A project for this week...

I've been finishing a stack of beads that I made earlier this week and am beginning to upload them to the shop. One of the projects on my to do list has been to find the right background set up that is neutral enough to accommodate several different styles and is also portable. In the past, I've used ceramic tiles, a rusty old white chair, and a worn out table. I never dug the way the photos looked on the tile, and the rusty chair and worn out table weren't portable in that they stayed outside all the time so if there was rain, it made it difficult to shoot photos.

The worn out table is getting really worn out. The other day, I tried to drag it into better light and one of the legs began to crumble away so I decided it was finally time to come up with a more permanent solution.

I pondered all of the different solutions: nice scrapbook paper, my stash of handmade paper, old books etc. but I really wanted something that was mine all mine, and differentiated my work from other's work out there, especially in the glut of mixed media work that is on Etsy already.

So, I decided to paint my own background.

I painted 2 base pieces for shooting pieces flat. Then I also painted several small blocks to match that I could stack and get a bit of height for laying out finished pieces or leaning pendants.





I painted to base pieces so that there was extra room to butt them together if I needed more space or alternatively, I can prop one up to make a wall behind if need be.



I'm really pleased with how the first batch of shots turned out and I'm digging the finish I put on them. I feel like the careful consideration and all the trial and error up to this point was worth it.



*Little tip, make sure you use a matte paint or else you'll still get a glare. Use decorator acrylics, or if you're using nice acrylics, mix in a bit of cheap craft store acrylic to matte it down a bit.

There are some new things in the shop today and a few more over the next couple days to come as well. Be sure subscribe to my RSS feed on Etsy to stay up to date or become my friend on Facebook.

Thursday update and randomness...

I've uploaded a few new pieces to the Erudite Collection and there's still more to come but I sort of lost my steam today. I have about 6 more sets/pieces photographed and ready to edit and list and another batch waiting to be faceted/finished/polished/drilled/photographed/listed.

Onto some randomness:

*As much as I love them, the carved nuggets are a b*itch to facet. It is killer on my hands so I have to do it in small bunched before my pointer finger goes numb.

*Thank you ever so much for your kind words on this post. It helps me to know that there are some other ladies out there who feel like H.R. Puffnstuff in their current wardrobe.

*There are several things I won't give up for any diet, chief among them, my morning cup of strong-ass coffee with real (albeit organic, because the organic is better tasting and better for you IMHO) and real 1/2 & 1/2. What's the sense is using the fat free crap if you have to use twice as much??? ummmm, hello? Plus, that list of ingredients is enough to make one's head spin.

*Mulling over some fun tutorials for le blog. After reading this post, and this post
I wanted to expand on some fun ideas that have been swimming around in my noggin after the last tutorial I did.

*I'm off to eat good ol' fashioned southern food across the street. Yeah, I know I'm on a diet but it's auction night so I ain't cooking and I've been so, so good, and saving up for it all day.....

Out of the Nest and a SALE.....

I just love it when happy customers send me photos of my beads all grown up and out of the nest. A few came in recently and I thought I would share them with you....




Erica made this lovely necklace with one of my Joy tabs! I'm not currently producing the joy tabs, but if you want one, feel free to email or convo me and I can whip one up.



Lettie from For Giving Works made a couple of gorgeous necklaces with my wings. This one is available in her shop. Wings in Blue & White are available here.



Dawn at Northern Adornments sent me this lovely photo of one of the pieces from the Breeze Collection worked up with some lovely simple chainmaille. Pretty! Speaking of the Breeze Collection. I've discounted it from normal price and you can find lots of pieces (some not before listed!) on sale in the shop right now!



And last but certainly not least, is Rebecca from Songbeads! Whoah! Have you checked out her blog??? I just found it in the last month or so and I am in lurrrrrrv. I've found some amazing new blogs lately and hers is right up there. And I was all puffed up like a peacock when I found out she was a customer!

As I mentioned above, there is a wee clearance sale going on in the shop right now. I'm wanting to tidy it up, reshoot photos, and add some new pieces. So, all the Whisper & Breeze Collections are on CLEARANCE. Most are 40% off or more. And for my readers, save an additional 10% off when you use code CLEARANCESALE0111 at checkout. If you don't see anything in the clearance section, feel free to use the coupon on anything!

You were born with wings

new speckled eggs available in the etsy shop


Going through my stuff in my constant desire to purge and simplfy, I found some projects from my metals classes in college. I took several metals classes, as electives, after discovering that a drawing minor would eat up any opportunity to do something other than draw.

It is actually fairly fortuitous that I came to these classes late in my college career because at that point, I was already developing themes in my work and it was interesting to see the themes carry over into different media naturally without thought or planning.

a sandwiched pendant with riveting, acetate, and stamped words from metals class

Birds were something I latched onto right away. There were very strong themes of home, creating a home, and what it meant to be a modern female operating in today's society at that time, in my work. I have always struggled with these roles and the passing years have eased my angst on the subject. I realize now that it is less of something to be defined and more of embracing my own individuality and creating my own paradigm.

a domed birdcage pendant I made, this may have been metals II

interior with feathers and etching

After years of struggling through the post college amphora of identity and career, it is wildly satisfying to see how my work has come full circle and still embraces many of the themes that I followed so many years ago (can it be almost 8 years????)

now I've come full circle, now I've come HOME



How it has now changed and taken shape and how I have found the wings I've been seeking all these years.


You were born with potential

You were born with goodness and trust

You were born with ideals and dreams

You were born with greatness

You were born with wings

You are not meant for crawling, so don't

You have wings

Learn to use them and fly!

~Rumi

RED ALERT!!!!! GRATITUDE!!!!

GRATITUDE SALE for Friday 11/26- 11/29

Everything in the shop is 25% off!!!!

Plus FREE SHIPPING!!!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I AM SO VERY THANKFUL...

Use code HOLIDAY2010 at checkout to save!

Shop updates

There is FREE WORLDWIDE STANDARD SHIPPING in the shop now through the end of the year! I'll also be offering some special coupon codes for the holiday so check back later in the week for that!



Now on to some of the updates.....

Grow Egg Charms

Triple hole key focal
Triple hole lace focal
Sacred Key Necklaces for the Erudite Collection
Whisper Collection - Word Charms
Cork Studs



Go here to see all of them!

Home-ly Owl Giveaway RESULTS!

You know what I realized? When I don't put the word giveaway in the blog title, I get a lot fewer comments...no worries, the odds are better for those of you who did comment!

Hey, also, I'm not giving away 2 sets of owls but 4! I found 2 more sets in my to be polished bowl so y'all are in serious luck.

And your comments?

They were all so rad and so, so kind, and I couldn't choose...

So...I went outside and plucked some lovely pecan tree leaves and wrote everyone's name upon them.....





and put them in the bowl.....




and plucked out not 2, as previously mentioned, but 4 names! woohoo!


and the winners are....

Marie of Skye Jewels

Alice!<
Sara! Sara is a childhood friend of mine and one of my first jewelry customers.

But WAIT! look at that! How RAD is that?! There's a heart on Sara's leaf? Gotta love nature.

and last, but certainly not least is,

Miss Lorelei!


So, Please email me secondsurf{AT}gmail{DOT}com if I don't have your info! And you're about to get some homely owls.

Shop update.....

A more involved piece with a bird of my own and a charm I ordered from moreskyjewels
nuggets in earrings!
nuggets with lots of old keys I picked up while junking in PA when I was home last
stamped pieces in polymer and the bezel technique from Stephanie Lee's book


As you all can probably tell, my mojo has been a little absent lately, but it's back BABY. and I've updated the shop. I'm also thrilled to be making and patinating almost all of my own findings now. I'm still using up the remnants of my stash, but I'm planning to use and patinate all of my own findings now or buy only artisan types from some of the other great girls out there who have all those awesome patinas that I just don't want to invest in. It helps me feel more of a connection to everything I make.

I upgraded my torch from just a micro to a cheapy propane and eventually I want to get the mixed tank with a nice torch handle but for now it is just me and mr. cheapo propane and my now repurposed creme brullee torch, since I don't need to making or eating creme brullee and really, I never really made it that often anyhow.

I'll be back later on today to reveal the winners of my homely owls. :)

Erudite Collection....

erudite er′yo̵̅o̅ dīt′adj
having or showing extensive scholarship; learned
[from Latin ērudītus, from ērudīre to polish, from ex-1 + rudis unpolished, rough]

The new Erudite Collection is a collection of rough hand-faceted polymer clay pieces fashioned into wearables. I was really inspired by Diane Hawkey's faceted ceramic nuggets that she sent me in the Bead Soup Party and before that time, I had already been contemplating a new ready to wear jewelry line that incorporated faceted pieces of some kind. I'm getting ready for Indie Craft Parade and I wanted to have a bunch of one of a kind affordable pieces on hand to sell there.

Part of my love affair with polymer clay is taking standard items like tribal fetishes, stones, netsuke and translating them into polymer clay. Polymer clay is such a versatile medium and I leave the mokume gane and canework and complicated things to the polymer clay masters. I am, by my own admission, not a polymer clay master. I couldn't make a cane to save my life and I don't really care to!

I use polymer clay as an extension of my creative process. I could be using any medium, so long as I achieve the aesthetic I set out to get. For me, I have developed a process which I like to follow. For polymer clay, it is sculpting, carving, painting, sanding, polishing.... It is focused and therapeutic to an extent. I use these same process over and over but often the work speaks to me and asks me to change.... Sometimes it asks me to stop and think and reexamine. Should you carve after you paint? Should you carve after the baking/firing?

I've come to realize that I'm very much a process oriented artist. I think that process art gets a bad name sometimes. Sometimes, people associate that those who make process oriented art do not care about its outcome. I think that is untrue. The outcome IS important to me and through the process, I reach this state, where the process is finished and the outcome is apparent. It is very similar to Wabi-Sabi. One accepts the impermanence of all creation or that this piece is finished for this maker.....

What is your aesthetic? How do you work?

The above pieces are currently available for purchase in the shop.

A (wee) shop update....

Hello all!

Well, all of the updating that I hoped to do this week has fallen a bit by the wayside given the heat and well, life...But I did add two new regular additions to the Breeze Collection today.

Originally, I made this pendant as a one of a kind and it was the touchstone for the entire Breeze Collection. The lovely customer bought the necklace and loved it so much that she has requested a matching bracelet. So was born the matching barrel bead as well as me offering these beads for sale. When I made the focal again, I fell in love all over again. I like the persimmon and white combination because you can add so many other colors into the necklace given it's clean, fresh beachy feel.... soft greens, blues, and others without being obtrusive....

I hope you all like it! Don't forget there is FREE SHIPPING in the shop until August 8....

Going to try this weekend to get the shop stocked up fer-reals....After that, it is going to be a struggle. I've got a show to prepare for, a trip home to see the fam, and the mister's fam here in the meantime.

One more Grab Bag Left!

There's only one grab bag left in the shop! Want to snag it while there is FREE SHIPPING?

FREE SHIPPING

Hey y'all! I'm just stopping in to let you know there is FREE SHIPPING all this week in the shop, through next Sunday evening. I'm prepping for Indie Craft Parade in a little over the month, plus a visit home to see the family and I want to clear out some of the old inventory and raise a little more fundage for my trip.

Also, the bead grabs that are in the shop are all that I'll be selling for now. There are 3 left. Thanks to all of you who have purchased them! It really helps clean up my bead box and you get to score some pretty rad stuff for cheapy-cheap.

Also, I will uploading new beads and some finished pieces all this week to the shop. There will be new additions to the Breeze and Whisper Collections. The Breeze beads will go up first with the Whisper beads to follow later on in the week. I'll keep you posted.

Customer Love!

I just love it when my dear sweet customers send me photos of the jewelry they make with my beads! I am in complete awe of their skills! I am continually amazed by all of the collective creativity that is out there in the universe and that I am just a small part of it. How amazingly different all of our talents are!

Here is some of the beauty that has come across my path recently:




Stephanie of Springdream sent me these photos of the necklace that she made with a bird bead that she bought in one of my grab bags! Isn't it gorgeous!? I just love the way the brown distressing of the bird works with the wood and lucite flower.

You can find more about Steph here:

Etsy. Facebook. Website.

And another dear customer Elaine, of Elaine's Jewelry shop shared with me these gorgeous pieces. I love the subtle detail that Elaine imparts to her work. She is very intuitive to each piece. All of these are for sale in her Etsy shop. Aren't they amazing? I love her shop headline which reads, Treasured Heirlooms that last a lifetime.





Make sure to visit Elaine's Etsy shop and see all of her beautiful designs.

I can't believe these lovely ladies made these with my beads!

Stopping in....

Hey friends! Just stopping by to do a few updates. Let's see:

1)If you signed up for my giveaway, please check to see if you were a winner. I'm still waiting to hear from 2 of the 3 winners. I will wait through July 9th to hear from the other two, otherwise I will draw again! :(

2)I've discontinued a bunch of items in the shop. Owls, birds, and more are GONE for regular purchase! However, I've brought back my BEAD GRAB BAGS to deplete some of my existing stock.

For $20 you get a grab bag of 10 beads. And a little birdie told me that there might be owls and birds in there.....Check out the details here....

3)I also have two new collections. The Breeze Collection is currently up in the shop where I'm adding to it daily! The second collection is under wraps for now ;) and will get a big reveal in the very near future.

4) I'm working on a completely new website and hope to introduce it by the end of the summer. It will be a cohesive site with a shopping cart, blog, and information all in one. I'm really excited about it!

Aloha,
b.

blog soup giveaway delay

Hi friends! I had it in my head that I was doing my giveaway this morning and I'm a little behind. When I checked the post I realized I was supposed to do it YESTERDAY morning so I'm even more behind than I thought. Don't worry though, I'll be back later on today to do the reveal of the winner! And I may even have a little something else to give away with it!

Stay Tuned!

It's Finally MY Turn to serve SOUP!

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My day has finally arrived. MY turn FINALLY to unveil my blog soup! I hope you all aren't too full from all of the beautiful soup that's already been unveiled!!!

As a recap, My partner was Diane Hawkey, and we were quite suited to each other, I think. There is a similar vein to our work. We both make beads, and the beads, while different, share a similar vision, I feel.

Diane has already unveiled her piece. It's so amazing, because while we both chose different roads and the outcomes are different, there was a singular mindset taking place. Diane described her thought process as making a piece that wanted to be touched like a talisman. I also felt the same way about the pieces she sent me, but rather than make a long piece, which doesn't flatter my frame, I chose to make shorter pieces that can be held close to the heart.

Inspiration from the first piece:

Handmade ceramic beads, made by Diane, made up the majority of the beads she sent me. These pieces are so weighty, begging to be close to you. The aqua focal, Grow, just spoke to me. I wanted to make a substantial piece, that I could feel next to my skin, and reminded me of just that sentiment. I added the small tibetan chimes to the bottom, so I could actually HEAR it, reminding me that growth takes movement. Going confidently in the direction of your dreams, even when it is uncomfortable.

Inspiration from the second piece:

The second piece has a peachy pink sunrise, which also reminds me of a lotus. I added one of my small stamped charms, reading HOPE. It reminds me, just as the sun dawns, and the lotus in Buddhism, that although the world is sometimes rooted in ugliness, each day dawns anew and the lotus blooms, and the opportunity is there to make beauty everyday. The lotus flower both blooms and simultaneously sheds it old blossoms.


And, while I plan on being completely selfish and keeping these two amazing pieces for myself to wear, I took the remainder of Diane's faceted nuggets (which I totally wanted to keep ;) that she sent me, combined them with a bead of my own and made a wonderful piece to share for one lucky blog reader.

So, to enter to win the green branch piece, please do the following:

A) you must comment on this post.
B) you must answer in your comment, "What makes your world beautiful?"
C) You can enter more than once by tweeting, facebooking on a fan page (not on your personal page), or blogging about my giveaway, AND and telling me so here, in a separate comment. If you tweet it, there is no need to mention a specific URL, just make sure you @mention @2ndsurf in your tweet.

D) I will draw a winner on Sunday morning, June 27, after the finish of Bead Soup Party.

p.s. you don't have to be a blog soup party member to join, just enjoying the ride!

Here are the rest of day five soupers!

48. Nan,Spirit Rattles
49. Amy, Copper Diem
50. Malin, Beading by Malin de Koning
51. Anne, Gardanne Glass Lampwork
52. Alice, Alice's Beads and Baubles
53. Barbara, Second Surf
54. Amanda, Articulations
55. Heather, Humble Beads
56. Melissa, Melissa Meman, Art, Life, Love
57. Kate, Organic Odysseys
58. Patti, PJ Clark Designs
59. Stefanie, Stefanie's Sammelsurium




Thank you to Lori Anderson for organizing such a wonderful blog party! I'm so grateful for all the friends I've made and the amazing inspiration I've witnessed! ♥