Sunshine On The Wrist

We need sunshine somewhere around here. Storms have continued to roll in, and last night a tree branch punched a hole in our roof. I guess that's convenient. We are having siding put on our house, so there was crew already scheduled to work on the roof today.

Here is the kind of sunshine I have control over:

I make a bracelet base using peyote stitch and then embellish it with glass and seed beads. The process is mostly zen, and I love picking the colors as I go along.

These aren't colors I'd be likely to wear, but I'm trying to make a variety of colors and sizes in order to sell these in a gallery. If only I were as good at marketing as I am at creating! (Not that I'm a brilliant artist or anything, but my marketing skills need some work!)

With France In Mind

 I've been making quite a few beads because I got into a juried art show that happens over Thanksgiving weekend. I attended this show last year, and I really liked it. It's very relaxed and focused on local artists.

I've spent a lot of time expanding the color combination in my Big Beads series. This one reminds me of the linens you get in Provance:

Here's the way it looks as a full necklace:

I can't describe how endlessly fascinating I find these beads. Playing around with colors is just so much fun. I once wrote that I love knitting because it's like holding pure color in my hands. It's the same with polymer clay.

I am learning a lot about color from working the clay. Who knew that you could make a great orange by adding a little bit of blue? I used to think that color theory was simple, that mixing colors was straightforward. Boy, was I ever wrong!

Making the jewelry is the fun part. A this point, I need to hold off on that and look at selling the stuff. In addition to the art show, I'm trying to get serious about my Etsy store. There is no point in making so much stuff if I don't start actually selling it!