Maggie Meister’s Byzantine Collar…

I must have taken this class 7-8 years ago at The Shepherdess in San Diego (when they used to have many great bead artists teaching classes) and of course still haven't finished it. I recently decided I am going to finish it damn it! I have a lot of it done, but something else had gotten my attention and it got stored with the others.

 I only have about ten unfinished projects that I need to finish before I retire because then I want to bead for my business full time. Here's what I do have done and I think it's just beautiful.

 Maggie takes you through her instructions step by step and I have no trouble at all with them. Sometimes I just have to give up on some projects when I return home from a class and start working on it, because it just isn't coming out right or I can't get it to come out right..

and below is Maggie's original piece created and beaded by her with a link to her kit for this on her site...

http://www.mmmbeads.com/kits/byzantinekits.html

Eva Maria Keiser

Have you seen her work? I have never seen any bead work like hers before, it is definitely original and soooooo incricate. She definitely spends a lot of time on her pieces. I don't know how she does it, I get so tired of working on the same piece day after day, night after night. Don't you? She also is generous enough that she added free/complimentary projects of  some of her pieces. Thank you Eva, I can't wait to try beading one of the triangles.

Haven’t blogged in a while…

Health issues and a bit addicted to Facebook games. Still trying to heal my thumb/wrist, so I'm really not supposed to be beading. It does feel much better then a few months ago when I was beading.

So then there's FarmVille on Facebook which I tried to stay away for as long as I could,  watching everyone else build their farms bigger and better. Then one boring evening I succumbed. Then there was Cafe World to which I really gave in to.

But really Facebook is great. I have found so many long lost relatives, and relatives I didn't know existed, and people from high school or my home town, that's it's just unbelievable how you can find someone so fast.

I'm not finished yet but it's going to be spectacular...

Designed by Rachel Nelson Smith 's O.Bersten Component Specimen Necklace

Cynthia Rutledge is still at it...

This is her Cascading Links Bracelet

http://www.cynthiarutledge.net/

Bead Fest Santa Fe

Looking through the November/December 2009 Step by Step Beads magazine at the list of classes being taught at the Bead Fest in Santa Fe this March 2009, I came across this class (below). A beautiful piece by Shelley Nybakke. I love how she creates pieces that look like fine jewelry.

Nancy Cain also teaches at Bead Fest Santa Fe.  Below is her amazing beadwork. This is a piece she's teaching this year (2010) at the Bead and Button Show. It loooks like fine jewelry modern gold gem bracelet.

I've been waiting for Rachel's ...

book (http://www.msrachel.com/)  to come out so I could make her O. Bersten, and I decided to make a bracelet (don't need any more long projects) and I have almost two done.

They're arriving by FedEx...

Husband just called and said I just got a package from Fire Mountain Gems, I told him to open it, He said it has a certificate for a 2nd place, and a $75 gift certificate, for the Freeform Category as a Fire Mountain Gems 2009 Beading Contest Finalist. Yippee. Left my camera at my mother's last weekend so we'll have to wait for me to post the picture of my piece, well wait I think I have a picture of it that Marcia DeCoster took for me when I first sent it in to FMG...

Beaded Opulence

This is the title of Marcia Decoster's new book.

It's a great book which I would have bought even if she hadn't included a photo of one of my pieces, Golden Circle Necklace.

Bollywood Jewels Necklace

This was accepted to 2009 Bead & Button's Bead Dreams Competition as one of the many finalists...

I just remembered…

Another hot beader is Teresa Meister.

Have you seen any of her beaded jewelry? I love all of them. Each piece has a lacy, delicate, vintage, and feminine look to them. This one is from her gallery on her web site and you won't be able to just look at one.

Just look at the piece on the first page of her site. JUST BEAUTIFUL!...and what a wonderful web site she has.

Who's Hot in the Beading World

While Marcia DeCoster and Laura McCabe continue with their hot streak I have found two other artists whose bead work is just divine. Cynthia Rutledge and ? damn!, it will come to me but maybe not today. Cynthia is not new to beading she like the rest of us have been beading for years. But take a look at her Intermezzo Necklace...

and the clasp!!...

Marcia DeCoster

Marcia DeCoster is a friend and mentor to me. One of her many talents is being a brilliant and innovative artist. She's one of many inspirational people I have met.

I met her by way of the Bead Society of San Diego County. The Rosier's suggested to Marcia that I might do some beading/testing of her designs/kits, and I've been inspired by her ever since. Thank you Ann and Stan!

I really don't think I'll ever be as creative as her, some people are just artsy-fartsy (and that, like being anal is a good thing) and some are not. I am not, I don't have a degree, I just know what I like and I am persistent, and GOD has given me the capability to do so.

And now she has inspired me to create a blog.