Never Enough Hours in the Day

There never seems to be enough hours in the day - have been super busy over the summer. I need to get back into a regular routine - blog posts included - so how about a "get to know me' post to start things back up? :)

HandmadeArtistsShop recently featured me on their website - Artists are send a thorough questionnaire, and Kimberly did an awesome job sorting out my blabberings - check it out if you get a chance, and I'm always happy to hear what you think. Featured Artist BobbiWired  


Thanks for stopping by~
Bobbi
"The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will.” ~Chuck Palahniuk

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Handmade Unique Gifts

Perri Jackson in Florida - Actually Twice :)

Hi all - just wanted to let you know - Perri Jackson aka Shaktipaj Designs will be visiting me for just about a week, next week in fact, to get ready for our classes in Oct In Orlando. We plan to play at Buttons Bangles, and Beads on Corey Ave, St Pete Beach, Sat Sept 11th and Monday Sept 13th. Stop by, say hi, and get a sneak peak at some of the designs we are teaching in Orlando. We will not be teaching classes these 2 days, but just providing a little eye-candy to drool on. :)) Also, Perri and I would both love to get to meet some of our internet friends in person!!

Plus don't forget, there is still time and room to sign up for the Orlando classes. Check put www.beadngemsinfl.com/wire-school.html for more information, and to download the registration information and form.
Hope to see ya soon!
Wrap happy,
Bobbi

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Vintage Fashion

Blast From The Past Series..... Part Two

Going back to the very beginning, bangle style bracelets were the very first thing I ever learned to wrap more than 20 years ago; what actually started my addiction to wire.

At the time, I was heavy into leather work and Native American style jewelry. I made leather and bone jewelry; custom saddlebags for motorcycles; and yes leather whips upon request. The tooling and sewing were taking an awful toll on my hands, and I needed a new creative outlet. A very dear friend, who owned the bead shop I haunted at the time, suggested wire wrapping. My hands were so bad, I told her, I didn't think I could do it. I was seriously drawn to it, but it was several months after her initial suggestion, that I decided to give it a try.

She (Millie), sat down with me one night after the shop had closed, and showed me how to make the basic bangle. I still have the very first one here somewhere in my stash. The bracelets above were the next ones I made on my own (the Labradorite on the left was second - the Cloisonne' on the right my third). The Scarab bracelet in the center was the first attempt at branching out beyond the basics. I was hooked!!! The wire was not near as hard on my hands as I thought it would be - I doubt I would have cared or stopped if it was - I was in love! The Cloisonne bracelet by the way, my Mother snagged as soon as she saw it - she was my biggest fan and snagged most all my "firsts" of any design :)).

Those first few months I couldn't make enough of them, and after wearing one to work, everyone seemed to want one. I was averaging 10 to 15 bracelets a week, just for the people in the office where I worked.

The only drawback, was the way Millie had taught me to construct them was extremely difficult. Planning took soooo mmuch time, to get the right number of beads, and the wire just right to get the bracelet length right. Those of you who have my Swarovski Bracelet Tutorial, know I don't construct them that way anymore. The modifications didn't happen overnight - I experimented with many, many different construction techniques before I settled on the one I currently teach. Please don't get the wrong idea - there is nothing wrong with the traditional way to make them, I just thought there had to be a better, prettier, and definitely easier way. Sadly Millie has long since passed away - I would have loved to show her how the basic bangle had evolved.

Though I'm definitely a "ring girl", the bracelet is still one of my favorites to teach. The way I teach the construction now, it's almost impossible to get the length wrong, and if you do, easy peazy to fix it.

I even experimented with tension setting a faceted stone in this style. Definitely one of the pieces I ran across that I'll be revisiting.....

Well I've bent your ear enough for today, so I'm off to get some "chores" done LOL, and hopefully get some wrap time in!


Thanks for stopping by - Take care and.....
Wrap Happy,
Bobbi

Blast From The Past Series..... Part One

Some of you may know, I recently did a major revamp in my house, and moved my jewelry workspace into my "bird-room". In the process of organizing and moving everything, I ran across a lot of wire work pieces I hadn't seen in many years, and had forgotten all about.
That revamp lasted all of a month, and I had to rearrange it all again. You see my roommates' folks want to move down with us, so I gave them my bedroom, and moved my things into the bird-room...... not all that bad, the room is huge. In the process, I found more "antiques" :))

Most of the pieces I swore would never see the light of day again. Then I got to thinking of a lot of the new wire workers I've met over the years, and the comments I've heard. "Your work is great, I wish mine were that good." "I just make stuff for myself, it won't ever be good enough to show or sell." There have been oodles of other comments, but you get the idea.

I've decided that maybe showing some of my older pieces, wouldn't be such a bad thing after all. You see very few, if any, wire artists pop into existence fully skilled. I certainly didn't. My passion for wire started over 20 years ago, and continues to grow and develop everyday. So.... from time to time, as time allows (I'm probably already in hot water that the Cuffs and Vines tutorial isn't finished yet), I will photograph and post some pictures of my older work, in the hopes that maybe it will inspire a "newbie" wire artist with little self-confidence to keep working at their craft, and not get discouraged.
If wire is what you love, NEVER give up, no matter what. That's advice I'm going to follow for myself as well.

These are some of the very first pieces I did - over 20 years old for some of them. I haven't found the very first piece yet, but it's here somewhere :)) hideous, but it's here...... So far I've found more than 300 pieces - some of them I cringe when I look at them, but others not so much. There are even quite a few I plan on revisiting *grin*. Most of these I had no clue what I was doing. I'd sit at my bench many, many nights putting pliers to wire to see what I could come up with. I desperately wanted to learn wire wrapping, and since no one really taught it, I had to experiment on my own. The Labradorite pendant was what I felt was my first true "success", though I look at it now and cringe at the tool marks.

The Amethyst Crystal on the right side is from the first wire wrapping book I bought, about 1995, "Moods in Wire" by Ed Sinclair. It's an awesome book for beginners. Mr. Sinclair is a true Master in our field; is and always be my friend and idol :)).

I suppose I'd better get back to my tutorials - no rest the wicked......... :))

See ya soon....................
♥wrap happy,
♥Bobbi
http://facebook.com/BobbiMaw
http://facebook.com/MyWiredImagination
"What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal." ~Albert Pine

Post One Promote One.....

Hey Fans Of My Wired Imagination - Join me in Post - Promote - Share
Just one little catch :D
Promote fellow handmade artists/friends. Show off your work and the work of your friends and fellow artists.
You can post as many different items as you like, but you must be a fan, and for every item you post, you have to promote a different artist/item in return......
Promote HandMade - Post - Promote - Share
You can post to discussions or to the wall with the title "Post One - Promote One"
http://Facebook.com/MyWiredImagination

thank you for visiting.....

~Bobbi
http://facebook.com/BobbiMaw
http://facebook.com/MyWiredImagination
"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." ~Bhuddha

2 Hinged cages and a Locket - Tutorial

After 2 computer crashes, countless re-writes, and a heavy teaching schedule, I finally finished my newest tutorial - 2 Hinged Cages and a Locket. It grew much larger than I originally planned, with 3 FULLY ILLUSTRATED variations. I seriously considered separating out the Locket variation as a stand alone tutorial, but the "leave it in" part of my brain won the toss.

This tutorial teaches you step by step how to create a basic hinged cage, with or without beaded embellishments. This is a wonderfully versatile design to hold a favorite stone, maybe a love note, or a treasured trinket. Once it is on a chain, it is virtually impossible to come open by accident.
As a bonus this tutorial also includes 2 COMPLETE step by step variations including a crossed wire and locket style cage.
The owner of a local bead shop showed me the mechanics of the hinge close to 15 years ago. A very dear friend of mine, Master Wire Worker Ed Sinclair, created a published one in 1994. He has generously given me permission to share my versions of the basic cage and a crossed wire technique that he developed years ago.

This is an advanced level tutorial - it assumes you are familiar with basic wire techniques and improvising when needed. It is 28 pages with 67 steps and over 100 crisp, clear photographs. The file size is 2.3MB.

Don't be intimidated by the length and number of steps - This tutorial covers 3 FULLY illustrated pieces. While this is an advanced level tutorial, intermediate wire workers with a solid foundation of basic wire wrapping skills can, with patience, complete this design.

Thank you for visiting....... Bobbi

"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." ~Bhuddha