Time flies when one is having fun . . .

Greetings from the high desert country of southern New Mexico! Our state motto -- the Land of Enchantment -- really says it all when it comes to living in a place with constant creative inspiration.

Can't believe it is time for the next BJP already. Spent the entire summer beading up a storm on many other projects and now it is nearly time to solidify thoughts and plans for my 2008 BJP pages. Last year I used a 6 x 8 inch format which was ambitious and there were many months when I had wished I began with a smaller format. So, this year's efforts will go a teeny bit smaller -- 4 3/4 x 6 3/4 inches.

Welcome to all the new folks joining in the project. You will find we have become a family of sorts and this will be the best online group experience you can hope to have anywhere! Lots of encouragement and love gets spread around liberally.

Looking forward to this year and all the creativity and inspiration I am sure will be generated in abundance . . .


Kathy V in NM
http//:artfulmuse.blogspot.com/

Introducing Bunny S. and her BJP pieces...

Bunny S. is a 2007 BJP member who is not into digital. A couple of months ago I had a chance to spend some time beading with her and decided to take photos of her BJP pieces. I've posted them on my blog, here.

Here's a thought... if YOU know any members, who (like Bunny) don't do digital, please consider offering to take pictures of their work and post them to your blog. If they are up to date you might also help them get the images onto our BJP website member page.

Pink Hallow Moon did that for Terri Allen. If you haven't seen her work on the BJP member page, check it out here.

Thanks! Robin A.

Beaded Houses

Hi BJP beaders!
This is my first post to this group (to any blog, actually.) So this is my introduction, my update on my progress, and my expression of gratitude to all you BJP beaders who have been posting regularly. I check this blog almost daily and I'm so inspired by being a witness to everyone's process. Thank you!
I have completed my first five pieces and I'm in the middle of November's BJP. I created a new page on my website titled, Houses-BJP, where I am posting my completed pieces. I am so excited about working in a series that has the structure of the format I decided to use. My biggest growth so far has been how I have struggled with being a behinder and now pulling out of that and feeling more or less on track.
Happy Beading,
Jennifer W.
Cleveland, OH
jenniferwhitten.com

I'm introducing myself

My name is Julie Cook-this is my first post to the BJP blog. I have not taken pictures of my 3 works but there are pictures on my new blog of some of my bead embroidery pieces.

I have really been inspired by seeing other peoples pictures on the blogs Ive checked out. I'm happy for you to check out mine and appreciate any comments you may have. I look forward to being involved in this project.

Hi

I'm running late on my June page, but thought I'd better introduce myself to all of you. I'm Claire, and I'm currently living in Galway (Ireland), but will be moving back to my home town of Nottingham in the UK over the next month. I'm really looking forward to this, as I've been wanting to stretch my embroidery skills and try new stitches for a while, and I'm hoping that by signing up for this project I'll actually do these things instead of just planning them (isn't procrastination fun?). It's also fantastic to see what so many different beaders are doing, and all the differences in style.

I've decided I'll be making my pages into a book, and they're going to be 5 3/4" square. This fits within a scrapbook kit I've had hanging around for a while, so I'll be able to use the covers from that kit for my book. As a very loose theme, I'm going to try and incorporate a face into each page - this will let me use some of the buttons and cabs I've been collecting for a while now!

I'm way behind on my first page as I've not actually put needle to fabric yet, but I finally sat down last night and sketched out a rough layout for the page. As I'll be moving away from Galway soon (after 2 years living here) I've been paying more attention than usual to my surroundings and I wanted to incorporate them in some way into my page. With this in mind I've gone for a sea theme and colours as I've been mesmerised by the changes in colour to the water in Galway Bay over this month, and I'll really miss the sea when I move back to the middle of England. I've posted this initial sketch on my blog, and added a 'Bead Journal Project' category to my posts.

My First Excited Hello

Hi Everyone,



My name is Lillian from Washington, USA :o) I am new to this blogging thing, so be patient please

I am so happy to be here :)

Hi everyone, my name is Lisa and I finally managed to get on here YAY! I am fairly new to this type of beading but am already enjoying myself as I get started on my project. I am really looking forward to taking my journalling to a whole other level and really let my creativity burst free. I work as an engineer and tend to be bound tight with deadlines, regulations, rules, everything in its place and so rigid. In some ways, I am very nervous about this project as it will really be moving outside my comfort zone, but I am looking forward to the challenges it will present.

I also started a blog for the first time, just to keep track of my progress on the project and see what it brings up for me. It is so odd writing on the computer instead of my journal, but a lot easier on my hands :) Only two posts so far and no pictures until after this weekend, but you can find the start here.

For this month, I felt really drawn to work with blues as I have been working a lot on my throat chakra and when I was struggling this week to find an inspiration, I found that an issue that has been challenging me a lot lately was really represented in a particular bead and that got me started. I am so looking forward to seeing where this leads me and finding healing for this area of my life through a medium I have not used before.

Lastly, I wanted to say Hi to Hopefulheart....it was wonderful meeting you in person and being able to talk about the project. I look forward to future conversations as we take this journey.

Lisa/Trilly

Hello from New England!

Pleased to be here and I'm looking forward to getting to know as many of you as possible during our year-long journey together! I'm Cyndi, and I write a couple of arts blogs for some large blogging networks and articles for a couple of magazines. What that really means is that I'm quite used to having to create and write on demand. So of course my first thought was to be super organized about this whole thing and to plan out all twelve pages right away...yuck! What was I thinking?

I got as far as picking a size and a theme for the pages, and then said hey...I don't have to know exactly what each one is going to look like! I've got the theme, that's all I need. What a novel idea! Now when I'm sitting in front of the air conditioner in the middle of July, trying to come up with holiday projects for my editor, I will also be able to be working on a wonderful project that doesn't demand that I think six months in advance :-)

Cyndi L

Bead Arts
Layers Upon Layers

FINALMENTE

finalmente riesco ad entrare... spero.
saluto quindi tutti e ringrazio Robin per questa meravigliosa iniziativa.
e' la prima volta che partecipo ad una cosa come questa e sono veramente felice di farlo. cercherò di scrivere in inglese prossimamente anche se penso che sia più semplice scrivere in italiano e lasciar fare ai traduttori.
matilda

Hello, all! Time to step up to the plate and introduce myself! I'm Jodie, I live in Nebraska with my husband and three children. I've been beading since I was vey young--my grandmother loved all things crafty, including beading. I still have one of her crochet ropes--it hangs on my bedroom mirror so I can see it every day. I don't know exactely where this project will take me, but am anxious to get started! You can see some of my work on my blog at www.marshalljodie.blogspot.com.

Reminder

I'm going to say this--(so Robin doesn't have to)--she asked us to not post photos of works in progress (or finished pages) here until September 2007, so this a reminder. It is ok to post them on your own blog, tho.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, Robin
Happy beading all...

Welcome Matilda in Italy!

I'm writing to introduce Matilda, who has just become an official member. She and I have been corresponding about it for several days. It's taken time because she doesn't speak English and I don't know Italian. But with the help of translators and dictionaries on her side, she finally got all the information she needed to make her decision about joining. Welcome, Matilda!

One of the reasons I'm posting about Matilda is to see if there are any bilingual (English-Italian) members in our group, who can help Matilda to post and/or clarify things for her if needed??? If so, please contact her directly and introduce yourself. Thanks!

Posted by Robin A.

Newbie

Hi All - 238 of us starting off on this journey. I'm new to bead embroidery but have been beading for many years - peyote stitch has been my method of choice. It will be fun to see what everyone does for their book.

Hello from Andrea B

Also checking in! I am a beginner, and I thought it would be easier to have a sort of theme for my journal as a starting point. Nothing too specific, just something I liked as a way to jump-start my entries. So, I decided each month I will choose a favorite button from my collection and sew it down on the piece and just start beading around it. Robin recommended putting a favorite bead down and working from there in her book, and it always works for me! So, I started the Buttons and Beads 2007 journal today.

I have a little extra incentive for trying to stay on track: I have signed up for Robin's class at Valley Ridge Art Studio in September, and I am determined to bring four pages to show her at the class, to get her feedback if possible! I am so excited about this project and that class! Anyway, that's where I am at today.

Andrea B in Minnesota

Greetings from southern New Mexico!

When I discovered this project several weeks ago I hesitated a teeny bit before deciding that this was something wonderful to participate in. After viewing the response Robin has received, I find that I am not alone in this feeling.

My beading experience up to a year ago had been that of embellishing 16" fashion doll costumes for many years. Last year I decided that all those gorgeous beads I had accumulated over the years needed to be put to extraordinary use and I made every daughter (four of them), daughter-in-law, sister, sisters-in-law, cousins, etc. an amulet bag -- twelve of them in all. Needless to say I have been beading steadily ever since -- beading seems to be even more addictive than designing for those dollies!


No blog established yet, but I am sure it won't take long for it to happen with all the excitement this project is generating.


Looking forward so much to the coming year and everyone's beaded journal!


Kathy V in Las Cruces, NM

Introduction

I joined at the beginning but didn't introduce myself. Hope this works, as I've never posted to a blog before. I LOVE beading and always have some in progress. I decided to start by doing a completely beaded page-Postcard size. Boy, it takes a while and is heavy.
I live in La Center, Washington which is so small that we don't have a traffic light. Imagine my surprise when I saw that there is another from here. Hi, Friend to be.
I mostly bead on Wearables but couldn't resist this opportunity-love Robin's things and took a class from her when the conference was in Portland, Oregon.
I don't have a blog, so pictures will have to wait for Sept. Sandy in La Center

Aloha from Makaha!

I am so happy I found out about this project at about.com before the deadline passed! It is such a thrill to participate with all of you and under the guidance of one of my most admired beading goddesses, Robin. I purchased "One Bead at a Time" back in 2000 and am still completely awestruck! I have been wanting to learn more about bead embroidery and try my hand at art journaling - this is the perfect opportunity. I recently decided to go back to college and the current whim is a degree in Art History. So I thought I'd try to incorporate that into the journal as well. Once a month I will visit one of the local galleries or museums here on Oahu to find my inspiration for the month's project. The Honolulu Academy of Arts currently has an exhibit on Indian Textiles and Beadwork - that sounds like a great place to start! My next piece just might be inspired by a three dimensional artwork by David Hockney that's at the Contemporary Museum of Art. I think I could very well end up with 12 different journals rather than just 12 pieces of beadwork! Warmest wishes to all and a big thank you to Robin!
Nancy

Tentatively Excited

My name is Melodie and I live in Oregon. I've lived all over the U.S. and lived for a few years in Italy a very long time ago. My family lived on an Indian reservation in the Southwest USA when I was a child, an one of our neighbors taught me to bead. The rest is history. I have more beads that time, but sometimes I just like to touch them and look at the colors. Beading has almost always been a meditation for me. I am excited about the project, but also know that I am a procrastinator extraordinaire.

In addition to beading, I sew, quilt, paint, embroider, cross-stitch, etc., etc., etc. I also care for my disabled husband and for my mother. The profession that found me is information technology and I am an IT director for a gaming resort.

I do not want to fail in meeting my promised beading, so I've put away everything else to bead for the next year. I am not used to having only one project going at a time, so wish me luck!! There are so many incredible beaders with this project, I am in awe. Some time ago I was asked from whom I would take beading lessons if I could, I answered, "Robin Atkins." Now, I am part of this huge project she is pulling together. What a blessing!! Thanks so much!!

P.S. Here it is toward the end of June and I've not stitched a single bead yet. I am moving right now so my life is in chaos. I hope to get settled into my new country home soon. I have the first page all planned out and I've gathered the bits and pieces for it. The theme for the first page is sort of "When I was young". At this mid-point in my life, I've been reflecting on all the people, places, and things that have come into and out of my life. Everything that brought me to where I am now. So, we'll see what comes out in the journal. Beading Blessings to all.

a warm southern california hello

i thought i'd post a quick intro. :-) i've been beading almost 5 yrs. stringing, off-loom and embroidery. i love it. i've been dealing with chronic tennis elbow for the last 3.5 years and had a tendon release surgery mid april to correct it. was in a cast for a month (itchy and i didn't like that much) and am now in physical therapy. i still don't have much use in my right hand/wrist/arm and wouldn't you know it, i'm right handed. i promise eventually my typing will get better and i'll be able to actually use caps again.

so why the explanation? because i thought joining in would give me a great opportunity to stretch my left, non-dominate hand ability & eventually get my right hand involved again. i'm dying to bead (actually to do anything creative and hands on) and even if it might not look like my normal beading it will be something i can see grow and change as the next year rolls through.

i also love the idea of a growing, inspirational group of people who support each other as a community. i love robin's work and love that i get to work with so many who love to create beautiful, tactile things.

thanks for reading and let the beading begin!

so you can see what my right hand is capable of by clicking here

Hello to all you beady-eyed beaders!

Hi,
My name is Lynne (LinMoon), hailing from Southern California. I have been thinking about joining the BJP ever since I read about it, but just couldn't decide.... Of course, I imagined it as a quilt-sized monthly project, done mostly by experienced professional beaders, of course.....But it seems we have all kinds of people - that's the best, I think. It wasn't until I saw that Robin was going to do a postcard size, that I realized that I could commit to that. So it is with some trepidation and great excitement that I join all you very creative and superbly intelligent beaders! I've only done one bead embroidery - pictured here. It was inspired by a design on a button. Some of you have already started your beading, so I guess it's "Beaders, start your engines!"
Thanks, Robin, for your great idea.

~LinMoon

You can visit my blog here.