Welcome to Studio Saturday! Each week one of our contributors gives you a sneak peek into their studio, creative process or inspirations. We ask a related question of our readers and hope you’ll leave comments! As an incentive we offer a free prize each week to bribe you to use that keyboard. The following week we choose a random winner. This week’s winner is Arline abeadlady who has won a serenity medallion pendant from Melanie Brooks-Lukacs of Earthenwood Studio. Please use the suggestion box on the sidebar to send us your address.
Happy Saturday! It’s been a busy week. Not work wise, even though I have a virtual ton to get done. I had to decide what was important. My daughter and only grandchild are moving to Minneapolis because of my son-in-law’s job. They left yesterday. I spent as time as possible with them this week. That was very important to me. Not much was accomplished in the studio.
Never fear, I have new things to show you. Above are my bead buttons or pearl buttons as some call them. These have been around for awhile. A recent order brought this about. She needed hers to look like peas for a new coat she designed. I decided to reinvent/revive them. We all need a face lift at some point. Originally they were only in solid colors. Single colors have their place but knew I could “kick it up a notch.” I am really enjoying the neon underglazes from Duncan.
They are just hot with the high contrast of black.
Above you see the neon base colors with black dots, black spirals that look like stripes and layered dots (about 6 layers).
The buttons look so great all piled together. Color, color, color!
What have you reinvented/revived/risen like a Phoenix?
Leave your answer in the comments section and next Saturday, one winner will be chosen. The prize is a 2 of the new bead buttons shown above. They would make great charms or clasp.
Tari of claybuttons
May 4, 2008 at 2:14 amSo what item(s) have you reinvented?
maryharding
May 4, 2008 at 9:30 amI love those intense colors on your bead buttons. I do not like to give up on a piece or a bead so reinventing is an important concept for me. I think one of my most successful reinventions was what I call Silver Raku. I had several pendants that were fully glazed but didn’t seem quite exciting enough and happened to be using some metal clay in a syringe and there was a bit left. I didn’t want to waste the metal clay so I took and smeared some of the it on the glazed pendants and raku fired them. Somehow in the kiln those silver particles got very active and covered some of the pendants completely in silver and left traces on others. What a nice surprise.
I always enjoy Studio Saturday and enjoy the ” sneak peek” into your creative process.
LampworkDiva
May 4, 2008 at 11:17 amLovely re-invention, Tari! The colors pop and the designs are a nice addition to your regular line. Great work!
Cindy
Gaela
May 4, 2008 at 12:20 pmStudio Saturdays are great! I get the warms fuzzies every time I see a pile or bowl full of colourful beads or buttons. I use all kinds of beads in my work, art beads, gemstones, crystals, silver and more. But after repairing a 1920’s tiny seed bead necklace for a customer(had been her grandmother’s), I fell back in love with my seed beads. They are so useful~beaded beads, added texture & strands, colourful & more. What Fun !
Lorelei
May 4, 2008 at 1:01 pmI reinvent pieces all the time! Maybe that’s a bad thing that I don’t have any real attachment to anything I make, that I can just take it all apart at any moment!?
I just revived some excellent lampwork beads that I had gotten… from a bracelet into a necklace with a beautiful Heather Wynn pendant!
abeadlady
May 4, 2008 at 5:41 pmTari,
Needless to say, I am thrilled that I won the drawing for the Earthenwood Pendant. However, I can’t seem to get into the Suggestion Box to leave my address. Is there someplace I have to establish a name and password? I have run into this on other sites as well. Thanks for your help. You can reach me at : [email protected]
Arline
Carlene
May 4, 2008 at 8:54 pmI made some raku christmas ornaments a few years ago when I doing pottery more. After a couple of sales, I had quite a few left that I just knew didn’t sell because of the less than spectacular glaze. So I took the hangers off, slathered on some more glaze and refired them. Most came out looking amazing, which of course I could never repeat, but it sure gave those guys a second life!
Tari of claybuttons
May 4, 2008 at 10:34 pmMary,
Thanks for stopping by! I always enjoy hearing from you!
Cindy, Thanks!!!
gaela,
I am so glad you enjoy Studio Saturdays! Color is everything!
Lorelei,
Not a bad thing to reinvent. Just creativity free flowing!!
Arline,
You will love Melanie’s pendant. Her stuff is fantastic!
Carlene,
I didn’t know you worked in clay. You will have to share pictures of your work with us!
Everyone, thanks for stopping by and commenting!!
Shaiha
May 9, 2008 at 4:13 amI recently took one of the first items that I had made, a bracelet with goddess charms, and turned the charms into an updated necklace.
Bertoglio-Giffin
May 9, 2008 at 4:15 pmWhat great colors! Finally some buttons that would compliment some of my hot pink & lime creations. As to reinventing… well I’ve done it big time. I’m just about finished collborating with a computer guy to release a bead crochet graphing program, “Bead Crochet Element Designer”. http://beadline.blogspot.com/2008/04/designing-bead-crochet-elements.html
It’s what I wanted five years ago.