Bead Glue Can Be Dangerous!

Last night while working on the submissions for the vintage jewelry submission, I glued my thumb and my middle finger on my right hand together. As I was working with the piece, I said to myself - "You'd better be careful. You might glue your fingers together." Sure 'nuf I did.

An hour later, after applying nail polish remover and having my sister use a piece of dental floss to saw between the digits, they finally came apart.

At holiday time last year I was making a bunch of snowflakes when I glued a bead to my right index finger. It was stuck pretty good for at least a couple of hours. How foreign that felt.

Today's quote's author is unknown: Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass: it is about learning to dance in the rain.

Mother Nature's Color Show

Oh, what a beautiful morning, Oh what a beautiful day! (to quote Rogers and Hammerstein)

I sat under this tree for a while this weekend, just enjoying the colors that only fall can bring. I particularly enjoy the contrast between the oranges and yellows and the blue fall sky.

Been working hard on submissions for the vintage jewelry reworked book. Have a few done so far, but the one that I like the most is giving me some headaches.

I'm on my 4th or 5th time around making the pendant for this necklace. Each time it gets a little better. Maybe the next time it will be perfect!

To quote Henry Ford: Failure is only the opportunity to more intelligently begin again.

Today's quotation comes from Agnes DeMille, dancer: Who am I? the artist asks and spends his whole life finding it. (Agnes DeMille was Cecil B. DeMille's neice. He was one of the first famous movie directors. New piece of trivia for me.)

Blogtoonist David Walker

How About Orange had one of Dave Walker's cartoons on her blog. Every now and then you come across a cartoonist who really seems to strike chords in people.

Here is one that really hits home for me. I really really hate to do laundry and will avoid it at all costs as my sister often reminds me.

Czech Glass & Beads

My sister just completed a trip to Prague, Budapest and Bratislava (forgive me if I misspell...)

She's a beader, too and didn't come home with any beads (too many to choose from, she said.)

She took the first picture because they cannot claim to have the "best" Czech art glass - guess it's against the law, so this is probably the best Czech art glass.

Maybe we should have that law here - the crappy pizza joint (and I use that adjective liberally) down the street claims to have the World's Best Garlic Bread (but I don't have the nerve to eat there...)

Another quote: this one from Frederic Amiel: The man who insists upon seeing with perfect clearness before he decides, never decides. Accept life and you must accept regret.

Vintage Jewelry

Last night I was working on remaking vintage jewelry into new jewelry with a twist.

I'm really glad that I took the time to see if any of the pieces I was about to mangle and rip apart were signed - one rhinestone necklace that I bought at a rummage sale for probably a quarter (and used to wear) in the early 80s was signed and is worth a lot more together than apart!

Some of the jewelry that I was working with was old and brittle, so I won't be able to remake it the way I wanted to originally, but that's the way it goes sometimes.

Today's quote comes from Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.

Another Beautiful Fall Day

Today was another awesome fall day in Wisconsin! Almost too warm. Waiting for the other shoe to drop and for the weather to turn colder.

The silver bracelet is Saki silver. It makes a wonderful sound when I wear it. I needed some instant gratification, so I made it in a snap. I love Saki silver.

The other image is the corkscrew lariat that I've been working on for over a month. It is a slow process, but one I enjoy doing.

I have some other jewelry to work on for submission for a book gallery, so the corkscrew will have to take a back seat until that's done. Of course I've known about the submission due date for a long time, but I'm a lifetime procrastinator. Don't see that changing in the near future.

This is a true story. I once bought a book on conquering procrastination, but it sat next to my bed until I decided that I'd never read it and gave it to Goodwill.

I have a few quotations for today: the first comes from William James: Nothing is so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an unfinished task.

The second comes from unknown: The best way to get something done is to begin.

The third comes from Don Marquis: Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.

Beading: Art or Craft? You Decide

Went looking around at some of my favorite bead blogs today as a break after work. Stopped at the Lone Beader and found this post which sparked a chord in me.

"Beadwork is a craft that should also be seen as fine art. Beads are a medium which can be handcrafted out of many different materials such as glass, wood, metal, paper, clay, or felt. With the help of fiber, wire, clay, or other materials, beads can be sculpted into extreme dimensional forms using both traditional and contemporary techniques. But still, we continue to see beadwork only in jewelry and cultural exhibits. It is time that international fine art museums start thinking outside the box, and display more beaded forms and sculptures in contemporary and modern art exhibits, as well. " - the Lone Beader

My reply to her post: Well said, well said! I think many bead artists come from crafting backgrounds and they don't consider what they do to be art. Isn't craftsmanship part of the execution of a piece of art?

I have this discussion with lots of people (craft vs art). It's all in the approach, I think. If you think it's art, it is. If you think it's crafting, it is.

I ran into one of my old art professors recently and she asked what I was up to and I told her that I was beading. She said that an artist had brought in this beautiful beaded piece to a reunion of art students. I don't think that many art schools/teachers can see past the craft to the art of beads.

Whew! I might just have to quote you on this subject...

Quotation for the day comes from Barbara Sher: You can learn new things at any time in your life if you're willing to be a beginner. If you actually learn to like being a beginner, the whole world opens up to you.

How Come?

Why do I feel the need to knit or felt something every fall?

Don't I have my hands full enough with beading and life in general? Why does yarn and fiber entice me so?

Now I want to make some felt beads. It'd be easier to buy them, but I want to make them! If I felt beads, at least I'm staying within the beading realm.

Today's quote is from Berenice Abbott, American photographer: Photography can never grow up if it imitates some other medium. It has to walk alone; it has to be itself.

(Same can be said for any art medium.)

Donuts the Calorie Free Kind!

Last week was the week from hell for me - too many very emotional situations to deal with. Very difficult to do much work of any sort, but I did manage to do some work on the corkscrew lariat I've been working on.

I also went to NanC Meinhardt's Studio in Highland Park yesterday to take a class with Liz Smith with my friend Carla. We made a Calorie Free Donut (or at least started to work on one.) (Photo courtesy of Liz Smith and NanC Meinhardt.)

I sometimes find it difficult to work in free form, so this will be a bit of a challenge for me. I'm working in greens and purples on this project - had to find beads in a hurry, so I chose colors from my most crowded bead drawers.

Part of it's done in right angle weave, so I was glad that I had to practice that stitch some more. It was easier this time around.

I enjoyed learning from Liz. She's a good teacher (former school teachers usually are.) Her written directions are top notch, too. She taught me a couple of new tricks that I'll be using! Thanks, Liz!

I really needed to do something creative and to get out of the house and get my mind off of life for a while, so this was a great escape for me.

Thanks to those people who voted for their favorite stitches. I just wanted to try something new on my blog.

Maybe sometime I will get to my September Beaded Journal Page. Guess I'd better make an effort to do that soon.

Today's quote comes from George Barnard Shaw: We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.

Post Secrets

Frank Warren has been encouraging people to send him artistic postcards with people's deepest secrets for years. I have a couple of ideas, but never got around to it. Now I can't find the address.

He'll be in town in two weeks to promote his new Postsecret book, so I think I'll try to go to hear what he has to say.

This began as an artmail/artomatic project. Cool.

Today's quotation comes from English Playwright Shelagh Delaney - There aren't enough secrets to go round anymore. Some spies are having to invent secrets in order to earn a living.

A Beautiful Fall Day

I'm nearly done knitting a chemo cap for my friend and want to mail it tomorrow or the day after. I hope it gives her some comfort. I am going to finish that chemo cap today.

The yarn is really soft and is verigated with bright tropical hued tones. I enjoyed making it, although I'm really having trouble with the last little bit... I'll just wing it and it should work out okay. Another learning situation - but not quite sure what I learned yet besides the fact that I like working with double-ended needles instead of two circular needles. (That was a tangled mess!)

My tubular corkscrew peyote piece continues to grow. It needs to be quite long since the ends with twine together in front to make the closure. I suppose it is a lariat of some sort and the first one of those I've made. It only grows 1/2 a bead length in a round which is why it's taking me so long. I love it, though and though most people make jewelry to match their wardrobes, I buy shirts to match the jewelry I've made.

A good friend's husband passed away Sunday night. He was only 58. I consider him a friend as well and I will miss him so much. This is the first person that I consider to be a friend that I've lost. I feel for their son who is only 12.

So, I think tonight I will bead to keep my hands busy.