Fives

I got this one from Sarah, thebeadedlily. I love little surveys like this when they're about arts and crafts. (A lot of my answers actually overlap with Sarah's!) I've been kind quiet on the blogging front lately, and I will soon update you on my latest adventures. But for now, I leave you with fives!

What are your 5 favorite art works? Have you seen them in person? Do you have plans to?
And I mean art in a very broad sense here.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge - yes! I've seen it and crossed it hundreds, maybe thousands of times. I miss it!
Anything by Van Gogh (Same as Sarah!) - yes, I've seen many of them and I would love to see more of them and to see many of those I've already seen again!
Chanel Suits-- I saw an exhibit on them at the New York Met! (Don't know if I'd ever wear one, though)
Avenue Q-- Yes! It was my favorite play EVER!
Anything by Renoir -- yes, and I'd love to see more!

What are 5 crafts you couldn't live without? Have you done them? Any good?
Beadweaving-- yes and yes
Sewing-- yes. I was good at it for my age, but I haven't sat at a sewing machine since I was about 14
Woodwork-- only in shop class
Metalwork-- same as above (only in shop class)
Knitting-- yes and yes

What are 5 crafts you'd like to learn? Have you ever tried them? Will you?
Lampwork-- yes, I've had one lesson in a studio that used to be around the corner from my mom's house. I think I will try it some time again in the future
Metalwork-- only in shop class. But I plan to delve back into it!
Drawing-- I've tried some, but I would love to (and plan to) have more training
Filigree-- No. I plan to learn some day, because I love this craft!
Leatherwork-- No, probably not

What are 5 arts and crafts you've tried that weren't for you?
Calligraphy
I won't rule anything else out!

What are 5 things you aim for with your art/craft?
Individuality
Beauty
Wearability
Happiness-envoking
Love

It must be genetic

At least it runs in the family. Or maybe it's just a family trait.

People in my family tend to buy gifts for birthdays and holidays early or on time, and then just never send them (instead, waiting to give them in person), or send them really late. It's not a negative thing, because we all do it and so we all expect it.

So that is why my Auntie Carol got her birthday necklace three weeks late! It was one of the things I was madly trying to finish in June, but I didn't exactly send it until the middle of July. At least the outcome was success -- she loved it! After all, it was her colors! :-)
This isn't the greatest picture of it. It was almost 100 degrees outside when I took it. (I was determined to take it in natural sunlight.) I had to run inside before I could take another one! But you get the idea...

And now, I'm off to watch the new season of Project Runway! Woohoo!!

Art Deco

On my way home from the subway today, I was thinking so hard about the next EBW Challenge that I overshot my turn by a whole block. For the last challenge, I knew exactly what I wanted to make right away. But this one is taking a little more planning. There are so many facets of the art deco movement that I just can't seem to pinpoint what I want to make or even which part of the movement I want to use for my inspiration.

I am very drawn to the delicate jewelry of the period, and I've sort of designed a bracelet and a necklace in my head. I would really enjoy these things, but they would not exactly be my most complicated or time consuming creations.

From the little internet research I've done, the art and architecture of the period seem to be much bolder than the jewelry. I could also have a lot of fun exploring shapes, and I've also cooked up some ideas for a bracelet cuff that would do that. I've even been (half seriously) toying with the idea of creating a tiny mini-building out of beads.

And then there's the ever-present real life getting in the way. Today, I had leftovers from a chicked and eggplant dish that I made on Sunday night for dinner. I'm beginning to realize that I haven't cooked a meal in literally months. (Not including Lean Cuisine and Campbell's Soup! ;-) ) For a Manhattanite, that's very normal, but it isn't normal for me. I love eating my own cooking almost as much as I love eating my mom's cooking! If only there were more hours in the day!!

This and That

This is my friend, Dave, his awesome girlfriend, Nicole, and me last night at a comedy show. Dave and I went to high school together in Sydney, and he's doing a PhD in theoretical particle physics at Cornell, and Nicole is a med student here in New York City. They're both on summer break now, so it was awesome getting to see these busy academics. (The show was cool too!)

This weekend, Sam is partying it up in California with his brother, Dan, so today is my lazy day. It was going to be my cleaning day, but I think it's going to be my lazy day with some cleaning on the side. This morning, I've been beading and watching Project Runway reruns. I'm finishing up a bracelet that I started last weekend. It's inspired by my EBWC Challenge piece. Here it is, not quite done. (There are still loose strings hanging off of it.) It's definitely a piece that needs to be photographed in natural light, but you get the idea:

The bracelet turned out a little bit smaller than expected, so who better to wear it than yours truly! I'm keeping this one for myself! :-)

Speaking of last weekend, I just have to include this photo of Sam's mom, Cheryl, who put this choker that I made with this adorable outfit, worn to dinner last weekend in Sag Harbor:

They're all so Dreamy!

The entries for the Etsy Beadweavers Midsummer Nights Dream are up on the EBW blog! And they're all so dreamy and beautiful! Drool over them all and vote for your favorite! :-)

This Weekend

So Sam and I didn't quite make the fireworks. We got cheese steaks and headed over to the pier just as the crackling of fireworks started. About five minutes before the end. We did, however, make the last five minutes. It was still fun, though. Even as we were walking there, masses of people streamed in front of us and behind us. Then we headed to a party in Brooklyn with some of Sam's really nice Oberlin friends. It was really fun!

We came back "early" because we're going to Sam's parents' house in the Hamptons tomorrow. So unless I go to the library, I will be without internet access for the next two days! *gasp*

I'm super excited because Sarah (thebeadedlily) is featuring an interview of me in her blog! Sarah is another EBW member (and moderator!) with an Etsy jewelry shop of her own, featuring many unique beadwoven pieces. Here is just one of the beautiful things in her shop:


Sarah's shop is an eclectic mix, so I really recommend checking it out! :-)

A Midsummer Nights Dream

I'm meeting Sam in an hour to grab a quick dinner and then see the fireworks, but for now, I'm doing some of my essential chores...like writing in my blog!

The rest of my beads finally got here on Wednesday, and I spent Wednesday night, Thursday morning, and a lot of Thursday night (with a few hours dinner break with friends) furiously beading. And I finally finished!
Between scattered showers, I took some pictures of the necklace lying flat, and Sam took some of it on my neck, and voila!

Apart from the surprise factor, I've been a little mysterious about this choker partly because I didn't know how to explain how to describe the hearts. I also didn't want to take "in progress" pictures because at the time that I ran out of beads, I only had the three stars and a few of the strands connecting them.

Figuring out "numbers" for this piece was kind of difficult because each strand had to be a different length, and I had to keep this in mind while figuring out how to make the purple hearts. I also had to figure out how to make it look finished at the back. I went with brick stitch (which I had never used before, so I just taught it to myself out of the book Sam gave me for my birthday!)

I had originally wanted to add some embellishment to the bottom of this piece. I had a few different ideas going around my head. But when I finished the choker part, I realized that it was actually done! I don't think that any sort of embellishment would have done this piece justice. I'm actually very happy with the way it turned out! :-)

Thank you so much to everyone who left me kind words during the drama that surrounded this piece! ;-)