Saturday 9 March 2013

Introducing...Molly's Reach!

My very first blog hop, and I have to say, what a blast it has been!  Lisa Lodge's Sand and Sea Bead Table Blog Hop is my first trip into the blog hop world, and I enjoyed every minute of it!  I received my soup from Lisa, and it was sand colours, ok, I thought.  I can deal with this.  I received this package right after Christmas, and its all I thought about for days...lol.  Then I decided what I was going to do.


I added some beads from my stash (of course!) and it just so happens, this is what I had on my bead table at the time :)


I had my daughter draw out the starfish shape, and the ideas kept coming.  I loved the focal bead she included, made by Marsha Neal.  So I incorporated it into the body of the starfish and then embroidered soutache and beads around it and filled the rest of the body in with bead embroidery.



I made the rope of the necklace using a modified St. Petersburg stitch and added random beads to it as well.  There were so many beads in this soup, that I had lots left over and made some earrings to match.  I even made the earring wires!  Woohoo, another new thing...lol.




Bonus Time:

So, when I was a kid, we lived in British Columbia, and we spent almost every summer on the west coast staying in cabins or camping, and we always had easy access to the beach.  One special summer, when I was about 10 or 11, we got to meet the cast of one of my favourite television shows.  What a great summer we had!  This piece reminds me of that television show.  And the fifth person to comment below with exactly where I got the name for this piece will receive a fabulous bead soup from my own stash, complete with focal, accent beads, and findings.

Here is the list of participating blogs...enjoy!:

Eleanor Burian-Mohr, The Charmed Life

Mary Govaars, MLH Jewelry Designs

Tanya Goodwin, A Work in Progress

Kathy Lindemer, Bay Moon Design

Toltec Jewels, Jewel School Friends

Sharyl McMillian-Nelson, Sharyl's Jewelry

Marla Gibson, Spice Box Designs

Melissa Trudinger, Bead Recipes

Dot Lewallen, Speedie Beadie

Ema Kilroy, Ema K Designs

Kim Booth, The Pink Martini Boutique

Jami Shipp, Celebrating Life

Leah Tees, My Beady Littleeyes

Christie Murrow, Charis Designs Jewelry

Monique Urquhart, A Half Baked Notion

Gloria Allen, Gloria Allen Designs

Cindy Anderson Wilson, It's My Sea of Dreams

Shaiha Williams, Shaiha's Ramblings


Annette Rivers, MamaOwl's Mess



So, enjoy all of the bog posts in this hop, and put your thinking cap on.  How did I come up with the name of this piece?

P.S.  I have joined another one of Lisa Lodge's blog hops:  Seasons.  I am looking forward to it and I can't wait to receive my bead mix from her!  And don't forget Lori Anderson's Bead Soup Blog Party is coming soon!!!! And I will post a better picture when my photographer has finished with them! :)

14 comments:

  1. Being a Canadian I immediately recognized the name Molly's Reach. I got to visit it 3 years ago.
    A true "Beachcomber" necklace.
    Welcome to the world of Blog Hops, Great job.

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  2. What a beautiful design, Leah, so elegant. I was excited when I saw the title of your post, because "The Beachcombers" was a fixture on Canadian TV throughout my teen years and beyond (dating myself LOL). I remember it as being one of the first Canadian dramas that showcased a multi-ethnic cast of characters. Nice memories!

    I love how you used the soutache to frame Marsha's wonderful focal, then surround that with all the pretty beads like so many pebbles on the seashore. I'm so pleased you chose to join in the fun with Lisa's blog hop... I know it will be the first of many (they're addictive!)

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  3. Leah - I really love your starfish - so creative! The earrings are cute as well. I never would have thought to use the focal like that (I am not a seed beader/bead weaver). Super nifty! Thanks for participating in the hop!

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  4. Posted by Tanya:
    I couldn't find a comment place on your bead table blog hop post, so I thought I would leave one here. I adore your starfish. The soutache and embroidery are just amazing. You did a fabulous job.

    Thank you ladies!

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  5. OK, so due to my lack of sufficient knowledge about blogs...
    I have goofed this hop up enough to mess up the contest I included in the blog post :)
    Therefore, I will put everyone's names into a hat, those that have the correct answer of course, and draw the winner. I will draw the name on Monday, March 11, at 6pm.
    Thanks for the comments everyone!

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  6. Hi! I'm relatively new to the beading world and it's great finding Canadian blogs (found yours through the blog hop). My guess is you're referring to the show The Beachcomers and remembering watching it as a kid. I love the west coast and Vancouver Island, we've been a couple of times and I keep hinting to the husband it's time to visit again. :)
    Your starfish is so neat. I don't know anything about that type of beading, but it sure looks like a lot of work. Pretty earrings too.

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  7. Very clever design. I would not have considered using the focal in that way. I love your creation! Well done. Welcome to the world of challenges. It is so much fun.

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  8. Beautiful, creative work! Congrats on your first blog hop! I admit I'm clueless about the title, except for the comments I've read above. Great idea for contest though!

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  9. That pendant is AMAHZING- soutache and beading make for an exquisite combo! Christie

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  10. Very nicely done, Leah - I love seeing how far you've come with soutache. It was unexpected in the midst of the bead embroidery and I love it!

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  11. Gasp! Your necklace is incredible with the soutache!

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  12. ha! I found your blog!! I never even thought to use an embroidery hoop for soutache! I would love for you to do a 'how to' on soutache technique!! I love your star ... what a fun piece :)

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  13. OMG...I totally forgot about the name drawing! There were only three correct answers to my bonus questions...thanks ladies...
    and the winner is.....Shirlee! Please email me Shirlee so I can send out your bead soup!
    And the answer to the bonus question is The Beachcombers, and Molly's Reach was the local diner/cafe where all the characters often hung out.
    Thank you everyone for participating in this blog hop, it was such a blast for me!

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  14. Wow, Leah, this is beautiful! I love the starfish, it's just stunning! As for the TV show, a friend of mine was in a Canadian show many years ago (before she moved to Australia) that was set on the coast, but darned if I can remember what it was called. Oh well!

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