Beading Arts: 2021

Tuesday, September 07, 2021

Little Bee Bookshop in Ayer Massachusetts

The adorable Little Bee Bookshop, owned by the equally adorable Debra Rivera, is now open at 40 Main Street in Ayer. I am honored to have some of my pendants there for sale!

Thursday, September 02, 2021

Moonlight - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Leave a comment to adopt one of my pendants!

The focal piece of this necklace is my one of my very favorite metal artists, Jennifer West of Off the Grid Designs. I just love how this one came out!

Thursday, August 26, 2021

Orthoceras fossil - mixed media bead embroidered pendants

This is an orthoceras fossil that I picked up at a street market in England, in the Before-Times when we could travel freely!

Monday, August 16, 2021

Kitties - two mixed media bead embroidered pendants

These two pendants have found their forever homes! The cute focals were made by my friend Dorothy Supri of Skyline Beads <3

Monday, August 09, 2021

Thistles - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Thistles

I love this piece, which features a metal focal and charm by my friend Jennifer West.

Tuesday, August 03, 2021

Peacock - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Available! Leave me a comment

I love this little guy! The focal piece was made by my friend Dorothy Supri.

Monday, July 26, 2021

Blue Floral - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Blue Floral

This pendant has found its forever home, but I have others that are similar! Contact me to adopt one of my pendants

The focal is by Shari Smith McDermott, and the little raku bead is by Amy Mealey.

Friday, July 16, 2021

Standing Tall - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Available! Leave a comment

Tuesday, July 13, 2021

Mermaid - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

I love seashore colors, especially in the summer!

Monday, July 12, 2021

Copper - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Looks like Copper may have found its forever home!

Friday, July 09, 2021

Fuchsia Swirls - a bead embroidered pendant

Available! Leave me a comment

First introduced in 2019...now looking for it's forever home!

Wednesday, July 07, 2021

Three Tiered Pendant - a mixed media bead embroidered pendant

Available! Leave me a comment

Ammonites are one of my most favorite cabochons to work with. They are deep, and need extra care to bezel them properly, but they are sooo worth it!

Monday, June 28, 2021

Ruth Ann's Garden - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

This is one of my favorite pieces. I made it years ago, and it was inspired by my Mother, who has the greenest of green thumbs I've ever known! I wrote a tutorial to show you the basic steps of how it was conceived and put together. It combines bead embroidery, beadweaving, and a little bit of stringing.

Thursday, June 24, 2021

The Peaceful Fox and The Ghost of the Forest

The Peaceful Fox and The Ghost of the Forest have found their forever home! I know they will be well cared for. Please contact me if you are interested in adopting a different pendant <3

Monday, June 14, 2021

Andante - a mixed media necklace

Andante

The idea for this piece started to form in my mind when my husband became involved in restoring an antique player piano. The keys called to me in ways that I couldn't explain. I cried when I thought about the elephants that had been destroyed to make these objects of beauty. My tribute to those majestic animals is to prevent some of those keys from ending up in a landfill.

Note ~ The only ivory that it is currently legal to use in the United States is either ancient fossilized ivory, or old recycled ivory like these keys.

Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Gaea Emerging - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Gaea Emerging

Wool roving, seed beads, pearls, aventurine, jade, copper

In making Gaea Emerging, I developed a two-layered solution to the problem of stitched-on embellishments getting lost in the texture of the wool roving when felted wool is used as a background. The centerpiece of Gaea Emerging is a CopprClay pendant that I made, fired, and patinated. The organic feel of the piece led to the name.

There are some step-out photos and basic instructions at the link.

Monday, April 26, 2021

Ancient Waves - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Ancient Waves

Ammonites, jasper, Swarovski crystals, seed beads, and pearls

Here are some step-out photos of the process at the link :-)

Wednesday, March 24, 2021

Dark Lady - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Dark Lady

An antique purse that was well beyond repair provided the steel-cut beads and the chain used for the closure of this recycled bead embroidered necklace. All of the black beads, from the fringe to the smallest glass charlottes are recycled antiques as well. The steel buttons have been attached in such a way that their shanks have been preserved.

Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Orinoco Flow - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Orinoco Flow

My daughter pointed out to me that this piece uses several very primitive symbols, like concentric circles and jagged lines, which often represent watering holes and the rivers that connect them. So I picked Orinoco Flow as the name. It has turquoise, amazonite, and pearls, and gold wire along with the glass beads.

If you'd like to see a couple of process shots, visit the link!

Tuesday, March 09, 2021

Blossoms of the Moonlit Waves - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Blossoms of the Moonlit Waves

Are they flowers or are they sea creatures? Maybe they are both, as the name suggests! Made from sugilite, charoite, Swarovski crystals, seed beads, and pearls.

If you'd like to see all my process shots, visit the link!

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Midnight at the Oasis - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Midnight at the Oasis

"It's midnight at the oasis, send your camel to bed," sang the incomparable Maria Muldaur. My friends and I used to howl with laughter as we sang along! Now I find myself nostalgic for the song if you can believe it.

This bead embroidery necklace uses complicated clusters of graduated stacks of seed beads to create the texture. The photograph just doesn't show how dimensional it is. If you'd like to see all my process shots, there's a three-part post on my blog that starts at the link.

Thursday, February 18, 2021

Phoebe - a mixed media bead embroidered necklace

Phoebe

Hello friends! I haven't had time to work on new pieces since I'm still running a food pantry and hot meals program during the Time of Covid. So I thought I'd take a bit of a trip down memory lane and share some of my older pieces again. I hope you don't mind. This one is called Phoebe. She is named for Saturn's ice moon, which was in turn named for a Titan of Greek mythology.

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