Wonder and Whimsy Monthly Challenge - February 2021 Reveal

How is it the end of February already? I realize that it's a short month, but I feel like January was only yesterday!

That being said, I do actually have some things to show for this month's challenge. Five things, actually--some of which you may have already seen, if you follow my Instagram. (I shared three things, to be precise... don't worry, I saved a good one for this final reveal!)

So! As a refresher, my challenge this month was hearts.

Not my photo!
Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash

...specifically, making heart jewelry that I would actually wear. That certainly was a challenge, since I'm not big on hearts in general. But! I'm happy to say that I did have success!

Apparently, I just like hearts that are unique and interesting.

The first three pieces that I made achieve this level of interest because, well, the hearts are actually leaves--and I really like leaves.

The fourth thing that I made was a pair of earrings--with vintage hearts made out of lucite. I have never seen hearts quite like these, and they were just cute and dainty enough to make me smile. I kept the design simple to really let the hearts speak for themselves:

..And, lastly, I made a heart necklace with a tassel.

I was super happy to find a cloisonné heart that was both large enough to balance out a tassel and was not in traditional red-and-white heart colors. I really like the pink and green and gold color palette--elegant and delicate, but not cliche.  

So, there you go! Those are the pieces that I made for this heart jewelry challenge. I am actually really happy with what I made... It absolutely was a bit of a stretch for me to find focals that I liked, but it was definitely worth it. It's a good thing to stretch those creative muscles, after all! :)

Thank you so much for stopping by today. Have a wonderful day, everyone!

Yay! It's Bead Soup Time!

If you've been around my blog for awhile, you might remember when I participated in the Bead Soup Blog Party, many years ago. 

If you're not familiar with it, essentially it went like this: people signed up, swapped beads with another jewelry maker, made something with the beads they received from their partner, and then shared their creations on their blogs. It was a wonderful way to expand your skill as a jewelry designer, and I loved it.

And I am so excited to share that it's back!

Yay!!

I've already been paired with my partner... She is a lovely jewelry maker named Veralynne Malone.

Here is what I sent to her:

Surprise! I'll share the actual picture of what I sent her when she opens my package. (It's been shipped and received, but she's been waiting to open it until she is able to send me my bead soup. She's been super busy and then ill, so I'm still waiting on my package... which is just fine. It means that I get to buzz around in happy anticipation just a bit more!)

I'm so excited!

Thanks for stopping by today. Be sure to come back soon, when I get to share the actual picture of what I sent her. Until then, have a lovely day everyone!

February Reveal - SJ Designs Jewelry Honey Do List Design Challenge

Sarajo Wentling, of SJ Designs Jewelry, has been continuing her Honey Do List challenge this year... In fact, 2021 marks the sixth year that she's done it. How cool is that?

I always love seeing what she makes, and I'm excited that I got to play along thing month. Yay!

Here was the inspiration photo for February:

And this is what her husband, Eric, has to say about this picture:

This was a cool 8-bit looking mosaic in London, along with some random graffiti and chain-link fence.  We saw a lot of cool street art on this leg of our England trip (pre-Covid of course) and this one jumped out at me.  This was taken with my phone, so not as great quality as some of my shots, but still fitting for February!  

I'm usually not one for hearts (as I have previously explained), but I think this 8-bit mosaic heart is really cool! 

However, when thinking about what I wanted to make, I quickly realized that the only red hearts I currently have in my stash are super sparkly Swarovski hearts. While lovely, they don't quite have the same vibe as this rather unconventional street-art heart.

So, I decided to instead focus on the colors--and the general "finding art everywhere" feeling from the photo. That was when I remembered some paper strips I had previously cut from a magazine. 

From there, one thing led to another... I rolled the paper beads, and from them I made these earrings:

Not incredibly complex, I realize, but I'm still really happy with them. After all, I always love the excuse to make and play with paper beads... and I do think they match the general feeling of the inspiration picture quite well. :)

So, there you go! That's what I made for this challenge. As always, thank you Sarajo and Eric for letting me play along... and thank you to everyone who has stopped by to see. I appreciate you taking the time to let me share my art with you!

Have a wonderful day, everyone! 

Wonder and Whimsy Monthly Challenge - February 2021 Edition

I have a confession to make.

...I don't really like hearts.

Not my photo!
Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash

Okay, okay, I suppose I should clarify. I actually like pictures like the one above. Hearts can be sweet, and genuine, and pretty. I can be a sappy romantic, after all.

I guess I just don't really like, well, standard hearts. Regular hearts. Especially in jewelry. So many high-end jewelry stores make these gorgeous diamond-encrusted heart pendants... and I don't really like them. Maybe it's the rebel in me, I just like things that are a bit more personalized. And please understand, that's not saying there's anything wrong with heart jewelry... This is just my own personal preference, my own personal quirk.

So, what does that have to do with my challenge this month? 

Well, this month, I'm going to challenge myself to make heart jewelry.

...Specifically, heart jewelry that I like and would personally wear. I figure that's a good Valentine's Day challenge, and sure to get me to spread my designing wings a little bit!

Thanks, everyone, for stopping by! Have a wonderful day, and be sure to come back on Friday, February 26th to see what heart-inspired jewelry I end up making!