Soldering is the new black...

Really, really...we wouldn't kid you! Soldering opens up a whole new world to the jewelry designer (and you must be jewelry designer since you are reading this blog.)

Now all that you really need to get started is a class (well, a class and a little prompting from us.)

We know that you are going to LOVE soldering so much that we have some brand new classes ready to get you started! Simple Soldered Pendants and Soldered Rings and Bezels

"WHAT IS THAT?" you ask? Well, it's a sample from our "Simple Soldered Pendants" class. This view is of the pendant, just after soldering and before pickling. That darkened flower blank that you see above is a Gold-Filled blank. (I know, soldering gold-filled...we were pretty excited!)
This is the same pendant after pickling but before oxidizing and polishing...wait for it...


TAHDAH!!!! There it is at the top after it is all polished up. We also made those cool gold-filled and sterling pieces at the bottom.

Oh, rings...how we love you! The Soldered Rings and Bezels class will have you making a ring for every finger. This class is a perfect follow up to our Introduction to Soldering class.

You can also adapt this technique to make a pendant with a stone (just don't solder it to the ring band). Or create a plan ring band that is perfect for stamping.

Check out all of our metalworking classes here. Don't say we didn't warn you.

On the road again....

When I was little and we would go on a car trip...we would pull out of the driveway singing "On the Road Again."


Lisa, Kriss and I will be singing at the top of our lungs tomorrow as we wing our way to the Portland Bead Fest.

Come by and see us if you are in the neighborhood. Admission is on us...click here for a free pass! Also, check out Lisa's classes here. She still has room for you.

Don't worry, though, the rest of the Beaducation crew will be keeping the home fires burning. The online store is open for business as usual!

Now I've gotta run. I need to pack and print out the lyrics to that song. Do you think I could get the whole plane to join in?

Top 10 Reasons....

...to love the new Kismet letter set.



. Numbers can be so dull...look at that whimsy!



. The Kismet letters were lonely. Creating a number set was cheaper than sending all of the letter sets away on a rejuvenating vacation.


. Lifting stamp sets is good for toning the muscles in your arms. A new number set equals just under a pound...put a bunch in a box and lift repeatedly...voila, instant workout!


. IF you wanted to make a tag for your dog out of the really cute dog bone blank, and IF you were using the Kismet letters to spell out his name, and IF you wanted to put your phone number on the dog tag, and IF you wanted it to match... we've got you covered.


. You just can't make a cute kid's name necklace without the birthdate stamped below...and you just HAVE to have the numbers and letters match!


. Made entirely in the USA. The quality just doesn't get better than this!



. They are so pretty and shiny! We get mesmerized by shiny and pretty things...



. I don't have anything for three...I am far too mesmerized by the shiny number stamps... I love the letter stamps...must...have...them...



. Did we mention that we like whimsy?



...and finally...You asked! We listened!


Check 'em out... Numbers. Uppercase. Lowercase.

Wha' happened?

Where is Kriss???


Where is Kate?


They are recovering from this...

That's TWENTY (20) boxes or 800 lbs of Beaducation tools, blanks and stamps ready to go to BEAD FEST in Portland, OR. It's shipping out today!

We'll be there at the end of the month, Sept 24-27 at the Oregon Convention center.

With all of this stuff.

Lisa is teaching some pretty cool classes. too. If you are in town, it's a great opportunity to take a class from Lisa, live and in person. (Word on the street is that she is a pretty good teacher.)

...and if you are so inclined, come by the booth... you'll see Kate, Kriss, Lisa, Colin and Liz. We will be demo-ing Beaducation products and waiting for you to stop by

SUPERSTAR!!!!!!!!!! Quiet on the set!

Did you know that Lisa Niven Kelly's new book comes with a bonus DVD? Now that the book is wrapped up, it's time to FILM!

Claudia was behind the camera...Zoom in, zoom out, zoom in, zoom out. That girl is a camera genius!

To get ready for a video shoot, it takes a lot of prep...


and a lot of powder!!! (It is really hot in our shootio!)


and a flatiron for Lisa's hair!


Kate played the part of wardrobe mistress, makeup artist, hairstylist and director. This is the wardrobe mistress part. (That is a clothespin, very important for keeping the wardrobe in place.)


This is the makeup artist part...the talent had to stay very still.

The talent also needed to have straight, shiny hair. (This, as you can guess, is the hairstylist part!)


There are no shots of the director part... Kate was way too bossy and everyone left! (No, not really. Okay maybe a little...)

We had a lot of fun filming the DVD. Lisa is a pro! (But you knew that already...) We'll keep you updated on the details, but for now..."QUIET ON THE SET!!!"

Move? What move?!

Did you ever have the feeling, you know... after you have made a major change...how on the EARTH did you ever function before that change?

We went from a SMALL...(no, really, small) office, to (count 'em) TWO (still kinda small...but well organized and not all THAT small) offices connected by a door (well, we will call it an opening, there is no door) in the wall.

Hallelujah! We are settling in...

The last drawer was built yesterday. (Thanks, Kris!)


And now we just have to "cute-ify" around here...

Here are a few pics of our cuteness:

Mindy "DIY"ed" that cool desk box out of an old silverware box, paint, decorative paper and some decoupage. She is a clever girl!


Lisa's daughter, Izzy is a great artist. This painting is hanging in the hall, along with our custom Beaducation aprons!


Back to clever Mindy...an embellished cork board and a cute corgi picture!



I hung the quilt that I made and entered in the County Fair. (On an unrelated note: how much fun is the County Fair? Funnel cakes, pig races, lots of weird stuff to buy in the "sales pavilion." I urge to to seek out and visit your local fair. Have a Cotton Candy for me!)



A place to work with power tools...( I see a bench buffer, jump ring maker, metal forming tool and some torches!!!!)




And lots 'o room for inventory!!!!

Whew! Now back to our regularly scheduled programing.

It's Chaos Out There...(or should I say In Here?!)

"Let's do it," we thought. "The printer next door is moving out, we need more room, let's just bust through that wall, put in a door and EXPAND!"

When you are basking in the glow of the potential of a whole extra office for inventory and dreaming about the extra room that you are going to have to put in a workbench (as in a REAL jewelry workstation, complete with ROLLING MILL)...you don't really think about what has to happen in between the old office and the new.

(This is our current workstation...IMPRESSIVE!)

Let us share our saga with you...


First, you've got to vacuum the vacant office. Or at least pretend you are vacuuming. That is Lisa and Danelle...pretending.


Pretending to vacuum led to playing telephone.


Danelle realized that all of this pretending did not stop the flow of orders from coming in, so she put herself back to work. Lisa kept on playing telephone. (D's desk is not usually wedged in among the inventory like that, we had to rearrange to make room for the door-busting).



Things started to look up for Danelle after she had a latte. Katie had one, too. Everyone was happy.

Then the wall-busting began. Loud. Everyone was not so happy.


...but the noise was totally worth it. Voila! A door! (Kate is doing her Vanna impression here.)

(Think of this as the "before" picture.)

We also busted out the dividing wall. Ah, such room! Now we are getting ready to fill it with inventory and cute new desks.

Next up...painting!!! We will let you know how that one goes. (and no, even though I made it sound like WE have been doing all of this construction work, it's really our handyman with a truck.)