Michelle Mach Valentine Challenge

For her Valentine Challenge, Michelle sent out some off white embossed cards. The challenge was to embellish the card. She will pick her favorite, and that person will will a gift card to Amazon.

She had a couple of different card to choose from. I picked one that had some lovely branches embossed on it. I was very excited about this, as I had done something similiar with a Christmas card I gave out this year.

However, once the card arrived, I had no idea how to embellish it. I would take it out and stare at it, then put it back aside with no more clue what to do with it then when I started. With the Feb. 10th deadline looming, I finally hauled out the big guns... the 7 year old in the house.

Molly knew right away what she wanted to do. She wanted to paint a sunset. She actually practiced her sunset technique for several days before she finally started on the actual card. She mixed gold and red metallic paints for the sunset, and blue and white metallic paints for the ocean.

Not bad, eh?


Also of note, this is the first item to be photographed in my new photo studio. Really liking how true the colors came out and that the white does not look yellow! Woo!

All of the cards submitted and the name of the winner will be available on Michelle's blog on Feb. 14th.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 31

Final Day!!! WOOOO!!!! So for the final pair of earrings, I grabbed the wire that happened to be sitting on my work table and made some simple spirals. Add posts and DONE!

My friend Stacy declared this to be her favorite of all the earrings I made in January. I looked at her like she is crazy.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 30

So, I was gonna do this after the whole challenge was over. However, since a migraine last night kept me from making even crappy earrings....

Things I learned doing the Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge 2012

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1) I hate french hook ear wires. The stick out and poke my head behind my ears and really REALLY bug me.

2) I do like lever back ear wires. All the dangle of french hooks, none of the pokiness!

3) You CAN make beadwoven post earrings that don't dangle!

4) My photo setup sucks. Taking pictures EVERY DAY really highlighted just how crappy and inconsistant my lighting is. I will be investing in a better light box and lights.

5) Forcing yourself to create something everyday is a great way to create hate. While I never made a lot of earrings before this, I currently don't want to ever make another earring EVER.

I have come to realize that creativity can't be forced. While there were days when I loved what I came up with, there were more days where I just made something for the sake of making something. I am not ok with that. I think I would rather have days where I take a day off, do something else, build up ideas. Or, a day where I worked on something I was actually inspired by! There have been several days where I had another project but set it aside, cause I HAD to make earrings.

So, while this was an interesting experience, it is not one that I will be repeating. I will stick with challenges that allow a little more leaway in what is created and on what schedule.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 28 and Day 29

So, for Saturday, we had another set of peyote beaded bead earrings. This time in black.



For Sunday, well, I was working on another project and really didn't feel like doing earrings. So, we have some teardrops hung a litte oddly on headpins. I did this design just looking for something quick, so I could get back to my kumihimo, but after looking at it for a while, I think I kind of like it. Something different to do with a teardrops, a little simpler than the normal messy wrap, and it really allows the shape and color of the beads to show.



Two days left! I am glad, because I am SOOOOOO sick of earrings at this point.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 27

Made some peyote beaded beads with some gunmetal Toho beads over a really really fake pearl. The pearl actually started out white, but for some reason I dropped a bunch of them into a cup where a black leather cord had been soaking (getting the creases out) and they took on a bluish tint from the cord's dyes. They looked better after that, so I kept them rather than throwing them out as I originally intended.

Any way, if you want to know how to make beaded beads, I did a post on it here.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 26

For day 26 we have some cute frog earrings done using the same technique as the kitty earrings (peyote circles stitched together around an earring finding and embellished).






I took some additional pictures today, to give a better idea of how the beadwork surrounds the finding. (sorry that the last one is so dark!)

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 25

For day 25 I made some beaded beads by connecting 2 peyote circles, then stacked them in different colors on a head pin.



These tiny puff beads are my favorite thing at the moment... expect to see them again!

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 24

Here are my lovely earrings for day 24!



Hmmm... What? You say you've seen these already? Back on day 21? Surely you must be mistaken.

Ok, you aren't mistaken. And I will stop calling you Shirley.

*sigh* So, last night I decided to try something I had been avoiding for a while. Turns out I was avoiding it for a reason. Most beaders find that one of their early projects is a pair of earrings. Specifically, a brick stitched triangle with a bunch of fringe hanging down. I hate these earrings. They do not fit my personal aesthetic, which tends toward simpler lines. I am not a fringe person (though Fringe the TV show is awesome!).

But, it's late in the month and earring ideas are running low, so....



Turns out that I hate this style so much that I couldn't even make myself finish ONE! What you see here is the result of 2 hours of taking it apart and redoing it, trying to get the fringe to NOT BE FRINGE! Yeah, that didn't work. So I went and looked at Cake Wrecks instead. (there are some very disturbed bakers out there... cakes made to look like realistic newborns are WRONG!)

So, since I made 3 pair of earrings on the 21st, I am claiming one pair for today.

And we're moving on.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge Day 23

Migraines lead to simple dangle earrings...

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 22

I have been doing some etching this weekend, so for day 22 we get etched earrings.



I put some watch gears on the end of erasers and used them as stamps. Worked pretty well.

If you want to see the matching ring, it is listed in my etsy shop.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Days 20 & 21

Ok, so yesterday I made some more of the button earrings in a nice springy purple. Very nice.



Today, I continued to play with this pattern and ended up making 3 pair of earrings.

First we played with pattern:



Next I decided to try embellishment:



While deciding where to place the leaves on my flowers, I noticed that one configuration looked a lot like cat ears, so.....



I am very happy with today's playing. It is always fun to design something new!

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 19

Day 19 brings us indecision. I originally made 2 cute little peyote button earrings in copper. But as I was making them, you start with this little square but, that really called to me. So, I tried using it as a connector to make a dangle version. Now I can't decide which I actually like. So, we have one of each. Feel free to chime in to let me know which you think works best!



(wow, I actually bothered to put a border on my photo! shocking...)

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 18

First, let me offer you up a belated Day 17 project: My first ear cuff!



Very happy with how the cuff turned out. Keep hoping that the more I try to work with wire, the better I will get, but so far....


And for my Day 18 project, I did some simple pearl drops. Since the holes in the pearls were much smaller than the headpins I had on hand, I used some small guage wire to make my own headpins. Not the neatest thing in the world, but functional.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 17

There is no day 17.

Yeah, well, ya see... I got caught up in some etching and didn't get any earrings made for day 17. I plan to make up for this by making two pair of earrings tonight. In the mean time, I thought I would share with you my favorite pair of earrings ever.

Let me start by saying I did not make them. I actually purchased them (at Walmart, I think) about 10 years ago, long before I discovered beading and jewelry making.



These are simple sterling silver hoops, about a half an inch across. The reason they are my favorite earrings ever, is that I never have to think about them. They are small, light weight, close completely so that nothing is poking you in the back of the head. I can sleep in them, I can swim or shower in them, I have been known to wear them for up to 3 years without taking them out. I have, in fact, been wearing them darn near continuously since the day I bought them 10 years ago! Because they are a high quality sterling, I don't have to worry about destroying them the way I do with base metals (my family has very acidic body chemistry). They add just that little bit of bling to my ears, without my ever having to really worry about them. Oh! And they go with everything! No style conflicts!

I love these earrings. As much as I have enjoyed making earrings this month, and though I really like many of the pairs I made, this will always be my default pair of earrings. Do you have a favorite pair of earrings? Feel free to tell me about them in the comments!

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 16

Day 16 brings us some simple dangle earrings made with some left over components from the Very Vintage challenge.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 15

These are the same pattern as the earrings from day 14, but I played with the colors a bit. I also used round seedbeads(rocailles) instead of cylinders. Gives it a slightly different feel.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day 14

For day fourteen I bring you a pair of small stud earrings. Done in peyote stitch, they are two triangles stitched together around the earring finding. By having one triangle on either side of the finding, you don't risk pulling the beadwork off the finding as you are trying to take them out of your ears.

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day Thirteen

Stars!

Beading Dailing Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day Twelve

First, my day eleven earrings.



Told ya I made some...

Now, on to the day twelve earrings. These are some plated circles I removed from funky chain. I then brick stitched around them with some copper seed beads. The result was then hung from the ear wires using a twisty chain link as a jump ring. I really like these earrings. They have a fun industrial/steampunky type vibe that is really my thing right now.



Enjoy!

Beading Daily Earrings Every Day Challenge: Day Eleven Part 1

Ok, I did make a pair of earrings yesterday, but I didn't not get a picture taken. I will get it taken and posted tonight with today's earrings.

They are some lovely snowflake earrings, the pattern for which can be found here. Very quick and simple to make.

I was inspired by the dusting of snow we had last night. First snow of the year.