Random Rant - kandi bracelets

So lately I have been seeing a lot of people online selling 'raver' bracelets or 'kandi' jewelry. I hate to be a Debbie downer but I am completely against this. It's over priced plur wear. The original point of kandi was to be a homemade item by the individual to exchange with new friends they met by exchanging the kandi kiss, handshake, or just trading as a way to remember each memory of each new person in the community met. Buy and selling in my opinion defeats the purpose because the jewelry is not make by you for another individual with love. You may as well have bought them an item from hot topic or something because the whole purpose behind the bracelets is defeated. Not to mention, the cost of plastic beads and string is so dirt cheap the cost of one bracelet is equal to the cost of supplies to make 100+ bracelets.

Some people will say well this 3d bracelet is a lot of beads and took a long time to make. Yeah well, years back believe it or not we traded bracelets of equal value or gave a bigger flashier bracelet to our closest friends and loves of our life. Selling his jewelry just rips away any meaning he community gave to it. Think about it.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Personally thought, I am sticking to my stance on the issue.

Papeeerrrr!

Did I get a chance to show you all some of my paper bead bracelets yet? Probably not.

A few years ago I commissioned Angela's Paper Beads to make me a custom order. Even though I love the time consuming and rewarding process of rolling your own super tiny paper beads, I was too busy at the time to bother. So I bought a ton from her and have been making all kinds of paper bead projects since.

Can I tell you? Up-cycled crafts are my favorite and they always get the most attention where ever. People always look at your pieces and are like, "what is that?!" Then are completely blown away when you tell them what it is. The only downside to these beads is that if you don't seal them right, you can ruin your piece in an instant. Obviously they aren't waterproof. If you stick your hand in a sink full of water or go swimming, you are obviously loosing you're hard work whether its sealed right or not. But you shouldn't be swimming with jewelry on anyways RIGHT?

Good ole Modpodge will do the trick, but if you want to go all out, and can do it outside, a polyurethane finish spray/varnish spray is mint. Other people like to use resin or nail varnish. It really is all personal preference.

Let me know your preference in the comment section below. I always love to hear whats working best for other people.

5 days till christmas!!

Only 5 more days! Hope you all are baking, relaxing, and catching up with family and friends.

6 days till christmas!

I'm expecting snow this week.. for better or for worse.

7 days to christmas!

I have been super busy with all kinds of holiday things and jewelry making. So please do expect more pictures in the days to come. There are lots of new items in the shop so check it out! Lots of items under $20!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/creationsbycate

The Emma

This morning I decided I wanted to make a set of earrings inspired by my niece, Emma. Something elegant and simple. But completely beautiful. While she is still only 4 months old and won't be able to wear these for a long time, I thought it might be appropriate to make something that her mother could treasure and wear. So enjoy and let me know what you think!

NEW ITEMS!

I've updated the store and added a few new items. Check it out!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/creationsbycate

I am still going to do the $1 per item shipping till the end of the year. Make sure you order by Dec 15th if you want your items by Christmas. As far as sales... I am still doing the Thanksgiving 20% off sale till 12/4. Enter the coupon code GOBBLE at checkout.

Here's a peek at some of the new items.

Rock On

I have had all types of gemstone beads hanging around for the longest time and finally decided to put them to good use. They will be listed soon in the Creations by Cate etsy store. Keep an eye out!

Quick Tease

I am just going to leave you with a quick tease of a new piece. Enjoy!

Glass Pearls

It's too early for this color scheme. This definitely screams fall and winter. But I came across some glass pearls today and wanted to play with them. So why not right? Let me know what you think of this.

Experimentation

So, since I fell so in love with the bracelet in my last post I decided to experiment with different colors and numbers of strands. I really am enjoying the green color scheme and love keeping this type of bracelet bulky. I tried to make one with only two strands, but I am not sure yet how I feel about it. I kind of feel it might be missing... a lot of strands. What do you think? More or less?

Aquarius Bracelet

I recently came across some old beads I never thought I would find a purpose for. Well, today i found a purpose for them. I wanted to make something tranquil and funky. Something that reminds me a little bit of water and the beach. Since the beads are glass they look like either sea glass or colors of the sky. I love the outcome of this bracelet so much, I am going to make a few different color schemes. This one's color scheme, reminds me a bit of my zodiac sign: Aquarius.





Other things that come to mind while looking at this bracelet: rock candy. Really.

More PI please...

My 'more pi please' necklace was featured in an etsy treasury!
I love it and so should you!

Check out all the featured PI wear!

teeny tiny paper beads

Recently I commissioned Angela's Paper Beads to create hundreds of teeny tiny beads for me. Usually I would make my own but I like to support other etsians and somedays I lack the patience needed to make super small beads like this. I got my order from her recently and couldn't have been more pleased. Fantastic!

I just wanted to quickly share with you a few pieces I've made recently with it. They are really simple, mostly because the beads are enough flash! Enjoy!

BUTTONS!!

DON'T LIE! You know you think this is absolutely cute as a button! This is the latest adorable creation by cate. Soon you can own your own from my shop starting at $20+ shipping. But if you can't wait for the summer line up to be posted, custom order your own now! You can pick the button colors and everything. Email me at creationsbycate@gmail.com and I will hook you up.

A few of my favorite things...

Not really the case but, if you like all things sin this could be for you. I had a lot of spare charms and was wondering what to do with them. Well.. this happened:

Three of a Kind

I've been really busy working on some stuff lately but I just wanted to share briefly some necklaces I have been working on. Really simple designs but cute stuff. Let me know what you think.

Paper Beads

I have really been into recycling everything. So no surprise that I love paper beads right? I can't wait till next week when I can sit down and make ton's of paper bead jewelry.

Tattoo Swallow

I once had a necklace with this tattoo outline swallow. Not to sure what happened to it but when I saw the charm again I had to make a new necklace. I'm going to keep it quick and just show you the piece because I am super happy with it and I hope you enjoy it too.

The store is reopened!

Slowly I will be adding new items to the store. Two of the necklaces I have finished recently have been added. So check out creationsbycate.etsy.com! Here are some teasers...