Choosing To Grow--April BJP

"Grandma Marty, you're not growing any more," he said.

I replied with the usual evidence of grown-ups growing one gives to a five-year-old. Fingernails, toenails, and hair.

He thought. "But your hair isn't really growing because it's curly," he asserted.

I'm sure there's some logic there, but I'm equally sure that my hairdresser (the person responsible for the curls) and I do not share that logic.

I may have missed a teachable moment here, but I decided against a discussion of neuroplasticity in older adults.

He got me thinking, and so my April Bead Journal is "Choosing to Grow."



Technical Details:

I used Lacy's Stiff Stuff as the foundation, sprayed with green and yellow Memories Mist.

The beads are 11/0s, 8/0s, 6/0s, cubes, bugles, triangles, and a few special shapes. All the beads are green. The ones that look silver are a greenish silver.

The backstitch again dominates.

The page is 2.75 inches by 2.75 inches.

I used taupe C-lon thread.

What I Was Thinking:

With "Choosing to Grow," I focused on how we can choose to grow in our responses to difficult situations. For me, the difficult situation is the Scary Medical Tests. This year they were scheduled for late April. (Note: I passed the tests.) As I worked on this page, I repeated to myself, "I'm choosing to grow." My idea was to train my mind, change my brain and transform myself, as stated on the cover of Sharon Begley's book. Did my strategy work? Sort of. I made it through the time before the tests, the tests, and the waiting for the results without turning into a mass of quivering gelatin dessert. OK, so I may have been gelatin dessert, but at least I didn't quiver! I'll keep trying the "I'm choosing to grow" mantra. This page is a partner with "Not Quite Pink."

I selected a new green color to represent new growth. The vertical columns of beads are growing from the horizontal foundation. While they look like new plants growing, they are intended to represent personal growth.

Issues that Came Up:

I still like Nymo better than C-lon, but I wanted to use up the C-lon I had. Of course, all the time I was using it I was wondering why I didn't at least buy some in chartreuse.

The first background for the vertical columns didn't work at all. It offended my artistic sensibilities, such as they are. So I ripped it out yesterday. That was April 30. The plain background worked for this page, but it isn't my favorite technique.

This is the most representational page I have made, except for maybe the September page. I prefer making more abstract pages.


Now on to May. I'm thinking flowers. Oops! That's representational.

December BJP Completed!

The Longest Night of the Year Sparkles!

I finished my December BJP while we were visiting the World Center of Football for Christmas. The 6 3/4-year-old football player was interested in the different shapes of the beads. The now five-year-old football player again had a suggestion for the name: Waves. (For more of his suggestions see post above.)

But I think I'll stick with the wordier The Longest Night of the Year Sparkles! The title may be a little misleading as it was snowing, raining, or about to snow or rain nearly all of December. I think we had one day of sun.

Technical Details:

Again I used Lacy's Stiff Stuff as a foundation. To get a blue-toned dark color, I painted it with blue, black and purple Dye-na-Flow.

The beads are the usual mishmash of 11/0s, Delicas, 8/0s, and 15/0s. There are some hexes, large and small cubes, large triangles, a donut, and some nameless shapes. I found some long bugles to use as well. The colors are all variations of navy blue. Some lean toward the purple and some lean toward the green. Many are AB or iris. There are a few muted gold beads, too. Quite a few of the beads were from packages of mixed beads. They were the darkest ones in the groups. It's more fun than a reasonable person would think to sort through those packages.

Most of the page was done with the backstitch. I continue to find this the most comfortable stitch for me. I attached the donut in a way new for me. Look for it just left of the middle of the piece. I used four strings of 15/0s from the center of the donut to the outside.

The page is 2.75 inches by 2.75 inches.

I used navy blue Nymo thread.

What I Was Thinking:

I enjoy December. To me, it means getting together with the extended family for Christmas. We're a pretty laid-back, whatever happens happens crowd, and no one seems to get stressed out by trying to maintain a particular tradition. When the days are short and the nights are long, we see the sparkles.

Issues that Came Up:

• The 2.75 inches by 2.75 inches size is probably just right.
• Although I often think of all the other stuff I would like to add to the little pieces, I'm glad I don't feel pressured by the BJP. I have several (lots?) of other projects in progress.
• I was surprised by the variation within this limited color palatte.
• I'd like to do a similar dark piece, starting either from purple or from green. Maybe a doll...

Happy New Year!