Bead resolutions: where can I go from here?

Between my diminished desire for beads in the first half of the year, and my resolution to rein in my bead lists leading me to slash almost two-thirds of the beads from my wish lists during the same time, I was left with a bit of a quandary for my second-half yearly bead resolutions.

Given my time challenges of the first half of the year and the fact that the last half of the year is traditionally busier for me anyway, I couldn’t commit to any sort of time challenge where I’d have to do something every month, like my necklace resolution from last year.

I have no new brands that I necessarily want to push myself to explore right now. I’d love to support an artisan bead maker but, unless a bead fits into a theme that I’m working on, I won’t buy it.

I almost made a resolution to buy the oldest item on my wishlist (it’s the Faerybeads Vertebrae, in case you were curious, added way back in 2014 or 2015) but that seemed less like a resolution and more like a cop-out. Although, I did think that I was going to buy it back in 2016 after I got my Coiling Dragon and still don’t have it, so maybe I need that kind of resolution to push me to get it!

In the end, I decided to focus on getting back to the things that I love that have fallen by the wayside for one reason or another.

Pull out the loved but unworn beads in my beadbox and wear them

As I said, I can’t commit to the time involved with a regular challenge, but I can commit to spending a bit more time on switching things up and getting myself out of the rut that I’ve fallen into with my beads! When I look back over my combinations, I have definitely into a pattern of wearing only a small subset of my beads. But, when I look at the beads in my box, there are very few that I’d be ready to let go of. So, they need to get out more. I’m not going to commit to doing a certain number of new combinations every month (see previous note about time commitments), but I will make an effort to help more of my beads see the light of day.

Get back into beadmaking

I really want to get back into making my own beads, but was so hesitant to put a timeline to it. However, I haven’t touched any clay in almost a year (I don’t actually even have any clay right now) so clearly I need something to get me going. Again, I’m not putting a set goal of making a certain number of beads by the end of the year, but I’m making a commitment to get something going. First step: buy metal clay!

I know that these seem a bit generic and somewhat wishy-washy. But, they do have a very specific goal: ignite my passion for beads again. And, ignite some of the creativity that I’ve been missing for the last few months. And then, hopefully something more will come from that.  And maybe, just maybe, a preloved kiln will even come my way …