Fiber Findings and Finishing Techniques for Jewelry WEBINAR

Hello! I've been working on a BIG, exciting project with Interweave/FW Media for over two months now. I'm thrilled to finally share it with you! I'm grateful that I have this opportunity to share with all my creative friends out there about how I create the jewelry I love so much. Is there anything better than talking about jewelry? I don't think so.  I'll be presenting a LIVE webinar presentation on Thursday, August 15th at 12:30 p.m. EST called, Fiber Findings and Finishing Techniques for Jewelry. I hope you will join me while I share with you all my tips, tricks and techniques to finishing off leather, ribbons and cords in jewelry. Learn how to add some of my favorite materials in your own projects such as, suede lace, leather cord, cotton cord, waxed linen, silk cords, ribbons and more with tons of pictures and step-by-step photo tutorials.

Enhance your knowledge and understanding of how to use the findings available on the market today that can be used with fibers. Add wire-wrapping and knotting techniques to your jewelry-making repertoire that you can use to finish off fibers in your projects with full color, step by step photos and thorough explanations. Follow along with me live as I take you through an in-depth look at all the methods and techniques I use to finish off leather, ribbons and cords cleanly and professionally. After the presentation, you will get a chance to ask me any questions you like and I will do my very best to answer them!

With Fiber Findings and Finishing Techniques for Jewelry, you will...

• Get a list of essential tools for making jewelry with fibers including an explanation of each tool, what I use it for and why I like it.

•  Take a close look at my favorite findings to use with fibers. Get an explanation of each one, the types to buy and why I like them. Get my suggestions for which fibers to use with which findings and learn how to properly use each one with clear, step-by-step photo tutorials.

• Learn my favorite wire-working and knotting techniques to finish off fibers with step-by-step photos and detailed instructions.

•  Get answers to any questions you have on the subject! 

I hope you can join me for my live webinar on August 15th, but if you can't make it, don't worry! You can still purchase the full presentation at the Interweave store and access it at anytime after the webinar goes live on the 15th.Thank you and hope to see you there!


Erin Siegel is a jewelry designer, beading instructor and co-author of the jewelry book, Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry: 50 Designs Using Leather, Ribbon and Cords. To find out more, visit her blog: Erin Siegel Jewelry. 

Designer of the Week :: Bay Moon Design & Lea Avroch

We are mixing things up a bit around here on Art Bead Scene. Starting today, I will be responsible for choosing the Designer of the Week from all those posted in the Flickr pool. This will also give me a head start on the monthly blog tour.

Everyone has a distinct point of view and a talent all their own, but I hope that we will continue to get so many great entries that you will make my job really tough! I look forward to sharing our Designers of the Week with you.

As part of the Designer of the Week, I would like to promote the designer as well as the art bead artist. So be sure to supply the name of the artist(s) who made the bead(s) in your design. That way we can check out your creativity as well as the beautiful artistry of the one who inspired you!

This unusual lampwork bead is created on a bobbin by artist Lea Avroch. I love the colors, the texture and the simple way this is put together. The soft grey leather lace brings in the neutral color of the painting and serves to ground the more vibrant tones. 

Designer of the Week :: Bay Moon Design

Featured Art Bead :: Lea Avroch

 

Show Me Sunday - People Beads with Rebecca of Songbead and the Curious Bead Shop

Hi ABS-ers! Happy Sunday. Here we are, with more 'people' beads. Last week, I shared some of Sally Sutherland of Soul Silver's gorgeous doll beads - and the lovely Liona shared some of her beautiful designs, featuring Sally's beads, with us! How beautiful is this necklace?

She has many more in this collection, so do check her gorgeous work out!

Here's what I found this week.....from one of my favourite bead artists, Caroline....

Porcelain Face Cabochon

And now for the bead blogger links:

A Bead A Day 
Did you make anything special on YOUR summer vacation? Lisa shares her family vacation projects. 

About.com Jewelry Making 
Love, love, love some Venetian glass jewelry projects! 

Art Bead Scene 
Check out Gaea's Etsy finds for this month's challenge! 

Beading Arts 
Cyndi has collected a wonderful group of resources and tutorials for those who want to try working in metal clay or who wish to expand their skills! 

Carmi's Art/Life World 
Always looking for a way to use up her stash, Carmi creates a button and fabric wearable. 

Charlene Sevier 
Want to branch out from beaded jewelry alone? Or you sew, do embroidery, felt and would like to add jewelry to your work. Charlene reviews the perfect book for you. 

Resin Crafts Blog 
Under the dome is a new ring made possible with Jewelry Clay. 

Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! 
Jean reviewed... and even more exciting, has a GIVEAWAY of the spectacular new book, Marcia DeCoster's Beads In Motion ! So do check out the review and consider yourself invited to enter the giveway while there is still time! 

The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton 
Working with polymer clay, wire, and assorted accent beads, Andrew creates a very tribal statement necklace. 

Rebecca is a Scottish jewellery designer, currently living in Manchester, England. You can read more about her and her work at her blog, songbeads.blogspot.com and see more of her jewellery at songbead.etsy.com. She also has a supplies shop at thecuriousbeadshop.etsy.com.

Studio Saturday...Ehem...Sunday-Creative Impressions In Clay

Welcome to Studio Saturday Sunday! Each week one of our contributors gives you a sneak peek into their studio, creative process or inspirations. We ask a related question of our readers and hope you'll leave comments! As an incentive we offer a free prize each week to bribe you to use that keyboard. The following week we choose a random winner.

This weeks winner is Kathy Lindemer, Congratulations! 
You have won a Dream Catcher Pendant Kits Erin Siegel!

Send Erin an e-mail with your email address and she will get it right out to you.

This week we visit the studio of 
Tari Sasser at Creative Impressions In Clay.

Bok Bok! I was working yesterday and missed my Studio Saturday. So today we have Studio Sunday!

 I made this mug several years ago for my mom for Mothers Day.
I have been in a creative funk for so long, I have nothing new to show. It's sad and tiresome.
Today I just feel like crying about it.
I need to make stuff for a show next month and my "Get up and Go has Got up and Went!" as my dad would say.

Mom collects Chickens. The inspiration for the mug.

Bok bok is what my kids would say what a chicken sounded like when they were little.

 Chicken Scratch :).

"Oh Crap!" Something my dad says. 

It was hard to photograph but I layered a pile of underglaze in the bottom of the mug + down the side to look like chicken crap. Yes, I have a warped sense of humor but then so does my family! Mom loved it.

Wish me luck on getting ready for my show next month. I'm hoping to unslump my creative slump.

My question today is:

Have you been in a creative slump? How did you get out?

Leave a comment answering the question and you could win a Pendant, a Button and a Cabochon. 

Have a great day!!

Feeling Sassy as usual!

Tari Sasser

Creative Impressions In Clay

Rustic and Humble Lampwork Beads from GlassBeadArt

I would like to introduce you to Maryse Fritzsch-Thillens, a lampwork artist from the small european country of Luxembourg. Maryse's beads have completely captured my attention with their rustic and humble nature.
Maryse shared her work with me this week and here is her story in her own words.

"I discovered lampworking in march 2003 and have never looked back. I first started out because I wanted to make beads for my own jewelry, as I could not always find what I was looking for and in theses years, at least in Europe, lampworking was not very popular yet. Over the years I took many workshops from artists from the US, learning lots of different techniques but I did not manage to incorporate these into my own design ideas.

 

Parallel to lampworking, I had started making rosaries and mixed media catholic jewelry and after a certain time and especially the amazing feedback I got from my customers it became clear that this was to be my calling. 

Due to some major health issue, I had lots of time to think about my beads without being able to torch and I discovered my problem was that I do know many complicated techniques but my all-time love are the simple organic rustic looking beads I have been making for my rosaries all the time.

 

I truly enjoy making these but for all the years the lampworking bug did not leave me. I have a small etsy shop called GlassBeadArt for a few years now and I sell my beads on local art fairs.Now my etsy shop reflects my true love beads and I am slowly building a customer base of people appreciate my beads.

I love going to antique markets and buying old vintage medals to use on the rosaries. When the medals are very large and special, I make small one decade chaplet out of them that bring out the value and uniqueness of the medal."

One special project Maryse worked on was creating rosaries from crushed bottles. "I got the mass wine bottles from the inauguration mass of our archbishop, crushed the glass and made small spacer beads out of it. Then I took these beads and turned them into 2 rosaries, one for the Bishop and the other one was commissioned from the Cathedral of Luxembourg for the adornment of the statue of Our Lady of Luxembourg."

Thank you for sharing your work and story with us Maryse!

Maryse's Etsy shop: http://etsy.com/shop/glassbeadart

Read more about her work on her blog: www.glassbeadart.blogspot.com

Selling on Facebook - Soldsie Review

Last week I was rained out of our weekly market and decided to have a little sale on my Facebook page.  I had seen a few of my friends using Soldsie, so I thought I'd give it a whirl.

Basically you set up an event - called a campaign.  You add your products with a the price, options, shipping and description.  After your products are loaded you schedule your campaign.

When the scheduled time arrives your photos publish to your Facebook page and customers can start shopping.

To purchase, all your customer needs to do is comment, "sold" on the photo and register for your shop. (There is a link published on each photo.) Paypal automatically sends them an invoice and they let you know when an invoice is sent and when it's paid.

You can leave your event up for a few days or delete your photos after a certain a time period or you can schedule an end time for your campaign.

What does it cost? There is a free trial for your first $700 in sales, after that it's 3% of your product price.

Some thoughts:
It's Easy to use, great customer service and training videos, keeps invoices and sales organized on the app.

Payments are through Paypal only.  Customers can register with your shop before an event.

You can only access Soldsie on a browser, not a mobile device. But customers can shop on the mobile device. Customers need to sign up to complete their purchase.

Events work better if you promote them a few days in advance and train your customers about the new way to shop on Facebook.  Create an eye-catching graphic and share the basics on your Page a few days before your sale.

What is the advantage to selling with Soldsie? Having invoices automated and a handy way to keep track of those sales helps keep things running smoothly.

I had a successful first run and plan to use Soldsie to sell off extra inventory, for destash events, sample sales and a probably even a holiday stocking stuffer sale.

151 Ways to Boost Your Holiday Sales

From the very talented duo over at Flourish & Thrive Academy is this fantab list of 151 Ways to Boost Your Holiday Sales.  It's free, it's full of good advice and if you sell jewelry - now is the time to start working on your holiday game plan.  This guide is a great jumping point and even if you only put a few of them into practice you'll be moving ahead leaps and bounds for the 2013 holiday season.