Who Am I ?

I've signed up for the Bead Peeps Swap 'N' Hop and am looking forward to the whole event. It involves swapping beads and goodies with another jewelry artist and making jewelry with what you receive.The resulting jewelry will all be revealed on everyone's blogs on May 2nd  so stay tuned for updates and the final reveal.

To help out the ladies who are attempting to pair everyone up, I will let you know a little  bit about me. My name is Nan and I've been making jewelry for 4 years and blogging for 2 years. I love sharing the fun  with other jewelry makers and have discovered a phenomenal  group of like minded souls online. I have many new friends all over the world and it's lovely to know that there is always someone out there willing to share all the ups and downs of jewelry making. They not only give advice and encouragement freely but they "GET IT!" It's a wonderful resource for all of us ,newbies or not.
I have participated in many blog hops over the last 2 years and even hosted one myself. As a proud Canadian every july I host a blog hop for artists to create something  (jewelry mostly) inspired by their home country. It's great fun being involved in a lot of communities online but it is hard to find a balance between surfing the net and using my time productively to create and sell jewelry. I am a retired nurse so I have lots of time to dedicate to my passion  but it's amazing how much time I can spend on the computer.

Where I do most of my work.

My style in jewelry making is a little bit of several styles. I guess you could call it an eclectic mix of Bohemian, Rustic, Urban, Contemporary, Casual, Abstract and Avant Garde . Like I said I'm interested in a little bit of everything. Styles that do not match my jewelry or my personality are blingy, feminine, delicate, girly, preppy, lacy. I think you can tell from these words what kind of jewelry I like and make. It's taken me a while to define my style so some of my jewelry may confuse you.

Latest earrings in my Etsy shop "nanmade jewelery"

Techniques I use regularly are wire wrapping, wire work, stringing, using waxed linen thread and sari silk , some metal work and  I absolutely LOVE using art beads. I have recently become addicted to working with polymer clay and I am in danger of it taking over from jewelry making as my all consuming passion. I now make beads and components for myself and other jewelry makers.

A polymer clay pendant I made

As far as colours go I really like them all except maybe some pastels but even some of them are okay. My favorite colour changes frequently. Currently I'm using a lot of blues and purples in my work  but I also really like earth colours so pretty much anything goes.

Earrings from my shop 

If you were to ask me what Materials I dislike I'd have to say I'm not a big fan of seed beads, crystals and pearls but I have been known to use all of them at times.
I hope the above information helps the admin folks when they are trying to pair me with a partner and also may help my partner when the time comes to decide what to send me. For now I am gathering together lots of goodies to send to my partner.

2015 Polymer Clay Challenge Week 2

I am continuing my experimentation with the Mokume Gane technique in this challenge but this week I have also added my first attempts to use alcohol inks in my creations.I bought some inks a few weeks ago but have been hesitant to try them. I couldn't figure out how to use them.
After perusing the net I discovered that it is possible to actually dye polymer clay using alcohol inks. Since I've run through many of my bright colours of clay I figured this was a good thing to try.

Here are the inks I bought. They come in packs of 3 and this was the closest I could find to a set of primary colours. Fuschia pink, golden yellow and peacock blue.

Here are the pieces of clay that I dyed with the inks.

What nobody told me was how long it takes to complete this process!! These 4 colours took me about 2 hours of kneading the clay as I gradually added the inks until I got the colours I wanted. Luckily I had just discovered the podcast "Serial" and had something to listen to while I played with the clay.

I added some gold leaf to the purple clay to add a little sparkle and this is the stack for the Mokume Gane.

And this is the best slice I got after adding multiple textures to the stack and slicing it.

It really is the coolest process and I never know what I'm going to find once I start slicing because each layer is different. And nothing gets wasted as I also us the stripey cutoffs from the edges to create my striped pieces which are my faves.

The following are just a few of the pieces I made with this week's technique using alcohol inks and mokume gane.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing my experiments.  This is a year long challenge hosted by Katie Oskin one of the "Queens of Polymer Clay" and challenges us to create something new every week. I won't be blogging about it every week but will try to do regular updates of my work. The challenge is on facebook and the link to it is here.

January "We're All Ears" Challenge

This is my first time trying this challenge so I hope you'll be gentle with me! I have been following this blog forever and really enjoy seeing what everybody has created. This month we were challenged with the Pantone 2015 Spring Color Palette. I specifically chose Marsala the colour of the year since I've been working with my polymer clay mixing in an attempt to make some in the correct colour. Of course now I have tons of clay which is in varying shades of red and brown!!

Here my earrings made with polymer clay discs in marsala combined with grey metallic hematite  rectangular seed beads and a silver leaf jasper bead . They are all wire wrapped with blackened brass wire from Fallen Angel Brass and hung on matte black earwires from the same place.

I like how these turned out but I'm not  sure whether I should do any more surface treatment to the polymer clay discs. I'm not a big fan of bling but I'm wondering if these are too dull???

Polymer clay challenge 2015 : Week 1

Unbelievably I've managed to get my first week challenge done by the due date. Katie Oskin from KaterAcres has issued this challenge for each of us to create a polymer clay project every week for the next year. There is a facebook page with all the entries on it and most participants will do a blog post regularly on their progress. Wish me luck. It's going to be a long and busy year since I'm hoping to develop and grow my own jewelry line and try to sell it in some shops in town and maybe even some craft shows.
If you've been following me you'll know that i have become obsessed with polymer clay over the last few months and am trying many new techniques so this will be the place to feature them.
I've been playing with the Mokume Gane  technique for a few weeks so this is my first entry for the challenge. This technique results in a woodgrain affect in the clay and I find it creates stunning jewelry components. The  first bracelet bar I created totally by accident and I've been struggling to recreate it and finally succeeded. I'm just amazed with all the different results I can get with this technique. Here is the first one followed by some of my other attempts.

So that was week one in this year long challenge. I tried to publish this last week but blogger wouldn't download pictures for some reason so it had to be delayed. 

Check out Katie's facebook page to see more of this challenge.

Here's the link.

See you next week ( actually it's tomorrow)

BNB challenge.

I was so excited when I saw what picture Gloria Allan had chosen for the  current BNB challenge. It is a fantasy painting and in the foreground there are many unusual , colourful plants and flowers that are almost identical to the polymer clay headpins I created a couple of months ago in my ongoing Polymer clay adventure.

When I saw this challenge on Facebook I knew that I had to make something with these headpins.

                            I've called it Fantasy Garden!

This challenge involves voting for your favorites, so if you like my necklace please vote for it on Facebook. Here's the link.

Polymer clay challenge!

Okay, I've decided to commit and make a polymer clay project every week for the next year. I've been playing with clay for several months and having a great time. I'm hoping that this challenge will help give me more focus and help me decide if this is what I most want to concentrate on. Katie Acres has created this challenge and I've been hesitating but have finally decided to give it a try. This will be an opportunity to try new techniques and tools. See you on the other side!
( of the new year, that is!)

http://katersacres.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/2015PCChallenge-Button.png

I almost forgot The Bead Hoarders Blog Hop!!

Thank you  Lori Anderson, for sending that reminder on Facebook about the hop. I had planned earlier in the week what I was going to do but then the week got away from me and here it is Friday night and I'm just getting to it now. I had great intentions of making a new piece but had to use past creations instead.
About the hoarding thing........we all do it. There are sooo many beautiful beads and components that it is next to impossible to resist buying at least one of everything we love! However even if I worked 12 hours a day for 6 days a week I would have a hard time using up all my supplies in a year! And then I discovered art beads and just have to support my fellow artists in the jewelry world! Those incredible lamp work , ceramic, polymer clay and metal works of art are utterly irresistible! Since I've been making jewelry for 3 years or so you can probably imagine how much I have hoarded. and now it's really getting out of hand because I've started to make my own beads and components recently out of polymer clay!

I've decided to feature jewelry that I made this past summer when I was in my purple phase and experimenting with Irish waxed linen thread (something else to hoard..... so many gorgeous colours). Of course since this jewelry includes some of my favorite beads I have to keep it for myself rather than sell them. More hoarding!!!

I love the Unicorne lamp work beads from Stinky Dog Beads and had been saving these fab purple teardrop ones for just the right project. I added some purply-pink cracked agate beads, a chunky purple resin bead, some Czech pony beads and a beautiful frosted floral lamp work bead from Glitteringprize Glass.
I finished it off with a silver plated spiral embossed bead, chain and lobster claw. I'm not thrilled with the proportions since I think the large bead is too big so this may change before I'm fully satisfied with it.

I'm much happier with the second bracelet and have worn it many times. The knotted linen makes  bracelets so comfortable and easy to wear. The focal is one of Heather's of Humblebeads fame. Her art appears so simple but is far from that and her use of colour and texture is phenomenal! I had no inkling of her talent until I started working with polymer clay!

I pulled the colours from her bird house and added several of my bead hoard to make this bracelet. There's a little bit of everything here. Starting from the bottom of the house I used amethyst coloured plastic beads, creamy white howlite bead, matte finish dyed  green jade bead, plum Czech glass flower bead,  green painted wood beads for the loop and a painted bone button for closure. From the top of the focal is a green Czech disc bead left over from my Bead Soup Mix that  my partner Michi sent me, two of my precious Judith Billig lamp work matte finish beads and a purple dyed lava bead that's been in my bead collection for many years.

Last but not least are these pretty purple earrings made using lampwork beads from Pinocean. I had heard that her beads are hard to come by so as soon as I saw some on Etsy I ordered them. I can see why her work is in such demand. The artistry, details and colours are perfection . See if you agree.

These sterling earrings feature the flame work of Mika of Pinocean and Val Lewis on Facebook. The multicoloured ones are Pinocean's while the beautiful pink/purple boro glass is from Val. They are both very talented artists and I can't help myself from supporting them!!!! The bows are pieces of sari silk ribbon and are the perfect finishing touch, I think.

That's all I'm willing to confess to at the moment. If you want to see the secret hoards of over 100 other jewelry artists check out all the blogs listed below. Thank you Lori for hosting this hop. It's been a lot of fun and has inspired me to start using more of my precious beads!

Lori Anderson	www.PrettyThingsBlog.com  (Hostess)
Audrey Belanger	esperianterra.blogspot.com
Jenny Kyrlach	http://anafiassa.blogspot.com/
Kathy Lindemer	http://bay-moon-design.blogspot.com/
Lori Schneider	http://beadaddicted.blogspot.com/
Dee Elgie	http://cherryobsidia.blogspot.co.uk
Dolores Raml	http://craftydscreations.wordpress.com
Rebecca Ednie	Http://eclecticendeavours.blogspot.com
Lili Krist	http://emjestudio.blogspot.com/
Marybeth Rich	http://forestofjewels.blogspot.com/
Hannah Rosner	http://goodrivergallery.wordpress.com/blog/
Nicole Prince	http://healingbeading.blogspot.com/
Deana Hager	http://justdeesarts.blogspot.com/
Jackie Ryan	http://kydojewellery.blogspot.co.uk/
Elsie Deliz-Fonseca	http://ladelizchica.blogspot.com/
Mowse Doyle	http://mowsemadethis.blogspot.com/
Evelyn Shelby	http://raindropcreationsbyevelyn.blogspot.com
Lisa Johnson	http://spudandmrsbutters.blogspot.com/
Terri Gauthier	http://terrisbloomingideas.blogspot.com/
Patti Pruhs	http://threebeadsandastring.blogspot.com
Shai Williams	http://www.shaihasramblings.com/
Andrea Glick	http://zenithjade.blogspot.com/
K Hutchinson	https://jumbledhutch.wordpress.com
Marci Brooks	https://thatnothingbewasted.wordpress.com/
Jo-Ann Woolverton	itsabeadifulcreation.blogspot.ca
Jasvanti Patel	Jewelrybyjasvanti.blogspot.com
Laurie Vyselaar	Lefthandjewelry.wordpress.com
Lisa Knappenberger	LIRaysaDesigns.blogspot.com
Mary Lindell	marylindell.com
Niky Sayers	silverniknats.blogspot.co.uk
Sandra McGriff	skyescreativechaos.blogspot.com
Patricia Handschuh	thecolorofdreams.blogspot.com
Erin Prais-Hintz	treasures-found.blogspot.com
Maria Rosa Sharrow	willowstreetshops.blogspot.com
Kathleen Breeding	www.99bobotw.blogspot.com
Monique Urquhart	www.ahalfbakednotion.blogspot.com
Jackie Locantore	www.artfire.com/ext/shop/blog/MorningStar
Sheryl Stephens	www.babblebead.blogspot.com
Becky Pancake	www.beckypancakebeaddesigns.blogspot.com
Mona Arnott	www.bijouxgemsjoy.blogspot.ca
Michelle Escano	www.cabbycraft.com
Denise McCabe	www.cabewoman.blogspot.com
Carolyn Lawson	www.carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com
Sheila Prose	www.catswithbeads.blogspot.com
Kim Dworak	www.cianciblue.blogspot.com
Iveth Caruso	www.CreativeAtelier.net/blog
Deborah Apodaca	www.deborahapodacadesigns.blogspot.com/
Elizabeth Bunn	www.elizabethbeads.blogspot.com
Janine Lucas	www.esfera.me/travel/blog/travel-stories
Kari Asbury	www.hippiechickdesign.blogspot.com
Inge von Roos	www.ingetraud.wordpress.com
Divya N	www.jewelsofsayuri.com
Debbie Rasmussen	www.kepirasmussen.blogspot.com
KJ	www.kjsbeadaciousbeads.blogspot.com/
Klaudete Koon	www.klaudetekoon.blogspot.com
Ghislaine Kruse-van Erp	www.kruseartllc.com
Ginger Bishop	www.lilmummylikes.blogspot.com
Kelly Schermerhorn	www.meanderingwithkelly.blogspot.com
Mischelle Andrade	www.micheladasmusings.blogspot.com
Sue Kelly	www.midlifegreaterexpectations.blogspot.com
Rachel Mallis	www.mintmonarch.com/#!Blog/c1jlz
Susan McClelland	www.mistheword12.com
Mary K McGraw	www.mkaymac.blogspot.com
Tania Spivey	www.moobiegracedesigns.blogspot.com
Stephanie Perry	www.mustardbeadbystephanieperry.blogspot.com
Mitzie Crider	www.NeedfulLuxuries.Blogspot.com
Nicole Rennell	Www.nicolerennell.com/blog
Nicole Valentine	www.nvalentine.blogspot.com
Karen Mitchell	www.overthemoon-design.com
Tammy Adams	www.paisleylizard.com/blog/
Patty Miller	www.pattymillerbeads.blogspot.com
Blanca Medina	www.peru-medesigns.com
Stephanie Haussler	www.pixybugdesigns.blogspot.com
Roxanne Mendoza	www.roxidesigns.blogspot.com
Claire Fabian	www.saraccino.blogspot.com
Bridget Torres	www.shears58.net
Donetta Farrington	www.simplygorgeous-donetta.blogspot.com
Lee Koopman	www.stregajewellry.wordpress.com
Deb Fortin	www.studiok24.blogspot.ca
Susan Walls	Www.susansartcircus.com/blog
Cece Cormier	www.thebeadingyogini.com
Heather Otto	www.thecrafthopper.com
Lizzie Clarke	www.theneedtobead.blogspot.co.uk
Elizabeth Hodges	www.thewhisperingseas.blogspot.com
Fay Wolfenden	www.torchfairy.blogspot.com
Kelly Hosford Patterson	www.TravelingSideShow.blogspot.com
Nan Smith	www.wirednan.blogspot.ca
Jayne Capps	wwwww.mamasgototdoodle.blogspot.com

Robin Kae Reed                                       http://www.willowdragon.blogspot.com/
Melissa Trudinger                                   https://beadrecipes.wordpress.com/