First was the Swarovski challenge. Beaders gathered Swarovski crystals from different vendors and then combined the disparate beads into a piece of jewelry.
The winner of the challenge was Laura Luepke, from The Verdant Edge. I had the good fortune to meet Laura during one of my classes and see her beadwork first hand. She does amazing work. Her etsy shop is full of gorgeous pieces (and she even has an earring tutorial available.)
You can see Laura's bracelet (and some in progress pictures) here on her blog. Seriously, go take a look. The bracelet is gorgeous and definitely deserved to win.
Swarovski sent her $500 of crystals beads and components. If you want to see the entire lot, Laura posted a photo on her facebook page.
Swarovski was generous to the rest of the participants, also, and sent each of us a small gift bag -- all the way from Austria!
The bag contained crystals, makings for a few pendants and a Swarovski color chart.
Thank you, Swarovski!
My next challenge was the Bead and Button Bead Soup, sponsored by Kalmbach Publishing. Each beader brought a "soup" consisting of a focal, clasp and coordinating beads. The soups were mixed in a big crock pot and each beader picked a soup.
This was a really fun event and all the beaders were beyond thrilled with their soups. Here's hoping this could be an annual event (hint, hint).
First place went to Marcia Balonis. I have been a fan of Marcia for years. I love her designs and have several of her patterns. You can find her patterns on her website or in her etsy shop.
Marcia's necklace was a beautiful piece that used wire crochet to blend her soup beautifully. You can see Marcia's necklace, all the soups and the participants' creations on Kalmbach's facebook page.
As excited as I was to see Marcia's name in first place, I was beyond thrilled to see that I had won second place (and a gift certificate to the Kalmbach store)!
Thank you Kalmbach!
Hi Tanya,
ReplyDeleteWow it sounds like you had a lot of fun and got to meet lots of fun and talented people. Congratulations on coming in second. It is always fun to get treats even if you did not win first place.
Therese
Congratulations! I am not surprised in the least - as you are so talented! :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on taking second with the Bead Soup! I absolutely ADORE the cuff you made for it. And thank you so much for so generously promoting my work, it is greatly appreciated!! Some of those crystals are being incorporated into a piece I'm working on right now :)
ReplyDelete