Beads of Courage Needs Acts of Courage Donations

My headline pretty much says it all.  Beads of Courage is low and trying really hard to supply all the hospitals that they are affiliated with.  Is there a chance you can help?  Here is the link to their donation page which also gives you their address, what kind of beads qualify, (just about anything as long as it doesn't have metallics on the surface, sharp edges, annealed and well cleaned.  Pretty easy to find some spares, isn't it?)  And from my experience, kids love the less than perfect ones just as much.  I save mine with the slightly crooked smiles, color experiments or just doodling around, because I know some child will enjoy them very much. (As pictured in the photo above- some of the loot that will be heading their way:)

http://www.beadsofcourage.org/pages/beadartists.htm

Here's a little story.  One time I was visiting one of the Atlanta hospitals with the Beads of Courage program and kids were coming by and picking out a special bead.  There were all kinds of fancy beads in the tray, but a little boy kept pouring through them.  His fingers were moving them around until his face lit up.  He found a very simple but really nice royal blue bead and said this was the very bead he had been dreaming about.  It had no decoration on it, but to him it was just perfect. That was when we were asking the kids to design a Dream Bead and he told me that he had just found his Dream Bead and didn't need anything else.  The beadmaker happened to be present and told him that she had brought two, so you can imagine his delight when he found and got to take the second one as well.

That stuck with me.  We don't have to submit the fanciest beads. Each of us makes something that will touch someone's soul and will be special to them for the rest of their lives.

I'm hoping you'll join me in a donation in the near future.  It makes a big difference to these kids, and I don't know about you, but I get just as much from it as they do.

Hola! Dora the Explorer

There was a request for a special Dora bead for a special 4 year old little girl through Beads of Courage.
Ashley from Beads of Courage lets us beadmakers know, when it is important to make it quickly and get it in.  I understand the meaning and was able to respond for this one.

I was especially happy she had chosen Dora because Dora represents Courage.  And that is a big part of what this wonderful Beads of Courage is about.

Here's hoping this little Dora bead is enjoyed for many years to come. Wishing strength and courage for its new owner. <3

Alice in Wonderland Focal for Beads of Courage

One of my recent requests through Beads of Courage, was for an Alice in Wonderland Tim Burton-ish movie type bead.  We make these special requests for children with cancer and other life threatening illnesses. When I saw this one, I decided it was my turn to interpret it.  I wanted her hair to be a similar color and the dress blue like in the movie.  She is larger than the bead, to show when she grew tall from eating the pills. (ah, if life only worked that way, I'd be taller instead of rounder.)

And of course on the back side, I added the rabbit wearing his blue jacket and of course he's late.  An Alice bead needs at least one of the colorful inhabitants of Wonderland!

I hope the little girl and her family enjoyed receiving this bead.  So seldom do we hear about their reaction.  But next week, I'll do a blog post about my chance to work directly with one of the Beads of Courage kids and make her special Dream Bead while she watched and took photos.  I think that experience meant equally a lot to both of us.

See you tomorrow- yes, on a Saturday!- for the Big Bead Soup Blog Party reveal.  Wait til you see what I made!

Spiderman...Artists on Call for Beads of Courage

Spiderman was one little boy's request through Beads of Courage's Artist on Call program.  Where children ask for a special bead to be made just for them and glass artists choose from what has been requested and craft it for them.  Our Atlanta Southern Flames group did a test for this program, at the time called it Dream Beads.  

I have a feeling with the new Spiderman movie coming out, that there might be more requests over the next year too.  So I wanted to show you how I interpreted it, in case you'd like to volunteer with the program as well.  (contact BOC- or me- to put you in touch)

I first found a photo of a spiderman that I thought could be interpreted on a bead in glass. Knowing the child is young, I wanted to do a raised picture on a strong background, to be safe and sturdy.   This is the photo I found to use.

It's a child's Halloween costume.  It simplifies the outfit, yet gives the major details. Just what I wanted.

From there, I transferred the idea onto glass with some changes.  Mine obviously is not perfect, but a child would know immediately by the costume colors and design who it is, which is the result I wanted.

If you think this is fun, I'm hoping you'll volunteer with Beads of Courage too.  And if you think you need a little more practice, this type of interpretation is in my Creative Forces class that I teach.  How to take a 2-D or 3-D (or even words) description, and make a bead from it.  Which, combined with teaching, are two of my favorite things to do!  

See you tomorrow!