe all the participants and readers of the second annual "My Country blog Hop" a followup giveaway. I was touched by all of the response to my blog hop and there was such enthusiasm that I feel sure |I will continue it again next year. I've entered all the names of the participants and other blog readers into random.org to choose the winner. And the winner is.....Dini of angazabychanges.blogspot.nl. Please send me your postal address, Dini and I'll send these Canadian earrings off to you. Congratulations, my friend!

Since the blog hop and while participating in a couple of others I've gradually changed direction in my studio. I feel like I've dropped off the jewelry making world and landed in p.c. heaven. I've been dabbling in polymer on and off for the last year but have just recently become completely immersed in it. All thanks to Ginger of The Blue Bottle Tree who has put together the most fabulous tutorials on creating with pc.

This is the one I've been playing with and it's great.Clear, step by step instructions and many,many colour photographs of every step and lots of inspirational ones to spark your own creativity. I have bought a few tutorials but this one is by far the best. If you're thinking of exploring polymer clay any of her tutorials would be a good place to start. I have multiple beads and pendants at various stages of development but none are yet ready for public viewing. Soon........!

Wilkomen, Bienvenue, Bienvenidos and Welcome!! (Selamat Datang to LiliKrist!)

Welcome to "My Country Blog Hop" hosted by yours truly. 25 participants from all over the world will write a blog post featuring little known facts about their country and also show an artistic creation that was inspired by their country.
I created this event to connect with artists and bloggers worldwide who are happy to share their home with others. Last year was the first time I did this and it was lots of fun so I decided to repeat it. I hope you enjoy!

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

 Today is a holiday in Canada to celebrate the birthday of this fabulous country and I am sharing it with all of you. I hope you enjoy what you see and learn about my "home and native land". There will be a lot of links for you to click on if your interested because I didn't want to make this post too lengthy.
To many Americans and others we are that cold and snowy country at the top of the map where we all speak French and grow "Biebers"(LOL). But there is much more to Canada than that. Yes we have snow and cold but we also have thousands of fresh water lakes ( the largest area of freshwater in the world) and gorgeous summers to enjoy these lakes.

Lake Superior

Kayaking

Fishing in Ontario

The lakes are so huge that when my English friends were visiting the 14 year old thought the shore of Lake Ontario was the seaside!

I guess size is relative but we are a very big country. second largest by land mass after China! It's our population that makes us seem small compared to the rest of the world. According to Wikipedia we are the most sparsely populated country in the world! Lots of room for everybody who wants to visit and even stay. If you are considering immigrating you won't be alone. Canada is one of most diverse countries in the world with representatives of every ethnicity and culture .

Gosh , I sound like a saleswoman for Canada  and have just realized I could go on for hours telling you all the great things but that's not why you're here. I hope the above information opened your eyes to some of what makes up this great country and inspires you to look into more when you have the time.

With so many national characteristics I was stymied about what to create. I have been having great fun lately playing with polymer clay and the vignette below shows just a few of our national icons. (remember I'm just a polymer clay newbie!)( The curling rocks are lamp work beads from Glass Bead Art)

Curling match between Benedict Beaver and Percival Polar Bear with the Inukshuk as referee.

I had a lot of fun creating these animals. Hope you get a kick out of them!

I just had to make some Canuck jewelry so here it is . I worked long and hard to make a maple leaf out of polymer clay and this is the best I could come up with. (really steep learning curve with pc.). I'm also on a roll experimenting with waxed Irish linen thread and tried hand knotting to make  this illusion style necklace in Canada's national colors.

 A couple of months ago I won the Art Bead Scene monthly challenge and received some of Mary Harding's wonderful ceramics. She very nicely made me these little maple leaf charms which I hung from sterling ear threads. They are super comfortable  and look really cute on.

That's the end of my contribution to this blog hop. Please go to the blogs listed below to see what all the other participants created. Comments left on my blog will be entered in a draw for something Canadian! (I haven't decided yet what it will be. Any requests? Mention in your comment and I'll see what I can do.)

Hostess: Nan Smith  (Canada)                            wirednan.blogspot.ca 

1. Ana (Portugal)                                          http://acbeads.blogspot.ca/                                    

2.Rita  (Orlando)                              http://www.jewelschoolfriends.com/                           
                                                                        

3. Dini (The Netherlands)             http://angazabychanges.blogspot.ca/                                           

4. Robin Reed  (Indiana)                    http://willowdragon.blogspot.ca/                 

5. Lilik Kristiana   (Indonesia )               http://pcbylik.blogspot.ca/                             

6. Karla Morgan  (Texas)             /       texaspepperjams.blogspot.com

7. Karen Mitchell (South Australia)                  www.overthemoon-design.com

8. Jayne Capps  (Oklahoma)               mamasgottodoodle.blogspot.com             

9. Melissa Trudinger  (Australia)                  beadrecipes.wordpress.com

10. Johana Nunez  (Puerto Rico)                                http:artincendi.com

11. Kepi  (Alberta)                                          kepirasmussen.blogspot.ca                                    
12. Deb Fortin  (Ontario)                                       studiok24.blogspot.ca  

13. Divya  (India)                                                                              jewelsofsayuri.com

14. Tammy Adams  (Arizona)                             paisleylizard.com/blog.html

15. Kay Thomerson  (Texas)                        kayzkreationz.blogspot.com                                          
  16. Bairozan  (Bulgaria)                                                            bairozan.blogspot.ca

17. Carolyn's Creations  (           )        carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com

18. Lecia Woessner   (New Orleans)                  copperroses.blogspot.com

19. Linda A.  (Wash. D.C.                           FromTheBeadBoard.blogspot.com

20.Inge Van Roos (California)                          ingetraud.wordpress.com

21. Natalie   (New Zealand)                  http://www.northshoredays.com

22. Lori Schneider (              )                            beadaddicted.blogspot.com

23.Mary Harding (New York)maryhardingjewelrybeadblog.blogspot.com 


24. Bouchra Rebai (Algeria)                          bouchrarebiai.wordpress.com     bouchrarebiai.wordpress.com
25.Michelle McCarthy  (Florida )         Fireflydesignstudio.blogspot.com  

Pearl Challenge!

Welcome to my blog featuring the jewelry I made for Shel's Pearls, Pearls, Pearls blog hop. Michelle is a pearl fanatic and makes absolutely stunning pieces with pearls of all sorts. She created this blog hop to challenge us to do the same. This was a very difficult challenge for me since I have always had a major creative block when it comes to designing with pearls. I buy pearls with great intentions but can never seem to get past the starting point. To me pearls are all about frilly, lacy and girly designs none of which are words I would use to describe my style. I love what other people do with pearls to cross over style lines but I haven't been able to do this to my satisfaction. However I managed to make 2 pieces for this challenge and I am happy with the results. Thanks Michelle for hosting this hop and pushing me out of my comfort zone. I will continue to experiment with pearls for now on.
The first thing I successfully completed after several failed projects was this pair of earrings.

 I love these tiny fresh water seed pearls and wanted to use many since they look great in bunches. I wire wrapped them on rosy colored torched copper ball headpins and hung them like a curtain of pearls from an antique copper ring. They were too plain like this so I hunted through my stash and came up with these cranberry fresh water pearls that match the ball headpins perfectly. They are dangling from my own handmade earwires and I'm  happy with how they turned out.


The second piece is experimental in two ways. After seeing all the creative ways used with waxed Irish linen thread in Diane's recent blog hop I have been playing around a lot with it and wanted to use it for this challenge with the pearls. Unfortunately my knotting skills need a lot more practice to perfect. I strung these beautiful peach toned Swarovski pearls on dark brown linen and added tiny reddish-brown agate beads to frame the pearls in an illusion style necklace. It's a casual way to wear pearls and suits my style well.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing what I came up with for this challenge. Please hop over to Mishel's blog or click on the InLinx Linkup here to see everyone else's creations. Have a lovely Sunday!
Please check back here on Tuesday, July 1st to see the reveal for my own blog hop:
My Country Blog Hop

An InLinkz Link-up

Coming up next week!

Hi there!  Next Tuesday, July 1 is the second annual My Country Blog Hop where participants will highlight their country by creating handmade art and telling the story behind it's creation. I thought of this idea while participating in Lori Anderson's 7th  Bead Soup Blog Party last year. I love that our community of designers and makers is international and that we share our passions across all borders. It is a thrill to meet other bloggers from all across the world and share our many experiences, both about jewelry and life in general.

I have always been a proud Canadian but this patriotism grew when I lived in the UK for four years (1997-2001). I found myself having to explain what being a Canadian meant to me and sharing all that I love about living here. These feelings of pride and patriotism have stayed with me since I returned here and I have become a big booster of everything Canadian. Most Canadians already know many of the wonderful aspects about our country but over the years I have realized that the world in general needs more Canada! So this is my mission....to share what I love about this wonderful country and what it means to be Canadian.

Of course, being Canadian, I don't like to brag!!!! ( we are known as polite and self-effacing people).Therefore I invited other bloggers to join in to share what they love or have learned about their country and then  to stretch their creativity to create a work of art that reflects their country. It's a great opportunity to see your home from the point of view of others and to learn what there is to love in living elsewhere. Please follow along and check out the other participants art and stories.

The event takes place on July 1, 2014 which is our big national birthday celebration, Canada Day. On that day you can hop to the blogs of the following participants and enjoy their contribution.

My Country Blog Hop Participants

Nan Smith (hostess|)               nanmade.blogspot.ca

1. Ana (Portugal)                                                       acbeads.blogspot.ca

2.Rita  (Orlando)                                              JewelSchoolFriends.com   

3. Dini (The Netherlands)                                    angazabychanges.blogspot.nl

4. Robin Reed  (Indiana)                              willowdragon.blogspot.com

5. Lilik Kristiana   (Indonesia )                             pcbylik.blogspot.com

6. Karla Morgan  (Texas)                                    texaspepperjams.blogspot.com

7. Karen Mitchell (South Australia)                  www.overthemoon-design.com

8. Jayne Capps  (Oklahoma)               mamasgottodoodle.blogspot.com             

9. Melissa Trudinger  (Australia)                  beadrecipes.wordpress.com

10. Johana Nunez  (Puerto Rico)                                http:artincendi.com

11. Kepi  (Alberta)                                          kepirasmussen.blogspot.ca                                    
12. Deb Fortin  (Ontario)                                       studiok24.blogspot.ca  

13. Divya  (India)                                                                              jewelsofsayuri.com

14. Tammy Adams  (Arizona)                             paisleylizard.com/blog.html

15. Kay Thomerson  (Texas)                        kayzkreationz.blogspot.com                                          
16. Bairozan  (Bulgaria)                                                            bairozan.blogspot.ca

17. Carolyn's Creations  (           )        carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com

18. Lecia Woessner   (New Orleans)                  copperroses.blogspot.com

19. Linda A.  (Wash. D.C.                           FromTheBeadBoard.blogspot.com

20.Inge Van Roos (California)                          ingetraud.wordpress.com

21. Natalie   (New Zealand)                  http://www.northshoredays.com

22. Lori Schneider (              )                            beadaddicted.blogspot.com

23.Mary Harding (New York)maryhardingjewelrybeadblog.blogspot.com 

24. Bouchra Rebai (Algeria)                          bouchrarebai.wordpress.com     
25.Michelle McCarthy  (Florida )         Fireflydesignstudio.blogspot.com 

Announcing the Participants in My Country Blog Hop

A few weeks ago I posted about the upcoming blog hop I am hosting for July 1 called My Country Blog Hop. I am very pleased with the response and can't wait to see what everybody creates for the reveal.
The concept is for each participant to choose a locale they are familiar with and create a work of art inspired by that place. This is the second year for this hop and it is lots of fun to see what everyone comes up with.
Each blog will feature a description of the inspiration behind the creation and we will all learn something new and interesting about different parts of the world while sharing about our own homes.

This lovely Trillium, official provincial flower of Ontario where I live, was the inspiration behind my first attempt at a polymer clay cane

This was my final result which I was not too happy with. However it was my first attempt and quite a new challenge for me.

Last year it was all about jewelry but I've expended the field this year and any handmade work is acceptable. You can make jewelry, drawings, paintings, paper art, textile art, sculpture, etc.whatever helps you to tell a story. We will all post photos of our creations and share the inspiration that led to the results. 

You could make polymer clay replicas of these Pennsylvania landmarks!

Or Union Jack earrings to show your British roots.

Japanese kimono fabric can turn up in many art forms.

It is truly an international blog event with participants from the Far East, The Antipodes, the Middle East, Europe, USA, the Caribbean and Canada. Thanks to all for joining in. Here are the lovely folks who signed up. Please check back on July 1 for the reveal.

Hostess: Nan Smith  (Canada)                            wirednan.blogspot.ca 

1. Ana (Portugal)                                                       acbeads.blogspot.ca

2.Rita  (Orlando)                                              JewelSchoolFriends.com   

3. Dini (The Netherlands)                                    angazabychanges.blogspot.nl

4. Robin Reed  (Indiana)                              willowdragon.blogspot.com

5. Lilik Kristiana   (Indonesia )                             pcbylik.blogspot.com

6. Karla Morgan  (Texas)                                    texaspepperjams.blogspot.com

7. Karen Mitchell (South Australia)                  www.overthemoon-design.com

8. Jayne Capps  (Oklahoma)               mamasgottodoodle.blogspot.com             

9. Melissa Trudinger  (Australia)                  beadrecipes.wordpress.com

10. Johana Nunez  (Puerto Rico)                                http:artincendi.com

11. Kepi  (Alberta)                                          kepirasmussen.blogspot.ca                                    
12. Deb Fortin  (Ontario)                                       studiok24.blogspot.ca  

13. Divya  (India)                                                                              jewelsofsayuri.com

14. Tammy Adams  (Arizona)                             paisleylizard.com/blog.html

15. Kay Thomerson  (Texas)                        kayzkreationz.blogspot.com                                          
  16. Bairozan  (Bulgaria)                                                            bairozan.blogspot.ca

17. Carolyn's Creations  (           )        carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com

18. Lecia Woessner   (New Orleans)                  copperroses.blogspot.com

19. Linda A.  (Wash. D.C.                           FromTheBeadBoard.blogspot.com

20.Inge Van Roos (California)                          ingetraud.wordpress.com

21. Natalie   (New Zealand)                  http://www.northshoredays.com

22. Lori Schneider (              )                            beadaddicted.blogspot.com

23.Mary Harding (New York)maryhardingjewelrybeadblog.blogspot.com 


24. Bouchra Rebai (Algeria)                          bouchrarebai.wordpress.com     
25.Michelle McCarthy  (Florida )         Fireflydesignstudio.blogspot.com