Button Swap Blog Hop - The Reveal

Welcome to the Button Swap Reveal. This challenge is hosted by the awesome Cindy Wimmer of Sweet Bead Studio.

As much as I love buttons, you would think that a challenge involving a button swap would be a breeze for me. This wasn't entirely the case this time around. Let me start by reminding you of the buttons I received from my partner Brenda Salzano.

I was smitten with each and every one of the buttons she sent.Here's a link to the buttons I sent her.

I started with the handmade wood button from Brenda. The earthiness of it really spoke to my hippie-self which wanted something super simple.
It quickly became a basic knotted bracelet with some leather cord. The wood button is both the focal and closure of the bracelet.
It's lightweight and really lovely.


Next, I turned to the large clear-ish button. It plainly said that it wanted to be a ring. With only slight difficulty, I snipped off and filed down the shank loop on the back. With E6000 glue and a brass ring blank, that button quickly got its wish.


The vintage enameled button was so sweet and feminine, I knew she (yes...she's a she!) just needed a few touches. With some coordinating beads and antiqued brass chain, she was quickly transformed into the focal of this pretty little necklace.


One button remained, and I hit a brick wall. I saved my FAVORITE button of the bunch for last, but absolutely struggled to come up with something that was suitable for its awesomeness. I have several ideas and some beads gathered, but just can't decide on the best way to proceed. The challenge was to make at least one item from one of the buttons our partner sent us, so I accomplished that at least. When I finally make up my mind on what will work best with this amazing button, you better bet you'll see it here on the blog.
I do apologize to Brenda for not making anything yet with this beautiful button. However, I want to make sure that whatever I design with this little piece of art really compliments it and isn't just thrown together. I simply ran out of time.

Now, a big THANK YOU to Cindy for organizing this Button Swap. I really had a lot of fun working with buttons that were new to me. Please make sure to visit Brenda (my partner) as well as Cindy to see what they created! Here's the list of the rest of the participants as well.


 Brenda Salzano and Hope Smitherman (YOU ARE HERE)
 Kim Roberts and Partner unable to participate at this time.
* Pam Ferarri and Stefanie Teufel (will share their reveal on a later date)
* Stefanie Teufel and Pam Ferarri (will share their reveal on a later date)


THANKS so very much for hopping by!!
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Bead Table Wednesday

I think I've finally finished hopping around the One Crayon Color Challenge blogs. . .but I'm still playing catch-up on everything else. I was called for jury duty on Monday and was there until yesterday. I've been selected as a juror on a case that starts Monday. Please don't expect much from me next week!

As far as what's on my craft desk this Bead Table Wednesday, it looks much as I left it over the weekend.
I'm working on a custom bracelet as requested by a local Twitter friend.

Don't forget to check out all the others in the Bead Table Wednesday Flickr Group!


I did list some new items last week that I haven't mentioned, but I'd love for you to check out.
Leftover Time Earrings
Gentle Spring Bracelet - relisted
However, my shop will not be open tomorrow. I've joined in a movement with Protesty to remind Etsy of its original intent of creating a marketplace for HANDMADE goods. You can read more at Protesty to join in the cause as either a buyer or seller.

It's time for me to head out for some time with the nieces. Happy Wednesday y'all!
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One Crayon Color Hop - Blue

About a month ago Sally at The Studio Sublime suggested another cool blog hop challenge, a monochromatic one. Participants just had to choose a single color from an eight-count box of crayons; red, orange, yellow, blue, green, purple, black, or brown. She decided to call it the One Crayon Color Challenge. Our task was to use the single color we had chosen and make a monochromatic design with it.

I chose blue.
This was my first piece and my first idea
I found that it was hard to be PURELY monochromatic because metals don't just come in blue.
I did my best to alter this Vintaj arte metal piece with blue alcohol inks
I was inspired by these earrings I saw on the Vintaj Pintrest board.
And the Sari silks I had just gotten in the mail helped fuel my idea as well!

I knew I couldn't stop with just one necklace on this challenge. After all, blue IS my absolute favoritest color! I decided to try working with some blue beading wire to try to make sure I stayed within the the monochromatic rules of the challenge. In my sketchbook, I had just the idea. However, the beading wire was much harder to manipulate that I had expected. I ended up with this necklace.
It's pretty, but just not what I had envisioned.

From there, I attempted ANOTHER idea from my sketchbook that specifically called for blue beads.
These turned out better than I had dreamed. . .and the idea was actually one I had dreamed.

Finally, I was absolutely, undeniably inspired by the Wrapped, Stacked, and Layered Challenge as hosted by Tracy Statler of Make Bracelets. Each and every blog I visited (and I visited them ALL) in that hop held so much inspiration that I knew I had to make a stack of my own!
My bracelet stack!
I want to break down this stack for you if you can spare just another minute or so.
These bracelets made up most of the bulk of the stack. They were made according to the instruction from Fanciful Devices' Tribal Gypsy Bangle Stack tutorial that I bought as soon as she offered it. You should check it out! She's got her shop on vacation mode right now but definitely check back later to get it from her.

This is a simple memory wire bracelet of seed beads and a basic friendship bracelet I tied.
Here's a new design from me that I am in love with and plan on making tons more!
This is another original design from me. I've been tweaking this design for a few months and just love it.
Lastly, I used a bangle blank from Hobby Lobby and fun beads from Michael's to make this bangle.

So, those are my contributions to BLUE. I can't wait to get hopping and see how everyone else conquered the challenge of working with only one color. . .and especially with some of those harder colors as well. Here's the list of participants!

Hosted by:

Red

Bobbie Rafferty   http://beadsong.blogspot.com

Orange

Rebekah Payne   http://treewingsstudio.com

 Yellow

Blue

Rebecca Anderson  http://songbeads.blogspot.com
**YOU ARE HERE--> Hope Smitherman  http://craftyhope.blogspot.com
Alicia Marinache  http://allprettythings.ca
Charissa Sloper   http://blog.obsidiansoda.com
Sandi Volpe   http://sandivolpe.com

 Green

Jenny Davies Reazor   http://www.jdaviesreazor.com
Elizabeth Auld  http://beadsforbusygals.com

Purple

Jennifer Judd Velasquez http://jenjuddrocks.blogspot.com

Brown

Diana Ptaszynski   http://suburbangirlstudio.com

Black

Birgitta Lejonklou  http://lejonklou.blogspot.com/

Thanks for hopping by!!
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BTW: Not Much to Look At

Let me start today's post by wishing my wonderful husband a FABULOUS 40th birthday! I can't believe that number. Shoot, I remember when I thought 30 was old. sigh.

In other news, it's Bead Table Wednesday and I've got very little to share today. After my funk on Monday, I found that the only cure was starting on something new and less taxing on my brain. Earrings it was! One of my best friends just had her birthday and has requested some earrings from me as her gift. I've got a few in the works and a few more laid out to get started. Here are the ones that just need ear wires.

As well, my pieces for the One Crayon Color Hop are sitting on my desk ready to be photographed. Here's a sneak peek for you!
I tried to distort it to the best of my ability

That's really all I have on the bead table at the moment. I apologize that it's not more exciting but I think a laid back table is what I need right now anyway. 
There's definitely some more exciting Bead Table Wednesday in the Flickr Group.

Here's what's new in the shop.
Wandering Fields Necklace
Float On Necklace - relisted
I better get back to pampering my old man of a husband and making some earrings. Here's hoping you have a great Hump day!
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April Goal Review


Another month has ended and a new one begun. As such, it's time for me to review my goals. All pictures are ones I have taken over the month and shared via Instagram. 
Sunshine on Fish River


PERSONAL
  1. Exercise (basically, just be more active)  We just didn't seem to do as well on this as we have previously. We weren't very active during the weekdays, though I did determine that grocery shopping can burn quite a few calories. We did play some disc golf, walk a few parks, and have a single bike ride all month but definitely need some improvement.
    2. Oranges with lunch
  2. Eat right/better We've actually done okay on this one. My menu planning does help, but every once in a while we just lose it. We definitely need to cut down on the sweets.
  3. Read more books/watch less TV (I'd like to read at least two books a month, however that all depends on the length of the book) I've really slacked with my book reading this month. I wish I could get more invested in Inheritance, but I'm struggling. I did buy Jenny Lawson's (The Bloggess) new book, "Let's Pretend this Never Happened (a Mostly True Memoir)" and am itching to get it started. As far as TV watching, we really only watch in the evening after dinner. So, there's not much change in that.
  4. Make a real effort to keep the house clean. I've followed my cleaning schedule a little closer this month, but I don't believe the house is any cleaner than usual. I definitely think I can get better so there's room for some improvement.
  5. Discover new music. I've thought about this goal a few times and have listened to a few new-er bands and songs for me, but have not invested any real effort or time on this goal. I totally need to work more consciously on it.
    6. A magical-looking spot on Fish River
  6. Grow some plants inside and out. Please note that this is the ONLY goal I'm deeming as MET this month. While the nieces were here for Spring Break, we gave some plants a new home on our front porch. Now, to just work on some inside plants! 
  7. Make my visions of my dream house and this house co-exist (basically, start decorating this house the way I envision my dream house being decorated.) The plants on the front porch help me some for this goal. As well, Pat and I have continued to talk about flooring and some other decorating issues. Yet, that's it. We're getting there I think, just at a snail's pace.
  8. Declutter/organize at least one drawer/cabinet/area a week. Though I haven't done this on a weekly basis as I had intended, I have done it about half the time. I'm pretty happy with my progress and just hope I can continue on this trend.
  9. Have a yard sale (possibly organize a neighborhood one) As I've done NOTHING to plan one for this spring and it's already warming up, I think this goal will have to wait until the Fall. Dangit.
  10. Take better care of my face and skin I've really not done well on this at all over the month.
  11. Go to the doctor/dentist  Just haven't done it yet.
Crawfish (one of the two parties this month)

BUSINESS/CRAFT
  1. Make a real effort with my blog. There's definitely a trend toward improvement this month, it's just not there yet.
  2. Include more tutorials on the blog. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to make a tutorial. I did download an app for my phone called Snapguide that's supposed to help with making tutorials. Hopefully I'll try it out soon.
    3. Paints organized in Roy G. Biv order
  3. Keep the craft room more organized. I won't say that the room's been MORE organized, but I haven't let it get too out of control over the month.  
  4. Discover my passion. I'm starting to recognize that I'm more conscious about what I enjoy making and materials I'm drawn to. So, I don't think this goal is a complete fail this month.
  5. Get published. I've made more progress on this goal in this one month than any other. A Facebook jewelry friend let a group of us know that an editor was looking for some additional submissions for the Fall issue of a magazine. I submitted a design. She liked it but wanted to see one change. I made the change, but haven't heard back from her yet. We'll see. Taking that first step is always the hardest. Maybe it was just the leap I needed.
  6. Create something everyday I really didn't focus on this goal at all over the month like I did at the beginning of the year. I definitely need to get back into that habit. I went DAYS without ever going into the craft room. That was not good.
  7. Explore other venue options for selling my jewelry (in the community)While I've not made any concrete decisions on this or actual steps toward it, I feel as though I'm getting closer than I've ever been in regards to this goal. I've talked with a friend who is selling in the community, figured out how to find local craft fairs, and contemplated what kind of displays/booth I want. It's not much, but it's still so much more than where I was.
  8. Find a way to use what I have instead of buying more. I need less more in my life! I did okay on this over the month. There were a few weak moments, but overall not too bad in the spending department.
Disc golf

GENERAL
  1. Figure out where my time is wasted and put an end to it. I'm continually aware that much of my time-wasters are games on the iPad. Yet, I lack the willpower to stop playing them. In general though, I don't feel like I've wasted as much time as previously.
  2. Find some confidence and exert it. I know I'm not doing well on this one. I continue to be a wallflower in most situations.
    3. Buttons being printed on the 3D printer
  3. Think outside of the box. I have done this somewhat with a few projects. As well, since Pat has the 3D printer built, I'm thinking hard about how I can use that to my benefit. It's something. 
  4. Be Grateful/Thankful. I've done a lot of thinking on this one, but have yet to express it as well as I was hoping.
 
Sunset while pontoon boat trailer getting fixed
 
Overall, I haven't had as many successes as I would like, but my failures are not near as big. I'm getting there I think!


Here's a tasty bit for your patience with this post; a new necklace in the shop.
Chocolate Frosting Necklace

For the original goal list as well as my goal reviews for January, February, and March just click on the links included in this sentence! 

Did you set goals/resolutions for the year? How are you doing on them so far?
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NEW website (and blog to go with it)

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