Sunday, June 7, 2009

Happy Accidents

You just gotta love how life works out some times! I hadn't picked up my hemp in awhile...I've been on a bead weaving kick like nobody's business! Usually I alternate a lot between the different mediums, but I've had a pretty bad month physically, and the advantage of bead weaving is that once a projects is set up I don't have to move around for supplies or anything for a long time :P

Then I was talking with Selana on Plurk and we decided to do a trade. I'm getting some incredible sock yarn - that I'll show off after I get it! In exchange I made the necklace on the left for her. Now I was pretty tired the night I started it, so I totally miscalculated the hemp lengths at first. I knotted for awhile and realized I didn't have anywhere near enough hemp left for the full necklace, but I did have enough for a plain bracelet. So I finished it up as a bracelet and started over again on the necklace.

Now I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do with the bracelet. I usually put some sort of beads
in each bracelet! And it was a little on the small side... But I decided to take a photo and list it anyway. And guess what? That was earlier this week - and it sold this morning! To some random stranger in Australia. How cool is that?

I was talking the other day with another artist about how sometimes it amazes us, as artists, which pieces end up being the one's that sell. Sometimes the things that sell are the one's that you didn't like very much, but decided to put out there any way. Other times it's pieces that are simply "happy accidents." They don't look anything like what you may have originally intended when you started them, or they are a result of a mess up, but they still are what some one wants for their very own. I love it when that happens!

It also makes me wonder if I should do a few more simple hemp bracelets in different colors that are beadless... I'll add it to my ever growing list :P Seriously...this list of ideas and projects is INSANE. If I could just get the ideas to slow down to something less than a flood...naw...that would be less fun :P

9 comments:

uniquecommodities said...

Dont you love it when a project comes out so beautifully when you didnt even plan it! LOL! That is awesome!

BeadedTail said...

This was a fun post today Ruthie! I enjoyed reading the story behind these pieces and congrats on your sale! My mom and I always think we "know" what will sell and we're always surprised at what actually does sell. I give up predicting!

Memories for Life said...

You're so right about not knowing what the customer will buy sometimes!
Congrats on the sale :)

Anonymous said...

How much fun and happy dancing is that???

I am with Beaded Tail, predicting...LOL

DVArtist said...

Yeah a nice story that brings smiles to me.

Nicole/Beadwright
http://beadwright.blogspot

Leather Made Nice said...

I totally agree with you, Ruthie. John and I have stop trying to figure out what people want or what will sell. Now I just have fun and create. :D
Anne ^i^

Jazzy Jemz said...

I love accidents that work out nicely! Can't wait to see the yarn you traded for.

Meghann said...

I love those, but I never call them happy accidents - instead I call them "unique design features". An accident implies that if you had it to do all over again, you wouldn't (ok, maybe sometimes i call things accidents, lol), but in this case, I would!
Congratulations on the surprise sale, I love it when that happens :)

Erika said...

Fun post! I think it is fun to see what sells. Of course, then you have to figure out what to do with the stuff that doesn't...I think it just shows that what is in our head can have so many limitations in that we cannot possibly consider what others are thinking. Does that make sense?