Bunch of Stuff ~ ArtFire Changes, A Sale and My Hibiscus :)

Hello!

Hope you're all enjoying the summer. I've got a few things for you today......

First of all...ArtFire....OMG ArtFire!! They launched a complete overaul/design change this week and there have been alot more glitches than expected so a great many thing are NOT going according to plan! They're working on issues as users tell them about them. I just want to warn you that there are also alot of broken links because of the changes they made. I'm so sorry for the aggravation! I didn't realize they were completely changing everything so I wasn't prepared. If you try to purchase or order something and you have any problems at all, please contact me and I'll take care of you. I'm working on the shopping cart for the website, but unfortunately it's not ready to go live just yet. Thank you for your patience!

Unfortunately this mess happened right as I started another sale! I threw out a pop challenge on Facebook and thanks to the 38 people who participated, I'm doing an August Bonus Sale!! From August 7th - 31st enter the code AUGUSTBONUS20 at checkout to receive 20% off your order. Jewelry for Charity Pieces and Gift Certificates are not included in this offer. However, custom designs are AND you can use the code as often as you want until August 31st. So if you missed out on the last sale, you've got another chance to save big on some really special gifts for the holidays..and taking advantage of the layaway plan will help you even more!

On a lighter note, so we can all de-stress.....Isn't this beautiful?......

That's my hibiscus out on the deck. Niko gets me one for my birthday every year...with a little help from his grandparents :) and I just love it. The hibiscus is my favorite flower so it's always a very special gift...one that I get to enjoy all summer...so I thought I'd share it with you!

Take care until next time!
♥ Debi

"Sending Healing Aloha" ~ April 2011 Jewelry for Charity Piece

Hi!

Well, better late than never, I finally got the April Jewelry for Charity Piece up on the website today! It's a beautiful OOAK Hibiscus Lampwork Necklace... yup, necklace this time... first time I do a necklace for a charity piece. AND I did it in gold... another first (I don't tend to do very many designs in gold.... I prefer silver and copper).

I made this piece to raise money for Friends of Keri to help a high school friend of mine who slipped and fell into a pool last summer breaking her neck and leaving her paralyzed from the chest down with only limited use of her shoulders and arms. All the money raised by Friends of Keri goes directly to Keri and her family (husband Kevin, son Kyle and daughter Paige) to help with the extraordinary medical bills and the cost of conversions they've needed to make to their home. You can read more about the necklace and Keri on the April 2011 Jewelry for Charity Piece page on the website.

~ Debi

P.S. Don't forget... next Facebook fan giveaway is at 200 fans... just 17 more to go at last count :)

Why I Love Artisan Lampwork Glass Beads

I mentioned my addiction to lampwork glass beads the other day...well what an addiction it is! I don't dare tell you how many tackle boxes full of them are in my bead closet! These beads are handmade by glass artists and each one is a special little work of art. I absolutely love them and use them all the time, especially when I'm designing one-of-a-kind pieces. They're lovingly handmade one at a time by winding molten glass around a metal mandrel to form a bead and then decorating it. There are so many different glass types, glass colors, embellishement methods, etc. that the possibilities seem to be endless. I love looking to see all the newest ones, but then of course looking leads to buying...and buying...and buying. See how I ended up filling those boxes?!? It's so easy!

Well, I've been wanting to share information about these beads and the artists who create them and I've finally gotten around to it! I put up a page about Artisan Lampwork Glass Beads on my website. And I've started extending invitations to some of my favorite glass artists to come over and put up a page telling us about themselves and their work. I thought that would make things more interesting. Check 'em out! I think you'll enjoy them.

Two glass artists already have pages up...
Susan Elliot of Doodletart Glass who makes some of the most gorgeous hibiscus beads you'll ever find...



and
Kimberly Nicole of Bastille Bleu Lampwork whose beads are just beautiful and so much fun to work with...



I love hibiscus, flags and hearts so I can't even tell you how hard it was for me not to keep these for myself! I didn't though...I actually used these beads in a couple of my Jewelry for Charity pieces. That heart of Susan's was used in my Valentine Hearts for Haiti piece to raise money for the victims of the Haiti earthquake via Yele Haiti...


and Nikki's awesome flag beads (from the set pictured above and another set she made) were used in my Fourth of July Fireworks in Honor of Those Who Serve piece to raise money for Soldiers' Angels...


 I try to put their beautiful beads to good use! They spark my creativity that's for sure :) Thanks ladies!!

~ Debi