I came across a blog full of stories from all over the world, collected by Andrew Wright.  Andrew has also written many of the stories himself as well as posting his versions of traditional tales.  One caught my eye, because it featured a woman in distress, a rescuer, a monster with treasure…and an interesting twist.

If you’d like to read Andrew’s version of The White Woman from Rosenegg, you’ll find it at the link.  Above is the treasure necklace that I made in response to the traditional elements of the story.
Link to instructions

I spent some time fooling around with polymer clay awhile ago.  One of my favorite things to do was to see if I could mimic the look of some of the fabric and paper projects that I’ve done over the years.  It turns out that polymer clay is a wonderful material to use to make beads, something that many of you already know!

For those who haven’t messed around with it much, here’s a really easy project to get you going.  All you really need is a couple of colors of clay (I bought Sculpey III), something to use to roll …read more

Unfortunately, it’s not always possible to go somewhere to take a class. There’s so much to be said for classes…being able to see the technique demonstrated, being able to ask questions, mixing and mingling and meeting new people. It’s all good. But it just doesn’t work out for everyone.

Fortunately, there is the internet!
There are three categories of posts on this very blog that will lead you to lots of techniques, tips, tutorials, and fun new projects to try. There are also lots of new sources that I’ll be adding to these categories pretty regularly.   There will be some overlap on …read more

Here is a totally silly little project for you to do, maybe with one of the little girls in your life!  When Mike came back from a conference with a couple of little lizards in his bag (I have no idea why lizards were being given out at a data fusion conference!), he happily relinquished them to me.

I decided they’d look cute in my hair.  And after I grow up a bit, I’ll probably give them to some of the young girls I know!
Step by step instructions

Making a necklace like Moonstone Rainbow is very similar to the instructions previously given for making Blue Bells. I strung moonstone chips onto 28 gauge wire and crocheted a chain that ended up being folded into thirds. Most of the technique is outlined in the tutorial for Blue Bells, and I suggest reading it now if you haven’t already!

Step-by-step instructions
Tools:
Large crochet hook
Scissors
Wire cutters
Chain nose pliers

After several false starts, I finally came up with a beaded necklace style that suited the gorgeous Deco Scarab pendant that my friend Melanie Brooks sent me to play with.  If I do another of these, I will probably make one change, and that is to look for size 6/0 seed beads for the base strands that are rounder, less cylindrical.  The rounder shaped beads generally sit together in a smoother line than the cylinders, oddly enough.  Still, the weight of the pendant holds the beads straighter when it is being worn than is shown in the photo above, so …read more

Well, I started working on a beaded strap from which to hang one of Melanie Brooks’s gorgeous new pendants. Once I had a few inches done though, I decided that this spiral was going to be much too thick and ornate to be a good match for the ceramic Deco Scarab.

However, there’s no reason why I can’t explain how to make this spiral, because it might be just perfect for something you’ve got planned
Step by step instructions
Beads needed:
Size 6/0, 8/0, 11/0, and 15/0 seed beads

Here are a couple of really easy pendants you can make that would be good Christmas or holiday gifts this year.  I used CopprClay, but you could use any other metal clay you wanted, or even polymer clay.  Since these end up looking somewhat like fossils, it would be interesting to experiment with some of the “granite ” colored polymer clays, or to mix your own faux stone.

Instructions for CopprClay pendants
General instructions for working with CopprClay

Using the cute little beaded flowers that I showed you a couple weeks agao, plus a few more styles, I fashioned a floral necklace that I named for my mother: RuthAnn’s Garden. RuthAnn has an absolutely magic touch with flowers of all types, and her garden is always a riot of colors from the earliest spring to the lastest fall.
The focal flower on the top of the piece is styled after a hibiscus, modified slightly (but only slightly!) from the excellent instructions given by Kerrie Slade in the April 2009 issue of Bead&Button Magazine.
For my general instructions on bead embroidery, …read more

Technique Tuesday!
I found this wonderful vintage rolled-brim felt hat with a built-in scarf in an old musty antique shop a couple of years ago, and it just occurred to me that I’ve never shared the instructions with you for its transformation!

I loved the style and the color, and knew immediately that the structure of the hat would stand up to a lot of altering! Sifting through my collection of vintage buttons and jewelry showed me just what direction to go with this hat. The name, Dreaming of Spring came to me before the hat was completed. I filled the brim, …read more