A White Christmas & a Boxing Day Surprise

Had to take a 'housie' - it looked so cute all decorated in snow

Who says wishes never come true? 

Yesterday morning, we woke to a Winter Wonderland; the world outside our door decorated with a liberal coating of snow.  And it hadn't stopped snowing; there was more softly drifting through the chilly air like party confetti.  Snow Day!!!!

This being Seattle - we weren’t sure how long it would last.  By some accounts this was Seattle's eighth White Christmas since 1909!  Which is how we found ourselves wandering the neighborhood in the early morning light, drinking in the sights.  Pre-coffee, pre-presents, predawn, just us and the snow.

wandering the neighborhood in the half-light before dawn

Cherry trees limned with snow

It was a wet, heavy snow and I love how it highlighted all the little tree branches. 

These are photos of some cherry trees.  The snow made it easy to see the variations in branching patterns between different tree species.  Even the littlest branches of the cherry trees provided nice stark, dark lines of contrast.   That’s likely the reason they were also my most successful tree photos.

What an amazing way to start Christmas morning!  And sure enough, by late afternoon, the snow had begun to melt.  Today, there's still snow on the ground, but it's gone from all of the trees.

Snow equals Snowflakes!

In celebration of our first Snow Day in forever, our first White Christmas in even longer, and as a little gift for Boxing Day, I'm putting together a free bonus snowflake tutorial for anyone who has ever purchased my Snowflakes and Stars tutorial, or one of my snowflake kits.  This includes people who have taken one of my Snowflake workshops. 

How do you receive your copy?  Simply let me know where and when you purchased the tutorial (to the best of your memory).  On New Year's day, I'll send you instructions for the snowflake pictured in my earlier post, Hoping for Snow, (and below).  It's a 'decorated' version of my basic snowflake.  Make sure you include an email address, or some way to contact you!  If you send me a picture of one of the snowflakes you made, I may include a little extra bonus.  Yep, a little bribery because I'd love to see your work.  :)

Don't have the original pattern?  Purchase it between now and New Years, and I'll send you the bonus instructions, too. 

I'll send out instructions for this beaded snowflake on New Years

(Speaking of snowflakes, if there are friends who have a Cricut cutter and would like me to share how I made the paper ornaments, let me know.  They were really easy; the snowflakes are stock images that I combined with a circle frame).

 Happy Boxing Day! 

It's Done! Just in time for the UnFinished Object Blog Hop!

I trimmed the last beading thread Sunday afternoon and there was much rejoicing!  Thanks to two back-to-back UnFinished Objects Challenges, one of my oldest UFOs is finally complete.  I started work on this collar back in 2012 - and picked it up now and then through the years.  The collar just kept growing, without ever nearing completion.  It reminded me of an explanation one of my early teachers used about approaching infinity numerically - that you could get closer and closer to infinity, but by it's very nature, you could never actually reach infinity by counting. 

Thank goodness that wasn't truly the case here, as the picture shows!  And thank you to everyone who helped make this possible by agreeing to participate in another blog hop.  This blog hop up was just the push I needed.  Without you, it likely remained an UFO another five years!  I'm hoping those of you who joined int found the challenge useful, too. 

Curious about what everyone else worked on?  I know I am!  Here's the complete list of participants to see their progress:

Karen Williams, Baublicious

Francie Broadie,  FAB

Christine Van Dyke Altmiller, One Kiss Creations

Therese, Therese's Treasures

Kim Dworak, CianciBlue

Liz Hart, Treetop Life

Liz En, Bead Contagion

Amy Severino, Amy Beads

Cynthia Machata, Antiquity Travelers

Hope Smitherman, Crafty Hope

Christi Carter, Sweetpea Path

Bobbie Rafferty, Beadsong Jewelry

Margo Lynn Hablutzel, My World and It's Full of Books

And here are a few additional photos of my Starry Night Collar. 

where I was on Friday as I tested the collar against my template

The shawl-like shape was different from any other necklace or collar I've made, and presented some unique challenges in getting everything to lay properly when worn.  The final connection I needed to make was at the back, just behind my right shoulder.  I couldn't get the shape right working flat, and I didn't have any handy person waiting around to be my model.  (I could have likely talked my husband into doing it, but he's simply not the right size!)  I ended up doing a little beading, then adding a thread guide, and put it on and had him snap a picture, so I could at least see how the connection should look.  It let me see the shape I was working with. 

my thread guides show just how far off I would have been - I thought they'd be straight

Shortly thereafter, I did manage to find a friend willing to stop by and let me do a final fitting on them before doing the last few lines of stitching.

Laid out 'flat' (or flatish) to see the whole collar

Because it's designed to drape over the shoulders, it doesn't lay completely flat when the clasp is fastened.  You can see it buckling over on the right hand side if the photo. 

Several people had asked to see the collar on a human.  Unfortunately, I once again had no one but myself as a model.  This was the best collar selfie I managed to take:

It's really hard when you're both the model and the photographer!

One more photo with a black background.

And there you have it!  Truth is, I don't quite believe it's really done! 

Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas

It's 4:30pm on Christmas Eve.  My husband and I have both finally finished running around like crazy people and are settled in for the holiday.  The Christmas tree lights shine bright, a 'fire' crackles on the tv (closest we want to get to a live fire without a fireplace), Christmas carols fill the room.  I'm curled up on the couch alternating typing on my laptop and playing with my snowflake pattern while day-dreaming about snow.  At this precise moment, life is very very good.


Here's wishing you a the happiest Hanukkah and a very Merry Christmas.  May the holiday bring you peace, joy and love, however you choose to spend it!

Ornament Swap Partners Becky Clay and Liz Hart

Liz took this photo of the package she sent to Becky

Becky Clay and Liz Hart were definitely on the same wavelength with their ornament exchange, despite some initial difficulties in connecting via email which left very little time to stitch.  Both choose to use Sandra Halfpenny's Snowflake patterns.

Liz started making snowflakes from Sandra's designs, then started playing.  The white one is  Sandra's Snowflakes Falling. She mentioned that the pattern is available on Sandra's blog as a Christmas gift to her readers.  The other two designs Liz sent were hers; same design with different beads.

Becky's icicle was a free icicle pattern she picked up from  TheBeadsKnees that isn't currently available, unfortunately.

Becky's photo of the Snowflakes she sent to Liz

Becky's icicle, along with a closeup to try to show the beading. 

Not all of Liz's snowflake experiments went according to plan, as she shares in this process photo.  Oops!

List sent along the photo above with the note "You'll get a kick out of this process pic - it seems my fingers and brain weren't connecting very well!"

And here's one last photo from Liz of the snowflakes she stitched for Becky.  Lovely!

Sandra Halfpenny's Snowflake Falling and Liz's continued experiments

To see what everyone else made and received, check out the list below:

Karen Williams and Carrie Johnson

JJ Jacobs and Tanya Goodwin

Francie Broadie and Lori Finney

Liz Hart and Becky Clay

Let it Snow this Sunday at Fusion Beads

I love the soft, vintage colors of this 7-pointed star ornament

Looking at the ten-day forecast for Seattle, it's looking far more likely that we'll have a Wet, rather than a White Christmas.  But no matter! There will be snow flurries a plenty this Sunday at Fusion Beads, where I'll be teaching my third-annual Snowflakes and Stars workshop. 

Happen to be in Seattle this weekend? 
Whether you need a quick last-minute gift or simply want to treat yourself, consider joining me for an afternoon of some holiday beading fun. 

Not in town?  My Snowflake and Stars tutorial is available through my Etsy Store as a PDF download.  It's also not too late to claim your free copy of my Snowflake Chains holiday special.  I've extended the offer through January 2nd, 2016.  

Snowflake Chains - Update for my Snowflake & Stars Tutorial

Cover page for Snowflake Chains special update

Snowflake Chains, I like to think of them as the Daisy Chains of Winter.  Most of the snowflakes I create are stand-alone, solitary individuals.  But sometimes, I want a spill of snowflakes.  That's when I start making snowflake chains.

I spent last week writing up the instructions for how to make these chains as a special update for my Snowflakes and Stars tutorial, my original PDF tutorial.  It's still one of my favorites because it offers so many possibilities.  Like real snowflakes, there's infinite ways to vary the basic patterns to create new designs.  It's a pattern I tend to revisit every year as the holidays approach.

This latest update includes a quick review of basic snowflake construction, then shows how I made the second and third stars in the line.

Earrings made with Snowflake Chains

If you already own a copy of my basic tutorial here's what you need to do to claim your FREE copy of this update:

1. Sign up for my mailing list (if you're already on my mailing list, then you're a step ahead)
2. Let me know where you purchased a copy of the original tutorial (this also includes snowflake kits and in-person workshops). 
3. Bonus: Send me a photo of one of the snowflakes you made using this tutorial.  This last isn't strictly necessary, but I think it would be fun to put together a blog post showcasing everyone's snowflakes. 

Otherwise, you can claim your free copy of this special update when you purchase a copy of the base Snowflakes and Stars tutorial from my Etsy store.

1. Sign up for my mailing list (if you're already on my mailing list, then you're a step ahead)
2. Purchase the tutorial on Etsy.  Write "SnowflakeChains" in the notes to seller on Etsy.  Make sure to include your email as well, so I can send you the link to download your special update!

 This offer is good through December 24th, January 2nd, 2016. 

The base tutorial - Snowflakes & Stars

As I noted in my previous post, I'm trying to simplify my life as a solo, working artist.  It can be so hard to juggle the time necessary to produce and document my work, write my patterns, design the illustrations, and keep up with everything else.  I love what I'm doing, but I have to learn to do it smarter if I want to be able to continue.

At the same time, I am incredibly grateful to my friends and supporters who have helped me continue to work in the field.  Without you, I wouldn't be able to do what I love.  With all of that in mind, I've decided one way to simplify things while also saying thanks to you, my strongest supporters, is to announce updates to my various tutorials via my newsletter.  I'll follow up when I can here on my blog, but the primary source will be my email newsletter.  If you own the original pattern and want the update, my newsletter will include simple (I hope) instructions on how to claim it.  And if my instructions ever seem crazy, just let me know that too!  :0)


Happy Holidays!

Oh, and in case you're interested, I will be teaching my Snowflakes and Stars workshop in person at Fusion Beads in Seattle this Sunday, December 20th from 2:00-5:00pm.  This is the closest to Christmas that I've ever taught this class.  If you're in the area and would like a beady break from last-minute holiday prep, come join me!

To sign up, you'd need to call the store at 206-782-4595.

782.4595#sthash.YxKepKSa.dpuf

Summer Snowflakes

my Snowflake tutorial - still available on Etsy

Back in 2011, I opened my Etsy store with exactly one item - my beaded Snowflakes and Stars PDF tutorial.  For some reason that I cannot now remember, I didn't list my first book on Freeform Peyote Beading until months later.   Needless to say, I have a soft spot for these little beauties.  They're rather the potato chips of my beading world.  I can never seem to make just one, and they're a quick and satisfying 'beading snack'.  When I don't know where I want to go with other projects, I find myself making snowflakes.

Most recently, I've been playing with Summer Mandalas, and sequins.  What happens to snowflakes when you use other colors?  Here are a couple of my discoveries.


First, I decided to work with Hot, summery colors in reds and oranges, with a pop of cool lime:

This pendant and earring set makes me think of margaritas and summer flowers.  Not a hint of snow in the forecast!  After a little experimentation, I found I particularly liked the look of matte transparent and opaque beads best.  They created the most striking lines and the best foils for the sequin embellishments.

But what if I wanted a necklace to cool off in the summer heat?  To answer that question, I started playing with turquoisy blues and bright greens, with lime sneaking into the color palettes every time I looked away.

The colors reminded me of a dress I purchased last summer.  Thinking it would be fun to make a necklace to match, I began playing with more stars.  The dress, by Desigual, has an asymmetric design across the front, which I hope to echo in my design as well.  Right now, all I have are component parts, which I thought I'd lost for most of the past month.  Luckily, they turned up this morning while looking for something else.  Yeah!  (Especially since I couldn't even find the pictures I'd taken before!)
  

Not completely sure where I'm going yet!

With the largest component, I'm going for a field of stars effect.  Not quite sure if I like the crystal interstitials or not.   They're supposed to take the place of the white polka-dots from the dress's design.  Adding white to the necklace seemed like simply too much.

 It's such fun swapping out the colors to see where things end up.  I first did this a few years back with my Halloween Snowflakes, complete with little lampworked bats to finish off the earrings.  Doing some inventory, I found I have exactly of those two kits still available, and have relisted them on Etsy. 

So there are my summer experiments!  How about you? Any crazy color experiments this season?

Let it Snow Beaded Snowflakes

Snowflake by Helen L. - this one reminds me of a Celtic knot

We had a great time at Fusion Beads this past Saturday working on Snowflakes and Stars.  Here are a few pictures from the class, spruced up for the holidays. 

Three Snowflakes by Vala R - she planned to finish them up later

a lovely Snowflake by Kelli J.

Two colorful stars by Sam S.

Teaching the class, several of my students had the same issues knowing when to add the bugle bead finials, and several people wanted diagrams for my newer snowflake combos. 

It got me thinking, and I spent the day putting together an four-page addendum to my Snowflakes and Stars tutorial.  The update is available for immediate download as an extra file when you purchase my PDF pattern and I'll include the download code with any new kit sales, too.   I've also sent Etsy convos to everyone who's purchased a snowflake pattern or kit within the past year.  So check your inbox if that's you.  If you purchased your copy more than a year ago, email me (or leave a comment) with your Etsy username and I'll send you the update code as well.  One of those little extra things I can do for my blog readers. 

Oh, and the frames are from the holiday version of an iPhone app called Postage, but it doesn't seem to be available in the App store anymore. 

Advent Calendars

As has happened so often of late, I'm way behind on my blogging.  My plan is to catch up this week with a blog post every day, just to see if I can do it.  Future posts will look at the additions to my Etsy store and the openning of a new, smaller store; I'll be announcing a give-away as a thank you to everyone who's helped support me this past year and this holiday season, and I'll be writing up a trip report on the Etsy Rain holiday show. 

But since today is December 1st, my thoughts are on Advent Calendars.   I love this time after Thanksgiving, leading up to Christmas and one of my favorite traditions for as long as I can remember have always been advent calendars.  A few years, I bought this fun, tree-shaped advent calendar from Starbucks.  It came with little chocolates in each of the drawers.


While it was cute enough, the next year I took it to my studio to give it a little make-over:

Each year, I keep an eye out for something new to put into the little drawers.  What has become a tradition is dividing Clement Clarke Moore's The Night Before Christmas into fourteen quatrains for inclusion in the drawers.   

This year through much roundaboutation, I came across Melissa's Etsy store, Loo de Loop.  She make gorgeous hand-sewn Advent calendars (I'm afraid it's too late to order those this year), but perfect for me, she also sells these fun activity pages for your calendar as a PDF download.  So I bought a set, but then I got to thinking that they didn't really match the color scheme of my current calendar.

I have Illustrator, I said to myself, wondering just how hard it could be to make my own pages.  A quick web search for Illustrator tutorials and found pay dirt:

*  A fantastic video tutorial by Alma Loveland on how to create decorative border frames.  (More free tutorials at nicolesclasses.comhttp://nicolesclasses.com).
*  A slightly less-clear, but still useful tutorial on how to make Snowflakes using Dynamic Shapes by Astute Graphics
*  Another Snowflake tutorial on Calobee Doodles that I haven't used yet, but looks much easier.  Their focus is design, the blog is beautiful and they have an Etsy site where they sell digital download Advent Calendars!  I love the circularity of all of this. 

My design based on the tutorials

At the right is my new design.  Like my pretty green borders?  I drew them myself with my pen tool.  I love all my little snowflakes - every single one is based off of a single six-pointed star.

Curious how they'd look in person, or would you like to download them for your own calendar?  The poem is long enough, that I've placed it in two files and uploaded both as PDFs to my dropbox.  Feel free to download them for your personal use:

     Page 1
     Page 2

It's kind of fun to watch them download, because the snowflakes appear first, a sprinkle at a time scattered about the page, with the frames coming last.  So it looks like it's snowing!

This morning I cut all the little slips of paper, both from my sheets and the ones I purchased from LoodeLoop, rolled them up, tied them with yarn and stuffed them into the appropriate drawers.

Since I don't have kids to open the drawers and it feels a little odd to open them myself, I make Joe open them and hover over his shoulder.  He's such a good sport!  Today he opened the first drawer, which contained the first quadrain of the poem and today's activity "Pick Out a Christmas Tree". 

His response?  "Ah, it's our to-do list!"

Halloween Snowflakes

I'd originally intended to create a bead-embroidered piece with leaves for Sarah's Sequintastic Blog Hop using the lovely Fall palette of sequins I got from Cartwright's Sequins. But I got a late start as yesterday was the first time I've picked up a beading needle in three weeks. I woke up with songs from The Nightmare Before Christmas running through my head and they wouldn't go away.

The full set to date, working with four colors of beads and three colors of sequins

So I broke down, bought the sound track and spent the day listening to it while making Halloween Snowflakes. It took a little bit to get into it - the first couple I made look pretty much like snowflakes with a weird color scheme. They're the ones at the top of this picture.

Then it clicked, and I started making flower stars that would fit right into Dia del Muerto. I really like the effect from stacking the sequins - smaller black on top of lime green and purple. Very festive.

I will definitely be wearing these earrings!

I'd purchased a bunch of lampworked bats beads last year, but never got around to using them.   A couple finally made their debut in this pair of earrings that I will definitely wear.

My sequin entry is pretty light, but I had such fun playing with them and this color scheme! I am definitely making more, and am seriously considering putting together a couple of Halloween Snowflake kits for my Etsy shop.

And a funny aside - when I went searching for a link to the movie, I discovered that Nightmare Before Christmas came out the month after we were married. Way to make me feel old!

And on a dark cold night, under full moonlight, 
he flies into the fog like a vulture in the sky!
And they call him, Sandy... Clawssss...! - Jack Skellington

Make sure to check out the other participants in Sequintastic September - I know that's where I'm going next.  

Posted with Blogsy

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Okay, maybe not literally; it's still a bit too warm here in Seattle for actual snow. But I was treated to a flurry of snowflakes yesterday and how pretty they were! Yesterday nine students joined me for my second annual Snowflakes and Stars class at Fusion Beads. Such a fun, festive time we had!

Snowflakes clockwise from top left by L. Kay Rokusek, Cathy Warms, Nancy Lundeen, Debby Smick

Karen Lusby's snowflake with her bead selections

I truly enjoy teaching at Fusion Beads.  They have two great classroom spaces and they really go out of their way to take care of their instructors and their students.  And this is one of my favorite classes to teach because a) I get to share one of my favorite, quick and extremely versatile patterns and b) I receive all sorts of inspiration from my students' creations. 

Isn't Kay's garnet, white and silver snowflake at the top left above stunning?  It's so rich and regal.  Nancy named her snowflake at the bottom right 'Siena' because it reminded her of the floor tile mosaics there.  Every student tried something different, and every snowflake was truly unique.  Thank you to everyone who let me photograph their work to share here.  

Karen Lusby even suggested I include her bead selections in my photos of her lovely pastel rainbow creation.  I took one photo just of the snowflake, and then another with the bead packets - transparent light azure AB, transparent light lilac lined AB and sterling plated iris over clear. 

Now, it's time to draw for the winner of my Snowflakes and Stars Kit and tutorial.  Between the two blog posts where people entered, there were a total of sixteen entries.  I printed out the comments and started to assign numbers so I could use Random.org, my usual method for determining a winner.

Looking at the neatly arranged comments, I decided to do something different this time, so I chopped the pages up into strips, folded the strips and put them all into my hat.  Then I woke my sleeping husband and demanded he draw a name from the hat.  After a little wait during which time I thought he'd simply fallen back asleep, a hand snaked out and plucked a piece of paper, which he then tucked under his pillow.  Luckily, only a peck on the cheek was required to achieve it's release. 

When I finally opened the paper, I found Christine Altmiller's name winking up at me from the page.  So Christine - you are the winner of my bead kit!  Congratulations and I hope you enjoy!  Let me know whether you'd like Cobalt, Silver and Gold or Snow White and Silvery Blues for your kit.  I'd love to get this out to you tomorrow.

Thank you all for participating!  And check back - this isn't the last give away I'm planning for the holiday season.  At least one more is still to come. 

The Snow Queen - My First Foray in Working with Sequins

my Snow Queen necklace in all its icy, sequined splendor

Sarah over at Saturday Sequins finally tempted me into trying my hand at incorporating sequins into my bead work by hosting her first ever Blog Hop focusing on, you guessed it - Sequins!

Most of the beading I've seen with sequins involved bead embroidery, but I'm more of a bead weaver sort of girl, so I had to try to come up with something that better fit my personal style.




 

Work space with beads and inspiration - getting started

I also had to come up with sequins, since my stash contained nary a one.  Sarah, hearing of my dilemma, sent me some - in pinks, light blues and iridescent whites.  Hmmmm....

They sat on my work table for a couple of weeks, as I tried to figure out what in the world to do with them.  Then I received an odd, clear blue glass bead in a goody bag.  It rather looked like a lifesaver.  I almost gave it away until I had my Eureka moment - the sequins colors reminded me of snowflakes.  And that blue bead suddenly had a purpose!  It could be the heart of winter, trapped in an icy pendant.

I had my story! Now I could stitch.  

I started with the pendant itself, capturing it with some fairly freeform right angle weave.  I decided to use RAW instead of peyote because its more open stitch pattern would make it easier for me to go back and add the sequins over the top. 

Here's the pendant before I started adding any sequins.   I couldn't resist adding some larger beads, and I'm working with five different shades of white seed beads - from stark white opaque to completely clear.  The skewer helps hold everything in place while I stitch.

And then I used my Snowflakes pattern (the first thing I ever listed on Etsy). 

Here's a closeup of the finished pendant (can you see - I even stacked some of the sequins, blue under white?):

Closeup pendant & central snowflakes

So there's my contribution to the hop.  Sure hope Sarah likes!

And I can't wait to see what everyone else came up with!  I am definitely looking at different ways people incorporate sequins.  I have some weird, long sequins that remind me of icicles or white claws that I couldn't quite figure out how to use (you can see them in the right corner of my workspace photo).  If you have any ideas what to do with them, I'd love to hear them!

Participants!!!!

Host: Sarah... http://saturdaysequins.com

Dita... http://alankarshilpa.blogspot.com

Ambra... http://chicandfrog.wordpress.com

Audrey... http://hotpinkquilts.blogspot.com

Stacy... http://iridalsattic.blogspot.co.uk

Karen W...  http://baublicious.blogspot.com

Lori...  http://www.prettythingsblog.com

Lisa... http://lisabinkley.typepad.com

Carmi... http://resincrafts.blogspot.com

Dawn Marie...  http://designsbydawnmarie.blogspot.com

Jeannie... http://site.jkdjewelry.com/blog

Shirlee... http://www.shirleestuff.blogspot.com

Linda... http://www.lilysofthevalleyjewerly.blogspot.com

Corrine... http://www.sparkledaysstudio.com

Gutukas... http://atradimutakeliais.blogspot.com

Shannon... http://uptwnsh-fallingintothesky.blogspot.com

Mallory... http://rosebud101-fortheloveofbeads.blogspot.com

Cyndi... http://www.beading-arts.com

Maneki... http://wildrosesandblackberries.blogspot.com

Maryanne... http://zingalasworkshop.blogspot.com

Ine... http://jewelsbyine.blogspot.com

Karen... http://www.overthemoon-design.com

Kepi... http://kepirasmussen.blogspot.com

Jennifer... http://jenniferstumpf.blogspot.com

Misty...  http://thejollyfatelf.blogspot.com

Dot... http://speediebeadie.blogspot.com

Hope... http://craftyhope.blogspot.com

Cynthia... http://antiquitytravelers.blogspot.com

Micheladas... http://www.micheladasmusings.blogspot.com

Xtra photo - playing with sequin placement

Shirley...  http://www.beadsandbread.blogspot.com

Karla... http://texaspepperjams.blogspot.com

Eleanor... http://eleanorpigman.blogspot.com

Therese... http://theresestreasures59.blogspot.com

Rita... http://www.toltecjewels.blogspot.com

Robyn... http://rcponders.wordpress.com

Stepha... http://skwds.blogspot.com

Sue... http://suebeads.blogspot.com

Cate... http://fulgorine.wordpress.com

Amy... http://Loraamyjames.com

Thinking about Snowflakes

Years ago, my mother-in-law was known for her Christmas decorating.  In more recent years, her decorating has become more and more minimal, not even including a Christmas tree.  Last year I decided she needed a tree, so I bought one of those table top trees and made a bunch of snowflake ornaments for it and sent it to her as a surprise.

I liked it so much, this year I decided to do something similar for myself. Found myself a little live tree at the hardware store (come spring I'll plant it in one of my large patio pots).  For ornament hooks I use the inexpensive, craft earring hooks - the type you can buy by the gross at Michaels or Joann's.  They're better suited in terms of size for these smaller trees.  And if you need a last minute gift and can't find anything else, you could snag a couple of snowflakes off of your tree and call them earrings! 

I've noticed that my freebie snowflake pattern is one of the most popular pages on my site right now.  Yesterday I received an email from Julia in the UK asking some questions about her snowflakes, because they were buckling.  Both from my pattern, and some other patterns she'd found online (though I'm pleased that mine gave her the least troubles).  I tried to help her do some trouble shooting, and thought I'd share some of that here.

Seven-sided snowflakes are most likely to buckle

This ring must lay flat before you go on!

In the picture above, the buckling in the snowflake to the lower right was caused by too tight of tension.  The snowflake at the top is the exact same stitch pattern, but I've avoided the rippling by keeping careful tabs on the tension, adjusting it as I go so each round lays nice and flat.

The tension in your first couple of circles is especially important, if it doesn't lay flat at this stage, it won't lay flat later.  So take some time to manipulate the beads until they're happily arranged in a flat circle.

Sideview of buckled snowflake with too tight tension

Side view of nice, perfectly flat snowflake - lower tension

And if you're looking for more on snowflakes: here's a pitch for my snowflake pattern for sale on Etsy - 10 full pages of instruction on 5, 6, and 7 sided snowflakes with as many variations as I could come up with, with carefully proofed color illustrations and photos.