Ornament Blog Hop

Art Bead Scene is having its 6th Annual Ornament Blog Hop today. I love making Christmas ornaments and our tree is filled with handmade ornaments from family and craft shows. I wanted to make a small ornament as our tree is not that big. I created a Christmas tree from polymer clay and added Christmas clay canes that I have made. A little gold leaf adds a little sparkle. I also made the beaded hanging wire by wire wrapping crystals and beads in the wire. It adds a nice touch to the handmade ornament I think.

I hope you will visit the other blogs in this hop and I wish everyone a wonderful holiday and a creative New Year.

 

Patricia

We're All Ears Challenge for November 2016 Reveal

 I love sweets and candy. The video in Earrings Everyday about making candy in the 1800's was so interesting. It seems impossible that the machines can still work today!

I decided to create my own drops  out of polymer clay and molded them in the shape of a flower.
For the earrings I wanted to use cord to make some dangles to add interest to the candy drops.

Thanks for taking a look and head on over to the Earrings Everyday blog to see what everyone else created this month...HERE

Art Jewelry Elements Art Headpins Challenge

I follow the Art Jewelry Elements Blog 
and when they created an art headpin challenge, I knew that I wanted to join. I have never made headpins before, so I needed to do some research before I started. A lot of headpins are made from glass and are quite beautiful. Since I work with polymer clay, I wanted to make headpins from clay. I make many different types of beads and enjoy making them all. I started off with some copper wire and decided on about a 3 inch length to use for wrapping and adding other beads. I started off with about 3 1/2 inches of wire and make a loop in one end and then firmly inserted it into the clay bead that I had formed. I then shaped the bead, making sure that I closed the clay around the wire. I tried some different shapes, but ended up with the dagger style shape that I really liked. Here is the result:

Here is a closer look at one of the pairs:

I think that this is my favorite pair:

I want to thank the Art Jewelry Element Team for all their great posts!
Now please take a look at all the other creations here

Art Bead Scene Challenge for July

 "Fireworks at Ryogoku (Ryogoku Hanabi)"

By Utagawa Hiroshige (Ando)

 

The Art Bead Scene Challenge for July had me thinking about water and boats along with fireworks.

I created these beads for the challenge by mixing various shades of blue with black and gold out of polymer clay. I am happy with the way that they turned out.

 

 

We're All Ears Challenge for July 2016

 I have been fortunate to attend the Great Reno Balloon Race two different times. It is so amazing to see the balloons setting up and then see so many of them in the air at the same time.


 There are all shapes and sizes. I am sharing some of the pictures that I took in 2014.

I knew that I wanted to capture the colorful designs that a lot of the balloons have. I made the polymer clay cane shown here:

Then I cut slices from it and used a teardrop shape to make the balloon shape.
My earrings were made with the clay charms that I made from this cane.

Head on over to the Earrings Everyday blog to see what everyone else created this month...HERE

Christmas In July Handmade Polymer Clay Beads

Can it be July? Time travels fast and I have been making Christmas beads for my Christmas in July promotions.
It always delights me to make these beads and ornaments. I will be running a special coupon code in my etsy store for the Christmas in July promo. Using code Xmas10 will give you 10% off your total purchase. Enter the code at checkout before paying. This code will be valid until July 15.
Thank you so much for taking a look at my beads.

Christmas Quilt Beads

Christmas House Beads

Christmas Tube Beads

Bryce Canyon Trip

After spending a week in Utah and visiting Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks, I have a whole new appreciation for the outdoors and nature. The "hoo-doos " in Bryce Canyon are amazing and the area is just breathtaking.

I have been inspired to create with some of the new images in mind and hope that they will stir the creative spirit in you.

Art Bead Scene Bead Entry

I have been following the Art Bead Scene for a while now and have challenged myself make an entry for the month. This month's painting is On A Shaker Theme by Charles Sheeler.

I really liked the colors in this painting and tried to use the shades of  blue.
I made house beads in polymer clay in a rustic setting that makes me think of the painting and the geometric lines of the painting.

I do so love following the Art Bead Scene and visit the site almost everyday that I can. They always have interesting  and inspiring posts and great tips.

Butterfly Wing Beads for Spring Projects

I have been making wings - butterfly wings. They are so fun to make, and I love the colors of each type of butterfly.

The canes that I make are small but they make beautiful wings. I have not tried to put the wings together and make a whole butterfly yet, but I see that in the future.

The wings can be used for earrings or dangles on a bracelet.

We're All Ears :: January Reveal

This month the We're All Ears Challenge was to use the Pantone Spring 2016 color palette.

I love pink but I also love blue so I decided that I would make the earrings in Serenity blue, Lipid shell and Snorkle blue. I had recently made polymer clay bird beads in an antique blue. I used blue onyx beads and some ruffled lampwork beads with different shades of blue in them to complete the look. I liked the way the ruffled beads made the birds look like they were sitting on a nest!

The ruffled lampwork glass beads are made by Mermaidglass