Un-Seasonal

I wanted to make a necklace that didn't scream "Christmas", but still could be worn during the holidays and look festive! So I chose traditional seasonal colors: red, green and gold but I used more saturated tones, such as garnet, a mottled sage pallet and paired them with pearlescent and metallic gold. The technique is a variation on Chevron chain and I'm planning to make a coordinating set of earrings when I replenish my stock of gold Swarovski pearls. I always seem to run out of components at the critical earring phase! This design is a little more delicate than I usually go for, but I love the colors and it looks great dressed-up or -down :D

Wow! I'm more of a 'Slogger' than a 'Blogger'

I can't believe it's been over a year since I posted anything, bead-related or otherwise! I've changed my Etsy shop, http://www.etsy.com/shop/innermusejewelry, to custom-order only for the forseeable future. I'm taking orders for Swarovski Bead Crochet bracelets in the customer's choice of color(s). I made the decision to limit my store inventory, based on economics. When/if I receive an order, I place an order with the crystal vendor avoiding up-front costs on my part. Hopefully, when the economy turns for the better, I will return to listing my "muse-based" jewelry. In the meantime, I'm still learning new techniques such as more intricate bead stitches, wire-wrapping and chain maille. The 'Persian Paisley' earrings are an example of the Half Persian weave. I got the AR slightly wrong (off by 0.1 on the low end of the AR range) and wound up with a very tight weave for a bracelet. So I decided to make a sculptural pair of earrings :D When life gives you lemons...make lemonade (in this case cherry lemonade!).

Announcing the Winner of Blog Giveaway for 8/10/09

Thank you to all who entered my first ever Blog Giveaway! Unfortunately, there can be only one winner of the Agave Tile Pendant necklace. But don't get discouraged...I plan to have future Blog Giveaways as time and energy permit:o) So without further ado, the winner is:

Beth who wrote: "It's a beautiful necklace! I would love to be entered into your drawing. What a fun contest and good way to show your creations!"

Congratulations Beth! Please contact me with your mailing address and I'll get this to you ASAP!

Stay tuned for more Giveaways!!!

Embracing My 'Monkdom'

I have a confession to make, as a jewelry designer, I tend toward symmetry when I create. Not that there's anything wrong with balance, even an asymmetrical jewelry piece needs to have balance in some component(s)/property(ies), otherwise one side will be heavier, etc. I guess I shouldn't sound apologetic or feel I have to justify myself or my creations, but I didn't always used to approach beading with such an eye for symmetry. In fact, my first design that I made (and sold!) was a 3-strand, asymmetrical necklace. I used vintage, polymer clay, Czech glass, metal and stone chip beads in a multitude of shapes/colors/finishes/sizes. I really miss that piece, not only because it was my first handcrafted jewelry item, but also because I feel that it represents the entropy that I fight against in my current design 'phase'. That is why I can totally relate to Monk, the OCD TV detective, at least when it comes to beading. My 'Monkdom', as I refer to this-dare I say 'disorder' (kind of an oxymoron dontcha think?)-represents my battle to keep chaos at bay, especially when challenged with a tube of mixed seed beads. By definition, the tube to which I refer is a random assortment of beads. When I decided to make a simple necklace design to offer as my first Blog giveaway, I envisioned creating a necklace composed around a scrabble tile pendant strung randomly with seed beads from 'The Mixture'. Dutifully, I poured out 'The Mixture' into a pile on my bead mat and began to add beads with little regard to the color, shape or size. I managed to get about 3 inches into the chain (which is a long way when you're talking seed beads!) and froze. My gleeful abandon at stringing beads in free form fashion abruptly halted and I yielded to my 'Monkdom'. I proceeded to undo all that had once been spontaneous, but I didn't stop there! Taking it to the next level, as Monk so often does, I began to sort the beads into groups. I took the elementary school "Which one is NOT like the other" class lesson and elevated it into it's own OCD category (top left photo). As with all 'confessions', there comes the wave of relief that the 'genie is out of the bottle' and recovery is now a possibility because the problem has been identified! So, if you would like to win this Symmetrical Seed Bead Necklace with Agave Scrabble tile pendant (see finished piece in top right photo), leave a comment on my blog and I'll select an entry and announce the winner on Aug. 10, 2009. The winning entry will be chosen by placing all the entrants' names in a hat and 'randomly' drawing a name. See I'm letting go already. Baby steps!;o)

My First Blog-EVER!

I have just dipped my toe in the blogging waters. I haven't quite figured out the intricacies of blogging yet, so bear with me as I navigate through. My site is called Inner Muse Jewelry Designs because I wanted to let my 'inner muse' out after spending years in the science/technology arena. I make and sell handcrafted jewelry items and accessories using a variety of techniques and resources. I've been beading for about 3 years now, having taught myself bead crochet. I don't recommend starting out your beading endeavors with this technique unless you enjoy pulling your hair out:o) I managed to stick with it until I finally mastered the basics and have since moved on to various other beading techniques. The photo on the right is one of the first bracelet designs I made using bead crochet. I combined the spiral bead crochet tube with a beautiful lampwork bead by Jane Buelow of Breezeway beads. Whenever I'm not beading, I feel like I'm missing out, so off I go to work on one of my jewelry designs!