Can You Smell It? It's Almost Friday

Everyone looks forward to Fridays, right? It's ingrained in our brains. When you're a kid, Friday means the weekend is starting and there's no school for a couple days. When you're all grown up, it usually means the same, but with a couple days off of work. After college, I spent a few years as a stringer for a local newspaper. I worked weekdays and Saturdays, covering school and local events. To supplement my meager earnings, I waited tables at night. For a waitress, weekend nights are the money-making shifts. So I worked every weekend evening - my days off from the restaurant were Tuesdays and Wednesdays. So my whole view of Fridays and the subsequent weekend was turned upside down. While I was waiting on people on Friday nights as they were unwinding from their busy weeks and looking forward to the weekend, I was looking forward to Tuesday. But now that I'm older and have kids in school and a husband who works during the week, I find myself looking forward to Fridays again when we can all be together and live in harmony. Who am I kidding? I love weekdays! Just me and the cats and my torch. And the laundry and making dinner, but that's ok. I can deal with that.

For all of you who are looking forward to Friday, I'm having a sale in my Etsy shop. Just use Coupon Code ALMOSTFRIDAY during checkout, and you'll receive 15% OFF your entire order. Happy Thursday!

Beads Go To College

My twin nieces are freshmen at Illinois State University, so I decided to make them ISU mascot beads. The school's mascot is Reggie the Redbird (they couldn't have gone to a school with a turtle mascot?), and Reggie is a little angry looking. The expression was a challenge for me, but I think I figured it out.

I wire-wrapped the birds and off to college they flew.

Earrings!

I used to avoid making earrings or earring pair beads. I was so hung up on them being exactly the same that I just stopped trying. But lately I've been inspired to try them again. And you know what? They don't have to be exactly the same, especially when they're critter bead earrings. As another lampworker once told me: there will be a head in between the earrings, so some slight differences won't matter.

I currently have two pairs of earrings in my Etsy shop - some blue dangly dinos:

And some happy turtles:

This mismatched pair of hooters sold a couple weeks ago, so now I know that not everyone is looking for a perfect set.

I definitely plan on making more earrings - mismatched and alike. Any ideas?

Murrini Monday ~ I Can See It In Your Eyes

When I find two slices of murrini that are nearly identical, I think owl eyes! And I immediately set those pieces aside while I figure out what colors to make my next owl. I especially like the Lori and Kim murrini with a round middle and little lines that spread out from the middle to the perimeter. These are my favorite murrini for owl eyes.

I LOVE the eyes on this owl! The murrini came in a "thank you" pack in one of my many Lori and Kim orders. I think maybe Lori put two of them in there on purpose? Unfortunately, there's a small fracture in the owl's body (boohoo!), so now he's busy guarding the underside of my computer and I get to look into his eyes every time I log on.

This owl's eyes are nice and dramatic, just the way I like them. I think they're putting me into a trance.

I have to find slightly smaller murrini for pandora-style owl eyes, and these deep red ones definitely do the trick.

I already have my next pair of owl eyes picked out. They are orange, and I'm thinking about a Halloween hootie.

Happy Murrini Monday!

Happy Beads

I may have written about this before, so forgive me if I have. For the longest time I wanted my beads to be happy. Not just on the inside, but to show it physically, you know, with a smile. I had been using a butter knife to make the straight-across open mouths on my turtles ever since I started making them. If I put the mouth too high on the turtle's face, then the poor turtle got a "Jay Leno" chin. If I put it too low, he'd suffer from severe over-bite and tend to look kind of dumbfounded.

So over a year or so ago I set out to find a smile-making tool. After some trial and error, I wound up making one from the handle of a teaspoon I found in my kitchen drawer. Back then I made a couple beads with smiles (a goofy looking smiling dog and a turtle, I believe), but they sat in my shop for a while. Maybe customers aren't looking for happy beads? Maybe they want beads that look like they've been through a lot to get where they are, less carefree and more angst perhaps. Or at least a nice blank look on their googly-eyed faces. So I stopped with the happy beads.

Then about a week ago I decided to try it again. I felt like I had much more control of my handmade tool and I was really happy with the results. So far I've just made smiling turtles, but maybe I'll add some cheer to some other critters - any ideas?

Here's a picture of the teaspoon handle that I manipulated into a smile tool. I took my pliers and pulled the edges up to form the makings of a grin. Or, if used upside down, a frown. :) Frownie beads - now there's an idea . . .

Murrini Monday

Why are these turtles smiling?

They've been murrini-ed!

Each of these pandora-style turtles is showing off three slices of Lori and Kim murrini.

If owls could smile, I'm sure each one in this mini quartet would be grinning ear to ear. Each one has its very own murrini.

All the beads here are available in my Etsy shop.

Happy Murrini Monday!

How to Mooch a Bead - In Eight Easy Steps

This method has been proven to work time and time again. You won't find these techniques anywhere else - I am only sharing this top secret information here. Now pay attention.

1. Upon noticing the bead you want, make a gasping sound like you're sucking in your breath in surprise.

2. Then exhale and say, "Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! It's soooooo cute!"

3. Next, with eyes wide, ask "Is it sold?"

Upon hearing that it is not, in fact, even listed to be sold, continue to step 4.

4. Say with much enthusiasm "I will buy it! I will pay you for it!"

5. Give it a few more "oooohs and awwwws" for good measure. Try using the voice you use when talking to your cat.

6. Promise to wear it.

7. Then go right to sleep when I tell you.

Maybe, just maybe, you'll have a new choker to wear the next day.

8. Forget all about your offer to pay good money for it.