Get To Work!

So I finally post after months of absentia then I disappear again!  Definitely need to get into a routine and back on track!

I've been holding out on big news and was waiting for a nice regular blog posting roll to slip it in but apparently my randomness isn't going to allow that so time to spill the beans...

Tucson or bust baby!  Not sure if I'm excited or scared to death but I'll have a table at The Tucson Bead Show February 9-11!  Who's going to come join me?  I'll need visitors and giggles and people to go out to dinner with (hopefully I'll have shoppers too)!  You can pre-register for the show right here to save time at the door.  There are still hotel rooms in Tucson available now too so this is a great time to make plans (and it won't be 134 degrees there like it is right now!). 

All this means is that I need to start kicking up my production...and no procrastinating!  So even though I'm going to try to start hoarding some pieces specifically for the show, I will try to be better about scheduling regular updates to my website with new pieces.

I pulled all the accent beads I had on my website and some others that have come out of the past few firings but that I haven't gotten around to photographing...I thought they would look better bundled up rather than just loose as I've had them in the past so I pulled out the raffia I have for my packaging and starting stringing them in batches.  The question I have though is what do you prefer for bundles?  Do you like groups of beads that are done in the same glaze or do you prefer a mish mash of coordinating colors?  I love this pile of bead colors all together but I'm also more likely to purchase monochromatic strands myself...

Also on that note, I finally took photos of pieces I've had kicking around for quite a while.  There are a few new glazes for reveal as well as some exciting color experiments that I'm messing around with.

There's this pretty green and brown that I am calling "kelp"...

and then this pretty rutile glaze...still chewing on a name for it...

and buttons! So many buttons!

So what would YOU like to see me make?  Sets, coordinating beads, colors...?

Feeling Lucky?

I just noticed that I now have reached 200 followers on my blog! How cool is that?! So in celebration I think we need a giveaway! I have a kiln load of bisque toasting away right now...some made to order items and a whole shwack of buttons. I'll let the winner choose from pendants, buttons or a pair of earrings...but no peeks of the choices until after my glaze firing is all done so you'll just have to trust me it's worth the time of a comment :)

So maybe for an entry to win you could help me out with a dilemma I have... do you prefer buttons to be be glazed on the back or left as smooth bare clay (or no preference at all)? In the past I have not glazed the back of my buttons... unlike most of my pendants and charms. I'll choose a random commenter next Saturday, the 16th for the giveaway.


I found this lovely fabric this week for a particular project I have in mind...how about more giving away of goodies? Want a chance to win one of the buttons from this firing? The first person to correctly guess what I have planned for this mix of fabrics will get one of the buttons.

Hope your weekend is wonderful!

What? No bead pics?

Lots to get done this week...many many buttons to make, restocking of the woefully low levels of some of my designs, hopefully a chance to get some new designs squared away as well. Since I have a big batch planned for the kiln, I'm happy to take requests (well, I'm always happy to take requests but this would mean a 1-2 week wait rather than 3-4 weeks).

Any sewing or knitting fans out there who would like a button to feature on an interesting project? Shoot off an email to me and we'll talk :)

In my efforts to spruce things up for spring following my blog banner update, you might notice a (greatly overdue) little upgrade to my website...the "search" box! You can now search all my pendants and beads by shape, pattern, and glaze color (or even matte and glossy if you so choose). I'm hoping that this makes it much easier to find what you're looking for.

The pupper sequence for the day...lizard stalking... Later this week I'll have some kiln fresh goodies to share!