Escondido Humane Society Bazaar

I did a craft show today (in the blazing sun and heat) and had the opportunity to be situated next to a dear friend, Dawn. The show was a benefit for the Escondido Humane Society and there was a great turnout of vendors. Unfortunately, there were fewer shoppers than vendors, so we all walked around and visted each others' booths and networked.

It was a lot of fun anyway, even though most of us had poor sales. But Dawn and I had a great time chatting and catching up, so the day was far from a bust.

What did I learn from today's show? First off, I need another folding table. Second, that putting up my display in my studio the day before was a great idea and made today's set-up go quickly, as I knew where I wanted everything to go. Third, that even if your sales are low, you can still get your product out there and if it is good, people will remember you.

Dawn had a great attitude about today's show, too. She has a darling line of little girls' hats that have holes in them for you to pull the kids' pigtails through. She thought of it when her daughter was frequently pulling off her sunhat to get her hair out of her face. She cut a couple holes, put the hair in pigtails and voila! A business was born. Anyway, back to Dawn's attitude -- she was happy to get the word out about her product and was able to give out quite a few business cards. She will be doing more shows in the future, and people will remember seeing her hats when they run into her again.

But what about BEADS, you say? That is, after all, the topic of this blog... Well, I have this to say: I thrive on the feedback I get from customers as they examine my jewelry. I love talking about beads especially to people who are new to beadwork. I am particularly excited when I find a fellow beader who shares my enthusiasm for this medium. Beadlovers out there, I want to meet you all. Drop me a line and share your passion (bead-lust? :-)

Beady-eyed

Well, I'll be(ad). I didn't realize I had already blogged about the Meetup. My B(e)ad.
I'll write about something else I did recently, then.

A week ago Friday, I helped my co-worker, Bonnie, with a bracelet project during our lunch hour at work. She was with me last August when we attended the Pasadena Design and Bead show, and she bought one of Donna Palmer's bracelet kits. Well, it was a little tricky to get going, and Bonnie had twisted things around a little. So I cut off the end of what she had started and made her start it again. And voila! After a little bead sex (put it in, take it out, repeat) she had it!

The kit that Bonnie got had two sizes of Swarovsky glass pearls in mocha and cream, and gold size 15 charlottes. It worked up really pretty but I was surprised to hear the following week that she had run out of beads before finishing it. Bonnie's wrist size is 7-1/2" and there were only enough beads to make maybe 6 to 6-1/2" of bracelet. We will have to be sure to advise Donna of this so that she can advise people of this fact.

Anyway, it looked like a fun pattern, so I went home and made two for myself over the weekend. (I will post photos soon.) Donna also sells the kits with Swarovsky bicone crystals, and those looked very sparkly and bright. I made mine with Czech crystals just to see how they would work up. It was a fun pattern.

San Diego Beadwork Meetup

I meant to post this right after the meeting but life got in the way. I went to the monthly Meetup meeting at South Sun a couple Sundays ago. The group organizer, Teresa, really puts a lot of time and effort into lining things up, and is a very welcoming hostess. I brought along a tube of seed beads (one of Donna Palmer's mixes that I bought from her last August in Pasadena) and the instructions on how to do a spiral herringbone stitch. After one false start, I had it. I know I need to post a photo of it (and plan to do so), especially because the colors are wild. (Orange, purple, lime... Very Donna-like.) Watch for it.
Anyway, the meeting was small this time, but I was able to meet three new friends. It is interesting to see what each person is into, and what materials they are most comfortable using. I was the only one working with seed beads that day. Teresa made two necklaces in the time she was there (prolific!). I had a good time and really enjoyed being around other jewelry-making addicts like myself.

Beadwork Meetup

I went to the San Diego BeadworkMeetup on Sunday. I hadn't been since last fall, due to a busy schedule. I knew one person (Teresa, the group leader) and met three new friends. We all brought projects to work on, and Teresa actually finished two necklaces that afternoon. I taught myself spiral herringbone stitch (with a size 11 seed bead mix I bought from Donna Palmer at the Pasadena Design and Bead Show). After backtracking only once, I got the hang of it and stitched about eight inches during the time I was at the Meetup. I enjoyed the company and the opportunity to meet other beaders, and even though the turnout wasn't as large as other meetings, we had fun. (We always do.)

Virgin Blogger

Hmmm. It's about time I tried this. Today is the first time I have attempted a blog, but after seeing my friend, Dawn's, and noticing blog urls on other designers' websites, I thought it was time to give it a go.My first entries will be short as I explore how this thing works. After time, though, you should be able to see what this shapes into, and watch my progress (blog-wise, and bead-wise).Thanks for stopping by.