30 Words: Hope

Brightly colored petals,

Summer days long past.

The promise of hope;

Nature will bloom again.

A necessity in a world 

Caked in ice and snow.

 

Don't just survive winter.

Celebrate!

The premise of 30 Words Thursdays is simple...

Take an image (preferably one you shot, or have permission to use).

Write 30 Words about it. No more. No less.

 

Share your link with Erin at Treasures Found.

Winter Inspirations - First Snow

 

Did you hear that happy sigh?  That deep down in my bones completely happy sigh.  Yeah, that's how I'm feeling right now.

Life here is everything I dreamed it would be.  Peaceful, sweet, calm.  We have had to turn towards each other because the distractions are so much less in a small town.  We've grown closer together over the last month, which is an accomplishment with teenage girls. We've turned inward as the year ends and Christmas beckons us to prepare our hearts.  Our spirits are more alive than they have been in years. 

 

These are photos from our first snow two days ago.  I woke up absolutely giddy seeing the fields and trees covered in a blanket of white.  These two pines tower in our front yard.  Yep, twin pines.  I think that's what I'd name this place.  These trees are about 30 feet tall.  I don't think you get that from the photo.

 A little juniper bush in our driveway.  The snow hung perfectly to it's feathery branches.

This had me thinking about the little birds we were watching frantically swooping in our backyard earlier this weekend.  Jess found them entertaining.  Oliver (the cat) found them mouth-watering.  It had me thinking we need to make some find of bird seed thingy for the trees.  I need to google that.  Bird seed thingy. 

Did I mention in my giddiness at sunrise I threw on my shoes, coat, gloves, hat and scarf and ran outside with my camera.  I was greeted by the most amazing pink and purple hazy sky, it was the perfect background for our winter wonderland.  This is the view from my studio.

 Sigh...

Inspiration is found in the grand views and the minute details.  Happiness abounds in the Humble Home.

And speaking of happiness, Becky Meverden won the Charmed Pendants giveaway.  Yeah Becky!  She is a frequent Humblebeads shopper, so I was happy to see a familiar name drawn. Thanks to everyone who commented and pinned their favorite collection.  It was fun to hear from you!

And more happiness - check out my latest newsletter for last minute gift ideas.  

Jewelry Designs from Nature Inspiration: Poems and Photos

Today over on the Art Bead Scene I'm hosting a design challenge inspired by the poetry article in my book, Jewelry Designs from Nature.  I sent everyone a packet with a bead, poem and a photo for inspiration.  My book is now available in Hobby Lobby and Michael's.  I never tire of seeing it on the shelf when I walk in the door!  And even more exciting and worth celebrating is that my book is now in it's second printing! 

You can see the results and read more about it here.  

Below are the poems and photo inspirations that I sent along with jewelry that I created for the challenge. The designer tips are some ways to think about how to interpret a poem with beads.

The Sea

 

Designer Tips

• Use real beach stone beads mixed with silver or pewter metals to capture the feeling of water hitting the pebbles on a beach.
• Smaller stone dangles hanging on larger metals loops could symbolize the continuous cycle of waves hitting the shore.
• Pair rough textured or bumpy beads with frosted matte glass.

 Designer Tips:

• A complimentary color combination of gold, copper and purple, taking its cue from the colors of a sunset would be a good place to start.
• Add a little boat charm bobbing on a sea of lampwork beads.
• Play with the line of sight on a necklace, adding in dangles on a chain to symbolize the bobbing of boats on the water.
• If you could find an opal pendant with flashes of gold, orange and purple that would be the perfect focal for this poem.

Designer Tips:

• Sprinkle red enamel bead caps with gunmetal ball headpins on a bracelet filled with teal blue and the bleached out golden hues of sea grass.
• On a metal ring with a white patina, add charms of tiny red beads, sea shell charms and blue glass drops.
• Pair a large poppy pendant with matte faux sea glass, pebbles and wood beads for a necklace that takes it cue from treasures found along the sandy shore.

 The Woodlands

 

Designer Tips:

• Mix gold with brass metals to symbolize the change of the seasons.
• Add in charms and pendants with leaves and trees.
• Combine monochromatic tones of gold and light green in stones, glass and ceramic beads.  
• Wrap wire to create entwined textures. 

 

Designer Tips:

• Picked beads in hues of purple or navy blue in ombre hues to reflect the twilight night sky.
• Pair a tiny bird bead with tree pendant.
• A charm bracelet with birds, hearts, trees, tiny houses and wings uses all the symbols reflected in the poem. 

Designer Tips

• Silver is the easy choice for this poem.
• Use glass headpins in clear and light blue to mimic raindrops.
• Pick stones in rock crystals or quartz to symbolize rain.
• Pick birds, crowns, hearts and music notes charms or pendants.
• Use Twig connectors and clasps mixed with white and green beads.

 

 

Designer Tips:

• A grape leaf toggle with clusters of tiny amethyst and leaf charms are an easy choice.
• Add a crow bird bead to a leaf pendant along with a lush collection of beads in autumnal colors.
• Create a lariat with two leaf pendants on a beaded chain to symbolize the falling leaves of fall.

The Garden

 

 

 Designer Tips:

• Pick the blushes and pinks of rose petals in stones and glass.
• Find bee and rose charms.
• Use wire and branch connectors wrapped in a bramble of wire to represent the thorns.
• Layer leaf pendants in metal and ceramic for a dynamic focal.
• Create ribbon roses in sari silk to add texture.

 

Designer Tips:

• Cluster faceted citrine beads to sparkle and shine like a row of daffodils.
• Soft silk ribbon in golden hues ties on a chain can mimic the delicate petals of the flowers.
• A long chain interspersed with tiny yellow dangles and a floral focal would reflect the never-ending line of flowers.

Designer Tips

• Gather a cluster of Czech glass leaves to symbolize a forest floor.
• Thread silk cord in a chocolate brown through a chain and attach tiny white flower beads. 
• Pair s single flower pendant among a lush dangle of leaf charms.

Visit the Art Bead Scene to view the blog hop results.

Which poem speaks the most to you?  Do you find inspiration in literature - using phrases and quotes as the basis for your jewelry?

Inspired by: Zen Gardens

My upcoming book, Jewelry Designs from Nature, is all about inspiration from the natural world and one of my missions in life is to help inspire those on their creative journey. This is week eight!

This week's inspiration is Zen Garden! Your design can be inspired by the photograph or dragonflies in general.  This lotus flowers, bamboo, Buddha, cherry blossoms, om symbols, smooth stones and wood beads.

Details:You have one week to complete a piece of jewelry inspired by the weekly theme. The entries have to be created this week - you can finish something you've already started, but the purpose of the challenge is to inspire you to make something new related to the challenge!

Anything goes, it can include Humblebeads or not, art beads or whatever you have in your stash. It's up to you and however the inspiration strikes you for that week.

To enter add your photo to the Inspired By Nature Jewelry Challenge Flickr group. On Tuesday I will draw one random winner from the week's entries and feature them here on my blog. (Monday night is the deadline for entries.)

Here are some inspiration ideas to get your gears churning!

Plus Size Bangles

Jess Contreras

Marie Dodd

The winner this week will receive 2 sets of Random Acts of Beadiness Disk Beads worth $30!

Order my book today!

The books are now in stock - you can find ordering information on my site, a list of Humblebeads featured in the projects and my upcoming book events! 

For those who have pre-ordered books they are shipping out this week. 

Exciting times here in the Humblebeads studio!

Have fun with this week's challenge - I can't wait to see what you make.

The upcoming challenges:

 Next week we dive into the sea!

Week 9: Urchins

Week 10: Waves

Week 11: Starfish

Week 12: Driftwood

Join me for my Inspired by Nature Retreat

(Photo credit: adapted from Andrew R. Whalley via the Creative Commons on Flickr.)

What is a retreat but an invitation to walk with the instructor on a creative journey?  To open your eyes to the possibilities around you, to learn to trust in your artistic instincts with the encouragement of your fellow travelers.  The instructor offers new insights into both the minute and vast beauty in nature, leading you to come up with new ways to translate that experience into something tangible.

And whether you feel like an artist or not, you are given the skills to express your vision into an object. By the time you leave the retreat you are renewed and energized, ready to return home with a deeper understanding of yourself and your creative process.

(Photo credit: Christina Harrison via Flickr)

I was talking to someone yesterday about my retreat and realized that creativity without any kind of boundaries or safety net can be scary for some.  I'm a "let's-dive-in-there-and-see-what-we-can-come-up-with"  kind of girl myself so I hadn't thought of that before.  The classes and structured lessons make the process less intimidating.  You don't have to be an artist to enjoy my retreat, but hopefully you'll feel like one by the time you leave.

Creativity is the willingness to take risks.  Artists realize there are no mistakes, only learning opportunities.  It's part of the process. 

So I invite you to go on a creative journey with me for 3 days.  It will be a safe place to try new things.  We will play with resin, seed beads and wire, we'll study color, texture, and the design lessons in nature.  We'll have fun making jewelry together. We'll walk on sandy beaches, explore the delights of the garden and visit the still quiet of the forest. 

Visit the site to learn more about my Inspired by Nature Retreat and celebrate the release of my book with me!

Birds of a Feather

I'm doing a holiday market in a few weeks and a big part of my inventory are nest, egg and bird related items.  I have been making multiples of the same design - like the nests above with some eggs in a smaller size. They are so much fun to create, I feel like mother nature over here weaving together such lovelies. 

Nests symbolize the home, security, safety.  I like nesting, doing those little things to make a house a home.  I'm very thankful for my nest!  This bracelet features a Green Girl Studio nest, pewter branches, a branch disk bead and labradorite.

Eggs whisper to us of renewal, birth and hope.  An egg is a promise of good things to come - and who doesn't want a reminder of that!

"Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" - Matthew 6:26

I think that verse is why I like these symbols most of all - they are a gentle reminder to me that my needs are always met, I can let go of my worries and trust in things bigger than myself.

Autumn Bliss

Every leaf speaks bliss to me

Fluttering from the autumn tree.

-Emily Bronte

When I was eleven I would go and spend the weekends with my dad and step-mom. We would play rummy (cards), charades and watch movies on some weird 1980's disc player - that I thought was pretty cutting edge.  Charlotte's web was a favorite. They lived in a cozy log cabin near a woody area and we would spend hours walking through the forest.

I loved walking in those woods. On one fall Saturday morning as we walked the paths through the trees, my dad ran across a sassafras tree and noticed the roots were sticking out in the path.  He extracted some of the roots, proudly telling me that is what they used to make root beer out of - hence the root in name!  He decided we should try our hand at making sassafras tea and gathered a few more roots.  It really did taste like root beer. 

I love memories like those, the simple joys of nature and childhood.  I think about those times when I create beads and jewelry that reflect my love of the outdoors and the beauty of creation.

The scoop on the bracelet: I whipped that up using some parts left over from my wreath project.  I used one of Vintaj's Maple Leaf Blank and created a texture with a riveting hammer.  I riveted a leaf pendant to the blank and layered a fern charm on top. (I love layering Vintaj components.)

Oaks, acorns and leaves

"The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities.” - James Allen

 "The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower." - Albert Camus

Trees are the best monuments that a man can erect to his own memory.
They speak his praises without flattery, and they are

blessings to children yet unborn.

- Lord Orrery, 1749

It's been an autumn inspired week as I whipped up some new creations.

I would love to walk in a forest,

Feel a crisp chill in the air,

listen as leaves crunch beneath my feat...

You can find these lovely bits in my Etsy shop.

I mentioned a contest - I'm still working out the details - check back on Monday.

Happy Creating!

Inspired by Summer: Plant Markers

Today's inspiration comes from the garden and goes right back into it!  I created these plant markers using the Vintaj altered blanks.  They have these super cute leaf shapes. 

I hammered the plant name with my letter stamps. And used my ball peen hammer to add a little texture, followed by a little once over with a fine sandpaper to bring out the highlights.

I made the hook using thick brass colored wire, I think it was 16 gauge.  I created a hook using a tube a beads for the shape.

 To add in a little 'humbleness' I used one of my disk beads, a Vintaj bead cap, a Czech glass flower. 

I also used the tall tags for this version.  Wouldn't these be cute gifts with a little potted herb, would make a sweet little house warming gift. 

Feel free to use this design to add some beady goodness to your container garden.

Vintaj altered blanks can be found Bello Modo.