Bringing Out the Green

Anyone that knows me, knows that my favorite color is green.  I have a weakness for just about anything in that earthy shade.  So when it's time for St. Patrick's Day, I love making some emerald colored items.  (And as far as I know, there's no Irish blood in me!)
Today I finally finished a bookmark in shades of green and gold to go with the golden Celtic Circle charm on the end.

I've also created some earrings in three shades of green glass beads, along with the same golden Celtic Circle charms.

With all this crazy winter weather lately, I was inspired by these subtle olivine and amethyst crackled glass beads to create some earrings ready for Spring with little gold butterfly beads.

I've got plenty more green to create.  And some pictures of already made items to track down on my laptop.  In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed these cheerful green beaded items.

Monday Minute

I was planning to make a bookmark or two today, but somehow I ran out of time. I spent 45 minutes or so this afternoon wandering around inside the local quilt shop. I had a $20 gift certificate to spend, but no real plan of what I wanted to buy. I know, not a good idea, right? After checking out some of the many, many bolts on the shelves, I found myself gravitating to the fat quarters. What quilter doesn't love fat quarters? I know I already have boxes and boxes of them at home, but I don't have many novelty prints. Then I started pulling out some interesting novelty fabrics. That led to looking through all the other fat quarters to find things to complement the ones in my hand. With my $20, I figured I could buy 10 fat quarters, and pay for the difference with my own money. It was hard limiting myself to just 10, but I did it! I have some ideas of what I'm going to do with them, but I'll keep that a surprise for now. Here's what I picked up today:

What is reading?

What does reading mean to you?








Whatever reading means to you, make it even more enjoyable with a pretty beaded bookmark from my shop!

Pretty Turquoise Colored Bracelet

I listed this one in my Etsy shop today. I love the color combo! In fact, I originally used it for a custom bookmark, and I loved it so much I had to use it on this bracelet.



Beaded bracelet in shades of turquoise, black, brown and antique brass beads. An antiqued copper feather charm hangs from one end.

The bracelet is designed and handmade by Suzies Armoire, and is approx. 17" in length. Since it is made from memory wire, it should fit any wrist, and wrap around twice. Just like snowflakes, all of Suzies Armoire bracelets are unique--I have never made the same design twice!



And the custom bookmark:

One Year and Counting!

(If you make it to the end of my latest rambling, you will be rewarded with a special offer for orders from my Etsy shop.)

This week marks the one year Etsy-versary, as they call them, of my little shop on Etsy. It's been a bit of a roller coaster ride--ups and downs, twists and turns that have led me to where I am today. I've learned a thing or two along the way (like buying a better camera does get you better pictures), and met lots of really great people. Some have held my hand as I started on this new adventure, showing me the ropes. Some I have unfortunately lost touch with because life has taken them in a different direction. And some I hope to hang around with for a long time to come, because they have become good friends who offer me support and advice when I need it most.

I started out just making beaded bookmarks...


(One of my very first listings, that's strangely still in my shop.)

Then I added beaded phone charms...


(The very first sale I made on Etsy.)

Then I added some jewelry...



Discovered Twitter...

Joined a team or two...(left a team or two)...

Made some necklaces for challenges, that I will never sell...


(Mine, all mine!)

Tried out a quilted coaster idea...



Bought some cute props...


(How could I resist a mini little armoire!)

Redesigned my beaded charms in a CHA-CHA style...



And started a new, terrific team with some of those great people I mentioned earlier. My shop is getting more exposure then ever, so let's hope it leads to great things for all of us!

Thanks to everyone that has helped me and supported me during this first year. Here's to an even better year for this little adventure of mine.

And to celebrate making it this far, I am offering an Etsy-versary special of 25% off to the next 5 orders in my Etsy shop that include "1YEAR" in the notes to seller. I will refund the discount through PayPal.

Oh, and I still make those beaded bookmarks.

Thanks again,
--Suzie

Something a little different from me

I've been wanting to try out memory wire for some time now. Below is one of the results. The memory wire is a lot of fun. Unfortunately, it's so strong that I think I've ruined a pair of pliers trying to make the loops on the ends. (They still work, they just kind of slip to the side when I try to make loops now.)

Here's the first one I'm listing in my Etsy shop.


Beaded bracelet in shades of yellow, brown and antique brass beads. Yellow spotted beads make it look a little like leopard or cheetah print. Three beads dangle from one end to complete the pattern.


The bracelet is designed and handmade by Suzies Armoire, and is approx. 17" in length. Since it is made from memory wire, it should fit any wrist, and wrap around twice.

Another pretty little charm

I've been coverting all of my old phone charms to CHA CHA charms, so I've made quite a few of these over the last few days. So here's another one for your viewing pleasure.




Beaded charm in shades of turquoise, blue and purple beads. Indigo resin star on the end. Beaded charms can be used on cellphones, backpacks, purses, keychains, and more!

Just in time for Valentine's Day: a cute little charm

I'm a little behind with posting. I listed this one in my Etsy shop yesterday.



Cha-cha style beaded charm in shades of pink, white, and crystal beads. Cute pewter heart and flower charm on the end. Beaded charms can be used on cellphones, backpacks, purses, keychains, and more! I can also switch it to a shepherd's hook bookmark, if you would like. Or remove it from the loop and add your own chain/cord to use it as a pendant! (I need to get some pictures up of the book-hooks.)

A phone charm WITH a phone charm!

Beaded charm in shades of turquoise blue and black beads. Cute pewter phone charm on the end. Beaded charms can be used on cellphones, backpacks, purses, keychains, and more!



Each charm is designed and handmade by Suzies Armoire, with CHA CHA beads attached to ~1.5" section of chain, which is attached to a charm loop. Just like snowflakes, all of Suzies Armoire charms are unique--I have never made the same design twice!

New Beaded Bookmark in my Etsy Shop

Just got this photographed and listed in my shop last night. It's not really a "new" bookmark, I guess. It originally had a pewter charm on the end that read "Love Much" on one side, and "Laugh Often" on the other. But someone requested that charm for a custom order before Christmas, and well, that was the last one I had and had to take it off of this bookmark. So it took me until yesterday to add a new charm, and re-photograph the bookmark. I actually think the gold-tone butterfly charm looks pretty good since I had originally used gold-tone findings when making the bookmark. (Now I need to get more gold-tone butterfly charms, lol!)



Beaded bookmark in vibrant shades of blue, purple, orange, and green beads, with a cute gold-toned butterfly charm on the end.



Makes a great gift for someone who loves to read or for yourself. Imagine curling up with a good book and some hot cocoa! Even prettier than the photographs in real life. It's hard to capture the sparkle.

Each bookmark is designed and handmade by Suzie's Armoire, with ~11" of tiny seed beads in the middle to fit inside most book sizes. Just like snowflakes, all of Suzie's Armoire bookmarks are unique--I have never made the same design twice!

NOTE: The bookmarks contain VERY small parts and are rather delicate. Do not pull/yank on beaded items. Products are not intended for small children, especially children under 3, unless otherwise indicated.

Time for a change...

Lets just say that my old Etsy team and I had a "parting of the ways." It was certainly the best decision for me--so much less stress to deal with! And stress and drama are two things I can do without. But I still love the idea of a group working together to promote/support each other, so some Etsy friends and I have gotten together to form our own new team, the Creative Handmade Artisans (CHA) Team! We're still awaiting the official recognition from Etsy to call ourselves a "team," but in the meantime we have been busy working to get everything set up--twitter account, blog, ning site, Etsy account. Everything is shaping up really well! And I think it will all work out great because we're friends first, teammates second.

So check out the Charter Members of the Creative Handmade Artisans:















More to be added later!

Looking forward to the New Year

I'm hoping to get everything more under control and have a better schedule for keeping up with stuff in 2010. One of those scheduled items is time to write up a new blog post at least once a week. Sorry for neglecting my poor little blog(s).

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy, productive, and prosperous New Year!