4 EASY WAYS TO GET OUT OF CREATIVE BLOCK

1. STOP TRYING TO CREATE 

Trying to force the inspiration may
 make it harder to come by. 
So just take a break, do something else 
and stop stressing about making it happen. 
When the time is right the muse will strike!  

2. .WATCH A MOVIE 

There's so much about films 
that can be inspiring,
from the costume design to
 the country or era 
 it's set in, 
why not settle down 
with some popcorn 
and enjoy an easy route to 
inspiration! 

3. LOOK ON PINTEREST 

What is not to love about this!
People pin what they love 
and looking through their boards 
is super fun and sure to give you plenty of 
pretty creative ideas. 

4.LOOK TO NATURE 

All those beautiful plants,
 flowers, trees 
and animals offer 
 instant colour schemes
galore! 

*Beautiful card/artwork from Inner Hue/ColourCult 

PRETTY IN PEACH

My latest make. 

I had a lot of kitten 'help' 
for this one.
There's something our cat 
finds  irresistible 
about lengthy threads 
and sparkly small things dangling about! 

I do love a bit of fringing too....once it's finished...! 

ARE YOU ALLOWED TO CALL THEM UGLY? - THE REALLY UGLY CABOCHON NECKLACE!

I have to say that I really didn't 

warm to this cabochon at first. 

I ordered a few different types online 

and you never really know

what they will be like until they

arrive. 

YUK! I thought to myself 

that is one horrible cabochon!

One to go to the back of my bead drawer and 

never see the light of day again... 

but somehow, I have ended up 

making a necklace from it, 

and, the shocking part is here, 

actually liking it!

Not only do I like it but I have

 worn it a lot, and by a lot I mean

practically all summer!

It's brown as well so I can see myself wearing it 

throughout the Autumn too.

It might be ugly

 but it's found a little place in my heart!

THE SPECIAL CABOCHON NECKLACE COMPLETED!

I used the 

 labradorite

 cabochon

that I had bought

 a long time ago,

 but never knew 

what to do with,

for this project.

I had originally 

intended

 to make a more elaborate 

design but 

decided to keep things

simple 

and let the stone

 do the talking.

As you can see

 from the pics

the beautiful 'flash' 

of blue that emerges 

from the cabochon is pretty 

and I wanted that to be the focal point

rather than adding 

a lot of embellishment. 

I'm so, so, happy to have 

used this cab at last! 

THE PRETTIEST UFO

I found these components 

that I had been making 

for Sabine Lipperts 

La Fleur bracelet pattern. 

For some reason I never 

finished making it. I have no 

idea why not, just look at all that 

sparkly loveliness!

It's far too pretty to live its life out 

as an 'unfinished object' so

it's definitely a project 

I want to restart.... 

GATHERING SUPPLIES...

Gathering supplies 

for my Labradorite project.

Here is what landed

 on my doormat 

this morning -

a gorgeous 

faceted strand 

of 4mm rondelles.

Mmmm mmmm!

You can really 

see the blue flash 

of colour coming out 

of these stones. 

It's going to be a while

before I can get going

on this project 

but looking at these 

little beauties makes me

excited! 

Can't wait.... 

COULD IT BE TIME TO BREAK OUT 'THE SPECIAL CABOCHON'?

When I was first getting into beading 

I saw this gorgeous Labradorite 

cabochon. 

I bought it straight away 

even though at that time 

I had NEVER 

worked with cabochons before 

and had NO idea 

of even how to start 

working with them!

I thought to myself, one day...one day 

I will make something from this, 

but the years went by 

and I didn't learn the skills

 to have a go... 

but I am starting to think 

that maybe now should be the time 

to use it ..... 

I am pretty confident that I can 

make something 

now that I have some cabochon 

experience under my belt,

but the pressure of it being 

'that special cabochon' 

does make me have a few nerves!

Wish me luck! 

BEAD EMBROIDERED CABOCHON NECKLACE

I enjoyed making this.

 There are over 100 Swarovski 

crystals

 in this design.

Super sparkly - 

it makes me happy! 

BEAD CANDY - CLOISONNE, SODALITE, BLUE JADE

Mmmm mmmm  delicious

 - a feast for the eyes!

Why Not: Feng Shui Your Way To Creative Success

Picture by William Abranowicz
via realsimple.com

Feng shui is a Chinese Philosophical system

 for harmonizing

people with their surrounding environment. 

So what does a philosophy have to do with me and 

how can it enhance my creativity?

I hear you ask...

Well, in Feng shui when your environment is well positioned 

it allows 'qi' (think of this as life force or good energy)

to flow freely and unobstructed

bringing with it a plethora of benefits.

Things will feel easier, there are symbolically 

no obstructions to you

and this translates into your life,

it's the practical magic of Chinese philosophy!

As you can see in the picture above there are 

certain sectors within a room that correspond

to different aspects of life. 

It could be really  interesting to position your 

craft desk or work station in the creativity 

area to see if it brings about a higher 

level of creativity. 

Or if you're looking for a higher level of success

why not in the reputation area? 

An important tenet of Feng shui 

is to de clutter. 

Loads of junk floating around everywhere 

makes it difficult for the qi to circulate,

and if you think about it 

clutter any where 

makes it harder to find things,

takes longer to do so, 

and leaves you feeling a little 

drained of energy 

and stressed 

before you've even started 

on your project!

So it's basically rearranging your furniture 

and having a darn good tidy up! 

I'm not an expert on Feng shui (clearly!) 

but it sounds fascinating.

Prosperous lives and creative 

success all round! 

Chunky Pearl Necklace

I was in the mood for using up these gorgeous 

and gigantic freshwater pearls.

They make a really nice

chunky variation on a classic style. 

I can't wait to wear this beauty! 

Work In Progress!

I found this cab 

that I was working

 on last year. 

I ran out of those

 particular seed beads 

which is why 

I never got round to making it

 into a full blown 

necklace.

I think I just about remember 

which colour and brand

 they were 

to be able to

 order more

 and get it finished. 

I hope I have remembered 

correctly!

Rose Quartz And Serenity

So happy to find some rose quartz rounds
 and blue jade beauties
in my bead box today.

They are a good match 
for the Pantone Color(s) of the year:
Rose Quartz and Serenity. 


I'm a big fan of pastels 
and so this kind of colour
scheme is very appealing to me.

Bring on the pretty projects! 

So sad :-(

It's so sad that the Bead Soup Blog party has had to be cancelled. 

I wish Lori all the best

 for things improving in her life,

 I bet cancelling the hop was the absolutely 

last thing she wanted to do! 

So many people look forward to the hop every year and 

 I, for one,  was very over excited

 and bought a brand new 

lovely, delicious, soup 

all ready to participate in the challenge..

I wonder if there is one person  out there

in the same situation.

If there is, and it's you and you'd like to swap beads

just leave a comment or email me because 

it seems a shame to let good beads go to waste! 

*(Pic from aliex express)

Update: Can you tell I am really heart broken about this being cancelled!?
Decided to keep the beads ready for next time! 

Creative Goals 2016

My creative  goals this year are; 

1. To play the Bead Soup Blog Party

2. Finish a bead weaving project I was working on last year.

3. Keep going with my bead embroidered cabochons and really
get to know what I'm doing there and expand my skills.

4. Make myself some jewellery!
 I say this every year and then
end up giving away
 what I make!
So  this year I aim to expand my jewellery
box by at least a few pieces! 

The Bead Soup Blog Party Returns - Who Is Getting Excited...?!

I am SO excited to hear that Lori Anderson 

is going to host the Bead Soup Blog Party 

again this year.

Just in case you don't know, 
it's a really fun blog hop 

where you get assigned 

a partner 

and send each other a lovely surprise 

package of beads.

On a certain date 

everybody posts pics

 of their creations to their blogs

and hops about admiring all the designs.

It's really great fun and if you haven't played yet 

and are considering it do take a look at her blog for 

more details, you won't regret it! 

I have been online shopping to put a lovely soup 

together already (!) and the spooky thing is 

as I'm typing this post it has just arrived through my letter box! 

Woo hoo!

Do you get the idea that I can't wait.... !

-

- Just hope I remember to sign up on the 15th!!