A Bead Muse Muses

A Muddle of Bits!

By Anne Marie March 29, 2023 March 28, 2023 0

What is a muddle of bits? In this case, it’s a random collection of photos, that really do not bear any relationship to each other. I am the only constant in the muddle, and sometimes that confuses the heck out of me. You’d think that at my age, I would have a chosen a straighter art path to follow. But, no! I still like to putter along, while following my muse aimlessly. I get easily bored, am passionate about all kinds of techniques, and often make art on a whim. Although I admit to making single pieces of art, I …

A Bead Muse Muses

Anatomy of a Project: In my own words!

By Anne Marie March 22, 2023 March 21, 2023 2

I’m talking about the anatomy of a project, but putting it in my own words. What does that mean? My projects are always the result of a collection of phases. I start with an idea, mosey along to the collection of materials, jump into the execution phase, then finish it off. But if it still needs work, I re-evaluate my original idea, then tweak it along the way. If I’m not happy, an on-the-fly re-design might be necessary. Rip it! Rip it!! Or, if the rip stage is not possible, I may even decide to cover it all up …

A Bead Muse Muses

Creative Sparks: Just make something!

By Anne Marie March 15, 2023 March 14, 2023 0

Creative sparks are just one part of the overall artistic experience. They are the kindling that lights the fire. But you need to put in the time, and hard work into keep the flame lit. Imagination, learning, patience, time, repetition, and hard work are all critical to the artistic process. I lurked in the Beaded Art Doll Facebook group, for years, before ever making my first doll. Experienced in intuitive bead embroidery on flat surfaces, but not confident enough to try 3-D, I felt guilty, but still watched, wallowed, and absorbed! My creative sparks smoldered for years, then blasted into …

A Bead Muse Muses

Dealing with a Bevy of Challenges!

By Anne Marie March 8, 2023 March 7, 2023 0

I’m dealing with a bevy of challenges, or am I? Perhaps “bevy” is not the right word, but it sounds much better than a couple, or even a handful of challenges. My first challenge, is undoubtedly the fact that I’m still having pain in my right thumb. This is restricting the length of time that I can work on any activity, and is a real pain in the patootie! It’s getting better, but it’s still annoying! It’s frustrating, because I’m not used to budgeting my creative time. Yes, I visited my Doctor, and she agreed with my diagnosis (heh, heh). …

A Bead Muse Muses

What Colour is your Muse?

By Anne Marie March 1, 2023 February 28, 2023 2

What colour is your muse, is a great way to slide into both our Bead-A-Long, and the month of March. In many other parts of the world, March brings signs of spring, but not in Toronto. Right now, we’re surrounded by the snow that hit us a couple of days ago. More snow to come, but you can never predict just when. We’re always hearing scary news about the latest snow apocalypse, but they don’t always materialize, so it’s a gamble. However, what March does, is it brings us the hope that spring will show up before the May-24-weekend (aka …

A Bead Muse Muses

Rocking a Hodge Podge of Projects!

By Anne Marie February 22, 2023 February 21, 2023 0

Are you rocking a hodge podge of projects? I know that I am (or have in the past), but that’s just because I need a little focus in my life. I have beading to do, with a very clear deadline, but I’m finding that the devil is in the details! To procrastinate, I’ll show you a variety of different projects this week. Not all beading related, but they do represent my mixed-up media mindset. The deadline that’s on my back (and Marg’s, and Dwyn’s), is the Toho Challenge. With the store reorganization, it’s been hard to keep our minds on …

A Bead Muse Muses

The Art of Making Hearts!

By Anne Marie February 15, 2023 February 14, 2023 0

The art of making hearts is one day late for Valentine’s Day, but is it really? I wrote this post on the 14th, but didn’t post it until today. Is that cheating? I don’t think so. I’m a day late at wishing you a Happy Valentine’s Day, but I’m not a very sentimental person, so please excuse me. However, I do have a small collection of hearts that I’ve worked on over the years. Do you want to see them? My February section of the BeadFX – Bead-A-Long – 2023 is devoted to hearts! The red hearts stand out the …

A Bead Muse Muses

Using Bead Soup & Other Fripperies!

By Anne Marie February 8, 2023 February 7, 2023 0

Using bead soup & other fripperies is probably a crazy way to start this week’s blog post. However, I’ve been watching how a few friends deal with this dilemma, so I felt that I should weigh in on the subject. I love bead soup! I use it in both my intuitive bead embroidery, and freeform peyote. It’s something that I would use it in other projects, but it would depend. That’s a pretty vague answer, but they would not be appropriate in all types of projects. Some of my friends (not naming any names) dislike bead soup. They patiently sort/separate …

A Bead Muse Muses

Love of Life & Love of Beads!

By Anne Marie February 1, 2023 January 31, 2023 0

What does love of life & love of beads mean to you? This sentence could be interpreted many ways, yet to me it’s a very soft, and loving way of dealing with the February blahs. I’m originally from Vancouver, which has a temperate rain forest climate. February was often the month where Mother Nature started coming alive (trees budding, etc.). Yes, their weather patterns are changing, but still…. Not like Toronto, where we’re expecting a huge dip to -24C (-11.2F) over the weekend. That’s just nasty, cold, and depressing, but we will probably see more blue sky (which is a …

A Bead Muse Muses

Nostalgia Reigns Supreme – But then again, so do beads!

By Anne Marie January 25, 2023 January 24, 2023 0

Is it silly to say that nostalgia reigns supreme, but then again, so do beads? Looking back at where you started, often influences future work. That’s a time-saving bonus, when you’re struggling to crank out the creativity! Why don’t you give it a try? For me, nostalgia reigns supreme when I look back at some of my older projects. Years ago, I decided to try my hand at combining wet felting, with beading. So, I looked around to see what I could use as a base. I noticed that I had a lot of old sewing thread, that I wasn’t …