March is "The Month of the Turtle"

Turtles are a symbol of both a beginning and an ending. You see, in order for something new to have room to grow, something must come to an end.

I hope that the new that starts to grow-- soon-- is the flowers, and the grass, and the leaves on the trees. And that the thing that comes to an end is the SNOW. I live in the North East and we have had way too much.

But I guess I should not complain too much. Being snowed in has given me a lot of creative time. I have a lot of new ideas in progress.

The first set that I would like to share with you is my "Turtle Tracks" set.

I just posted the new Lighter cover for sale. Here is a photo.

I personally love the leafy green fringe on the bottom of the lighter. One beader commented that it made it a bit more "girly".

It is available right now at www.beadpatternsboutique.com/catalogue.php (in the lighter covers category) & at http://www.thebeadcoop.com/.

I love the motif so much that I have designed an entire set of jewelry to go with it. Here are two of the other pieces that are coming.

I hope to have the earrings posted on March 3.

The bracelet should be ready by March 10.

And the pendant/necklace (which I have not photographed yet) should be done by March 17.

I am also hoping to have a barrette to complete the set on March 24.

All of the patterns will feature complete instructions to finish the pieces. I hope you like them and that your Spring begins soon and Winter ends quickly.

Blessings,

Beth

Catching Up! Quilting & Sewing Projects

The busy-ness of the "holiday season" has come and gone. I am one to make a lot of the gifts that I give to family and friends. I love the idea of truely giving of myself. And during the time that I spend making the gift, I think a lot about the person who will receive it. I would much rather spend time working in my work room than shopping at the crowded malls.

The only problem is, that in order to surprise people with their gifts, I really can't post photos of the finished projects on my blog. You can see who that could be a problem.

I have been working on some Lakota-style Star Quilts for my husband to use when he does his Vision Quest. I am not sure when that will be, but I need to get a start. Here are some photos of those pieces.

This is the top for the quilt he will use when he goes up on the mountain. It is 82 inches square. I have it marked with a Lakota hand-style quilting design and basted. Now to start quilting. It will take about two months.

This piece is for a special young friend who is having her first baby soon. In my opinion, she is a tennis star, so I used Tennis Raquet fabric as the theme. Because we were not 100% sure if the baby will be a boy or girl, I chose to use primary colors. This one is ready to wrap.

As I said, the Valentine's Day Gifts have also been handed out, so I can also show you some of them. This was my 20-year-old son's gift. It is a quilted, embroidered notebook cover.

My husband love to be in Walt Disney World. We always buy the mugs at the resort where we stay and we refill them during our visit. But sometimes carrying them can be a pain. I found a pattern for a Mug Carrier right before Christmas, but did not have time to make it then. We hope to be heading down this spring, so I decided to do this one for him for Valentine's day. I used Mickey fabric, because Mickey is one of his favorite characters.

My daughter, the budding pastry chef, got a new purse. I found the cupcake fabric in a remnant bin several weeks ago and knew that it was ment for her. She loves pink and butterflies, so this was perfect!

Well, I guess that is enough of my quilting/sewing projects for now. Tomorrow, I will update you on my beading.

Till then, Bead Often and Bead Happy!!

Blessings,

Beth