Good News and New Necklace & Earrings

I've received good news from Bead&Button magazine, that they are going to publish one of my necklaces in the October-November issue! Yey! :)

I don't bead much lately, mainly because my muse is probably being "mean" to me... I try to start a new work, one of many that I had an idea for, but then I get stuck with picking the right colors and/or the size of beads, or the idea is just not working and I have to unpick the work time after time. So I end up frustrated.
I hate it when it happens, but I decided not to fight this too much - I just sketch the ideas in my notebook and leave them for a later time, when my muse will "play" nicely with me... :)
I anyhow don't have a lot of time for beading, as Passover Holiday is coming soon and there's a lot of preparations to do.
I also volunteered to coordinate the BAO Welcomes Spring Sale & Giveaways, coming soon. You better keep an eye on the Bead Art Originals group , because there are going to be some gorgeous items to give away!

Yemenite Inspired Embroidered Necklace

Not so long ago, I've created my Ancestral Expressions embroidered cuff and wasn't very pleased with the way it came out. I needed to practice my bead embroidery work. I was really upset back then, after spending so many hours working on my cuff (which intended to enter the EBW challenge, but didn't) but with the encouragement and advice, given to me by a very dear friend, who is a talented bead artist, I decided to try to create another Yemenite inspired embroidered piece.

Well, not that it was easier for me this time... bead embroidery is a difficult task for me, for some reason, and I had some trouble finding the right materials, but leaving it unfinished wasn't an option.. I just had to bring life to a new Yemenite style piece! :)
I had a general idea for a start and the rest just came up with the progress.. And I really love how it came out! I think the embroidery work is not bad; It's a bold necklace, in one of my favorite color combination and it has the Yemenite elements that I really love in it...What could I possibly want more? OK, I wish it would have taken me less than the 30 something hours it took me to create it, but hey!, I managed to finish it without any major disasters, and that's the important thing..
I can't wait to show it to my mother, to hear what she thinks of it. I hope she likes it as much as I do...

Temptation Dance - EBW March Challenge

Etsy BeadWeavers March challenge theme was Temptation. Please visit the EBW Blog, between now and the 15th, pick your favorite and vote for it. There are fabulous 35 entries, each and every one of them is unique and interesting - real eye candies, so don't miss out! Your comment is also very appreciated. My entry is number 33 on the list.

I named my necklace "Temptation Dance", as I had an image of a man in black and a woman, wearing a hot-red dress, dancing a sensual, seductive Latin dance. I designed the necklace in one continuous line, curling and alternating black and red in the pendant. That part - the pendant, took me 5 or 6 hours of trials and failures, before I was satisfied with the way it turned out. I was so frustrated and almost wanted to give up on the idea, simply because I thought I won't be able to finish it before the deadline. But I did, at almost the last minute, and I'm pretty much satisfied with how it came out. I just need to learn from my own past experience (it was the same with my Yuki Onna challenge necklace) not to postpone working on my challenge piece.. :D It takes some time and it's challenging enough just finding the idea for my entry, and I'm not always good at working under deadlines.. especially if it's something I haven't tried before and it usually is.. :)

I Am a Lucky Mom! :)

I feel so lucky, being the mother of my two 14.5 y/o kids! I am happy & pleased that they find other interests apart from being computer freaks and book-worms... :D

My girl have recently started to learn beadweaving and she now creates jewelry for herself, and the boy - he cooks!
You know how it goes every time you ask children what they want to be when they grow up - they change their mind often... but, from the time he was 6 or 7 years old, my son always said he wants to be a chef (among other things, of course..) and liked trying new food. He also likes to stay in the kitchen while I cook and gladly gives a hand.
A few days ago he decided to make Sushi! I don't like Sushi so never made it at home and we never went out to eat Sushi in a restaurant, so I am guessing he collected all his knowledge from the internet. He bought all the ingredients needed for these salmon rolls and made everything by himself. I am so proud of him! It looked so delicious that I just had to taste. It was yummy! I had 5 of them... thanks to him I might change my mind about Sushi... :) The only thing he still needs to learn is to clean up the big mess left in the kitchen after cooking, including wiping the walls.. LOL