We're Going on a Picnic!

 

You may be aware that myself and four of my bestest beading friends Anna Pierson, Monica Pena, Loralee Kolton, and Miranda Trebesch have been doing regular jewelry sales on Facebook as the Five Friends.  We are gearing up for our July show at the end of the month and our theme is going to be summer picnic.  I've been having so much fun designing new jewelry for this show that I just couldn't wait until then to share some of it with you all!

As I started thinking about the theme, my mind went to juicy watermelons (even though I don't enjoy eating it myself), fruit salad, ladybugs and other summer buggy friends, and, in case your picnic ends up lingering until dusk, fireflies!  

So... here's a sneaky peak at what I've been working on so far starting with some fun ladybug designs!

The first things I made were a couple of multi-strand bracelets with some Golem Design Studio focal beads.  These are so bright and fun... and who can resist the little Czech glass ladybug beads that decorate one strand in each bracelet.  I can't wait for a time that I can buy from Golem in person again... I need more ladybug beads to replenish my stash!  The design is from Lorelei Hill Eurto from a long ago bead magazine and one I revisit often.  

Next up, some ladybug earrings for your enjoyment.  I couldn't resist snagging a couple of pairs of cute enameled ladybug charms from C-Koop a while back and I'm finally using a pair!  I paired them with some vintage fluted acrylic beads and sliver plated accents for a fun look that doesn't get too heavy weight wise.

My second pair of earrings features more beady goodness from Golem Design Studio!  I paired them with blackened elements, red crystal, and some leaf charms.  

For when your picnic time stretches into dusk, let's switch gears from ladybugs to one of summer's other favorite insects... fireflies or, as I usually call them, lightning bugs!!  I finally relocated the box with my sweet collection of firefly jars that I ordered from Blue Hare Art Wear.  I have so many fond memories of running around the yard chasing lightning bugs and sometimes catching them in jars to try and keep... this just screams summer time to me.  

I just had to get at least one watermelon design finished for this blog post and the winner was a necklace featuring a long-hoarded Jade Scott pendant!  It's a sweet little piece of art so a daintier design was in order.  I strung it on a mix of Rose Quartz, Czech Glass, Peridot, and dyed Agate with brass chain and findings.  I'm pretty happy with how this one turned out.

I'm not done designing yet... we'll see what other summer picnic inspired creations come off my bead table in the next couple of weeks.  I know that the other ladies have some fun stuff up their collective sleeves as well!

If you're interested in these designs and other summery good stuff from the Five Friends, I hope you'll join us for our Facebook show starting July 28th.  You can find us over in the SagaHus Components group if you want to take part. (P.S. I really think you're going to want to be at this show!)

Summertime!: Art Jewelry Elements June Challenge

The team over at the Art Jewelry Elements blog occasionally host themed challenges where anyone can play along... this is one of those months and the theme is Summertime!  They left it pretty open to interpretation, challenging us to make something inspired by what summertime means to you.   So, what says summer to me?  Here's a few things:  Long, sunny days; gin and tonics on the patio; trips to the beach (even though I haven't done that in summer since childhood); boat outings; bright colors; colorful butterflies and other insects; watermelon (even though I don't like to eat it).

Some summertime inspiration from the AJE team!

The first thing that came to my mind was sunny days... and I knew it was time to finally use one of my tiny collection of Jade Scott pendants that I've been jealously hoarding now that she stopped making jewelry components.  Even though the pendant is made of copper, its patina gives it more of the look of natural brass so I went that route.  I wire wrapped some lemon jade and dyed agate rounds along with a couple of Czech glass beads.          

On my recent trip to the Bead & Button show, I picked up a bunch of new beads from Golem Design Studio including some fun sunshine pattern lentil beads.  Let the sun shine in!  It's no secret that I love using Golem lentils in fun multi-strand bracelets based on a design by Lorelei Eurto, but with how many of them I just bought, I need to branch out in my design choices!  I ended up making a sunshiny necklace and bracelet that could be worn alone or as a set.

Thanks for stopping by!  You can see how everyone else interpreted Summertime over on the AJE blog HERE.  Or use the links below.  Have a happy and safe Fourth of July weekend!

Guests

Rosantia Petkova
Melissa Trudinger

Alice Peterson

Tammy Adams

Shaiha's Ramblings

Betony Maiden
Sarajo Wentling

AJE team
Jen Cameron

Jenny Davies-Reazor

Niky Sayers

Caroline Dewison

Susan Kennedy
Lesley Watt