Oh Happy Day!

I have been waiting a REALLY long time to announce this - mostly because I kept expecting it to somehow not work out at the last second - but now there's real actual proof so I can proudly say that I am PUBLISHED in the new issue of "Stringing" magazine!!

Check it out:

If you look REALLY closely, you can see a partial section of one of my necklaces - right below the "g" in Stringing - the sort of aqua-ish rondelles with the strand of tiny purple crystals crossing it and the brown/white shell rounds. Also, if you check the Table of Contents page, you'll see my name THREE times along with some small snippet pics of my designs. I've got three necklaces, a bracelet and a pair of earrings in this issue.

Uh...can you tell I'm a little excited about this?

Not only did I get this great news this morning, but I woke up to see a BUNCH of sales in my Be Resinable shop. Apparently, incessant blogging plus a lot of whining, crying, bitching and moaning is an effective marketing technique. I do think it's funny that none of what I consider the "pretty, artier" beads sold. Nope. Bottlecaps and resined glitter.

I'm not the only person hopelessly stuck in her trashtastic 12-year-old memories. Awesome.

Even the Fusion Beads resin order debacle has worked out - and it only took THREE phone calls on my part. I am not BFF's with their customer service department LOL! Originally, they told me that they were out of stock on the resin so it would be a week or more before the could replace the order. Because of the delay (and my new obsession which demands that I resin everything I can get my hands on and people, that requires a LOT of resin), I requested a refund which I was then going to use to buy the resin at a different vendor.

So, that was Friday. By Monday, no refund. Checked again yesterday...still no refund. Called Fusion again. The refund was never processed but, funniest thing, they now have resin back in stock and would I like my order replaced.

Ummm...lemmeee think....YES!

And yes, I did get a shipping confirmation so I know it's actually on its way to me.

I'm sure you all are THRILLED that I am getting more resin. I can actually HEAR all the eye rolling going on out there. Yes, I'm talking about you. You there in the corner. I saw that.

But, while we wait for the magical deliciousness that is the resin to arrive, how about some new jewelry?

I felt like it was time for a bracelet because I haven't done very many lately. Then I saw this gorgeous bracelet bar piece at Summer's Studio on Etsy and it was the perfect focal to start with.

I added a cute polymer clay bird charm from Floridity, some carved angelskin coral flower beads, seafoam faceted quartz rondelles, Swarovski pearls and some brass chain.

I also added this cute little brass bird link and a tiny pearl dangle - just for a special touch and to keep the "bird" theme going.

This...was an afterthought. The clasp area was looking a little barren and this was kind of sitting on my work surface mocking me so I caved. And now that I'm having the after after after thoughts, I'm thinking it needs to go. What are you thinking?

This design is all about the incredible indigo patinated chain from Miss Fickle Media.

I deliberately kept the rest of the design super-simple so this chain could be the star - because it definitely deserves to be!

This copper metal filigree heart was the perfect focal for this piece.

This is probably the most beautiful set of lampwork beads I've gotten to play with so far. The colors are incredible and I particularly appreciated how the beads were definitely part of a "set" but they don't match exactly. Each one is an individual. That made it really easy for me to get out of my matchy-matchy comfort zone.

The hardest part was coming up with a design that was "worthy" of them without overpowering them and losing their beauty. Some simple patinated brass rings from Patina Queen and matching brass chain seemed like a good start. (Actually, I had planned to go with gold for this design but it was just too bright - the brass is warmer and richer).

Some cobalt/gold Chinese crystal spacers, deep purple jade rondelles, teal enamel beads from Barbara Lewis at Painting with Fire added great accents.

I kept the clasp simple so the focus stays on all the incredible beads. Plus, I wanted the length on this to be adjustable and the hook/chain combo allows for that.

It was hard to get a decent picture of the entire necklace on this one - I definitely need a new bust or mannequin (thanks to Keirsten for giving me a line on a possibility!)

All in all...a good day so far!

I'm hoping the same for all of you!

KJ