Bead Hoarders Blog Hop!

It's here!  Reveal Day for the Bead Hoarders Blog Hop!

In looking through my um...collection of beads, I realize that my attachment to travel memories is largely why I hoard beads.  They help me recall funny things that happened on a trip or with whom I was traveling.  I am reminded of friendly bead shop owners who took the time to talk about their wares.  I think of friends I visited in their hometowns who recommended a particular shop.  Perhaps, in part, I keep beads to retain a tangible record of my journeys.  Maybe that reads as silly, but then I can be silly.  And sentimental.  Obviously.

Bits and pieces from my bead stash:

The flower pendants in the top photo came from all over the US.  The seven of the same design were bought in MA & MT  from bead shop owners who separately found vintage clay beads from the 70s.  The foil glass beads came from a lovely lady who ran a bead shop from a booth at an antiques shop in Florence, OR.  She was a hoot to talk with.  The lentils were handpicked at shops in Sedona, Arizona and West Yellowstone, MT.  I think the blue ceramic and glass came from a shop in Springdale, UT - Regalo Beads.

I once wore the super chunky magnesite strand as part of a Frida Kahlo costume.  Those gorgeous pendants came from a small bead shop in Pasadena (Farrin O'Connor) as did the jumble of ocean jasper.  The reds and oranges came largely from bead shows in MA and NY.  The Labradorite strands were found at a bead show and online at Fire Mt. Gems.

Vintage Belgian sequins found in Santa Fe; Czech glass (Easter eggs) bought in Christchurch, NZ at a shop that doesn't exist any more due to earthquake damage; pink glass purchased from an estate sale junkie at a flea market - she bought broken old pieces and sold the bits in baggies; sea green ceramic & glass from a bead shop in Eureka, CA (Talisman Beads); those fused glass pendants all came from a tiny store in Venice, Italy.

Borosilicate strands bought in Florence, OR; sheep, dog and kitties by Kaylee Lampwork (aka Vicky Kerr); three strands of large spacers from J. Karnos (Silver Sage Creations) ; on the red / white fabric are glass beads by beginners from bead stores in CA & CO; a small collection from lots of difference places; spacers, long chevron, focals and a spider body all made by Wesley Fleming, an amazing artist who makes glass insects you can read about at wesleyfleming.com (I took a class taught by him in 2009).

Here is what I made:

I designed a necklace with this color scheme, using some of these same beads, months ago.  There are so many color facets to the orange / green / blue stones that they could be paired with almost anything.  The hoarded beads are the stone squares, the amazonite rondelles, the orange seed beads and the small Czech glass rondelles - I've had some of these since the mid-2000s.

For me, there are lots of interesting beads in this memory wire bracelet.  The lampwork beads came from a bead shop in West Yellowstone, MT that closed its doors years ago.  I bought a baggie full of this particular bead - the purple swirls spoke to me!  The glass pearls came from a woman at a flea market - parts of a broken necklace that belonged to her mother.  The large matte purple seed beads were some of the first beads I ever bought back in the late 90s.  Same for the matte yellow tear drops (Saratoga Beads).  Other ingredients have been in my bead boxes for years and years as well.

I actually made this bracelet a few years ago with beads I found at a flea market.  The woman selling them told me they were from pieces she bought at estate sales that were damaged or broken.  She coordinated them by color, packaged them and sold them so they could be made into new jewelry.  This was in 2007.  I made this with the intent to sell it, but I think it might be too girly for many. 

So after work today, I came home and took more photos of this necklace.  These are a bit brighter than those in the original collage I posted this morning.  The enamel pendant is vintage from the 70s.  I found it at Garden of Beadin' in Missoula, MT at the end of a six-week road trip in 2008.  The other components I've collected over the years.  The tiny plastic flower above the pendant is from a 1960s necklace I found in tatters at a garage sale.  I ended up getting it for free.  Score!

 I had another necklace designed for this blog hop, but I didn't find time to actually put it together.  Another day....

Click here to get to host Lori Anderson's blog.  See what she made and find the list of links for all participants.  Have a great time looking at all of the creativity.  I will be taking lots of time to visit and leave comments.  Hope you will too.