So in the midst of all the non-bead related activity going on the last couple of weeks, Jen happened to finish quilting "The Hand" and passed it back to me.

I don't think at the time I really expressed my delight at the work she had done. I love this. From the zig-zags to the shape to the texture on the the front and back, her design allows for more surface embellishment, which I find very inspiring.

Here is a closer look at the texture around the bead work. I plan to add some beads around the bead work it's self and some around fuchsia fabric to give it a pop. I may also add some sort of dangle. The possibilities are endless.

Oh Dear!

It's been awhile hasn't it? Between the in-laws' two week visit, work, and the weather being fantastic, this blog has fallen to the wayside. It really doesn't matter, with all the things going I haven't had much time for beads.

here is a picture of the clematis blooming in the back garden. These blossoms are so strange and beautiful. I hope I get more than two flowers on it this year.

Today is my birthday. So far it has gone exactly how I wanted it to. Slept in late, long bike ride with J.P. and Jackson, felafel and strawberry shot cake for dinner.

I did get some lovely gifts from friends and family. A great summer dress and gift certificate from my mum, the Wii from J.P., and this gorgeous bag from Jennifer.

This is a gift for my good friend Connie in Tulsa. She is a fellow Gemini and a true kindred spirit. Unfortunately I don't get to see her as often as I would like, being so far away and all.

I used size 11 seed beads and some beige pearls that have a nice luster, the cab is a ceramic piece I picked up at The Bead & Button Show last year. After all the bright colors I've been using it was nice to work with a more subtle color pallet.

The chain is spiral rope chain with my first peyote stitch toggle clasp. This chain is great to use for so many reasons. It's very strong for one thing, your needle passes through the center so many times that even if there is a break some were the whole thing won't fall apart. But even with all the thread running through it, it still feels light and supple. Stronger than it appears is a good way to describe it.

In other news, "The Hand" has officially been handed over to Jen. We talked a little about what to do with it, but I'm leaving it up to Jen to work her magic for the most part. I'm sure we'll see what wonderful thing she comes up with in the near future

Rainbow Block Wall Quilt

I've been meaning to post about this wall hanging for awhile now, but I can't seem to get very good pictures. So I'm just going to post what I have and be done with it.

This was started in the winter of 2007 and finished in the summer of 2008. This will give you an idea of how long it can take me to finish a project. Sometimes it takes a long time.

I got the inspiration for this from a set of magnets I made for my sister's birthday one year. They were a set of covered buttons, in the colors of the rainbow, that I converted into magnets. I found the challenge of working with one color interesting and wanted to try it on a slightly larger scale. I knew I wanted to turn these into a wall hanging from the very start. So I turned to my friend Jennifer, the one with the quilting know-how, to see if she would be up for a collaboration. Thankfully she was because I don't know how to sew. And so it was on.

The blocks themselves measure 3"x3", not huge but a little bigger than the buttons. Some colors worked themselves out really quick, others not so much.

The red block was one that came easy. I like red and I like how this block turned out. I don't usually use bugle beads, I don't really have a good selection of them to use anyway. But this project let me use what bugles I have and now I'm on the hunt for more bugles for future projects.

I had a lot harder of a time with the orange block. First I found that I had
a pretty paltry collection of orange beads, so I had to make a special trip to the local bead store just for orange beads. Then when it finally came time to, you know bead, I could not get into this color and when I looked at it, the whole thing looked and felt forced. I don't know, it's not my favorite.

I am the most surprised with the yellow block. After the orange one I started to worry that the yellow one would be the same. But I am really happy with how it turned out. I also found a new appreciation for this color.

When people see this for the first time they usually like the green block the best. I was pretty confident about this color at first. Green is probably my favorite color and I have a great collection of green beads. But I found my self one third of the way through and hated it. So much so, I made the decision to pull it out and start over. I will admit this sat on my table for some time. It probably took the longest, but in the end it really turned out good.

If you were to ask me what my favorite block is, it would be the blue block. It came together really smoothly and, like the yellow block, I found a renewed appreciation for the color and all the shades it comes in.

Like green I love purple and have a good selection of beads. Unlike the green block the purple block took the shortest amount of time to make. I used the pattern on the fabric for the design and just mixed all different shades of purple. This one reminds me of ferns in the spring time.

Once I was done I gave the squares to Jennifer. We talked about how we wanted this to hang and what the border fabric should be. I also wanted Jennifer to leave her mark. She decided to try out squiggles (I can't remember what the stitch is called) on the black fabric border. Unfortunately I can't get a good picture to really show it off. But it gives the border texture and interest that really complements the bead work. She was even clever enough to put our names in the border.

We were both happy with how this turned out. So much so, that we entered it in the county fair for giggles. For some reason we couldn't be entered in a bead work category and ended up in the wall art/quilt category. It didn't seem to matter though, we took home the blue ribbon and a whopping $1.37 in prize money, which made me laugh.

The rainbow wall hanging now has a home on my living room wall, under the clock and over Jack's bed. I see it everyday and it inspires me to do more work like this. Collaborating with Jen opened up a whole new world as far as what can be done with beads and fabric. So I have a lot of ideas and I hope to find the time to make some of these to come to life.

That's it for now. Again, sorry about the pictures. I haven't spent as much time beading lately, the urge to get outside and soak up any good weather has trump all other projects.

Lovely Things

So, I sent $20 with my good friend Jennifer to the The Sew Expo in Puyallup, WA. She asked before she left if there was anything I needed. I told her "pink and turtles". Boy did she deliver. And she also picked up some gorgeous Autumn fabric that I absolutely love.

Jennifer is a dear old friend who just so happens to quilt. We have collaborated on one piece (that I have yet to post here) so far. I still need to go to the fabric store for fabric for the hand. Then it's off to Jen's to get quilted up. It's nice to have some one to bounce ideas off of and as a quilter, Jen sees things in a different way that opens up a whole other way of doing things. And shes a good little shopper!