New bracelets and the launch of fantastic earrings by Kari

Here is a preview of new bracelets I'm making in freeform peyote. They are so much fun to work on because there are no rules and you just keep adding until you like it! I have been nagging my sister, Kari to make some things for Etsy because she is a creative genius. She finally gave me some of these to add to the site:

These earrings are made of Koosh balls! They are AWESOME!

These are made of fishing lures. They are super sparkly!

Both of these pairs of earrings will be up on Etsy soon.

New projects

My first attempt at oil painting: I made a beaded ring which is really comfortable to wear and has enough stretch to not be too tight.

Beaded flower

Beaded flowers... fairly simple but takes awhile. I liked the look and the book suggested it be added to a necklace but I liked the look on a bracelet. I didn't realize however that the flower is so top heavy it won't stay on top. It just flops over so I can't even really wear this. I may need to add it to an elastic backing so it will stay in place.

Trying something new

I purchased another beading book at Borders (they're going out of business here in Fort Wayne so stuff is discounted) and it's been one of the easiest books I've found to follow. Beaded Allure by Kelly Wiese has 25 patterns for beadweaving projects. The book includes many necklaces which is something I wanted to try. I tried one of the easiest projects, the lariat (bottom) and it turned out pretty cute. I still need a ring to attach to the other end but didn't have one at midnight last night while I was finishing this. I also tried the netted collar but instead turned it into a bracelet since I started this one after the other and it was getting really late. I used up some old beads so it isn't of the best quality and I had some trouble getting the tension right but I think it may have been because the beads were not very uniform in size. THAT is why it's important to get quality beads. Those that you find in the multi-pack just won't cut it but they're good for practice.

Geordie insisted on being on my lap the entire time I was beading so it was quite the balancing act. The netted bracelet looked nice as a collar on him... I thought it was cute and he looked up at me like "Mom, you are out of your mind." I knew I needed a female dog so I could make cute stuff for them! SO I think I might make one and have one of the I.G. foster moms see if one would be nice on one of their girls.

Geordie's first portrait

It's about time I did one of these:

Geordie's first portrait! He is such a character. Today I was working on this in my office and he wasn't finding a good spot on the air mattress in here so he started climbing into the closet where I have some blankets and pillows piled up. He can zero in on those blankets like nothing else! I had to scold him and tell him to get out of the closet since I have some artwork in there and I didn't want claw marks on them. He is crazy. Italian greyhounds truly are velcro dogs. They need to be next to a human at ALL times. My Iggy belives he IS a human:
Enough said.

Geordie/Geordo/Jorge "hor-hay"/Twinkle Toes/Bubby

New addition to the family

Introducing... Geordie!

Well it was QUITE a process but he's finally ours. Geordie is a 6 year old Italian Greyhound (aka Iggy) we adopted from the Italian Greyhound Rescue Foundation. He was abused in his previous home. His owner surrendered him after she decided she couldn't take his "behavior problems" anymore which of course, she was at fault for. Now that he's being properly cared for he is such a sweetie.

I made my first official sale on Etsy which was exciting. I've been trying to work on beadwork. I made an Iggy Mom bracelet for Geordie's foster mom as a thank you. I may be making more of those to donate to the annual IGRF Iggy 500 gathering. I finished my first bead embroidery project. It turned out alright, I'm just trying to figure out how to finish the edges:

Back to work...

This past week I have enjoyed my first week-long vacation of the year. I used this time to complete my Etsy store Laurengstudio.etsy.com and work on some artwork for an amazing musician (and my Auntie and roommate) Sarah Alicia. You can find her at www.sarahaliciamusic.com and listen to her music for free at http://soundcloud.com/sarah-alicia/. Her EP is available on iTunes and her full length album comes out very soon.

Take a listen to her single "16":

01 Sixteen by Sarah Alicia

The gorgeous scenery you see in the background is the Cayman Islands where she was born and raised. She is actually there now to do a concert. As I said her full length album comes out very soon. I did a multi-medium piece for the inside leaflet of her album. I'll post pictures of it after her album is released. I don't want to spoil it for everyone! I am honored to have been a part of it and I had a lot of fun working on it.

LaurenGStudio on Etsy!

Yea! Yea! We are finally up and running. Check out:

http://laurengstudio.etsy.com/

Go there now! Thank you mother for being such an excellent wrist model. As always, I welcome custom orders. Ok, now I'm off to make more!

Mariah, you are the Christmas music queen

Christmas music in my home is in full swing. I feel as though this season has crept up quite quickly so I need to make up for that by playing Christmas music 24/7. I downloaded Mariah Carey's new album and oh my... let's just say keep those kleenex handy! Once you get to O Come All Ye Faithful... (I'm getting teary-eyed just thinking about it.) It's like you try to keep it in as the choir chimes in but by the time they get to the "glory to God" part your eyes just give out and tears start streaming! I've listened to it 5 times now today just to see if I can get through it without crying and I can't! I'm sure I'm just crazy but Christmas just means so much to me. It really is my favorite time of year.

ANYWAY, I've got my Paypal business account up and running and I've secured my LaurenGStudio name on etsy.com. The store policies are being drafted and logos being created. Exciting!