BALLOONS AND OTHER PURDIES!

The Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic, and this darlin' friend of mine who kept encouraging me to start attending that celebration with our grandson, is the inspiration behind this wonderful creation.  Aimee has always loved the balloons, and she finally got me hooked.  So, a few years ago when I saw that Bo Hulley was making these incredible balloon pendants, I immediately knew I had to have one.  Bo is not making beads now, so this balloon took on a very "secure" life thereafter - mostly staying securely in my bead room :) Ha!    It has also taken me a few years to "feel the creativity" of properly accentuating the pendant with beads that make it stand out.  A light bulb went off while watching a Heather Powers Bead Table Wednesday video on how to make this wire component.  I really love the hammering of metal and the process of creating your own form.  No one makes one the same way, so "original" still applies to the finished product.  Happy Birthday Aimee!!!  I hope you enjoy it and feel the balloons soaring above every time you wear it.  

The earrings are the modified St. Petersburg stitch, and I originally posted a Halloween set on October 24.  I love that the earrings are light on the ear lobe and also the way they drape so nicely.  

HOT DAYS OF BEADIN' STRINGIN' & WIRE WRAPPIN'

Hot days of summer is an understatement... it's been unseasonably hot everywhere in the West, but here in Boise, ID, the week before the FOURTH we were into triple digit heat - 110 was our high one of the days and it hovered around that for several more.  The FOURTH cooled down slightly, which was VERY WELCOME - it was about 92, which was more livable.  This hot zaps my energy - so, of course I retreat to my beading table.  Unfortunately, under my lights, it even gets warm there, so my wonderful hubby lent me his small table-top Coleman fan from his camping stash... it is very wonderful for such a small contraption with only two blades, and it does the job!  So, here's what I've been working on since my last post, with my little fan a turnin as fast as it will go -- a little stringing, a little wire wrapping, a little painting to embellish the metal on the ring petals, and AGAIN, some stringing.  

 

 I used a pattern learned at Bead Street a couple years ago as my inspiration, but modified my version to only one round of 11s around each large 8mm crystal instead of two rounds of 11s around 3 mm. I love this pattern and love the pop of the red crystals with the two hues of blue and gold 11s.  I made the toggle clasp to match with even count peyote.

 

 

 

 Isn't this little ring a cutie?  Lucite rose with czech glass petals, 8's and then a metal flower, painted in several different hues to get to just the right match.







And yet another little ring.  Peyote stitch using 11s with flower and side hinge embellishments with 15s picot.   I started the ensemble with, yes, the ring, based on a pattern for a bracelet I saw at Fusion Beads on their Inspiration page.  I did my own thing from there.

 Necklace to match ring.  This is really so adorable with a dainty St. Petersburg stitched necklace.  The purple, green, yellow and a really bright orange center 3mm really pop for a summer combo.  I used 11s for the basic square, but stitched the flower in 8s so it would pop out.

 

                                                                                      The fringe dangles show better in this shot!

 

 Yet another pattern just learned at Bead Street, using a free online pattern by Deborah Roberti.  Thanks Sandy Taylor for "learnin" us.  You are a wonderful teacher, fellow beader and friend!  It was a wonderful afternoon.  This is not the bracelet I made that afternoon.  I didn't like my colors or my design, so went home and cut that one up and started over.  Love these daisy czech glass two-holes I have in my stash.  Wish I could remember where the heck I bought these.  Plus two-hole lentels, 11s in two colors, yellow and gold....