Friday, April 27, 2012

MESSY WORKSHOP BLOGHOP!

Wow.. a hop that was seemingly made just for me :D
 Brenda Sue Lansdowne of B'Sue Boutique has organized this little hop, to show everyone that the picture perfect, everything-in-its-place, neat-as-a-pin workshop or studio... is a RARE thing  among us creative types :) And she's gathered 50 blogs to share photographic proof of their messy work spaces :)

For the record, I don't, or at least haven't up to this point, sold any of my jewelry. I make it for gifts and for myself :) I've always 'planned' on getting around to selling it... just ... you know... darn procrastination... ;) I'd also like you to know, that I have no one living with me to help contribute to my mess ( or blame it on), aside from two cats who make enough of their own mess, and one bird who is even messier than I am ;)

I found out about this just in time since I about to rearrange and reorganize and *gasp*clean, so I quickly grabbed my camera and started snapping. 

I would also like to thank Brenda sue for not making the 'clean' workshop a part of this... because I never did actually get around to finish cleaning.. or even really putting everything away.... I had it about half way done... you could see carpet and even some desk... really.... However...I got working again >.< O.o  As a matter of fact,  the place looks pretty much the same aside from the addition of a new cabinet on one wall to store some of my non-beading supplies, my buttons, my stereo.. and my new Boba Fett talking helmet ... :) ( hehehe... I'm going to take the stereo out and put my remote control R2D2 beside the helmet... lol ).

So... here is MY messy workshop :D

So.. first off, here is the desk, with the cheep-o cardboard 'cabinet' there ( the blue and white thing lol ). Jammed in those drawers were my envelopes, tissue paper, customs forms, bubble wrap, fake flowers, material, paints.... crap I don't remember what else... lol
 There's a press board cabinet beside facing the other way tucked under the desk  that is over flowing with papers, binders... more bubble wrap... and non-beading stuff. 
studio workshop chaos mess piles  crafting

Those bright orange things are collapsible storage boxes full of ... bits of everything from nail polish, to second hand beads and found objects, to craft supplies that never got put away... to gift bags, tissue paper... and more bubble wrap. Same goes for that box sitting there... you can see my little black mini drawer units that now house.. about half my buttons, lined up along the bottom of the desk, plus one stuck in the box there.
And of course... the mountains of stuff ON TOP of the desk...note that tray that looks like it's about to slide right off... I have three of those, plus a couple wooden ones. That one, is balanced on top of the one wooden one... and I believe one other white one. For those who know me and my love of skulls, the trays have pictures of skulls on them... beneath the beading mat, anyhow ;) 
And many more assorted drawer units jammed full of stuff, trays and containers and dishes full of beads and findings that never got put away... and my drill :D


Close up on the precariously stacked desk stuff...
desk pile junk beads crafting

 Here the side with one tray full of.. everything. On that tray I have a painters palette still holding beads I received from .. the fourth BSBP...? Yeah... the one in September :) Plus there's some stuff form my Talk Like A Pirate Day Challenge littered in there, along with some reclaimed beads and second hand jewelry I plan to tear apart and remake. That black thing is a double sided carry case I picked up at the dollar store for when I wanted to take craft stuff with me on the go...it's still there. Oh, no..I'm sorry.. it's migrated to the floor now >.< And no, it's not yet a 'carry case' .. it's just random storage, still.  On top is a basket... one of my former bead storage baskets, that  was holding a.. pack of ..hmm... think that was something I was using to make a mobile for someone... don't remember now. Whatever it was...I seem to have put it away... not sure WHERE, but... it's moved somewhere else , anyhow.   you can also see  a hint of the crap I have jammed in beneath the desk in behind the two storage cabinets there >.<

And for those wondering WHY I have a box of bird gravel on my desk... my bird Jo's cage used to sit just to the right there... where my big cabinet is now standing. Jo is out in the kitchen where he can go to bed whenever he wants and not get mad at me for having the light on.... for a little tiny bird, he has a very loud, ear-shattering squawk.

trays projects mess tools beads

Close up # 2 ... my 'almost work area' ... my computer monitor is just to the left, with the ONLY .. semi.. clear spot on my entire desk. THAT is where I work. I have a huge three corner desk, with tons of space ( once I clean up) .. and I work on a tiny little area by my mouse pad :)

Anyways,  there's tray #2 balanced on top of trays #3 & 4... the wooden one, #3, is hidden completely beneath it :)

You can also see some of my bead containers .. most of which are sorted by color... but there are a few that are bits of everything because...I had an empty spot and new beads so...tada :) I'll sort 'em out later ;)  Yeah that's nail polish .. and no, those two salt and pepper shakers don;t have anything in them.. beads wise or spice wise. I got them to see about moving some of my seed beads into them but.... too much room in the jars... makes me sad to see how empty they look... and I seriously don;t need to buy more seed beads to fill them up.


heart necklace fly wings

For those wondering, the top tray is holding my , then 'still in the works' FlapYour Wings project, with various extras and ideas .. and tools.  Here's is the finished product that came out of that mess .
<------







Alright.. so... how about the big picture?
studio desk mess chaos crafting
 The full view. 



... and yeah.... it still pretty much looks like that....  see...?

desk mess chaos studio beads crafting

Difference being... the big orange box is mostly emptied .. and there's now a 'still in progress' mask perched on top of my one beading mat... on top of a blue shawl.. on top of ..something.. on the one trays :D Oh, and there's an ugly chair sitting there stacked with stuff too...I had to move it from where it was and...I have no clue where it'll end up... just... not there lol

the cardboard drawers there, now hold JUST my mailing supplies.



storage stereo crafting supplies glass mugs Boba Fett



And here's the cabinet I told you about... with Boba :D  In addition to the assorted craft crap inside, the button drawers are there.. well.. four of them, right above Boba and the stereo. That white thing is a 'skull' bag someone crocheted for me as a gift... it's holding my fancy yarns and stuff. The others shelves currently hold my Batman, Xmen, & StarWars mugs & glasses... And up on top by that white cat...are two Animal mugs.. you know.. from the Muppets.. cause Animal is too awesome to have just ONE mug :D





So there you have it... MY Messy workshop :)  It's actually half my living room ( That's my fishtank tucked in the corner there on the left... I kill fish almost as fast as I kill plants, but mom gave me some guppies... and of course, now that I'd like to take the tank down and forget about having fish.. the little buggers not only refuse to die.. they're multiplying like crazy >.< )

Oh... and for the record... my bedroom is MUCH worse ;)

Visit some of the others and see THEIR messy work areas... I bet I'm the messiest ;) I wonder if there's a prize for that ... ? lol

MESSY WORKSHOP BLOG PARTICIPANTS
Brenda Sue Lansdowne
Robin Delargy:
Kim at Cianci Blue
Jennifer Jazwick-Smith
Mary Shannon Hicks
Tracy Swartz
Jacqueline Marchant
Lynnea Perry Bennett
Terry Matusyk
Laurel Steven
Dr. Brassy Steamington
Pamela Takeshige
Kris Lanae Binsfeld
Outre Art
Linzi Alford
Deb Davis
Tamara Jones
Harry Wood
Gerry Nickerson
Elizabeth Owens-Dwy
Georgene Lockwood
Charisa Sloper
Jennifer Justman
Beanzie
Mary Deis
Cheri Reed
Sondra Kolner
Sonya Ingersoll-Stille
Lori Anderson
Sandra McGriff     <- YOU ARE HERE
Shelly Joyce
Joan Williams
Kashmira Patel
Deb Beechy
Ginger Bishop
Kelli Jacobson
Natalie McKenna
Andrew Thornton
Mary Govaars
Kate Mulligan
Lisa Lodge
Tami Luchini
Monique Lula
Lee Koopman
Jayne Capps
Susan Lloyd
Cynthia Wainscott
Stephanie Amanti
Alicia Marinache
Sam Hamp
Lennis Carrier

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Winner Wednesday ;)

Sorry, but considering that's all this blog is gonna be.. pretty much... lol

Alright, so.. while I COULD tease and torment you, show lots of photos and ramble on for a while, I'm not gonna.

I COULD ... but I won't... mainly cause I got a headache and I'm really noticing how LOUD I type >.<

So, first up we have  the little Flap Your Wings giveaway I held along with the auction.  The winner of the the little giveaway pack is...

 Rochelle.



The winning bid on the necklace..

 is IslandGirl at $40 CAD. I'll be messaging her shortly about it.



And lastly, we have the Spring Blooms Giveaway.

     The winner is....  Kristi Jaro !

Kristi & Rochelle both have one week to contact me with their mailing addresses to claim their prizes.  If I haven't heard from them by May 1st, then on May 2nd I'll draw new winners.

Okay... enough typing now... I'll be in touch with D.Lynne aka Islandgirl once it no longer hurts to type... >.<

Friday, April 20, 2012

Last Spring Blooms Giveaway Update

It's Friday again, and we have four days left in the Spring Bloom giveaway :)
Check out my 'Flap Your Wings' Necklace  HERE. The auction runs until Tuesday April 24th

Before I get posting pictures,  I just wanted to mention that I'll be posting the signup widget for the first Creative Chaos Challenge. I'll be explaining  about it in my next post, most likely Sunday :)
 Since we hit 50 entries, I'll make one more addition to the pot.

Skye flower pendant connectors silver clay blossom petal jewelry
Newest addition to the giveaway.



One clay flower pendant ( it's pale pink and white ), and four silver toned flower connectors.










flowers Skye glass beads turquoise pendants lampwork buttons lucite seedbeads  beadsoup
Spring Bloom giveaway bundle









Which is added to this ... 




The winner will be announced on Wednesday, April 25th.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Flap Your Wings



* Post edited on Tuesday, April 24th - now includes a new photo of the necklace, plus I've opened bidding.
~

Judy Glende of ' Judith B. Designs' &  'Flap Your Wings'

This blog hop is a special tribute to Judy Glende , a fellow jewelry artisan and all round wonderful lady, who recently took wing and left us all behind. I personally did not have a chance to know her, but I adore her work, and have heard nothing but good about her. Moobie Grace Designs put together this blog hop in Judy's honor, and chose to name it after Judy's etsy shop.. which from the outpouring I've heard about, has no doubt been completely sold out.


Some of the participants of this Hop are offing their creations  either for sale or for auction, and will be donating the proceeds to the charity of their choice. I won't be auctioning my piece, however I am offering a small giveaway for everyone following along on the hop. If you've bid on any of the items being sold for this, it's worth two entries into my giveaway, so make sure to check that box ;)




THE PARTICIPANTS







(Amanda regretfully couldn't participant in the reveal but will be making a donation)

8. Kim Ballor 


You are HERE -> 10. Sandra McGriff 

11. Lana Kinney 























~ ~ ~ ~ ~



So this is my contribution to the hop :) I'll apologize right off for the photos... I took these at night in less than ideal conditions.

 While I had several designs in mind for this challenge, two cemented themselves in my mind rather firmly, and in the end this one won out. Originally I had a rather large faceted Chinese Crystal to hang between the wings, but while raiding my stash for components for my last giveaway I came across this blue glass heart tucked away in a box and knew it had to be the center.  

 
wings flight angel heart crystal necklace adjustable choker

I had planned on offering this for auction, however I'm not happy with the end result quite yet. The winged portion has a hand made clasp on each end and hooks onto the chain at the height wanted, making it completely adjustable. 




wings necklace angel flap your wings take flight


I added a strand of pale blue satin cording, a strand of light blue faux suede cording, and a strand of light blue and crystal seed beads woven through out the large link chain to add a bit of color. I love how that part turned out, I'm just not happy with the ends just yet. I think I may fasten them all together rather then having them separate, or I may fasten them farther up the chain and let the ends dangle loose at the bottom.... 


I added light blue Chinese crystal rondelles, and some rose quartz chips. I'm not happy with how 'floppy' the wing section is if hung any lower than it is in the photo, so I may redo that part and make it more solid.

The heart pendant was just perfect for this... the sky blue colour as well as the symbol. 

* EDIT - here's a better picture ( I think, anyway :p you can certainly see the rose quartz better lol  )



Since no one else is bothered by the end fastenings, any one who wishes to bid on this is welcome to. I'll leave this running until next Tuesday, April 24th ( since I started it late). If anyone buys it, the money will be donated to whichever of Judy's chosen charities accepts online contributions. ( if they both do ( or neither do), the buyer can chose which one ). I do ask for a minimum bid of $5 CAD to cover shipping. Please leave your bids in the comment section where every one can see them and know where it stands :)


If no one bids, I promise not to be sad ;) lol



Here is what I'm offering up as a little giveaway for everyone visiting this hop list :) 

A pink turquoise butterfly pendant, an abalone cockatoo pendant, two Chinese crystal butterfly beads, and an assortment of metal butterflies, dragonflies and wings. Click on the rafflecopter widget below and chose your entry. I decided to let this run for a week and it's open worldwide :) ( if you can't see the green box directly below these words, then you're reading this on the blog page, and need to open the direct post. Click on the post title. )


Friday, April 13, 2012

F.F.4 -update

Double postings tonight :) Make sure to check out my Flap Your Wings post as well!

Alrighty... so this will be a short post.. mostly straight to the point since I'm LATE and still have another post to write and get up >.< lol

I said every TEN entries I'd add something extra to the giveaway... well we're sitting at 37 .. but I decided to add in the extra for 'forty' now...

First up, I added in the acrylic beads from Lori's BeadSoup package... so now the entire beadsoup pack is included :)  so here's a little image to show you ;)

bead soup Lori Anderson pretty things giveaway spring blooms flowers
Lori's Bead Soup mix

Rather than show you a single picture of each addition, I'm just gonna post up the giveaway bundle 'as is' now. I've added in some more flower beads, some more flower buttons, some leaf beads, and some seedbeads.
flowers chaos skye creative leaves beadsoup
updated Spring Blooms giveaway bundle

For those who are worried I might miss something I've added... don't ;) Once I take the pictures of each addition, it all gets put into one big zip lock bag so nothing gets misplaced or forgotten :)

I just received word from last months winner that the butterflies arrived today :D Yay! I hope she enjoys them and maybe shares a link to any pics of her creations ;)

Here you go :) Anyone who hasn't entered, you've still got time :)  Next addition to the giveaway bundle hits at 50!

Friday, April 6, 2012

FF#4 Update :)

 As promised, now that we've reached 10 entries into the giveaway, I have some goodies to add into the pot for the Spring blooms giveaway :)

Plus I took a better photo of those felted ones ;) 


And arranged them in a much nicer setting....



...although I'm thinking I should've done a better pic of those lamp work pairs now too.... hmm...



So, here's the giveaway package INCLUDING the new addition of a bunch of flower buttons :)

giveaway spring flowers buttons beads  turquoise lucite felted lampwork glass
Spring Blooms giveaway bundle - 1st update!

I'm still sorting through my button collection, so more flower buttons may appear in that pile if I find any ;)

I'm still deciding on the next addition...I have a photo of 24 flower beads in 4 different colors that I was going to add this time.. then went with the buttons instead ... plus I have a bunch of leaves I could add in... And of course I have some pendants that I might add in one of them...And I did mention that I might add in the rest of the beadsoup pack I received from Lori Anderson, as well.... so plenty to choose from. Plus I could always add in some 'regular' beads in bright spring colors, too ;)  I guess we won't know what I'll choose to toss in until we reach my goal of another 10 entries ;)

Of course, I *might* be willing to take suggestions ;) If there's something you'd really like to see added in next, leave a comment and it might just sway my decision next round ;) And you can suggest stuff I haven't mentioned here as well, such as ribbons or findings with a flower or spring theme... or none beading stuff.  If I'm in a good place in my head at the time, I might just see what I can do :)  

 By the way... did any of you take part in LimaBeads Easter Egg hunt this year?  Wow.. that new site is MASSIVE! Apparently they hid 100 Easter eggs, PLUS 3 golden eggs scattered throughout the site. After two days of eyestrain, I reached the amazing number of 50 .. which gave me four prizes, one of which was a coupon code. That 50th egg took FOREVER to find >.<  I searched that entire site from the store right through to the blog and the about pages...I have no clue where the other 50 are stashed and I finally gave up even considering looking for them. I did find one golden egg, but I was too late to nab the prize for finding it (I actually found the same egg twice...I did that a lot >.< lol).

Yes I had fun playing with the Green Bead Machine watching it's sales getter better or flip over every five minutes.. and yes I did nab a few items from that at an average of about 15% off the cost. When I called it quits on the hunt and put in my order, I had about sixty bucks worth of beads ... but since half of it was prize winnings and discounted goodies, my total was just under twenty bucks! Even the stuff I gave in and bought 'full price', I got discounted with the coupon code I won  :D hehehe ! So the only thing I 'really' paid full price on was the shipping ... which was just shy of eight bucks.

So I had a lot of fun browsing the site, playing with the Green Bead Machine, adding to my 'wish list', and making Fresh Pick selections ( like 'treasuries' on etsy where you put together selections of items to your own little theme :) ) ... plus winning lots of pretties :)

The hunt is still on so go check it out! Lima Beads Easter Egg Hunt .It ends on the 8th I believe, but you only need 10 eggs to win the first prize level ( so far .. but because it was so difficult this year they've already begun adding in new prize levels, so that might change!). you DO have to pay for shipping, so depending on where you are, you might not think it's worth it. Me, paying eight bucks for three strands of free gemstones... even if I hadn't bought anything else to go with them, totally worth it :) For those in the US, it might be even cheaper... if you're overseas.... probably not worth it ;) lol

 And yeah, I'll probably share a pic of my goodies when they arrive ;)  

Oh, and if you're wondering what I caved in and bought at full price... skulls, of course :) They actually have the skulls in the size I wanted! ( I think... at least according to the size comparison chart, they are ;) lol ) would've liked a string in black but I didn't see them .. at least not after I'd decided to buy them.. and I forgot to go back and look again. Oh well, I still have one more coupon to use so I might just have to place another order later on ;)

Remember to watch that 'number of entries' digit at the top of Rafflecopter and when it reaches 20... I'll add in more goodies :)
(*NOTE*  I'm trying something new here... I'm reposting the raffle widget on THIS page so you don;t have to travel back to the older post to enter if you haven't :) See? I'm making it EASIER on you guys! :D.  )

Sunday, April 1, 2012

sharing the love

Hello :)

As I mentioned in my last post, my challenges have been busted due to illness. I did complete one pair of earrings but... not gonna bother sharing a pic of them today :)
Nope.. today I decided to share some of my favorite blogs to read.

First up we have Anvil Artifacts.
I found this blog by some random link hopping during one day of boredom. I'd got a giggle out of a comment she'd left on another blog and decided to follow her home... So glad I did :) Her blog posts are always fun, packed with photos of her own work as well as others and the last photo in line is always something ... 'interesting' .. lol
I own a pair of her earrings :) Beautiful green-patina copper pieces that are just so nice :) I won them from her ;) I couldn't find a link to a picture of them though, and I'm too lazy right now to take a pic myself to share ... so instead I'll show you a pic of my favorite pair that's still available for sale in her shop :)
The Mysterious Jewel Box by anvil artifacts - available in here




And I HAVE to share a pic of one of her diorama necklaces! I couldn't find a picture of my number one favorite...it's an underwater scene with two divers and one of them has a tentacle wrapped around his leg ;)  The bigfoot one is really cute too :)  These are sort of a two-in-one deal...you get a gorgeous necklace...then you flip it open.. and get this! Hmm..I wonder if you could wear it flipped open? Because that would be like having two necklaces... the fun 'open' one... and the beautiful 'closed' one :)
 
Day at the Beach by anvil artifacts - available here




 Anyhow, here is her blog addie & Esty shop address, so be sure to visit! 

Anvil Artifacts -Blog 
                       - Etsy


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 Next up we have Fanciful Devices ... this is actually the blog I followed Anvil's link from ;) And guess what? I found HER blog by following her link from Sparrow Salvage's blog :) ( another great blog you should visit!)
Fanci's blog is another one that's always chocked full of beautiful photos of her work and that of others. She's always left me in awe over how effortless she takes random 'things' and turns them into gorgeous jewelry! And she's now started to sell tutorials... incredibly detailed and well laid out tutorials ( one of which I'm trying to buy by paypal and etsy aren't liking each other much today... either that or neither of them are liking my card >.< )


Here is a couple of my faves from her shop. She's made so many beautiful things... and I ADORE her bangle stacks ( that's the tute I'm attempting to buy ;) ). I love the Egyptian feeling these give me...she makes no mention of an Egyptian influence or inspiration, but that's what they make me think of :)
Of Bondage by fanciful devices-available here


Oddly enough... so does this necklace...it's sort of makes me think of a simplifies Ankh... or maybe it's a combination of the piece and her 'model'? lol I love that thing... she did such a fabulous job on it and it shows off her creations wonderfully :)

Much Beyond  by fanciful devices - available here
Here are her addresses... make sure to go check her out :) you won't regret it!

Fanciful Devices - Blog
                          - Etsy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

While Fanciful Devices & Anvil Artifacts are pretty much strictly jewelry/components/ life happenings in their blogs, Shaiha's Ramblings offers more of a variety :) 


necklace & photo by Shaiha
While Shaiha does post photos of her jewelry... such as this hand-knotted pearl necklace using AA Black Pearls and Crystals that she made for the Spring Fashionista Event ... (and since I won it, I'm anxiously haunting my mailbox ;) ) ,  her blog is more open to all aspects of her life. She does tons of book reviews ( thanks to which my 'find & read' list has reached  rarely-seen-before lengths ) , and shares the 'beautiful things' that happened in her week to help her keep focused on the bright side :)

I found Shay's blog thanks to Lori McDaniel Anderson's 4th BSBP, in which we were partners :) 

Shaiha does not have a shop, but you can find her blog here .  She also has a second blog where she JUST reviews adult books ;) You can find the link in her profile...I'm making you visit her to find it :p lol


~~~~~

Okay ... now this is next one is not jewelry or bead related at all.

I actually found it through a giveaway link back.. and have been hooked ever since. Boobies, Babies & a Blog  is a mother's rant and rave where she shares all the ups and downs... and embarrassments... of having children. I've sympathized with and helped reassure her through panic attack blog posts about her children's health... and laughed uproariously over her revelations concerning her teen age son and his... happenings ;)  and of course, one of my favorite features are her ' Sh#T the Boss Says' posts ... the Boss is her five year old... and some of the things that he comes up with... true genius... or hilarity lol

But she doesn't JUST chat .. no... she also does the odd product review... oh, and Boobies is seriously addicted to hosting giveaways. She's done a large variety of items, from scarves, to purses, to giftcards.... to sex toys. She tends to do the sex shop giveaways most often, I think. I keep tossing my name into the hat for about three quarters of her giveaways, but as of yet, my lucky number hasn't come up.


And you're damn right I enter her sexy ones ;) Every time it's open to international! lol

BWS tips button


Boobies,Babies & a Blog    - blog


~~

So there are a few of the blogs I enjoy reading :)  I hope you pop in and visit them and perhaps get hooked as well :) 

Maybe I'll share some more later on :) In the mean time, don't forget to enter the 4th Freebie Friday draw! For every TEN entries I receive I'm adding another little batch of beads and such to the pot!

~ Skye