Between the last time I posted and now, not all that surprisingly, life interfered....
My daughter got sick, I got sick, I went back to work, my new workbench/desk was not ready yet, blah, blah, blah.... While I was not feeling well, I got an email update from Fusion Beads (http://www.fusionbeads.com), one of my favorite sources for supplies - a SALE! I was tired, I was weak, I put about 30 things into my online cart because the more money spent, the greater the percentage off, I was going to try some new techniques and stock some items I'd been thinking about for a while, I was excited, it wouldn't even really be spending money because it was ON SALE!! And then............. I came down from my cloud of excitement and realized not only would it be silly to spend the money, but I would fail at my challenge before I even started! Yeah - I resisted the temptation!!! That was success!!
As for the progress on the challenge - well, there isn't any. No, that's not entirely true. Of the four things I said I needed to do to get started,
1) Start coming up with ideas using the materials on hand
2) Know what materials I have on hand
3) Finish any orders in progress, and
4) Learn the ins and outs of this whole blogging thing...
I have sort of finished #'s 2 and 3. Don't my supplies look neat and organized? Actually, that was quite an accomplishment! They're actually labeled!!! And I can find things quickly! Unfortunately, the rest of the room, still needs work, but it's getting there! AND - my new workbench top is ready and can find a home in my space!!! #2? Progress!
As for the orders, I mailed off a glass pendant, I made a stamped washer necklace with the word "Tro" which is Norwegian for "trust" or "faith" (pretty cool! My first order in another language!), and I finally finished making this sterling silver kumihimo necklace which is one of my favorites - a simple, beautiful design. #3? Check!
#4 I'm going to just have to learn as I go.... which brings me back to #1. Well, the grouping of materials for my first challenge is STILL on my workbench, and here's where life comes in to change things up a bit. It's already the middle of January, three days from now I fly to California for a conference. Flights, car trips, etc. are some of the BEST times to get my kumihimo done because I'm trapped and I want to keep busy. So, instead of making something with that first grouping of materials (I'll do that eventually!), I decided to look through my newly organized stash and prepare beads to bring with me on my flights.
Here are some of the beads I'm playing around with and some of the preparation I'm doing -
So, what do you think of those combos? If you look closely, you'll see that they actually ARE different! Which combo would you like to see?
I'll show you my progress once I get back!
