Colour and Samples

Occasionally I'm so incredibly careful that as I make up the samples that I am going to submit for class proposals, I actually photograph each step of the way so that when it comes time to write the instructions, I already have the photos.

Sometimes I don't.

Let me rephrase that: generally I don't.

What that means is that in order to make fully illustrated instructions I have to make the whatever-it-is all over again so that I can photograph every step that is described in the instructions.

Every time my local bead store has a big sale on seed beads, I grab the expensive colours that I'm sure I don't have (because they're too expensive, duh) and then I get home to find out that I liked them just as much last time there was a big sale at the bead store, and then I end up with three tubes of silver-lined opal lavender (permanent finish) which is nice and all, but seriously? Three tubes? That's a lot of lavender.

Ideally the samples that I photograph for directions use beads that are not too dark, too light or too shiny so that each bead shows up clearly and contrasts well enough with the background (hint: white, silver-lined crystal and other extremely pale colours are not good choices), and sometimes I luck out, but it's usually serendipity rather than excellent planning.

This upcoming Sunday's class is not one of the supremely well-prepared classes, as it turns out (big surprise), so I'm in the middle of the stitch, photograph, rinse, repeat cycle.

Due to the glut of s/l opal lav (pf), this was the natural choice for the main colour, and I grabbed a few other tubes that were close enough and started stitching.

I totally love these colours together.

The marriage of matte, shiny, metallic, silver-lined is just perfect. Now I just need a nice big project so that I can really enjoy them all.

And I took a better picture of this pendant (another on the Unprepared list).

In other news, in part because I have literally no assigned tasks at work and I'm bored out of my skull, and in part because it's not a bad idea, I made a new section in my Etsy shop where I'm listing pattern instructions only (kits are in their own section already). I forgot to send out an announcement on the yahoo group, and even so I had two orders within twelve hours.

Not a bad idea at all.