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September 28, 2015

Skull Skills and Too Little Time!

Micro macrame bracelets by Sherri Stokey of Knot Just Macrame.

I swear something has gone wrong with the part of the universe that controls time; days and weeks and months are just whizzing past!  I have been busy making some pieces influenced by the season (and the fact that TierraCast put out some new Skully buttons).  I had been working in an orange and blue color palette, so I messed around with a skull in those colors:

Micro macrame bracelet by Sherri Stokey with Skully focal.

I'm always partial to the khaki colors with copper, too, so that led to this variation (and the rest in that first photo):

Micro macrame bracelet with scary skull.

In the middle of the micro macrame jewelry making frenzy, I got sidetracked by this:

Carter

Because he has Grandma wrapped around his tiny little finger.  Seriously, is there anything better than being a grandparent?  

Other than that, I've been slowly working on setting up a shop at Amazon.  It isn't live yet (thank goodness), but I'm hoping to have it ready to go when Handmade at Amazon goes live.  Too much to do and too little time!

Carter and his pumpkin.

September 17, 2015

Micro Macrame in Blue and Orange

Micro macrame bracelets by Sherri Stokey of Knot Just Macrame.

Okay, so it's not just micro macrame jewelry done in blue and orange (sorry, Broncos fans), there's a lot more going on than that.  There's a couple shades of blue and two or three shades of orange with some copper thrown in, and a bit of bluish green...  All knotted together in an intricate pattern.  Sprinkle in a few seed beads and a copper leaf or two and poof - magic!

And to think it all started with this pile of beads and cord I pulled to do a custom order bracelet (more on that here)!


Who would think that unimposing pile of nylon cord and glass seed beads could be such a wealth of inspiration?  Okay, so maybe I get a wee bit obsessed.  One thing leads to another...  

Micro macrame bracelets in blue and orange by Sherri Stokey.

The bottom one there came first - a nice combination of all the colors.  But then I wondered what would happen if I bumped up the orange, so the top one happened.  Then I wondered what it would look like if I added even more orange, and I got this:

Micro macrame bracelet in orange and blue by Sherri Stokey.

Did you notice that I'm also experimenting with my photos?  I'm toying with the idea of opening a shop for my micro macrame jewelry on Handmade at Amazon and they have some specific requirements for product photos.  They want neutral backgrounds, preferably light, no props and no watermarks.  I have to admit, the no watermarks rule gives me a little heartburn.  As an artist, oh!  Did you see what I did there?  I'm practicing calling myself that.  (If you're wondering what that's all about, maybe you missed this post.)  

Anyway, as I was saying, as an artist, there's nothing more disheartening than having your work stolen, whether it's someone copying your ideas, distributing your tutorials or stealing your photographs to use on their sites.  I put a lot of time and effort into my work; I really do.  I have spent years perfecting my knots and developing my style.  I've spent countless hours trying color combinations and experimenting with different cords and beads.  I've researched jewelry photography and learned how to use my camera, and that's after investing a lot of my hard earned money to buy the camera in the first place.  I put me into my work, so when someone takes any part of my art for their own use without my permission, it feels almost like an assault on me.  It's personal.  

Where was I?  Oh, yeah... so if I decide to open an shop at Handmade at Amazon, I will need to retake all of my macrame jewelry photos.  *sigh*  And not only reshoot them, but restyle them.  So lately when I am taking pics to share with all of you, I'm trying out some different things.  I had a background custom printed that goes from white to gray with a gradual gradient starting midway.  I really thought I loved it, but now I'm questioning the dark shadows at the rear of the photos.  But the stark white just seems so... stark :)

Micro macrame bracelet in orange and blue with copper leaf.

Here's one of the photos I did with a plain white background:

Autumn leaf necklace by Sherri Stokey of Knot Just Macrame.

That one I quite like with the stark white.  This one, not so much:

Drunkard's Path micro macrame bracelet from Knot Just Macrame.

It's hard to keep the white from getting a dingy gray cast.  Anywho...  between experimenting with the color palette (which I like) and experimenting with product photography (which I don't like), I'm keeping busy! 

September 10, 2015

Fall is in the Air and in the Macrame!

Blue, green and copper color palette in beads and cord.

With Labor Day in the rear view mirror, it's becoming glaringly apparent that Fall is upon us.  I have a love/hate relationship with Autumn, only because it signals the end to my beloved Summer and the transition into the Dreaded Winter.  For me, the phase "winter is coming" has brought a sense of impending doom much longer than the Game of Thrones business has been around.

It really isn't Autumn's fault, though, so I try to enjoy it as much as I can.   I do like the cooler nights when I can sleep with my windows open and I like apples and pumpkins and all those fall-ish things.

Micro macrame bracelet with Earth button focal.

Lately I've been playing around with a autumnal color palette of blue, green and copper.  A customer requested this bracelet with a TierraCast button, and I think it turned out very well.

Copper button focal in micro macrame by Sherri Stokey.

She loved the bracelet, but I wasn't ready to let go of the palette yet.  Or the orange.  For some reason, these colors together make me feel warm and fuzzy.

Autumn Plaid aka Scot micro macrame bracelet by Knot Just Macrame.

This bracelet reminds me of a plaid blanket, the kind you snuggle into in the stands during an evening football game when there's a nip in the air.  A friend said it reminds her of a kilt - on a sexy Scot.  I'll let you decide!  Either way, I guess it gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling :)

Micro macrame bracelets knotted by Sherri Stokey of Knot Just Macrame.