Most days finds JPR playing on the radio at the shop. It’s there for background noise, a sound to break the silence of a rather quiet building. We can’t play Lady Gaga full blast because the neighbors would object, they’re massage therapists and want QUIET!! So, we
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Under the careful tutelage of Beckie D, I made a pair of Celtic Star Earrings, and a pendant tonight. I used electric blue, copper, and silver rings. They’re wonderful… and the best part… I finished them! I love taking classes. My fingers are tired from clutching my
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Fall arrived today. The rain, the gray clouds, and the glorious leaves against dark skies made me yearn for one thing… Split Pea Soup! There’s a big pot of it simmering in the kitchen as I type. It will take days to eat it all. If I
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There’s a little cat in my life with a very big meow! He can squawk unlike any kitty on the planet. I call him Rick the Relentless. Last night he was determined to prove me right. If he wasn’t yelling in my face, he walking around my
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Preciosa Ornela, the manufacturers of beads in the Czech Republic, has just released a new seed bead called “twins.” They’re a two holed, 2.5X5mm oval seed bead. Currently, the only colors available in the US are crystal, crystal matte, jet and jet matte… and Dancing Beads has
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by the letter… Quilling, as seen in the letter “C” to the left, is a paper art form. Paper strips are formed into coils then glued together to create an image. This art form was used during the Renaissance to decorate religious items and book covers. During
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…String Optional from TED.com “Janet Echelman found her true voice as an artist when her paints went missing — which forced her to look to an unorthodox new art material. Now she makes billowing, flowing, building-sized sculpture with a surprisingly geeky edge. A transporting 10 minutes of
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This summer Cara Davis-Jacobson traveled to New York City on business. Cara is a customer, and a sweetheart. While she was in New York she visited a bead shop a few doors down from her hotel and shared a couple of pictures with me. Seeing the way
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…and I’m tired, but a commitment is a commitment. One post, every day, for the entire month of November (yes, that would also include Veteran’s Day and Thanksgiving) that’s what I agreed to. It wouldn’t be good to drop the ball only eight days into the month.
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… and while I’m at it… I love the time change, too! I love Monday because it’s my day off! In essence, it’s like Sunday, except there’s no church, and the banks are open. Monday is an interesting day to have off. The world moves differently. Folks
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…went a long way to making me a very happy person today! For the past few months the walls of the shop have been closing in around me. Even with the addition of the seed bead room, it seems as if the inventory is constantly outgrowing the
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Take a walk through crunchy leaves. Don’t forget to take your camera! Remember:: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.” Albert Camus Bring some of the color indoors with a beautiful autumn inspired bouquet. Make S’mores… and don’t forget the cocoa! Get ready
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Have you ever found yourself at a loss for a color palette? It happens to the best of us. There’s a great bead, but for some reason the accents aren’t flowing. When I need a little assistance, or a boost to get me outside my normal color
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Last week a new show premiered on the Lifetime Network that is right up my alley. It’s called Project Accessory, and is based on the same premise as Project Runway. Thank goodness the full episodes are going to be running on the Lifetime Network website, because this
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November is a month dedicated to more than eating turkey, shopping, or football watching… it’s also a month set aside for writing! This month, I’m participating in NaBloPoMo hosted by blogher.com. NaBloPoMo is National Blog Posting Month. The challenge is to publish a post every day for
Read more →Have you ever wondered how a Byzantine Chain is made? I found this video in my wandering this afternoon.
Read more →… I has it! Obsessive Compulsive Beading Disorder. Today, in between customers, and well after the shop had closed, I was busily making bracelets. Five of them to be exact… five beautiful, sparkly bracelets. They’re kinda like potato chips, hard to stop at one. Guess that’s about
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Beaders who love to work with seed beads and crystals swear by a product sold by Berkley, a leader in the fishing industry called Fireline. Fireline is a thermally fused line that is incredibly thin, very strong, and smooth. It can be threaded through a size 12
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Yesterday, I mentioned I was working on a project, and that I’d be sharing the instructions. The pictures are taken, the instructions are written, however… I still need to get the two together. In the meantime, here is a close up of the bracelet I made using
Read more →Since ‘Dancing’ is an important part of our name, I thought I’d share one of my all time favorite dancing videos. Happy Friday! …and if all goes according to plan there will be a project posted tomorrow.
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Working with beads has changed the way I look at the world around me. It seems that the little details are what catch my eye, things out of place, or shaped differently immediately grab my attention. Recently, I was at my least favorite place on the planet…
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More years ago than I care to admit, during my early teens, I lived in Japan. The years spent there greatly influenced my aesthetics. From the color palette I prefer, to my love of stylized natural forms, and simple design, those were very important years. In February,
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This morning my computer screen is as daunting as an empty sheet of paper. I want to write. I know once I begin, I’ll find something to write about, but the ideas… they’re not coming. *waiting* Nope, still not there. Perhaps taking the easy route might be
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Likely, most of you know what ‘bead soup’ is, but for those who don’t here’s a quick explanation. Bead Soup is a mixture of small beads either in a single color way, for instance pale pink to dark red, or a collection of small beads in complimentary
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…or day three of the NaBloPoMo challenge. Is there really any day of the week that’s nicer? No really, think about it. You’ve worked hard all week, you’ve gotten chores done, and errands taken care of, and now it’s Sunday. I don’t know about you, but this
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Yesterday morning, I declared to whatever is out there listening, that I needed a quiet day because it was high time for me to get the last cabinet filled. There was also an order of findings that had floated around for a month that kept dribbling headpins
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