Art Jewelry Elements Earring Challenge Reveal #3!

AJE Week 4 ~ Walk on the Beach

I've been wanting to use Humblebeads since I met Heather Powers at Bead & Button Show last year.  She is one of the nicest and talented people you will meet!  Her booth was covered with her beautiful beads and it was really hard to choose which ones to bring home!  The starfish charms caught my eyes immediately and I decided to incorporate them to Art Jewelry Elements Earring Challenge Week 4. I used some Hawaiian Beach glass with copper spacer beads on hammered 16g wire with sterling silver ear wires.

Walk on the Beach

AJE Week 5 ~ Willowflowers

For week #5, I decided to use another one of my finds from Humblebeads.  Simply love this hue of blue!  It will go perfect with jeans :)  I accented the stem with hammered copper beads and crystals onto sterling silver ear wires.  The colors were perfect match!

Willowflowers

AJE Week 6 ~ Love Always

I've been admiring J-Lynn Jewels tiles that others have been using and I had to get some myself!  Had to squeeze in one more Valentine's theme earrings.  I tried different design ideas but came back to my first one.  I kept it simple not to take away from the message of the tiles.  I knotted 1.5mm leather cords and hung them on sterling silver ear wires.  Sometimes less is more :)

Love Always

Mahalo for stopping by!  Please check out the blogs below to see what other talented artists have created!

Kumi ♥

Bead Soup Exchanged!!

The long awaited suspense is over and both Donna Millard and I received each other's Bead Soups.  I can't tell you how happy I am to be partnered with someone so talented and sweet like Donna!  I actually yelped in joy seeing her package in the mailbox!  I ran inside and opened the package carefully and OMG look what I got!  

I am over the moon!  The beads were packed in a beautiful pink striped pillow box.  I unwrapped the carefully packed bubble wrap one by one.  Wow!  Donna created the flower beads because I live on the Garden Island, Kauai!  The photos do not do justice to how beautiful the glass beads are!  My head is swimming with all the design ideas with such gorgeous beads!  I absolutely love the lavender and green color combo.  The brass clasp and findings are perfect to use and goes perfect with the glass beads.  I can't wait to get started!!  Mahalo Nui Loa Donna!!!

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Now it's my turn to show you what I sent to Donna.  With a talented lampwork artist as my partner, I decided to go all metal and wirework components made by me.

The focal was made with copper sheet which I textured and sawed out the keyhole, then patinaed the top layer.  I stacked the two layers and riveted the four corners to add depth to the piece.  This is a technique I learned from Julie Sanford at Bead & Button Show last year.  I also created two smaller matching single layer pieces.

I made a fold formed leaf clasp and made a toggle out of copper wire.  Included two more leaves just for fun!  I decided to make wire coiled beads in two different sizes and also made some S links which were all made out of copper wire.

Added some leather cord to complete the soup and here is my Hawaiian Bead Soup to my fabulous Bead Soup 7 partner ~ Donna Millard!  

Stay tuned to what we create on March 30!!  Mahalo for stopping by!

Kumi ♥

Soup is ready and here is the sneak peak!

I had a Bead Soup in mind before I found out who my partner was going to be for the 7th Bead Soup Blog Party and when I found out my partner this year is amazing lampwork artist Donna Millard I had to total redo what I had in mind.  Here is a sneak peak of what I am sending and I hope she likes what she is going to receive!

Hope you like the Hawaiian Bead Soup Donna!!

Kumi ♥

7th Bead Soup Blog Party - Meet my Bead Soup partner Donna Millard!!

I signed up once again for Lori Anderson's Bead Soup Blog Party!  The 7th BSBP has over 500 participants and I will be in the 1st Reveal Group on March 30, 2013!

As I patiently waited for the email to find out who my partner will be this year, the Bead Soup God aka Lori Anderson has once again blessed me with yet another incredibly talented artist this year!  I immediately recognized her name when I got the email.  I've been drooling over all the incredible creations she's been posting on her Facebook page and her blog was so thrilled to be partnered with an amazingly talented lamp work and jewelry artist Donna Millard!!!  

I immediately went to her website www.fyrebeadz.com and read her Bio.  Check out her credentials!

Donna Millard is an Internationally known lampwork artist living in the northwoods area of Wisconsin. She has been working with various forms of glass for more than 25 years. 

Originally taking a beginner class in 2001, Donna has since self-taught herself the techniques she now uses in her unique art glass beads, buttons and metalwork.  Workshops she has completed since learning on her own:

Kevin O'Gardy-2005

Andrea Guarino-2007

Michael Barley-2007

William Hagy-2008

Mary Lockwood-2008

Melanie Moertel-March 2011-just for fun!  

Metal-work classes completed with:

Dallas Lovett

Iris Sandkuhler

A 76 yo metalsmith whose name I've since forgotten.

Donna's beads and jewelry can be found in galleries and shops across Alaska, Wisconsin and private collections around the world.

Donna also teaches lamp working and jewelry making classes.  I would love to take a lamp working class from Donna one day!  

Enjoy just a few sample of her gorgeous work!

I better cook up a worthy soup for Donna, so off I go into my studio!  Once she receives her soup ingredients from me, I'll be posting what I sent and what I received.  Let the fun begin!

Kumi ♥