A Blog Award!

Thanks so much to Michi Michaelson for passing along this lovely blog award.


In accepting this award, I agree to:

1. Display the logo and link to the one who awarded it.

2. Nominate at least 7 blogs to receive the award.

3. Add links to those 7 blogs to my blog.

4. Leave the nominees a message that they have been nominated to receive the award.

These are the 7 blogs I have chosen:

1. Abelee's Handcrafted

2. brandi-girl :: musings and thoughts

3. Elbit Blog

4. Jael's Jewels Blog

5. Beadwright

6. Simply Shiny

7. Card Art Etc.

Featured Artist - Elise Strauss of Koi Creek Beadworks

Elise Strauss of Koi Creek Beadworks is one of the sweetest people I know. She is a lampworker extraordinaire and an outstanding jewelry designer. Elise had a booth at our Bad Girls of the North Craft Show in Fairbanks this past weekend. I think it was her first time showing in Fairbanks and I'm sure the crowd was as excited as I am by her lampwork. She creates amazing wildlife beads. Please check out her etsy shop and you'll see what I mean.

Packed and Ready to Head to Fairbanks!

Well, almost. The trailer, which is about 10' long, is packed to the gills, mostly with Bad Girls of the North merchandise. I added some of my display items to the mix too, just because they fit nicely. You see, it's like a giant puzzle, and I love puzzles!

The beastly Suburban is also packed, but not yet full. Rick & I will leave here at the crack of dawn tomorrow and pick up Carol. After that stop, the Suburban will be packed to the gills too.

It will be about a 6 - 7 hour drive to Fairbanks. The Bad Girls of the North craft show will take place at the Westmark Hotel on Friday evening and all day Saturday.

White Pearls

I can't think of a more classic item for a woman to have in her jewelry collection than white pearls. These earrings take that classic concept in a different direction. For these earrings, I started with pinkish-white keshi pearls that I neatly wrapped with sterling silver wire. I then suspended them from sterling silver earwires that I forged myself.

All of the silver has been oxidized and then tumbled it for that shiny steel gray finish that I love.

These earrings are for sale in my etsy shop.

How Do I Know When I Have Enough Pairs of Earrings?

How do I know when I have enough earrings to take to a show? Well, I'll tell you how I know -- when these 2 plastic boxes are as full
as they can be. Right now, they contain about 230 pairs of earrings, but they're not quite full. I think another 20 pairs will do the trick.

The 3 display racks I use at shows can hold 96 pairs. That quantity gives the shopper plenty of variety to look at and hopefully find at least one pair that she can't live without.

This photo only shows my "carded" earrings. I have another line of more expensive earrings that I display on individual earring swans or a larger display. That display is usually at the other end of my booth space, to further differentiate between the two lines of earrings that I offer. I think I have about 40 pairs of those ready to go at any time.

Upcoming shows: Bad Girls of the North - Fairbanks Westmark Hotel - September 26 & 27
Alaska Bead Society Show at the Anchorage Museum - October 4 & 5

Bear Encounter

Yesterday, while walking with Xena and Rick through the nearby woods, I heard some rustling. As it got louder, I heard some people's voices, but they seemed too far away to be the "rustlers".

I looked up and saw a huge black bear about 30 yards away. Xena was off leash so I yelled for her to come and the bear, obviously startled by my loud voice, turned the other way and disappeared into the woods. Believe it or not, neither Xena nor Rick saw the bear. What good are they, I ask you?

Yes, this bear was easily twice the size of the one that showed up on my deck earlier in the summer ( see post from July 20 for pictures). Totally ridiculous.

New Lampwork Earrings!

Now that the State Fair is over, I can get back to concentrating on my jewelry making. Here's my latest pair of earrings featuring some beautiful lampwork beads that I purchased in Tucson.
These beads contain so many colors, but the colors are subtle and work so well together. Sitting on the surface of the beads are raised swirls of black glass, deftly applied so as not to hide the colors below.

I have suspended them from sterling silver leverback earwires. Hanging below is a collection of 4mm Czech glass beads in coordinating colors.

These earrings are for sale in my etsy shop.