Etsy!!!

Hey bead freaks! Etsy was very impromptu tonight. Sorry for the absence of the usual pre-listing warning, but that’s not how my time is running today. I’ve got two new exceptionally fabulous Shimmer Spike trios for you, and two things that didn’t go at the last Superstars sale, which are equally as fabulous, especially the Party Lights Spike. What’s wrong with you guys? Don’t make me keep it for myself… I’ve already made myself two spikes, I don’t need any more.

Go HERE for my entire shop, or click the thumbnails below for each listing.

Electric Watermelon Shimmer Spikes:

April Showers Shimmer Spikes:

Party Lights Sterling & Glass Spike:

Polka Dotty Goodness:

And if you’re one of those peeps who has an order in for bon-bons or glitterbombs or other sterling what-have-yous, I’m on it! I made a vague promise of completion sometime this month, but it’s looking like it’s going to be closer to the end of sometime this month before it’s all done. This is why I don’t take pre-payment… sometimes these things take longer than expected, and people get antsy when someone has both their money and ADD (Artsy Dingbat Disorder).  Broken electricity and exploded closets are stomping all over my best laid plans. I can do things like wield fire and drive a stick shift, but monkeying around with electricity is something I leave to the professionals. I can’t run my precious Foredom at reduced power, woe is me. I’ll keep you all posted.

Hope you find something you like… if you miss out on anything you liked tonight, hit me up for a made to order! I’ll be back at the glass sometime next month.

Catch you guys next time, maybe I’ll feel more chatty then. Toodles!

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Superstars Tonight!

Tomahawk on the Google Play, food that requires zero effort to prepare and eat, and staring at Photoshop for 10 hours straight. What else could it possibly be? I hope you guys can make it to the sale tonight! I hope I can make it… new next door neighbors with a dog that apparently gets to spend 6am to midnight outside doing what dogs do best: barking his fool head off at every single blade of grass in the yard. Nice. Some dog people. One of these days I’ll give you a detailed description of everything that goes into a Superstars sale… if you’re an insomniac, it’s sure to help you fall asleep for a good long while.

Here’s a glimpse at a teensy bit of what’s coming up tonight:

click on us to get to the superstars page!

Here’s what’s happening tonight:

7:30PM CENTRAL TIME: SALE PREVIEW. The new beads will appear on the Superstars page on my website. Take this 30 minutes to read and decide what you want, and email me with any questions.

8PM CENTRAL TIME and beyond: Start sending in your requests via email.

If you’re unsure of where your time zone falls in this scenario, google it!

Catch you guys later!

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can you guess what tomorrow is?

Yep, it’s time for me to start chatting you up about the next Superstars sale. Which is tomorrow. As usual, I’m a bit behind. So I’ll keep this shortish. I do my best work under pressure. Only under pressure I’m applying, mind you. If it’s from outside forces I’m more likely to freak out and go hide behind the toilet or eat massive amounts of pastry.

This collection of cat drawings by Louis Wain allegedly charts his descent into madness – you’ve likely seen it in a textbook if you’ve ever taken a course in psychology. However, Wikipedia says that these works aren’t dated, and since Wain’s state of mind had its ups and downs, it can’t necessarily be proven that each drawing corresponded with any specific marker in a downtrend of mental soundness. Anyway, point is, I could just as easily demonstrate my own state of freaked out’edness with a pan of brownies or a bag of doughnuts, and the rate at which I consume them.

I don’t have any new photos yet of what’s coming up tomorrow, but you can have another glance at the silvery things in my last entry to get an idea for now. I have something else to show you today. In my bead descriptions, I often advise “throwing a set of beads onto a leather cord and getting on with it”. The following photos are an example of what I mean. I knot them in between, or not, and use a double fisherman’s knot which makes the length adjustable and a piece of jewelry feasible without the bother of a clasp.

 

cinched up as tight as they’ll go

 

what the double fisherman’s knot looks like

 

boro beads in the sun, just because

Learn how to make the double fisherman’s knot at Animated Knots by Grog:
http://www.animatedknots.com/doublefishermans/#ScrollPoint

It takes a little bit of practice, but don’t give up. A good rule of thumb for deciding how much length of leather to cut (this can be trickier than you’d think, especially if you’re me) is to wrap it loosely around your neck at least twice, possibly three times if there will be multiple knots. It’s better to have too much length to start out with than not enough, you waste less leather that way. Believe me. And knots in leather use up more length than string does, probably due to its heft in size and lack of ability to stretch. If your fisherman knots don’t glide as well as you think they should, sometimes adding a dab of olive oil helps. Just don’t make the knots too tight or too loose to begin with and you’ll be fine. Adding smaller lampwork beads to the ends of the knots makes it easier to grab and pull the ends in the opposite directions to tighten and loosen. If anyone has anything helpful to add, feel free!

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Sooo… Superstars tomorrow evening! In case you’re new, the Superstars sale happens on my website. Click HERE for more info, or go to http://www.z-beads.com and click on the Superstars link.

Thanks for checking in, more to come tomorrow. I may have a sneak peek photo for you then.

 

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