Whistling Woman Creations
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HEY KIDS!  LET'S HAVE A SHOW!

7/9/2014

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PictureEileen of Whistling Woman Creations with Venus sitting nearby working on chain maille.
I used to do art shows on the Bayfront in downtown Corpus Christi. Every Sunday  for four years I would haul my tables, a chair, cooler and two umbrellas to the T-Head pier along with my jewelry and handmade cloth dolls. Then we left Corpus and it was hard to find affordable shows. I missed doing shows and had not done one in over fifteen years.


Recently, four of my fellow jewelry artist friends and I decided to attend a small local Farmer's Market in nearby Troy, Texas.  The venue features a covered pavilion with a concrete floor and restrooms at the adjacent Community Center.  


We ran a little late, but still had plenty of time to set up.  We met with Laurie Bailey, the Troy city council woman who is charge of the event.  I filled out the paperwork as the others began setting up.  We were given the Number One space as we were new to the venue, so we had great visibility.

PictureDian has her and Venus's jewelry all set up at their first show ever

We set our two 4 foot tables and our two card tables in a U shape and placed our four folding TV trays within easy reach for drinks and a work space.  The wind was an issue and we had to rethink our displays.  I gave up  on the  "upright display is best for visibilty"  rule  and ended up laying a lot of my pieces flat. Over all, I think our area  had a good presentation.



PictureValerie of Valerie's Creations shows off her new banner.

Of the five of us setting up,  Valerie and Dori had done a few  small shows and Venus and Dian were total newbies.  This show was very much a practice run for all of us. We did a lot of networking with the other vendors who were only too happy to share  their lists of  area venues with us.  We had a couple of small sales and made a few purchases of our own. After all,  who can resist  local raw honey and fresh, local tomatoes?

PictureDori of Dream Shadow Designs takes a few pics.

The Troy Farmer's Market is held the 4th Saturday of every month from 9 a.m.  till 12 noon at the Pavilion near City Hall. Come by if you are in the area on market days!  If you can't make it, please support the  farmer's markets in your area!



TIPS FOR ART/CRAFT FAIR SET UPS

1. Tape...lots of tape. Double Sided Tape is useful for securing small items to the table.  Duct Tape will hold small signs, extension cords, etc, in place. 

2.  Baby Wipes.  I buy inexpensive generic wipes and keep them in my cooler.  Use to wipe off tables and chairs, and as hand wipes.  A  chilled wipe across the back of your neck is a great pick me up at a warm  outdoor show.  And, as I found out when I did those Bayfront shows in Corpus Christi...they will remove sea gull dropping from your fellow vendor's oil paintings.

3. Lesson learned at this show....bean bags to weigh down displays.  We did not have them this time around.  I will be making some this week.  I am thinking...3x5 inches, filled with pinto beans (or whatever is on sale).  Maybe add a  removable slip cover in a nice cheery color or print.

4. Years ago, I made a custom fitted cover for my four foot table.  Having it fitted saved time in set up. The length of fabric for my four foot table was about 9 feet....roughly 3 yards.   I used 60 inch wide muslin and draped it over the table.  I hemmed the raw edges for a more finished  look. I placed the muslin on the table and adjusted it so that it reached the floor on each side and in the front.  I left a floor clearance of about 1 1/2 inches so that the bottom edges of the cover would stay cleaner.  Place books on each corner to  keep fabric from shifting and gather the  excess fabric at the legs and fold the excess into a dart.  Secure  this dart with straight pins.  Do this for all four corners.  Carefully remove the fabric and sew the darts on a sewing machine. You can leave the darts as they are or carefully cut each dart up the center and iron flat and trim away excess fabric. The darts  will not be visible so it does not really matter. Turn inside out and you now have a custom fitted table drape.  You can also make a  fitted cover in the fabric of your choice.  A  shorter cover in a print to slip over the muslin cover would add a pop of color to your set up.

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The Challenge of the Texas Bead Retreat Challenge

2/16/2014

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PictureSamples for a few of my kits.
I am often asked by my non-bead obsessed friends what exactly does one  "do" at a bead retreat.  The obvious answer is of course...we bead.  Imagine about 100 of your BFFs (Bead Fanatic Friends) meeting up for 3-4 days of beading.  Toss in some chocolate and maybe a little wine and more beads. Stir in a heaping helping of laughter and you have the Texas Bead Retreat.

The Texas Bead Retreat is held annually in mid January in Temple, Texas.  There are four class sessions beginning Friday night and wrapping up on Sunday.  The teachers are volunteers and there is no charge for the classes.  The TBR has always been about sharing our creativity and love of beads.

One of the highlights of Saturday night is the Texas Bead Retreat Challenge. 

PictureMy Texas Bead Retreat 2014 Challenge Earrings
All attendees are sent the same bead related items prior to the retreat and the challenge is to create  something  from it. Use of other beads is acceptable as long as the Challenge items are used  and featured in the piece. 


This year we were sent Czech SuperDuo beads in a lovely turquoise.  SuperDuos are roughly 1/8 inch in length and have two holes. This opens  up a lot of stringing and bead weaving possibilities. Never having worked with any of the two holed beads on the bead market,  I was a bit stumped by what to do with them. I played around with them for a couple of weeks, trying different bead stitches and combinations. I finally settled on a peyote band of SuperDuos embellished with  rosettes of SuperDuos accented with seed beads.  Over halfway thru, I could see that the reality was not living up the picture in my head.  I ripped it apart just two days before the start of Bead Retreat. Then it hit me and I knew exactly what I wanted to do.


The end result was a pair of dream catcher hoop earrings worked in a combination of brick and peyote stitch with a matching pendant. I used the last few SuperDuos in the packet  as accents on the pendant chain. I did not place in the Challenge, but I won a new design that will become a new kit and tutorial.  I plan to teach the earrings at my local bead store in a few weeks. The tutorial will be listed on my Etsy store at http://www.etsy.com/shop/whistlingwoman in mid March.




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Wrapping Up 2013

12/7/2013

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Picture
It's been a busy three months here Deep in the Heart of Texas. Just three or four more things on my 2013 list to cross off and I will be done.  The list for 2014 is already in progress and will include at least four new kits.

To wrap up this year, I will be teaching my Christmas Ornament Charms class at Just Because Bead Boutique, 2825 Thornton Lane, here in Temple on Saturday,21 December .  This is a set of ten ornament charms perfect for trimming a tree, a wreath, a package or even wearing as earrings.  Each kit makes a total of eight beaded stars, two each of four designs, and two different angel charms.  I am excited to share this project with the beaders in my area.  Thank  you Michele for this opportunity!



PictureBijoux Choker
Texas Bead Retreat is coming up 16-19 January 2014 and I cannot wait to see everyone again!  After spending four days in the company of these talented bead artists, I always come away inspired and over flowing with creative ideas.  This will be my second year  teaching at  TBR and I am excited to offer my Bijoux Choker.  This project is worked in pearls, seed beads and bicone crystals using an easy vertical netting stitch.

The Texas Bead Retreat Challenge this year is to use the SuperDuos, two hole  beads.  My packet of beads are a lovely turquoise in a Picasso finish.  I have already chosen my color palette and have a few rough designs in my sketchbook.  I have never worked with any of the two hole beads, so this should be fun as I figure out how to manipulate them into jewelry.

One of my final goals for 2013 is to continue to work on this website to make it easier to navigate.  No doubt  this will spill over into 2014 as I am not a computer tech by any stretch of the imagination.  Even using the  "click and drag" method is a little daunting, so please bear with me as I  learn something new.

Thanks for stopping by and see you next time!  

Create Awesomeness!  

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LEAP OF FAITH

10/26/2013

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Picture

Sometimes the best mode of transportation is a leap of faith. This blog and website are my Leap of Faith.


When I first began beading in 1988, there weren't many resources available from which to learn.  Bead books were few and far between and the internet was just beginning.  

Today, we have You Tube to teach and inspire us.  Bead supplies are just a click away, and all the knowledge and helpful hints in the world are at our fingertips.


With this blog, I  hope to acknowledge all those from whom I have learned so much and to share that knowledge.


So come on along...on the count of three....Let's jump!


Create Awesomeness!


Eileen

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    I am a bead artist living Deep in the Heart of Texas.

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