A Peep posing with goodies for my partner.

I would like to introduce you to the jewelry artist with whom I have been partnered for the Bead Peeps Swap ‘n’ Hop. But before I do, let me tell you what the Swap ‘n’ Hop is about.

There’s a group on Facebook called Bead Peeps where jewelry and component artists can hang and share questions, information, photos, etc. about all things bead- and jewelry-related. There are over 1,000 members, and a small subset of them are participating in a bead swap and blog hop. If you don’t know what a blog hop is, you can get the general idea from this post. 

The first step in this swap and hop event is for partners to exchange jewelry components. Well, technically the first step was that we all signed up, and then got matched with partners. But the first step after that is the exchange of goodies. The “rules” for this event are that we have to send our partner artisan components.  Or rather, the focal, the clasp, or some beads, have to be artisan made.

The hostess for this blog hop event is Linda Anderson of Cherry on Top Design. You can find out a bit more about her on her blog, From the Bead Board. She’s also the owner and administrator for the Bead Peeps Facebook group.  And is generally quite a hoot and a half.  The partner that Linda chose for me is Shirley Moore of Shirley Moore Designs.

This gorgeous bracelet is one of Shirley’s using herringbone stitch with metallic beads and button clasp.

Shirley and I have lots in common. The thing that makes me the most happy about our partnering is that she too is a sci-fi geek!  I don’t think Linda knew that when she paired us. Shirley and I may be exchanging book and movie recommendations in addition to beads.

Shirley has tried various jewelry making techniques, including stringing and wire work. She also likes to bake (hey, me too!) and crochet (ditto, but with wire, not yarn). Not only is she a talented jewelry artist, she is generous with her time and teaches arts and crafts to children.

This is a loomed cuff that Shirley created for a Beadwork reader challenge.

Shirley describes her jewelry style as “wearable beauty” and says she wants “your eyes to sparkle when you see it, and I also want you to see yourself wearing it.”  As I was looking at her designs, I definitely saw more than I few I could see myself wearing.

In addition to knowing many beadweaving stitches, Shirley has recently become fascinated with loomwork and kumihimo. She likes to combine metallic and AB finish beads with matte finish, and isn’t much into pastels.

These fall colors pillow bead are available in Shirley’s shop on the Artisan Component Marketplace.

Shirley also makes and sells artisan beadwork components at the Artisan Marketplace.  If you’re looking for beads and components made from even smaller beads, this is the place to look. And if you want to see more of Shirley’s designs, be sure to check out her Flickr photostream. And of course, visit her blog, Beads and Bread, to read about her journey in beadweaving, breadmaking, and homeschooling.

I have gathered up the goodies I will be sending to Shirley. But I can’t show them to you just yet. It’s supposed to be a surprise for her. So I won’t reveal what I sent until after I know she has opened her package. However, I can show you – and her – this teaser image. It’s a photo of the actual components I’m sending, with a fun filter effect. You can get an idea of the color palette she’ll be working with.

These are the components I’m sending to Shirley for the swap. Really, there are beads and things in there. I just gave the image a spin.

I hope you’ll stay tuned here to see the unscrambled version of what I sent Shirely. And I’ll be sharing photos of what she sent me as well. And definitely be sure to stop back on May 2, 2015 for the big reveal of the jewelry we made with our swapped components.

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