From Flower to Jewelry

I just recently found out that I was accepted to the ISGB's 3 x 2 Exhibit.  The premise is that the glass artist submits a bead to a jury.  If accepted, then the beadmaker makes a total of three similar ones that get sent on to a Washington state metal jewelry artist  who will then make each of the three beads into jewelry.  One will go on exhibit for our Gathering in Bellevue WA this summer, and then each of the artists receive one of the final design.

I love this type of collaboration.  Usually I am making custom pieces or for myself, so I don't have to give up all control of the final item.  But you know, sometimes you find such wonderful combinations that you wouldn't have thought of otherwise.

I tried to pick colors that would go well with a variety of metals.  I know that some are so expensive, so I wanted colors that could look luscious with ...oh maybe copper or something else.  The affordable kind.  And although the bee is sculptural (and yes, he does have two wings, but a funny angle of the photo makes it look otherwise.), he is protected with the petals that I made a little thicker than usual.

And I was careful to make a very flat bottom for this as well.  I am not experienced in setting beads, but I thought that between having a 1/16 hole as well as a flat bottom, the metal crafter had more options for attaching them.

If you make beads for bezels, what are some tricks that you don't mind passing along?  I just shared my thinking, but I bet there are more angles for attacking this than what I thought of.  Let us all know.  And hope you had a nice weekend...

Glass Flower Garden - Sale in My StudioMarcy Etsy Shop

I've been busy making flowers.  I guess with no real gardening skills this is about as close as I'm going to get.  I've always loved flowers and when I first started melting glass, I was sure that I would be specializing in encased florals.  I guessed wrong.

But recently, I've started playing around with whimsical sculptural flowers.  And am now listing them in my Etsy shop StudioMarcy.  AND...I'm having a flower sale for a few more days.

They are constructed so the hole runs below the petals and it's a 3/32 in most cases.  They look great as pendants or on jewelry.  In fact, I make a lot of necklaces with three blossoms on each.

If you see something here that isn't listed, please send me an email.  I've been away and haven't been able to upload all of them, so they are hanging out on my bead rack...some with bees and ladybugs and some bug free, (but no chemicals were used to keep the bugs away).

And now I'm deciding whether to make realistic flowers as well, or whether to stay with my whimsical fantasy ones.  What do you think?

My Flower Ring Giveaway & Interview

Have you ever visited The Post-It Place? It's a great blog. There are always giveaways, interviews and fun features. It's one of those blogs that always has something interesting going on.

Well, this week, I'm the "MMM" Meet Me Monday interview and feature. You'll learn amazing facts (okay, maybe they aren't amazing) and see fabulous photos of my work, (okay, maybe not fabulous, but "pretty good")

But this I can say for sure, if you follow the rules, you can be entered in my Flower Blossom adjustable ring giveaway. It's not the one shown in this photo here, but one that is at the bottom of the article.

If you look on the left side of the blog, you'll also see more contests to enter while you're there. It just takes a few minutes, and wouldn't it be cool to win one? That can't happen, unless you try.

This past weekend, I made a lot more of these rings. I think they're pretty. I'm slowly adding them to my etsy shop under the category- "Mothers Day Jewelry", and have a few shown in my Flickr page as well. And even more in my jewelry tray.

Hope you have a minute or two to stop by this fun blog, and please enter my giveaway. Tell you what, if you win, I'll let you choose from any that I have made and are on hand. Just remind me.

Catch you tomorrow...

My Flower Blossom Rings in Today's Etsy Showcase

My glass rings are being featured in the Etsy Jewelry Ring Showcase today.

They will be in the top bar of moving photos, (here).  

Right now, I have my adjustable Flower Blossom rings mixed into my StudioMarcy shop's jewelry department.  I'm wondering whether it would be smarter to change that category to a different title.

Something to ponder.  

I really like these rings and have priced them so they're very affordable. They come in such a nice red ring box too, which is shown in my etsy listings.

What have you done recently to change up your online marketing?  Have you added a new style, or advertised somewhere different to see if you can increase your visibility?  Let us know.

Do You Know Beading Color Expert Margie Deeb?

Do you know beading color expert Margie Deeb?

She writes wonderful articles, pdfs, books and does podcasts regarding colors for beaders.

She is busy working on a Spring color forecast and I'm lucky to be making one of the jewelry illustrations for it.

Here is an approximation of the colors that I'll be using but in different proportions.

I was thinking of making a sculptural flower bead with these colors. And as it needs to be finished jewelry for my submission, then use that bead to make a ring. But seeing that it's not due for a little while, I'm open to suggestions from all of you. What would you like to see in these colors? It should be 50% pink, 22% green and yellow- each and about 6% white. I'd love to hear your ideas.
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**Don't forget the free weekly give away in the Artisan Beader Gift Guide, please stop by!**

The Better To See You With, My Dear

I often get asked how I can get so many little details onto my lampwork glass beads. When many of my beads average under an inch tall, I guess I can see it from that perspective. But in one of my earliest classes , Kate Fowle Meleney offered this tip.


Use the press-on magnified reader lenses inside your protective safety glasses.

This is the brand that I have found online and use. Here is a url for them. http://www.stickonbifocals.com/custom.em?pid=196896 I use higher magnification than what I would normally use. My readers are typically 1.5 magnifiers. Darn, it's hard being old!. I chose 2.5 magnification, but I see this site offers them even higher at 3.0 magnification. The pricing is very reasonable- the lens themselves are around $15 and then there's shipping on top of that. They last a long time.

Please be warned, that these take quite a bit of getting used to. It makes you a little crazy at first. I put mine at the very bottom of my protective glasses, (I wear old school rose didymiums), and then when I want to see something at a distance, I just peer over the top of them as my glasses slightly slide down my nose from being too loose. I am sure there are other ways to solve this problem, but this method works well for me. And of course my other rule of thumb is to have great lighting. My sweet husband and nephew installed some strong track lighting in my studio. That is even more important than the additional magnification.