Do you have today off? If so, you might want to think about a little maintenance work:
Virginia, over at Art Bead Scene, has a great little tutorial on how easy it is to clean the tarnish off your silver! It involves baking soda and aluminum foil, which might sound like hocus-pocus, but I can attest to the fact that it works!
You can pick up inexpensive seed beads, or even the micro “beads” that don’t have holes, at any craft store. Don’t use expensive beads for this project…the idea is for the frame to be encrusted. Mix several colors together to get a wonderful impressionistic look. Not only is this project really fast, but it will make the gift of a framed picture into something really special for your giftee! Another great project from DIY Network!
Here is an extremely clever idea to dress up a photo that you might want to give as a gift! Instead of a frame, this holder can be used to swap out pictures quickly and easily. You could make up a bunch of these really quickly too! Great gift idea, thanks to Ben Franklin Crafts! Even though they’re suggesting it for Mother’s or Father’s Day, I think it’s a great idea for any holiday.
Thank you to Tammy Powley over at About.com’s Jewelry Making site! Tammy has compiled links to 8 different beginner projects, at least 5 of which would be fun for Christmas and other winter holidays. One of the projects is a simple ornament cover…once you try one of these and see how they work, the more complicated ones will not seem quite so daunting!
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Here’s a really quick and easy pin that you can make in a snap…
My tutorial is on Jewelry & Beading.
HobbyCraft has directions for a beautifully simple beaded ornament that you can make for your own tree or to give as a gift.
Thank you to Rings & Things for these cute and fast earrings from seedbeads:
You can whip up this clever snowflake very quickly, and even though it’s designed to be a pendant, it would also make a nice ornament for your tree, window, wreath, etc! Thanks to Bead Jewelry Making!
This is beautiful! Just think of all the ways you could dress up a basket using this method. Note that the trim is the pre-beaded variety, so it won’t take as long to make this as you might think!
You’ll find the list of materials and instructions for this gift idea at PattieWack.com
Kate Ferrant-Richbourg provides the directions for these clever cuff bracelets. You can make them as many tiers wide as you want, which makes this an extremely versatile gift idea. If you’ve never done wirework before, you can still probably master these bracelets. You might want to check my archives for online help with basic wirework before you start though.
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Do you have any new members of the family to make gifts for this year? Here’s a darling idea from Michaels:
Very simple, very fast…and really cute! Just what we like at this time of the year 
Maybe you could make beads with all those holiday catalogs that every company insists on sending you? 
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This card is so simple, but so cute! I’m sure you could make it a bit more elaborate if you wanted to, but I really like the simplicity of this design. Combine your card-making and your beading manias together…what could be better? Thanks to HobbyCraft for this idea!
This tree looks a bit like the old German feather trees that you see occasionally in antique shops! Don’t wait until the last minute to make this one, because it’s going to take a bit of effort and time to wire all the parts together. Is is worth it? I think so
Donna Dickt came up with this beautiful heirloom project. Thanks Donna!
I call this piece Champagne Bubbles for its fun, festive bounce and style. You can find my instructions to make it, and I think you’ll be thrilled to see how super-simple and fast it is. Mostly you just need to make sure that you’ve got enough small sized crimps on hand before you start
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Come on a journey through a bead and jewelry wonderland, where no item is considered too strange to use in making something...especially if that item has a hole in it! All types of beads are welcomed and cherished here, and no techniques are off-limits. You'll be amazed and inspired by the beadwork that is being done today!
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