The Bead Spot

For the first time in a couple of weeks, I had a chance to work on my black bracelet yesterday during my break at lunch. Woo hoo! I had thought that would be enough time to finish it, but it wasn't. I don't have much more to go, though. With a little luck, I'll be able to wrap it up Saturday when my daughter naps -- if she naps. She's not always a fan of napping. I still have a couple of projects (not bead related) that can slow me down, so, unlike the last couple of weeks, I'm just going to put my Etsy shop debut out of my mind and not plan to do my first listing this coming Monday. If I can do it, great. Otherwise, I'm just not going to sweat it. One of the projects is getting stuff ready to sell on consignment, but I'm scheduled to drop all of that off at 1 p.m. today, so after today, that's done. The other is a freelance project that I have the finishing touches to go on, but I can't do anymore on it until someone else finished up her part....

In bicone beads, the diameter of the ends of the beads are much smaller than their center, which creates a cone shape at each end. Lengths vary; they can be short or long tubes.

Wire is measured in gauge, with higher numbers indicating thinner wire. The reason for this has to do with how wire is made: Those who make it draw it through a cast called a drawing plate to make it thinner. The more times the wire is drawn through the plate, the thinner the wire gets. Gauge number is the number of times the wire gets passed through the drawing plate.

I still haven't had time to bead -- beginning today or tomorrow, though, my schedule should get back to normal -- so I haven't listed anything on Etsy yet; however, I did buy something. I bought a replacement high chair cover for my daughter's high chair. The one she had has been washed a few too many times because it's falling apart in the back. I can't wait to get the new one! I love handcrafted items!

I've been a member of Spark People  -- a site that offers free diet plans and support for dieters -- for a few years now and have used its diet tips and food-tracking tool off and on. The other day, I popped in, feeling yet another spurt of resolve to get my weight under control, and decided not only to record my weight but also to check in with my teams -- groups to which I belong in which the members have a common interest or characteristic -- for the first time since I joined them. One of my teams is a writing team, another for other members older than 40, and two teams are made of up fellow beading enthusiasts. One of the beading teams seems to be defunct, with few posts in about a year. The other seems like it's sporadically active, but it's nice to see what other people think and are working on. My goal is to partake more in the Spark People community. Perhaps doing so will help me with my goals, both on the scale and with my beads.

My mom makes earrings -- tons of them -- when she sits down to bead. She also makes barretts, bun holders, headdresses and more. For years, I never bothered to make earrings. I don't know why not. Perhaps it's because I don't ever wear them myself because I have yet to find a type of post that doesn't cause my ear to get infected. But about a year ago, I decided to give earrings a try. This photo show my second pair I attempted. This is how far I got before I realized something wasn't going right with it. Now, though, when I look at it, I don't know what my mistake was, but I think it's my choice in stringing material. This is Fireline, which doesn't have any give to it. I think it looks OK, so I might try to finish it anyway for the arts & crafts festival.

Because life can be hectic -- for me, lately it's been illnesses, being short staffed at work, a freelance project coming due and a consignment sale I need to prepare for -- I have had no time for beading coming up on two weeks now. As a result, the black seed bead bracelet I was working on hasn't been touched and is still unfinished. I think things will get back to normal now, or at least relatively normal, so hopefully this week I can get it done and get it listed. I'm anxious to give selling via Etsy a try. Once I get this bracelet finished, I need to get started on my wish list for the next festival. If at all possible, I'd like to have a basket ready to go, too.