Checkerboard Blog Hop Reveal

Hi there and welcome! I want to thank Lisa Lodge of Pine Ridge Treasures for hosting this fun checkerboard themed blog hop!  Way back in July I received a collection of cultured sea glass and clear crystals in shades of clear, red and black.   Here is a sneak peek of what I received.

As you can see,  Lisa sent me many different pieces and styles in my collection.  I just loved the sand dollars and there was a secret about those cuties I will share later in this post.   I was challenged quite a bit with the theme of this hop and I spent some time staring at my bead board wondering what I would do.   I really wanted to embrace the theme, having my piece look like a checkerboard instead of just using the beads in a straight design.   I love red and black together, I think they make very classic jewelry, but this time I wanted to push myself outside my comfort zone.

I spent some time bouncing ideas back and forth with my good friend, Mowse Doyle, and I want to thank her very much for the late night chat and her great ideas.  She even drew me a sketch so I could picture what she was thinking of!!   Thanks to her,  my idea came together and I was able to really see a checkerboard in my design.

I created a choker using the black and white cultured sea glass rods to represent the squares on a checkerboard.   The red cultured sea glass completes the squares and reminds me of the checkers themselves.   Finally,  the back of the choker has that touch of sparkle with clear crystal rondelles and more of the red cultured sea glass.

Where are the sand dollars you ask?  I love them very much but they just didn't work in my necklace.  And if you know anything about me, you know I never ever do a blog hop and not make earrings.   So,  the sand dollars got to become earrings.   Here is where the surprise comes in!

I didn't know they were red!!  Actually a deep maroon that go very well with this Panatone color of the year, Marsala. I was totally shocked when I saw the pictures and saw the rich red color.  All the times I had handled the beads, figuring out how I wanted to use the sand dollars I always thought they were black.   I tied the earrings back to the choker, using the clear crystal rondelles and the red sea glass beads to add that touch of sparkle.

I want to thank Lisa again for hosting us for this Blog Hop.  Please stop by and see everyone else's designs!

Your hostess:  Lisa Lodge, A Grateful Artist

Jo-Ann Woolverton, It's a Beadiful Creation

Carolyn Lawson, Carolyn's Creations

Toltec  Jewels, Jewel School Friends

Heather Richter, Desert Jewelry Designs

Candida Elkins Castleberry, Spun Sugar Beadworks

Kathleen Breeding, 99 Bottles of Beads on the Wall

Mischelle Fanucchi, Micheladas Musings

Becky Pancake, Becky Pancake Bead Designs

Kari Asbury, Hippie Chick Design

Susan Anderson, La Main Tresor

Kathy Lindemer, Bay Moon Design

Ann Schroeder, Bead Love

Kim Dworak, Cianci Blue

Margaret Pelech, Margaret Pelech's Blog

Lisa Prewitt Knappenberger, LiRaysa Designs

Annette Rivers, Mama Owls Mess

Carol Briody, A Beads Life

Miranda Ackerley, MirandAck

Marybeth Rich, A Few Words from within the Pines  (you are here)

Karin Grosset Grange (France), Ginkgo et Coquelicot

Katrina Scuderi Taylor, I Wanna Go Out