Daily Blogs : Wire Jewelry, Jewelry Stringing Magazine

The Top 12 Beading Daily Blogs of 2012 - And a Giveaway!

Jennifer VanBenschoten — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Today is 12.12.12! We're almost halfway through December, and there are less than three weeks left in 2012. I always get a little nostalgic in December, and I usually take some time to meditate and reflect on all the wonderful things that have happened during the year.

This year is no different, but it's a little more special because of that date -- 12.12.12. So, to celebrate, I've put together the Top 12 Beading Daily blogs from 2012! Read on to see if any of your favorite blogs made it into the list:

		January: Find Your Steampunk Style with Jean Campbell Steampunk always seemed so intimidating to me, but this post from Jean Campbell took all the mystery out of making amazing, easy steampunk jewelry.

		February: Your First Seed Bead Stash Stocking your stash of seed beads can be a huge task if you're just getting started with bead-weaving! Here are some great tips for starting your seed bead stash.

		March: Readers Share a Bounty of Brick Stitch Projects I love brick stitch -- it will always be special to me, as it was the first beading stitch I ever taught myself. I asked for our readers to submit their best brick stitch projects, and the resulting eye candy is just amazing!

		April: Start With...A Simple Strip of Peyote Stitch Ever feel stuck in your beading? You can create some really spectacular beaded jewelry just by whipping up a simple strip of peyote stitch!

		May: Readers Share Beautiful Bead Embroidery Once again, I asked, and our readers delivered. This time, they shared some truly breathtaking bead embroidery pieces with us. Enjoy the beautiful beading!

		June: 5 Common Jewelry Findings That You Can Make Yourself Save time and money when you learn how easy it is to make these five common jewelry findings with your basic wire wrapping skills!

		July: Why Necklace Length Matters Understanding the different lengths of necklaces is important to be able to match them with your favorite necklines.

		August: Use Wire to Bezel a Cabochon This isn't so much a "how-to" blog as a "how-NOT-to-do" blog. Read about my adventures using Viking knit to make a bezel for one of my favorite gemstone cabochons!

		September: Getting Started With Flat Peyote Stitch Peyote stitch was one of the last bead-weaving stitches that I taught myself. However, had I known some of these tips or had some of these tools, it probably would have been a lot easier!

		October: Meet a Chain Maille Genius At Bead Fest Philadelphia in August, I met a lampwork glass artist who takes the ancient art and craft of chain maille to a whole new level! Read about her and see some of her absolutely marvelous creations.

		November: Four Beading How-Tos You Need to Know You might be surprised at some of these four beading how-tos that every beader needs to know!

		December: Make This Free Embossed Leather Earring Project December isn't even half over yet, but so far, this free embossed leather earring project is our most popular December blog!

Did any of your favorites appear in this list? If not, now's your chance to nominate them, and win a little something, too! Simply leave a comment on this blog before midnight, CST on December 16, 2012 with your favorite Beading Daily blog from 2012. You don't have to choose from just this list, either -- take a look through all the blogs that were written by our friends over at Inside Beadwork Magazine and Inside Jewelry Stringing Magazine, as well as the blogs we posted in Beading Instructions and Beading Supplies We Love, too. You can post a link in your comment so everyone else can see it, too!

On Monday, December 17, 2012, check your email, because we'll notify three winners: two lucky people will win a five-pack of assorted back issues of both Beadwork and Jewelry Stringing magazines. One lucky winner will get to choose a prize from four of our favorite digital beading products! (Please note: we can only ship magazines to U.S. addresses only due to customs regulations.)

One lucky winner will get to choose one prize from the following great digital beading products:

You can also find links to all twelve of our Top 12 Blogs of 2012 on Pinterest for your pinning pleasure!

Good luck, and Happy Holidays from all of us at Beading Daily!

Bead Happy,

Jennifer

String a Symbol of Your Creativity! Plus a Free Necklace Project

LeslieR2 — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:10:00 GMT

Good-luck jewelry
On Friday the 13th, is it bad luck to talk about good luck? I’m kidding, I’m not superstitious. But when it comes to wearing lucky talismans, we all do it. I bet you’re wearing one right now. It may not be a literal good-luck charm, but every single piece of jewelry we create and wear has special power. Whether you simply string an intriguing found object or stitch beaded symbols of faith, at the very least your creations are imbued with the spirit of your craft, let alone any spirit of a Higher Power.

The power of gemstones
Gemstones are said to possess power to attract or repel positives and negatives in our lives. Wear rose quartz to attract love, amethyst for good health. Hematite wearers are supposed to like that stone because it eases stress. Wear green to attract money, red for passion and protection. Personally I find magic in ordinary stones with a natural hole and water-tumbled, smooth round stones. Must be the Druid in me!

Symbols, signs, and charms
We love things that we believe evoke power. Our cultures and stories are filled with magical objects and charms that ward off evil, attract luck, and bring us health and prosperity. Some things widely regarded as lucky include ladybugs, four-leaf clovers, and dragons. The number 7 is considered lucky. Think 7th heaven, 7 wonders, and how the 7th child of a 7th child is supposed to be blessed. My favorite explanation is mathematical: Pythagoreans say the number 7 is perfect, 3 plus 4, a square and a triangle.

7 lucky projects
That said, here are 7 lucky projects that will certainly attract admiration and beauty, if not a winning lottery ticket, into your life. And your luck starts here with a free project, the Copper Swirl necklace. Learn how to string a multistrand necklace crowned with a copper swirl, ceramic focal bead, a cosmic symbol indeed! Be sure to subscribe to Stringing Magazine for a complete year of projects. Just your luck, you can subscribe right now!


Lucky Ladybug by Merle Berelowitz Widely considered lucky because they eat crop-eating bugs, ladybugs such as the one on this multistrand bracelet are also pretty darn cute.	Harvest Goddess by Melanie Brooks From Stringing Magazine comes a necklace to honor your autumn garden. Create it and your garden will be sure to bloom for you again.	Shamrock Pin by Dustin Wedekind Brick-stitch a four-leaf clover, believed to represent faith, hope, love, and luck.


Simply Charming by Colleen McGraw A wire necklace for any talismans you choose, for health, wealth or happiness.	Chinese Dragon by Frances Fawcett Have fun with this playful wired companion. Dragons are symbols of success.	Ancient Coins by Denise Peck Attract wealth by wearing coins, such as the ancient-looking ones in these easy wire earrings.

		Your FREE cosmic necklace project! Copper Swirl by Susan Johnston String a spiral, one of humankind's oldest and most universal symbols of creativity in this lush multistrand necklace. You'll glow with personal power!

Look for dozens of designs for your favorite charms, talismans and gemstones in Stringing Magazine. Do you have a personal symbol that you wear to feel powerful? Share your story in our charmed Beading Daily circle here.

Creative ways to organize and display your favorite jewelry

Leslie Rogalski — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 13:57:00 GMT

Storage Ideas for your jewelry

We make lots of jewelry but we wear even more. Wearing jewelry is energy in motion–– put it on, take it off, change outfits, change jewelry. Did you ever get all decked out and then spot a piece you forgot you had peeking out from the clump of stuff in your jewelry box? Or you want to wear something but can’t find it in the mess piled on your bureau? I really want to have all my jewelry out, because everything gives me ideas for new pieces. I came up with solutions that work so well, a co-worker once asked me if I had my jewelry hanging with my clothes in my closet, because I always matched! (I considered his thought but didn’t want my jewelry hidden in the closet!) I also asked a few other jewelry-makers how they organize their jewelry. Once they stopped laughing, they sent me pictures of their solutions. And though I suspect some cleaned up for these photos, they clearly offer good storage ideas especially for strung pieces, to preview, protect and prevent tangling. So peek at the pretty, witty, clever, handy, but oh, so practical ways we keep favorite pieces safe, on hand, ready to wear, and in view, to delight and inspire us.

Outside the box

A real jewelry box holds small bags of jewelry for Merle White, the editor in chief of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist and the editorial director of Interweave’s Gem & Jewelry Group. As a frequent traveler, she protects things in small plastic bags and silk drawstring bags, sorted by type of jewelry or by what she last traveled with. She packs jewelry right in their bags, and when she comes home she puts the bags back into the jewelry box.

Hanging out

I have a ton of jewelry-literally! To keep the heavy pieces from damaging smaller works, I hang the big beads on a clothes tree, and pile bulky bangles on it, too. I love looking at the cascade of color!

A room of their own

Being a prolific jewelry designer, Denise Peck, editor in chief of Step by Step Wire Jewelry and senior editor of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, needed something very large. The various baskets and boxes on her dresser were overflowing. This full-length mirror armoire was just the thing. Only problem now––it's full and her dresser is again piled with baskets and boxes!

Color coordinated

As my co-worker suspected, I do have a way to keep my jewelry organized to be easily coordinated with my wardrobe. First I sort like-color suites (necklaces, bracelets, some earrings) in clear baggies, and store those in a clear chest of drawers. Each drawer contains specific colors to match the colors of clothing I wear most.

Public displays of affection

Danielle Fox, editor of Stringing and Best of Stringing, uses select, commercial jewelry displays for a stylish way to keep her favorite jewelry handy and organized. Why not? The same decorative stands used by jewelry artists at shows and exhibits look just as lovely on a dresser or table, and are available in so many styles. These birds and branches suit Danielle and her fashionable flair so well!

Marlene Blessing, Editorial Director, Books, displays jewelry as part of the décor of her home. These bulletin boards are displayed for hanging jewelry and other interesting bits. But only her most favored pieces get worn by an antique dress form from St. Louis, the gilded "Mrs. Hudgins!"

Keep these great jewelry storage ideas in mind as you create the latest projects in Stringing magazine! Share your storage ideas below and on our Beadingdaily.com forums!

Learn to Decorate Metal Charms with Transfers

Michelle Mach — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 03:22:00 GMT

Whether you prefer stringing beads, wire wrapping, or seed-beading, you, like me, love anything handmade. If, dare I say, you have non-crafty friends, they probably think you are crazy for staying up until 2 a.m. just to finish a project. ...(read more)

Meet the Beading Daily Challenge Winners

MichelleM — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Beading Daily Challenge Winners

Thirty-four brave beaders took the first Beading Daily challenge: It Takes Two. For this challenge, beaders had to choose two techniques and create an original pair of earrings. Wireworking was definitely the most popular technique used--and with good reason. It's so easy to attach your beading to an ear wire with a wrapped loop or another basic wire technique, that anything else is, well, a challenge!

And the winners are . . .

	1st Place: "Energy" by Diana Coates (Arizona) Techniques: brick stitch, wireworking Prize: $50 Interweave gift certificate Diana has been beading for about four years and is completely self-taught. Her favorite technique is bead embroidery, though she enjoys brick stitch because it is so firm and fast. The name "Energy" came to her at the last minute, inspired by the spirals and the pyramid shapes.

	2nd Place: "Palmy Dreams" by Christopher McLachlan (North Carolina) Techniques: PMC (Precious Metal Clay), wireworking Prize: Autographed copy of Mastering Beadwork by Carol Huber Cypher and a $10 Interweave gift certificate Trained as a graphic designer, Christopher has been working with PMC for about seven years. She originally created the metal clay trunks as freeform pieces, but the challenge prompted him to use them as tree trunks.

	3rd Place: "Bodhi Leaves" by David Bingell (Arizona) Techniques: macrame, wireworking Prize: Autographed copy of Create Jewelry: Crystals by Marlene Blessing and Jamie Hogsett David learned to bead when he was about four or five years old, when his parents worked for the San Carlos Apache Tribe. The four red beads in the macrame represent the four tribes of Buddhism. See more of his work on www.labeadaloca.org.

Congratulations to our winners and all the entrants! We'll have more Beading Daily challenges in 2008.

Stringing Challenges
Can't wait until 2008 for another beading challenge? Love stringing and simple wirework? Check out these links:

"Fun in the Sun" Stringing Challenge. Deadline February 4, 2008.
Help pick the winners of the "Double Trouble" challenge. Last day to vote is December 9, 2007.
Congratulations to Donna Lotti, Diane Dugan, and Irene Landaw, winners of the "I'll Fly Away" challenge. See photos of their work in the Winter issue on sale December 4, 2007.

Coming Next Week: Stringing editor Danielle Fox answers your magazine submission questions!

Michelle Mach is the editor of Beading Daily. She thinks that getting all her beading projects finished in December is going to be the real challenge for her!