When Autumn Leaves Start to Fall

On to a new obsession with an old favorite--the leaf motif.  A few years ago I discovered Jeanne Wertman's amazing work and was able to teach myself her technique from partial instructions I found on the April 26, 2010 Macrame Lovers Blog.  But learning a technique is just the first step.  I am still learning to control the leaves, but will take some time to master them.

Meantime, I was asked to donate to the Wayne Arts "Off The Wall" fundraiser, so I decided to continue the leaf theme adding polymer clay and beaded leaves to the mix. I'd wanted to learn how to make Russian leaves and this was the time to figure it out.  Like the herringbone stitch and right angle weave, it was easier than the first time I tried.  In each case, I'd given up too quickly.  I WAS doing the stitches correctly, but they didn't "look" right at the start...so I stopped.  

I have finally learned to keep going. 

If It Takes Forever

I've overcome my fear of glue and have been obsessed with the magnetic clasps.  Witness the results...

armfuls of multistrand bracelets,

wide macrame cuffs,

 and a funky, chunky creation wherein I finally used a batch of polymer clay beads that I acquired in a twentieth century swap.

I stumbled on the polymer beads when I cleaned my studio room in late June.  That cleaning binge opened my eyes to the realization that I am something of a arts and crafts hoarder and, as such, have to live to be a healthy two hundred and something just to use the beads, fibers, fabrics, clay, paper, etc that I've accumulated thus far.  That doesn't even take into account future acquisitions.  Really, with my inability to resist garage sale and auction finds...I just might have to live forever.

With a Little Help

    Well...I finished the blue multi-strand bracelet then ordered some glue from Jewels in Fiber, because I'd always been happy with the site.  Of course I had to order some C-Lon macrame cord to make it

 worth the shipping charge.  And, somehow or other, I messed up the order which turned out to be serendipitous. When I called Marion to clarify the order, she shared so much glue wisdom and hints for attaching the bracelet to the clasp (glue the pieces together before gluing the bracelet to the clasp) that I am confident I can make the new magnetic clasps work.

     The order arrived a few days after we talked and, though I was eager to work on the black and white multi-strand bracelet, I was even more eager to try the thicker Texas C-Lon on some recently tumbled beach pebbles for a garden ornament I've been planning.  The heavier C-Lon is going to work (yay!)...but I'm rethinking some of the pebbles.

   Meanwhile, we checked out some local garage sales and I was reminded that I wanted to try my hand at repurposed garden art...so I bought a votive (60 cents) and a dish ($1), added a plate from a long ago auction and tried out my two-part epoxy.  (Still having issues with the post, but I like the look of the garden flower and will be haunting more garage sales and auctions...it's a big yard.)

     THEN I got back to the black and white bracelet that I will finish tonight and glue tomorrow.

...that come all the way from China

    Still obsessed with multi-strand bracelets, I made a green one for myself and am working on another in shades of blue.  Then one in black and white...then pastels...

     Although I've been happy with the slide clasps I had on hand, I was enthralled by the magnetic rectangle clasps on so many of the bracelets I found online.  (Google hipanema bracelets and check 'em out).
After lots of web-wandering, I located this etsy shop: www.etsy.com/shop/dedeJewelzry.  Although the shop is in China, the selection was good, and the price (and those all-important shipping charges) reasonable so I took the plunge and ordered 15 of them.

    They arrived the other day and I've enjoyed playing with them--the magnets are strong--now I have to figure out how to use them.   There are no holes or wires to attach thread to, so I'm afraid there's no alternative to gluing bracelets to the clasps, hence I've been researching options and have narrowed it down to either Zap Jewelry Gel or a two-part epoxy.   Never very good with adhesives of any kind, I have become fairly adept at using Fray Block on my macrame projects so it's time to face my fear of glue and place an order...

     But first I'll finish the blue bracelet that I started with jump rings and the slide clasp in mind.

Aaaahhh

      One evening last week, while clicking through the TV offerings, my daughter paused on one of those entertainment "news" shows that was offering bargain pricing on "must have" accessories.  One of the items was called a hipanema bracelet and is apparently de rigueur among the super models.  I'd never heard of the bracelets. but was intrigued and took to the internet for more examples.  I was delighted to find a slew of them...all made up of wonderful thin bangles joined by a single clasp--they reminded me of macrame multiples I'd made a few years ago.

Above all, they inspired me...why not combine macrame, peyote, stringing, and my imagination to make multistrand bracelets!?  And what a great way to tackle my recent inability to focus on a project.  Fortunately, I have a handful of sliding 5 loop clasps so I was off and running.   I may just keep at it for a while...these are not just a nice creative exercise but also great fun and a way to use up partial tubes of seed beads and many of the baubles and beads in my stash.

Bouncing from Beads to Bracelets

Perhaps it's a form of spring fever, but I can't seem to settle on a project so I skip from one thing to the next.  I wasn't altogether pleased with the canes I made last week, but do like some of these beads I made from the cane scraps

I made the holes large enough to accommodate macrame, but I'm not in the mood to sand and polish them...

Then I made the polymer bracelet at our  guild meeting on Saturday.  We wrapped aluminum blanks with clay then baked, then embellished and baked again.  Now my head is full of ways to refine the technique and use some polymer components that I've set aside. 

But first I had to spend hours researching sources for the blanks--do I want the really inexpensive ones with the square ends or shall I invest a bit more for rounded ends?  OR should I learn to cut my own blanks from soda pop cans?--

In the meantime I made the beach pebble/chain maille bracelet if been thinking about for a few weeks.

The seasons, they go round and round

It's been two years and two days since last I've blogged.  In those 26 months I've beaded, crocheted, macrame'd and polymer clayed...but I haven't blogged or Etsy'd.  I need a bit of structure in my life, so, now that I own a smart phone and have learned some of its tricks I have decided to document

my creative endeavors until it becomes a chore.  This week I got out some polymer clay, mixed up a few colors,  made some canes, and used the scraps to fashion a few beads.   We'll see whether these canes and beads go anywhere...or I get distracted by another project.  (I've a batch of beach pebbles going round and round in my tumbler so distraction is inevitable).