The Bead Table Challenge -- My Bead Kit Arrived!

"Living Life with Gratitude & Sharing the Joy of Artistic Creation" -- Pine Ridge Treasures

Friend Lisa Lodge of "Pine Ridge Treasures" is a published jewelry artist (see Bead Trends magazine, December 2011 and May 2012) hosting the "Bead Table Blog Hop" -- a blog hop and jewelry challenge using beads from Lisa's bead table and our own. The challenge is to combine beads from Lisa (leftover or not necessarily matching) with our own extra beads to create a jewelry design. 


Lisa sent each participant a mix from her bead table of various beads and components in a variety of colors and shapes. I absolutely love the bead mix I received! Check it out -- it is a wonderful :) 

The shades of blue are so pretty! The rich cobalt blue beads are magical and uplifting with their array of speckled color. They remind me of a wonderful story I once heard about cobalt blue glass. It's a tale of hope and wishes and manifestation, and I'm grateful the pretty beads have sparked my memory of the story. Lisa has included a virtual rainbow of coordinating colorful silver lined seed beads and Swarovski crystal, and if you look closely you'll see cat's eye beads in warm yellows and oranges too.


The ceramic (or glass) coral branches intrigue me -- blue coral is my favorite gem! Likewise, the little bird bead makes my heart sing, and I love how its colorway, with a pretty peach beak and light blue feathers, is mirrored in the heart focals and millifiori rounds.


The bright silver suns (there are two!) seem to be growing this lovely garden of beads, with lucite flowers and pink petals supported by an earth of smooth rhyolite (perhaps?) rounds. Opposite the sun, cool brass and pewter components shine: one charming infinity with a spiral dance; one like the full moon of an ancient Toltec night, adorned perfectly by the Aztecs.


There is what appears to be a cool slice of natural aventurine with its glittery, shimmering mica. It will be perfect for wire wrapping and seems to call out for its own design in snow quartz and fantasy faceted quartz crystal. 

More gems catch my eye as the turquoise nugget calls for copper and a special place in a hip modern bracelet, or perhaps asks to be a treasure in Mexican style silver. The sodalite coin beads look like the summer sky with stretches of hazy white clouds against a blue canvas. Likewise, the square beads of soft white and blue glass are an ombre summer morning sky, and the symmetrical, transparent blue tiles build the night. 

 Thank you, Lisa! :) 

  
 Big Hugs, TJ




Toltec Jewels is an author by day and jewelry artist by night. Her literary work is housed by the San Fransisco MOMA in a permanent collection of mixed media art and is published internationally in popular magazines, literary quarterlies, and university publications. She has won a number of awards for both her literary and jewelry art. A gemstone collector and jewelry lover, she makes handcrafted jewelry with her entire family. Her store offers small sets of gemstone beads for creating one of a kind handcrafted jewelry.

She is also the creator of Jewel School Friends, a community of expert and new jewelry artisans taking inspiration from each other, Jewel School, and jewelry art culture. Jewel School Friends features jewelry designers and bead artists, supports entrepreneurship for independent artisans, and hosts community events, challenges, and fundraisers. Join her at Jewel School Friends on Facebook for challenges, fundraisers, contests, free jewelry tutorials, coupons, Jewel School and handcrafted store features, youtube tutorials, networking, give-a-ways and beautiful jewelry!