We’ve already had snow and a mini polar vortex, which is weird but enhanced the Frosty-making mood. Mother Nature is sending us a message about the volatility of our climate these days, although my snarky self blames Disney for promoting Frozen 2 too much. š Last year I only had one drummer frosty left during […]
For the June Now That’s a Challenge!, Brenda Schweder’s JigUFacturer design team was tasked with creating a story with their jewelry. I had received some cute rubber critters from a friend, and as I was clearing the studio to make room for my brother, I came across them again. My brother and I traveled part […]
On March 8, 2019, Brenda Schweder Jewelry’s Facebook Live video included a guest appearance of her husband, Jim Schweder. The couple is putting their house on the market (for a move to warmer Tuscon), which prompted Jim to volunteer some of Brenda’s beautiful ephemera finds for our May Now That’s a Jig! Challenge (with her […]
This month the JigUFacturer Design team for Brenda Schweder’s Now That’s A Jig! was challenged to make holiday ornaments. As you know this is kind of my jam. I started making ornaments in 2013. Initially I was freewheeling all the designs with pliers, but when I saw that Brenda Schweder had developed Now That’s A […]
Itās October, which means another month for another Now Thatās a Jig! Challenge. For this month the JigUFacturer Design Team was asked to incorporate found objects into a NTAJ!-created wire form. Alternatively, we could use a Fall theme. On one of my daily walks I found some early Fall leaves, so I knew I could […]
For our September JigUFacturer Design team challenge, our theme was artist inspiration. Of course numerous artists inspire me, but translating an inspirational work to wire was a bit of a challenge. I thought of all the women artists I love and didnāt really have a concept. Then as I was packing for my Michigan Cottage […]
As part of the JiguFacturer Design Team we get a sneak peek of the monthly challenges forĀ Brenda Schweder’s Now That’s A Jig! Facebook Group. The August Challenge is Eras in Time, and our team spent July making amazing creations. I’ve been researching the 1930s for other reasons, and after a few book consultations from the […]
June was such a whirlwind. Fresh off the Hermosa ArtShow and the EvanstonMade openings I quickly refreshed my Pop Up Gallery inventory to make sure Northwestern Grads would have purple mementos. I also worked on theĀ June 2018: #RadJewelryNTaJChallenge! for Brenda’s monthly Now That’s a Challenge! Then I headed for Milwaukee, to attend the Bead & […]
Recently I took a mini-roadtrip to Waukesha to visit Brenda Schweder in her studio. I have been intrigued by her Now That’ a Pliers! since she introduced them, but wanted to take them for a spin before committing to another tool investment. She showed me her fabulous studio space that has various sections to run […]
Two years ago I visited the Bead & Button Show for the first time and was overwhelmed. It is amazing how a convention center can have a block worth of bead booths with all of them offering different wares. The plethora of colors and sparkles resulted in me only buying a few strands, since I […]
