| ERA Catalog |
 Online |
| On Paper |
| Resources |
 About ERA |
| Classes |
| Copyright |
| Mounting Tips |
| Newsletter |
 Spring 98 |
| Winter 98-99 |
| Spring 99 |
| Summer 99 |
| Fall 99 |
| Winter 99-00 |
| Spring 2000 |
| Summer 2000 |
| Order Form |
| Order Info |
| Projects |
| Gallery |
| Home |
Collage Border I - #219-007H
road trips and other happenings
Four bead freaks went and four came back - a touch poorer and a lot more tired. But oh so pumped up by the Mother of all bead shows, Embellishment. No, not like Tucson or Denver, which is the raw stuff for the wholesale market. Or Quartsite where you get a chance to rub shoulders with those who actually mine and polish the stones and gems out in the desert, but a civilized, manageable show in Portland, Oregon, that brings together the best beaders, teachers and bead retailers in the country.
Bead Long and Prosper - #219-008G
So off we went, Deb Shipley (in from Maryland), Sheila Sabatino (my partner in bead crime) and Karen Kolander (my stamp bud), for a road trip. The show lived up to expectations and we spent two days on the way back teaching some classes for First Impressions in Portland. Much fun and what a way to spend time with a terrific group of stampers from the North West.
This was the second time we taught the use of mold boards and we now have it down pat. These were about the best series of classes we have ever experienced. Great local talent and enthusiasm. We were over subscribed and had a waiting list for the Spirit Guide Vessels class and see another road trip in the near future.
if i wasn't crazy before this proves i am certifiable
Sheila with her heavenly color sense and design savvy, and me with my nimble fingers, decided to start a new business (because I have so much free time on my hands since ERA Graphics just about runs itself.) You see, when you are crazy reason has nothing to do with it. Damn the bugle beads full steam ahead!Well we decided to design and produce a line of spectacular limited edition bead kits. We created two prototypes and by working into the wee hours packaged up some kits, wrote the instructions (Deb made up a necklace and debugged the instructions in about 24 hours), secured great packaging, had display cases made, and off we went to Embellishment. Nothing like testing the waters by diving off a cliff. However, the response was gratifying. As Lisa Niven (one of the premier bead people) said "You guys rock!"
We have decided to offer super high quality, limited edition kits, with antique and/or specially designed focal beads. Along with specialty stitches and other little goodies we are told we have something unique. Between Embellishment and the follow-up orders about 40% of each edition is now sold. And we are now busy designing new kits. For the full story and great photos check us out at: beads.ERAGraphics.com (I do not know why I capitalize this since web addresses are case insensitive but I do) and tell us what you think.
new catalog
However long you estimate a job to take, double it and add on 100%. We have been using and updating essentially the same catalog since 1993, incorporating new images as they are created. The master and paste-ups are literally disintegrating. But we kept putting off the redo since it is a monumental job - well over 1200 images, plus copy. We are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel (and no it is not another train!).With the Herculean work of Karen and the efforts of Christina Gibbs and The Hun (my husband and short for Attila, not honey) we believe we will have a new catalog available by the end of September. Cleaned up, reorganized and hopefully robust enough to last another six years. By-the-way one of the reasons I am letting you know this is so that we have to meet the deadline or risk public embarrassment.
Collage Design Square #1
#219-001F [1.5"]
it is not polite to grab!
The grab bag specials that were up on the web were popular beyond my wildest expectations. Contrary to popular belief, and contrary to that of many of the other stamp companies out there who offer grab bags, I do not throw in junk, doubles and/or seconds. OK, I do put in on occasion a few of the dies that are overstocked at the moment, the result of being on the same plate as an out-of-stock stamp and thus is pressed at the same time. I offer a variety in size and style, the only limitation being that I do the selection. I have even, on request, made up bags with no duplicates for multiple bag orders.Please understand I really do not make money on this deal (15 dies for $10) but do it to keep my inventory at a manageable level and to provide an occasional special to my great customers. Thus, grab bags are a special event and they will appear sporadically AND FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY. When the expiration date arrives they are no more. To all of you who wrote, Emailed and called, all I can say is keep watching the web site for the next offering and act fast.
will work for food!
A large part of the payment to my web mistress, the talented and dedicated Christina Gibbs, are the meals my husband (The Hun) cooks when we meet to discuss business and dish the craft scene dirt. The Hun's creative outlet is at the stove. He loves to cook and has done so professionally. He reads cook books the way I do novels. When we were discussing topics for this newsletter the Big C said "Other sites I have visited had recipes on them." "No," said The Hun, "this is not the proper venue for my gourmet offerings."Well, I convinced him to publish one of my favorite summer salads and a very simple one at that. He said if the demand is there he will share a really spectacular and demanding recipe later in the year, like Lobster in Vanilla Sauce. In any case this should change the pace and spice up (pun intended) the newsletter. Let me know if you think this is a dumb idea.
COLD ORZO SALAD
N.B. Orzo is a pasta shaped like a grain of rice.
One LB Orzo
4 oz Roasted Red Peppers, course chop
8 oz Fetta Cheese, 1/4" cube
4 oz sliced black olives drained (but you can add a little of the liquid to the dressing)
4 Sun Dried Tomatoes, medium chop (I like the dried tomatoes rather
than the ones in oil and keep them immersed in white wine in a jar
in the refrigerator. This make them more flavorful and easier to chop.)
Vinaigrette dressing (make your own or use a good bottled brand) to moisten.
Cook the Orzo al dente (firm, i.e. with a little tooth to it), mix with other ingredients, adjust seasoning and chill for one or more hours. Serve over lettuce or mixed greens.
classes
- Enfoldings. Origami style cards. a new dimension to the classic cards we have all produced in conjunction with stamps. This class offers a chance to use all the great Asian design stamps you have accumulated. Also check out my new Japanese and Chinese influenced stamps.
- Spirit Guide Vessels. Combining polymer clay and stamping and wire work and... This class continually changes as I explore and discover new and different ways to work with clay. Karen and I have developed a way to make Inroe, the delicate Japanese style boxes that hang from the sash of a Kimono and are used like small purses.
I will be teaching this class, and the polymer pin class at Queen Quest on November 12th in Long Beach, CA. This show will be held on the Queen Mary and Tisha Moore is involved with Kat Okomoto in planning and execution. This class involves the new technique of mold boards to make impressions in the clay.
Please note, we now have eight different mold boards, each having three or four different images. These boards are specifically designed for use with polymer clay. They are $6.00 each and are used in both classes. If you are interested, please sent me a stamped, self-addressed envelope and I will send B&W copies of the designs. You can order through ERA Graphics, although the stamp stores where I have taught these classes are now carrying the boards.
- Fetish Pins. This class has evolved, as opposed to having been created, to include a large segment on making Fetish people pins. The bodies are made using mold boards and different finishes. The faces are masks, with earrings, and the hair is waxed linen. Beads are used also.
we have a winner
Entries for the She Who... contest arrive in an almost constant stream. Your musings are great and our judges have carefully reviewed each and every entry. We are pleased to announce that Kaz Waz of New York City is the new winner, with her entry - SHE WHO DYED BY HER OWN HAND. This being a suicide note from an unnatural redhead. Kaz will be the recipient of a free stamp bearing her saying and a mention in the catalog. Scant praise for such a literary accomplishment.
She Who Has Dyed By Her Own Hand - #219-009D
see through stuff (and i do not mean clothing)
Since the last newsletter where I discussed the use of unmounted stamps and the use of Lucite mounts, I have received numerous queries as to where to purchase the Lucite. I carry five sizes that I use for my geometric shape stamps and am listing them below. You can also contact Creations Unlimited at 253-473-4322 or Rdexter10@aol.com for a set of different sizes.
| 1 1/2" x 1/2" | $1.25 |
| 1" x 2" | $1.25 |
| 2" x 2" | $1.50 |
| 2 1/2" x2 1/2" | $1.75 |
| 3" x 3" | $2.00 |
bead tips
Several of you sharp eyed readers have noticed the beading case in the photo in the last newsletter. This is a great idea I was introduced to, to safely transport and keep neat my current project. It is also inexpensive, about $10.00. The item is a plastic gun case with foam rubber inserts. They can, of course, be purchased at gun stores and the gun counters of Walmart and the like.Please note that when you see the cases the foam will look like an egg carton. Just turn it over. With the addition of a ceramic watercolor palette purchasable in art supply stores you have a complete traveling bead workshop and even the beads you have poured out of the vials into the palette will stay in place. You can also store instruction, extra needles, etc., under the foam.
Collage Design Square #4
#219-004F [1.5"]
minimum credit card charges
NEVER MIND!
To make a long story short we now accept Credit Card orders with no minimums. (It's against Visa and Master Card rules.) To those of you we have inconvenienced in the past - Sorry.why!
Many of you have asked why we do not have a links list to other stamp sites we like and use. The answer is that it has been done - and done so well that it would be redundant and silly to try and emulate what Kerchunk! the on-line stampzine has done. They have links to over 900, yes that's nine hundred, sites with annotations and/or comments. So don't look to us, we don't link 'em we just make 'em.You can find this great zine at: www.Kerchunk.com
That's all for now!
Roberta
