2007-2008 BJP News!

I applied a couple of weeks ago to the Southern Highland Craft Guild - it's a juried membership with a two-part jury process. The first part is an Image Jury. You send them 5 photographs of your work and then you either get a letter of approval or you get your photos back.

I got an approval letter today! I am currently a member of this year's BJP, but due to some personal things going on with me this year, I have not actually been doing any bead embroidery. However, one of the images I sent in was my project from the 2007-2008 BJP, which I titled Elemental:

The second part of the process is an Object Jury, where you send them 5 pieces and they do a final selection. I will be in the January 21, 2011 Object Jury, so it will be a while still before I know whether I made it, but I am very excited and optimistic.

I currently have only one piece completed that isn't jewelery (my framed Elemental bead embroidery piece) so I might use the next three months to complete another mixed media piece. I made bead embroidered inchies for the 2008-2009 BJP and they would make some really nice wall art along with some fabric. I just wish I had enough time to do all of the things running around in my head right now!

So, anyway, I just wanted to share with you all (especially Robin - thank you!!!) how much the BJP has meant to me and how it has helped me evolve as an artist. I'm not sure when I'll be able to complete my 2010 BJP, but I do plan on finishing. I've really enjoyed following everyone else with their projects. :)

August BJP is on my Blog!

Hi everyone!


I just posted my August piece (detail above) here.

I've been missing on the BJP blog scene and feel very badly about it. The reasons are partly personal issues in my life right now and a ton of other obligations, projects, house guests, travel, etc. that have kept me waaaay too busy. There's more of all that on the horizon, but for the next three days, I hope plan to get caught up reading your blogs and seeing all the creative work being done in the BJP!!! And later this week, I want to will write another post about one way to finish BJP pieces that can give them a place in the fine art world.

Reminder... Once you have completed 8 BJP pieces for the year, you are eligible to put them on our BJP website on your own personal page!!! (Here's how your personal page will look... mine from the first year.) There are directions for how to send in your pictures on the website, here. (These are actually directions for last year's BJP, but they are the same for this year.) I look forward to seeing some of your pages and pictures soon. It's so neat to see them all together in a group, don't you think?

Please forgive my recent absence from active blogging... I'm sooooooooo excited to have a day to catch up and see your work!

Beady hugs,
Robin A.

Looking forward to the Discipline!!

Hi All, my name is Elizabeth Woodford and I am currently living in Northern Virginia about 30 miles south of D.C. THis will be my first BJP although I have been following along with the other projects since they began. Robin has become an amazingly supportive remote ( in the electronic, Internet sense) mentor for me over the recent years. I visit her blog and see her work wherever I can. I also follow many of the past BJP members who have blogs.I have absorbed alot of the excitment that Robin transmits and have used it to jump off the edge and try many different beading techniques.

I have loved beads since I was a small child. I was raised in a very creative home and as children there was no sitting around without a project, without handwork. When I was 9 and we were traveling across country as part of a move, we stopped at a Museum in South Dakota and a wonderful Sioux woman taught me to make beaded daisy chain necklaces. That is an experience that I will never forget!

I consider myself a mixed media artist and love combining all sorts of media and elements into a cohesive whole. I plan to amke use of as many natural elements in my work as I can find. After all, anything with a hole can become a bead. I also love to make my own beads and I teach a class in making Beaded Beads with fabric wire and seed beads. Some of the beading projects that I am most proud of are here and here, if you would care to take a look!

I am so excited to be a part of this year's BJP and I am thrilled that we have a blog to share our experiences, revelations, and creations with each other. In my experience, blogging has opened up whole new worlds for me and my art!!!

I ahve not decided on a theme yet and may not. I think that I will be combining several media with my beads and will probably go with a 3x5 size limit. Decisions Decisions !! So very hard to make when there are so many colors and oh so very many glorious beads!!!!!!