Charis Designs Jewelry: Arlene Dean

Life took an unexpected turn this fall, and what I thought was going to be a nice, leisurely season, wasn't. Nuf said. By now,you've had more than enough time to to make your way through all the amazing creations from the 6th BSBP. Weren't they amazing? I'm always floored by the variety of techniques and artistry- some are truly spectacular and leave me in awe of the level of skill and creativity.

This was my 3rd opportunity to participate in Lori Anderson's baby- she's def been the hostess with the mostess :) In addition to some of my "leftovers" from the various bead soups, I recently was the unexpected winner of a "de-stashing" courtesy of CJ Bauchska! Little did I know what was headed my way, but she went above and beyond in generosity and beads!

I was floored! Wish I lived closer to her, so I could take some of her classes- seed beads and I have a nominal relationship, but obviously they are CJ's friends. We were gone on back to back trips after her stash arrived, so they've been waiting patiently for me to do something with them. As I looked around MY ~~hoard~~ assortment of beads, I realized that it's time to pass the blessing along.

I've had such a great time being paired with Dana James, Andra Weber and most recently, Arlene Dean- they've expanded my horizons, and their giftings of beading goodness have been generous to say the least. Sooo, I'd like to help someone else have the same experience. I have only two guidelines:
1) You did NOT have participated in the last BSBP but you do have a blog.
2) When you use what is sent ( we can figure out a time factor), that you link your post back to this blog.

That's it! I'll put together a bead soup for you and send it your way and then wait to see what you create. (Please note that Bead Soup Blog Party is trademarked by Lori- this is just plain bead soup :))

Want a chance to win? Just leave a comment below by November 14 ( one of our girls turns 21 that day, so we'll celebrate that!) and make sure I have a way to contact you. One lucky person will get goodies headed their way.

Hoping this adds a splash of grace and a dash of joy to your day!

It's finally time! Reveal #3. I've oohed and aahed through the last two reveals, and now it's our turn. I was paired with Arlene Dean and these were the goodies she gifted me with.

Since Lori Anderson challenged us to step out of our comfort zone, I've tried to do that. Wire wrapping is NOT my forte- at all. As I kept looking at all these pretties, wondering how do the focal justice, I kept going back to the idea of wire wrapping. Sigh. Did I mention I'm just not very good at this? Since I'm an avid fan of Pinterest and love to pin merrily away, I took a deep breath and turned to one of my boards for a little inspiration-and found it!

Without further ado, here is my Merry Mermaid.

Isn't she fun? I used brightly colored aluminum wire to do messy wrapped beads, links and swirls. This focal is bright and happy and these colors accented the beautiful colors in the mermaid. Arlene sent me a variety of beads (thank you!) and the glass pillows, green crystals, as well as the little purple crystals just cried out to be used. I added a couple of glass pearls because the hole in the freshwater pearls wouldn't work with the thicker gauge wire. The green flourite beads snuggled in nicely between the messy wrapped aluminum beads and the silver jumps made connections easy, as well as tying in with the silver on the mermaid. She now has a little wreath of purple seed beads for a touch of whimsy. I even made the clasp out of the turquoise wire. It's a long necklace but so colorful. Now to find the right home for her.

But there were more beads...

so continuing with the bright wire theme, here's a pair of coordinating earrings. While the stones aren't identical, it gave it a more organic look. I'm usually pretty matchy matchy, but I like these.

And then there was time for one more project:

Again, this was an idea courtesy of Pinterest. This was my first try, and I probably will redo it, but the clasp seemed to go nicely with the beads, and I adore bracelets. The spacing needs some work, but you get the general idea!

These are my three offerings. There were a couple of things I didn't use (see the cute little fishes in the first picture and an adorable strawberry glass bead) so will do a giveaway in the next couple of weeks- be sure to check back if you were NOT part of the 6th Bead Soup Blog Party for your chance to get a bag of goodies.

Don't forget to visit the other participants in this 3rd and final reveal. I'm sure you'll find creations that bring you splashes of grace and a dash of joy!

Here's the rest of the party:

Hostess, Lori Anderson, Pretty Things

Agi Kiss, Moonsafari Beads
Alice Peterson, Alice Dreaming

Alison Sachs, Beads by Earthtones

Amanda Dittloff, Passion Smashin'

Andra Marasteanu, Bijoux de Monanage

Angie Szlovak, SweetBeads

Anitra Gordy, Leelu Creations

Ann Sherwood, Ann's Blog

Arlene Dean, A Glass Bash

Audrey Belanger, Dreams of an Absolution

Barb Solem, Vivi Magoo Presents

Barbara Blaszczyk, laboratorim Flory

Becky Pancake, Becky Pancake Bead Designs
Beth Emery, Stories by Indigo Heart