Snow Farm Bush

This is a handmade lampwork bead that Jim made while he was taking a class at Snow Farm. Outside the studio there was this treelike bush that is the inspiration for this bead.

Tri-shutter Card

When Whitney was here, she taught us how to make what is called a tri-shutter card. The top card is what it looks like when it is closed. When you open it, you see that it has a lot of little panels that are decorated. If you read the verse on the front, you will understand why there are footprints on the card. I added a personal note to the last panel and attached it with one of those spiral paper clip things. Since it was a personal note, I did not attach it until after I took the picture.

Whitney's Challenge

Whitney sent several of us a challenge this morning to make a card based on a sketch that she sent. These two cards are my interpretation of the sketch. I don't have some of the needed tools so I had to change it some. Jim's comment was they don't look like the sketch that I saw. For example the lower right hand corner is suppose to be a scalloped circle not a scalloped ellipse. Well a circle is just a special ellipse anyway. The sun in one card and the ornament in the other is suppose to be a rectangle. I only changed them slightly.

Both cards were also embossed using the Big Kick but you have to enlarge the cards to see it.

Frankie and Frances

Whitney was here a few weeks ago and we made these cute treat boxes. I made a second one to give to a friend for driving me somewhere. One side of the box is Frankie (get it, Frankenstein) and the other is Frances. They are cute but easy to make with the Top Note die cut and circle punches.

Another Beach Scrap Tin

Here is another of my scrapbook tins. They are fun to make and decorate. I love the little sizzix die cuts, especially those footprints in the sand. These pictures show the front cover, some of the inside pages, and the bottom of the inside of the tin.

The water and sand is made by just tearing a strip of paper in random wave patterns.

Textured Silver

This set is so different than anything else Jim has made. He is doing a little silversmith work at The Bead Boutique. I will post some of his silver and turquoise somtime soon.

Halloween Cards

These are not cards that I will be sending to my family, so it is ok if they see them before halloween. The haunted house cards are some variations of the card I sent last year our family.

How Many Spots Do You See?

Between the title of this post and the picture you should have a good idea of what kind of jasper this is. Did you guess dalmatian jasper?

Some More Glass

Here are two more dichroic glass pieces. To really appreciate them, you need to see them sparkle in the sun. The one on the top is copper chain and the glass is earth tones. The bottom piece is black background with blues and greens.

White Turquoise

Here is another example of turquoise that isn't the color that you would be thinking of when hearing turquoise. It doesn't look very fallish but think of wearing it with a brown or rust outfit.

Mahogany Obsidian

Anything with chain is "in" this year. This piece has the chain and the semi-precious stones that are part of what I call the chunky look. It has the look without all of the weight of natural stones that a lot of people dislike.

Halloween Tiles

These are tiles that were bought at Lowe's, the shiny style that were used in bathrooms and kitchens. They are drilled, stamped with white ink, and a ribbon put through the holes and knotted well. They make a cute halloween decoration. I love the Home is Where the Haunt is set by Stampin Up, shown on the right. It is spooky for Halloween, but makes a nice new home card when done in white on pastel papers.

Rhodochrosite

When I think of October, I always think pink. This rhodochrosite necklace fits that description. Rhodochrosite is found in Colorado, Argentina, and Romania. It is a soft stone, making it hard to cut and polish. It is usually not cut with facets.

October Birthstone and Birthdays

Opal is one of the birthstones for October. This necklace is not what most people think of as being opal. This particular stone is called fire opal.

Happy October birthday to my cousin Linda and BFF Carol.

Root Beer Barrels

The larger brown beads are glass lampwork. Jim calls them his root beer barrels. They are a hollow bead and if you look carefully, you will see some off white dots for a little decoration. The larger white bead in the  necklace is white turquoise.  

Happy Birthday Mom

This coming Thursday would have been my mom's birthday. She did get to see my handmade cards, but I have improved so much since then. I wish that she could see the ones that I make now. My mom always talked about how important it was to have a hobby. She was a wonderful seamstress. I can barely sew on a button, but I have my music and my cards. Lisa has helped me so much in improving my cards and helping me cope with my mom's death by giving me a place to improve my card making.

Fall Arrives

Fall will be arriving soon. This jasper necklace is perfect for fall . It can be worn with so many autumn colors. Of course, those of us living in the southeast lose our leaves in about February or March and have a while to wait for some cooler weather.

Is This Turquoise?

No it isn't turquoise but that is the exact impression you are suppose to get with this piece. It is actually lampwork glass. Jim never liked glass beads with dots on it until he saw this bead in a catalog. The whole necklace was this bead. This one is meant to be a little more casual and is adjustable in length.

Bead Boutique Contests

The Bead Boutique is the local bead store that we go to buy fill in beads and findings. About twice a year they have a contest where you buy a set of beads that you must use in a piece. You add your own beads to what they give you. These are the pieces that he has made for the past three contests. The girl won third place, the turquoise won second and the pink one was a first prize winner.

Glittering Glass

These pieces are examples of dichroic glass. One the glass is cut, it is fired in a kiln to smooth the edges. Once they are done, there is a special grinder blade to cut around the edge of the glass so that it can be wrapped with silver. When the sun hits these, they really shine and glitter.