Angelas Diner

Sat around on a rainy Saturday working on a seed bead rope that will feature this really cool large bead…. here’s a pic of the tray i work from (really cool old wood tray with two sections, you can barely see it under the beadstuff) and a close up of the bead.   This necklace will be going to the gallery with me on Saturday for the August show…..I’m gallery sitting Saturday afternoon; it is supposed to rain, so if you want to visit, it would be a great day to come by.

I have just posted this necklace on Etsy… it’s my newest idea for the water droplet beads.  I’m itching to torch, and the weather is just starting to warm up now….  I want to make more of these, in all different colors.  I love the liquid feeling of the glass - and the contrast between etched and shiny.

tonight i went back into the studio after a full day and put on an eric clapton greatest hits cd….. i wanted to hit the bead stash and do something with the most recent beads… here’s the cool earrings i came up with (finished them while Layla was playing)   

interesting shape with the sterling wire, huh?  they are rather longish, and kind of funky, but i think i’ll wear them to the gallery opening tomorrow night…. here’s the pic of my full workspace, see the cool pinks&grey necklace i have going on in the background?  I need to make more clear beads to finish that one off, look for it either as a replacement for sold this month, or in the january show.

Yesterday afternoon I set up in the basement of the Kent Performance Hall in Westerly - the gallery was invited to show during a Musica Dolce concert that is tonight.  The basement of the hall, a former church, is dingy and old.   The paintings and art, along with all the decorations, really brought life to it… here are a few pics of my own display.  First, a couple of close ups, and then a further away shot - you can really see the clutter!  I am going to take a couple of cloths I have to help “disguise” the tower of postal boxes that look as if they could tumble down onto my table at any moment!

i took a class today at The Bead House in Bristol - we learned how to make our own findings such as clasps, and earwires. my work is on the cream colored cloth…. and the instructor’s samples are on the black show pad… Kim is a fun teacher - and was good at helping all of us, even if we were at different skill levels. I’m going to practice a bit more with less expensive wire before using my sterling, but I’m at a very comfortable place workwise — I’m looking forward to moving up a notch by creating my own elegant yet simple sterling findings.

if you click the pics, you’ll see everything in greater detail… it really is a great class to take

There is an artist here in my state, and I am a big fan of his work- CW Roelle.

I’m using this image with his permission….. I just saw an ad in a local magazine — he’s going to have an exhibit November 2 - December 1 right here in Providence. His own website has many many more pictures, as well as in the gallery section on Flickr. If you are in the RI area, I REALLY encourage you to go up to Wickenden St. and see the exhibit. While you’re there, you can grab a bite to eat at the Brickway on Wickenden (love their omelet that has the tomatoes, spinach, and feta) and then hit Utrecht if all the exposure to local art has got you itching to create something.

As for me, my fingers need to make jewelry, but my soul wants to melt glass. <sigh> Off I go to the jewelry studio (NPR, and Chai tea) today, saving the beads for a day when I’m not so drained from the daily grind.

I sat and worked kumihimo while watching the Junior Varsity field hockey team win another game!! 3-0, and they are undefeated for the whole season - woot!

Now I know, you are bursting with the question, what is kumihimo? Well, here’s a kumihimo cord that holds a funky beady pendant that I made just a little bit ago.

Made this one a little while back, when it was still midsummer. It was in the mid 80’s today which was why I brought this up — doesn’t this remind you of beach glass? Or drops of water? The combination of both transparent and opaque glass gives this both weight and lightness. I plan to make more beads and jewelry in this style, alternating the discs and the beads, stringing it on silk, knotting it…. I want to vary the shape of the discs as well. Not everything is perfect. In fact, when you really think about it, not much really is.