BEAD AND BUTTON: SHOPPING

I spent a fair amount of time on the shopping floor but actually spent very little money. I tried to buy--I really did--but everything that I needed was not what the merchants brought.

I did buy some seed beads for a commissioned snake bracelet that has to match other bracelets that the client owns. The olive, brown, and orange beads are for that, the shiny blue/green beads are just because.

I managed to snag some of the new Tulip beading needles, which were flying out of the booths. For those of you who haven't heard about them, these needles are a result of a collaboration between Carol Cypher and people at the Tulip Needle Company in Japan.

The new beading needles are flexible and springy so they don't bend as quickly, have an eye that is easy to thread, and have a rounded tip to avoid splitting the thread. They come in a little glass tube inside a cardboard box. The needles may seem expensive but I went through 7 John James needles on the Melanie Potter Wild Flower project before I changed to a Tulip needle. The Tulip needle is still going strong. For more information you can visit Carol Cypher's website at http://www.carolcypher.com. Carol is the U.S. distributor of the needles. On the shopping floor, I saw the needles at Knot Just Beads, Beyond Beadery, and Out on a Whim.

My one mad purchase was two pieces of leather--from fish. Yes, this is tanned tilapia skin. I got it at the Nature Beads booth.

Here is a closeup shot.

One of my favorite things from Bead and Button was actually a gift from my friend Merle. Merle bought a bunch of these adorable minature dolls in Peru

to put on a hatband. I was lucky enough to get the left-overs!

So that ends the highlights of my Bead and Button experience. I took some great classes, had fun socializing, met some wonderful people, and did some shopping. Now I am counting the days until Bead and Button 2012.