Spring Collection: Inspiration and Preview

A few weeks ago the Hubs and I were at Crate and Barrel and I literally GASPED when I saw the color combination of these chopping boards:I of course had to buy the green one and couldn't get the color combination out of my head. Apparently, I went a little nuts later that day at Target:And Nordstrom Rack: And when I got home I realized that my garden was on the same page: Heck, even Ping's Frisbee was in my new color scheme of dreams! I of course looked through my bead collection to see what I could find. I came up with this little number: And have been busy buying beads and components in those colors ever since! More to come as I continue to work on my Spring 2010 Collection - coming to a blog and Etsy site near you soon! Meanwhile, here are a few other teasers from the collection that are currently on the Etsy site:

So, what inspires YOU this spring?

Finding Inspiration

So last week I blogged about how I was in desperate need of inspiration and found some encouragement in words and art found on Etsy. I guess I have a fondness for the simplicity of simple words and all the joy and comfort that is found in them. In fact, I am thinking that the majority of my Spring Collection is going to involve an array of word charms (you know that I have already started creating for the collection's debut!). But I couldn't keep all the joy to myself, now could I? Here are a few pieces that I have already put up on Etsy:

Reach for the Stars necklace, $13

Grow necklace, $13

Additionally, I made a few custom pieces for some friends of mine last week. The first was for a friend from church who wanted a long black and silver necklace for her daughter, whose middle name is Joy. Here's what I came up with. Secondly, my dear friend Sherrie asked me to make her daughter, who also happened to be the flower girl at my wedding, a pink necklace. "I don't care what it looks like, so long as it's pink!" I knew immediately what I would do!

Finally, thanks to you all for sending your kind words via last week's post. I guess you all could tell that I was down, because your words of wisdom and similar stories were just what I needed! I have already felt like the road is beginning to pave itself in front of us; I will of course keep you all updated!

I Love You, Wednesdays

I started the I Love You, Wednesdays weekly feature last year in attempts to chronicle the sources of inspiration behind my jewelry creations. Colors, themes, shapes, places, artists, etc. Some of my finds have a direct affect on my own creations, others are inspiration behind creations I hope to make. It usually isn't hard to find inspiration on Etsy itself, which has lead me to write this feature mostly about other Etsy products which I find inspiring. It's lead to some great conversations and even bloggin' friendships with other Etsians and readers :) That said, this week I was in need of inspiration. But not artistic inspiration, like usual, but life inspiration. It's going to be a challenging 2010. No need to go into detail, but let's just say that the Bead Up house has a lot of changes coming our way - big decisions which need to be made - an imminent geographical move - new and renewed career changes, etc. (and no, just because I am a semi-newlywed does not mean I am pregnant! You can put the suspicion aside!). I have been left feeling like I have no control over my future, which is partially true, yet at the same time a huge amount of pressure to take charge and claim my path. I feel both helpless and left to the direction of the wind, which, for a person with OCD-management tendencies, is not a good feeling! One thing that will not change, of course, is my Bead Up-ing. In fact, it's one of the few things that I do have full control of and that will not move or shift on me :) When we were in Kentucky last week I spent alot of time shopping for items to add to my Spring Collection, and found myself with lots of "word" realted items. Hoping other word-related finds on Etsy could "speak" to me, I searched for some of my favorite words that bring me encourgement and remind me that - ahhhh - everything is going to be alright. I hope they can do the same for you :)

barkingbirdart, localwisdomcards, unusuality, hollychristine LuckyBluebirdArt, LaurieCoyleDesigns, erinjaneshop, BluLima katemcpheestudio, missfruitfly, 3LambsGraphics, VinylWordsAndDecals

Click on the image for a close up of the smaller text - it's all quite breath-taking! Don't forget to visit their shops for more inspiration!

When you find yourself in a slump, or at a crazy dark cross-road, what helps inspire you back to wholeness?