Tangible Tidbits 2012 #28: Poll Results & Contest Updates

Hi, everyone! I guess I should start out by saying I have "officially" decided my publication date will be shifted from Sunday to Monday in the future. I figure I deserve to have my weekends free of standing business-related commitments...I usually dread getting near the computer on the weekend these days unless it's absolutely necessary. I'm sure you've noticed I've been posting regularly on Mondays for a while now, so you won't really see a difference in the schedule. ;)

The Beaded Impressions 2012 Summer Beading Contest voting opened as of July 9, so please visit the site before July 17 and vote for my entry! It’s #71 in the Bohemian or Eclectic category, thanks to the input of a few readers on our Facebook page. I was leaning toward the Whimsical or Romantic category, so I thank those who voted and helped me decide. :) The piece is called The Bodacious Butterfly because when my mother saw it, she said the larger rounded beads at the top of the wings look like boobs to her. #-o

I was notified a couple of weeks ago that I did not place in Fire Mountain Gems and Beads' Seed Bead Jewelry-making Contest, and earlier this week that I was not a winner in Wire-Sculpture.com's 2012 Druzy Contest. I'm not really surprised, as many of the entered pieces in both contests were much more elaborate than mine. I tend to be a minimalist when it comes to creating jewelry, but I am slowly working my way toward more "showy" pieces, at least for entering in contests. I still think many contest pieces are difficult to wear, but it seems the contests are geared more toward artistic creativity than function. :-/ There are a few more contest deadlines coming up toward the end of the Summer, so I will have to think more outside-the-box when planning those pieces and see how that goes. :P

It took me almost a month, but I finally finished the piece for the August Focal Piece of the Month last week. I had an idea of what I wanted to do early on, although it didn’t turn out quite as I had hoped. A co-worker complimented me on it today, so that made me feel good. :) Luckily, I've already decided what I want to do for September, and it won't take so much time for that one. I've been trying to work ahead on these a little bit, so as not to be rushing to get them done at the last minute. :-bd

My younger niece's travel softball team is doing really well. They are close to tying for the Championship! Mom and I are going to watch her play later this week, since we haven’t seen any of her travel games, and she will be playing close to our hometown. :)

We’re heading into the second heat wave of the summer this week, so it's going to be brutal for the next few days. :-/ I will be hibernating in one of the air-conditioned rooms upstairs as much as possible! ;)

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #25: Lots of Challenges, Both Good and Bad

Hello, everyone! Well, I’ve been trying to get everyone I know to vote for Something Tangible on the Mission: Small Business grant website, but with only 61 votes and five days to go, it doesn’t look promising. I think a big part of the problem is the requirement to register via Facebook. I know a lot of people who would be willing to vote for me who do not have Facebook accounts. I think the site was set up to make it "easier" for people to vote because registering via Facebook is a one-step process, but in doing so they have eliminated a lot of potential voters. Even though Facebook’s users equal the size of an entire country -- there were 901 million monthly active users at the end of March 2012 -- that doesn’t mean everybody does it. I guess I will have to look for the grant program again next year, only earlier. I stumbled upon it with two weeks to go, and that is just not enough time apparently. Then again, maybe the time limit is not really the problem! :/

I created a pendant last week for the Wire-Sculpture.com's 2012 Druzy Contest, as that deadline is also coming up on June 30. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, although the rolled satin nylon cord I want to hang it from is giving me problems. It seems to be taking forever to coil to the point it won’t unravel. I guess I have to work on my patience with that. :))

There are a couple more contests that are running over the summer. I have a vague idea of what I want to create for Fire Mountain Gems’ 2012 Swarovski Elements Jewelry-making Contest and Soft Flex® Company’s 2012 Flex Your Creativity Contest. You may recall I entered a Steampunk necklace in the Soft Flex contest a couple of years ago, but I did not participate last year. For this year, they want entries incorporating knitted craft wire or beading wire in them...using their products, of course. I purchased a package of Trios – three coordinated colors of beading wire – recently to use for my piece. I will probably end up making the knit chain(s) first, and then decide what to do with it/them after or while I'm doing that. :P As I mentioned last week, I will probably enter my BSNJ Bead Challenge piece in the Beaded Impressions' Summer 2012 Beading Contest, but I will wait until after the Bead Challenge this coming Thursday night to avoid potentially compromising the anonymity of the Bead Challenge. ;)

Yesterday afternoon, I visited with a couple of "lady friends" (as my mother says!) I haven’t seen in a while. One bought a ring I was wearing right off my hand! :)) The other one, our hostess, had requested I bring a necklace her daughter saw on my website, as her daughter wanted to buy it for a friend’s birthday. Both were very interested in the pieces I was wearing. The one who bought my ring told me to "bring more jewelry" next time we get together! :)) And the hostess wants to throw an Open House kind of party for me in her condo complex in the Fall, leading up to the holidays! Hopefully, that will work out. :) Even if not, it was a real boost to my ego to have people make such a fuss over my work. The friend who bought the ring said, "This must happen to you all the time." I replied, "Not nearly as much as I would like!" ;)

My younger niece will be thrilled to know I finally finished the beaded edging on the scarf she gave me for Christmas! The girls will be with Mom tomorrow, so I will leave it out for her inspection. :P

FYI, the latest Focal Piece of the Month is up!

That’s about all I’ve got for now. Take care and have a great week! B-)