"Needlepointers"

magazine arrived yesterday much to my delight. Normally I stop whatever I am doing and tear (figuratively speaking) through the issue ogling at the photographs and ads. Oh yes, I don’t miss a single ad; how else would I discover what stash I need? Except yesterday I didn’t get to it right away and I forgot about it! Well, it was lost in a relatively small stack of mail that shouldn’t have been delivered in the first place, i.e. newspaper fliers, aarp stuff, bills.

This morning as I “stumbled to the kitchen to pour myself a cup of ambition” I spied with my little eye the corner of said magazine peeking out from under the other stuff and voila! this morning’s entertainment revealed. Sudoku be off with you and take your eraser with you I have other fish to fry.

It's a stellar issue and while perusing I noticed an ad or blurb on a new stranded silk thread from Planet Earth, Silk Opal (somebody out there knows how to name a thread); brand new to me, never heard of the company. But it looks like something I would enjoy using and I'm sure I’ll soon be on the hunt and will let you know, if you haven't already tried it yourself and you could let me know. Then Zweigart  has new Congress cloth colors including Khaki, Spice, Merlot and Country Blue for future stash enhancement; it's on the list as I pride myself on keeping a cut of all colors on hand, just in case. Seeing these and an ad for Kreinik I remembered that recently I found, in limited quantity, a few colors of DMC’s Memory Thread and Kreinik’s Holographic braid. Both products are certainly wonderful to look at,  likewise to use I'm sure.

One thing leading to another and since I had my camera out I took photos of  my new threads and more beautiful beads that I ordered from Robin Atkins' website. Robin has a unique selection of beads and all those that are pictured here are from her.

In the next day or two I should be receiving a supply from Fire Mountain Gems on the advice from a thoughtful reader pointing out that she thought their catalog was the phone book when it arrived. I just checked it all out online and sure enough they had some pretty special beads that were hopelessly irresistible; especially when one is trying to build up one’s bead stash. That should do it for now with the beads.

Thank you for making it all the way down here; I have three ornaments that I want to show you that are on the verge of being finished and those will be up by tomorrow so I'll have some stitching to share then. See you soon.

Beads Glorious Beads

A few weeks ago I had the good fortune to be drawn as one of the four winners of Robin Atkins giveaway of her first book, "One Bead at a Time" now out of print. It arrived and the obsession began. Many of you know that I've never been an avid beader, I loved the way beading embellished my stitching, but I've never been good at it. Didn't know how to choose, place or attach beads. Plus I was always stabbing my fingers with those thin needles.

That was then this is now. After reading my prize book and then purchasing the companion book, I was hooked. DD and I took a trip up to Frisco, CO to a bead shop that we had visited once before. Luna's Beads and Glass has more beads than you can poke a needle through. I nearly lost the nest egg, not because they are unusually expensive, but because there are so many temptations. I'm not good at resisting temptations either.

Luna's also offers a variety of classes. And as a cool coinkydink, I learned that Luna's shop owner has studied under Robin Atkins. Small world. I wanted to show you some of the fabulous gems I found. I went for color and shape since I don't have any particular project in mind. But I'll be ready once I decide.

Check out Robin's blog Bead Lust and get inspired. On her website, she also has beads for sale and other accessories like needles, beading thread and stuff like that. Beautiful stuff. Robin's books can also be purchased on her website. I used to think that most beads were used for jewelry making and that in large part is a true statement, but using your imagination to embellish your needlework, or create, of all things a bead journal, opens many possibilities for expression. It's all so fascinating and oozes of creativity. I'm just getting started on this odyssey and cannot wait to make something wonderful. Heart to Hands gives ideas on what type of project to start but also includes 20 different techniques for creating  forms, textures and even ruffles. Oooo a bead ruffle. BTW "One Bead at a Time" is now available as an eBook on Robin's website. Thank you once again for stopping by for a visit today, I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the wonderful beads available; I write as if this is something new but I know there are many bead artists out there that have been practicing this art for years, it's only new to me.