October Component of the Month Reveal - Sugar Skulls

I rarely enter a giveaway challenge, but I took a chance this time, because autumn is my favorite time of the year.

I am not very familiar with the holiday, Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead so I researched it and this is what I found:

"Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is a holiday celebrated in Mexico (and by people of Mexican decent living in other countries) to honor the dead.  While it used to be celebrated centuries ago in the beginning of Summer it is now celebrated on October 31 - Nov 2.  The families get together and pray for family members and friends that have passed away.  Typically they build personal alters to honor the deceased by putting a photo of the deceased along with their favorite food and beverage, some of their belongings, marigold  flowers, and the notable sugar skulls. The sugar skulls have really become very popular these days as well as sugar skull beads and other decorations. The sugar skulls that are placed on the alters are handmade by the families using sugar, meringue powder and water pressed into skull molds and then decorated using bright colored paints or dye. "

I am from Africa, we celebrate a person's death during their funeral and the funeral used to last a month or more in the old days. Now, it only last 2 or 3 days and on the first anniversary of their death, we will celebrate the person's life by doing what they like. We don't have any particular day of the year to honor them like Dia de los Muertos.

I was Lucky to be picked and I received this beautiful sugar skull lampwork bead from Jennifer Cameron  

 I made a necklace using a recycled vintage key, on which I dangled the sugar skull lampwork with colorful ribbon, irish wax linen, bright colorful czech and Greek ceramic beads.

Very colorful, like Mardis Gras in New Orleans!

Please check out the other designers post

Guest Designers

Staci Louise Smith
Karin Grosset Grange
Solange Collin

Art Elements Team
Caroline Dewison
Susan Kennedy
Laney Mead
Claire Fabian
Diana Ptaszynski
Jenny Davies-Reazor
Cathy Spivey Mendola
Lindsay Starr
Niky Sayers
Lesley Watt
Cooky Schock
Jen Cameron

As always, thank you so much for stopping by/ Merci

Tergiversation!!!

I am still undecided about my photo background.

I really like the one I am using: It's coconut tree bark, I collected it in Ghana and brought it all the way from there!

The problem is that it is too small for necklaces and bracelets.

Anyway, I love the warmth that wood brings to the pieces.

I am trying out this backgroung with a piece of driftwood for a little touch of nature, which I think is okay but my daughter loves it!

I made a simple yet sophisticated pair of earrings with my rustic kyanite soldered head pins with a large lightweight horn,that I have had in my bead stash for a very longtime. I can't believe, I have finally used them. It is time to let them go to find a new home and start a new story!

I enhanced the soldered rustic kyanite head pins, with large flat cylindrical horn beads along with orange czech glass beads and then topped off with blue seed beads.This pair of earrings have a vibe of a warm autumnal day.  

And will certainly brighten someone's life.

A Simple design with a lightweight domed brass circle, on which I dangled my rustic kyanite soldered head pins. Again, I bought the domed brass circle nearly a decade ago, if you can believe it!  It's a simple design with beads that beautifully complement each other. 

They are ready for another Journey

Exquise and Confident!

Like always, thank you so much for stopping by.  

Merci beaucoup 

Venturing onto unknown field. Soldering Bead and Head pins Part II

Sometimes, you will go through moments of solitude and frustration.

Friends you thought would be there will walk away from you.

Things  that you thought would change by now have only fidget a little bit but really
never change.

When the sadness fill me inside, I sit and stay there silently and let all the hurt

and frustration that swirl in my head and surround my body come out.

I talk to myself and sometime I burst into tears and I feel comfort.

I am human!!!

As I was writting these paragraphs, I received an email from my very dear friend Linda who, no matter what, is always there for me.

I appreciate each of our conversations so much, even if, at the end we both can no longer hold the phone.

I am so thankful for such amazing friendship from the botton of my heart THANK YOU!

Here is what the email said: "One of the many gifts that nature offers us is a clear demonstration of the interdependence between all living things. Earth is home to a web of living things that are connected to each other through a spinning kaleidoscope of relationships. We need each other to survive and thrive."

I have always thought this myself, for we are all connected on this planet but when I read the words, it was fantastic and it comforted my belief in human beings.

Here,  I played with  handmade ceramic beads from Petra

Kyanite, kyanite has always been one of my favorite stones. Seems like I have a bunch of favorite stones :).  It was so fun to turn these rustic kyanite into head pins. I made a pair of earrings with them, which I will share here or on Instagram soon.

Here are one pair of rainbow mystic titanium AB Quartz and two pairs of rainbow blue mystic titanium AB quartz crystal point rock pendant.  I even tried with MOP

Phantom quartz head pins, this stone is so beautiful and add a perfect rustic and tribal or even modern finish to any design.

After the simple pendant, I could not resist to turn the rainbow titanium AB quartz gemstone into head pins. I am kind of obsessed with head pins. :)

It was a long painful process due to my condition but I enjoyed making them with love and care!

I have protected each of the items that I made with renaissance wax so that it will be more durable and protected from the elements.

Like always, thank you so much for stopping by.  

Merci beaucoup 

Venturing onto unknown field. Soldering beads and Head Pins Part I

I have always wanted to make something of my own (beads, chains, shape copper sheets...) that I can include on my finished handmade jewelry. 

Of course just wanting to make something doesn't mean you can! 

A few years ago (about 4-5 years), I bought 3 tutorials and 2 of them were about soldering tins and copper sheet. I painstakingly studied them.  I bought and even ordered some of the supplies that were needed. 

But for some reason there was always something missing, something else that needed to be ordered from the other side of the Atlantic!

I could have started it anyway, but something else kept holding me back and now 5 years have passed.  

I think, I was scared that I would not succeed so I let the little voice inside my head win that party! 

I could no longer accept it. So lately, by meeting some people who motivated me, I tried several things.  I finally tried the soldering and I will tell ya...I am so happy I did because the result is not bad at all.  Especially for my first time! 

I am selling what I made for others to use into their projects.

I will also start slowly to sell some of my other stuffs, because I am dealing with some health issues. It is becoming hard for me to work on my jewelry, and when I do, I am so much in pain.  So as a result, my small business is suffering and I can't spend as much time on it. 

So, if you need something here or any of my other beads,  please let me know! 

Czech glass and vintage glass beads tranform into head pins for your pleasure.

Here are Ocean Jasper Pendant and earrings, Antique green kyanite and moss agate gemstone Earring

that I soldered to be used as they are, or on your own creative way.

Rhodocrotie drop and crab agate, I turned into headpins

Raw Citrine crystals included with Goethite boughs and Amethyst gemstone soldered into headpins.

It was a long painful process due to my condition but I enjoyed making them with love and care!

I have protected each of the items that I made with renaissance wax so that it will be more durable and protected from the elements.  

Like always, thank you so much for stopping by.  

Merci beaucoup