A VERY LUCKY WEEK

This has been a very, very lucky week for me.  Last week I got an email from Beaducation saying I won a $100 gift certificate on their blog giveaway.  I didn't waste any time.  I ordered new tools.  I got a German, short, round nose pliers with ergonomic handles, a German chain nose pliers with ergonomic handles, a coiling pliers and a large wrap and tap pliers.  They are all so comfortable to hold and handle.  I've been making earrings by the bunch for my 96 year old friend in Wisconsin and I've been making my own ear pin wires and jump rings and these pliers have helped tremendously.  I love Lisa Nivens Kelly and all the free tutorials that she does on Beaducation http://www.beaducation.com/.   Thanks again Lisa.

These are a two part earring set.  The short end is attached to the post and the long one is attached the earring back.  Those new tools sure are nice when doing so many loops.

My friend Jane has ordered 60 pair of earrings so far.  She is having a great time being a 96 year old sales lady but I've been so busy making earrings, my polymer clay is being ignored.  That's not a nice thing.

RESIN CRAFTS BLOG GIVEAWAY

Another one of my favorite blogs is Resin Crafts by Carmi Cimicata http://resincrafts.blogspot.com/.  She teaches and shares a ton of information about using resin.  She shows the good and bad and tells you how to fix the bad.  They had a blog contest and I won a resin tray.  Now I have to bite the bullet and do something besides coating polymer clay.  Her latest blog shows some beautiful things that she put into resin in the resin trays.  Check it out.

WHAT A NICE SURPRISE

The mail just came and there was a really nice surprise in it.  Linda Kropp from Linda's Artbarn

http://www.lindasartbarn.com/ sent me this beautiful eyelglass case that she hand painted.

Linda is a tole artist, a One Stroke Paint teacher and a jewelry designer.  I have 11 pair of glasses and I can't tell you how much I love this case.  11 PAIR OF GLASSES???????   Yes, I have bifocals for watching TV and crocheting, bifocals for regular wear, computer glasses, beading glasses, bifocal sun glasses, bifocal sun glasses for reading, distance glasses for bowling, distance sun glasses for golf, etc.  My husband always jokes about how many pairs of glasses I have.  Sometimes he asks if I'm wearing my vacuuming glasses or my doing the dishes glasses or my walking to the mailbox glasses.  HMMMMMMMMM

Thank you Linda, this will be put to great use.

THANK YOU BEADUCATION

I mentioned the other day that I got an email from Beaducation http://www.beaducation.com/ saying I had won a $100 gift certificate.  I was thrilled.  I go to their website all the time because they have wonderful little tutorial videos about all kinds of jewelry making tips.  Today I was making earrings and my round nose pliers went goofy.  Instead of the tips being together they started crossing.  I've made 130 pairs of earrings in the past month.  $8.00 pliers don't cut it.  I went to Beaducation http://www.beaducation.com/ and ordered new German made tools.  I'm so excited.  Check them out.

POLYMER CLAY CROSS AND EARRINGS

I don't know how many times I've mentioned how much I love Penni Jo Couch's molds from http://www.bestflexiblemolds.com/.  One of her molds is a Renaissance Cross and it has little crosses in the same mold.  I use many of my polymer clay canes to use in this mold.  I also use Magic Glos on them.  Some of them I drill a hole in the bottom and put beads in them. 

I just finished this one using the Mokume Gane that I showed in a previous blog.  This is going out to someone special for her special friend.  You can click on it and see it larger.  The good thing about her molds is, you can put them in soapy water and wash them to get out some of the old polymer clay.  I also spray a little Armour All in them when I use them and the pieces pop out and the Armour All doesn't hurt the clay.

MORE EARRINGS FOR JANE

This is three of the 14 pairs I made in the last two days.  I like the bottom ones, I think I'll have to make a pair for myself.

Today is my husband's birthday.  I bought him two pieces of cheese cake from the Cheescake Factory.  I've never seen such a happy guy.  White chocolate, macadamia, carmel and Dutch Apple Carmel.  I'm going to have to get him some elastic waist pants..  Why should I be the only one wearing those things????



HOW NICE IS THAT?

I just got an email from "Beaducation" http://www.beaducation.com/ saying I won a $100.00 gift certificate.  I'm so excited.  I love their stuff and I love watching their tutorials.  I can buy some new tools.  My round nose pliers are all twisted and I need new wire straighteners.  This is so exciting.  Go to their website and check them out.  Lisa Niven Kelly does some awesome videos.  Thank you Beaducation and Lisa.

LIZARD TAILS

As I mentioned before, I took a class from Julie Picarello and she showed us how to do lizard tails with left over clay.  Wednesday at our beading club I did a class on Stamped Mokume Gane and lizard tails.  The girls loved it and they had some beautiful stuff come out of it.  I forgot to take pictures.  I chose 6 colors to use for my Skinner Blends.   I was trying to use up some old clay.  This is how my piece turned out:

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this yet but I see some pendants and earrings and beads in there.  Not sure I like the orange but it's there now.

I had some pieces of this clay left over and made a big lizard tail.  I cut out a couple pendants.  Not done with those yet and had some more left and made another lizard tail.  Had enough to cover a light switch plate.  Husband said the colors "were interesting and the room would have to be white".  He's funny.

I textured this with 100 grit sandpaper and put light green Perfect Pearls on it to change the whole pink thing going on with it.  It's been sanded and buffed.  Click for close up.

Beadwork Magazine had a neat pattern for a covered pearl in it.  I made a pair for Jane.  Told her it was her June bonus for selling so many earrings.  I ordered some 2mm round Swarovskis.  That's what the magazine calls for.  I didn't have any so I used Delicas, 11 seed beads and size 15 Myuki's.  She'll sparkle plenty.

Back to sanding. Phooey.