"Art Bead Scene" June Monthly challenge (Украшение по заданию)

     Hello friends! Today, I’d like to show you my earrings which I’ve made for June Monthly challenge at the ArtBeadScene blog. For our inspiration, our host has chosen the painting “Profile on Red Meanders formerly Jeanne d'Arc” (1900) by Odelin Redon.

    I have not been familiar with this artist until now. Wikipedia characterized him as “a French symbolist painter”: I can definitely see a number of symbols in this painting: many “what does it mean” questions come to my mind :).

Here are my earrings:

      About the art beads: I made these glass cabochons during a glass fusion class which I took awhile ago. To make a round cab, you need to cut tiny squares of glass, glue them together, and “bake” in a special kiln.
     For the earrings, I secured the cabs to the brass filigree pieces with wire, attached light green glass bead caps and pink glass beads to the filigrees. I like how the earrings turned out: they have a certain Victorian vibe to them.
     Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana

{We're All Ears} June Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, июнь)

    Hello friends, It's time to reveal my earrings made for "We're All Ears" monthly challenge. This time we’ve been inspired by the uniqueness and beauty of fire flies. I've seen some by the Buffalo bayou here in Houston: very pretty tiny bright lights!

   
      I've made two pairs of earrings:
(1) For this pair, I used oval black Czech glass beads with iridescent dots paired with round black faceted glass beads. The spiraled wire mimics the insect's antennas. Several jump rings connect the earrings to the earwires.

(2) this pair is just to express some light and sparkle associated with fire flies: assorted glass beads, jump rings. I asked my husband what the earrings remind him of. He said: Christmas :))

       Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

{We're All Ears} May Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, май)

      Hello friends! It's time to reveal my earrings which I’ve made for the monthly challenge «We’re All Ears".
      This month, our theme is: “transformation.” Erin has suggested taking some “trash” and transforming it into something special: in short, make a pair of earrings from some junk/recycled materials.

     Here are the earrings I’ve made:
I used brass shell casings for the earrings. The shell casings were sitting at my desk drawer for 3 years. It was time to throw them away: so I decided to give it a try and make a pair of earrings.
     I cleaned them with ketchup (great cleaner, btw), and then cut them into pieces with my jewelry saw. I sanded them down, and polished with some sand paper. The last stage: I made holes and assembled the earrings adding some glass beads. Voilà! I was pleasantly surprised with the results.

       Thank you for visiting and commenting.
Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

"Art Bead Scene" April Monthly challenge (Украшение по заданию)

      Hello friends! Today, I’d like to show you my earrings which I’ve made for April Monthly challenge at the ArtBeadScene blog.
      Here is the amazing painting by Paul Gauguin called “Matamoe or Landscape with Peacocks” (1892). The painting is our inspiration for this month’s challenge. Gauguin is one of my favorite painters- impressionists. I always admired his choice of colors: very bright and vibrant.

       About the art beads: I made these orange glass cabochons during a glass fusion class which I took awhile ago. To make a round cab, you need to cut tiny squares of glass, glue them together, and “bake” in a special kiln.
      For the earrings, I wrapped the cabs with wire, added leaf-shaped glass beads and green barrel beads. I like how the earrings turned out: they look like some exotic fruit from the painting.

   
     Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana

{We're All Ears} April Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, апрель)

      Hello friends! It's time to reveal my earrings which I’ve made for the monthly challenge «We’re All Ears”).
     This month, our host Erin suggested: “use the EGG as your Muse for April”. Originally, I was going to cross-stitch a small Ukrainian pattern on a piece of Aida and then wrap it around a metal disc and use for my earrings.
    I have a book with tons of Ukrainian cross-stitch patterns: they would perfectly mimic Pysanky’s egg design. But, unfortunately, I didn’t have time to do it. Maybe, next time…
     Here are the earrings I’ve made:

     “Pretty Little Eggs” earrings. To “make an egg”, I used yellow glass faceted beads which I slid on a headpin between the two white plastic bead cups; I also attached a wire coiled link to each egg to make the design more interesting.
     Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

March Theme Challenge “Amulet Bags" (Сумочка-амулет по заданию)

     Hello dear friends! This month I’m participating in the March’s Theme Challenge “Amulet Bags/Pouches” hosted on the blog ART ELEMENTS.
     This is my very first time to be a participant of this challenge. I’ve never created any amulet bag/pouches before, but I have sewn some cosmetic pouches. I thought it would be fun to make a tiny bag.
     For my bag, I used some beige felt. I sew it together with blanket stitches and decorated the piece with seed bead embroidery. Originally I intended to carry a small tube of sunscreen in the bag, but it turned out too small, and can only fit a dental floss container. But, I like how it turned out anyway. And I get to practice several old/new embroidery stitches: lazy daisy, wheatear chain and fern.
     Here is my little bag:

The pattern for the bag is from Pinterest

     Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for some unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana
 P.S. Please visit these blogs to see what other participants have created.

BLOG HOP:

 Blueberribeads.co.uk
Cmendola.blogspot.com

Wescottjewelry.com
Genevievecamp.com
Cookyschock.com
Jdaviesreazor.com
Lesleywatt.com

Phantasmcreation.blogspot.com

Silverniknats.blogspot.com

Suebeads.blogspot.com

"Art Bead Scene" March Monthly challenge (Украшение по заданию)

     Hello friends! Today, I’d like to show you my necklace which I’ve made for March Monthly challenge at the ArtBeadScene blog.
     Here is the beautiful and delicate painting by Marianne North called “Armed Bird's Nest in Acacia Bush, Chile” (1870). The painting is our inspiration for this month’s challenge.

     My favorite thing about the painting is its soft pastel hues. So calming… Also, when I look at the painting, I picture myself in the mountains, breathing the mountain air and enjoying the view. Wouldn’t it be perfect?
    About the art bead: I made this bead/pendant myself. It’s my very first attempt at "mastering" a Cloisonné technique. In my mind I pictured a gorgeous neon color butterfly, but it didn’t turn out this way. Not perfect, I know. But I decided it’s better to incorporate this pendant in a necklace than to hide it in a drawer. Especially, because some of its colors (yellow and blue) remind me of the colors in the painting. I also used assorted glass beads, as well as yellow jade beads, and also chalcedony periwinkle flat rounds in the necklace.

     Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

{We're All Ears} March Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, март)

     Hello friends! It's time to reveal my earrings which I’ve made for the monthly challenge «We’re All Ears”. Beautiful owls are our inspiration for this month’s challenge:

     When I think of owls, I imagine some magical creatures, kind of like those we read about in “Harry Potter”. I only saw a live owl once, they are not easy to spot, and this adds up to their mystique. I’m also a little scared of them, maybe because they are large birds, and their beak seems sharp.
     Here are the earrings I came up with for the challenge:
     1) "Spring Owls". For this pair, I used some owl charms I bought a while ago in Los Angele; also, assorted glass beads which I attached to each charm with wire:

2) "White Owl Feather". I couldn't resist and made a pair using white feathers. Not sure, which bird they come from, but they look pretty, especially paired with some turquoise colored howlite beads.

     Thank you for visiting and commenting.
      Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

"Art Bead Scene" February Monthly challenge (Украшение по заданию)

Hello dear friends, It's time to reveal what I've created for the February Monthly Challenge at the Art Bead Scene Blog.
    "The Two Crowns" (1900) painting by Sir Frank Dicksee was chosen to inspire us for the challenge:

   
   The first thing that struck me was this beautiful white horse at the center of the painting. It's hard to miss. Another thing I was drawn to was all the gold: the armor of the prince, the crown, and also gold discs on the horse's harness. And lastly, I loved the pink and fuchsia colors of rose petals, and also flower wreaths on the ladies.
    About my bracelet: The Art Bead: I searched Etsy for a "horse bead" and found this unique ceramic bracelet focal by Beadfreaky. The rest of the beads and a cord are from Michaels. The turquoise glass beads are from my stash.

"Royal Horse"

       Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store if you're interested in unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

{We're All Ears} February Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, февраль)

        Hello friends! It's time to reveal my earrings made for the monthly challenge «We’re All Ears”. This time, our inspiration comes from colorful patchwork quilts.

      It was one of my dreams to make a patchwork quilt from scratch. A couple years ago, I attended a workshop led by a very talented quilter, and made my first quilt. HERE.
     Okay, back to earrings: For me, to come up with a design for “patchwork” earrings was a bit challenging, but I did it anyway.

#1: Gypsy Queen

#2 Free Spirit

I made two pairs of earrings. They remind me of Gypsy style jewelry: fun, chunky, and colorful. I used some wooden beads which come from a bracelet I bought several years ago. The earrings turned out very colorful. They can definitely lighten the mood.

      Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

"Art Bead Scene" January Monthly challenge (Украшение по заданию)

    Hello friends! Today, I’d like to show you my necklace which I’ve made for January Monthly challenge at the ArtBeadScene BLOG.
    As soon as I saw the painting “Field of Flowers” by E. Schiele chosen for this challenge, I knew I wanted to participate.

    Several years ago, I had a chance to take an enameling class, and made some cool pendants. I painted red poppies on one of them, and thought the pendant would be great for the challenge.
    Here is my necklace:

For this necklace I used:  copper enamel pendant by me; turquoise beads, green and yellow jade beads; coral rounds and beads, and antique copper beads, jump rings and chain.
     Thank you for visiting and commenting.
     Please, check out my Etsy store if you're interested in unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

{We're All Ears} January Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, январь)

Hello friends! It's time to reveal my earrings made for this month challenge «We’re All Ears”. For our inspiration, Erin's chosen the Pantone color of 2017 which is "Greenery."

      
        Green is among my favorite colors, and also, I have so many green beads! This is a great opportunity for me to utilize them.
        Coincidentally, I've come across this gorgeous vintage rhinestone brooch, and thought of it as my inspiration for the challenge as well. Here is the brooch:

And these are the earrings I've made:

Pair #1: "Forest Fairy"

Pair #2: Enchanted

Thank you for visiting and commenting. Please, check out my Etsy store for more unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

{We're All Ears} December Creative Challenge (Серьги по заданию, декабрь)

     Hello friends! It's time to reveal my earrings made for this month challenge «We’re All Ears”.
     This time, Erin suggested we make some earring using any leftover beads.
     I don’t know why, but this challenge turned out to be difficult for me. Somehow, I felt lost and wasn’t sure where to begin. I looked at my desk, at half-finished earring here and there and nada…

     The only things that I wanted to play with were these periwinkle faceted glass cabochons. I acquired them quite a lone time ago, and honestly didn’t know how to use them until this challenge. So, I came up with this design: (1) I glued cabs to the scalloped metal setting; (2) I attached the links to the filigree cones, and wrapped a piece of wire with seedbeads around them.

     I like the earring: to me they have this “antique” vibe. I can picture a noble lady of the past wearing them. Thank you for visiting and commenting.
    Please, check out my Etsy store for some unique & one-of-a-kind vintage and handmade jewelry. Yours, Oksana.

Handmade Café #83 & Features: THE LAST ONE! (Рукод. Кафе №83 и Топ: ПОСЛЕДНЕЕ))

Welcome to our Handmade Café Link party! 

Dear friends, after some deliberation I've decided to discontinue this project. 

Thank you so much for playing along with me all this time. It's been such a joy to see your wonderful creations and to be inspired by you! Happy holiday's season, everybody! And may all your craft-related dreams and more come true! 

The last party’s favorites:

Дорогие мастерицы, приветствую вас в Рукодельном кафе №83! 

Хочу сообщить что это кафе будет заключительным в этом проекте! Сколько радости мне принесло знакомство с вами и сколько всего интересного я почерпнула от вас в плане творчества! Спасибо вам за участие и поддержку! 

Причины закрытия следующие: 1)закончился контракт с InLinkz, они подняли цену и мне не хочется платить; 2) личные: думаю опять учится и знаю, что у меня не будет времени на блоговедение. Надеюсь вы меня поймете и на забросаете камнями :))) 

Всем удачи и добра! С наступащими! Ваша Оксана. А теперь как обычно итоги Рук. Кафе №82:

Most Viewed {Больше всего просмотров}

Cross Stitch Throw Pillow by Yulia

Наибольшее количество просмотров набрала Подушечка от Юли, блог Блокнотик. Юля, замечательная подушечка, сразу вносит уют в интерьер. Мои поздравления!

Some Favorite Features {Топ-поделок}

Features #82:

An InLinkz Link-up

Ну а теперь пора показывать свои новые шедеврики! Заключительная галерея №83 открыта! Всем желаю веселых праздников! Не забудьте заглянуть к Фате, у нее свои фавориты!

And now: sit back, sip a cup of coffee/tea and enjoy a company of exceptional crafters from around the world in our virtual Handmade Café (the last one)! Yours, Oksana & Fata.