The beads of ummer*

*with apologies to Don Henley**

Tonight's beading was fun!

As I was sorting through my projects for tonight, I discovered an oops. The summer Season tile was missing its "S" so it was an "um" tile. It made me laugh so I had to drill it as one of my projects. (I've seen some with a letter not filled-in before but not missing the letter altogether!) Here's the coral-backed Mah Jongg tile bracelet made with the four Season tiles, a three Character and a Joker, since I thought the "um" tile was a joke. I strung it with 10mm frosted green glass beads with facets.

I then did a burgundy-backed bracelet with 10 or 12mm beads. I forget what they are but possibly Rhodonite? I like it but I'm not thrilled so I'll probably list it for sale.

I also made a bracelet for my daughter's teacher (the principal's sister!) at her request with the custom tiles I had made with the school's Good Fortune logo.

I also drilled necklaces with my custom black and white (with red engraving) chops and a school tile, too. All for me!

Ooh, and I sold my first bracelet on Etsy tonight!

Click on any photo to see it larger.

**Hmm, yesterday the Eagles', Take it Easy (Eagles), and tonight Don Henley's, Boys of Summer (Building the Perfect Bead?). Guess I need to go listen to them!

Just for the drill of it

I had a such a lovely weekend being creative!

Friday night I made a personalized bracelet representing my daughter's birth. It's on pink-backed tiles since she's a girl. The numbers represent the date of her birth. (I used Jokers as "0" since there are no zeros in Mah Jongg.) May's birthstone is Emerald so I chose tiles with green in them and strung it with green 10mm fiber optic rounds. I love how it turned out and even my mom, who loathes pink, liked it!

More of my custom tiles arrived on Saturday and oh! I had fun creating jewelry!

First I made a bracelet featuring the logo for The Episcopal Diocese of Arizona where I work. I told the engraver to use her best judgment on what would look best after I told her the color palette we use. Wow, did she deliver! The ivory-colored tile nearly matches our stationary and the logo is engraved with a slightly pearlescent aqua. I strung my bracelet with alternating bands of dark brown and aqua 10mm fiber optic beads.

I then made a bracelet with milky white mah jongg tiles I had engraved with a midnight blue Chinese "Good Fortune" symbol. The symbol is the logo for my daughter's school and I thought they might be able to use it for appreciation awards and school fund-raisers. (Navy and light blue with white are the school colors.) I strung the bracelet with matching midnight blue 10mm fiber optic rounds to wear and show the principal.

I proceeded on to a black bracelet featuring my Rexphiles and Rextiles logos! Engraved in red and green on identical black tiles, I alternated them with black 10mm fiber optic rounds since I wanted the red and green to pop. I think it's simply stunning and totally me. (People have been teasing me about all the purple in my wardrobe. I foresee a lot of black in my future!)

I saved the best for last - and the hardest! My chop, or Chinese seal, was engraved in red on both black (above) and white tiles. I strung the white tiles with red 10mm South Sea China pearls. The reconstituted (!) pearls had the gorgeous color I wanted but the hole was small so I had to carefully ream each and every bead. Some broke and it took me more time to create that bracelet then all the other projects that night!

Tonight I wanted to continue with an idea I had Saturday night. A couple of weeks ago I had picked up an inexpensive 18 inch green cable choker with barrel clasp. It fits me and is surprisingly comfortable, although I do want to get some in a 20 inch length.

The green didn't work with the piece I was thinking of but on Saturday inspiration struck and I drilled a single hole through one of my Rexphiles tiles and threaded the green cable through it. It's not normally something that would appeal to me but I love it with the funky Mah Jongg tile.

So today I bought more cables and tonight I made more. Lots more. I made one for my daughter's principal on a blue cable. I made one for work on a dark brown cable. I made some for fun, and I made a bunch for my Etsy shop.

I also got out my heat gun and embossed some gift tags and boxes.

Can you tell I'm having fun?

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Drill, baby, drill!!!

No, not that kind of drilling!

I am getting my new drill press today after work! I had one, for drilling mah jongg tiles for jewelry, but someone decided they needed it more. Grr.

Last weekend I received my custom tiles and was dying to make jewelry but had no way of drilling them. So I went to my local Ace Hardware store where a very helpful sales associate was outraged by my tale of woe, showed me what they had with an enthusiastic review (He loved his so much that his wife had to tell him to stop drilling her spoons!) and drilled my tiles for me for a nominal price. Talk about a good sales person and good customer service. I was sorry to hear they don't get a commission since I promised I'd be back today to get my own.

Now where should I start? I've got more than 500 to choose from.

• Rainbow Delight
• purple glitter
• red glitter
• pink glitter
• gold glitter
• silver glitter
• mint glitter
• emerald glitter
• blue glitter
• gold mardi gras
• silver mardi gras
• purple mardi gras
• green stripes
• red stripes
• ivory
• white
• blue
• burgundy
  
• green checkered
  
• coral
• black & white speckled
• blue denim
• and more that I can't think of!

You know where you'll be able to find me this weekend. Drilling ... or finishing the alterations on a friend's wedding dress.

Click on any photo to see it larger.

All strung out

I kept my beading streak going tonight. First of all, here's the frog bracelet I made for Mom on Monday and she hasn't taken it off since. I'll make matching earrings soon.

Tonight I restrung the bracelet I made Monday with the Singapore Mah Jongg tiles. I thought the "woven" beads detracted from the tiles so I substituted cobalt fiber optic rounds. What do you think?

I then got to looking at some leftover (two purple, one royal blue, one light blue, and one clear lucite with blue flowers) Mah Jongg tiles I had and wondered how I could tie them all together. I came up with this using some blue and purple cracked glass beads I got last month in Prescott. (I photographed it from two sides so you could get an idea of what it looks like.) The beads came in two sizes and I first did it with the larger beads but the bracelet slid of my hand so I had to use the smaller beads. It's busy and crazy but I like it.

I've also inquired about three more personalized tile designs. I'll keep you posted.

Meanwhile, I found a drill press to replace the one that was stolen so I can start drilling my own tiles again on Friday. Woo hoo!

Click on any photo to see it larger.

The Rextiles*

*Thanks Jennifer for the pun!

I was a beading fool Sunday and Monday. My favorite was a bracelet I made from custom Mah Jongg tiles engraved with my Rexphiles logo. One cracked when it was drilled but the remaining seven were matched with 8mm green fiber optic rounds.

Once I got started though I couldn't stop. I made the bracelet on the left from Singapore Mah Jongg Tiles. (Mom loves frogs and I love cats so it was a fun set to split.) Mom got six of the Singapore pieces spaced with 8mm green fiber optic rounds, while I did mine with the remaining four and cobalt and white "woven" beads from China. I might restring it with royal blue fiber optic rounds. We shall see.

Then I made a large, heavy piece with large polymer "melons" that I thought looked like Easter eggs and matched them with cracked, iridescent 16mm acrylic beads from Joann's. I saved four eggs that were mostly black-and-white although two have a pale pink center and made that into a bracelet. This will make a great piece to wear at Easter, and the matching bracelet can be year round.

I then went on to make a candy corn bracelet (from Joann's) for Halloween.

Since I was feeling seasonal, I went ahead and strung some adorable gingerbread men and houses I got from Kennick Kreations. Lots of fun and very lightweight! I made one for Mom with Kennick Kreation's Frog with Spring Stripes, but forgot to photograph that one. It has two 6mm green fiber optic rounds between each frog bead.

So here's my personal collection so far. What do you think?

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