Mixed Mayhem Studios

My Bead Soup Arrived!

2012-02-19T20:07:00.000-06:00

I am so thrilled with what I received from the lovely Ági. I can honestly say these are things I never would have picked out for myself, which makes them perfect! The Bead Soup Blog Party is designed to be challenging, and I certainly have one.

So without further rambling, here's the goods: turquoise colored magnesite, gold faceted metal beads, a magnificent antiqued metal pendant, and a hamsa hand clasp. I have to admit that the clasp is possibly my most favorite thing of all. It is delicate, and in a great antique copper. I already know what I'm going to be doing with it!

My bead soup!

It's really that pendant that is going to prove the most challenging. I don't usually opt for such large focals, or for metal-anything much at all unless it's something I've wire wrapped. I've certainly got plenty of inspiration for it, though. I'm thinking of making something Indian inspired. I've been on an Indian movie kick -- particularly period pieces like Jodhaa Akbar.

The pendant I think looks more African than Indian, but I think I can make it work anyhow. A Middle Eastern theme is really what I'm opting for. I particularly like the finish as I could use just about any combination of metals and it would look great. I'm actually thinking of mixing silver, copper, and gold in the piece.

That's it for now. Stay tuned for the results! The big reveal of creations made from the BSBP is March 3rd! In the interim, Lori Anderson, the amazing hostess, has created a really cool Facebook group for the event. It's open to all beaders and fellow crafty people. You might also enjoy checking out the other participant's blogs to see what goodies they got.

You'll be hearing more from me soon! I have some totally awesome news to share.

Much love!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T04:30:00.001-06:00

Hello everyone! Sorry about the extended silence from me as of late. I have been super busy working and taking two courses online by Ramit Sethi. Dude is brilliant. Seriously. I could ramble on endlessly in a very fangirl-esque manner about how much I've learned from his materials, but I'll spare you.

I just wanted to take a moment to wish everyone a very happy Valentine's Day! Also, for those that signed up for my giveaway for a handmade card, they are officially in the mail as of yesterday. I apologize, especially for those overseas, if you receive yours a bit late. My schedule has been crazy hectic, but things should calm down in the next couple of months after I finish moving.

Don't worry, I won't be completely MIA during that time. There's still the Bead Soup Blog Party to look forward to!

Much love!

Navigation Buttons

2012-01-28T23:07:00.000-06:00

They're that exciting. No really. Seriously! Check it out. To your left. Yup. I moved the navigation bar. Now for the fun part:

Hover your mouse over those buttons.

Oh yeah. Those are smoking hot rollover buttons. Okay. Maybe not "hot" per se. But they'll do for now.

Yeah. I'm a dork. And I've stayed up too late working on mundane, but necessary things. This blog almost looks like a regular ol' webpage now. And you can easily jump between my pages you probably didn't know existed AND my other related blogs that currently lack posts that you also didn't know existed.

Good times, guys! Time to go clean up the mess in my kitchen (don't ask), and get to sleep. Jewelry stuff tomorrow. It's happening. There will be photos.

Much love!

Burn Out + Photo Inspiration

2012-01-28T20:16:00.001-06:00

Yup. I did it. I burnt myself out in a flurry of blog posts. Hence the overwhelming silence from me for the past week or so. Might be pushing two weeks now. It's hard for me to tell. I tend to get caught up in a whirlwind of work and stress which pulls me away from my creative endeavors. Very. Frustrating.

Anyhow. In an effort to get my creative groove back, I've decided to experiment. That always makes me happy. Here's my current experiment. I'm going to take the colors (and possibly the subject matter) from this photo I took today, and use them as my color palette in my next couple of projects.


This little guy was outside my apartment when I was walking my dog. He's a mockingbird.

Feel free to join me in this little challenge. I'd certainly love to see everyone else's results, so if you join the challenge, send me links and photos, etc. This photo will serve as inspiration through next Saturday (February 4th), at which point I'll take and post a new photo.

Much love,

New Layout + Other Fun Stuff

2012-01-16T15:54:00.002-06:00

Just a heads up to everyone: I'm tinkering with my blog layout currently, so if you see something that looks especially hideous ... I'm working on it. n__n;

I'm hoping to get my blog better organized so that if people want to see just jewelry, they can see just jewelry, and if they're more interested in my art and sketches, they can see just that, etc. Bear with me while I get this all sorted and figured out.

ALSO: I made it into the Bead Soup Blog Party! Whoo! So excited! My partner is from Hungary which is so neat. Other countries have always held such fascination for me. I'm very excited to get to work with Ms. Agnes. She creates amazing seed beaded / woven items. ♥

That's it for now. Stay tuned for the new layout. :)

Much love!

Behind in the Times

2012-01-14T11:07:00.002-06:00

You know how I said in my last blog post I had something fun planned for Friday the 13th? It's still true. I know it's the 14th and all, and even though I'm a day late, I still want to share the awesomeness with you!

Yesterday was a horrible day. There were tears. I prefer not to delve into it on a public forum such as this, so let's all move on together to something better, shall we?

Click the image to go to the listing. ♥

Without further delay, here's the awesome thing:

I have these adorable skull pendants, but I've decided I want to focus more on fancy pants gemstone jewelry than cutesy things. Will I stop making cutesy things? Not likely. I do still attend anime conventions as an artist on the regular.

Friday the 13th always makes me think of Halloween things and zombies. What better way to celebrate than have a Pay It Forward sale of sorts with the skull pendants that are collecting dust on my desk?! I love it. I love Friday the 13th. Let's do it!

But wait, "What's a Pay It Forward sale?" you ask. It means you only pay for the $0.20 Etsy listing fee, and shipping. That's what! :)

So have it, darlings. Apologies for the delay, and darn it! I got so overwhelmed I neglected my Friday Feature! We'll have to have two this next week to make up for it, says I.

Much love!

P.S. There's still spots available to receive a free, handmade Valentine's Day card~!

Valentine's Day Gift - Free, from me to you!

2012-01-12T19:20:00.001-06:00


I so want to try my hand at making this! Link is to the tutorial.

Ack! I can't believe I forgot to post this! My bad, guys. I've gotten totally distracted learning amazing new things. Sometimes I get so many ideas in my head at once that I forget half of them. Sad, but true.

So here's the deal: I want to send you a free, handmade Valentine's Day card with no strings attached.

You're reading that correctly. You don't have to "like" anything. You don't have to "follow" me anywhere. You don't have to purchase anything. All of those things are unimportant to me at this current time. What I want is to make someone's day a little brighter this Valentine's Day.

In order for me to do that, I need only one thing: Your name and address. That probably sounds kind of creepy coming from a random stranger on the internet. I'll admit. I'm pretty strange, but I will tell you this: I hate spam with a fiery passion.

I'm serious. Can't stand it. I also hold much contempt for mailing lists. Even the ones I sign up for! Some of them look amazing, and then you sign up and it's just..... crap. Can. Not. Stand. This. That's why my own mailing list gets an email from me 2 times a month MAX, and what I have to say or share is relevant content.

That all having been said: You will not be added to my mailing list, I will not send you anything other than a Valentine's Day card this one time only, and I positively will not show up on your doorstep like some deranged creeper of an artist. I'm a highly antisocial creature as it is. Sightings of me are pretty rare.

So. If you'd like to have a Valentine's Day card, click this link to go to my sign up page. Not your cup of tea? Uncomfortable receiving a gift from a person you don't know? That's fine. I understand. No hard feelings.

But for the rest of you who are willing to take a chance and don't mind entertaining my whimsical gift-giving, go ahead and sign up. Be quick about it, though! I'm only sending out 100 cards. After that, you'll just have to try and catch me in and around DFW on Valentine's Day. I plan on leaving notes in random places and handing out cards to more strangers, but they won't be nearly as fancy as the ones I'm making for this little project.

Other than card making, I'm doing some other special things for Valentine's Day. I've put together some special gift packages for custom design work that is available for a limited time. So if you are shopping around for gifts for your significant other, I've got some great deals for ya!

Oh, and another thing I forgot to mention earlier: Tomorrow is Friday the 13th. Expect something awesome. Be watching this blog or my Facebook account so you don't miss it!

Much love!

Silence + Wednesdays Are Cancelled

2012-01-12T17:09:00.000-06:00

Wow! I went a day without blogging. That somehow seems so strange now. That's probably a good thing. No worries, I was just really busy yesterday. Life happens, you know? More about what I've been busy doing later, as I have to announce that I'm .... canceling Window Shopping Wednesdays.

Yup.

I'm just not feeling it, and when that happens, I get bored. When I get bored, nothing gets done. That is the way my brain functions. Also, there's a distinct chance that if I'm not interested, you all, my audience, are not interested as well.

Anyhow. I have some pretty interesting things in the works, and I can't wait to tell you all about it!

Much love,

Good, Bad, and Plenty of Rain

2012-01-10T15:00:00.032-06:00

English Summer Rain and Cloud Necklace by MIXKO

I have my good days, and my bad days as most people do. I got to thinking about this, because yesterday had the overwhelming potential to be utterly terrible. But it wasn't.

Here's what happened:

I arrived to the train station as usual, on time, without much fuss. It was raining, which wasn't too big a deal. It meant driving more carefully since the roads were slick, but not really an issue. I also brought my umbrella, and I carry a small fleece blanket with me for napping on the train and keeping warm at work.

Settled into my seat, I'm ready to go to work. Alas, the train itself had other ideas. There were some mechanical issues with the running lights, which meant that the train could not go faster than 20mph. Not so great.

Rainbow umbrellas = awesome.

Finally, we arrive at my first stop to hop on the rail. It's still raining, and it's quite cold. The bad news this time is that the line I need to take isn't what rolls to a stop in front of me. I hop on the light rail anyway and ride it as far as I can if only to escape the cold and rain for a few minutes.

Cue waiting for another 20 minutes in the dark and cold for the right light rain to take me to my final stop. It arrives, I hop off at the correct stop, and trudge along in my 15 minute walk to the office in the rain wishing I had worn better shoes. I also kind of wished I owned better shoes. I am very envious of all you ladies I saw yesterday who had fashionable, rubber boots. I think I need to invest in a pair!

And a bigger umbrella. A rainbow one, perhaps?

Anyhow, I finally make it to work about 30 minutes later than usual. Not so big a deal, but my canvas mary jane shoes are officially soaked. I take them off and stuff them with paper towels to try and soak up as much moisture as I can, and wiggle my way under my blanket while sitting at my desk to keep warm.

It was a rough start to an early Monday morning, but manageable. The rest of the day proceeds as it generally always does, and thankfully the rail and train home didn't have any issues. The unpleasant part was being really, really cold due to icky, soaked shoes.

What's funny about this to me is that I wore the same pair of shoes in a rainstorm some weeks ago walking to the rail stop after work. I just barely managed to get them wet. I really wonder how I managed that given how icky it was yesterday walking in shoes that were squirmy, squishy, and wet.

It really wasn't the worst day, but had I been in a darker mood, I'd have made it so much worse all on my own. I'm glad I managed to stay positive through the entire thing. Though I have to admit, it did help that when I got home my mom had already started dinner which made the apartment smell delicious. Plus, I have a cuddly warm dog and fuzzy socks to snuggle up on the couch with.

At least for a little while. There was much work to be done! I still haven't successfully worked with those purple beads. I tinkered last night while listening in on a webcast, but the results were less than stellar. I actually ended up un-doing the entire little flower I wove as, well… it was less of a flower and much more of a mess.

Here's to staying positive and looking on the bright side of things. I think today I ought to make a rainbow-something.

Much love!

Seed Bead Quest ... Over Already?

2012-01-09T19:05:00.000-06:00

I imagine I'll still be on an eternal hunt for purple, opaque seed beads, but wow. Do these ever satisfy my need for them currently. I am very, very happy about these beads. I wasn't entirely certain when I ordered them if the dark purple ones were opaque, but they ARE which is so exciting.

Purple seed beads, copper bar chain, and Swarovski crystals.

The other items are lovely as expected. I'm still waiting on the pin vise

and bur cup tool which is a bit of a downer, but oh well. I at least have these pretties~! I will soooo be finishing up my earrings designs with those crystals this week. Totally in love with those colors.

Also exciting? I finished this bracelet last night! I had been working on it since Friday, but ohhh how I adore it. It's a strange culmination of things I've tinkered with and learned in the past year: wire wrapping, beadweaving, and a hint at chainmaille. I think I might have to make myself a choker or something in a similar design. But... later. This was a pain in the but. I made every little piece by hand. No head pins, no eye pins. All wire wrapped or woven. I even made the toggle clasp!

That's it for now. I am desperate to get to work on something with those purple beads!

Much love,

For Serious.

2012-01-08T19:11:00.000-06:00

Somewhere out there, the powers that be have heard my eternal griping about my inability to find opaque purple seed beads. Look at what I found at Wal-Mart, no less:

What the heck..! Also. This photo does not do those hot pink seed beads justice. They are hot pink, scald-your-eyes-magenta, and obnoxious as hell. I love them. Apologies for the messy desk view. I've been a very busy girl. I have new Etsy shop listings like the one below to prove it:

I personally cannot wait to test out that particular bead-weaving technique on those hot pink and purple beads. Seriously? Epic. I even have some round, hot pink glass beads calling my name. I'll keep you all posted on the results! Now if only I could find said seed beads in a darker shade of purple. Hint. Hint. Powers that be. ;)

Psssst. By the way! You need to sign up for the Bead Soup Blog Party! Doooo it! Doooo it!

Much love!

Fun Work

2012-01-07T05:00:00.013-06:00

My Saturdays are always busy, but my everyday is very busy. Saturdays are special, though, because that's the day I get to do the majority of my "fun work."

"Fun work" entails, beading, reading tutorials, more jewelry making, taking photos, editing photos, listing items, and working on artwork. My Saturday has the tendency to blur into Sunday mornings depending upon just how late I stay up, but it's a labor of love.

Speaking of love, February is just around the corner. I sometimes seriously loathe how quickly holidays and months creep up, but I've got my eye on you February! Here's what's on my desk this weekend for creating:


Brecciated jasper, garnets, agate, and some blue Swarovski crystal hearts


The piece of agate again, garnet 4mm rounds, Czech glass hearts, and more Swarovski crystals.

Very Valentines-ish, yes? And also very January. I'm lookin' at you, January birthstone babies. ;)

Much love,

Friday Feature: Katwise

2012-01-06T05:00:00.001-06:00

Katwise & her colorful coat! ♥

If you're on Etsy, chances are you've seen some of Katwise's work. At the very least you've seen work inspired by her creations. I am so utterly infatuated with this style of upcycled sweaters, jackets, and coats. I lack experience in sewing, much to my chagrin, but I would positively love to try my hand at one of her tutorials.

I think, once I've moved and am settled in April, that I will begin collecting sweaters to do just that. It's a lovely notion to aspire to, and by the time I'm through, I'd wager it'd be just cool enough to start wearing said coat.

Much love!

Thinking (and Writing) Ahead!

2012-01-05T05:00:00.012-06:00

You might not have noticed, but most of my blog posts as of late have been automated. I've been writing them out a day or two before as ideas strike me. This is pretty awesome, because of instead of forgetting about said ideas I actually wrote them out. I'm feeling quite a bit more productive thanks to this.

This method of writing it right now and scheduling it for another date has become extremely helpful. It keeps my blog current, but it also keeps me up to date. The more I write, the more it keeps the ideas flowing for what to write about next! I also quite like having a tentative schedule for certain posts. I don't think I could withstand having a set theme for every day of the week. As much as I am a creature of habit, I am also resistance to things that are… overly structured, I suppose you could say?

I like a good happy medium, and prefer balance above all other things.

The schedule so far is:

• Window Shopping Wednesdays: I rarely purchase things (at least not on a whim), but save lists for ideas and projects later down the line when I have more time and/or expendable income.
• Friday Features: When I stumble across an inspiring artist or shop, I've just got to share it! I intend to focus primarily on small businesses run by other artisans.

You've already seen a couple of these posts, and they will continue to arrive, without delay, on Wednesday and Friday. The rest of the week ya'll are just going to have to watch for whatever clever ideas I've come up with.

Also of interest, I've started a new project that is still under construction. I'm hoping to have the blog layout spruced up (and this blog, too) by the end of this weekend. If you happen to live in the DFW area (or perhaps even if you don't, if I have my way), you're going to want to read about this! More details will follow in the next couple of days as my project begins officially.

What sort of projects have you started? Got anything planned or are you thinking of trying something new? I'd love to hear about it! Especially if you've blogged about it. Leave me a link to follow. :)

Much love!

WWS: Oh man. I actually bought something.

2012-01-04T05:00:00.009-06:00

It's Wednesday Window Shopping time! Except... well. I actually bought a couple of things. What the heck? Cue the guilt. This is where my guilt says, "You shouldn't have done that, you're going to need that $27.00, silly face."

But then I say, wait a minute. I didn't just splurge on beads. Oh no! I bought actual tools I could use and have been needing. Tools are good. Especially since I did a good, good thing and gave some of my old tools that were doing nothing but taking up premium space on my desk away to a darling family friend's daughter who will more than likely put them to good use.

Here's what was on the shopping list that was ... gasp! ... actually purchased:

• Chrysolite Opal 5mm Swarovski Bicone Beads
• Cyclamen Opal 5mm Swarovski Bicone Beads
• Copper Plated 1mm x 13mm Bar Chain (3 ft)
• Czech Seed Beads 6/0 "Purple Parasols" Lot Mix 1 Ounce
• Eurotool Pocket Crimper Smallest Size Crimping Pliers
• Eurotool Wire Rounder Tool Set; Includes Pin Vise & Two Cup Burs

I got all of the above from Beadaholique. I had joined their mailing list earlier last month and got a $5.00 off promotional code. So I managed to snag that entire hot mess for $27.01 total. Not a bad deal, especially after comparing the prices of the tools I purchased to my local craft stores. I don't want to tell you how much I saw a similar pair of crimp bead pliers cost at Joann's the other night (which I most certainly did not purchase). Sure, I could've gotten a better deal with one of my wholesalers, but that typically requires spending a whole lot more money than I cared to, and involves way more beads than my over flowing inventory can handle.

You will noticed on that list that some beads did make the cut, but the crystals in particular match the rivoli crystals I have that have been haunting my desk for some months. I couldn't resist these colors, and I've had two pair of earrings with these colors in mind for quite some time.

The fantastic, purple Czech glass seed beads are because I have the damnedest time finding seed beads in purple! Do any more experienced beaders out there know why it is there seems to be NO opaque purple (without a luster.. just regular ... purple purple) seed beads available anywhere? Is it the dying process? Is the color just that impossible?

I don't know what the deal is, but if the colors are anything close to what was on Beadaholique's website, I'll be content. Mostly. My quest for purple seed beads shall continue. I'll take photos of the goods when they're delivered so as to keep everyone up to date on this "quest" of mine.

Something that for serious is on the "wishlist" at the moment are replacement jaws for these pliers. The jaws are worn enough that they actually scratched some copper wire the other day. It's quite the predicament since I love these pliers, and my local Hobby Lobby seems to..... no longer carry the spare jaws. They once did when I originally purchased said pliers, but now I'm at a loss as to what to do. Next time I'm in the store, I'm going to have to check out the back of the packaging for the manufacturer to see about re-ordering parts.

Well. That's it for now! Thanks for following a long. I hope everyone's New Year so far is off to a rockin' good start.

Much love,

Time Management Skillz

2012-01-03T20:29:00.000-06:00

I'm not going to lie. My skillz in time management are often lacking. Part of it is because life interferes. The other part is because I let life interfere, and I end up thoroughly distracted in a not-so-good-way. I'm subscribed to a whole mess of emails from business I find inspiring that help me to combat this. At the very least, if I'm going to waste time, it's going to be "wasted" learning from others I admire.

The people are: Marie Forleo, Laura Roeder, Justine Smith, and Ramit Sethi. These people sell their knowledge, essentially, but they also provide great tools for free in their emails. I am more than happy to pay attention and follow along. I've already learned some great things from reading said emails, watching videos, and downloaded their how-to-guides, etc.

Ramit Sethi won my attention today (but Miss Marie was a close second today -- love that lady ♥), and let me tell you why: This man gets right to the point. He's even what some people might think of as, well, a big jerk! It's not so much that he's a jerk, it's that he gets straight to the point. No sugar coating. If you don't like it, he encourages you to leave.

Here's part of what the awesome email I got today from him that I found to be particularly poignant:

• "Time is as much a mindset as it is the minutes ticking away as you’re reading this."
• "How much time are you spending on stuff that doesn’t give you anything back?"
• "...results — not time — are what matter."

If you are looking for a swift kick in the rear in the form of an email to help motivate you? I highly recommend subscribing to these people, especially Ramit. If you're a bit sensitive... I'd probably start off with Marie. She's funny. Ramit? You might not like him the way I like him.

Anyhow. Just thought I'd share the interesting things I've come across that are tick-ticking away in my brain. I feel like I'm on the cusp of an idea that's just within my grasp that could be utterly amazing.

Do you ever get that feeling? It's a bit like teetering on the edge of something, but giddy like you're about to jump into a ball pit like a little kid to swim around. :)

That's all I have to share for now. I'll keep you posted on my ideas once I've got them sorted. Time to make some lists and then take action.

Much love!

And the winners are...

2012-01-02T12:41:00.000-06:00

I don't know about you all, but my New Year has already started off with a bang. I realized late last night after I was already in bed, drifting off to sleep that I forgot to make my post about the winners of my most recent giveaway! I encountered some rather interesting technical difficulties yesterday that diverted my attention for the majority of the day as... I am my mother's tech support for when things with her laptop go wrong.

When her laptop goes wrong, it goes terribly wrong. It's borderline comical, really. Tech support distractions aside, let's get this giveaway ... given away! 8D

And without further delay, our winners are, according to random.org's fantastic randomizer:

Madison wins the grand prize with the beads, and Karen wins a pendant! Thanks so much to everyone for entering. I'm planning more giveaway events in the very near future, so please stick around. There will be more opportunities to pick up awesome freebies. I'll be contacting the winners here shortly.

Much love & Happy New Year! ♥

Friday Feature: BugUnderGlass

2011-12-30T18:24:00.000-06:00

I don't intend to share just Etsy shops every time I do a feature, but this I just had to. Seriously. Are you seeing this? I'm seeing it. That is a real blue morpho butterfly.

If I had a wall all my own to decorate (which hopefully by April I will!), this would be on it. I wish I could decorate my entire room revolving around this (and maybe some labradorite made into something ornate to display?).

So maybe bugs being displayed under glass isn't the most unique thing in the world, but the guy who runs this shop clearly has a passion for it, and he does it all himself. Museum quality even. His business is even "green certified" ..? Sounds pretty impressive.

He does more than just pretty butterflies. There are strange beetles riding bikes and playing instruments. Yup. I just wrote that. Beetles riding bikes and playing instruments.

The mental image makes you smile, doesn't it? And that's coming from a person who would probably squeal quite loudly if faced with a beetle (particularly one of that size) in person, dead or alive. That having been said, I think I'll be sticking to pining after that stunning blue morpho.

Much love!

Wednesday Window Shopping: Introduction

2011-12-28T00:01:00.001-06:00

List from grocerylists.org ~ very funny stuff!

I window shop a lot. Especially online as it means I can think in peace without other shoppers or salespeople in my face. Pinterest is now making this habit of mine even worse. The OCD neurotic head case inside of me also thoroughly enjoys making lists (thank you, Pinterest, for enabling this further). Before I purchase anything at all, ever, I make a list.

"Window shopping" is an activity that shoppers engage in by browsing shops with no intent to purchase, possibly just to pass the time between other activities, or to plan a later purchase. [source]

This is partially because I'm forgetful, but it's also because I'm thrifty and like having a plan when I go to the store. I also browse sales ads and clip coupons like you wouldn't believe. I actually do all the shopping in my household, because I am that good at coming away from the store with an amazing amount of stuff for usually less than $100.00 which keeps us stocked for two weeks.

Kiln for metal art clay. I will have this someday!

Anyhow. Back to window shopping. I've decided that is what Wednesday's are for. Have I mentioned I am also particularly fond of alliteration? It's true. So from here on out, I shall be sharing small lists of things, more often that not crafting supplies or jewelry, that I would love to purchase, but otherwise have no intent to (yet).

The List:

1. Art Clay kit and a kiln!
Oh how I pine for this. The things I could create!

2. This gemstone for wire wrapping purposes.

3. These beads. Because you know... I need more beads.

I think that's enough for now. My lists will probably be more concise and make a little more sense in the future with a bit of planning. Thanks for following along with me, anyway!

Is there something special you've been saving up for? Do you also make lists? Tell me about it!

Recycled Packaging

2011-12-26T00:01:00.001-06:00

Handmade, Recycled Paper by PulpArt

Recycling, being green, and generally doing your part to better the Earth as we know it is all over the media, all over every bit of marketing you see nowadays, and most certainly on everyone's minds.
Sometimes, it can be pretty obnoxious (but really, that's just me griping about overly intrusive marketing of commercial products -- I'll spare you that rant for another day).

I think the fact that "upcycling" and reusing old products for something new is suddenly trendy is hilarious. Don't get me wrong, I think that it's great! I truly am thrilled that the rest of the world has caught on.

The reason why I think it's funny, is because it's something that I've been doing for a long time. I'm not that old, but from the moment I learned about recycling in school in second grade, I've been quite adamant about it. Also, coming from a decidedly poor, country family, re-using things for a new purpose was just part of life. It's what we did, and what we continue to do.

Part of it stems from necessity. If you lack resources, you have to use everything you already have. "Necessity is the mother of invention," isn't just a saying. It's a fact of life! I also do not say this with any negativity. It's not a complaint. Just a statement of fact. It tickles me pink when I can find a new use for something old that might've ended up in the trash otherwise.

Sometimes having less forces you to be a little more creative. :)

That all having been said, this brings me to my point: the vast majority of all the packaging I use to ship my items from my shop are recycled.

The packing paper that's stuffed inside the mailers and USPS boxes and is wrapped around your items to protect them? That's from orders from my bead wholesaler. The paper usually arrives crumpled and stuffed in the bottom of my boxes.

The plastic bags that are wrapped around the items after I've wrapped them in paper just-in-case there's moisture leaking in somewhere? Also from my wholesaler. When I order more than one of a certain product, they tend to arrive stuffed inside those open mouthed plastic bags in addition to their individual plastic baggies.

The boxes I receive my products in are already made from recycled materials, and are great for storage. They've also ended up quite handing in packing things since my mother and I will be moving into a much more economical living space in March.

I'm always trying to think of clever ways to re-use things. I've decided most recently to try my hand at making recycled paper beads out of my old catalogs from Fire Mountain Gems that I have lying around. I'll keep you all posted on the results!

What ways do you re-use old items? Do you have any cool projects you have done or would like to try out? Feel free to leave me a comment! I'd love to test out a tutorial or project idea.

Much love!

Merry Christmas! Have a present! :D

2011-12-25T00:01:00.001-06:00

Good morning, world! It's Christmas here in Texas. It's probably already been Christmas for a while in other parts of the world.

It's been a very trying year, and the holidays have a curious way of making a person reflective. I assume it's because of all the memories involved, or maybe it's just because the year is ending. Either way, things have been interesting, but I don't want to dwell on that. It's time to move forward.

Despite everything, I truly believe this next year is going to be amazing. I am determined that it is going to be amazing. I've got some awesome things planned, and I can't wait to share them with everyone.

On the topic of sharing, I just wanted to point out that my ongoing giveaway is still ... going! I had intended on giving away a wire wrapped pendant to my 300th Twitter follower, but after a week, I have still not heard back from them. I have to assume at this point that they're not interested? I'm not sure.

So, I've decided to give it away here, instead! This giveaway will be simple. Just comment on this blog post. It will be my Christmas present to you! The other giveaways are still valid, too, so feel free to enter that as well. I don't mind.

Please... do not let me buy anymore until I've used some of these up!

Additionally, I... have to admit something. I have a bead addiction. I'm serious. Look at this. This organizer stands at 2 feet (60.96 cm) high and is 23" (58.42 cm) wide. All three drawers are overflowing with beads. To the side of that are smaller organizers of beads. There are fourteen of them that can no longer hold any additional beads.

And that's not even all of my beads. There's smaller containers all over the place. And this is just beads! I have way more art and craft supplies. In fact, the majority of what I own to my name is art and craft supplies. (Who needs things like clothes or new shoes?)

I am going to do the unthinkable. I am giving away some of my precious beads!

Here's how to win the beads:

• Comment here on this blog post and tell me what your favorite color is. That's the primary color of beads you'll be receiving. If you don't have a preference, I'll surprise you.
• I work primarily with gemstone beads, but also have a small cache of Czech glass and crystal. You'll receive mostly gemstone beads in a black jewelry box that measures 5.25x2.75x1". I can pack a whole mess of beads in this box. Especially if I take out the cotton insert.
• I'm going to need your email address. If it's not in your profile, please leave that in your comment so I can contact you if you win.

Here's how to win the wire wrapped pendant:

• Just post here telling me what color of glass and wire (copper, gold, silver) you'd prefer!
• I'm going to need your email address. If it's not in your profile, please leave that in your comment so I can contact you if you win.

You have until New Year's Eve to comment. The winners will be announced on New Year's Day (January 1st). You can enter for both the beads and the pendant. If you win, and have asked for both, I'll simply wire wrap a second pendant to give away to another person. It doesn't hurt my feelings any to have to make two. This giveaway is also open internationally. Thanks to my friend in Germany, I've already made just about every mistake there is to make with shipping internationally. I now consider myself a pro at shipping things overseas. You ought to thank her. ;)

Much love everyone! I hope your Christmas Day is amazing.

♥

Friday Feature: SeaFindDesigns

2011-12-23T09:40:00.000-06:00


"Path of Enlightment" - Beach Rock & Swarovski Crystal

In an effort to try and make the content of my blog arrive on a bit more consistent basis, I've decided on a schedule. At least partially. Fridays, from here onwards, shall be for featuring other artists that I've come across. So, to get things rolling, here's the first Friday Feature with SeaFindDesigns on Etsy.

I don't know what it is about sea glass, but I positively adore it! I actually would like to go on a vacation to a beach-y area at some point just to find some myself. I'm not a big fan of swimming or actually being in the ocean, but combing the beaches for little treasures sounds like such a fun adventure.

According to this Etsian's profile, all of the beach glass used in their designs is gathered by the family running the shop. I think that is totally amazing, as it means all of their works are truly one of a kind.

The image to your right is linked to the listing for the pendant shown here, and will lead you back to their shop for more lovely items to browse.

Hope everyone is having an excellent holiday season so far, and have a very Merry Christmas Eve ~ Eve. :)

Christmas Presents!

2011-12-21T16:39:00.000-06:00

This year I'm actually unable to purchase Christmas presents for friends or family, nor will I be receiving any, due to my financial situation.

Or so I thought!


My beautiful beads from Lori Anderson~!

I somehow wound up lucky enough to receive a package of beads from Lori Anderson in one of her latest giveaways. Talk about exciting! I just received it a couple of days ago, and I so cannot wait to start making things out of these beautiful beads. Most of them appear to be natural stones. I'm pretty sure those briolettes are red jasper, and I most certain those pretty blue focal points are sodalite. Not sure what the other mottled, creamy stones are, but they are soooo pretty!

I have already decided on a pair of earrings, and a couple of wire wrapped pendants that I want to make. Seriously, this made my week. And as far as weeks go, this one hasn't exactly been the best, but this was a fantastic Christmas present.

I've also decided, even before I got the package in my hands, that whatever I make from these beads will be given away in giveaways or in my new Lost & Found Project that I'm working on. I figured I'd share my good fortune with other people. Besides, who doesn't like giving people presents?

Hope everyone is having a great holiday season, and if I don't post again before this weekend ends, have a very Merry Christmas! ♥

Giveaways Galore!

2011-12-15T09:26:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone!

I would just like to say that the past jewelry show last Saturday was an awesome success, and was very encouraging. I've also been invited to participate in further events similar to it, so that is very exciting news. I also have my first prospective hostess for a jewelry party.

These are the findings that are in my friend's giveaway!

Speaking of excitement! A very dear friend of mine is hosting a giveaway on her blog on my behalf. She is giving away some AMAZING brass findings and focals that she has hand painted herself. I don't think I could ask for a sweeter, more sincere friend.

I so adore her style, and that little dragonfly is just to die for. I hope whomever wins these items thoroughly enjoys them. Also, her blog is definitely worth a read. She posts some pretty amazing stuff, and it's bilingual in both English and German, which I find fascinating.

In further giveaway news: I am hosting my own giveaway!


Recycled glass pendant in copper.

In fact, I will be hosting several giveaways! I recently reached 300 followers on Twitter, and my 300th follower received a wire wrapped, upcycled, glass pendant. The next giveaway will be at 500 followers! I will give one away to the 500th follower. If you refer the 500th follower in a #FF (Friday Follow for those not on Twitter) or by mentioning me (username: @mixedmayhem), you'll get one, too!

Also, I've just about gotten 100 'Likes' on my Facebook page. The person who gets number 100 will also receive a free glass pendant. In addition to that, I'll be giving away a second pendant to one of those 100 people! I'm only 25 'Likes' away from this goal, so the giveaway will be SOON! Hurry on over to my page for your chance to win.

The sort of pendants you'll receive are shown in this post. You'll get to choose from silver, copper, or gold colored wire, and what color of glass you'd prefer. The shapes are all pretty random, but you'll get a preview of the pendant prior to it being mailed to you. ♥

If you enter, please be sure to leave a comment on this blog post. I'm going to need a way to contact you should you win.

Good luck everyone!

Impromptu Show & Other Plottings

2011-12-09T10:13:00.001-06:00

I'm pretty excited to announce that I have been invited as a vendor at an annual Breakfast with Santa event in Richardson, Texas. It is definitely a last minute sort of deal, so today will be a mad rush once my time with the Day Job is spent. But I'm okay with it!

In fact, I am so thrilled! This is going to be a great opportunity to not only make sales, but connect with people. That's the part that I find the most exciting and enjoyable about shows. I am not an especially social creature, but when I'm talking about my artwork or other creative endeavors I am at my very best.

I'm also hoping to branch out from more than just online sales, and perhaps wiggle my way into a bit of wholesaling at local shops. I'm also working out details to see about hosting jewelry parties/trunk shows where I show up at said party with my displays. I've also been contemplating teaching art classes again.

It should be some pretty interesting stuff, and I've already got a couple of potential clients that want to host a jewelry party with me.

As for other plottings, I'm working out an actual schedule for my blog to be updated. My blog definitely needs more consistent content, and I've got a whole mess of ideas! The roadblock I continuously encounter is not having just a whole lot of free time.

So here's my goal for this weekend:

• Have an amazing time at the jewelry show this weekend no matter what kind of sales I have.
• Figure out my schedule for this blog AND pre-write / schedule them to be posted here on blogger.
• Get stuff moving on my Gaia Online project for Christmas (I love all you guys)
• Clean my room.

That last one is important. Anyone else a neat freak obsessed with organization but still somehow a slob? Yeah. That's me.

Thanks!

2011-12-07T09:39:00.001-06:00

I would really just like to take a moment and thank everyone who has come to my Facebook page, visited Tumblr, or replied to me on Twitter. You guys have really made a difference in my life, and I appreciate it more than I can ever say.

In an effort to keep the momentum we've built up, and it was definitely a group effort -- I couldn't have done all this by myself, I ask that you please keep sharing my links and keep twittering away about my shop. I'll be restocking it today, and I am totally blown away by this, because I have had nearly half my inventory that was listed purchased!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

What you've done means I can afford gas to work, and for my mom to go on more interviews this week. Her 40+ resumes she sent back did get her two interviews, so please keep us in your thoughts.

I am really pretty overwhelmed by the support I've received, and I might sound like a broken record, but all I can keep saying is THANK YOU!

I would like to show people thanks in a more tangible way, so I'm going to be brainstorming on a few give-away ideas. If you have any suggestions, I'd be more than welcome to hear them.

Thank you, yet again!

Needing Help

2011-12-05T15:19:00.000-06:00

If you haven't heard or read about it already, I'm in need of some serious help promoting my Etsy shops (http://mixedmayhem.etsy.com & http://mixedmayhemART.etsy.com). I've casually marketed my business prior and networked when time permits on my downtime from my Day Job, but it's suddenly become much more important and much more dire.

Here's why, if you haven't read on Facebook, Tumblr, or deviantART, etc, already:

My mother has been unemployed for a year as of December 1st. She's a marketer/salesperson in the healthcare field. She is phenomenal at what she does, but unfortunately the places she has interviewed with don't seem very keen on actually paying her to sell their products. Recently, she was offered a job, but the offer fell through due to an issue with their insurance considering her un-insurable (not health insurance, but liability insurance for the company).

So for a week or so, we were under the impression she had a job and in two weeks when she got her first pay check everything was going to be caught up and okay. We could finally relax. The relief was immense. We were even discussing possibly exchanging gifts for Christmas, albeit after the holiday when everything went on sale. We even talked about maybe buying new clothes as I've not had proper new clothes in years, and since I've lost some weight, nothing really fits me anymore. Also, most of my work shoes have holes in them.

Yesterday, my mom got the phone call from the physician she was going to work for telling her that she was not hireable due to the insurance liability issue. My mother might not ever be hireable again within her field that she has worked in for the past 20+ years. It took her a year to get that job, and she actually turned down an offer for another job to accept this one. She probably isn't going to get another chance like this any time soon. Today she has submitted 29 applications for employment today alone. I've also been looking for part-time employment in addition to my full-time job.

We can't survive on my income alone. For the past year we've barely scraped by with both my income and her unemployment benefits. Those benefits run out in June 2012. The lease on our apartment, which I can't even afford to pay by myself out of one paycheck alone, terms April 1st.

We are seriously struggling, which is why I am asking for help in promoting my shops. I don't want donations. I'm not begging for charity. I just need a little extra income to make ends meet and to make deposits on a new place to live that is more economical for us. I'd love for you to purchase artwork from me or jewelry, but if you can't afford to do so, please take just a few seconds to post a link to my shop on Twitter or to your friends on Facebook.

It would mean the absolute world to me, and it will make the difference between my mother and I being homeless.

If you do this for me, be sure to comment here or message me on Twitter. I'd be happy to return the favor if you're a fellow small business owner.

Thank you,

Bead Soup Blog Party Results!

2011-09-17T02:50:00.002-05:00

Wow! Has it been a whirlwind of a couple of weeks! The convention went great. I'll post more on that later though, as I have something different to share that's been in the works for a while. That's right! Results for the Bead Soup Blog Party. The beads I received from my awesome partner, Deanna Chase (you're going to want to check out her blog, too!), are in this post right here. The rest of what you see in the images below are all from my own personal collection.

This was definitely challenging. It was actually more challenging than I anticipated. I work with glass sometimes, but not glass like this. I definitely would not have ever picked out these beads on my own if I were given a choice in the matter ... which was the whole point of this event! I definitely consider this a success, and it is a very pretty necklace, but most certainly outside of my usual style. I do not wear chunky, heavy things, and this necklace is definitely that. I usually make intricate, delicate, small things.

It is very weighty, but there is also three strands of glass and crystal to blame, not to mention more metal spacers than I probably use in a year. It came together nicely though. Even though this isn't something I'd personally wear, I am fairly certain my mother would. She's just the sort of gal that can pull these kinds of things off with some serious class.

Oh, and I did leave out the wire beads. I was having the hardest time getting the wire to go all the way through them! I'm thinking of making a bracelet and some earrings to match this necklace later on when I have more time to play.

Ordinarily, I'd spend a bit more time with the photos and such, but I've done a good job of waiting to the last minute to get this done. Mind you it was mostly under duress. I thought I'd have plenty of time after AnimeFest to work on things, but then it turned out I'm having to work a whole mess of overtime at the Day Job.

But nevermind that not-so-fun-stuff! On to the shiny things you're here to see:

To check out all the other participants, visit the official Pretty Things Bead Soup Blog Party page. ♥

More Monitor Tinkering + Vintage Glass

2011-08-17T19:11:00.002-05:00

I'm still trying to figure out if I can get the two monitors + my laptop to work. I got my package today from newegg.com with a powered monitor splitter. It was a bit more money than I really wanted to part with at the time, but the cable my boss let me test out at home didn't cut it. Mostly because my laptop didn't have a port for it. Lame. Either way, I figured the powered splitter was a better idea as far as picture quality goes.

Vintage Glass Focal Point Assortment

It looks ... a little grainy in a weird way if you're staring at a solid white background, but the color quality is a lot better so I'm not too concerned. Anyhow. I still haven't figured out if another monitor is going to fly because, well, I'm missing a VGA cable. Go figure, right? Haha. Luckily enough my mom's boyfriend has a spare, and if that fails, I can temporarily borrow one from work. It's not like we're using them since they're hooked up to monitors that are burnt out.

Techie stuff aside, let's talk about these totally amazing bits of glass! They're vintage glass "stones" from the early 1900s. They were a bit of a splurge, but for the quality they were well worth it. Especially since I only paid for five! Look at all those beautiful extras that I ended up with! So excited! Plus, I hadn't bought myself something fun to work with in a while. Most of my money has gone towards necessary things like findings and wire as of late.

My fav of the bunch!

My fav is this smokey, brown, pear-shaped one! It would make for such a magnificent pendant. I'm also really loving the clear round-cut pieces. I think they would be fantastic wrapped into a ring. I've been tinkering with learning how to wire wrap rings, so I'm definitely thinking they shall be some of my first test subjects. Love, love, love the facets!

In other news, I'm definitely looking forward to the weekend. I've a whole mess of work to do, and the convention is drawing ever more closer. This weekend shall be dedicated to updating my portfolio, figuring out the monitor mess, and working on jewelry of course! I have some really bright, whimsy beads on the way. Perfect for the convention. I've been pining for them for quite some time, and I know they'll do great at the show. Anime conventions are all about colorful, brash, showiness.

Previews shall follow this weekend in amongst everything else. :)

Preparing for AnimeFest

2011-08-13T22:08:00.000-05:00

As I've announced previously, I am officially in the artist alley this year at AnimeFest, and I'm very excited about it. I've attended artist alley's before at anime conventions, but never with any serious conviction. This will be my first official convention/art show/event/whatever you want to call it as an official business.

Yeah, I've done it before and I've had my state tax ID for a long while, but I've never put it to use. This will be a big first, and I am so jazzed. AnimeFest traditionally I've always done the best at sales wise. I'm hoping that history is willing to repeat itself. I didn't attend last year due to some familial issues that need taking care of first, but I did attend the year before.

That year was also the first year I ever sold more than one or two pieces of my jewelry. In fact, the number of pieces of jewelry I sold out-performed the artwork and commissions I took while I was there! I was positively blown away. That's part of why my art here lately has been more intently focused on artisan crafts rather than my illustration work. I love both dearly, but if there's even half a chance that I can somehow turn a profit doing something I love you can bet that's the route I'm going to take.

That all having been said, I am amping up at the moment to finish up displays and product for the show. I'm a little (more like a LOT) stressed between Day Job work, home, and this but I'm handling it well. I had to wait until the last moment to really do any spending for the supplies I needed because of my mother's unemployment. That isn't something I'm going to dwell on right now, though. Staying positive here!

The table is paid for. Badges for me and my assistants are paid for. Funds for the hotel room have been budgeted and set aside. The rest is all icing on the cake and can be adjusted as needed according to said budget.

Check me out and my extra monitor! Yes, that is my artwork on the screen. :D

One really fun thing I'm tinkering with is having dual monitors to go with my laptop! It's going to be a pain to set up and drag up and down from my hotel room, but I think it will be worth it. I've seen it done a couple of times by people before at conventions, and it has always entranced me. I also recall other people enjoying the display, too.

Specifically what I'll be displaying is a slideshow on one monitor of my digital artwork. Or, if I'm working on something in Photoshop, people would be able to watch. In person. Right there. LIVE! Which could also lead to my being able to do digital art commissions at the convention. That would be SO great, because digital media is way more economical than traditional media. It's hard to run out of pixels in Photoshop pending your machine is in working order.

That's the idea anyway! I'm actually trying to hook up two monitors to my laptop. My laptop's video card so far seems powerful enough to swing it, but we'll see. I'm still tinkering and trying to determine if getting just a basic Y-cable will work, or if I should opt for a powered cable. I have a feeling I'll probably need the powered cable which is a bit pricier, but we'll just have to wait and see after a bit more experimentation.

If the two extra monitors are a no-go, well, one extra will do the job just fine. Why do I need three in the first place? Well... the idea is to have a monitor off to the side that I work off of for business transactions that no one can see. I'll be using my laptop to process credit cards, and also I'll have spreadsheets up to track my inventory and sales.

Speaking of which! I need to dig up my old sales sheets and get them updated and functional again. I love making spreadsheets and lists. Weird, I know. Plus I can plug in all of my expenses for the show itself to track my progress. I'm hoping to break even. I usually do. At the very least, I would like to make back the money I've spent on the hotel room itself as that is my biggest cost for this show.

That's enough tinkering for today, though. I've still got a lot to do this weekend plus household stuff that needs taking care of.

Thanks for reading!

BSBP Beads!

2011-08-12T22:55:00.003-05:00

Eeee! I got my beads today from Deanna, my Bead Soup Blog Party partner! If you're reading this on Blogger, you can check up on my previous post about the party at Tumblr. I post there quite a bit more often than I do here. I just like the functionality of it better than Blogger.

No worries, though! I've no intentions of abandoning my blog here. It's much too convenient to follow my other fav bloggers this way. Plus, my blog posts here automatically post as a link on Tumblr. (Edit -- Actually, this might be a lie. In my absence from blogging, it seems Tumblr no longer imports content from other sites... buzzkill.)

BSBP beads from Deanna Chase of Chase Designs ♥

Anyhow! Back to the important stuff -- BEADS. Look at these amazing beads I got in the mail from Deanna! Ahhhh! So impressed. I am going to have so much fun playing with these. I don't typically venture much into using glass aside from the occasional Czech glass bead, so to have beads handmade by a lampwork bead artist is totally amazing, new, and EXCITING.

I positively adore the colors. Lime-y green and blue = love. Seriously. I don't what kind of necklace I'm going to turn this into, but it is easily destined to end up a favorite. There's noooo way I could give this up for sale. Haha. Besides, I wear blue and green very often.

The actual blog hop and posting of what's been made from these beads won't be until mid-September per the rules of the Party, but you can bet I'll be tinkering with my beads ASAP.

In the interim, I'm thinking my friend and I are going to do our own little bead swap just for the heck of it! Should be interesting. Because it seems like even when we're working with very similar materials, what we each create is drastically different. Love that!

P.S. I updated my blog layout! What'cha think? I think it's much more suitable, especially since it has my current, updated logo. And it matches both my ArtFire and Etsy jewelry shops -- both of which should have some new listings tomorrow for those who are in a shopping mood. ;)

That's it for now!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

2011-05-29T18:49:00.001-05:00

Man, have I ever changed my mind a billion + 3 times over in the last few weeks that have quickly turned into months. I am appeased that in my first year of business I'll probably keep changing my mind and experimenting as I figure out what works best for me. Learning curves are good. Especially when you learn excellent things from them!

I've learned some of this said awesome stuffs from people like Justine Grey with Create Hype. I highly recommend joining her mailing address. Sure, some of the advice you might come across or be linked to is common sense, but it's those little unexpected insights that you might not have thought of before that make it so worth it!

Another great couple of ladies that have fabulous advice are Marie Forleo and Laura Roeder. These girls are amazing and have great tips. I adore them and love reading their newsletters -- which says something, because I'm the sort that deletes newsletter type emails without even opening them!

So yes. Currently, I'm putting together a more cohesive marketing and business plan. I'm really hoping to get into wholesaling some of my work, and I'm also in the throes of planning to attend an anime convention this fall, AnimeFest. I so can't wait! I've got a whole mess of work ahead of me, but it's going to be great. I've already got two awesome ladies to go along with me, Wren and Kitty Martini. We are going to have some serious fun!

Anyhow. Back to the topic of change: expect a bit more of it from me! Shall be sprucing up my blog page in the coming weeks and, if all goes well, working on an actual website to host it at.

Art Shop + Other Such Stuff

2011-03-13T20:08:00.001-05:00

My new shop! http://mixedmayhemART.etsy.com

Once upon a time, in another bit o' web space hosted here on Blogger, I had a sketch blog that I (for at least a small period of time) updated religiously with sketches and the like. I have since deleted that blog and have decided, what the heck! I'll post all my silly sketch-y rubbish here. It will keep me posting and, well, my business is all about my art and creations therein anyway.

Especially since now I have officially opened my second shop on Etsy geared towards my art. I am so utterly pleased with how the images and graphics have turned out. Definitely going to have to overhaul my poor jewelry shop. I have some totally awesome new jewelry to post, too! I just need to get photos done for them, etc. That and I've been trying to hunt down jewelry boxes big enough for it (need something close to 5x7" preferably) that I like. I don't want ugly silver or gold foil. I have some of those. I've contemplated kraft boxes, but .. that's kind of bland. It's a "premium" set of jewelry to include an ACEO, earrings, and matching necklace, so it needs something fancy.


Page 1 of my comic!

I'll figure something out. I think I might go browse the wooden boxes at the local craft stores, but they seem to have slimmed down a bit on their selection. If I find something suitable I would not mind spending time finishing off the box to match my jewelry. In fact, that would look way awesome. ♥

Also of note, I am working on a comic! Sort of! Well. It's a comic, but it's for the game I run on Gaia. I haven't tried my hand at comic making in .... years. So far I like my sketch? Isn't Athan handsome! You know he is for an old cantankerous dude. X3

Faux Dichroic Glass

2011-02-10T21:07:00.001-06:00


My First Faux Dichroic Glass Cab

I would just like to say that I totaaaally adore my friend in Germany for sharing this tutorial with me the other day. It is so... so fun to play with. I've made a whole mess of these ickle gems. It also gives me good reason to buy glass cabochons I had been mulling over. I had actually meant to post this blog entry some days ago, but between weather woes, work, and being sick I've managed to let blogging go to the wayside. Even when I'm quiet here, I can promise you I'm pretty much never quiet on Twitter. Go figure, right?

Anyhow. I'm pretty darn pleased with how my cabochons have turned out so far. They are going to make for very interesting focal points. I made several of them as you can see from the photos but the first one I made that's show in the top left photo is by far my favorite. It also looks the most dichoric-like instead of just sparkle pretty something generic. I did also discover while playing with my various color of nail polish that opaque colors that have no shimmer are a big NO. They look terrible.


Faux Dichroic Glass Everywhere!

But there's this wonderful thing called fingernail polish remover that came to my rescue when I made something that looked atrocious. No need to throw out a perfectly good glass pebble over ugly colors, I say.

I didn't take a picture of it, but I even kind of like how the silver backs look. I want to find some metallic gold fingernail polish to put on the backs of some of the warmer colors, though. Mostly for aesthetic reasons as I think I'd like to try to wire wrap some of these. Would look a bit odd to me to have a silver back and gold/copper wire, but that's just me being nitpicky.


Faux Dichroic Glass In Pendant Setting

Also, in the image to the right I took an opaque sky blue pebble and coated it in sparkly nail polish. Not sure if I like it or not. It's pretty, but it ... also looks kind of cheap in my opinion. Not quite something I'm willing to work with.

But that favorite cab of mine? Wow does it look great in a setting! I happen to be in possession of some old chain and settings that used to belong to my mother. Most of it is from the early 90s which she gave to me in 2004 I suppose? She was getting rid of her costume jewelry to make room for her good jewelry, and I offered to take it off her hands so I could dismantle it and use it with my polymer clay. Handy thing that I held on to that stuff. That pendant used to have a fake acrylic pearl in the center. I think the faux dichroic glass is a vast improvement, to say the least.

Haven't quite decided what sort of necklace to make out of that pendant, but when I make up my mind I'll surely have WIPs posted here. :)

Fun With Polymer Clay

2011-02-02T20:07:00.001-06:00

So I'm pretty much trapped in my apartment currently thanks to the epic weather here in North Texas. Well. Really there's only about two inches of ice on the roads, but Texas is ill-equipped to deal with it. Thus, I am trapped. Also some crazy fun is the rolling blackout that they have going. If you've seen my Twitter account recently, you've already read that ranting, so I'll spare you.

Amaco Polymer Clay Bead Baking Rack

ON TO THE FUN STUFF: Since the power outages means working on Day Job work is nigh impossible, I spent the time playing with my polymer clay I recently re-organized. I am totally in love with my bead baking rack. I've never really made a whole lot of beads that weren't flat shapes because of how the clay bakes. This thing is SO awesome. I managed to get it at Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon, and I highly recommend getting one if you want to make your own beads from polymer clay.

I also happened across a really awesome lentil bead polymer clay tutorial recently. Needless to say I am infatuated. Making these beads is addicting! There's just so many different ways to go about it, and so many things you can do with these awesome swirly beads! I'm going to try to make some rainbow swirls next. Totally can't wait!


Assorted Polymer Clay Beads

Which also reminds me ~ I need to replace my pasta roller for my clay. I found the parts, but not the actual... machine. Odd. It's either been tossed out or in storage, and with as far away as my storage unit is it's sadly cheaper for me to buy another than drive out there. Go figure.

Anyhow! Stay tuned for more awesome polymer clay goodness.

Setting Up ... Even More Stuff

2011-02-01T15:13:00.001-06:00


deviantART Screenshot

Well. The weather has kept me home today and a slow internet connection has prevented me from working in my notoriously slow remote software for work. I've spent most of the time so far tinkering in Photoshop. Graphics for my deviantART journal are super basic so far, but the page is busy enough as it is, I think. For the curious you can visit this page yourself to see what I've been up to at: http://mmstudios.deviantart.com -- someone already had the name mixedmayhem. Go figure. It looks suspiciously like a dead account, too. Oh well.

Next thing I'd like to work on today is some of my clay beads. Been itching to play with them forever. Although, I might just work on another piece of jewelry first. I'd like to be able to list one thing a day on Etsy to build up my shop's inventory.

Anyhow, that's all the fun I have to update for now. I might post again later when I have more interesting stuff to share. ♥

P.S. It's freaking cold. Silly North Texas. What are you doing snowing like this??

2011-01-30T20:28:00.001-06:00

Hemalyke Starstruck Necklace WIP

This is just a little something fun I worked on today. I just finished it a little while ago. I haven't listed it just yet on Etsy. I need to wait until I have proper daylight to take photos otherwise I'll end up tinkering in Photoshop with the saturation and contrast endlessly. Not fun, I say.

The main, large star focal point was a pain in the butt! It's drilled, but I could not get any of my headpins to go through. I guess the gauge of my wire was too big. Sooo... I improvised with a bit of fancy wire wrapping. I rather like it better this way, really. Adds a bit more detail.

Hemalyke Starstruck Necklace Completed & Packaged

It's about choker length? Definitely no more than 16" and made entirely of silver plated and hemalyke beads. Hemalyke, by the way, is nothing more than fancily reconstituted hematite. Essentially it would have the same metaphysical properties as typical hematite. It's just been mixed with a glue and pressed into fancy shapes.

Oh! And I totally forgot to take a picture of it, but there are totally awesome matching earrings that go along with this. Both of which should be posted tomorrow afternoon on Etsy if all goes as planned.

Hallo Internets

2011-01-30T19:40:00.001-06:00

So, here's my new blog specifically for my jewelry, art, and other such crafts that are directly related to my company Mixed Mayhem Studios. I just started my business as of January 1, 2011 -- the first month has been interesting. I've already learned quite a bit, and it's been great. I'm enjoying the ride so far. ♥