Magical Crimping Pliers 60% OFF

I don't know if you noticed but we have fantastic sales going on each week through January 7th. Each week, the sales start on Monday at noon and end 72 hours later on Thursday at noon (PST). This week, we have the Magical Crimping Pliers for sale at 60% off. We are closing out this tool and have limited supplies. If you have been wanting a pair, you had better get moving and order now!

Also on sale this week at 60% off is a FireLine in 50 & 125 yard lengths. What a great price!?

To see all of the great sale items each week, you can sign up for our e-newsletter! Or you can take a look at the holiday sale page.

There are a few 24/7 offers. Don't miss out on our Mystery Packages. They are only $25 but are a guaranteed $100 value. We are also offering free shipping on any orders over $100. Be sure to note that free shipping is the second option when you are checking out.

I don't know about you, but I am brimming with holiday happiness. I love the cards, the lights, baking and creating presents. Go handmade this year and make some gifts that your friends and family will cherish.

Sunny CZ Necklace & Earrings

Lisa Crone Design & Photo

Run on over to A Bead A Day to see this fabulous design. It uses our Econoflex Beading Wire in the warm color of Autumn Brown. Quite lovely!

Happy Thanksgiving from Soft Flex Company!

Thanksgiving Savings Coupon

You can save 20% off Metallics Flex Beading Wire by entering the coupon code THANKS at checkout. This offer is valid until Monday November 30, 2009 at midnight PST.

shop now!

how to enter a coupon code

We are closed Thursday-Sunday this week. Orders placed over Thanksgiving weekend will ship out on Monday, November 30th. I hope you have a lovely holiday weekend!

Free shipping is good for all online orders over $100 until January 7, 2009 for any customer type. If your order is over $100, free shipping is the second option at check out. If your purchase qualifies for more than one discount, you will receive the best discount, but not a combination of both.

Make Mini Gift Tags using Free Art from Soft Flex Company

Guest Blogger: Jamie Hogsett

Make Your Own Gift Tags: ShrinkyDink Style!

Now that you've made your own boxes for your holiday gifts, it's time to finish the packages with some handmade gift tags. I give a lot of earrings as gifts and make very small boxes for them, so am in need of some tiny gift tags. I remembered that Kristen's been making gorgeous Free Art & Printables for several months now and was excited to finally have a chance to use her beautiful gift tags. Kristen gave me permission to trace some of her designs onto ShrinkyDink paper and now I have the perfect wee gift tags for my little boxes.

I chose to use some of the designs from the Elegant Leaves set and the Holiday Gift Tags set. I traced designs with a permanemt black marker and decided who to write out to tags to. You have to decide this in advance as you can't easily add them to the tags after baking.


Next, I used colored pencils to color in areas of the tags, punched out the holes using a regular size hole-punch, and cut the tags out while I waited for the toaster oven to heat to 325 degrees.


Then it was time for the fun part: baking. It's crazy to watch the little pieces of plastic curl up and shrink. Just when you think the edges are stuck together and you'll have to start from scratch, the pieces start to flatten out and you know they're finished.

I love how these turned out! It's been awhile since I've used Shrinky-Dink plastic, so I forgot how the colors tend to darken. Even though a few of these are darker than I would have liked, they aren't as dark as they appear here and will still work perfectly. Now, if I only had the gifts for all of these lovely ladies made...

Jamie Hogsett is the Education Coordinator for Soft Flex Company. Contact her at Jamie@SoftFlexCompany.com or via her blog at jamiehogsett.blogspot.com.

Soft Flex Trios Bracelet Free Project Idea

Trios Woven Bracelet

by Sara Hardin (me)

This is a personal favorite free project idea. I wove all 3 colors of a Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire through links made of Craft Wire. It turned out great! The colored beading wire in Soft Flex were the easiest to work with for this design. The Extreme took a little bit more patience but worked fine in the end.

Serenity Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Pack
Vitality Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Pack
Extreme .019 Trios Beading Wire Variety Pack
Soft Flex Craft Wire

New Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Packs Available just in time for the holidays!

Available NOW!


Ask for Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Packs at your local craft or bead shop!

New Free Project Idea - Knitting with Soft Flex Beading Wire

Trios Knitting Bracelet
by Sara Hardin (me)

Mystical Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Pack
Tranquility Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Pack
Renewal Soft Flex Trios Beading Wire Variety Pack

November Spotlight on....

Article - Bead Cruise by Heather Powers

NEW Color by Margie Deeb - Warm Up to Orange
Designer - Jackie Sieben
NEW Free Art - Printable bookmarks, gift tags, etc
Good Book - The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Jewelry Making Techniques
Bead Seller - Beadin Path

SEE ALL HERE!

Don't miss the archives. We have years of monthly posts archived.
Article Archives
Color Archives
Designer Archives
Book Archives
Store Archives

Bay Area Bead Extravaganza Recap

Guest Blogger: Brian Clark





November comes each year and brings one of our last big shows. The BABE Show (Bay Area Bead Extravaganza) is a show that takes place in Oakland, CA. This show is always a great experience as there are many vendors of all types that offer the shopper a truly unique shopping venue. Whether it is something for your own beading needs or a gift for someone else, this show has it all.


To top it off, there are also many classes for someone to learn something new or sharpen a talent that they already possess. I love this show as it is close to our own backyard in Sonoma and includes many of my friends as shoppers and vendors. It was truly a pleasure to see each one that attended and we thank you for helping to make the show such a huge success.


If you have never been, make plans for the 2010 show. I promise that you will will be quite pleased. Our Soft Flex Company family wants to thank show attendees and fellow vendors for another great and bead-a-full year of trade shows. Happy holidays!

Brian Clark is the Photographer for Soft Flex Company. Contact him at Brian@SoftFlexCompany.com.

Kumihemo with Soft Flex Beading Wire

Design by Sam Derrivan
Inspired by Ann Diker's Braiding for Beading, 2nd Edition, Pg 19
Click on the picture for a better view.

3mm beads in sterling silver, gold filled, copper & brass work in harmony. She tied a knot on either side to help form the proper shape. She finished the design off by using a pair of sterling silver cones and a magnetic clasp (we have several on sale this week). This design uses 24 karat gold Extreme Flex Wire woven on a kumihemo board. Did you know that you can use our wire on a kumihemo board? I did! You can also use it on the Diva Boards which are a USA made product.

It was great fun to make and I've received many compliments on the style and beauty of the bracelet. I would note that anyone trying the pattern should adjust measurements to fit their wrist and be sure to keep tension on the Soft Flex Beading Wire as you braid. - Sam

Braided 925 Sterling Silver Extreme Wire + CZs = My New Favorite Necklace

Guest blogger: Jamie Hogsett

I heart braiding Soft Flex Wire...


It seems that my obsession with braiding Soft Flex wire continues. This time, I paired 925 Sterling Silver Soft Flex Extreme Wire with some gorgeous CZs given to me by the nice people at Artbeads.com, who let me pick out a some pieces from their extensive CZ collection. I've never used these little CZ links, so when I saw them on the website, I was excited to incorporate them into a design. I choose the links and the clasp in Cognac, the pendant in Champagne, the briolettes in burnt orange, and the ovals in Chinese peridot. They're all warm colors - perfect for fall.

I had an idea of the design in mind before the CZs even arrived and as soon as I pulled them from my mailbox, I got started making up the piece. I used the Extreme wire for the bail of the pendant and to connect the center section to the two bezel links. After stringing a few more CZs on the other sides of the links, I used a crimp tube and crimp cover to attach two more strands of wire to the exhisting strand. The strands of wire braided together look like chain - the perfect delicate-looking, yet strong way to finish this design.

Jamie Hogsett is the Education Coordinator for Soft Flex Company. Contact her at Jamie@SoftFlexCompany.com or via her blog at jamiehogsett.blogspot.com.

For the Lady of the Castle of the Plucked Eye and Heart

Andrew Thornton Photo & Design

Hurry on over to Andrew Thornton's blog for some inspiration. Andrew used our Champagne Extreme Flex Beading Wire in his beautiful creation.

Fashion Treands Abound

Us Weekly
November 9, 2009

InTouch Weekly
November 9, 2009

Big and bold is the way to go. Yellow says that loud and clear. I love yellow. I'm so happy to see so much of it this year.

And in other fashion news, I saw a nice link on facebook from the Crafty Chica about fashion that I thought I would share...

"Hillary Swank's portrayal of the flying ace has the blogosphere buzzing about feminism (in addition to groundbreaking flights, Earhart famously penned a missive to her husband-to-be eschewing any “medieval code of faithfulness”) and aviatrix fashion. Earhart popularized the women’s bomber (a jacket she sometimes slept in to emulate the broken-in, experienced look of her male counterparts), tweed menswear trousers, shag haircuts, and an anything-he-can-do-I can-do-better mentality—all ideas that were both ahead of their time and timeless."

Full Article on Shop Talk

Bay Area Bead Extravaganza is THIS WEEKEND

Bay Area Bead Extravaganza (BABE)
Dates: November 14 & 15, 2009
The Oakland Convention Center - Marriott Hotel
1001 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94607
10th Street & Broadway Details:
Saturday 11/14. 10am - 6pm
Sunday 11/15, 10am - 5pm
Admission: $7 ($2 off coupon available here)

The Bay Area Bead Extravaganza is practically in our own backyard. This lends us the ability to bring all sorts of items that can't make it to all of the other shows. Being that it is toward the end of the year, we also often times offer some awesome bead deals. Brian (Soft Flex Photographer) promised to post a guest blog next week with pictures for those that can't be there (like me).

Just in time for upcoming holidays, Soft Flex Company will bring fun filled Grab Bags to our upcoming shows through the end of 2009. For just $10.00 or $25.00 you can pick up a Grab Bag filled with great bargains at a fraction of the regular retail price. Pick one up for yourself and one as a gift for the beader on your list. Who knows what great treasure you will find!

Making a floral necklace

Cyndi L design & photo

Wowza! This is gorgeous! You can find detailed instructions on the Beading Arts Blog. I think that this is such a gorgeous design. A big thank you to Cyndi for complimenting us by using our Soft Flex Beading Wire in her design. :)

Wow! Cindy Lietz wrote a beautiful review of our Soft Flex Trios Color Beading Wire on her blog, Polymer Clay Tutor. "Well I finally got myself some of that Trios Beading Wire that so many people seem to be talking about! And man is it beautiful! It's soft, drape-y and the colors are so yummy I have to keep a towel around, just to clean up the drool!"

Read Entire Review

Find our products at a bead or craft store near you! Ask for Soft Flex products by name.

Lucky Earth Necklace How To!

Picture from "Cut Out + Keep" website.

Check out this free craft tutorial using Soft Flex Color Beading Wire Trios! All products are available through Ornamentea! I love it.

Mystical Trios set, Citrine and Emerald wire in Beadwork Magazine

Guest Blogger: Jamie Hogsett

Beadwork Magazine, December 2009-January 2010 issue


Seeing the new issue of Beadwork magazine in the mailbox was a bittersweet moment for me. I'm always happy to see a new issue and become inspired as I flip through the pages. However, I was also a little bit sad because this is the last issue of the year, and therefore my last issue as a DOY (Designer of the Year) for the magazine.

I'll admit it though, my frown turned upside down when I turned through the issue and was reminded of the fact that I have three projects in the issue. I turned everything in so long ago that I had forgotten all about them. Seeing the projects in print is a very pleasant discovery!

First off is The Challenge department. When I worked for the magazine, organizing The Challenge and making the jewelry was one of my favorite parts of the job, so I was delighted when editor Melinda Barta asked me to participate in this issue. I love the beads and findings that were contributed, especially since I love orange and green. Even cooler was the fact that the beads perfectly matched Citrine and Emerald Soft Flex Wire, so I was able to incorporate them into the braided bracelet design.



Fast and Fabulous is another one of my favorite departments in the magazine. I founded this department and was happy to pass it along to Danielle Fox. She makes such gorgeous jewelry designs. The magazine did an expanded version of F&F for the holidays and it was so kind of them to ask me to contribute. I chose to use one of my favorite Trios sets: Mystical. I used eleven colors of Swarovski crystals on the three colors (Amethyst, Pink Tourmaline, and Spinel) of Soft Flex wire. I'm still blown away by how the wire colors make the colors of the crystals seem to sparkle even more.



And last but no least, my sixth and final piece as DOY for 2009. The Interconnections necklace is mostly seed bead work, but it does use both Soft Flex Wire in Heavy and Soft Flex Craft Wire to connect the peyote-stitched links. I love the colors of this necklace. I can't wait to get it back from the magazine.


Jamie Hogsett is the Education Coordinator for Soft Flex Company. Contact her at Jamie@SoftFlexCompany.com or via her blog at jamiehogsett.blogspot.com.

Winner - Winner - Winner

Thank you to everyone who entered!

The Winner Is....BEVERLY!!!
Beverly follows the blog and is a friend on facebook! Yay Beverly! Woo Hoo!
(Won 5 Soft Flex Trio Variety Packs)

Lots of nice comments were posted about our beading wire, our Trios, our company, etc. I thought that they made a lovely wordle!

Added later - Blog Post from Beverly!

All 5 new Soft Flex Beading Wire Trios Variety Sets are available now! You can either purchase from your local bead or craft store or find them online.

Soft Flex Multi-Diameter Trios
Soft Touch Multi-Diameter Trios
Soft Touch .010 Very Fine Multi-Color Trios
Extreme .014 Fine Multi-Color Trios
Extreme .024 Heavy Multi-Color Trios

72 Hour Holiday Sale is starting today and will run into the first part of January. One of the best features of the sale is the Beadiful Mystery Packages! You will receive at least $100 in beads & jewelry making parts and pieces for only $25.00. These packages are stellar. They have been hand picked like beaders just like you. We are deeply discounting a variety of products over the next few weeks, including ott-lites this week!

Read Sale Email For Full Details!

Social Media Continues to Grow and Prosper!

My little head is spinning this week with all of the possibilities!

The folks at Twitter, in their infinite wisdom, added a new feature this week that I love. You can organize the people that you follow into lists. I'm sure your thinking, how does one fall in love with a feature that is so simple? Not only was I able to organize the people that I follow, I can also access and follow other tweeters' lists as well. Check out the article below to learn more. It is a fantastic addition to a website that I really enjoy using. On Twitter, you can find me as @SoftFlexGirl & Soft Flex Company as @SoftFlexCompany! Follow us!

Twitter lists and real time journalism
Editor's note: Pete Cashmore is founder and CEO of Mashable, a popular blog about social media. He is writing a weekly column about social networking and tech for CNN.com.

10 ways you can use twitter lists
by Sarah Evans of Mashable

Looking for Beading and Creative Types on Twitter?
Follow my list!

Over at Google, they are working on the Google Wave. I watched part of a demo for it this week and was thrilled. Being that I telecommute, almost all of my communication is via email. Email can certainly use an upgrade. It felt like Google Wave was a nice mix of emails, instant messaging and google documents. SWEET!

Google Wave is coming to the workplace
by Ben Parr of Mashable

Glass Challenge - Create Jewelry Out of Recycled Materials

Are you ready for a challenge?

Soft Flex Company is teaming up with the Glass Challenge to bring you a really neat contest. You must use the world’s first eco-friendly beading wire, Extreme Soft Flex Wire in any diameter & color. You must create a pendant, bead or beads using recycled materials. You may mix in other beads: crystals, gemstones, glass, etc but at least one item in the design has to be a recycled product. To learn more about this challenge and the prizes, drop by their website.

Giveaway - Enter To Win New Soft Flex Beading Wire Trios Variety Packs

Click to learn more about our latest giveaway!

Winner to be announced on 11/9/09.

Flex Your Creativity Beading Contest - Voting Continues!

Contest Entry by Sharon Olivia Marchant

Contest Entry by Dawn O'Bryan-Lamb

Contest Entry by Christine Maher

Contest Entry by Erin Klein

Contest Entry by Randi-Sue Deckard

Have you voted yet?

Now is your chance to help us choose the winners. You can also see some really interesting ways to use the Soft Flex Trios in your next design. The banner ads above are currently running in a few prime locations around the internet. Stay tuned for 2010 details, when you can enter to win and have your name and design posted in print and web advertising!

EASY 5 QUESTION SURVEY ABOUT THE CONTEST!

Don't have time for a survey, please feel free to leave your comments here on the blog. What did you like about the contest? What did you not like? Did you feel inspired seeing the entries? Do you like the concept of a live vote? I want to hear from you - anything and everything that you might like to say about it. :)

Oprah Winfrey

Picture from Oprah.com

I love Oprah. I have for most of my life. I don't watch her everyday or read each of her magazines. I'm not a crazed, obsessed fan. But I have a deep respect for her body of work and think that she has brought subjects to light that others dare not touch. I think that much like many women worldwide, I identify with her struggles and point of view. I want to leave this world a little better for my having been in it. I want to be the best me that I can be, but sometimes fall off the wagon. For being so rich and so famous, she is still very much accessible. I think that this is what makes her unique.

At any rate, she had one of her more fun shows this week. It was all about the perfect pair of boots, handbags and accessories. I thought that I'd share some of the eye candy.

Day-to-night accessory guide
Shoe and handbag interventions
6 shoes every woman should own
This season's hottest boots
5 must-have handbags

Paper Boxes for Holiday Gifts

Guest blogger: Jamie Hogsett

Learn to make paper boxes for a completely handmade holiday.


Years ago, my grandma taught me how to make boxes using only paper and scissors, and my cousins and I made lots of paper boxes to hold our treasures. I'd forgotten all about them until last year about this time, when Lorelei posted that she made several to use during her jewelry sale. Somehow my brain still remembered how to make them and I made several to use for gift-giving as I have a rather large stash of patterned papers. I gave Sara a box full of brass findings and I think she was most excited about the box as she's asked me multiple times for instructions on how to make them. Here you go, Sara, just in time for this year's holiday season. Enjoy!

To make a box, you'll need scissors and two pieces of square patterned paper. The paper can be pretty much any size, as long as it's square. I've made boxes using paper as large as 12"x12", as small as 4 1/2"x4 1/2", and several sizes in between. The example shown here is with 12" paper.

Turn the paper patterned side down and fold it diagonally in half. Unfold.

Fold in half diagonally again in the other direction. Unfold. There are now lines running diagonally from corner to corner.

Place the point of one corner to the center of the paper and fold.

Repeat for the opposite corner. Unfold both folds.

Repeat with the two remaining corners. Unfold. There are now lines that form a square in the center of the paper.

Place one corner to the center of the square line opposite the center of the paper. Unfold.

Use the same point and place it to the center of the closest square line. Unfold.

Repeat the previous two folds for each corner of the paper. The folds will form a grid of small squares on the paper. All folding from here until the box is complete will be refolding the same folds, so you won't be making any additional creases in the paper.

Use the scissors and one corner of the paper to cut two complete small squares up from both the lines right of the corner and left of the corner, as shown below.

Repeat the cuts on the opposite corner.

Fold the two uncut corners to the center of the paper.

Fold the paper in to the center again.

Unfold the previous fold. Fold the points of the paper in.

Stand the two sides of the paper up so that they are perpendicular to the work table.

Hold the paper so that all corners are at 90 degree angles. Take one of the remaining corners and fold it up and over the folded in points. It is important to make sure the corners are at 90 degree angles so that the fold will properly and tightly hold.

Repeat with the last corner. Place one edge of the box down on the work table and firmly press down to help secure the box and all the folds of paper. Repeat with the other three sides. You may use a bone folding tool for this if you have one, but it isn't necessary.

Now one half of the box is complete!

Repeat using a contrasting, coordinating paper to make the bottom half of the box.

Have fun making these boxes in all sorts of sizes. The large box below was made with 12"x12" paper and has a finished size of 4 1/4" wide and 2 1/8" deep, perfect for necklaces. The small box was made with 4 1/2"x4 1/2" paper and has a finished size of 1 5/8" wide and 13/16" deep, perfect for a pair of earrings.
Jamie Hogsett is the Education Coordinator for Soft Flex Company. Contact her at Jamie@SoftFlexCompany.com or via her blog at jamiehogsett.blogspot.com.