New Jewellery!

Hemp Mala Bracelet

I've been very busy with my friend and business partner Mel making lots of goodies for you, which is why I haven't been around much. I am going to try to blog three times a week from now on though, so you all know I am still alive and such, what with the incredibly odd weather we've been having this winter ;)
Thankfully, it is warmer right now, and we've actually been able to clear some of the deadly ice off of our deck, front walkway and driveway! Yay!
All of this gorgeous eye candy you're seeing today is currently available in the Etsy shop, though they are selling quite well, so you'll have to hurry if you see something you like...

Memory Wire Chakra Mala Bracelet

 We now have Chakra Mala bracelets, as well as traditional Mala bracelets, for your fancy. Some with glass, as the ones above...

Gemstone Mala Chakra Bracelet

 ...And some with gemstones, like these ones. We also have more of the painstakingly knotted ones...

Turquoise, Jade and Lampwork Glass Mala Bracelet

 ...And some with gemstones and hand crafted lamp work glass beads, like these...

Tourmalinated Quartz and Lamp Work Glass Bead Mala Bracelet

This last one is one of my all-time favorites... get it while you can! Many of the jewelry pieces that have lamp work glass beads are one-of-a-kind, as I can't get these exact same focal beads again, so you'll need to strike while the iron is hot, these pieces are going fast! If you're in the Kemptville area and taking yoga classes from Mel Savoie, she will usually have these pieces with her for you to see in person (and if you purchase in person, you usually get a discount, as it saves us on postage!).

Friday Features: Deronda Designs

Shades of Blue Handmade Lampwork Beads by DerondaDesigns

Today's Friday Feature post is about an amazing lampwork glass bead artist, DerondaDesigns. Read on to find out more about her incredible beads...

My name is Deronda and because it's not a common name, we decided ti would be perfect for my glass. My etsy shop is www.etsy.com/shop/derondadesigns 

I play with glass and metal. The beads are the big part of what I do, but the etched copper is something that comes and goes as the mood hits. 

How did I get started? Curiousity....my mom gave us the love of creativity and the encouragement to play with all kinds of stuff.

Pretty Pink Flowers Handmade Lampwork Beads by DerondaDesigns

 Do I have any other arts/crafts? Oh wow, have you been sneaking into my closets? The curiosity has led me into all kinds of things from woodwork, to sewing, to painting, to scrapbooking, to ceramics and on and on it goes. But glass is still my first love.

A story of my shop name? Nope, it's just my name...nothing exciting there? 

Every set of beads I make is different so it's hard to pick a favorite anything. A lot of what you might see in the shop depends on my moods. The glass has always been a way for me to express things that I can't say outloud. 

Right now I am selling on Etsy and Artfire and I have finished jewelry pieces and other things that have nothing to do with glass or jewelry at our little store here in my hometown.

Ivory and Amethyst Lentil Lampwork Beads by DerondaDesigns

Sometimes I blog a lot, and then I get busy and forget...now that you have reminded me, i will probably blog soon. It'sderondadesigns.blogspot.com/

I do the FB thing: http://www.facebook.com/deronda.designs and you know that I am an addicted Plurker: http://www.plurk.com/Deronda

Her beads are incredible...I happen to have purchased the above beads, but you can find many more in her shop here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/DerondaDesigns
Have a great day!

Sweet Saturday - What An Awesome Thank You!

I visited good friend and glass extraordinaire Louise Ingram from Fireseed yesterday, to pick up the beads I traded for the amigurumi dolls I made for her and her cat and wow am I impressed! The pink beads I asked her to make waaaay back in February and I have a design just waiting for them - aren't they fantastic?
She had mentioned that she had included a few surprises and when I got home, I found these stunning red beads too - don't they just look like candy? Maybe rubies? I can't decide - but either way they are so gorgeous, I made a bracelet from them right away, see below for more pictures :)Then, I peeked into the bag again and out came these beads! Wow, I can't wait to make things with them, they are so different and beautiful :)
Last but not least (not by a long shot!), I found that she had included her famous animal beads! The naughty-but-nice Louise had included a Bunkee Bead (her delightful Monkees dressed as bunnies!), a black cat bead, and a sweet little black dog bead that I swear she must have used a picture of my dog to make, the resemblance is staggering (she got the smile down perfectly, lol).
I have to say I feel very spoiled and I will have to do a few more monkey dolls to feel I have repaid her for her amazing generosity!
Here is a photo of the bracelet I made with the red-candy beads - I made links from individual rings that I had linked by hand to make a chain mail knot, then I attached each link to a bead. I made a square clasp to match the square beads - too cool, huh? I know Louise definitely brings out the best in my work - her beads are so beautiful they always inspire a piece that is (in my humble opinion) as much art as functioning jewelry. Thank you Louise!

Sweet Saturday - Beads That Make You Go Awwww!

~Bunkee~

~Easter Monkee~

I have posted about my good friend Louise, from Fireseed, here before, but she keeps inventing new and exciting (and CUTE!) beads so I suppose I will keep having to feature her until she stops :)
Her newest beads are an addition to her line of famous Monkee Beads, sold on her Etsy Store and her ArtFire Store; the newest additions are Easter Monkees and, most ingenious, Bunkees - Monkees dressed and Easter Bunnies! I saw them and almost fell off my chair...I don't know how she does it, but her work keeps getting better and better and I wish her many monkees new and happy homes :)
All of her work is digitally annealed so that they are very durable, and all are hand cleaned for a professional, smooth finish. These beads have a hole running horizontally through the back of their head, so it will be easy to string on a simple cord, or incorporated into a more elaborate project.
I have worked with her beads on many occasions and I have always been amazed at the quality and attention to detail in each bead, no matter how small. Each of her stores are different, so I do hope you'll visit Louise in each of her different shops and see all of the beautiful goodies she has to offer.

Go Ape for Monkees!

~The Monkees Want to Hang Out With You!~

My friend Louise came over today to drop off some beads for me to make into creations for her upcoming show and showed me some beads that she wanted turned into a brooch. These Monkee beads spoke to me immediately and I thought of some great leaf beads with a blue tint that are great with the blue eyes of the Monkees. She said that she wanted them to be sort of 'hanging' and this just worked perfectly - I was actually able to make it while she watched! Using sterling silver wire I strung the Monkees, leafs beads and sterling silver round beads and made this beautiful brooch - what a great advertisement for Fireseed!
Meghann

A Little Bit of Sparkle

~....Love It!!~

I made this using one of the lamp work glass pendants that Louise Ingram of Fireseed made for me last month and wow do I ever love it! She made the pendant and four spacer beads with her wonderful lamp work glass skills, adding silver in them to give them a beautiful organic look. This is so pretty that I wanted to keep it for myself, but, alas, it must go to a home that will love it and let it see lots of people so it can be admired as it should be. I found some beautiful striated jasper stones to go with the pendant and spaced them with sterling silver beads to bring out the silver in the pendant. A sterling silver toggle clasp finishes the necklace off with style. This is One of A Kind so get it while it lasts! It is now for sale on my Etsy Jewellery Store.....okay.....GO!
;-)
Meghann

Interchangeable Lamp Work Glass Earrings

~14Karat Gold Filled Wire, Gold Plate Beads, and Lamp Work Glass Beads~

In my quest for new, exciting, unique earrings, I consulted my new partner-in-crime, Louise Ingram of Fireseed. She's making a lot of the beads I am using in my new creations, and has some great ideas on what to do with them. She loves my Arrow Leaf Earrings, but thought that we could make them a bit more curved at the top so that we could slip beads on and off at will, making them truly interchangeable.
Just like my arrow leaf earrings, I hammer the bottom of the wire, but then I add a gold plate bead on the bottom, then a lamp work glass bead, and then top it off with another gold plate bead for symmetry. To change them, just slide the beads over the top and replace with another bead - too easy and beautiful! I'll be listing these shortly on my Etsy Store, so be sure to check them out there!
More to come soon! Be sure to enter my monthly blog contest!
Meghann

Our Charity of the Month is a Winner!

~The Bracelet with the Brooch in the Center~

Well, as I posted in an earlier post from this month, the Rideau Valley Wildlife Sanctuary is the Charity of the Month. Instead of getting 10% of the total sales, I am donating a framed photo, as well as this beautiful bracelet and brooch set. The lamp work glass beads were made by glass artist Louise Ingram of Fireseed, and I put the pieces together with 14karat gold filled wire and findings, Swarovski crystals, and gold plated beads and jump rings. This piece will be part of the sanctuary's fund raising auction in November. For more information, visit their website: http://www.rideauwildlife.org/home.
I hope you like this piece, and keep checking back for more beautiful, affordable items for sale on my Etsy Store!
Don't forget about our contest - see the main blog page for details.
Meghann

Inspiration, Perspiration, Genius!

~The New Sterling Silver and Lamp Work Glass Bracelet~

I finally got around to making the first piece of jewellery with the custom beads my new friend Louise Ingram (of Fireseed fame) made for me last month. This was the fantastic result after a few hours of finger cramping labor - and I love it! It is absolutely a dream to wear as it hugs your wrist and isn't too large and flashy, nor is it small and unnoticeable.
I took about 3 feet of sterling silver wire and hand wrapped 3 strands together, stringing the lamp work glass beads with sterling silver round beads on the middle strand. I took the outside wires and formed them around the center beads so that the wires would follow the contours and sort of cradle the beads, while still allowing them to spin when not being worn. I then lightly hammered the exposed wires to give them a flat, hammered finish. The great thing I love about this bracelet is that the clasp is actually a part of the bracelet itself - not an added piece. I took the long wire ends and formed them into an asymmetrical hook and eye clasp to go with the asymmetrical coloring of the focal bead. Gorgeous!
I will be listing this bracelet on my Etsy Store later on today so get it while you can - this bracelet is one of a kind and won't last long!
Happy shopping!
Meghann

It's Watching....

~The Eye is Upon You!~

When I saw these beads in a pile by my friend and Fireseed.etsy.com artist Louise Ingram, I immediately knew I had to step outside the box a bit and make something cool. With Halloween coming up, this is a perfect bead, but no matter the time of year, this is a one of a kind bracelet for a one of a kind person! I took a large black based focal bead with a blue eye and surrounded it with 2 smaller red based eye beads, and then used two yellow beads afterwards. One yellow bead has an eye, the other does not. To finish the bracelet, I used a sterling silver lobster clasp, silver plate jump rings and a slumped red eye bead. I can't get these exact beads again, which is what I love about working with a local artist. The pieces I create with Louise's beads will never be recreated, and best of all, these pieces are still affordable!!
This piece will soon be available on the Etsy store - click the Etsy box to the right to check out all my wonderful (and affordable!) goodies. Remember, the sale only lasts until the end of this month - time is running out so hurry to my Etsy store, and use the coupon code "LITT" in the 'notes to seller' to get your 20% off!
Have fun!
Meghann

Check This Out!

~A New Bracelet I Call My "Impressionist Lampwork Bracelet"~

I am so fortunate to have just met the wonderful lampwork bead maker Louise Ingram who lives near me (see her Etsy page and her Website). She made me some gorgeous beads earlier this month (they are still waiting for just the right silver beads to be assembled into something fantastic) and we had talked back and forth about doing some trades so I could get beads and she could get jewellery findings made by me. I am so lucky that she came over yesterday, as she brought her "unique design" beads (beads that turned out differently from her original intentions) to show me. The beads in the bracelet above were actually in this pile and I couldn't believe my luck when I found enough of them to make this gorgeous bracelet! We had a lovely afternoon chatting about beading ideas, she got some ear wires made by me and I got a whack-load of gorgeous glass goodies! I'll keep you posted on the other fantastic creations I make with these beads. Visit her website for even more incredible creations!
I created this bracelet by combining these beads (I think they look like an impressionist painting - Monet eat your heart out! If he could have made glass beads this was what he would have created!) with beautiful clear Swarovski crystals, gold plate beads and jump rings, gold filled beads and lobster clasp. I finished it off with a dangle of one of the beads I had left over (you can't just leave the little guy homeless) for a little extra sparkle. This is just stunning and ONE OF A KIND!!! Get it while you can! I'll be listing this little gem on my Etsy store today, so check it out - www.littlestudiojewels.etsy.com The 20% off sale still applies!!
Also check out a new section soon to come where I'll be selling hand crafted findings and beads that I haven't used in a little bit but are still fabulous to use.
That's all for now, see you later!
Meghann