Banana Fiber is YUMMY!!

Okay - I'm totally hooked on ribbons and yarns from "Darn Good Yarn"! Especially their Banana Fiber Yarn!  It's so YUMMY and SOFT!

 

I created some bangles with this super cool yarn and wrapped it up with some .925 Sterling Silver Wire and sporadically added some Turquoise bead dangles for movement and fun!

Funky, fun, soft, and FLUFFY – these bangles are your ticket to WILD!

You can find these cool bangles hanging out in my Etsy Shop.

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Funky Fibers!!

Cheers,

~Shel~ 

P.S. Check out this cool "Peace Baby" necklace I also created with some super soft Banana Fiber Yarn.  This one was donated to a cancer benefit being held next month for a young woman who's standing up to Brain Cancer, but various ones will be up in my Etsy shop in June!

Yummy Pearls for Review!

When Szarka over at Magpie Gemstones allowed me to do a pearl review here on my blog - I was jumping for joy!  (You know me and my pearls, baby!!)


She sent this super yummy and delicious strand of freshwater cultured white stick pearls and once they arrived it was hard to stop drooling!
These beauties have a great luster and rose overtones (rainbow effect) and the nacre on them is very thick and clean. They're approximately 17 to 22 mm and their soft glow is superb!

I thought these would be the perfect pearls to hand knot with some Swarovski Crystals and a few other freshwater cultured pearls to create a necklace that could be worn with jeans and a "T" or dressed up for a night out on the town!


Here's what I created. What do you think?  This particular necklace is being donated to put in a silent auction for a caner benefit being held this summer.  I think someone's going to feel really good wearing these pearls.  First, knowing they've helped raise funds for a family in need and second, just because they're so darn beautful!!

Thanks Szarka and Magpie Gemstones for allowing me to do this pearl review - your gemstones ROCK!

Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and "Pearls Baby"
Cheers,
~Shel~

FTC compliance disclosure: the Magpie Gemstones items mentioned in this post were provided free of charge for review/design purpose only.

MiShel Designs Keshi Pearl Dangle Earrings in the latest issue of BeadStyle Magazine!

Thank you BeadStyle Magazine for making my Keshi Pearl Dangle Earrings look so amazing!  (And for including them on the front cover - you ROCK!!)

Grab the July issue of BeadStyle Magazine which hits new stands on May 31st and you can see my Keshi Pearl Dangle Earrings on Page 80!

Also, I'm really lovin' the Pearl Necklace for the June Birthstone section on page 20 by DonnaMarie Bates - Gorgeous!!

I'm also fascinated with the "Tiny Treasures Eearrings" by Lori Mendenhall on page 34 - she makes me want to pour resin over some of my pearls!!

And, you gotta see the "Newfangled Bangle" project on page 44 by Sherri Haab - Simply YUMMY!! 

Okay - go check out BeadStyle magazine yourself for all the cool projects and designs they've got jam packed into the July issue! 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Happy Summer Beading!!

Cheers,

~Shel~

 

Something Old is NEW Again

Anyone who’s spent any time with me at all has probably heard me ramble on about my favorite hotel on the planet – the Hotel Queen Mary over in Long Beach, California.

You are immediately rushed back in a time bursting with history and culture as you walk on board with Fred Astaire and instrumental jazz music playing softly in the background. Beautiful, rich wood and chrome details are a delight to the eyes and the Art Deco paintings set your mind a whirl as the excitement of what it must have been like to sail on this amazing ship engulfs you! (I could go on gushing for days,…so I’ll just stop now, K?)

This pearl and gold tassel was in a bag of vintage goodies that my niece picked up at a yard sale in the mountains of Arizona. It always reminded me grand opulence (hence, the Queen Mary!) so when it came time for the new Artbeads Blogging Challenge, “Something Old is New Again”, I knew exactly what I wanted to create!

I worked and re-worked this piece a few different times, first with two different chains like what it was attached to when it was given to me. I added, subtracted, added, subtracted Swarovski pearls, crystals, bead caps, more chain,….urggghhhh,…nothing looked right and nothing felt like the sleek sophistication that was befitting the Queen Mary or the elegant women who graced those magical ballrooms and suites.

“Simple is Best” kept whispering in my ear, (just like the ghosts of the Queen Mary herself!) and I reconstructed everything once more, adding only a few pearls to the bottom of the tassel, keeping the chain that more closely resembled the 1940’s period and ditching the art-deco looking chain - although it would have been very fitting, it was way too "gold looking" and bright for this specific piece.

I alternated different sizes of Swarovski Pearls and gold plated bead caps and finished it off with a simple hook clasp; very befitting the time period. Earrings were created that would compliment, but not distract, from this elegant necklace and I finished them with my own handcrafted 14K gold filled earring wires. All was now perfect!

I imagine myself wearing this stunning and timeless set while sipping a cocktail on the aft deck of the Queen Mary; soft music playing in the background and the cool, ocean air dancing lightly on my skin as I sail, like royalty, across the ocean!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Something Old is Definitely New Again!

Cheers,

~Shel~

FTC compliance disclosure: the Artbeads.com items mentioned in this post were provided as a promotional gift as part of the Blogging for Beaders Program. These items are for review or design purposes.

Color Blind!

Okay, so over at Lark Crafts they're asking about colors and I wanted to share my colorful stash of fabric colors with you and see what you think?

What's the dominant color here?  Blues?  Or is it really more pinks/fusia/purples in this mix?  It's hard to tell when they're all mixed together.


But boy do they look yummy and they're so fun to use and play with! 

And yesterday, another batch from Darn Good Yarn came in the mail - Woo Hoo - now there's even more colors in there!

Don't forget to tell me what color you think is the prominent one here and also tell me what's in your "Color Stash", too!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Color Me Happy! (with soft, yummy ribbons and yarns!!)

Cheers,

~Shel~

Inside the Studio

Okay - so I've been letting things go lately and haven't kept up my nice, neat, clean and very organized studio the way I used to.

I saw Lorelei's blog post last wednesday of her work bench along with Erin Siegel's pics she posted of her new studio space and how that's coming along and they both prompted me to "take inventory", if you will.

I completely understand what Lorelei wrote about feeling "discombobulated" when things get a bit out of control and spread out all over the place.  And, I'd love my studio space to resemble that of Erin's - it's gorgeous and so clean and neat - I love it!  (It's along the lines of what I aspire to have in the near future!)

With just  two bedrooms and a den (Mike's Man Cave!) I am 'sharing' some space now, so to speak, and nothing can "live" out in the open.  Everything (and I mean everything), has to be put away each time I'm done working for the day, or even 'pausing' for awhile as I do my daily duties of helping my husband run our family company.  (Otherwise I cannot reach my computer in order to work!)

Lately, I am feeling the need to 'spread out' and take over a room - a room that I don't have (yet!).  But, I wanted to share the views from "Inside My Studio" with you because I feel that if I "put it out there" then I'll be motivated to straighten it up again and organize things back to a more manageable level.

PLUS, although my space is limited and everything has to 'hide' right now, I'm super blessed to have an amazing view from my 'studio' window! (Which is super inspirational, by the way!)

I can hear the fountain running in our backyard, hear the birds singing, see the beautiful roses in our rose garden blooming, smell the lovely blooms of the grapefruit trees and see the lake, the palm trees, the green grasss - oh,...it's so wonderful! It definitely makes the 'space' issue completely fine! (for now!)

So, here's a glimpse around,....and heres wishing that everyone's "Dream Studio" comes true! 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Counting My Blessings!

Cheers,

~Shelly~