Play Big with your Materials!

I tell my students, play with your beads. Play with your materials. And then I get hold of this really cool new product -- Artistic Wire Mesh--from Beadalon, and I don't follow my own advice--at first.

Check out my progression from dainty dabbling to dynamic play.

First I cut small 6" pieces of Artistic wire mesh from a one yard piece. I think I was trying to be frugal. So I pulled my little pieces tentatively into  ginko leaf shapes, which I wire to Beadalon rubber tubing. YAWN!

Ok maybe aspects of these are okay and I will apply some of the design to other works. But these are certainly not a showcase for the Artistic Wire Mesh.

 What was I afraid of? I fold again into little controlled crinkles.

And wire them up with pearls. Not pushed far enough.
I needed to loosen up my grip!

I get a rush of abandon and take my whole 2 yard stash out. With great glee that I pulled it, crunched it, played with the way it molded and stretched--and finally, FINALLY, took advantage of its best properties--the generous amount of stretch, the firm but not scratchy holding of a shape, the density of color in the crunches and folds.

What did I ultimately come up with? Stay tuned! And remember--you get what you PLAY for!

Jewelry Television July 2011

 Knoxville, Tennessee, home of Jewelry Television. I was so honored to have Beadalon and John Bead Corp ask me to represent their products. Never realized how much FUN it was going to be!

I've talked before about how much preparation happens before taping TV shows, right? This was no exception. Even with all I did at home before flying to Knoxville, I ended up spending a whole day there working on new loom pieces. Luckily, there was a marathon of all the Indiana Jones movies on TV, so I set up on my big comfy hotel bed and beaded happily away. It was too hot out to do much sightseeing anyway. (But next visit, Dollywood!)

Yes, I'm totally warped. 3 looms at once.

Using the Spin n Bead is great--I never would make something like this without one, since stringing beads one by one for each strand braided here would take forever.

Showed these loomwork cuffs on Facebook already. That Beadalon loom is really easy to use. Definitely fast--and addicting!

Earrings loomed with the different Delica kits from John Bead. Each colorway collection is for sale on the JTV site. If they haven't sold out yet!

Margo and Kim, the Jewel School hosts, getting ready at their desk in the studio.

I'm setting up at my little desk on the set.

And a short video tour of the Jewel school set right before taping, with a little cameo from Daniel John of John Bead Corp who came down to watch the show. I'll let ya'll know when my next appearance will be and what cool stuff I'll be sharing!

 

Beads, Baubles, and Jewels July 2011

Working on the PBS tv show Beads, Baubles, and Jewels is fun work, but most of the work goes on before we even get to the studios in Cleveland Ohio where the show is taped. Each segment needs finished pieces (eye candy, right?) And, because we don't have much time to get the lesson across, many of the projects have stepped out stages of techniques made ahead of time so we can effectively teach you all how to do something in such a short span of time. Keep in mind most of the designs are original and newly invented or reinvented just for the show, so there's a lot of design thought put into each lesson. Here are some examples of what I did for the new Series 1500 which will air in September:

For the Beadalon sponsored colored wire and large bead segment, I took size 2/0 seed beads from John Bead and wove them into a stylish wraparound cuff with a Tierra Cast wing charm. wanting to show the colored wire, I chose copper colored designer stringing wire to play off the bright blue beads, and used copper findings. Plus I added in Swarovski Caribbean Blue rondelles to push how to use big beads and colored wire in bead weaving.

For the lesson on using seed beads to embellish larger wood and resin beads, I already had tons of beaded beads 'cause I LOVE making those.

Getting ready for the spoke bead lesson still took hours of preparation time to show the stages of each beaded bead in a only couple minutes of air time. Here you can see just two of the stages of spokes being stitched ahead of time, so on the air I can pick up a stage in progress and do a couple stitches, and describe the steps without taking time to do all the actual stitching.

At the studio, each lesson is set out on large cookie sheets with all that will be shown on the air-- stepped out sections, materials and tools, and finished jewelry. I tape my stepped out sections on large white index cards to transport them from home to studio--and each one has a needle prestrung on the WildFire thread, also to save time on the air.

So much work, right? But it sure builds my excitement to get revved for each show!

I hope it all works for you--but be sure to let me know how I can do things better or what other seed beady lessons, materials and tools you want to see from me.

Happy Beading!

Bead and Button Show 2011

Stuff I Had to Share From 

the Bead & Button Show 2011

Talk about an exciting portal! 

I am there before it opened to the public, 

which is why there's no public there yet.

Doing my demos for John Bead 

on Hat/Tiara/Hair Fascinator Day. 

I showed folks all about Miyuki tila beads.

Everyone is crazy about those 

cool two-holed beads. 

(And thanks for the vintage hat, Mom!)

Ezel Findings had the most fabulous magnetic clasps including this style with Swarovski crystals on gunmetal. YUMMY! 

Sun does exquisite beadwork to show off her findings, don't you agree?

 Lea Zinke's enamel rings

as modeled by Denise Peck.

Lea's lampwork was truly stunning, too.

(Denise is the editor in chief of 

Step by Step Wire Jewelry!)

Geri Warhaftig lampwork beads 

in the Bead Dreams showcases. LOVE!

AMAZING polymer from John Rose, 

a polymer bead winner in Bead Dreams. 

Black and neolithic, no wonder I like it!

A class in copper electroplating revealed alchemy magic as nature became immortalized in metal.

Suzanne Golden's HUGE spiral bangle.

Ginormous talent in a little lady!

 As a CREATE YOUR STYLE with Swarovski Elements Ambassador, I like to feature my sparkles in modern designs, such as my latest Dragon Cuff. Thanks to everyone who admired it at the show!

At the Vintaj booth, Jess and Betsy invited me and Denise Peck to play with a rolling mill style press to imprint metal blanks. 

Check out this little video of her demo. 

A must have, I must say!

I had time to soak my barking puppies in the hotel hot tub before heading back to the airport. AHHHHHH. And now--I can't wait until the Bead and Button Show 2012!

PS: Special thanks to John Bead who brought me to the show!

If you're a wholesale designer or store owner--go register at their site at www.johnbead.com.

Meet me at the Bead & Button Show 2011

Come see me at the
Bead & Button Show June 10 & 11th, 2011
JOHN BEAD booth #1028-1030
(c) 2011 Leslie Rogalski All Rights Reserved to designs and content on this site 
   

Friday June 10, 10:30am-12:30pm
Easy Bow Farfalle Bead Bangle Demo

Friday June 10, 3:00pm-5:00pm 

Miyuki Tila Bead RAW (Right Angle Weave) Cuff Demo 

Saturday June 11, 10:30am-12:30pm
Miyuki Tila Bead RAW (Right Angle Weave) Cuff Demo

Saturday June 11, 3:00pm-5:00pm
Miyuki Tila Bead Square Stitch with Herringbone Cuff Demo

See you there!

Upcycled jewelry: PASTA

I recently won a cool book from Bead Unique
  for my submission to their upcycled jewelry contest.
I had a bunch of stuff I'd created for
a previous April Fool's Day Beading Daily post.
  I called it FAUXLYMER jewelry.

Here's a group of pasta noodle beads. I used Sharpie marker to add color and stripes, wooden accents (Also striped with a marker) and annealed steel wire. 

Detail: This bead has a slim ziti inside another ziti. 

Ridges are colored with Sharpie marker, 

and the ends wired with annealed steel.

 My fauxlymer cuff was the piece which won me the book.

More ziti, waxed linen and wooden accent beads.

Thanks Bead Unique!

Totally tubular beaded beads

On my beading mat April 18th, 2011:
I'm making really super fast and easy peyote beaded beads by stitching small flat strips and zipping them together into tubes. I'm making a ton of them in about every shade of green Delica I have–and if you know me, you know I have a lot of green beads! I made tubes using some shiny hexes too.I am just tubing away, because I need to have as many components as I can in order to play when I make whatever it is I will make. Yesterday Mike and I drove to Baltimore (met friends, had Bertha's mussels) and I beaded in the car all the way there and all the way back!

Tip for car beading--work in larger sizes, it's easier to get your needle through larger bead holes if your needle is bumping around! I worked in size 8 hexes and size 10 Delicas. Hardly any finger stabbing at all. ;-)

I'll be combining the tubes with the Swarovski Dorado 2X crystal bicones #5328 into... something! Stay tuned!