What happened in June

So, I've been following OTTBS for a while now, not that you'd know from the lack of things to show for it-I'm eyeballing you Blogger-and the challenge for June was Colors of the rainbow.

I'm kind of a huge fan of brightly colored things-like tie dye and neon pink beads that I'll never use and I thought, I can do a rainbow colored Ornament! Yes, that is exactly what I'll do. It was settled.

I decided to tackle one of the patterns from Karen DeSousa's Heirloom collection

I then dove in picking beads out of my stash including matte transparent pink, matte orange, matte yellow, trasparent green, S/L blue, and transparent purple.  As I have a dinky collection of fire polished beads, I used S/L clear 8/0's for the belly band and S/L clear for most of the other structural elements.

I had some crazy bright stars from Hobby Lobby that decided they wanted to be included too, and some of those dastardly peanut beads that I get all dewey eyed over rounding out the short list. (Seriously, try them in a kumihimo rope, you will not be disappointed).

Then I tackled the pattern. 

I quickly realised that fringe is mind numbing. Twisted fringe is mind numbing and hand numbing(shakes semi-numb fist at Carpal Tunnel!!!)

That ornament just wouldn't get done! Hours and hours and hours I worked and it never got complete. It just sat there on my bead tray like some illicit love-child of a unicorn and a jelly-fish.

I started this ornament June 1.  I think I finished it in mid-July.



The worst thing is that I have issues cutting things apart once I've committed to them.  The flaws are just...there.  But on we move with life and the next ornament...

3 bracelets and some new beads

I began this post in March. March!!! Thats how long I've been neglecting you, and how long I can apparently hold a technology grudge! Now that blogger and I have made up, I will try to get some of the back-logged stuff I've been working on up and posted!!
I have been productive this month!

I've made 2 bracelets from this month's Bead and Button. 

The first used the Power Trio by Isabella Lam. This one would have been my OTTBS entry.  The challenge this month was to use purple and grey. 



I used hematite 8/0s and silverlined dark purple Delicas and 15/0s.  I've used this color combo before and many times it gives a really cool dimensional effect.  Maybe it didn't work that way here because the beads were different sizes and not right next to each other.  (I'm serious, use some hematite colored beads and some silverlined dark purple Delicas(or any color silverlined Delicas).  The Dels recede.  Its pretty cool...)  I finished it off with a hematite colored toggle. 


I liked this pattern, even though it used cubic RAW.  I haven't tamed the beast, but I got to at least pet the beast with this bracelet, figuratively speaking.

And I made another one (I've been trying to upload photos to this damned blog since 3-19...) It uses glow-in-the-dark 8/0s with matte transparent blue Delicas and matte black 15/0s.

My second piece was also from this month's B&B.  It is from the pattern called Fantastic Features By Amanda Shero Granstrom. 

I did NO stashbusting on this one. I bought permanently distressed copper wire to make my rings, a new mandrel which is really one of thise big crochet hook knitting neede thingies, green 10mm sequins(pattern called for 12's, but I couldn't find any).  And I even had to buy a hole punch! 

I think it's worth it though. I got to play with chain maille.  I like chain maille. 


I also got a wild hare up my ass and decided that I had to make some polymer clay beads.  Of course this required me to buy more stuff.  Like clay, and blades, and a pasta roller, and seriously. I have a problem.  I don't need new hobbies.  I need to deplete some of the hobbies I currently have. :)

Anywho, here they are fresh from the oven.  I need to drill, sand, buff and glaze them still, but they're pretty.

I then went on a polymer clay book buying spree.  One is about canework.  Canes are really easy once you get the hang of them.  You just start with a picture about the size of the base of a pop can and break it up into small simple shapes. 

Resolution!

I think I may be on the way to keeping some resolutions

I studied and passed my PE exam!

I'm doing pretty well with the nose booping!

I'm not doing very well with the de-stashing, but since I've joined Operation Tackle That Bead Stash, I think I might see change on the horizon!

and two of my in-progress quilts are finished! My mom finished quilting the star quilt that I pieced-There are pics of the top here-I have photos of the quilt proper somewhere, but not here :(

Also, I pieced and quilted this one in quarters, but when it came to connecting the pieces, I gave up. I tried and tried and they just looked sloppy-so the obvious thing to do was...MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooom! Can you fix this? And she did. And it's perfect :)



I reckon after a washing, alot of the puckering will go away, but I'm so happy and I truly hope my bestest friend will like it. She likes Scooby Doo and the color pink, so she SHOULD.


Anyway, thats two finished out of five, so now I can start eleventy-three more? Right?

Also, I'm not getting any taller...