Friends, Bead Shows, Coin Pearls &Silver Shells

Going to bead shows is an adventure for me. I enjoy seeing the different gemstones, finding great bargains which make my jewelry more affordable, but, most of all, I like doing business and establishing relationships with quality vendors. Beautiful jewelry can't be made with ugly, low quality components.

When Leanne and I began our jewelry-making adventure, we thought our stuff was elegant. Now we chuckle at those pieces. Clasps bought at our local box stores had shiny finishes which wore off quickly. Beads looked nice but their finishes scratched or became dull. Our tastes have also changed as we've been exposed to artfully produced pieces by seasoned beaders. I've realized that this craft is a never ending journey which constantly requires searching for better components, better methods, and quality resources. It's also much more fun when we have the support and encouragement from those we love and respect.

Along the way, I've joined with a couple of compatriots, women with the same excitement and enthusiasm for beads. We share successful techniques, our little secrets, our best suppliers. We respect each other's gifting. We share the cost of shipping, call each other to see if anyone needs products, let each other know when a supplier has a special sale. We want success for each other. There's nothing more encouraging than seeing someone do well, especially in this economy.

Saturday, my sister Carole, Diana Bunten, Laura Tidey and I get to spend a few hours going to a bead show in Pompano Beach. The anticipation of introducing my sister to great suppliers and rooms full of BEADS is delicious, but this morning, I realized that I'm more excited about having her meet two wonderful beading buddies. Befriending Diana and Laura has been a God thing. My jewelry and business have been better because of the contacts. They love God, so we have an added dimension to our relationship as well. They are great examples of the saying, "Happiness is an inside job." Can't wait for my wonderful sister to meet them!

Coin Pearls & Silver Shells is an example of networking good supplier information. The coin pearls are from the west coast. They are some of the best pearls I've ever seen. Combined with Hill Tribe Sterling components, the bracelet is gorgeous with a summer tan. Matching earrings complete the set. The creamy coin pearls are over 1/2" across. A shell charm dangles from the toggle. Sold separately, the bracelet is $59 and the earrings are $25. The set goes for $79.

Camp

The previous post referred to our family's cottage on Sebago Lake in Maine. My brother has it now...third generation. My grandfather bought the property the year I was born. !($^ to be exact. He built it himself with help from his sons. It was battleship grey with red and white trim the whole time we were growing up. He kept it rustic and lived in for most of its life. We did a lot of work when my dad inherited it. New well, kitchen, bathroom, windows, doors, shingles, roof, paint inside and out. Lots of improvements. We enjoyed the projects.

The improvements were good, but there were structural issues which needed to be addressed. As nice as it looked, it would only be a matter of time before the building's inner core would be its undoing. The camp was sitting on boulders and rock piles, shimmed up with wood, jacked up in places, and becoming structurally unsound. It needed a foundation. There were no supporting beams, and the wood used to build it was not thick enough. It's a wonder the front bedroom was still upstairs.

My brother Bill, a builder, set about making it a year round residence. I'm sure there were times when he felt like the main character in the movie Money Pit! There have been years of projects, but the place is safe, sound, and SOOOOO cute! He's still working on it, and I'm thinking it'll never be 100% complete because the man comes up with the most awesome ideas! Out comes his paper and pencil, a sketch you could frame as an artist's rendition, another check list, the table saw, boards in the appropriate sizes, hammer, nails and other tools. The end result is always phenominal. I'm proud of my brother and his gift!

Thank you for making it possible for family to enjoy water, relaxation, boating, friends, great food, fire pit evenings, the hammock on a lazy day, and breathtaking sunsets for years to come.

I Love Dragonflies

When we were kids growing up on Sebago Lake in Maine, mosquitoes were a huge issue throughout the summer. Our cottage was one of seven on a small peninsula we lovingly called "The Point" which was bordered on two sides by marsh and squishy mud...breeding ground for mosquitoes. By evening, we were juicy meals for those bloodthirsty pests. But, night after night, sunsets across the water made it worth the victimization. We loved "camp".

Over the years, I remember trucks traveling the dirt roads around Sebago spraying to kill what they could as we hurried indoors holding our breath when we heard the shusshhhing sound of the machine coming near.

As the EPA came into the picture, and as PCBs and carcinogens slowly found their way into our lake's fish, less spraying was done. We made jokes about the mosquito being the state bird, and hiding our babies and small pets so they didn't get carried off into the sunset by swarming bugs.

I'll never forget the first time one of the neighbors came to chat with my grandfather about splitting the cost of a dragonfly delivery on the Point. What an intriguing concept! Dragonflies eat both the bugs and their larvae. That seemed like a great idea. We waited in anticipation for the truck to arrive that summer and enjoyed seeing the mosquito population being gobbled up by those delightful creatures. I never swatted one of them, even if it found it's way into the cottage. We were careful with all of them. They were saving us from the vampires which came at dusk.

I Love Dragonflies, a 41" Diva Length wire wrapped necklace, is full of great beads! Jasper, howlite, mother of pearl, crystals, copper hearts and rose gold are beautiful, but the best beads are the dragonflies. My daughter put this on, and I couldn't stop looking at it. Doubled (as shown) or not, it's gorgeous on. Either way, it's an attractive piece. Necklace $65

Thanks to my brother Bill Bridges who lives in the beautifully renovated "camp" and takes the most amazing pictures of sunsets. He captured the one above.

Our Ladybug and Ladybug Picnic

A ladybug lives in our home. She's 5 and her name is Jaymee. What a delight! The day she was born, our daughter Leanne and I both nicknamed her "Ladybug" without the other knowing. When I held this little six pounder in the hospital room and called her "Mommy's Little Ladybug", I thought Leanne was going to jump off the bed. It was a cute moment which cemented the nickname forever.

Do you know how many things are available with ladybugs on them? Jayee has a pillow, tiny earrings, an itty bitty bracelet for a tiny wrist, shirts, pants, buttons, stuffed bugs, and even a tea set with ladybugs on the handles of the spoons. Jaymee points them out when she thinks we might have missed one in a store. We even point them out to each other when she's not with us.

When Leanne decided to get her own jewelry business up and running, she chose Silver Bug as the name of the ready-made line we also carry at Juni G. You don't have to guess what's on the Silver Bug business cards.

Bless Laura Tidey. When I asked her to make ladybug lampwork beads, she spent time looking at options and waited until the creative juices were at their best...then she made the most adorable ladybugs! The center bead is a triangle with red bugs on the three points. Laura amazes me!

Ladybug Picnic can be remade if someone wants a similar bracelet. There will be enough differences to make them one of a kind. With facetted, banded onyx beads, tagua rondelles, and sterling silver beads plus a ladybug toggle, it's priced in the $90 range.

Email me at www.junig@bellsouth.net with any questions.

Carole Powell & California Sushi

My wonderful Sister, Carole Powell, is the best sister ever! You can't imagine the ability she has to multi-task. When they passed out the do-it-all-at-once gene, she received hers AND what didn't get delivered to me in the gene pool four years before! Being able to focus on more than one thing at a time takes incredible talent and energy which I do NOT have. Any attempt to do what she accomplishes daily puts me in a meltdown situation rather quickly. Her Facebook posts make me tired just reading them and begs the question, "Woman, when do you sleep?" Carole exemplifies the Scripture, "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might."...on steroids.

Carole owns the original California Sushi bracelet, earrings, and slide which are one of a kind. The Laura Tidey lampworks in California Sushi 2 are the same color, but each bead is different. This bracelet is chunky and as much fun as the first. It has a matching slide and earrings can be made to match without being heavy. The bracelet and slide are available for $109 and the earrings are free. Email me for more information. www.junig@bellsouth.net

DC & Cinnabar Bouquet

It's been a while since I posted a blog, but here we are in November headed for Thanksgiving already and it's amazing how fast time has flown. Making jewelry, doing shows, teaching art, spending time with family here and in Maryland, have all sped up the clock.

Two Sundays ago, Jay and his family took me to Washington, DC, where we spent the day on a walking tour. I'd forgotten how small the area is and how easy it is to see a lot in a short span of time. The weather was perfect and the trees were dressed in the most vivid colors I've seen in a while. My camera was full of wonderful pictures by the end of the day. This is just one example of the Washington Monument surrounded by fantastic leaves and sky. The delightful day made a memory for me. I'd like to do it again, next time seeing the buildings and landmarks we missed for lack of time. Something to look forward to.

The rest of the trip to MD was spent decorating Jay and Michelle's lovely new home. We managed to finish four rooms. The three of us worked steadily for several days to get the rooms completed before I headed back to Florida. My favorite vignette is the diningroom wall with words saying, "The fondest memories are made when gathered around the table." Click on the picture to see the words closely.

Returned Tuesday night, spent Wednesday preparing for school Thursday. With an Open House scheduled for today and two shows next Friday and Saturday, there was the need for more production, so I pulled out the stops and have been cranking out serious jewelry. This next week is going to be busy as well. Since the set below was sold within two days, I decided that it was worth making again. The second set is similar, but, as always, I change it enough to make each piece one of a kind. This three piece set sells for $90. Earrings, bracelet and necklace contain tan cinnabar flowers, acid etched onyx lentils, leopard skin jasper, Swarovski crystals, and black lava. For more information, email me at www.junig@bellsouth.net

Tribute to my Grandmother

Bracelet $59.oo Matching pink earrings available

email for info: junig@bellsouth.net

Profit from the sale of this piece goes to the

Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so I decided to post a second pink bracelet in memory of my grandmother, Irene Marguerite Bridges who had breast cancer late in life.

Gram was quite the woman. She was not too tall, a lot less than 5', and a woman to be reckoned with. I affectionately called her a banty rooster. Don't take me wrong, she was always lady-like, but her strengths were evident. I don't ever remember her strolling. She walked with determined purpose, head held high. It seemed to me that she had something to do, even if she didn't. There was always a project in some stage of completion. Among other things, she made dolls, braided rugs, blankets, and sewed every dress she wore out of the same pattern but with different materials, buttons or lace accents.

Her cooking was simple and without fanfare, but her baking was amazing. I still have her recipes for molasses cookies, gingersnaps, and peanutbutter fudge. She once helped me win a fudge making contest by talking me through the steps. I was some proud! You could invariably count on cookies, separated by wax paper, being in her "tin". She hardly ever let the tin get empty and knew which ones were from the latest batch because the freshest ones were always saved for "the menfolk".

Over the years, there was little deviation from her routine. If I slept in their guest room, it was a given that they'd be up at the same time each morning, first reading their Bibles out loud, repeating the 23rd Psalm and praying together. Then my grandfather would hold her feet as she did a few situps. He did an impressive amount every morning himself, then they'd go downstairs to freshen up and eat breakfast. Before they ate together, my grandparents held hands, prayed over the food and ended with the Lord's Prayer. You could bank on the routine.

Gram never wore makeup, but her skin, no matter how wrinkled it became, was soft. To this day I can't smell Noxema without seeing her face. It served her well.

When my grandfather died of cancer, we were concerned because Gram had heavily relied on him. She was from a generation of women who never wrote a check, got a driver's license, or went far from home unless she sat in the passenger seat. Still, she had a strength which proved itself when she had to function alone at 80. I think she did more things for the first time AFTER my grandfather passed than she'd ever done before. She became independent, began doing things with "the Girls", took trips, and kept busy until a while before her death just before her 93rd birthday.

I remember taking her to several radiation treatments which burned her breast and caused tremendous discomfort. She was a trooper through the treatments anyway, complaining little. She fussed more about being a burden to people who drove her for radiation. All the same, it became another opportunity to declare out loud once again how much I loved her. We all need to say it often while there's still an ear to hear and a heart to receive it.

The day Gram died, two of her sons, their wives, and a few grandchildren and great grands held hands around her bed as she took her last struggling breaths. We sang, "When we all get to Heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be. When we all see Jesus, we'll sing and shout the victory." It was a fitting send-off for a wonderful woman who loved her family.

I wonder if I'll smell Noxema on her face as I kiss her hello when my time comes.