Like you need something else to think about...

 

How was your Thanksgiving, bead buddies?
Ours was wonderful here. Lots of food, family, fun and we even snuck in a little Black Friday shopping. (I couldn't pass up the 75% off maternity wear deals at Motherhood Maternity!)

 

Now that I have some warm, snug, stretchy pants to pull over a growing baby belly, I'm feeling much more comfortable and have been sitting down in my free time to work on some magazine submissions.

I wanted to give you the heads up about a few upcoming dates to mark on your calendar.

 

The first is the submission date for the next issue of 101 Bracelets, Necklaces, and Earrings.

Pre-submission date: December 17th.

In-office date: Jan. 2nd.

Here's the color palette that they will be focusing on for this round of the magazine.

 

 

I've got my eye on the Azure Blue Palette (though you know I can rarely pass up a good Autumn Orange Palette!) up there and found some pretty cool findings on Etsy to compliment it:

(clockwise from top left)

Raku Ceramic Beads

Filigree Flower

Fiber Beads

Aqua Blue Lampwork Bead 

 

Be sure to check out the details here.

 

 

 

 

 

I've also been working on submissions for Stringing Magazine.

E-mail submissions are December 5th (hurry!hurry!)

Or In-office submissions on Dec. 19th.

They've got some awesome palettes for this issue and even Pinterest boards to kick-start the creativity! (like you needed another reason to visit Pinterest!)

 

 Pinterest for Modern Cowgirl

 Pinterest for Flower Market

 Pinterest for Summer in the City

 

The full Stringing info can be found here.

 

Well, what are you waiting for?

If you're goal in 2013 is to see your name in print, this is your opportunity.

You've got just enough time to break out the materials and get to creating before the mad holiday rush ensues.

Good luck with your entries and if you want some more info about submitting to magazines, I've given you everything I've learned here and here.

 

Oh, and if you get accepted, let me know! I give this information out in hopes that it will be useful to you whether you've been designing for years or are just starting and I'd love to hear your success stories.

Good luck!

 

 



Black Friday Deals and Freebies!

Thanksgiving is tomorrow! (Can you believe it?)

What else is coming up this weekend???

Black Friday!

 

My shop is participating this year and I'm offering 10% off your entire purchase of both jewelry AND tutorials!

The sale starts midnight tomorrow, the 22nd, and will run until midnight on Saturday, the 24th.

Just type in the code:

 

BLACKFRIDAY2012 

 

When you check out, your discount will automatically be subtracted from your total!

 

Now, for a little freebie, well, it's not necessarily a gift so much as a gift of information.

I've had quite a few of my loyal beaders request the color info for the teal version of my Picture Frame Pendant.

 

 So, I decided to do one better for you, not only am I giving you the color info, but I'll also give you the links directly to the beads so that you can purchase!

 

Here they are:

 

Miyuki 5mm Metallic Matte Sage Rainbow Tila Square 

 

TOHO Bead Bugle 9mm Matte Teal/Blue Iris

 

TOHO Bead Round 11/0 Matte Raku Teal/Blue Iris

 

TOHO Bead Round 15/0 Bronze

 

Fire-Polished Bead 3mm Indicolite

 

 

These little picture frames make great gifts and they whip up quickly and remember, if you don't have the tutorial, just wait till Friday and use your coupon code to save a little dinero!

Here's the link to the tutorial.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!!

 

P.S. Don't forget to sign up for my newsletter if you haven't already! Special subscriber-only info going out this afternoon! Sign up box is in the right-hand column!  

Something Stronger for the Shop

Somewhere in between the coming and the going, I added new work to the shop yesterday.

Most of it was of the sturdier stuff.

 

 

This one was inspired by the Oriental Pagodas. Japan, China, even India and the countries in the peninsula have these buildings with the sloping eaves.

(Supposedly they ward off evil spirits)

 

 

 

This ode to the pagoda boasts two plates of copper with my own design that I've lovingly sawed out and riveted together.

The design is suspended from antiqued copper chain and a gemstone donut of Mexican Crazy Lace Agate is held between the two sheets by the force of the metal pressing together.

It's a statement for sure, but if you like to travel or know someone fond of the Orient, it's perfect.

 



This is the first piece of Sterling that I'm offering in the shop. It's not a complicated piece with a ton of flashy stones, but what it does have is soul.

The first time I saw that gorgeous drop of Rutilated Quartz I saw the tiny flecks of sunshine and knew I had to capture that somehow. I don't own a disc cutter, but I do own a saw.

Each piece was hand-sawn by me, stacked and soldered with a tiny bezel to hold the sun.

 

 

I had such a hard time knowing if it was right to put this in the shop. There is such a beautiful conversation happening among the metal artists that I admire. Each of them contributing a voice unique and definite and I wonder if I have anything to add to that conversation.

 

But you answer the creative call of your soul and trust that what comes from your fingers is a small glimpse of the creativity that lies in your heart.

So, it's there, in the shop, a tiny glimpse of what my hands have learned and my heart has adopted in the past year.

I also put this in the shop. It's another version of the Shooting Stars bracelet that I made two years ago. I remember wearing mine last year at this time and feeling like I was carrying the whole Christmas Story on my wrist.

 

It too, is in the shop.

 

Also, a very special Holiday Edition of my newsletter is in the works to be sent out on Wednesday.

 

It will contain updates on new work, but most importantly, a subscriber-only special from me to you.

You don't want to miss it, so if you're not signed up, please be sure to do so in the right-hand column of the blog.

 

Thanks to all of you for supporting La Bella Joya, may you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Guess What?!

Break out the pink, y'all!

 

 

It's a girl! ;)

 

(Click the pics to follow the links to oh-so-cute pink baby accessories.)

Thanksgiving... My Style

So, the Halloween is over, the candy has been consumed, the costumes are being packed away (unless you're under the age of 5, then you're probably still spending mornings as Iron Man, or Rapunzel or what have you.)

and the time has changed for most of the country (if not world).

But, we all know what's coming right around the corner...

Thanksgiving.

 

We're doing Thanksgiving at my Mom's house.

The whole nine yards.

Turkey, Sweet Potato Casserole, Stuffing, Homemade Rolls, Roasted Brussels, Pies Galore...

I think you get the picture.

 

But that has not stopped me from Pinning (yes, I joined Pinterest, madre mia!) some fantastic DIY ideas for beautiful Thanksgiving Decor.

 

I'm still pinnin' away, but here are some of my favs so far, and these look so easy to do even if you don't consider yourself a "crafter". (I mean, come on, I think we can agree that cuttin' big holes in pumpkins is pretty standard kitchen skills.)

 

This one I liked because you could create the entire centerpiece with a trip to your grocery store.

Main requirements: squash, pumpkins, tea light, nuts, leaves and a pie plate.

(follow the foto for mo' info)

 

This? Wooden craft ring from a craft store and corn, mucho corn. Oh, and a hot glue gun, or maybe Gorilla glue in a pinch.
(Just a thought, though, I would probably hang mine on a wall where the back couldn't be seen because I'm horrible with a glue gun and those little stringies end up everywhere.) 

 

This one gives me a very Mahhthuh Stewart vibe, but I can't imagine anything easier, especially if you're a last minute decorator and you have hardwood trees in your yard. I think the only tricky thing would be the black cat...unless you happen to have one of those lying around also.

 

Here again, we'll put this under "last minute decor", especially if you're not planning on making a trifle this year, you could get some double duty out of your trifle dish thingy AND this one is very adaptable. If your dishes aren't white, then find squashes that match your plates, OR glitter them! 

 

Here's where it gets super easy if you've got knife skillz.

Itty bitty baby punkins (these are $1 at my grocery store) and some tea lights and voila!

You could line these babies down the table for a little light and a low decoration so everyone sees food and faces.

These are just a few of the pins I've found so far. You can hop over to my Thanksgiving board if you want to for a few more ideas.

 

Finally, I will leave you with one of my favorite holiday recipes. We make these for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I make them the day before, set them out in little bowls all over the place and we just eat out of them all day. They would also make great gifts.

 

And I must say, they are addictive and quite delicioso.

 

Recipe and photo from Epicurious.

You can head over to the website, or just follow the recipe here:

 

Enjoy!

 

Shop Update!

 

Can you believe it?

I actually added some new pieces to the shop!

These were all added on Saturday.

Just follow the links to see a bit more about these beauties!

 

I'm Your Tiniest Fan Beadwoven Necklace

*SOLD*

 

 

The Wanderer Peyote Bar Bracelet with embellishments

 

Art Nouveau Brass Filigree Necklace in Sapphire and Celsian Blue

(This one was a pill to photograph!)



 

If you're looking for some sparkly holiday jewelry but don't have a large budget, this is perfect, the filigree links are brass and instead of Swarovski, I used fire-polished czech beads.

The necklace is lightweight, but has a ton of sparkle when you wear it, and the jewel tones are perfect for the season.

 

Bird's Eye View featuring a little ceramic bird from Summers Studio and a Sagger fired round from Artisan Clay. The beads are bird's eye rhyolite and I've tied a few little strips of sari silk into the donut for some added color. 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope you have a great Monday and that the time change doesn't leave you groggy and run down by this afternoon!



What are yours?