Jewellery Making 101

I've been learning how to create jewellery and it's been great fun! There have been many mistakes - too many to count, but great successes too.

I love jewellery - big, bold, chunky necklaces and bracelets made with glass beads and polished natural stones. My designs incorporate vintage beads that I have lovingly harvested from fine old pieces that had seen better days.

I had the most difficulty learning to make the little loop at the end of a headpin. I could not believe how many little headpins went in the garbage. I studied other handcrafted jewellery to see if their little loops were "perfect" and discovered they are not! So, my need to be perfect had to be set aside to let my relaxed, creative self appear. Once I got over the need for absolutely perfect loops, the jewellery making became fun instead of stressful.

I have much to learn and practice but so far I'm really enjoying hunting for beads and setting about making a one-of-a-kind original piece.

Next on my learning curve: Wire Wrapping

I'm pretty proud of my blue moonglow bracelet and earrings. I have some gorgeous glass necklaces made from vintage glass ready to be listed!

Missing in Action

WOW - I have had such a busy month that I haven't even been able to post to my blog! Between my job which is incredibly busy with deadlines galore and being told my dog was dying I've been running around crazy.

The dog - we went to a new holistic naturopathic vet for a second opinion and guess what? Elliemay is recovering fine - we're so happy. We have to cook for her and keep her away from prepared dog food. Turns out she had liver toxicity from all the garbage food that comes in cans and bags for dogs. We are not completely out of the woods but for now she has more energy and looks so much better than she has in quite a while.

My job....well, still fighting deadlines. The good news is my vacation officially starts on June 25 for 2 weeks. We're off to Ottawa to celebrate Canada Day - on my life's to do list - then we're going to Nova Scotia. It will be a great time.

I did get my second booth opened on Bonanzle although I haven't got a lot of listings on there yet. Elliemays Closet has lots of good quality vintage and newer used clothing and accessories. Added some great vintage linens this week and a really cool vintage brass and blue glass spider brooch.

So much to do .... so little time!

http://www.bonanzle.com/booths/Elliemay

http://www.bonanzle.com/booths/ElliemaysCloset

Purchased a 1970 VW Wesfalia Camper Bus

Now you're probably all thinking what were they thinking!  But to tell you the truth this has been our dream for a long time.  We are of the era of the Hippy Van and we're looking forward to touring around Ontario - if it can go that far - camping and seeing the sights.

I'm almost certain we will meet all sorts of interesting people on our journeys.  

The bus needs work to get it running in perfect condition.  We're already going to our first vintage VW swap meet and plan to join the VolksRUs Club to do the Beetle Crawl in Toronto.

For us this is like a dream come true.  Oh, okay, it's not perfect yet and it needs a custom paint job but that big VW insignia makes it all worthwhile.

There are many VW enthusiasts in Canada and we can't wait to meet them.

The best part will be customizing the interior.  Of course, we are already butting heads a little over what it should look like but we'll come to a compromise.

Of course, I'll be shopping on Bonanzle for parts and decor items - after all it needs curtains!!

I'll keep you up to date on our progress!!

I'm so Happy to be Back at Bonanzle

after a nasty bout of kidney stones and surgery, I can finally get back to the serious business of Bonanzling!!

Bonanzle has grown by 10,000 users since I joined 2 months ago - that's phenomenal.

Many changes have happened and they are all for the better. I have learned the art of attributes but I still need to refine them to maximize my items in the searches.

My blog has gotten behind and I'm just now getting back to writing about the happenings on Bonanzle.

We had our first Bonanzle Bonanza Block Party in April. So many sellers participated and offered great discounts on fabulous items. Sales were excellent and many new visitors came to the site seeking treasures.

Our next Bonanzle Bonanza Block Party is going to happen in May - I will post soon with the exact date. It's going to be a blast.

How Did It All Begin..

this is the question I ask myself when I look inside my huge wall-mounted jewellery cupboard. My husband bought it for me for Christmas last year and since then I have filled it with vintage jewellery of all types. Now, I've discovered that jewellery is now to be found on my dresser, hanging from nails in my walk-in closet, and less expensive pieces live in a basket in the bathroom.

How did I get to the point where a jewellery cupboard that measures 5' tall x 2' wide is not enough space to store my jewels.

Some people call it an addiction, others call me crazy, and my kids worry about their inheritance. Of course, I tell them "sell the jewellery"!!

This past week, I have purchased 5 pieces of jewellery from great sellers on Bonanzle. I'm starting to hide the boxes from my significant other, lie when asked "where did you get that piece?". Oh, this old thing....you get my drift.

Tomorrow, Monday, February 23, begins a new game on Bonanzle - a BOGO game. Buy one, get one free. So off I go scouting participating seller's booths and what do I find more must have jewellery.

I need an intervention. Is there rehab for jewel addicts? A nice secluded place near the ocean, no computers, no shopping malls, just yoga and veggies!

BOGO Tomorrow - I'm Ready.

Squidoo - Elliemay's Lens

I have created a Squidoo Lens. It is my very first attempt and I've been adding modules and text but I can't get the health check to be "green" all the way.

Please check it out - rate it, fav it, lensroll it and most importantly, give me your thoughts and comments.

Elliemay's Squidoo Lens

Fantastic Day on Bonanzle!

I had my first Bonanza and met many great people. I sold two items today and found that my really cool purse - see photo above - was featured in a handpicked list.

Bonanzle just keeps getting better and better. Fees I paid today was $2.00. If I sold similar on the blackhole "feebay", I would have paid $4.20. Savings in my pocket get passed on to my customers.

View my new additions in my Bonanzle booth - Elliemay's Booth