Spring Jewelry Reveal for Jesse James Beads

I know, I know! All I've posted this month has been about the beautiful beads I received from Jesse James Beads. And, I promise I've been busy with other things too. Just go check out my Instagram, and you'll see! I'm hoping to share something else with you this week, but for now, I can't help but show off all the pretties I created with them.

I spent a lovely couple of hours with those beads making all these earrings!

Of course, there was also the layered necklace from my previous post.

And, I shared how these earrings were created in a reel on Instagram. 

Here's a fairly quick video of me talking about each of these makes. 

Of course, if you have any questions about how ANY of these were made or want more details, just let me know! I'd be happy to help.

DIY Easy Layered Neckalce

 Where the heck has the month gone?

I hate that I haven't been over here lately and promise that I'll do a post soon about what was keeping me so busy the last couple of weeks, but for now I'm here to share one of the things I made from some of the beads and chain that I received from Jesse James Beads as a Design Ambassador. (My last post gave you a peek at what all they sent me.) If you watched the video, you saw me ohh and ahh over the enameled dangle chain in dahlia. I knew it would be just perfect for a layered necklace. And, I was right!

Along with the enamel chain, I used a few more beads from Jesse James Beads and some silver tone chain from my own stash to create the necklace. I think it's perfectly customizable as you get to decide how long you want each layer. 

You can watch how I made this one to see how simple it really can be. Seriously, the hardest part is getting your lengths just the way you want. 

Let me know if you have any questions at all!

Unboxing Beads from Jesse James Beads

I received another package of goodies from Jesse James Beads as one of their Design Ambassadors. This one was full of bright pinks, purples, and greens and felt quite Spring-like. 

I've already got a few ideas for some of these beauties and should hopefully be sharing those soon. For now, you can watch me unbox and take a good look at all of what I was sent.

Do these spark any inspiration for you? 

You can find all this and more on the Jesse James Beads website. 

Art Journal and Mixed Media Videos from Feb. 2023

This post is just a quick roundup of some of the mixed media videos I shared on the CraftyHope YouTube Channel over the last month. If you're interested in learning more about these projects, clicking on the pictures should take you to their video. 

Let's start with the #CraftyHopePrompts videos. This is a challenge I created for myself. Each Monday, I draw three prompts and alter a playing card using those prompts. Then, each Saturday, I do another project that also uses the same three prompts. You can learn more about this challenge in almost any of the videos. But, I welcome any questions you have either here or in any of the videos' comments. 

Card 18 - Alcohol spray, Hand-carved stamp, Pattern

Project 18 - Bookmarks

Card 19 - Asemic writing, Ticket, Stitch

Project 19 - Junk Journal Spread

Card 20 - Paperdoll, Black marker, Words

Project 20 - Art Journal Page

Card 21 - Non-dominant hand, Grungeboard/chipboard, Marker

Project 21 - Altered Tag

In addition to my own challenge, the #SeekGatherCreate challenge occurred over the month too. Each week, the hostesses give out four prompts for the participants to use in some kind of mixed media piece. This challenge always spurs a lot of creativity from me and the other artists who play along.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4 (Just went up today!)

I did complete one other mixed media project - a spread in my clean slate journal. 

Clean Slate Journal Spread

And, that was it for February. It was a busy month, but so inspired. 

Thrifty Thursday Haul

This past week, I did some serious shopping. But, for the most part, it was all "thrifty" - reduced prices, inexpensive items, or actual thrift pieces. It's always fun to share these somewhat unique finds and deals. You'll find a whole video of what I got at the bottom of this post, but here are some peeks.

At a thrift store, I picked up a few grab bags - one with children's books, one with small toys, and one with craft items. I was especially excited about the bezels in the craft bag. I've already used one of them for one of my 100 Day Project mini assemblages that was also part of my Honey Do List reveal. 

I scored this cool lantern at the same thrift store. That rusty top just makes me swoon!

I found that the local Hobby Lobby stores have been marking down some of the jewelry and paper crafting items that I like, so I hit up a couple of them to take advantage of those great clearance deals. 

The first one mostly had more paper crafting items marked down.

At the second one, the jewelry section was full of orange stickers.

The hubs and I went to an estate sale at the home of some creative individuals. 

There were woodworking and art supplies to purchase. We were both interested in this hobby area of the home and found a few things each.

In addition, I picked up several items at Dollar Tree that will aid in my creative endeavors. You'll have to watch the video to see what those were, though. 

Almost everything I picked up feels like a treasure, and I can't wait to use it all. Have you found any thrifty deals lately too?