Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween!


Honey is all ready to go Trick-or-Treating tonight. Since she is so sweet, I thought an angel costume would be perfect for her. She is so patient to play along. The first wave of family arrived for my wedding yesterday. I can't believe that I'm getting married on Saturday. We are so excited! It will be fun to have my little cousins from Montana over tonight to Trick-or-Treat. Yay! So, Happy Halloween to you and yours. 

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Lorelei Eurto's Fabulous Jewelry

Lorelei's picture and jewelry design.

If you are into beading, you probably know the name Lorelei Eurto. She is an amazing jewelry designer and is coming out with a book soon called Bohemian Inspired Jewelry (available for pre-order). I am always thrilled when I see a piece of colored Soft Flex peaking out of her designs. I thought that I had better share her latest design with you so that you can be thrilled by it too.

Lorelei's picture and jewelry design.


Doesn't the turquoise colored Soft Flex look fabulous in this design. I love it! If you like that color of wire, you can now buy it in a 10ft length for $6.49. It is probably my favorite color, although I am quite partial to citrine, red jasper, pink tourmaline, amethyst....okay, okay...I love them all.

To see more of Lorelei's work, I suggest that you drop by her etsy shop.

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Spotlight on...Beads Beads Beads


Beads Beads Beads

The store was started in 2004, by my family in Denver. We started out small, and grew. We had always talked about a store in Boulder, and eventually we found a cute place, so were able to expand to Boulder. We recently expanded again into a larger, more open location on the same street. We now have a large area set up for studio work and classes. We offer a bracelet and necklace class in one. We also offer an earrings class, and a wire wrapping class. Classes include tools to use and materials to work with. The classes are $25.

We offer a large variety of semi precious stones. Large selection of pearls, crystals, CZ, glass, findings and beading supplies. We also specialize in repairs, advice, and help for your projects.

Article - Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee
Color by Margie Deeb - How to Work with Metallic Iris Beads  
Book - Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin
Local Bead Group - The Northwest Bead Society
Bead Seller - Beads Beads Beads in Denver, Co

Friday, October 28, 2011

Show Your Colors Available for Pre-order on Amazon


Show Your Colors is official for sale on a pre-order basis on Amazon. The book will officially be out in time for the Tucson show, beginning of February. You'll be able to pick up a copy in the Soft Flex booth at the Best Bead Show and if you like, both Jamie Hogsett and I will be on hand to discuss the designs in the book or to sign your copy!

The Best Bead Show
Feb 1-5, 2012
Kino Veteran's Memorial Community Center
2805 East Ajo Way
Tucson, AZ 85713
Hours:
Wednesday 10am - 8pm
Thursday 10am - 6pm
Friday 10am - 6pm
Saturday 10am - 6pm
Sunday 10am - 5pm
Classes: for information on classes held during the show please click here
Admission: FREE (there is a cost to take the classes at the show)

Buy Color $6.49! Mini Spools Available!

Ever since we launched our Soft Flex Trio packs, we've been asked to offer the colors in the 10 foot spools individually. Recently, we decided to do just that. We are offering our Mini Soft Flex Beading Wire in colors for just $6.49. Now, you can create your own color palette! 

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Swarovski Trends Report Fall/Winter 2012/13


I thought I'd share a few of my thoughts from the Swarovski Trends Presentation for FallWinter 2012/13 that I attended while I was at John Bead. The two latest colors are crystal antique pink and denim blue. Both colors are subtle and compliment each other nicely. It was interesting to see the full package. How these colors will work in fashion and home decor as well as in jewelry. It was also fascinating to see how they used city themes to symbolize the trends that they see coming up next year. They listed Shanghai (seductive, mysterious, enchanting, intimate and floral), Berlin (light reflection, arty, upcycling, future driven, hi-tech), Istanbul (theatrical, exotic, luxurious, embellished, opulent), Chicago (man style, jazz, bespoke, suiting, discreet), and Copenhagen (workwear, manual labor, function-first, bio textiles, resilient).

What do you think is an upcoming trend for next year? 

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

New Teeny Tiny Beads - So Cute!

6 COUNT DONUT CERAMIC TEENY TINY BEADS

6 COUNT ASSORTED PEACE SIGN CERAMIC TEENY TINY BEADS



6 COUNT ASSORTED CUPCAKE CERAMIC TEENY TINY BEADS

Spotlight on...The Northwest Bead Society


The Northwest Bead Society

The Northwest Bead Society (NWBS) in Seattle, Washington, was founded in 1983 as a not-for-profit organization open to anyone with an interest in beads. We are dedicated to the study of beads, beading techniques and the historical role of beads in human development. Our current membership is a couple of hundred and growing. Our annual Bead Bazaar is successful enough that we can fund a year of great programming for our members and serve as one of the world's very few sources of funding for bead research. Our website will keep you current on what's happening with the organization: www.nwbeadsociety.org.

Article - Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee
Color by Margie Deeb - How to Work with Metallic Iris Beads  
Book - Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin
Local Bead Group - The Northwest Bead Society
Bead Seller - Beads Beads Beads in Denver, Co

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Free DIY Beaded Bracelet Ideas for Halloween by Jamie Hogsett

Trick or treat! Here's a trio of treats with no tricks involved. If you're like me and your Halloween plans include passing out candy to the neighborhood kids (and, of course, eating some candy too!), these bracelets just might be the perfect costume. There is still time to make these before the 31st and your wrist will definitely get noticed as you drop candy into bags!
Treat One: Czech fire-polished beads, rhinestone rondelles, skull charm, and Mexican zebra agate links from Shipwreck Beads. Toggle clasp from Tierra Cast. Red Jasper .019 beading wire, black 22-gauge craft wire and crimp findings from Soft Flex Company.
Treat Two: Czech fire-polished beads, rhinestone rondelles, and Spiderweb Red Agate beads from Shipwreck Beads. Toggle clasp from Saki Silver. Citrine .019 beading wire and crimp findings from Soft Flex Company.
Treat Three: Czech fire-polished beads, lampwork glass tubes, coffin charm and jump ring from Shipwreck Beads. Toggle clasp from Bokamo Designs. Black Onyx .019 beading wire and crimp findings from Soft Flex Company.

Wishing you all a safe and happy Halloween!


Guest blogger Jamie Hogsett is the Education Coordinator for Soft Flex Company. Contact her at Jamie@SoftFlexCompany.com.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Beadaholique's Beading Contest!


Enter Beadaholique's Beading Contest and Win a Gift Certificate

This month's beading challenge from Beadaholique is "Falling Leaves."   Submit a photo of your original jewelry design by October 26th.   Ten finalists will be chosen for public voting on Facebook.  Their work will also be featured on the Beadaholique blog.  Your work could be seen by over 20,000 Beadaholique fans!  A final winner will be announced on November 3rd. For a complete list of rules and how to enter, click here.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Swarovski Elements Cafe Launch at John Bead

Last week, I flew across country to attend a very neat event in Toronto at John Bead. If you aren't familiar, John Bead is a distributor of Soft Flex products in Canada. Here are some pictures from my visit!

Kellie Defries - Crystal Ninja

Kellie Defries - Crystal Ninja

Swarovski Elements Cafe

New Swarovski Lounge

Vicki Green - Dragon's Lair Beads

Erin Gerlach - Aves Studio LLC


Stephanie Dixon and Erin Gerlach

Erin Gerlach - Aves Studio LLC

Swarovski Trends Report

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Spotlight on...Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin


Dimensional Bead Embroidery 
by Jamie Cloud Eakin

With nearly two decades of experience and two other books under her belt, Jamie Cloud Eakin is an excellent beading source. Dimensional Bead Embroidery  is a visual feast for your eyes. It is a "reference guide to techniques" that are frequently used in bead embroidery. Have you ever seen a shell, a rock or even a cabachon and wished that you could use it in your next jewelry design? If you understand the fundamentals of beading embroidery, you can incorporate just about any small object into your beaded designs.

Article - Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee
Book - Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin
Local Bead Group - The Northwest Bead Society
Bead Seller - Beads Beads Beads in Denver, Co

Friday, October 21, 2011

Soft Flex Gallery Open House in Sonoma, California October 21-22

If you live in the Sonoma, don't miss out on our Open House Event! You will get an opportunity to make the Free Make-it-Take-it shown above. The gallery is full stocked now with many of our unique designer findings as well as one-of-a-kind gemstone and lampwork beads. There are many things in the gallery that are not available online or at shows. Here are the details.

Friday - October 21, 12pm-6pm
Saturday - October 22, 10am-4pm

Our Open House Special Guests

Local Store:
Ubeadquitous
9111 Windsor Rd. - Windsor, CA 95492

Local Artist:
Love Sarah Custom Jewelry - Sarah Welty
Designer from Sonoma, CA.

Local Artist:
Michael Byrne
Designer from Rohnert Park, CA.

Location:
22678 Broadway,Suite 1
Sonoma, CA 95476 
(Broadway is HWY12. Go down the long driveway. Turn right at stop sign.)

We would love to see you there!!!



Thursday, October 20, 2011

Ooh La La - Gemstones on Closeout 60% off

If you haven't dropped into our closeout section lately, I encourage you to take a look. We recently closed out quite a few new strands so that we could make room for more new items from our gallery in the regular categories. All of the closeout strands are 60% off and extremely limited in quantity. Here are a few of my favorites!

(please note that there are several pages)

50 COUNT 10MM X 10MM X 8MM SMALL EMERALD SIMPLE CUT NUGGETS 
(Closeout)
Reg Price: $506.00 
Your Price: $202.40 
You Save: $303.60

14 COUNT NAMIBIAN PIETERSITE SIMPLE CUT NUGGETS 
(Closeout)
Reg Price: $308.00 
Your Price: $123.20 
You Save: $184.80


16 COUNT MULTI COLORED TOURMALINE LEAF GEMSTONES 
(Closeout)
Reg Price: $274.00 
Your Price: $109.60 
You Save: $164.40

APX 22 COUNT SLEEPING BEAUTY TURQUOISE NUGGET GEMSTONES 
(Closeout)
Reg Price: $407.44 
Your Price: $162.98 
You Save: $244.46


16 COUNT 14MM LARIMAR ROUND GEMSTONES 
(Closeout)
Reg Price: $400.00 
Your Price: $160.00 
You Save: $240.00

9 COUNT LONDON BLUE TOPAZ FACETED FREE FORM DROPS 
(Closeout)
Reg Price: $487.00 
Your Price: $194.80 
You Save: $292.20

I think that some of these strands would make lovely Christmas presents. For example, the london blue topaz shown right above this paragraph has 9 beads. So you could easily split them into 4 pairs of earrings. So if you pay $194.80, you can create 4 high-end gifts at the inexpensive price of $50 each. If you went into a jewelry store to buy London Blue Topaz earrings, I can guarantee they will not be as nice, thoughtful or cheap as what you can make yourself! The cut tourmaline beads would also make lovely and unique pairs of earrings.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Spotlight on...Designer Alexandra Sydorenko


Alexandra Sydorenko

When I was about 7, my mother came home with a bag of seed beads. They were crooked and uneven, and the color was a rather sickly green and a poisonous-looking orange. Still, she had not the faintest idea that this first bag of beads would change my life drastically.

I mostly got the inspiration to bead from my grandmother Anastasia, whom, I might mention, I've never even met. She was one of the master beaders in Ukraine in her time, however. It was due to her that I picked up needle, thread, and seed beads.

Article - Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee
Color by Margie Deeb - How to Work with Metallic Iris Beads  
Book - Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin
Local Bead Group - The Northwest Bead Society
Bead Seller - Beads Beads Beads in Denver, Co

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Free DIY Beaded Earring Idea by Jamie Hogsett

Colorado is beautiful all year around, especially in the fall. Every time I look to the west this time of year, I see snow capped mountains with patches of bright orange and red leaves below. It's gorgeous! And it's the inspiration for these dangling earrings.

The earrings are easy to make with basic wire wrapping techniques. Here's are the materials and tools you'll need to make your own pair:
6 crystal copper 2mm Swarovski crystal rounds
6 Siam 2mm Swarovski crystal rounds
2 white 7x4mm Czech pressed-glass square beads
2 red-and-orange Czech fire-polished rondelles
2 white 10x9mm Czech pressed-glass flowers
1 pair of copper ear wires
6 copper 24-gauge head pins
14" of copper 22-gauge Craft Wire
Cutters
Chain Nose Pliers
Round Nose Pliers

The crystals are available from Fusionbeads.com. All other materials available from Soft Flex Company. Enjoy!


Guest blogger Jamie Hogsett is the Education Coordinator for Soft Flex Company and a Swarovski Elements Ambassador. Contact her at Jamie@SoftFlexCompany.com.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Spotlight on...How to Work with Metallic Iris Beads by Margie Deeb


How to Work with Metallic Iris Beads 
by Margie Deeb

I'm in the process of writing my 5th book, The Beader's Guide to Jewelry Design. Because I want to make it invaluable, I've been soliciting feedback from my newsletter subscriber list and Facebook. I asked about the challenges you face as a jewelry designer in several arenas: color, composition, style, durability, wearability, and more.

Rosanne Andreas responded "...working with iris/metal beads is a color challenge." Since the topic of last month's Margie's Muse column was "Escape the Dark Metallic Iris Trap," I'd like to explore some of the most aesthetic approach to incorporating metallic iris beads in jewelry.

Article - Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee
Book - Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin
Local Bead Group - The Northwest Bead Society
Bead Seller - Beads Beads Beads in Denver, Co

Friday, October 14, 2011

Winner Announced - Diva Custom Cord Maker


Honey and I are trying to take it easy today but with an endless stream of email, and voicemail, it is hard to rest. I flew to Toronto on Tuesday, spent all day at John Bead on Wednesday and Thursday and then flew home Thursday (last) night. I'll write a post all about my trip when I have a little time to process it all. Right now, I need to try to play catch up.

Our First Friday Giveaway winner this month is Jeanne Christofferson. Yay Jeanne! She won our Diva Custom Cord Maker.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

100 Incredible Teachers - Guest Post by Kristen Fagan


What would it be like to learn from 100 incredible teachers? Amazing, right?! I have been following along with the World's Biggest Summit presented by Goddess Leonie this month and it's been pure magic. So, what is the World's Biggest Summit? It's 100 leaders, visionaries & creatives, all sharing their wisdom. And it’s free!

I have been listening to audio interviews and videos while going about my day - allowing myself to be open and receive all the beautiful wisdom. I feel like I am being filled up with so much creativity, love, kindness and business tips that I had to share this summit with you. 100 inspiring teachers online for you to listen to when the time is good for you. All for free. Click here to learn more and signup for your free ticket.

Guest blogger Kristen Fagan is the Website Graphic Designer for Soft Flex Company. She also has her own blog and etsy shop.  She'd love to hear from you! So, please feel free to leave comments or email her at Kristen@SoftFlexCompany.com.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Spotlight on...Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee


Designing with Things that Go Bump
by Melissa J. Lee

It's not a big secret in our house that autumn is my favorite season. I love the cool crisp air, the colors of the leaves, and visiting the orchards to go apple picking with my son. So, it's not surprising that much of my jewelry is influenced by fall themes, like the above piece featuring my own autumn tree design strung with beautiful Columbian amber. It's a nice, warm, perfectly respectable fall piece, eh?

I have to admit, though, what I really love about this season is my favorite holiday - Halloween. I love visiting the local farm to pick out just the right pumpkins and then decorating them with my son. I love seeing all of the children having a fun time in their costumes. Most of all, I love how generally colorful and over-the-top the holiday is - it provides a great chance to loosen up and kick back and be a little different from our everyday selves.


Article - Designing with Things that Go Bump by Melissa J. Lee
Color by Margie Deeb - How to Work with Metallic Iris Beads  
Book - Dimensional Bead Embroidery by Jamie Cloud Eakin
Local Bead Group - The Northwest Bead Society
Bead Seller - Beads Beads Beads in Denver, Co
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