Artisan Clay Design Team Reveal Day Has Arrived!

Welcome!

I am very excited to announce the very first Artisan Clay Design Team Challenge Blog Hop!

This month I decided to let each member of the design team choose a bead for themselves.  The photos above were what they had to choose from.  I really love this metallic bronze glaze and as soon as I made these funky link focals I have been dying to see them in action.

Now for the reveal!

I had his crazy idea rolling around in my head.  A few months ago I started to have all these ideas for a photo shoot with feathers.  I want feathers in my hair, feathers in my hat, feathers on my purse. I want to have a fun feathery time, put on some sunglasses and pretend it's not me and glam it up :-) 

Ask my friends, I went on for weeks about this and that.

It still would be fun to try. 

I didn't get that far--- but I did buy some feathers and I did work out the hows and whys of adding them to this necklace.   I found it both tricky and fun, because for me, tricky makes it fun.  I like to try to figure out new skills with out being told how to do it.  That might be the hard way, but my brain likes the adventure.

So, what do you think?  I wonder what they would think of it at the office. 

Want to see the what everyone else on the team came up with?  I sure do!

Follow the links below to all of our design team blogs. 

If you are checking in early, and there is not at least 7 blogs listed below, check back as everyone links up.

If you have blogged about your creation using an Artisan Clay Art bead, please add your link below and let us all see what you have made!

Artisan Clay Design Team Reveal Tomorrow!

Our reveal day is the last Friday of April (THAT'S TOMORROW!) and I would like to invite YOU to join us!

Our Awesome Design team has been hard at work this month making, making, making with their Metallic Bronze Beads.  Tomorrow we will share our designs!


If you have blogged about anything made with Artisan Clay Beads this month I invite you to link up to our reveal post tomorrow as well.

Or..... maybe you are the last minute type, or are looking for a fun project for today???? Maybe?

Maybe you have some Artisan Clay beads hanging around your beads stash just waiting for their moment to be worked with.... maybe you like to have a deadline, goal, challenge.....? I invite you to use your Artisan Clay beads in a design this month, blog about it and on April 29th add your link to our reveal party! Contact me if you have any questions :-)  artisanclay (@) hotmail.com or via etsy convo :-)



Make something or not, please join us for the fun tomorrow!

Button Swap Blog Hop!

She's Cute! 
Welcome to the my blog!
 My little starshine fell in love with the Super sparkly button that my partner Shannon For my Sweet Daughter sent me.  She begged me to make a necklace for her with it.....  She's the kind of girl who usually get's what she wants.



And it fits me to!  That's a bonus.

It's very simple-- but for a little girl, I didn't want to go too crazy.  Shannon said that her mother gave her this button and when I mentioned that my daughter was begging for a necklace, she said go for it!

And here is what I did with the other 3 buttons that Shannon sent me.  The ultra thin shell beads and the handmade ceramic dragon fly by beadfreaky on etsy seemed to fit perfectly with a little beady care package that my friend Staci- (Staci Louise Originals) dropped off for me a few months ago.  The style reminds me of Staci too.  Maybe because these are the style of stones that she likes to use in her work.

It just all jumped together in a few minutes.  It makes me feel like walking on the beach in a long cotton hippy skirt, yes it does :-)

I've been inspired to make quite a bit more buttons lately.  Here's all the buttons that I fired this Monday.  I like how they turned out and I will be making more!

Commenting on this blog post will get you a chance to win this lovely green and brown Button!

And there's more! Michelle Mach has a giveaway on her master blog hop blog.  Here's a few of her words on it--
You might also want to tell your readers about the giveaway--if readers comment on any (or all) blogs, they can win a set of buttons. The full rules will be on my blog, but basically, each comment on a different blog gets them one entry. So if they comment on all posts, that would be 25 entries! But if they comment 25 times on Lori's blog, that only counts as one entry! The giveaway is open to everyone.



Today I am actually spending in air travel to visit family for the Easter Holiday, so I will not be able to check out everyone's blogs or announce a winner until next week sometime.... you'll have to check back- I'm not going ot pin it down, since I have so many obligations next week... but be sure I'll announce it and contact the winner shortly.

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1. Cat - Boo Beads



2. Cindy - Sweet Bead Studio



3. Cory - Art with Moxie



4. Cyndi - Beading Arts



5. Dita - Alankarshilpa



6. Donna, Marti, and Michelle - Beads & Books



7. Erin - Treasures Found



8. Hope - Crafty Hope



9. Inca - Zerenity Design



10. Katrine - Army of Sock Monsters



11. Krista - French Elegant Jewelry



12. Kristie - Artisan Clay-- That's me!



13. Linda D. - Lutka and Co.



14. Linda L. - Linda's Bead Blog



15. Lody - Lody's Beadworks



16. Lori - Pretty Things



17. Loretta - Loretta's Boutique



18. Malin - Beading by Malin de Koning



19. Mary - MK's Creative Musings



20. Maryanne - Zingala's Workshop



21. Melinda - Melinda Orr Metal & Clay Jewelry Designs



22. Saskia - Perlendistel



23. Shannon - For My Sweet Daughter



24. Shirley - Beads and Bread



25. Stephanie - Confessions of a Bead Hoader
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Thanks for coming!

Why didn't I think of this sooner?

I just opened up the kiln and I'm sneaking a quick post before serving breakfasts and heading to the buses....
Did you ever have an idea so simple, that you just have to shake your head and wonder what took so long to figure it out?
Here it is!  Buttons and Donuts in my standard sizes.  Well Duh! 

I'm really happy with the results.  Maybe now I can get some more buttons into knitting and sewing shops.... because that is the next step to total world domination after all ;-)  Maybe that should say-- paying for summer camp......  ;-)

I'm off to the office and when I return this evening I will put my etsy shop on vacation mode while I travel to Kansas City for the Holiday with my Dad and his family. 
And of course I am only announcing this because my husband and MIL and ATTACK DOG will be guarding the house :-) 

And I had my 700th sale over the weekend!  YAY!
Stop back Thursday for our Button Swap Reveal posts!  My partner is Shannon AKA For My Sweet Daughter!  That's Thursday!  And comment on as many different blogs as you can for chances to win fabulous prizes from Michele Mach our fearless leader! 

What's new?

Bright Beautiful Turquoise Donut

Business First-- http://www.artisanclay.etsy.com/ is having a Tax Sale!  Now through the end of Tax Day you can use the coupon code TAXTIME to receive 15% off your purchase in my etsy shop.

Also, my limited time clearance section will disappear tomorrow!

There is less than a week left to stop by my trunk show in North Kansas City, MO.  I will travel out to KC at the end of the week and pick up my work.  So.... if you are in the area, stop by the friendliest bead shop in town and tell them I sent you :-)  (there is a link at the top right of the blog to the shop's website complete with directions )

Greens and Browns Donut

I am only 4 sales away from reaching another 100 sales in my etsy shop.  Those of you who have been following my blog for a while, know that I like to give away a FABULOUS prize to the wonderful customer who makes that little etsy counter hit 100!

A little different Turquoise Rectangle

A little while ago, a very nice bead shop owner pointed out to me that almost all of my beads and pendants are round.... I thought that maybe I should change that, so here are a few new pieces in rectangles!   I hope you like them as much as my round pieces.

A little different Bright orange Abstract

And then the life stuff--Don't read this if you don't care! It's not pleasant.

 Crazy days!

I started having panic attacks this week.  I just started thinking about everything that is going on and I just felt like I couldn't handle it.  It was really crazy-- I mean crazy, crazy!! 

My travel plans, the Girl Scout trips for the kids, family, my house being a construction site, getting ready for the trunk shows, doing the taxes, my husband being out of work, paying the bills, my dog couldn't walk on his one leg, my brain was just going out of control. 

I was just watching the other people in my household nap all day and I'm trying to deal with everything and I'm exhausted.

Cobalt Blue Abstract

I was so exhausted that I passed out on the couch with the kids Friday night. I was awakened at 3 am by a drunk driver crashing into our 2 parked cars 15-20 feet from my sleeping head.  My car was in pieces and now sitting at a diagonal, and was forced into my MIL's car parked in front of it causing much damage to her car.  So... now my husband hasn't worked in a few weeks and the household is out 2 cars....  This is the third drunk driving accident at our house in the past few months! 

Bright green Abstract

I was so glad for the howling rain yesterday.  I was so out of sorts.  I really needed a day off.  I had to deal with insurance agents and I had to do a lot of work on beads for my next trunk show. 

I'm still feeling crazy.  I heard the fire whistle last night and freaked out.  I would be really happy to just stay home today and hug my kids.  The sun is shining and I'm going to hibernate in my PJ's and get my new beads ready to fire.  I really don't want to deal with trying to figure out how to buy a new car, and even just trying to get myself to work this week.  I am the only one working after all...  

I should be ok soon... Everything is just so uncertain right now.  But that's what's new.



I'm still here! and Etsy shop clearance....

I made a Clearance section in my etsy shop today.   Everything is listed a wholesale pricing or better.... these things have been lingering at the back of my etsy shop for a while and at the end of the week they will disappear forever.  So... If you want them, get them while you can.

I've been really quiet the past week or two.  There were a few things I told myself I needed to take care of before I could blog and etsy again. 

1)Taxes....oh the taxes....  I have finished my part and the tax lady will do the rest in an hour or so. 

2)And then there is the situation of my beaders' butt.... yep, It's been getting worse these past few years as I have switched mostly to online sales verses doing all the set up and tear down of shows almost every weekend.   It's funny, but the set up and tear down really was good exercise.   So last week I got back on the wagon.  I joined weight watchers again.  I joined the first time 10 years ago.  Things have changed.  I hope I do well.  20 pounds-- It's a lot.  I have a really crazy sugar addiction and when on a diet, I think of nothing else.  So.... this may be the all food talk all the time blog, because I'm hooked on the junk!   I find it takes a lot of time cooking for yourself to lose weight.  I'll be obsessed for at least the next 3 months , look forward to it ;-)

3) The garden:  I usually have a lot of stuff planted around St Patricks Day.....  This year I didn't really get to it until last weekend.  So now I have potatoes and peas and sugar snap peas and lettuces and onions and a couple of Blueberry bushes planted.  I also got to meet a new friend.  Jenn is a organic vegetable farmer/ ginormous pumpkin grower wizard.  She showed me around her greenhouse and gave me a great couple of lessons on starting/ transplanting seedling.  She showed me around her garden and we talked about driving your own business, talking business with customers and we talked about how be both have second jobs now but still drive our own businesses to do better etc...   Then every day I've been messing around with my seedlings and garden. 

4) and then there's the next trunk show.... It's a double--- I've been working on new standard sized donuts, YAY!  they'll be done soon.  and.... now that my portion of the taxes are done, I jumped out of bed and glazed some beads and loaded them up, and the kiln is firing right now.

OK!  Tax time!   Check out my clearance sale on etsy before next Monday!