Another shop update!

Just a few days ago I added these new hand painted focals to my shop! I used some slightly brighter polymer colors, over layered with patterns of various found objects and some of my own hand drawn motifs… and of course, over top of it all I added several layers of paint. I'm really loving how these turned out to mimic batik fabrics!

I've never made cones before, but when I was left with some small scraps after making the shard focals, I quickly made my own cone form and made these. Since in their former life they were scraps, these cones are all mismatched in size and pattern… but I think they'd be super fun for a tassel or an asymmetric necklace or bracelet.

I'll be working on some matched pairs for earrings later. :-)

See everything in my shop here!

Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

Leather butterflies at last!!

I know… you all have waited practically forever for these butterflies! And I'm so happy that I can bring them to you at last!

All hand painted in metallic gold, purple, red, and navy… 

But sadly, I'm only going to have a few dozen pairs, at the very most. As I've discovered over the past couple years, some leather works better than others for my techniques and designs. I'm getting scary low on this bit of vintage leather and when it's gone, it's gone… and so are these butterflies.

But of course, I'm not letting leather go that easily! New and different things will be flying out of Tree Wings Studio later and I'm sure there will be some new butterflies!

And now, on to polymer clay… and more painting…

I'm really excited about these little painted tulip sticks! I've always said if I hadn't discovered polymer clay, I'd probably be a painter (that, or a pianist, but that's a story for later!)… for these, it was just a simple slab of polymer for my canvas and then some fun with tiny painted details.

Being my crazy, tiny detail, texture loving self, I added a faint lace texture to the back. No, it's not from real lace… I made the texture myself, when I couldn't find a pattern I liked or texture small enough to suit my needs the answer was the same as always: "I'll just make it myself!"

I really was SO tempted to keep them all for myself! 

I really was liking the color palette of the butterflies and tulips, so I decided to go back to an older design with new colors…

Sculpted wild rose beads are back!

 In "soft honey cream"

 "bittersweet orange"

"rustic peacock teal" 

 I made some Rustic Stripes chunky round carved beads too. I call this color mix "end of summer"… yes! spring has barely begun here and I'm already dreaming of autumn…

And finally…

A new design in rustic copper brown using that lace texture I mentioned. I made my own texture sheet using my "hand-drawn" lace and the impression of some pretty vintage rose beads on a necklace that had belonged to my great aunt. I love the combination of textures of old and new!

See everything in my shop here!

More new beads…

Delicate ruffled anemone wildflowers with speckles, stripes, and a little carving on the backs… and of course, more painting! This time in coppery brown and golden orange with deep rose and plum.

I love how the flowers have a shadowy, painterly feel with these beads. I'm really enjoying these new painting experiments and seeing how they turn out with smooth finished surfaces!

These beads were inspired by the wild wood anemones that are blooming now. And… I had originally planned for a woodland wildflower look, but these beads took on a little bit of a seaside feel instead… with the stripes and long pointed shape paired with the sandy ivory color they somehow remind me of seashells… but maybe that's just me…
 
I did save aside just a few for myself and I think I will make a long necklace, with maybe a fringe or something tassel-y… :-)

I hope you enjoy creating with them!

Leftover scraps and a little splash of paint, made for perfectly coordinated round beads!

See them all in my shop here!

A few new things...

It's been a bit quiet here at Tree Wings Studio, but things are starting to happen again! Mostly beads, of course. Followed by more and more beads... and some quiet time to myself and the fluffy guy above... some time to daydream and design.... and some long talks with family. I'm so very blessed with a family of artists and entrepreneurs. I've been making lots of plans and there are a few changes coming about at Tree Wings Studio. Which mostly means more new beads going in to my shop, but probably in smaller batches and there will be more one of kind and limited runs so I can offer more variety, have more frequent updates, and hopefully make more of what I really enjoy making and continue to explore new techniques—my bead idea list is ever growing longer and I have so many new designs I want to complete. Yay! for new beads, right!?

 I really don't know what I'd do without my little helper! :-)

And now, for the new beads....

For some reason I've really been drawn to butterflies lately... maybe it's the dramatic and beautiful change they go through to become the gorgeous creatures that they are... or maybe the stunning colors (I do tend to keep to the earthy, "drab" palette, though)... or maybe it's simply the perfect symmetry of patterns of their wings... Yes! they so inspire me! So anyhoo, I let my ideas fly and I do have to say I'm pretty happy with the results so far.

Furled Wings pendant in caramel brown...

and in peacock brown...

For this design, I was inspired by the newly hatched butterflies resting just after its amazing transformation, almost ready for that very first flight.

All hand drawn from my own sketch and carefully transferred to the polymer and painted in acrylics. I truly have no idea how I made this color... it was one of those happy accidents and now I'm sad I only made two. Only one of them made it to my shop though... a bead maker does have to have a few beads too... sometimes. ;-)

And a butterfly needs flowers, of course! So I made a few sets of wildflower tube beads. All hand drawn, painted, and given a soft smooth finish with just a little rustic touch.

Normally I would go to great lengths to hide a seam, but for these beads, I love how it added to the rustic-ness!

You'll notice that I'm making my beads with holes that are a bit bigger than I typically made before... I like to be able to use fiber in my designs and a bigger hole is always nice for that, so whenever possible, I'm working to go with bigger holes.

Fluttering Butterfly rounds in cinnamon cream...

And two more butterfly designs...

.... in golden orange and rust...

... and in tan with golden peacock.

I made all these rounds with a very slightly domed, lightly carved back so they rest nicely for a bracelet or necklace... or even bead embroidery!

See them all in my shop here! And don't forget, these are all I have for these particular designs and colors, so grab them up while you can... more brand new beads are coming soon!

Happy Saturday and a wonderful Easter holiday to you all!