Wow!  Two weeks since I've posted.  I am still far behind in my photographing of the new pieces. Last weekend I flew on Friday to Asheville, NC, visited property that Michael is going to consider, had dinner with the family, then Sunday flew back to WPB.  It's taken me all week to catch up with " Myself".  I did finish three pieces on the plane, took a wonderful photo on the I-Phone..... " Yes Martha, you can bead and fly "... and caused quite a interest at the Charlotte Airport when a group of women saw me beading on a cuff.  I am currently working on my first ( Yahoo Group ) Bird Group 1 Bird " Ernie and I am spending some time learning how to use the curved needle.  It will take a little getting used to.  While I was in Asheville I met up with Annette Holbert of the Blue Ridge and Mid Carolina group.  She had posted a photo of a piece from a pattern I adore Treasured Trellis by Juanita " Jaycee" Carlos.  So I asked her if I could buy her lavender and pearl piece.  We met up at Cracker Barrel across from the airport.  She brought me another loom ( oh yeah ) TSA is just going to love me.....and the bracelet is wonderful.  We had fun catching up too.

And of course as soon as I got home, I made two of them while getting ready to start on Ernie for Ruth Osborne.  It's a sickness I tell you.  LOL!

So next time your flying and think you will get nothing done....take my advise, a little Chardonnay....a pair of nail clippers with no file and your good to go.

What a Sunday...I completed the opera length necklace in yellow crystals and now finishing the Seahorse Button which I bezeled and then made a simple spiral but I  need to spend a few days just photographing and storing the new work.  Very, very behind.

More tomorrow night.
Oh, I did receive an email from Catherine Russel and she finished her cuff.  I'll post her final photo's tomorrow after work.

Excited......we start the Bird1 group Round Robin and Red Bird will be shipping out on Saturday.  I pulled out
my Danu and figured I would just use the curved needle and refresh.  She is coming along with black and silver.....hummm, maybe I should change her name to..... I will taking photo, this weekend for sure.  I've finished five pieces and need to upload them.  Just ordered two Heather Collins patterns and we joked through ETSY.  I am just dying to start her Hindia pattern.

Stress Relief. Almost everyone who replied said that they enjoyed beading because of the stress relief it brings. Reader Megan Burgess wrote, "I love beading because it helps me relax and de-stress as well as letting my have fun at the same time." And I'm apparently in good company when it comes to using beading as a way to escape from the stress of a job: Lynette Hilliard-Coulter wrote, "Just taking the time and sitting with some beads in front of me and following the pattern took my mind off a very stressful job!"

Other reasons for using beading as stress relief came in the form of a way of staying occupied while hunting for a job, as a way to deal with anxiety disorders, and even as a form of physical therapy!

A Sense of Accomplishment. Anyone who loves beading also knows that there's nothing quite like the feeling of finishing a long-dreamed of project or wearing a brand-new piece of jewelry into the office and being able to tell your astonished admirers, "I made it myself!" Sure enough, our readers on Facebook feel the same way. One reader told us that since she has become disabled, doing routine household chores like washing the dishes or vacuuming has become difficult for her, but her beading keeps her going and makes her feel useful!

		My dear friend Mary Jane and I met when she was a customer at my bead shop - and we've been best buddies every since!

Friendships Formed Over Beads. For me, this one definitely rang true. I've made so many wonderful friends since I started beading twelve years ago! It seems so easy to form a friendship over the beads, as Kathy Fritz has discovered. On our Facebook page, Kathy wrote: "I just love to bead and opened a very small bead store. I thought the creativity would be what kept me going, but it's the friendships that have been formed at my store that keep me doing what I do." And Deb Conrad writes: "I love beading because I have met so many wonderful people around the world and struck up instant friendships as a result of our common interest."

And while it seems that beading is a common thread (no pun intended) in many of our lives, the reasons that we love beading are just as different and unique as we are!

And then from Beading Daily....an electronic news journal.  I find it is so odd that my life

is now surrounding by something so wonderfully artistic and soothing.  Even though my

regular job is so challenging, I have come to look forward to getting home and just plain

beading. 

I can go with this.......

And last but not least...... the Bird 1 Round Robin of the Yahoo Beaded Art Dolls group.  I was excited to be accepted as a newby.  But I believe this will really make me learn the art of Beaded Embroidery in all levels.  My selection is " Red Bird " and his traveling tales.  I'll work on his traveling journal tomorrow.  But isn't he just adorable?  6.34" in length with a little top knot.  I cant' wait to see him done.

And now, onto my Part Two class of " Bead Embroidery".  Catherine did awesome and Anne, bless her, her son was assaulted so her homework was not complete.  She did well though and we agreed to meet one more time to put the piece together.  I had her look at the Bead Embroidery book " Dimensional Bead Embroidery " by Jamie Cloud Eakin that I picked up at the Bead Shop in Naples......( Love that book ) and Sherry Serafini's Book to determine where she wanted to go.  Catherine's was 90% complete by the time we closed and she had a little edging work to do.  Catherine did promise to email me a photo when it was done.  I feel like a proud mama....Now she is starting cuff #2 before we begin a neck piece.  

Now onto the Beadreamz Yahoo 3-D Challenge.  Thank goodness for Genny Smith.  I had elected to do the Sabine Starfish ( and being left handed to boot ).  Needless to say Genny started one as well and found that I was right, there were a few errors in the pattern, but she and I were able to complete each one and I could breathe a sigh of relief and mail my 3-D Exchange piece to Candy McCulley right on schedule.   I am going to force myself to make another one and write notes on the pattern.  Genny thought we should both sit down and do so..... Amen.

So, then we move to the Florida Jewelry Artist Retreat Yahoo Group.....which was held in Everglades City, thanks to Suzie Griffis one of our members.  It was a wonderful three days of just fun and beading and then of course, good food.  Susan Barrett and I stayed in Suzie's parents RV at the Everglades Club while the other ladies slept at the Chokoloskee Everglades Motel.  It was perfect.  The Everglades Club was spectacular just spectacular......and we had our beading retreat there.  Beebe Goddard, Jaime, Harleen, Harleen's sister Sharon, Alice, Genny ( of course ) Suzie, Susan Barrett and myself.  We could have not asked for a better weekend and did we get some great beading and chain maille done.  I forced myself to learn brick stitch again.  I haven't done that in a while...... LOL!
1.) Genny Smith wearing a guest artist piece
2.) Suzie, our hostest of the most...est.  She works for the Everglades Club
3.) Suzie and Alice
4.) Genny and Alice
5.)  Lunch in the wonderful Everglades Club
6.) Cruising the Everglades Princess
7.) Chainmaille ( European Lace )

Well, this has been the busiest three weeks in the beading world I've had in a long time, so I'll break it into a " Timeline " by seperate posts.  First, I taught my first " Bead Embroidery Class " at Beads and Baubles in Ft. Pierce.  This would be a Bead Embroidery Cuff, but I did have a student that decided to do a necklace.  We followed the basics of Embroidering on Lacy's Stiff Stuff and understanding that the artistic mind will give you guidance as you look at your piece and pull together colors and thoughts.  One student , another Catherine ", developed a wonderful piece with three cab's.  And Anne actual did some spectacular beadwork on a odd shaped cab.  They have two weeks to do their homework and develop their cuff and necklace and our next class on the 3rd of March will be learning how to complete the bead embroidery by adding strength backing and embellishing the edging.

1.)  Anne and her odd shaped Cab
2.) Catherine and friend
3.) Anne's cabachon
4.) Catherine's piece ready to complete.
Wow, I am so proud.