Merry (Early) Christmas!

Sorry about such a long break, but finals,packing, finishing up holiday shopping and all that jazz does take up a lot of time. Speaking of holiday shopping; I treated myself early this Christmas and got a bamboo tablet, it' really nice but so different from paper and pencil...for now I might just use it for coloring. But it's one of my goals for the new year to increase my skills as an artist and never stop learning new things, which I have to thank everyone in my circle of blogging/Facebook beading friends  I feel like over that past year that I have improved so much thanks to all you.

This is  a really bad photo.....why am I using it?

Here have me looking artsy, No I don't have artist block.

I hope that everyone has a Happy Holiday and can enjoy with their loved ones and also I can't wait to see what the new brings us.

Thrift Store Finds

I had no classes yesterday, so I decide to go down town before hitting the books. I did geeky things; get coffee, hit up both the comic book store and finally check out the new thrift store. Let me put something out there, I love a good thrift store and a good hunt. Mostly because I enjoy finding something tacky that I can turn into something wearable. This is what I manged to find that I could work with... 

The necklace on top had really cute charms that looked liked oxidized metal but with the chain that was used it was really to busy for my tastes. Time to take that one apart. The earrings on the left were well...tacky to say the least. But the wooden beads in the middle gave a great idea, the same thing goes with the pair on the right, the charms are cute, but the both pair in my mind need to be a bit more "rustic".

Right, I took all the charms of the the necklace and basically turned them into a charm bracelet with some extra blue beads that I had laying around. I have no idea what I'm going to do with the chain though.....The earrings on the right I swapped out the blue beads with czech picasso seed beads and also added a third dangle to make it more aesthetically pleasing to the eye. The last pair I updated "Little Blue Bird"  with the wooded beads. Ta Da!

In other news: final week, right I have two finals and of course the first one is on Monday and the last one is on Friday. So I have to stay here all week.  

New Items in My Store.

I have had three sales in my Etsy store this week! *sqeee* Sorry about that, I'm really happy. But it reminded me that Christmas is almost two weeks away; it doesn't seem like it here. Anyways I'm restocking my store today, it's mostly earrings, but I'm also listing "Cute as a Button" and a new necklace called "Water Talisman." 

In other new, tonight is the T.A.R.D.I.S Christmas party, that I had to get a gift for the White Elephant gift exchange. I took the easy way out and wrote out a coupon for either a piece of artwork or jewelry design  related to Doctor Who, British culture, or sci fi.

Cute as a Button

Stupid finals! *Cough* Sorry about that I'm a bit stressed right now and busy which is why I haven't been on lately. The semester is coming to a close and that means of course: finals.

    Anyways, This is my latest design I call "Cute as a Button". If you go downstairs in my house you notice that we have about 3 round tins filled with buttons,just laying around begging to be used and most of the time I use the tack buttons in my wrap bracelets but what about the other ones? Well, a few sketches and cut up fingers later....

I'm thinking once I get back home for Christmas break I might make more these in different tones and shades. 

November Giveaway Challenge

Jasper's Gem blog offered this challenge up sometime in October, and I entered not thinking that I would win.(We Marcins tend to have horrible luck.) To my surprise I was one of the lucky 6 to actually win and be part of the challenge. Then I received my pieces: Pink and Sliver. Really!? My two least favorite colors to work with together in one piece. I didn't really mind the sliver it was mostly the pink Swarovski crystal beads, I prefer something a bit more rustic. But that's why they call it a challenge, right? I went though about 3 different design ideas before I came up with one that I liked. 

My final product is Miss Bubbles, I believe that she got into the champagne and that's why she is blowing pink bubbles.

 Anyways head over to Jasper's Gem Blog to see everyone's work. (I might post it on here later): http://www.jasper-moon.ca/JaspersGemsBlog.htm

Also! If you have time stop by Artisan Whimsy         (http://artisanwhimsy.ning.com/page/berries-leaves-challenge) and check out everyone's work. There's no voting this time but still everyone has done an amazing job for this challenge. (like always)

Artisan Whimsy's Berries and Leaves Challenge

I guess Artisan Whimsy is now doing a challenge once a month now? Yay! Anyways this time around it's berries and leaves. (Duh)
For this challenge I made a pair of earrings I call "The 
Winter Queen's Earrings", made from lampwork leaf headpins that wrap around two native picasso mix czech glass seed beads. They are the cousin to my other earrings: Prometheus's flame.
They're fitting because we had our first snow up here yesterday, even if it was just for two hours and theses earrings remind me of the leaves touched with with first frost and crystallized blueberries.

Link:  http://artisanwhimsy.ning.com/page/berries-leaves-challenge

Thanksgiving Break Wrap Up

New season of MLP:FiM started meaning
 I have to get up early on Saturdays 

Hey I'm back! I was really busy, I believe that my household is the only one in which that the night that you come home, you end up making turkey cookies for your younger brother class, and when you bring them in, the little kids think that you are his mother....I do not look that old! *Cough* Anyways the rest of the holiday when smooth....I can not finish this sentence. Any holiday with my family doesn't go smoothly, but it was nice to see everyone. 

Fun stuff: I had Earl Grey and Lavender infused tea cakes. They were yummy but the earl grey could have been stronger. The only reason that it tasted like earl grey was because I knew it was earl grey.  

I have been working on my portfolio for entrance to Penn State's school of visual arts......I'm going into art education. Thankfully they accept jewelry so that's most likely going to be about half of mine. Here's some of the pieces that I have picked out so far:

                                            Of course I will have to take better pictures of them.......Later.

Also I was working on jewelry, I made two rings that are currently drying at my house.

"Lava Hunter" and Beach Comber" I have to thank Christi Friesen of CF Originals for the idea. I will talk about these in more detail once they are done drying and I'm back home....so Christmas break?

Also new earrings! "Little Hooters" and "Tribal Gears"

Long post this time, thankfully lots of photos. On a final note; come check me out on DA, I just signed up. I'll mostly be reposting my jewelry but also my artwork will be on there as well. 

http://camellia-musetta.deviantart.com/

Caffeine Goddess

Allow me this moment to sing praises to the Caffeine Goddess and all here glory. Because apparently a week before Thanksgiving break means "let's give the students a ton of work due both before and during break." Also I really didn't want to go to class today and I had to finish packing last night because of course I'm going home over break. Most of the time I prefer tea but on days like this I have to pull out the big guns....Coffee. But work will not stop me from being creative, nope. I had some left over random rainbow bead soup(yes that's what I'm calling it) from my birdie necklace, and decide to use it up in a bracelet. Also I was on a roll and finally used the lampwork flower that I got down in Williamsburg,Virginia a year ago. The last one I made during a T.A.R.D.I.S meeting. Also had an interesting talk about chain mail with another member. If any one is interested I can post a link to her Etsy store. Anyways pictures......

I have been making a lot bracelets lately, I think it's time to create some other types. Final note, as I stated earlier I'm going home over break so that means that mostly likely (no guarantees) that I will not be posting anything next week or at least on Thanksgiving. Ohh!!! Something else the highlight of my week: Trying to explain Thanksgiving to my friend from Urban Gaming Club: Rory, who is British.

Bead Diet

I have a new goal, I'm trying to use up my old beads that I own and not buy any new ones.(Wish me luck with that last part.) Though I now look at the beads that I bought years ago, and wonder what was I thinking?! I have a lot of plasticity and cheap looking beads that I would never put in my jewelry now. Of course I was around 15 when I bought them, but still it seems right now to me to be a waste of money. Yet not all of them are completely useless, I found a bunch of brown goldstone beads and some decent orange "natural-looking" beads.
So what to I do kick off this goal? Random, colorful, bead soup necklace! Of course.
As a heads up I got the adorable birdie pendent from Lisa Lodge in one of her bead mixes.

Southern Girl's Giveaway

One of the many blogs that I follow is having a giveaway, all you have to is post about were your favorite vacation spot is. Mine? I was torn between Maine and New Mexico.
http://southerngalsdesign.blogspot.com/2012/11/im-back-with-giveaway.html?showComment=1352658609622#c838367754906875659

This is what you can win: