Christmas already?!  How the heck can that be?  Fortunately I finished my shopping weeks ago, but I do have one remaining person to buy for...my new sister-in-law.  I'm her secret Santa this year (she doesn't read this so I know I'm safe) and of course jewelry is in order, but I want to make her something special. 

And since I cannot stop making these...

the possibilities are endless...

so I want to make one especially for her with a soft, soothing color combination.

I came up with these last night....

the blue with the dusty rose, oh my, I can't stop looking at them. 

She's a pretty simple gal, so I may just put one on a simple chain or on a thin piece of leather.

Now just watch, with my luck she's gonna visit my blog for the first time tonight and the big secret will be out.

I was never good at keeping secrets anyway...

New Path

I've said it before, when it comes to making my beads, I'm all over the place.  I've never been able to tie myself down to a particular style, until now....

I have finally found my niche 

Possessing a tremendous love for nature, I have always tried to somehow incorporate it into my beads, always feeling unsuccessful.  This new line of mine, "Imprint Series", seems to capture exactly what I've been missing all these years...they make me happy.

So far they have been well received which guarantees a good home for them (yes, I get easily attached).

Hope you enjoy and thanks for stopping by.

Gobble, gobble

Here's to a wonderful day...may it be filled with love and family.

See you soon!

My new love...

No, I didn't get a new dog, although if it weren't for my husband you would definitely see me on Animal Planet's "Animal Hoarders"...yes, I am that bad.  Anyhoo, I've been carrying this little guy in my pocket all day because I love him so...

He's part of my new "natural" series.  Not sure if I can part with him...

:)

Beads for the shop...

Finally had a chance to sit down and mix up some beads.  It's all about Fall colors for me....

I just can't get enough. 

I've discovered eight-thirty is my favorite time of the evening.  It's my chance to unwind with my favorite episodes on Hulu and bead away.  I don't think about anything...really...

husband usually peeks in on me only to wipe away the drool on my chin, it can get gross.

But we all need our downtime, right?!

New news

Wow, seems like forever since we last chatted....so many new things happening in my little life right now and when I start to even think about writing up a new post I tend to get a little insecure.  Really?  Do you honestly think people want to know about these little random events in your life?  Well, (I tell myself) isn't that what this blogging thing is suppose to be about?  Geez, my lack of confidence really makes me want to scream sometimes.  Do you ever have those days? 

So now that I've gotten that out of the way (aren't you glad you stopped by today), let's get on with it!

My jewelry is finding yet another home in downtown Bend, Tres Jolie.  They require at least 50 pieces so I have been extremely busy coming up with a Fall line....

I am hoping they will be well received :)

Then there's the new name change at Etsy.  I have been waiting THREE years for this!!!  Standing ovation for the Etsy team please.   My bead shop will finally be know as BeadsbyEarthTones and I will also change my jewelry shop to AlisonPageJewelry.  Trying to get the whole branding thing down!

Hopefully (crossing fingers) I'll be able to sit down and start making beads again.  So many ideas for a new, more natural look to my beads...stay tuned and...

Happy Fall!!

Home on the range

Temporary life on the farm has been relaxing and quite peaceful. 

A few pics...

Lots of room for the boys to explore



Local wildlife

 

Hoping to catch a frog

 

We told the boys this was their bathroom

And a beautiful sunset every night

Although we'll miss it, it's so exciting to be settling into our very first new home.  Still so much unpacking to do, but I did get my clay station up and maybe tonight I'll get a chance to play with some new ideas that have been vacationing in my head.

More soon!









Bead Soup Has Arrived!

And man...is it hot!

 

I have to be honest, this go 'round was a HUGE challenge.  The glorious beads sent my way by Miss Amy ended up frying my brain.  I have NEVER worked with seed beads before...they are tiny...so very, very tiny and I will be forever finding them hidden in cracks and crevices all over the house because when they drop, well, it's all over.  BUT, because Amy sent such a generous amount, I am happy to report I was able to create not only a necklace, but a pair of matching earrings.

So let's break this down:

Pros:  A bright and cheery assortment of beads.  Every time I glanced their way I couldn't help but smile.  So shiny, so sparkly.  And the colors all complimented each other perfectly, not to mention my pretty little fishy pendant (I refer to her as Gladus).  Also, everything was extremely lightweight so I didn't have to worry about piling it on, and oh, did I pile it on.

Cons:  I have always worked with neutral, earthy colors (hence my name).  When I opened my box from Amy, it was like beams of light filling the room. This is not really a con, but it stumped me quite a bit ;)  And have I mentioned the seed beads yet?!  Oh good god they are TINY!!!!  Amy....how do you work with these things and create such treasures?!  I bow down to your talent!

So without further adieu....

 

My double stranded necklace and earrings.

I even added a couple of my polymer clay beads.

 

Amy, thank you for your generosity and the challenge of thinking outside of my box.  I believe we can all fall into the same ol' same ol' routine and sometimes we need to be shaken up.  

Cheers to all!

 

"Please visit http://lorianderson.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7d27f8dfca54ef70719fc9ded&id=2b0a2cce00&e=0318632938 for the full list of participants"

 

 

Goodbye....

I just packed up my clay....my tools....

(sad)

This means no more bead-making for a whole month.  And it's funny, I've been in a bead idea rut for awhile, and as soon as the clay hit the box, ideas started to flow like water.  What is up with THAT?



Time To Eat!

I'm hanging my head in shame for not having posted pictures sooner of my beautiful Bead Soup...not to mention the pictures are of horrible quality, but, here it is...



Look at all that COLOR!!!  Although Amy and I have totally different techniques and style when it comes to jewelry-making,

we do have the love of color in common.

Really, did you see the color?!

Holy cow!  I know I should have taken the beads out of the bag to show them off properly, but they are soooo tiny and I was afraid they would roll away to join the land of the lost.

And did you see this guy?

He's so very shiny and sparkly....I love him :)

I have NO idea where to start and what to create, but once my brain calms down a bit I know it will come to me.  Thank you Amy for your incredible and generous soup...you'll be taking me to a different realm!

MIA

Yes, I'm here, somewhere beneath this HUGE pile of boxes....help?!

See this pretty, fit woman looking so organized?  Well, that's not me...

Awww, and look at this helpful family, again, not mine...

Basically, how I feel....

Oh well, at least we have....

a new home!  Yay, we are so excited to be buying our first house. 

A place to put some real roots down. :)

We close on September 23rd so we'll be moving into a

vacation rental temporarily (on a farm)!

You probably won't hear from me much until October begins.

I will be posting pics of my beautiful Bead Soup tomorrow, until then...



Tranquility

Life is getting a little hectic over here...

my brother gets married tomorrow, the house needs to be packed and ready in 2 weeks, the boys start school SOON, and during all this I'm trying, unsuccessfully, to run a business.  SO, to tame the madness I'll be taking a break from clay for a couple of weeks....I can already feel the shakes coming on. 

I woke up to this treasury featuring some of my beads.  I think someone is trying to tell me something...

What is it they say...."Keep calm and carry on...?!"

'tranquil' by gallery37

Classic Forest Green Ha... RiverOfRomansk $45.80	Faces necklace - handma... BlackDaisyDesi... $87.00	Bestill - Landscape pho... irenesuchocki $30.00	Peace and Tranquility T... AberdeenLane $16.00
3 Crocheted River Rocks... HomespunHandma... $9.00	FEATHERS Watercolor Ori... lorisworld $25.00	River Rocks StoneHood $8.00	Handmade Turquoise Tran... islandgirl88 $23.00
River Stone 8 mm Round ... alatsupplies $5.00	Antique huge brass Key imaginedplace $14.00	Sand dollar, fused glas... ArtoftheMoment $32.00	Sand Castles .. vintage... HulaGirl1922 $18.00
JOURNAL - Large Moleski... thebigharumph $15.00	Humming bird pillow cov... gracioushome $20.00	Handmade Polymer Clay o... EarthTonesOnli... $9.00	scalloped mirror in nat... uncommon $78.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

Partnering Up

I was anxious to see who Lori would partner me up with for the Bead Soup Blog Party. 

Drum roll please....

Amy from AmyBeads!

Like me, she's WAY into color, but that's about all we have in common.  Our styles are so incredibly different...

(peyote stitched cuff by Amy; where the heck does one find enough patience to do this?!)

And that, my friends, is the whole point of this Bead Soup dealy...

to challenge ourselves and force ourselves to think outside the box.

Here's what I sent Amy...

guess you'll just have to visit Amy's blog for the big reveal ;)

Enjoy your weekend!

Wheelies

Finally, a new shape!

I get so tired of the same ol' rounds, lentils, discs...

So watcha think of my new rustic wheelies?



It's Coming......

Have you signed up yet?  If not, head on over to Lori's site and do it! 

I guarantee you'll have a GRAND time! :)

Organics

I'm finally getting some of my favorite beads back in the shop....

After a day of hiking you can usually find my backpack stuffed

with all sorts of interesting oddities which are then

incorporated into my beads. 

They have such a wonderful worn feel to them.

 

Moving On

Abbigail is recovering nicely, although being on a 24 hour leash

is not her cup of tea.

The boys refer to her as Frankenstein....

On another note, Kevin and I have just learned that we need to vacate our rental house in 2 months.  Something about the owner having financial difficulties....crud.  It really serves us right seeing as we have procrastinated on buying a house for far too long.  

So on to packing and finding a house in 2 months...

I have found some time for some new beads.

After putting these in a collage, I noticed the softness in the palette of colors.  Seems like my brain was seeking a little downtime after a week of stressful events.  And since it's Sunday, my goal is to do nothing.  That's right, I said it, nothing...now let's see if I can really accomplish just that.

Cheers!

Already the 8th of July and I haven't blogged once this month...time just slips by so quickly during the summer with constant activity some good, some bad.

The bad...

Abbigail has completely destroyed her cruciate ligament and will go in for surgery on Monday.  It's a $2500 repair and some people have told me it's too much money to spend on a dog and then I look at this beauty, full of love and innocence...

And I believe she's worth every penny.

Gee, better get to making more beads!

The good....

My jewelry has been accepted into this little hot spot here in Bend and has been doing quite well (all proceeds go to Abby's knee, thank you very much).

The best...

Lazy days full of laughter and fun.

I have been working on beads, honestly.  Finishing up some custom orders and coming up with some new designs and color schemes.  I will post pictures soon, promise.  Until then, enjoy your days.

Brighten your day...

How pretty is this treasury?!!



'Not Gonna Lie...Green and Purple are Fabulous!' by inspirationalbanners

These two colors look wonderful together. Enjoy!

Summer Garden - Artisti... PolyDreams $24.00	What Love Between Siste... hilariagalleri... $400.00	Yarn Scrap Bundle For C... KnitzAndFeltz $3.50	Handmade Polymer Clay R... EarthTonesOnli... $11.00
Guest Book BOX- Purple ... itsmyday $56.00	Set of 4 - Cotton XL LA... LuckyHanks $19.00	Vintage inspired Apron ... apronqueen $26.95	Blue Twirl Scarf StitchesByGran... $40.00
DEEP WATER Fused dichro... EarthWindFireW... $24.00	Summer Fun Turquoise, L... TahoeQuilts $220.00	Amethyst and Peridot Pa... JILLreDESIGNS $24.00	1950s floral cotton ga... pinkvintagebou... $54.00
Set of Four Blue,Purple... tylerjocreatio... $5.00	Handmade Clutch - Purpl... BagBoy $45.00	Butterfly Garden, Pillo... chimeracustomq... $16.00	Double peacock bridal f... kathyjohnson3 $18.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.