Challenge of Travel Blog Hop

It seems the only way I can get myself to actually PHOTOGRAPH and POST pics of my work is to participate in a blog hop.  So, when Erin of Tesori Trovati Jewelry  posted on her blog, Treasures Found - Inspiration is Everywhere about the upcoming Challenge of Travel Blog Hop, I signed myself up.  We got to choose our region and country.  I immediately choose Japan.

Now, those of you that know my style or have seen my house don't think of traditional Japan.  But, I wasn't thinking of traditional Japanese style.  I went right to contemporary Japanese Pop Culture.

I visited Tokyo for 10 days in 2005.  While we visited some historical sites, the most memorable parts of our trip were focused on pop culture and food (oh the glorious food!).  We spent days (and nights) at Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Seas, The Ghibli Museum, shopping in Shibuya and Shinjuku, spotting Harajuku girls, seeing underground pop bands, shopping at places like Tokyu Hands, the Kitchen District and the amazing and wondrous department stores.  Oh, and the vending machines!  I put many a coin in those vending machines.

(Photo from 8Tokyo.com)

No one, no where, does pop culture like the Japanese.....and I adore it all.  The odd thing about my love of Japanese Pop Culture is that I am pretty much CLUELESS about American Pop Culture.  But, I find all things "Kawaii" (ie" Super Cute in Japanese) to be amazing.  The bold (and extravagant) use of color and pattern is way out of my comfort zone (and I'm not shy) and minimalism is an unknown commodity.   Harajuku Cosplay has gotten quite popular in the US recently and it is amazing and inspiring to see in person.  There's a whole Flickr Group devoted to Harajuku fashion.

So, that's where I started - with Japanese Pop Culture and a bunch of stuff from my stash.    Luckily, i have a ton of vintage lucite, lots of plastic, some toys from Japan and lots of other beads to work with from my ever-growing vintage (ie: hoarder) collection.  It didn't start out to be as easy as I thought it would be, however.  I've been working mostly with art beads, fibers, leather and other more "earthy" elements lately. Apparently, I've toned down my style!  I made, tore apart, re-made, tore apart my first piece several times - and it is still my least favorite piece of the trio I ended up with.  But then, I got my groove back and I went a little nuts.  So, yes, there are 3 pieces here (and I really could have made more).  Oh, and I'm still futzing with photography.  And by futzing, I mean cussing.

Here's my first (and more sedate) piece.  The colors are so not me.  I must have been channeling Martha Stewart here.  But, the vintage lucite, the plastic flowers, the My Elements rubber rings and the sweet blue owls are lots of fun.

Then I went nuts.  Plastic dinosaurs from earrings I used to wear in 1984, more plastic flowers, a string devil doll, a Gloomy Bear from a Japanese vending machine capsule, more vintage lucite, random glass flowers, more My Elements stash, and - oh look - a couple of Elaine Ray art beads.

My last piece was more gothic inspired with a Disney twist.  I seem to have quite a collection of Little Green Men (from Toy Story).  I got most of these in Japan and, while I haven't been wearing them lately, I seem to never trow anything out.  So, these guys got mixed with vintage American vending machine baubles, more vintage lucite, My Elements plastics and rubber and some (almost eatable) vintage glass beads.

I'm just crazy enough that I will wear 2 our of 3 of these.  Martha Stewart can have the pastel bracelet. ;)


There are 59!!! bloggers on this blog hop.  It may take be a few days but I will visit each and ever one of these sites.  Enjoy your own journey!

Lisa

Name	Blog	Region Chosen	Inspiration Nation
Monique Urquhart	http://ahalfbakednotion.blogspot.ca/	Africa	Burkina Faso
Niky Sayers	http://silverniknats.blogspot.co.uk/	Africa	Egypt
Therese Frank	http://www.theresestreasures59.blogspot.com	Africa	Kenya
Raychelle Heath	http://abeadloveaffair.blogspot.com/	Africa	Lesotho
Joan Williams	www.lilrubyjewelry.wordpress.com	Africa	Mauritania
Sherri Stokey	http://www.KnotJustMacrame.com	Africa	Senegal
Regina Santerre	http://reginaswritings.blogspot.com	Africa	Seychelles
Raida Disbrow	http://havanabeads.blogspot.com	Africa	Tanzania
Kristi Wodek	http://livedinlife.blogspot.com	Africa	Zimbabwe
Sally Russick	http://www.thestudiosublime.com	Americas	Brazil
Melissa Trudinger	http://beadrecipes.wordpress.com	Americas	Mexico
Tracy Stillman	http://www.tracystillmandesigns.com	Americas	USA
Sandra Wolberg	http://city-of-brass-stories.blogspot.de	Asia	India
Tanya Goodwin	http://pixiloo.blogspot.com	Asia	Japan
Susan Kennedy	http://suebeads.blogspot.com	Asia	Japan
Beth Emery	http://storiesbyindigoheart.blogspot.com	Asia	Japan
Lisa Cone	http://inspiredadornments.blogspot.com/	Asia	Japan < Here U R!
Tanya Boden	http://fusionmusebangkok.blogspot.com/	Asia	Japan
Inge von Roos	http://ingetraud.wordpress.com	Asia	Laos
Erin Prais-Hintz	http://treasures-found.blogspot.com	Asia	Nepal
Dee Elgie	http://cherryobsidia.blogspot.com	Asia	Phillipines
Carolyn Lawson	http://carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com	Asia	South Korea
Lisa Stukel	http://carefreejewelrybylisa.blogspot.com	Asia	Sri Lanka
Elly Snare	http://themagicsquarefoundation.wordpress.com	Asia	Thailand
Shelley Graham Turner	http://www.shelleygrahamturner.blogspot.com	Europe	Austria
Mallory Hoffman	http://rosebud101-fortheloveofbeads.blogspot.com/	Europe	Bosnia Herzegovina
Paige Maxim	http://www.pmaximdesigns.blogspot.com	Europe	France
Jenny Davies-Reazor	http://www.jdaviesreazor.com/blog	Europe	Germany
Sharyl McMillian-Nelson	http://sharylsjewelry.blogspot.com	Europe	Greece
Evelyn Shelby	http://raindropcreationsbyevelyn.blogspot.com/	Europe	Iceland
Holly Westfall	http://silverrosedesigns.blogspot.com/	Europe	Ireland
Rebecca Siervaag	http://www.godsartistinresidence.blogspot.com	Europe	Ireland
Toltec Jewels	http://toltecjewels.blogspot.com	Europe	Ireland
Lee Koopman	http://StregaJewellry.wordpress.com	Europe	Ireland
Laren Dee Barton	http://larendeedesigns.blogspot.com	Europe	Italy
Cindy Wilson	http://www.mommysdreamcreations.blogspot.com	Europe	Norway
Kathleen Lange Klik	http://ModernNatureStudio.blogspot.com	Europe	Poland
Shaiha Williams	http://shaihasramblings.blogspot.com/	Europe	Portugal
Jennifer Justman	http://soulsfiredesigns.blogspot.com/	Europe	Romania
Elsie Deliz-Fonseca	http://ladelizchica.blogspot.com	Europe	Spain
Lola Surwillo	http://www.beadlolabead.blogspot.com	Europe	Sweden
Kim Hora	http://www.kimmykats.com	Europe	Switzerland
Leanne Loftus	http://firstimpressiondesign.blogspot.com	Europe	The Netherlands
Patti Vanderbloemen	http://myaddictionshandcrafted.blogspot.com	Europe	The Netherlands
Marcie Carroll	http://labellajoya.blogspot.com	Europe	Turkey
Marlene Cupo	http://amazingdesigns-marlene.blogspot.com	Oceania	Federated States of Micronesia
Ine Vande Cappelle	http://jewelsbyine.blogspot.com	Oceania	Fiji
Tammie Everly	http://ttedesigns.blogspot.com/	Oceania	Guam
Alice Peterson	http://www.alice-dreaming.blogspot.com	Oceania	Kiribati
Elisabeth Auld	http://www.beadsforbusygals.com	Oceania	Nauru
Susan McClelland	http://mistheword12.wordpress.com/	Oceania	New Zealand
D Lynne Bowland	http://islandgirlsinsights.blogspot.com	Oceania	New Zealand
Denielle Hagerman	http://somebeadsandotherthings.com	Oceania	New Zeland
Rebecca Anderson	http://songbeads.blogspot.com	Oceania	Papua New Guinea
Mischelle Fanucchi	http://micheladasmusings.blogspot.com/	Oceania	Samoa
Kari Asbury	http://hippiechickdesign.blogspot.com	Oceania	Solomon Islands
Cece Cormier	http://www.thebeadingyogini.com/	Oceania	Tonga
Emma Todd	http://www.apolymerpenchant.com	Oceania	Tuvalu
Debbie Price	http://greenshoot.blogspot.com	Oceania	Vanuatu

Jewelry Designs from Nature Challenge

A month or so ago, I was lucky enough to be chosen to an Art Bead Scene blog challenge.  The reveal date is today and I have my pretty necklace to share with you.  But first, a bit about this challenge and my inspiration.

The concept of the challenge was inspired by Heather Powers' awesome book Jewelry Designs from Nature and to celebrate now that it's out making its way into the big craft stores like Hobby Lobby and Michaels. .  (You can buy the book from one of my favorite stores - Ornamentea.)

I have spent literally HOURS thumbing through this book resulting in loads of inspiration for jewelry projects.  Heather uses some of her own amazing Humblebeads as well as lots of art beads from other artists.  It is a book that is right up my own alley.

10 winners were  sent a packet and had a few weeks to create a piece of jewelry inspired by their packets.  There will also be a voting for your favorite challenge piece during the blog hop with a giveaway of beads from the book!

The Challenge Packet Contents:

1. A few Humblebeads featured in the book
2. A nature-inspired poem
3. A photo for color and design inspiration

The packets will be themed and I could have gotten a garden, woodlands or sea set!  I ended up with a woodlands packet.  Whoo hoo!!!

It included a lovely photo, a woodlands-themed Humblebead pendant and a poem by Robert Frost.  Here's the poem:

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Robert Frost

Nature's first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold,

Her earl leaf's a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

Next to the crepuscular blue of twilight, the golden light of morning is my favorite (even though I don't see it very often - I'm NOT a morning person).

But, I am all to familiar to that fleeting sense of light that goes quickly from a soft glow to a the bright blue and orange of morning.  I DO see a lot of this harsher, but still invigorating light.  

My piece was meant to invoke the feeling of waking up at the crack of dawn and seeing nature unfold before my eyes.  The pale blues of the sky only serve to contrast with the golden light (and the golden buds on the tree branches in the picture.

I used a lot of czech glass, some vintage chain, a few lucite flowers and a patina butterfly that I created.  I love the way it turned out!  It's a piece that is much "prettier" than the pieces I've made lately.  

I'll have to come back tomorrow and add in a list of other blogs where artists are going to be showing off their creations.  Or you can visit the ABS blog and see if the links are up there.  Meanwhile, enjoy the fleeting bits of gold - because it cannot stay for very long.

Enjoy this blog hop.  I'm sure looking forward to it!

Lisa

Here are the participants!

Lisa Cone
Cece Comier
Amy Severino
Shelby Foxwell 
Alicia Marinache 
Keirsten Giles 
Marlene Brady
Marlene Cupo
Sharon Palac - coming soon

  

Glass Headpin Challenge Reveal!

Remember these lovely glass headpins?  I won a set during a giveaway over on Lorelei's Blog last month.  

The glass headpins were made by Anne of Gardanne Beads.   The headpins not only have a beautiful glass piece on one end, but a bead has been drawn on the other end of the pin.  What does "Drawing a Bead" mean?  Well, I've actually done this in my limited experience with torch firing enamel.  Basically, you torch the end of the metal, which melts into a lovely ball.  Here's a better picture that shows the ends of the headpins.

Normally, I would use a headpin to string beads on, but with the ball on one end, only large beads can fit.  But, I took one look at the head pins I got a decided I wasn't going to use them the traditional way.  

But, first, I needed to get out my torch, and draw some more beads on the end of a wire.  I was experimenting with some Blue Steel colored Parawire since the headpins I got were the blue one's on the left.  But Parawire doesn't seem to react to the flame the same way an uncoated wire does.

So, I went back to an uncoated copper wire and torched that.  That wire responded just like I thought it would and some lovely bead balls appeared on the ends.  (It is a bonus that the wire gets a beautiful charred patina on it as well.)

I have had flowers on the brain lately.  I'm getting ready to landscape my front yard (I've ONLY lived here 12 years!) and I remembered I had purchased some Vintage Meadow Artworks hand painted lucite trumpet flowers a while back.  These babies are hard to come by and I have been hoarding the 4 sets I bought, waiting for the perfect project or two.  Well, the blue flowers were a dream match to the headpins.  I used both ends of the headpin, added a few tendrils of the copper wire I had torched, mixed in a few findings (bead caps from Vintaj and copper ear wire I made) and Voila!

I really love these.  I'm a sucker for Fuchsia and these remind me of those beautiful blossoms.  I also loved that I had an "excuse" to get out the torch and play a bit.  I haven't had nearly enough time to just experiment with techniques I have learned but not mastered.  

Visit Anne's Etsy Shop and pick up some headpins of your own to play with.  She updates her shop every Wednesday and there are lots of great goodies to choose from.

And, Thank You Lorelei for hosting another great challenge!  It's always a pleasure to participate.

Now, go see what other lovelies were created by the other blog hop participants.

Lisa

Lorelei Eurto 

Lesley Watt

Lisa Cone (you are here)

Song Beads

Starseed Jewelry

Alice Peterson

Rochelle Brisson

Star Girl Jewelry

Pam Ferren

Pine Ridge Treasures

ABS Challenge - My Window in Montmartre

This has been a ROUGH week (or 2).  I have a very sick kitty with a dire prognosis and I've had gobs of work keeping me very busy (no complaints about the work part - it's a nice problem to have for a new business).  Needless to say, my ABS Challenge piece sat on my desk with a whopping 2 things to finish before I could photograph it!  Well, I'm not going to make the cut for the challenge, but I can at least show you my final piece and dream about Paris for a bit.

Here is the inspiration piece by the wonderful Vincent Van Gogh.

Ahhhhh, Paris and my favorite place in Paris - Montmartre. I've gone there in my mind MANY times this week and it has been good for my soul.

We've traveled to Paris twice.  The first trip we stayed in Montmartre, just off the little square where the Guimard-designed Abbessess Metro station entrance is.

Our room in our hotel - the charming Hotel Regyn Montmartre - look out over the city towards the Eifel Tower.  Buskers were always playing in the square, so the sounds of French music being played on the accordion always wafted into our room.  There was always a cat or two sitting in the window sills of the apartments and, just around the corner, one of the last of the 2 remaining windmills sat halfway up the hillside.

I would do anything to transport myself to Montmartre right this very second, but photos, memories and this necklace will have to do for now.

My Window in Montmartre:

The artist beads used in this piece are:
Red Enamel Pinwheel - Jade Scott
Ceramic Dot and Lentil Beads - Elaine Ray via Ornamentea
Glass Flower - Mermaid Glass

BTW, I have watched 2 wonderful films lately that take places in Paris.
Midnight in Paris - the charming Woody Allen film that has an amazing love letter to Paris set to music.
Hugo - Martin Scorsese's 2011 Oscar Nom that I LOVED.

Of course, if I really want a Montmartre fix, I watch Amelie.

What's your favorite Paris film?

New Blog Challenge!

I threw my name in the Random Generator over at Lorelei's Blog to participate in the Jade Scott Pinwheel Challenge and I got PICKED!  There will be 7 of us participating.  I am very excited (and a bit terrified) but I've got some good ideas percolating in my brain.

My first associations with pinwheels were of spinning garden flowers, childhood toys and plastic tubes filled with colorful candy.  I think I would have gone in that direction if I had gotten a colorful pinwheel.

However, last weekend,we spent time in Joshua Tree and my entire inspiration changed.   Luckily, when I opened my package yesterday I found I had gotten the WHITE pinwheel.  White?  Lucky?  Yeah, that's not what I would have normally said.

So, I'll share some of my inspiration photos.  I haven't started working on the piece yet and I may end up in a completely different direction, but at least you'll have seen some nice photos along the way.

First, we don't go anywhere without the Pugs.  This was their first trip in the new CRV.  I'm glad I got leather seats!

 On the Road to Joshua Tree

Our Surroundings at the cabin (Photos by The Enlightened Hedonist)

So, it will be interesting to see where one little white pinwheel and a lot of beautiful photos take me.  The reveal date is February 15th.  In the mean time, I'm going to try and find some daylight time to get some pictures of some of the STUNNING art beads I got at the Pasadena Bead and Design show.

Secret Snowflake Challenge

One of my goals this year is to be more active in the bead blog world.  I "signed up" to participate in Michelle Mach's Secret Snowflake Challenge.  I chose this challenge because the chosen beads are not what I normally gravitate to.  I thought it would kick me out of my color comfort zone at bit.    It was somewhat successful - I used quite a bit of the beads that were in the challenge kit, but I just couldn't stay exclusively in the "light blue" zone.  I HAD to add contrast and color.  

My inspiration was my own experience with Winter.  Keep in mind that it has been in the 70's and 80's here for a while and winter, as most people know it, is something I have limited experience with.  The Sierra's in snow became my color inspiration.  The dark granite of the rocks, the ice white and blue of snow, and the pale winter light of the sun became my muse.  I re-worked the necklace 3 times before I got to a piece I was happy with.  I added more white by using indonesian glass beads, and pale orange using Carnelian (with both the large chunk and the small flashes of orange).  I also used some pretty Czech pressed glass that reminded me of the mountains.  

I ended up with 3 pieces - A necklace, a bracelet and earrings.  While it all goes together, it was not necessarily meant as a matching set.  I also mixed metals - something I also tend not to do.

Earrings

The Necklace 

Necklace Detail

The Bracelet

All 3 pieces

I think these are going to be delivered to Bella Cosa where possibly a homesick North Easterner will buy the pieces and wear them  while sitting in the sun, drinking a latte and remembering the good old days of snowfall.

• Blog Hop Participants
  
  If there is no blog link listed next to a person's name, check Michelle's Beads & Books. Participants without blogs will be posting their photos on her blog.
  • Alice (Alice Dreaming)
  • Chris (beadjewelry.net)
  • Christa (Adventures of One Beady Woman)
  • Crystal (Here Bead Dragons)
  • Cynthia (Cynth's Blog)
  • Dawn (Morning Glory Beading)
  • Donetta (Simply Gorgeous)
  • Erin A.
  • Jennifer (JenniferJW)
  • Jennifer (Jewelry, Art and Life)
  • Kari W.
  • Kate (We Can Make That at Home)
  • Kay (Palm Coast Art)
  • Linda (Lindy's Designs)
  • Lisa C. (A Bead a Day)
  • Lisa (Inspired Adornments) YOU ARE HERE
  • Mary (MLH Designs)
  • Michelle (Beads & Books) 
  • Michelle B.
  • Millie (AMM Jewelry)
  • Norma (Moonlit Fantasies)
  • Pam (The Crazier Sister)
  • Rebecca J.
  • Renetha (Lamplight Crafts)
  • Rosemarie (Gem Rose Designs)
  • Shannon (Falling into the Sky)
  • Susan (Bead Inspired)
  • Therese (Therese's Treasures)
  • Therese (Domestic Goddess Enterprises)