..."beaded art through the eyes of the beholder".

Thursday, June 11, 2009

RED, WHITE and BEADWEAVING SALE-e-BRATION!

A 4th Firecracker SALE!

BLOG ANNOUNCEMENT:

Many of the shops that are members of The Beadweaving Emporium (BEM) market at 1000 Markets - Beadazzled of Oregon is one of those - have teamed together and are planning a fantastic 4th of July SHOPPER-TUNITY SALE in their shops. Items on sale will be designated by their SALE-A-BRATION badge; some shops will have selected items and others may have every item in their shop on sale.

Participating beadweaving shops will be:

1. Cigarboxbeads..................Marilyn

2. Beadsforever........................Linda

3. Nossubgallery.........................Ana

4. Mytreasures.........................Tanya

5. Enchantedbeads.................Ileana

6. Pvener...............................Patricia

7. Conlinscreations.............Amanda

8. BeadazzledofOregon.............Dini

9. RachelesOriginals...........Rachele

10. Littlestonedesign..............Cheryl

111. Hannahrachel..................Hannah

Be sure to check out each and every designated shop for outstanding handmade items and generous sale prices! Look for the SALE-e-BRATION badge in the participating shops for their SALE ITEMS.

Below is your own invitation to join us at BEM anytime the first week of July in our own Independence Celebration. Use scissors to cut out this reminder ~ Shop right here at home!
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RED, WHITE and BEADWEAVING SALE-e-BRATION!


DATES: July 1 through July 8th, 2009

WHAT: unique and creative beadwoven art

HINT: shop early for the holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and more!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

EBW JUNE CHALLENGE: "HUMOR"



Length: 27" Pendant: 4.5" wide
This is my current entry in the Etsy Beadweaver's June Monthly Beadweaving Challenge. The subject of the challenge is: "HUMOR". Beadazzled is a proud member of this international creative, beadweaving group.
While recovering from recent hand surgeries, when I wasn't able to actually bead, I made the wire mesh chicken pen and attached this fabulous hand-blown glass lampwork chicken pendant. I tossed it into my "unfinished" basket. When this challenge subject was presented, my mind went right to that piece ~ and I decided this unique beadwoven necklace just had to be Mexican! Pizazzy in all the primary colors, this necklace is a OOAK (one-of-a-kind) piece that will encircle your neck comfortably and turn all heads with a wonderful chuckle. And we can all use more laughs, can't we?

The entries for the challenge are in and you are in for a real treat! Twenty Etsy Beadweavers have the talent and took the time to create these exciting and humorous challenge pieces! Please take the time to visit each entry and read their story about how their piece relates to the theme "Humor.
Using tiny little beads with a needle and thread and incredible patience, EBW bring these selections to you to vote and choose your favourite.You can click on the item in the text list below the mosaic which links to the Etsy Shop listing of each entrant where you will see more detail of each piece! Cast your vote, June 9th thru the 15th!

1. Adios Pollo - BeadazzledofOregon
3. Jolly Jester - ArtfulAr
4. WEED Necklace - HauteIceBeadwork
6. Curly Black Rock Bacelet - SpringColors
7. inside jokes - thebeadedlily
8. Clown Fish Join the Carnival - beadsandblooms
10. Tartan Scottie Dog beaded cuff - Crownrosegems
14. Where Is My UFO - binkaminka
15. NOT My Mother - PfordCustomJewelry
17. Harlequin - Free Form Beaded Cuff - ThreeFatesDesign
18. Punch-Line Bracelet - FrancescasFancy
19. Pond Frog Bracelet - savoystudio
20. Harlequin - jmackgems

Voting begins on Tuesday June 9th and ends midnight June 15th. You can show your appreciation for the efforts of these EBW artists by taking on the difficult task of voting for your favorite. Again, the individual pieces are listed below the mosaic on our EBW blog site below where you can visit each entry for more information by following the link. Thank you, enjoy and be sure to vote! Many thanks to Ann of Francesca's Fancy for creating a beautiful mosaic of the Challenge pieces.

NOTE: Double click on photo for close-up view.

Monday, June 8, 2009

WHAT IS: USE THE MUSE?


Sponsored by: Artbeads and Rainbows of Light.
A Creative Contest
for the playful artist, the inspired stringer and the patient beadweaver.

Produced by fellow beader, Scarlett Lanson (Use the Muse)

In Scarlett's own words: "The USE THE MUSE Beading Contest is a design competition that I created for people who have a love for beads and jewelry making. I have garnered a certain level of recognition in the beading world for my participation in several major beading contests and Beadwork magazines' "The Challenge". Entering these competitions has pushed me to grow further as an artist and experiment with materials that I would not usually work with. I would not be where I am today if it weren't for these events challenging me to participate and develop my skills as a beader.

Through my communications with beaders of all skill levels, from novice to advanced, I have learned that many of you would like to enter a contest, but are discouraged or intimidated by the grand scale of some of the other entries, or the expansive timelines. I wanted to provide a fun and creative outlet for those beaders! I wanted to create a sort of competition that I would want to enter.... that fills the voids that are so apparent in all the other contests. I wanted to create a competition for all types of beaders... stringers, beadweavers, and embroiderers - that had a shortened timeline - and a BIG PAYOFF!

My contest only runs ten weeks, and winners are announced just two weeks after entries are submitted. And the

PRIZES are big! They are tangible, visible, and very desirable! I selected each prize package with my sponsors Rainbows of Light and Artbeads.com and designed it with the winners in mind. Every part of this contest was carefully thought out to create the most exciting and inspiring event possible.

SO WHAT IS THE MUSE ANYWAY? The MUSE is the central component in my contest! Each participant will purchase a contest kit, with an assortment of stunning beads, from crystals, to pearls, to silk, to seed beads, and more. From this kit, they will create their own design entry. They are allowed to use as much or as little of the kit as they choose, and are encouraged to incorporate their own beads and elements to create the most unique piece possible. The main rule however, is that they must USE THE MUSE. The MUSE is a mystery component that participants do not get to see until their kit package arrives in the mail! It is a design element that is carefully chosen to be interesting and usable by both stringers and beadweavers. The element complements the rest of the contest kit and may be a focal, pendant, art bead, or unique design component.

Details of the MUSE component are not to be revealed or discussed publicly until the "BIG REVEAL" at the end of the contest, when the winners and entries will be posted on this site. This is to preserve the mystery and the fun of having a SURPRISE design element, for both participants and onlookers. What I can tell you, is that the MUSE is a beautiful and versatile mystery component from drumrolll please.... Lillypilly! Please help keep the secret! Keeping the MUSE a mystery is essential to the fun!

I invite you to participate in the first International USE THE MUSE Contest and share it with your friends! To learn more, judging criteria, deadlines, and prizes will be blogged about right here at Beadazzled of Oregon in a few days!"


I'm taking the challenge ~ sounds exciting and fun to me! How about you?

Sunday, June 7, 2009

THE EXCITEMENT HEIGHTHENS....

My good friend, LOUISA MEECE (Beaded Extravagance) has recently entered one of her fabulous beadweaving neck creations in the Fire Mountain Gems and Beads annual conpetition and just this week she was notified that her "gem" has been accepted into the second judging.

"I finally heard from FMG! Martian Queen's Necklace has been accepted into the second round of judging. Now I have to pack her up and ship her out your way. I'm a little nervous about that seeing as it is my most expensive piece but I'll be sure to insure it. It's just that it's not replaceable and I'd hate to lose it! It was one of those necklaces that I didn't like in the beginning but I went with my gut and finished her off and fell in love! I've decided that I'm going to make a cuff and a pair of earrings to match and sell them as a set- if I can. I've found that when I make a set with a very expensive necklace customers are willing to buy the less expensive parts of the set... I guess to have a part of it or something.

P.S. Well, I'm off to research Locks of Love. I made a drastic change yesterday and had 16 inches of my hair cut off! My husband isn't too happy with my decision, but I just had to get rid of all that hair! My daughter says I look like a 'young mom' now! LOL! It feels so much cooler and healthier!"

You GO GIRL! We are all so behind you ~ wish we could all vote for that fabulous piece!

See Louisa's crreations at: http://www.beadedextravagance.etsy.com.




NOTE: Double click on photo for close-up view.

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Included In: MY SHOPPING CONNECTION


BEADAZZLED Featured on MY SHOPPING CONNECTION!





Featured on "My Shopping Connection"

The Etsy BeadWeavers is a group of extraordinarily talented artisans who create intricate and detailed pieces of one-of-a-kind jewelry and art. The BeadWeavers take hundreds or even thousands of tiny beads and transform them into a woven work of art. Each piece can take hours, weeks or months to complete.


The Etsy BeadWeavers blog is incredibly active, and each month many of the members participate in a challenge to create a new piece based on a given theme. If you spend time browsing the blog and the members' shops, you'll be amazed by the incredible detail and artistry that goes into bead weaving!


A huge thank you goes out to My Shopping Connection for the great article featuring the EBW team and spotlighting several members' work. We were lucky enough to be one of them! Click the photo above to check it out!


NOTE: Double click on photo for close-up view.