Sand and Sea

Growing up, we lived a bike ride away from East Point Lighthouse.  It's located on a little inlet off the Deleware Bay in Heislerville, NJ and is an amazing place to visit.

 

  

 The ocean has always been a special place for me to go...the smell of the salt in the air, the sound of the waves crashing along the beach...I love everything about it!

   

This blog hop has been put together by Lisa Lodge and there are about 20 of us participating.  Lisa sent each of us a beautiful selection of beads, either "Sand" (tans, creams, oranges and browns) or "Sea" (blues, greens and purples).

   

  As you can see, my selection of beads was inspired by the sea.  Isn't this an amazing selection to work with?!?

  

   

(I have to admit, there are a few beads I didn't use in this challenge because they just didn't work in the designs I created, but I have some ideas I've been doodling that will showcase them perfectly!)

  

 

I love long earrings! (I have long hair and small, delicate earrings tend to get lost in it all.)  I like creating earrings with a bit of sparkle and movement. 

 

This wasn't the original design, however.  I planned to make these earrings dangle with lots of these amazing triangle beads and some of the round blue and green beads.  But when I put these on to start the design, I was struck by their simple beauty.  So I left the design alone instead of trying to make it fit the image in my head.

  

  

Charm bracelets are a favorite of mine to create and I really love the sparkle of this one!  I originally started with a silver chain, but the clasp Lisa sent looked so much better with the gunmetal chain.  I used a combination of black head pins and dull silver head pins just because I didn't want it to become too dark.  

  

The smallest beads on the bracelet are my favorite of the whole bunch.  They are small triangle-shaped glass beads that have blue and green and yellow hues.  They are so small and I wanted to create a piece where they were an important part of the design, not just an accent to the larger beads.

   

 

  This necklace was actually the first piece I created.  I wanted to make a longer length necklace than I usually do (it ended up being 30 inches!)  

 

I love the milky round beads that were part of my "Sea."  They compliment the bright blues and greens of the other beads. 

  

  

This is my favorite creation of this challenge!  I wire wrapped alternating clear and blue beads for the main part of the necklace.  I added a silver toggle clasp that reminded me of the life preservers on boats and kept with the nautical theme. 

 

I love the front section of the necklace!  I took the long beads, the rest of those little triangle beads, some blue beads, two rondelles and a bunch of daisy spacers and strung them together.  I tried wrapping them into sections but just didn't like the look.   

  

 

Here is the list of the other people who are a part of this blog hop...I hope you are able to check out the amazing jewelry they created with their kits! 

     

Eleanor Burian-Mohr, The Charmed Life

Mary Govaars, MLH Jewelry Designs

Tanya Goodwin, A Work in Progress

Kathy Lindemer, Bay Moon Design

Toltec Jewels, Jewel School Friends

Sharyl McMillian-Nelson, Sharyl's Jewelry

Marla Gibson, Spice Box Designs

Melissa Trudinger, Bead Recipes

Dot Lewallen, Speedie Beadie

Ema Kilroy, Ema K Designs

Kim Booth, The Pink Martini Boutique

 

Jami Shipp, Celebrating Life

Leah Tees, My Beady Littleeyes

Christie Murrow, www.charisdesignsjewelry.blogspot.com

Monique Urquhart, A Half Baked Notion

Gloria Allen, Gloria Allen Designs

Cindy Anderson Wilson, It's My Sea of Dreams

Suzi Campbell, Suzi Campbell Creations

Shaiha Williams, Shaiha's Ramblings

Annette Rivers, MamaOwl's Mess



Sand and Sea Preview

 

I'm really looking forward to being a part of two jewelry-creating blog hops...they are challenging and a great way to see how other people's vision and talents can inspire your own. 

 

This is the first blog hop for me in March (the second will be Lori Anderson's Bead Soup Blog Hop on March 30). 

 

The challenge here is that Lisa Lodge, artist and mastermind, sent us a bead soup that either was based on sand (browns and beige) or sea (blues and greens) and we have to create something using those beads and a few of our own if we wanted. 

 

 

This is my bead soup...lots of pretty blues and greens (and even a few fish thrown in there!)

 

 

I was so excited to see these little triangle beads in my soup!  They change colors from purple to blue to green to light beige, depending on how the light hits them.  You can see the 5 mm silver daisy spacers next to them to give you an idea of how small they are.  I really want to find a way to have these steal the spotlight!

 

 

These beads have a hole drilled near one end so they will add some fun to how the design looks.

 

 

I love these green glass beads...they remind me of the waves on an overcast day. 

 

 

I'm not sure what these beads are made from, and the shapes are really different from what I usually work with so that will be a challenge.

 

 

I love these Pandora-style beads and the colors are just yummy!  I came across an artist who used these type of beads as connector beads instead of just stringing them into the design...another idea that may or may not work.

 

 

I love this clasp that Lisa sent!  I'm hoping to be able to use it as part of the design and not have it hidden away in the back. 

 

I'll be posting as I work on this piece, but you'll have to wait until March 9 to see the final design!

  

 

On the Sixth Day of Christmas

On the sixth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me...

A pair of winter white sea glass earrings with a blue frosted glass bead cluster

Now that was hard to fit into the song, wasn't it???

 

Cloudburst

 

A few posts back, I mentioned that there is a difference between genuine sea glass that is collected off the beach and man-made or faux sea glass. 

 

Sea glass that has been collected off a beach has a unique frosted appearance.  When you see it side-by-side with man-made sea glass, it's very easy to tell the two apart.  Man-made sea glass also is uniform in its appearance, while authentic sea glass may be similar, it is never exactly the same.    

 

 White Sea Glass Earrings

These earrings are a beautiful combination of white sea glass I collected over the past year and man-made sea glass beads.  This sale is a great way to start your sea glass jewelry collection or add to your favorites!
 

It's almost a week into December...how far have you gotten with your decorating and Christmas shopping?  

On the First Day of Christmas

It won't rhyme or even be in tune, but I'm having my own little "12 Days of Christmas" party over at my shop,  Sea of Dreams. 

 

Actually it's going to be "24 Days of Christmas" because I'm going to reduce the price on one item each day from now until Christmas Eve.  Each day will feature a different item...but please be aware that items ordered the week before Christmas may not arrive in time for the big day.

 

So, here goes...

On the first day of Christmas

My true love gave to me...

A pair of lovely white sea glass earrings
(You can view the listing here)
 

 

Ocean Blues

 

If you are not familiar with sea glass, let me be the first to tell you all about it!  Sea glass is the ultimate in recycling.  As ships have sunk off the coasts of various countries and the glass in their cargo has broken, it then moves with the tides all throughout the world.  Each piece of glass spends the next 50 to 100 years tumbling through surf and pounded against sand until it acquires the frosted finish and rounded edges prized by collectors.

 

I am lucky to live near the New Jersey coast and have collected the sea glass I use in my jewelry myself.  The most common colors I find are white, brown and green.  Prized colors are cobalt blue, pink, lavender, and red...usually found in Hawaii or around the Mediterranean Sea. 

 

Do not be fooled by man made sea glass (faux sea glass) also known as beach glass.  This is glass that has been created in a rock tumbler and can be purchased in bulk quantities.  If you find lower priced jewelry that says it is sea glass but the glass is uniform in shape and color, it is probably not genuine sea glass.  

 

 Large White Sea Glass Earrings

 

The sea glass in these earrings was found over the course of about eight months.  Each trip, I collect only sea glass that meets jewelry grade standards (easily 70% of what I find on the beach is not usable in my jewelry).  Then each piece is rinsed off and sorted according to color, shape and size.  To find two pieces that are similar in all three areas takes many visits to the beach and hours of sorting through all the glass I've collected.

 

 Ocean Blues Sea Glass Earrings

 

It is rare to find sea glass this large.  And I considered myself very lucky to find two pieces that were so nicely matched! 

 

One interesting fact is that sea glass is very light-weight.  These earrings, while large, are not heavy at all. 

 

 Ocean Blues Sea Glass Earrings

 

Which item from my shop will be featured for the Second Day of Christmas?  Check back tomorrow!