If You Live in Maine, You Can Visit in Person! (I'm Jealous)

The wonderful Heather from The Beadin' Path (@beadinpath on Twitter) ran a little contest on Twitter a bit ago, and I won a gift certificate! (I hardly ever, ever win anything and I was so excited).

I ordered some beautiful beads (Keith O'Connor Ceramic shells, and carved & stamped raku seascape mix beads) and some tiny round gunmetal beads (not shown)

as well as joined their monthly subscription to the Monthly Bead Club and got these beauties for this month:

And a darling pair of gift beads that I bet Tish or Lisa would have very clever ideas on how to use - me, I'm just thinking earrings...

My order came yesterday but I've been a bit distracted by RL stuff, and didn't post. But I really wanted to share more than just the beads - I wanted to also tell you a little story about making my order with The Beadin' Path.

During the ordering process I ran into some trouble - turned out to be user error, not their site, but before I figured that out, I clicked their live chat help. It was fabulous! I got a help person right away who was very helpful and once I figured out the problem was my own "doh" moment, stayed a bit to chat with me, because it turned out to be the wonderful Heather, who recognized me from Twitter, on the chat.

I am a customer for life. Anyone who is using the web tools as cleverly and helpfully and just plain happily as The Beadin' Path does deserves tons of kudos. Plus they have really great beads and beading stuff. I don't wish I lived in Maine, I'm not a winter person - lived in California all my life and the first half of it in Southern California and that mainly in the desert. I am not fond of snow or long stretches of cold. But I would love to be able to visit Freeport, Maine and visit The Beadin' Path. I'm going to have to figure out how to work that into some future vacation plans.

Ok, so what have I accomplished in the past few days I've been neglecting my blog? Bits and pieces of stuff - added some length to the lava rock bead and shell necklace I posted about the other day, plus a little Romeo and Juliet type ring I hand wrapped with 20 gauge gunmetal colored Artistic Wire I found at Global Beads:

I'm going to make more of those rings in different colors of wire with pairs of Czech druk beads, and put them out at my Bay Con table this year - I think they'll be popular - as well as offer to make more 'on the spot' for anyone who wants customized ones. The rules of Artist's Alley are that I have to be working on my art and interacting with people, not focusing mainly on selling. That worked out just fine for me last year and I think I had a successful weekend.

I also finished everything but the clasp on this necklace...

...with some beads from my trip to Michael's with my daughter over the weekend, before she headed back south. For the clasp, I'd love for you to suggest some links, if you know of anything different - especially if it's unique and hand crafted - out there that you've seen.

Wiry Monday

Loaded another necklace lanyard on Etsy today - tried one more idea for the main photo. The lanyard is made with baroque freshwater cultured pearls and various shapes of garnets. Would be interested in comments on the main photo idea.

I also am playing around with ideas using silver wire wrapped loops. I have a sunstone and aventurine bead necklace in progress, something with large jasper stones and this little ring I made as an experiment with some 18 gauge silver plated wire. After I finished it, I wished I'd had some sterling wire in 18 gauge - I like how it turned out, but I can't really polish out the few tool marks I left on it, because I'd probably end up polishing down to the metal under the plating.

For a funny little peek behind the scenes, it turns out that a pocket-sized Aleve tube container is exactly the right circumference for a size 7 ring...