An Early 2026

As the year end approaches, who isn't noticing how fast 2025 has flown by? In the blink of an eye, I find myself looking ahead and planning my life for 2026.  I am already focusing on New Year's resolutions. My three priorities are to narrow down my focus of creative production, to slow down a bit (I am still defining that), and to embrace the creative skills that make me happiest. "Squirrel!" Every piece of jewelry in this post contains shades of brown. What does that mean?

AT LAST

After all the exciting activities of the past few months I have slowed down to just 2 - 3 projects in progress. One of them includes hiring a website expert who is working his magic as we speak.   I have yielded to a fabulous web designer and I am very excited for the upcoming results!  I am preparing to make shopping Tina's Sedona a total turnaround experience. It is long overdue and I appreciate everyone who has hung in there waiting for me to reach this point and surrender to an expert.  It is getting close to a launch date.

DOES THE WORD "CULL" APPLY?

I am "itching" to trim my online inventory by removing pieces that no longer represent MY definition of artistic beadwork.  This is going to provide some GREAT SALES for those who want to benefit from a gleaning of unique, attractive, wearable beadwork.  And yes, it is still artistic beadwork, just not as much to me. Do you have similar objects in your life to "cull"?

THE ARTIST'S WAY?

I want to get back to more imagination in my creations like when I first began beading and every piece was an experiment.  When I ask AI "Why Do Artists Get Bored With What They Are Making?" One of the seven answers given was "Desire for originality: A strong drive for originality means that working on similar projects repeatedly can feel uninspired or unfulfilling." Yes, and so does making the same objects as other artists. What do you enjoy experimenting with? Did you know that I sometimes do commissioned work?

INNOVATION?
My French Beaded (FB) floral projects have stalled due to distractions by non-beading "adventures".  That said, I've let my hands explore some smaller FB projects with size 15/0 beads to create a finer weave of beaded earrings - the bottom pair.  Let me know what you think of them? My goal is to provide a Bohemian style (top pair made with larger beads of size 11/0) and a smaller one that gives a more dressy look (Note: The larger the size number, the smaller the bead) Click photo for a larger view.

FOR YOU
Winter is coming and those of you who hibernate to some extent might be considering a new creative experience.  You already have your own list to choose from. I hope it includes considering French beading. You can join and learn for free from Facebook Group Learn How To Make French Beaded Flowers. The month long project videos are so cool to watch even if you decide it's not for you. You will get a better appreciation for the techniques that go into the pieces that I weave. My Anthurium project below...

FOR ME
Once again, with summer heat gone, Nathan and I are walking regularly and cycling a bit in our community.  I am determined to keep walking year round as we do have a gym in our community. Our bodies took a hit from the past summer's hibernation habits.  Being retired after years of 5:30 a.m. alarms is something I still SO treasure and enjoy.  What do you do to get yourself up and out early in the morning to exercise? 

Happy Thanksgiving in advance... Would love to read your comments!

Be Grateful!

Tina

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The Rewards of Tenacity

At last the summer heat has subsided and fall temperatures, even though sometimes in the 80's, are a welcome change. Another welcome change is that Tina's Sedona has rebirthed a shopping cart after a break of several years. I trust you will feel welcomed to shop our full line of beaded artistry from earrings to necklaces to bracelets. When you visit you will find a special offer on any piece that you admire!

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NEW PRODUCTS @ Tina's Sedona

Convenient Online Shopping Returns @ Tina's Sedona

Greetings From Tucson... I'm feeling great about upcoming seasonal opportunities to sell my beaded artistry!  That said, I guess this is a good time to announce that online shopping at Tina's Sedona is once again possible. Important details in a minute.

But first, here is some of my artwork to be sold at several local events.

FIBER ARTS TUCSON 2025

It will be “a first” to sell French Beaded sculptures & jewelry at this Fiber Arts Guild event. These artists are my "tribe".

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VENTANA GALLERY  This is a juried show where Tina's Sedona bead artistry will be available through January 2026.

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As This Season Unfolds... I am excited about attending- of all things- a tatting workshop on October 6th. The only thing that concerns me is going off in another direction with a good variety of 5 want-to-do's already holding my interest. I will just have to live to be 100. After a final remodel in our home which included my studio, I am ready to ditch technology and get back to working with my hands.

For Your Convenience... So my website shopping cart is once again operational after a few years without one. Here are a few of the newest additions to Tina's Sedona. I'm preparing to add My Necklaces soon.

A Final Word...

My interests are so diverse that I need direction from my customers. If you have purchased from me before and you would like to see more of the same, please let me know. I don't mind focusing on what people want to see out there. The holidays are coming and I would love for you to shop at Tina's Sedona. 

Until Next Time… Let me know what kind of work or play you are currently doing with your hands. My hand "play" works wonders for me.

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Summer Sabbatical

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the word “sabbatical” comes from the word “Sabbath,” which is a day of rest dedicated to God. Essentially, a sabbatical is several Sabbaths put together. It feels like the right way to describe my past few months. I don't move forward but I don't move backward either. Ever been there, when all activity seems to slow to a state of silence, almost a state of paralysis? It is an unfamiliar state for me, but I am actually enjoying the "letting go" of it all. No projects moving forward. Dabbling with ideas but not pursuing them. Rest. YES, please. That's not to say I haven't accomplished anything. Just not a whole lot that I would normally sense as productive.

Ah, but, while on sabbatical there is still news to report from my neck of the desert.

Update on Tohono Chul Submission

Poor little thing feels terribly rejected... lol

My sci-fi Sonoran Desert piece was not accepted for the new Tohono Chul Exhibit "Exotic Sublime | treading softly". Honestly, I cannot tell you how relieved I was when I was notified. Smack dab in the middle of a planned vacation to relax was this project awaiting my attention upon my return. It wasn't ready and I wasn't either. That's not to say it would have been accepted even in a completed state. Then I would probably have been very disappointed to have finished it to no avail. But, alas, I was saved from stress I did not need. Will I ever finish it? Now that I am feeling very "sabbatical-ized" I am not quite sure...

Oh, But A Win!

I have managed to sell four out of five bracelets that I submitted to Tohono Chul’s annual 10 x 10 | A Fundraiser exhibition in progress through May 26th!

Utah & Arizona

How did I get into this silent place? Nine days, 1400 miles on the road and exposure to the most exquisite landscapes yet. Monument Valley, Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon to name just a few. I feel as if I was metaphysically hit by a wall of mountain in Bluff, Utah, where our second floor balcony faced a huge monolithic mountain range just feet from us, one that ran the length of the hotel and towered into an incredible sky. That kind of exposure makes it so easy to become silent, to pull back, to reassess motion and all activity. Do you think a vortex got hold of me?

My Current Pursuit

I am walking my way up to 3+ miles about 4 days a week. On vacation, Nathan and I discovered, as we had suspected, that our artistic pursuits have definitely slowed down our physical strength and hiking endurance. We are on a mission to rebuild and regain that. Optimism exists during sabbaticals...

Rest easy,

Tina

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The Spring Desert Enfolds Me

We live in the Sonoran Desert which is blooming like crazy this time of year and early next week we will head back up to the Mojave Desert to see the flora bloom there. Who would guess that we would be desert dwellers in our golden years?

The Drama of Design

The question is always "who am I creating this for?" And inevitably the answer always results in "I am creating this for me." Otherwise, the tendency to run in circles trying to address every possible critique leads to frustration and adds to the production time. This is the dilemma I have been dealt with building a tabletop piece in preparation for submitting to another juried show. Unlike anything I've done before, this piece represents a science fiction interpretation of the Sonoran Desert. Unlike designing and creating a piece of jewelry, this table top project has required a series of components that need to contribute to the big picture of a very surreal desert which I am building. What an adventure it is! Having just submitted my paperwork for jurying of my piece, I should hear from Tohono Chul by April 16th on whether or not my piece has been selected for this Summer's exhibit of the "Exotic Sublime | treading softly".

NOTE - The beaded pieces contained in this depiction of a futuristic Sonoran Desert reflect my first attempt at designing my own creations in French Beading – excluding the Asiatic Lily designed by Lauren Harpster of Bead and Blossom. With her permission, I have included my creation of it in vivid colors of my choice. I have also redesigned its body to “nurture life” via an attached umbilical cord of sorts extending to an adult insect of my design. I have also altered the Lily’s stem work to include a “youngster” emerging from an additional pod which I added to the flower’s structure.  

Guess what? This piece is not finished and, if selected, must be delivered in early May! LOL I will cover the tabletop board with fabric and attach everything to that when I return from our trip to AZ/UT. For now, I am letting it go. It will be easier to let go when we leave town and get to our mountainous destinations. In case you're wondering, we are driving via Flagstaff to Monument Valley, the Arches, Moab, Bryce Canyon, Page (not far from Marble Canyon where we stayed last spring) and a few other majestic spots along the way. We will clock over 1300 miles on this nine-day journey.

This post is going to be a short one as we leave in three days. I am still deciding on whether or not to bring a new, very small, hand sized, "fun" project from my beading bucket list with no demands for completion. I am 90% sure I will leave home without one this time.

As you can guess, next Month's Blog will be about our trip. You will also get results of my Tohono Chul submission! Until then, enjoy this time of year and get outside.

Best to you all,
Tina

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Springing Forward 2024

My Shameless Promotion

My presentation to Members of the Tucson Handweavers & Spinners Guild on February 27th was an utter success. After delivering a twenty-minute PowerPoint tour of my artistic phases, I landed on my latest obsession with French Beading. My final "ta-dah moment" in beads was amplified by lots of applause and several gasps at the sight of my finished Black Aeonium piece designed by the very talented Lauren Harpster @beadandblossomstudio. The experience presenting to a large group was empowering for me and the audience's reaction and applause was so encouraging that I literally jumped up and down with delight. (Yup, I was actually overpowered by joy...) LOL

A Buggy New Project

I am hoping to submit my concept of a French beaded sculpture in early April for an
upcoming juried show at Tohono Chul that will run May 16 - August 5, 2024. The Exhibit's theme this time is "The Exotic Sublime | treading softly". At the current moment I am prototyping bugs! I'm going out on a limb here by telling you my plan because I don't believe in jinxes. My hope is to append "something that crawls" to a French Beaded piece I constructed many months ago... Here is one of my bugs and the Asiatic Lily (another fabulous design by Lauren Harpster) from which it will spring forth and "tread softly"... The bugs are my design! Keep your fingers crossed that I meet the deadline...

We are Off, Again

Next month we head back to Northern Arizona and this time visit Monument Valley and Moab, just to name a few stops along a 1400 mile route that we will drive in nine days. One of our stops will be to Bryce Canyon which we've driven through but never hiked. Barring any major snow hazards we hope to get down into the hoodoos! If you haven't yet visited the Southwest, we highly recommend early spring if you want to avoid the crowds. Even during other times of the year, research the views in less travelled areas. If you do enough research you can ride down roads and capture what many others will never see. Here's one vision from a drive we took in Hurricane, Utah, about three years ago where we stumbled onto a perch from which I caught a glimpse of Zion National Park in the far distance. A priceless, unrushed, silent experience with no crowds. We are doing lots more car touring than hiking these days which presents many photography opps are unexpected, thrilling, and striking!


I enjoy keeping in touch with you! My wish for you this Marchy Month is that Spring -- in whatever form it takes for your part of the country -- opens you up for new adventures, especially before the heat of summer comes your way.

Tina

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Don't miss out on the vibrant world of bead artistry at Tina's Sedona!
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A Fall Respite

New Subscribers

Let's get this part out of the way. I confess to having added new subscribers without asking permission. Without a subscribe box on my website I have no way to recruit subscribers. My subscribers are important because they encourage me and help spread the word about my artistry. I know that I can count on you to unsubscribe if you do not want to receive these blog posts. Just follow instructions at the bottom of the email you've received. PS. Do you know that you can tap on any of these pictures and zoom in for a closer look?

Spring Memories

This year, in the April-May timeframe we headed for Northern Arizona where I had my first GoPro camera experience. I decided not to get fancy and put in time editing it all. You will hear the sounds of wind blowing and the tapping of my walking sticks. You can always mute the sound. It is the

Staying Sharp

Inquiring Minds

I've been asked how I found French beading or why I even considered the challenge of it. Of course, the saying "to each her own" comes to mind. With very few responsibilities other than laundry and occasional house cleaning (and I do mean occasional) I have completely retired from all things I do not favor. Hey, it's time.

I didn't know anything about French beading until