Progress....

I've been contentedly working away in the studio this past week working on whittling away at the stash I mentioned in this post. I'm not going to try and fool you, it's taking much more time and effort than I had anticipated but I'm finding lots of bits and baubles in various states of completion and I've been enjoying the process of using up small quantities of things. It is also an excellent exercise in consumption and thinking back to why certain beads were purchased or selected.

.....pretty orphan beads are finding homes in clasps and as simple embellishments in this line of egg necklaces that will soon be on their way to a shop in NC.......

....many months ago, I spent some time making pairs of these copper hoops inspired by Native American Squash Blossom necklaces....it was a challenging balancing act that I'm now getting figured out.....

.....this lady is being used as an experiment with some finishes that I hope to translate eventually into polymer clay.....hopefully she'll also make a nice addition to my show displays as well.....

I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday in your studio.....

Don't forget to hop over to My Life Under The Bus and throw your name in the hat for the next stop on the Art Bead Love Tour.....

Reconnecting.....

One of my goals this year has been to get into my acquired supplies and begin to use the things I have or find them new homes. Most of my acquired beads and findings have been obtained second hand at estate sales and auctions, gifted to me by friends who know I make jewelry, or traded among other artists. I decided that this week would be a good time to dip into these supplies and begin to work on a new line of jewelry.

Part of my stash I've been working on sorting, separating, and disassembling in preparation for their new life.

 I've also been taking some of these beads and adjusting them to suit the designs and make them stand out a bit and give them their own unique voice. These large stones have been collaged and sealed with pages from old books.

Some of the supplies needed a new life as they particularly suit my style. I decided to finally take some of my remaining filigree beads and try my hand at a little more torch fire enameling. This is probably my 4th or 5th attempt on my own and I've finally come up with some usable beads.

I'm pleased with my progress on making the headpins. I still need to work out using an opaque white underneath to make more brilliant colors but I also really like the subtle transparency that I'm achieving consistently.

What have you been working on lately? 

Do you delve into your acquired materials to try new things?

Handmade....from start to the very FINISH!

 by Barbara Bechtel

About 6-8 months ago, while looking around at all my unused craft supplies, I decided to make a concerted effort to start using up all the bits and scraps of paper, wood, craft supplies, etc. and try to make a 100% effort not to purchase anything that was absolutely non essential.....ahh, the sweet horde of a mixed media artist....I'm sure many of you can relate.....

Specifically, I'm talking packaging. Although, I've always waffled between buying boxes, business and jewelry cards, packing supplies, etc. I've always used the excuse, "I don't have enough time to do ALL those things." For myself, though, I realized that in the time I spent researching, comparing prices, doing graphic design, layout, and printing, I really could make the time with a little extra effort to make these supplies to truly make my jewelry and designs unique from start to finish AND use up my extra paper supplies at the same time.

Instead of using bubble wrap, I've been shredding beautiful catalogs after I'm through perusing them and shredding vintage clothing patterns that I've been hoarding! Almost anything can be shredded to use as filler! So much more fun than shredding old bills and receipts, eh?

A selection of completely handmade business cards. All have their own unique personality. Clockwise from top: Beth Schaible ( letterpress by the artist), Second Surf (designed, printed, and handcut myself), Canoo (stamped and screenprinted on recycled household paperboard), Dacey Hunter (scrap watercolor paper, then inkjet printed with contact info), Sara Lee Parker Textiles (screenprinted)

The back of Canoo's card....she recycles all the paperboard from their home into business cards! This fits in nicely with her upcycled sweater goodies!

This is the packaging I did for Lori Anderson's upcoming Cup of Bead Soup. I've been painting tiny paper doilies from my estate sale stash to use in my paintings. Torn and taped to the pillow boxes (whose supplies are ever so slowly dwindling) with washi tape and tied with some pretty string and a little tag from leftover watercolor paper scraps.

 Vintage postcards that have been tea stained and with quick sketches and collage elements make great earring cards for more involved earrings and the buyer gets a cute little piece of art to keep!

Here are some other great ideas for using upcycled or handmade supplies:

~Patty from My Life Under The Bus takes those ugly bubble mailers that we always mean to reuse and don't and makes them PRETTY! 

~From the Love My Art Jewelry archives: Make an origami box to hold your jewels....This would look great with a little of that shredded tissue inside...hmmmmm......

Bead Fest and the beginnings of production

by Barbara Bechtel

In December, as I was evaluating my plans for 2012, I was feeling a bit introspective and thought that this year would be my year for slowing down and reexamining the work I've been making and growing my roots deeper to help strengthen my work.

Not long after I had decided that, I was presented with an opportunity to exhibit at Bead Fest in Philadelphia in August. I was filled with anxiety about making that decision. It didn't seem to fit in with my plans at all. The more I thought about it, the more I began to wonder about this opportunity that the universe was presenting me with:

Perhaps, not only would this help reinforce my goals, but it might teach me a better way to answer the questions I keep asking myself.

Was this not the opportunity that I've worked so very hard for since I began making beads and jewelry over 3 years ago?

What did I stand to lose by jumping in with both feet, instead of sticking in my big toe to keep testing the water?

 image via

 "Jump, and you will find out how to unfold your wings as you fall. "
~Ray Bradbury

Unconsciously, I'd had the above image as a screensaver on my phone for several months. What was it that made me put it there in the first place? 

And so, with a giant leap, and a deep breath, I jump!

 the small beginnings of many months of work ahead....

What big LEAPS have made and did you find your wings on the way down?

 

Collaboration as a means of growth....

By Barbara Bechtel

It can be a very solitary existence being an artist. Most artists feel the need for a certain amount of solitude in order for their inspirations and ideas to take shape. However, it is also important to reach out to those around you as a means to either discuss art, exchange tips and ideas, and uplift and encourage one another during the peaks and valleys of creativity.

The internet has made a invaluable contribution to the way we are able to communicate with each other and forge new relationships and alliances. Add blogs to the mix and it becomes an exciting way to collaborate and exchange ideas. Before I began making jewelry, I found and participated in some other art/mixed media swaps and was immediately hooked!

Collaboration, whether it is online through blog hops/ round robins, or whether it is exchanging a piece of work back and forth with a friend in another town is a great way to push yourself outside of the box. By working thematically or working collaboratively on the same piece, each artist can help each other learn new things or overcome specific problems they are having in their own work.

Many times, you may even be introduced to a new medium, technique, or style that will influence and change the way you work! It wasn't until I first participated in Lori Anderson's Bead Soup Blog Party that I saw the potential of how such collaborations could help me with the solitude that a life being creative sometimes creates. Not only has participating in these types of exchanges allowed me to make new friends, it has even enabled me to connect with other people who live right in my backyard who I didn't know were there!

 

How do you use collaboration to help you grow in your work?

 

What ideas have you come up with to reach out and connect with other artist's and jewelry artisans? 

 

If you're interested in participating in an upcoming swap, Lori Anderson is hosting Cup of Bead Soup, an extension of her Bead Soup Blog Party and I'm very excited to be the first art bead partner! For more information, please go check it out.

from my sketchbook.

by Barbara Bechtel

Over the last few weeks, I've been working taking simple forms from my sketchbook and translating them into stamps for my beads and pendants. This marks a change in how I've been working. While cleaning out my studio, I went back through my older sketchbooks and saw the way I used to work out ideas in my head, specifically for a painting. I realized this is not the same way that I work with polymer clay.

I decided to try and work the same way and I would if I were working on a painting.

 I took this simple shape and drew a design to be reproduced in a hand carved stamp.

 Here are some of the stampings in progress. While I'm carving, I periodically test out the stamp, to check where I need to remove more material.

Here is one pendant that has been baked but not finished (left) and one on the right that has been finished. (right)


This marks a poignant change in the way that I've been thinking about my process as it relates to bead-making. I'm really excited to see where this takes me.

Have a great Sunday!

Barbara Bechtel is a bead and jewelry designer and mixed media artist residing in Merritt Island, FL. You can read more about her at her blog, Second Surf.

Mapmaking

by Barbara Bechtel

Recently, as I reorganize and think more critically about my work, I went back and looked at my jewelry that I've made over the years in order to codify the various pieces and parts of my work and try to draw some parallels.

Symbols have always been a huge part of my work. Beginning in college when I began to build a body of work, I took a jewelry class as an elective. Little did I know that this would form the basis for how I'm working today....

work made while in my jewelry electives circa 2002

 Fast forward seven years to when I began making jewelry again, I had only a few basic materials, no torches or hammers, I began bringing home broken jewelry from estate sales and found several long unused blocks of polymer clay purchased on clearance from the craft store.

some of my very first jewelry when I returned to jewelry made with polymer clay and vintage beads collected at estate and garage sales.

 One of my personal goals going into the new year is to continue to source materials from things I already own and things that can be recycled, either by buying second hand or making my own tools, as others have done throughout history and time. I continue to source a large part of my materials and tools from these places and by intentionally recognizing that fact, it has been a great source of inspiration.

vintage lace and copper stampings found at an estate sale early in 2011

Now, as I begin to form the basis for new ideas in a new year, I am again returning to what I have found and collected as part of my journeys throughout the years. I was so inspired by Jeannie's post yesterday. Over the last weeks, as I've been doing a bit of reorganizing my home and studio, I've been reexamining what I've found and collected and wondering how I can use use these collected things, to make the most of what I have around me to add personal meaning into adornment.

I've also been thinking about the jewelry I wear on a daily basis and how my own jewelry fits in with the meaning I place on the things I choose to wear everyday.


What do you think? 

Is the jewelry you make a reflection of the jewelry you wear and find personal meaning in? 

What parallels have you drawn in past work you've created to the work you're creating now?

Reevalutation v1.1

by Barbara Bechtel

In this post, I talked about ways you could codify your ideas and goals in 2012 by making lists or choosing a word. I'll admit, I'm a vehement list maker. What I'm not good at is actually ticking items off said lists....Ahem...

I tend to write and rewrite the same list several times, each time only checking one or two things off the list before some of the things that I thought so very important when I made said list suddenly were replaced by new, more immediate concerns.

Late last year, I decided to adopt a different kind of list...almost schedule-like but more attuned to my creative process.

I'm a procrastinator. Self-avowed and flag waving! Over the years, I've learned (and am still learning) to embrace this character flaw and try to make it work better for me. I've tried to analyze the reasons why I procrastinate and the actual cause:

What's the reason I've waited to do this so long?

What can I do to improve this lack of action?

In 2012, I want to improve my list making abilities. Rather than make lists of specific tasks, I'm choosing to make lists that work better with my working process.

Here's an example of my old list-making habits:

1) Finish 10 sets of work-in-progress beads on work table.
2) Photo and list beads to Etsy shop.
3) Blog.

Here's an example of my new list-making strategy:

1) Spend 2 hours making beads.
2) Spend 1-2 hours working on my Etsy shop.
3) Take photos documenting my process and write down ideas I have for potential blog posts.

This is something I've been experimenting with that works better with how I work. When presented with tasks, with things I think I HAVE to do or NEED to do, I develop a stigma about finishing them. I've decided that a better approach is to allow myself the freedom to complete the things I want to do in the given time frame and chances are, I will still complete the things I need AND have time for other things...for play and creativity. This is just what I've decided works best for me, of course.

I've also decided to try to adopt a word. Along with my new list-making idea, I've struggled with trying to find one word that I want to work towards. I think I've settled for more of a phrase and a sub-word. The more I think about this word the more I like it..

TENACIOUS

1

a : not easily pulled apart : cohesive <a tenacious metal> b : tending to adhere or cling especially to another substance <tenacious burs>

2

a : persistent in maintaining, adhering to, or seeking something valued or desired <a tenacious advocate of civil rights> <tenacious negotiators>

...I also think about how I will employ this word....how I will infuse it and I started to think about my tendency towards procrastination and I remembered this song, which I love so much! I think, in the past, when I was most tenacious, I would belt this song in my studio and my car and sing it from the tops of my lungs.

SO: my PHRASE for 2012 will be: "TENACIOUS: 525,600 Minutes. How Do You Measure a Year?"

Do you have a favorite word or song that makes you feel like you are your most tenacious?

Barbara Bechtel is a mixed media artist and designer. She blogs regularly at her website Second Surf.

Growing through the tough places.

"One cannot create an art that speaks to men when one has nothing to say."
Andre Malraux


a tiny pot of herb seedlings in a pretty recycled tomato tin.

Hello, fellow Art Jewelry fans! I'm proud to be the newest member of Love My Art Jewelry! I look forward to sharing lots of information with you all and contributing to building a thriving art jewelry community! I look forward to hearing from you all! I will also be helping man Love My Art Jewelry's Twitter, so be sure to follow our tweets! You never know what will pop up there!

For the better part of the last two months, I've been going through a artistic rut. At first, I blamed it on what I like to refer to as "Craft Show Hangover"...wherein you prepare really hard for a large show and then once it's over, you just sort of don't know what to do with yourself. I felt burnt out and was experiencing the joy that I had previously experience with my beads and jewelry.

a bit of a work in progress journal page inspired by my seedlings...

As a mixed-media artist, I began to feel the pull to return to some of the types of work I have done in the past, namely painting, sketching, and book binding, as well as do a bit of gardening. It felt strange to return to things that have not been a staple of my creativity for some time, but I decided, after some thoughtful soul searching to go with my gut and see where this road would lead.

After several weeks of sifting through the flotsam and jetsam of my mind, I have begun to see creeping rhythms of patterns creeping back in.

new charm pendants in progress inspired by my herb garden...

The best part is that switching up my routine has informed new work, refreshed my spirit, and led to new discoveries!

How do you recharge your batteries when you're in a rut?

How do you work through difficult spots in your work and creativity?

Following your muse....

guest blog by Barbara Bechtel of Floridity

Don't worry about your originality. You couldn't get rid of it even if you wanted to. It will stick with you and show up for better or worse in spite of all you or anyone else can do. ~ Robert Henri

People often ask me how I arrived at my current style. Being a little shy when it comes to discussing my work, I'm often unsure how to answer. Most often, I divert the question by talking about my methods, my inspiration, and current ideas in the works.

Style is a topic that is ephemeral at best. Everybody likes it and most want it. Some are sure they have it, other think they may never have it. Think of your favorite designers and artisans...be they high-brow or low-brow...most have a style. Some have arrived at it deliberately, some have arrived at it by accident, some have worked very careful to cultivate it.

Being a mixed media artist, and a painter by education, I've never felt I had a recognizable style. I want to be identified...like Georgia O'Keefe or Frank Lloyd Wright. Until recently, this always distressed me greatly. So, I decided to look critically at all of my work and identify patterns.

Identifying patterns is very important. It is through patterns that you recognize what you are doing cohesively from one piece to another.

By identifying these patterns, you can adjust or refine your working method to help you cultivate your own unique style.


What colors do I consistently use? Do I like these colors? Do I want to use different colors? How can I experiment differently with my color palette? I take out the paints I use. I identify the hues on a color chart. I am a scientist with my process....



What shapes or forms do I consistently use? Am I drawn to geometric forms or organic forms? Why am I drawn to them? I make a list....



Texture. Do I prefer clean lines or a rustic pattern? Why do I prefer that? What other objects in my home and my life personify this texture? How can I translate this texture to my work?


How are you evaluating your own process to better identify your own personal style?

How do you feel about style? How would you like to define it? for yourself? for others?

Can you translate your style into this month's Art Spark? Be sure to check it out and submit to win a host of nice things and challenge your creativity!