Tag: blog carnival

Memories

There was a certain element of irony for this round of the Art Bead Scene’s Blog Carnival theme of Remembrance. I saw the theme, wrote myself a note: poppies, In Flanders Field since Remembrance Day (Veterans Day in the US) is coming up. Then I promptly forgot about it until this week.

Red Poppies

So here are a multitude of popppies (in real life they are a poppy red, I was just photoshop happy this morning). I’m figuring they will make some lovely brooches. The smaller flowers will go on the inevitable dangly charm bracelet soon, with little lark and cross charms I happen to have.

The poem, by the way, is this one:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

– John McCrae
May 1915

Floral Exploration

I bravely signed up to do the Art Bead Scene’s Blog Carnival. Every month one of the two groups involved commits to blogging about a theme based piece they’ve made.

August’s theme is exploration which is oddly fitting given my spring and summers activities! I went with the less literal interpretation of exploration and focused on pieces that were a little off the beaten track from my standard neatly symmetrical jewelry.

Tiger Lily Charms

I’d gotten comfortable making craft fair and production work and only recently reminded myself that I’d GOTTEN popular by doing interesting and different work and how was I to keep that unless I explored a little?

The little shaped flower beads are made from my own canes but then slightly sculpted into a flower shape and they act as an excellent embellishment. You can see my regular slice beads, the little flat white flowers,  mixed in for accents. At a bead show where I debuted them this summer, one of the teachers bought a few to use with her vintage lucite flowers.

I like how you can get a whole garden on your wrist with these or add a little more in the way of bling and keep the flowers and leaves for interesting detail.

Blue Dangly Flowers

Light and Dark Pink Dangly Floral Charm Bracelet

I’ve had requests for other versions of the flowers so we’ll see what I can figure out. Pansies and orchids, oh my! I guess you could say I’m exploring my flower garden this month.