Indulgence

I’ve been scanning the gems at eBay for the last week or two, and finally stopped scanning and purchased something today. I sure hope they look at least as good as they do on the screen. What do you think?

And in that vein, I will try to actually make something this weekend, while the girls enjoy a visit with their dad. I have a few ideas, but whether any of them come into fruition, or I end up creating something completely different, remains to be seen!

Where’s the inspiration?

So, if I can’t show you anything I’ve made lately, at least I can show you what my kitchen table has looked like that last couple of days!!!

After the Bead Show

So, nobody had any Thai silver for sale. That was the only reason I went to the bead show! However, I didn’t want to make the whole trip a total waste, so I bought a few beads … from left to right: green onyx in matrix, aquamarine, aquamarine, kyanite, aquamarine and ruby. Guess I had a thing for aquamarines today, huh?! As you can see, they are all different, though. From translucent to opaque.


And look at these two handmade glass beads, aren’t they just fabulous? I’ve never seen anything like them before! And if you enlarge the pictures, you can really see all the wrinkles in my hand. Ha, ha!

Big fat liar!!!

That’s what I am! I’m not sure how long “a while” is (see previous post filled with lofty assurances), but traditionally, when it comes to bead shopping, one should hope that it is more than two weeks. Not so, dear friend! Not in my case, apparently. I REALLY just went to my local bead store to use up the store credit I had there. You know, $17 just sitting there, when I could have $17 worth of beads at home instead. Well, I had no idea they were having a trunk show!!! I believe I am in serous need of help!


Pictured from top to bottom of my pile of obsession are: green garnet (or grossular garnet, for those of us who have a serious addiction to gems!) impression jasper, aquamarine (these are luscious ... mm!), gorgeous polished chunks of labradorite, lava, white turquoise, pink tourmaline chunks, and lapidalite jasper.

I’m making no more promises of frugality. Nope! I’m sure I’ll be buying more beads in the next couple of weeks.

This is it!

I really, truly am not buying any more after this. At least not for a while. I need to sit down and make something—anything—before I add any more beads to my inventory, which, by the way, is taking up more and more of the space I don’t have!


Pictured are strands of labradorite (I know, I already got some, but this is a different cut), gorgeous tourmaline, beautiful white moonstone, and tiny iolite.

The Earth’s Bounty

Or at least bounty from The Earth Bazaar. So, they had a(nother) fabulous sale and I decided to make a major investment. It’s part of my feeling like I’m heading in a new direction with my jewelry. I still like doing what I’ve been doing, but I am also incredibly inspired by Magdalena Borejko and Iza Malczyk, not to mention Eni Oken, of course. I obviously don’t want to infringe on their styles, respectively, but there might be some way to do my own take on the wire wrapping. Granted, they have time. I believe all three of these lovely ladies do this full-time. And at least two of them have told me it’s highly addictive. I don’t have time for anything highly addictive! But I would still like to expand on what I’ve been doing so far. And I’m really tempted to integrate silversmithing, but haven’t quite figured out how yet. Kathy, of the soon-to-be-closed bead store KMarie Beads, is opening up a metalsmithing studio, with space and equipment for rent. The only thing is, if I have to start factoring all that into the price of my pieces, it adds yet another element to keep track of. I figured, I’ll start with buying LOTS of faceted stones and see where that takes me … so, whaddayathink?!


There’s amethyst, beer quartz, phrenite, peridot, hessonite, citrine, garnet, spessartine garnet, petro tourmaline, and mandarine garnet, and not necessarily in that order. While I was at it, I decided to attend a private sale with Sir Arun, and this is what I picked up from him. From the back: chrysocolla (this is a gorgeous strand), labradorite (best quality I’ve ever seen!), pink rutile (scrumptious), sapphire (pinks and greens ... mmm!) and, last but not least, black onyx. Can you tell I REALLY like the stuff I got from Arun? He truly has that little (!?) extra, in addition to the fact I get to hold and pick my own strands. I’m in bead heaven!