Optical Illusions

Being a very visual person, I decided to blog about Optical Illusions for the letter O in the A to Z blogging challenge. 

Optical: of or pertaining to sight or vision; visual
Illusion: something that deceives by producing a false or misleading impression or reality

Scientists believe optical illusions are possible because our brains are so good at recognizing patterns and seeing familiar objects. Our brains are quick to make whole images from separate pieces. Therefore our eyes and brains can be quick to see things which aren't really there.

A very simple optical illusion would be this one.

The different arrow points, make the 2nd line appear larger, which it is not.

Here's a picture of Albert Einstein.

Now walk away from the computer, turn around and look at it from afar. Who is it a picture of ?

And saving the best for last, I was actually introduced to the artwork of Julian Beever by my daughter who discovered his work on Tumbler.

These 3D sidewalk drawings are absolutely amazing! It's no wonder he has been nicknamed "The Pavement Picasso". Here is the link to his website, if you want to see more of his mind boggling art  http://www.julianbeever.net/.

TTYL and make it a good day,

Debbie

Netted Necklaces

A to Z Blogging's letter for today is N, so what better subject for a beading blog than netted necklaces, right?
Here is the definition of netting from dictionary.com: Netting: Open-meshed material made by knotting together twine, wire, rope or thread.

Netted bead weaving works up quickly, creates  an airy lace-like look, uses fewer beads, and makes great necklaces because it drapes very nicely. The basic technique is simple enough for a beginner and advanced  beaders can easily find ways to switch up the bead sizes and bead counts in the netting to create an endless number of designs.

Here is a picture of a necklace I have just completed, worked up with seed beads, bugle beads and two different sizes of glass beads. This was actually done in Chevron stitch, which is a quick and simple netting variation.

And to show you  an example of the many different looks you can achieve with netting, here is a pic of a vertically netted necklace, which I stitched up using only seed beads.

So, as you can see, netting is indeed a very versatile stitch in bead weaving. There really is no limit to the designs one can come up with.  If you want to try netting yourself, here are a few beginner tutorials. 

Chevron Stitch  http://beadwork.about.com/od/beadingstitchtutorials/ss/Chevron_Stitch_Tutorial.htm

Vertical Netting  http://beadwork.about.com/od/beadingstitchtutorials/ss/Vertical_Netting_Tutorial.htm

Actually if you are considering taking up bead weaving, About.com/beadwork is an excellent site to get you started. Here is the link to their very informative Getting Started page.  http://beadwork.about.com/od/beadingstitchtutorials/u/user_path_basics.htm .

So, there you have it, Letter N and Netted Necklaces. Thanks for stopping by tonight for show and tell.

TTYL and make it a good night,

Debbie

Mixing it up

Thankfully Sunday is a day off from the A to Z blogging challenge, but for me it is catch up day. So today for M, I couldn't decide which of two subjects I wanted to blog about and was having a hard time choosing, but then realized that I could mix it up and  blog about them both.  One is a method of jewelry design and the other is someone I have a secret crush on, who's name just so happens to start with the letter M. ;)

Mix: verb- Combine or put together to form one substance or mass
        noun- Two or more different qualities, things or people placed,
        combined or considered together

Mixed Media in visual arts refers to artwork in the making in which more than one medium has been employed. Although I love working with my tiny seed beads and weaving them together, I would also love to explore creating mixed media jewelry. Here are a few awesome examples,  created by Caroline Fung who's work I so totally admire.

She does beading, wirework, metal clay, polymer clay, enameling, lampwork, silversmithing,  digital collage, and that is just a short list.  Here is a link to her blog, which is truly a feast for the eyes.

http://carolinefung.blogspot.com/

So now it's time to let you in on my little secret. But promise not to tell anyone, o.k.? So, here it is, I have a secret crush on Mondo! So if you watch Project Runway at all, of course you know that Mondo is a master of mixing materials and pattern on the runway. Besides loving his designs, I also find him to be an extremely likable person and he dresses with such personality, and is so well presented all the time. Oh well, too bad I have more than a few years on him and I get the feeling I am not his type at all ;) Anyhow, here are a some examples of his talent for mixing it up on the runway.

So there you have it: mixed media jewelry, The mixed up designs of Mondo, and oh yeah here's an added bonus: My fave mixed drink, a frozen Mudslide. Get the recipe here  http://thisbottleofvodka.tumblr.com/post/3086664755/completelybackasswards-frozen-mudslide-recipe         

TTYL and make it a good day,

Debbie

                                

Leather and Lace

Hey there Bloggy friends, for today's A to Z blogging challenge I have once again borrowed my theme from a song title. And today's letter being L, my post is all about Leather and Lace, which happens to be one of my favorite looks and also one of my favorite songs.

Leather and Lace together are edgy yet feminine,  dangerous yet romantic, naughty yet nice, and extremely sexy, even erotic.  And best of all, always in style.

Leather and Chantilly Lace Trench Coat by Valentino

Christian Louboutin Lace Peep-Toe and Patent Leather Pumps

These are gorgeous, but expensive examples of  leather and lace together.  I really do love the look, but unfourtunately Valentino and Louboutin aren't an option for me until I win the lottery. ;)  In the meantime, I could probably design some jewelry incorporating leather and lace, but for right now, I kind of feel like listening to some music. Enjoy, and make it a good night.- Debbie

I haven't got a Klew

So I was all set to blog about Kumihimo for K day of the A to Z blogging challenge, but I discovered that another Beady Blogger beat me to it. It is a darn good post, too. You can check it out here. http://amybeads.blogspot.com/2012/04/blogging-from-z-k-kumihimo.html .

So after reading Amy's post, I decided that I should probably find another subject to blog about today. I was sitting there, in a panic, worried because I didn't have a clue as to what I should blog about today. And then it hit me (like a ton of bricks) that I REALLY DON'T have a "Klew", but would like to have a Klew, and that's exactly what I should blog about today.

Now I know  you are wondering " What the heck is a Klew?" Well a picture speaks louder than words, so I will show you exactly what a Klew is.

                                                       

A Klew bead is a bead created by polymer clay guru, Karen Lewis who discovered polymer clay in the eighties and has been creating miniature works of art ever since. She is a master of the technique called caning which is a slicing and layering technique borrowed from Venetian glass workers. She is also a master in creating vibrant color in clay.  I swear she has the uncanny ability to make polymer clay beads appear to be just as smooth and shiny as lampworked glass beads.  Just look at the luminosity of some of these beads, absolutely amazing! Not only has she mastered the art of creating gorgeous polymer clay beads, she has also mastered the art of teaching others this skill. Now that is what I call talent!

So now you know what a Klew is and why I wish I had a Klew. If you would like to learn more about Karen Lewis and Klew beads, here is a link to her website. http://klewexpressions.com/index.htm .

TTYL and make it a good night,

Debbie

Juxtaposition

Moving on to the letter J in the A to Z blogging challenge, tonight's word is a fun one. For the letter J, I have chosen to blog about "Juxtaposition".  The meaning of juxtaposition is: an act or instance of placing close together, or side by side, especially for comparison or contrast.

A good example of juxtaposition in literature would be John Milton's Paradise Lost. A contrast has been drawn between the characters God and Satan , where the goodness of one is played off of the badness of the other and vice versa. 

Another popular example of juxtaposition is the Yin Yang Symbol from Chinese Philosophy. The Yin Yang symbol represents two fundamental principles, one negative, dark, passive, cold, wet and feminine (Yin) and the other positive, light, active, dry, hot and masculine (Yang). The balance of these forces in nature and human beings influences their behavior and fate. Another yummier example of juxtaposition which also comes from the Chinese is Sweet and Sour Chicken ;)

Here is a fascinating example of juxtaposition in art.  This lithograph by artist Rene Magritte plays with the ideas of reality and illusion through a bouquet that is also a window to the outside, where perhaps the flowers in the vase came from.

In the world of fashion, Alexander McQueen was the King of Juxtaposition, especially on the runway.

You never knew what kind of odd contraptions the models would be sporting with their beautiful gowns. A gorgeous lace gown worn with antlers is just one example of the surreal juxtaposition of the late, great McQueen.

OK, so that is enough juxtaposition for one night, don't you think?  I really enjoyed learning about juxtaposition for this post though, and I plan on finding ways to use it in my jewelry designs because I think it might be a fun exercise in creativity. 

TTYL and make it a good night,

Debbie

A to Z Blogging Day 9 Letter I

OK, so you can call me lazy or you can even call me a cheater, but I didn't write my own post for day 9 of the A to Z Blogging challenge.   Today's letter is "I" and I could not have chosen a better word or written nearly half as eloquently about that word as the late, great Mr. John Lennon did. 



So there you have it. Short and sweet:  Day 9, Letter "I" and one of the greatest songs ever written.

TTYL and make it a great night,
Debbie