The Color of Dreams Blog Hop

Welcome to the Color of Dreams blog hop! Each participant was gifted a beautiful and colourful handmade polymer clay bead made by Patricia Handschuh of The Color of Dreams. Here is a description of our design challenge, as voiced by our hostess and giver of gifts, Rita of Jewel School Friends: 

"Feel free to create in any way you wish, using your bead as inspiration for your colorway, theme, technique. You are welcome to use additional Color of Dreams beads in your design, as well as artisan beads and gems and anything you like. You are not limited to jewelry.


You may share a dream that has come true, one you are working on now, or one you hope for in the future. The one goal of the hop: we'll focus on our dreams as entirely possible, with the idea, "If we can dream it, we can achieve it." So, try creating "from the end" -- as if your dream has already come true -- using your jewelry design to do so."

Thank you, Rita, for creating this lovely blog hop for all the dreamers!

Like many folks of a certain "vintage", I am often tempted to think that my dreams are a thing of the past. As a child, I wanted to visit the stars, to explore this planet and to experience the big events of our world. Then as I matured, my hopes became more "realistic": to find a career where I could thrive (failed); to stay home to raise my children (mostly succeeded); to keep music in my life (success!). I had more-or-less relegated dreaming to the past.

Yet, in my fifties, I have rediscovered the joy of learning new skills, the pleasure of creating a little beauty and the satisfaction of sharing it with new like-minded friends. I have also found a great community that supports and cheers other members as a matter of course. I "found" the internet and I haven't looked back! I am NOT a person who seeks change or growth, but they have found me, and the process of reinventing myself has been profound, humbling and exhilarating. 

You may have guessed that I have chosen a motif? What is a more appropriate expression of change and growth than the miracle of metamorphosis? I selected some simple butterfly-shaped howlite beads, which I love, to complement the lovely colours of Patricia's bead, and fashioned some simple barrel-shaped extruder beads to match them:

The star of the show... a beautiful bead handmade by Patricia Handschuh. Thank you so much for sharing your talents with the world, Patricia. The bead I received is as pretty on either side:

I am now wearing this simple and comfortable bracelet as a reminder to keep dreaming. Will there be more to come when I enter my seventh decade? Change and growth seem inevitable and less frightening to me now. They are a precious gift carried on the wings of our dreams.

Now here is a list of the artists willing to share what they have dreamed:

Honorary Artist: Patricia Handschuh
Patricia's blog   The Color of Dreams
Patricias Etsy   The Color of Dreams

Hostess: TJ   Jewel School Friends
Kay Thomerson    KayzKreationz
Audrey Belanger    Toki No Hourousha
Alicia Marinache    All the Pretty Things
Terry Carter    TappingFlamingo
Jayne Capps    Mama's Got To Doodle
Lori Schneider    Bead Addict
Jenny Kyrlach    Wonder and Whimsy
Asri Wahyuingsih    Asri's Beadwork
Dini Bruinsma    Angaza by Changes
Karla Morgan    Texas Pepper Jams
Debbie Rasmussen    A Little of This, A Little of That
Veralynne Malone    Designed by Vera                     
Kathy Stemke    Vintage Memories Jewelry Design
Mowse Doyle    Mowse Made This
Heather Richter    Desert Jewelry Designs
Lori Poppe    Adventures in Creativity with LorilliJean
Andrea Glick    Zenith Jade Creations
Kathleen Breeding     99 Bottles of Beads on the Wall
Becky Pancake    Becky Pancake Bead Designs
Karen Martinez    Fairies Market
Penny Houghton    Smelly Nelly
Miranda Ackerley    Mirandack  
Carolyn Lawson     Carolyn's Creations
Chris Eisenberg    Wanderware
Christie Murrow     Charis Designs Jewelry
***ME***Monique Urquhart    A Half-Baked Notion***ME***
Eve Shelby     Raindrop Creations Jewelry by Evelyn
Cryss Thain    Here Bead Dragons
Jasvanti Patel    Jewelry By Jasvanti
Nan Smith    NanMade Handmade Jewelry
Sue Kennedy    SueBeads
Jean Yates    Snap Out of It, Jean! There's Beading to be Done!
Debbie Rogers    Debbies Treasures
Marybeth  Rich    A Few Words From Within the Pines
Shirley Moore    Beads and Bread
Shaiha Williams    Shaiha's Ramblings
Kathy Lindemer    Bay Moon Design
Linda Anderson    From the Bead Board
Judy Turner    Silver Rains
Gloria Allen    Gloria Allen Designs
Regina Wood    Ginas-Design
Robin Reed     Artistry HCBD
*Mary Goovars     MLH Jewelry Designs    (please visit after Wednesday, April 9)*
Marlene Cupo     Amazing Designs
CJ Bauschka     4 His Glory Creations
Robin Showstack   The Crazy Bead Hoarder
Cynthia O'Tool   Sparkles and Sweets
Jael Thorp    Jael's Art Jewels
Renetha Stanziano  Lamplight Crafts

*Direct links to the pertinent post will be added as I visit each blog*