Quick Jewelry: Woven Embroidery Floss Necklace

Remember those friendship bracelets we made in 2nd grade?

I took that same bracelet and made it into a necklace.

Materials:

chain, embroidery floss, jump rings, tacky glue or fabric glue, clasp

• Decide what type of embroidery design you would like. There are several Youtube tutorials floating around to show you various patterns. I did a simple design.
• Tie your jump ring into your starter knot.
• Make your woven design as long or as short as you like.
• Once you've completed the design, knot the ends. Don't forget to tie in your jump ring.
• Dab a little glue on the knots. Trim the extra string away
• Connect length of chain to one of the jump rings.
• Repeat on the other side.
• Attach clasp on one end, jump ring on the other.

Done!

The Fruits: New Small Brass Earrings

I love these earrings. I added two new pairs of earrings to the shop: The Brass Apple and Pear Pair.

Small and lightweight.


Come check them out---------> HERE

Three Pairs of Earrings

Quick update. I'm currently adding earrings to my Etsy shop. Here are the first pairs.

Tiny Tiny Owl

Shed a Tear

Flowered Heart


Visit my new jewelry section ---------> here.

Flickr Friday: Goldie Fawn

Gold Drip
Originally uploaded by BeadsInTheBelfry

I am fawning over this 14K necklace by Beads in the Belfry. Clean, simple, organic.
Check out here other photos, specifically her Kalimba ring and stack rings.

Full Weekend

Narrator: Tabitha of The Pairabirds

My brain is too full right now. I have too many projects in there. And, not enough resources to complete them. This weekend I tried to pour out some of those ideas.

One of the ideas was to create some 3d wall pop art using thrifted fabrics. Which meant I could do one of my favorite things, go shopping at the thrift stores. I found several shirts that had wonderful prints (maybe not wonderful as a whole shirt) that would be good for cutting apart. As a bonus I found two kitschy shirts for me to wear and a large sized corduroy Gap tote bag, which was $3 (I'm not into brand names. I just like to say the brand so that people will be amazed that I found it for such a low price)!

I assembled a pair of earrings for myself this weekend. Bonus: while shopping for fabrics, I found some sweet 80s blue post earrings. I call them my ~wing~ earrings.

I bought a staple gun from JoAnns. Plus, I found some very nice embroidered fabric in the remnants section. I managed to find two of them.

I updated a ton of websites I have my art on: Deviantart, Window on Web, Trunkt, Flickr.

And, I added a gallery to my long neglected website The Pairabirds (yeah, I really do have a real-live website). I had not updated it in months and I really want to bring people to it, especially if I end up adding a shopping cart.

Now that I have acquired all of these new things, I beginning to feel flustered. I don't want to lose focus on making illustrations, but I do want to branch out into other things and promote. Sometimes I feel like being an artist is a lot like being a mad scientist. We have to try all of these crazy formulas before we get it right. I think I maybe getting close to the right formula for P/birds success.
I am hoping 2008 will be my year.

Vintage 80s earrings

Found at: Salvation Army, Illinois

Got Work to Do

Narrator: Tabitha of The Pairabirds

I'm trying to start incorporating some men's' jewelry into my shop; primarily tie tacks and bars. I started making some using the retro gems I found. A few of them have names on them, like Chris, James, Ace...

While searching around town, I found a pair of great vintage tie bars. The tie bars, I believe, were used as a sort of promotional for Tractomotive. The tie bars are pretty classy, but certainly have a little element of kitsch, especially if you don't drive a tractor.

Vintage tie bar

Found at: The Pairabirds

Happy Birthday, Chica

Narrator: Tabitha of The Pairabirds

Today is my good friend's birthday. Happy Birthday, old girl ♥ How do like your gift (pictured above)? Don't do too much damage today.

She just recently started on Etsy. You can stop by her shop, Maries Soap Creations, and wish her a good day.

Handmade Earrings

Found at: not available

Stock of stuff

Narrator: Tabitha of The Pairabirds

Loads and loads of gems. One of my resolutions this year was to make more things in batches, if possible. So, I readied a bunch of these plastic gems for their attachment to ring blanks, earring posts, and tie tacks. I have so many old useless books that I'm using the images for the gems.

Some of the images are of the earth's equinox, 1978, a flying horse, the copyright sign. Old book pages make the most interesting images. They are nicely discolored; great aged feel. Now to scrub this E6000 off of my fingers.

Vintage Ephemera

Found at: Various locations

The Evening of 1972 part 2

Narrator: Tabitha of The Pairabirds

More earrings, courtesy of Saturday Evening Post. I used some pages from the vintage magazine to glue onto the back of some clear plastic gems. The paper had a nice discoloration to add to the vintage feel.

Some special events of 1972:

• Pong video game becomes the latest craze


• Pink Floyd releases Dark Side of the Moon


• Stevie Wonder's Talking Book debuts


• Curtis Mayfield unleashes Superfly


• The Godfather opens in theaters

Handmade 1972 earrings

Found at: The Pairabirds

Break it down

Narrator: Tabitha of The Pairabirds

At some point in music history, parachute pants were popular, famous musicians were immortalized into friends of Barbie, and cartoons starred pop stars.

Also, at some point in time, MC Hammer ruled the world. I owned some parachutes. I had the MC Hammer doll (which came with a tape with Can't Touch this on side A and a *special* message from Hammer on side B). And, I watched the short lived Hammer cartoon (Go Hammer, go Hammer, Go!).

This necklace is made with an old MC Hammer record charm. I included a small golden hammer. The charms are on an 18" antique silver finish chain. You may do some damage with this knockout. But, please Hammer, don't hurt 'em.

Handmade Hammer Necklace
Found at: The Pairabirds

Here he comes

Narrator: Tabitha of the Pairabirds

Once again, I bought something a while ago (2 years ago) and had no clue what I would make with it. I picked up a package of miniature reflectors. The kind you put on mailboxes so that you don't back over them.

Not having a clue what to do with them, I stuck them in my odds and ends drawer. I didn't think about them again until I bought some ring blanks from Atomic Veggie. I thought, wow, these will make some really cool rings. Detector Reflector Rings.

The name made me think of Inspector Detector of Speed Racer. Such a fitting name. Reflectors, like that of Speed Racer's unbeatable car, the Mach 5.

Of course, my ring can't jump over mile long canyons or chop down entire forest. And I can't promise that you will run into Racer X-one-of-the-best-racers-in the world-who-unbeknown to-Speed-is his-long lost-brother-who left home-years-ago.

At least drivers will see you when you're riding your bike in the dark.

Handmade Reflector Ring
Found at: The Pairabirds

Vintage Bingo Chips
Found at: Ebay

Math Class

Narrator: Tabitha of the Pairabirds

I enjoy collecting office and school supplies. Pencils, paper, tape; I hyperventilate when I go into an office supply store. I saw a laminating machine at Office Depot recently. I have no clue what I would laminate. But, when do artist ever need a reason to buy tools. I didn't buy it, though (this time).

I am glad that I am a daughter of a former teacher. I have the privilege of finding random bits of school items around the house.

I recently came across a set of clear overhead projector tiles. I remember finding them last year and saying, "I'll make something with these."

I made a few sets of stud earrings with a few of them. A few magnets with the others. Geometry tools need to come in handy for something. The clear white studs are on top of a page from a 1970s encyclopedia. Encyclopedias from the seventies are so entertaining. If you decide not to use it as a backdrop, they sure are fun to read. Especially when the Future or the Year 2000 is mentioned. I'm still awaiting the flying cars with robot drivers.

Handmade Stud earrings
Found at: The Pairabirds

Vintage 1970s Encyclopedia
Found at: Salvation Army Family Store, Illinois