Shells Gone Wild! When a Good Shell goes Bad..

The Bad Boy

Lovely Vintage Seed Beads!

 I am so blessed to have a great assortment of vintage seed beads, I bought a tote full of them more than 15 years ago from a good friend that was selling out her shop to live Full Time on the Road.

I hadn't thought about this until I started working with the beads just this week.

At the time I bought the beads, I was still a highly successful Full Time Graphic Designer at a large publication firm in the Midwest.

There was no thought in my mind at that time of ever leaving my chosen occupation and traveling down life's highway and I remember being curious about the Lady's intentions of giving it all up and just traveling. I couldn't conceive of it and thought the Lady was a bit crazy to give up her home and supposed security to do so.

Funny how things have a way of catching up with you, as I worked on this "Dark Pendant" last night, suddenly that occasion came flooding back into my mind and I had to chuckle at myself.

There we stood in the driveway filled with this Woman's last possessions and her motor home in the process of being fitted out for adventure. She told me her husband had been recently ill and she was going to take him on the road to see those places he always wanted to go but never had time to before his illness.

I marveled at her commitment to her Spouses happiness and her bravery to just pull up and go regardless of the personal risk. I never thought I would do the same, and yet, here I am!

Amazing.

Anyhow, I've been having fun working on my etsy shop, and meeting other Sellers through the Online Lab they held on Friday which lasted all day and was a blast! Even this dog learned new tricks about getting your message out there and had the added bonus of meeting some great people!

Ask the Hubby for shell Tops and He Complies!

The Funnest and nicest Gal I met in the chat room was Creative Carmelina, she has an awesome Shop and an even greater sense of humor! Turns out she has done many Craft Fairs and so we could chat about the do's and don'ts of setting up a stand, it was nice to share experiences and throw our two cents in on the discussions! We lasted all all day through all the discussions on story telling, search engine tactics and marketing in general. A good day well spent! Carmelina also has a great blog worth reading, you might want to follow her and keep up with her very interesting article!

Well, I asked the DH, (Dear Husband) to make me some shell tops to bead and Wow! He sure got some ready for me, as the picture shows above. I will have lots of work ahead of me! He is such a doll to take time from his "Serious" Bead making to help me out...Love you Hun!

From Beadginning To End! Making Conch Shell Beads

The Masked Bandit prepares to Slice & Dice

Properly marked for death

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Here is Doyle all suited up to cut a right handed Whelk Shell. He is wearing all the protective gear needed to insure his safety, a dust mask, (shell dust is VERY bad for the lungs), and tinted safety glasses, plus he is fully clothed.






Here is the shell marked for cutting, each shell has to be evaluated for strength, faults and character to decide how to get the best use out of each piece.









Using a tile and ceramic cut off blade on his Makita angle grinder, Doyle makes the first cut.












Making the second cut, keeping those fingers well away from the work.









After cutting, Doyle removes what has come away on its own. this piece will be used to make a pendant of space later on...no useful bit goes to waste.












The cut out section.

I've separated this article into three sections to save loading time for pictures, Part 2 is HERE.

Doyle's Shell Creations are offered for purchase HERE

From Beadginning To End, Making Conch Shell Beads Part 2

Using a rotary variable speed flex shaft tool, Doyle reaches in and cuts the center spindle off using a Rotary Burr bit.

Using a bone headed hammer, Doyle carefully taps on the shell to break the column loose.

Here is the spindle removed from the inside of the shell, the rest of the shell is laid aside to be cut up into other projects.

The spindle is then sliced using the same ceramic and tile cutting rotary blade into the desired size rough beads.

Beads Ready To Shape!

The average spindle yields about 4 to 5 decent beads. You an see the extra pieces he will make into spacers and pendants, as well as the main shell which could be made into a cup or dish depending on its integrity.

Part 3 Shaping and finishing the beads is HERE.

Doyle's Shell Creations are offered for purchase HERE 

From Beadginning To End, Making Conch Shell Beads Part 3

 Using the Flex Shaft, Doyle drills through the bead with a 1/8" diamond rotary bit.

This is the touchy part, you have to drill half way through on one side and then flip it over and drill from the other, trying to meet in the middle without shattering the bead or overheating the bit and shell.

Doyle then puts on a rotary grinding stone bit and shapes each shells exterior.











Here is the shell roughed out..












Here is the shell bead properly shaped.







The bead must next be wet sanded with 600 to 2000 grit sandpaper to it's finished stage, then it gets a good wiping with almond oil to bring out the natural shine.

This what makes shell beads so expensive, for five hours of work you get 4-5 finished beads!

If you like this article, take a moment to comment, if you want to see the series from the beginning, click here!


Doyle's Shell Creations are offered for purchase HERE 

New Hand Beaded Conch Pendant Necklace!

Mother of The Bride

Hand Beaded 4" Creamy Beige Conch Shell Pendant suspended from Hand Beaded Conch and Pearl Glass Bead 24" Necklace.

The best part about this necklace is I made it long enough to slip over the head comfortably, but included a hand made Conch toggle clasp so the pendant can be removed and the necklace worn all by itself! You get two elegant looks for one price!

I call this One, "Mother of The Bride".

She's the one who's going to wear that outrageous print and large brimmed floppy hat to your wedding no matter what. She has her own sense of style that has taken a little getting used to, but you love her dearly and want to let her know you love her just the way she is, huge Hobo Bag and all.

This is the necklace for her, big, bold and sassy but in muted cream tones that will wear well with bright green flip flops or a shimmery sequined white sheath.

I hand collected this petrified shell and had my Husband sand off the sharp points, other than that, it's just as I found it. I then hand beaded around the edge and created a bail to securely cradle it and show it off to its best advantage. I then used Conch shell beads and pearl glass seed beads to create a necklace with a hand made Conch Toggle.

The Necklace itself is securely triple threaded so it will never break and scatter beads all over the floor, its meant to be worn and will last a lifetime!

Show your New Mom you truly love her just the way she is! (Or get if for yourself!)

This pendant is offered on Etsy Here!

How We Ended Up Here...The Short Version

Us In The Kitchen

 Hi! We are Doyle & Terri Johnson.

We Own A Historic Kitchen Under Canvas and Travel the Country Serving Fry Bread and Root Beer.

Home, Sweet Canvas

We started out living in a Tent Six years ago. Our Home is Just behind us in this Photo. 

How Romantic.

For the First Year anyway.

This was our Home Packed UP

Auction Day

40' Road Warrior Fifth Wheel Trailer

Life Is Suddenly Good

This is Our Home Packed Up In a Trailer. When we were done packing, you couldn't throw a hanky in between the stuff.

OK, we did have a house, but we were never there as we attend Events almost every weekend throughout the year everywhere but near home so our stuff languished without us.

I was getting a bit tired of gazing at the stars through the holes in the top of the canvas overhead so....

We had an Auction and sold our house and all our worldly goods to buy...

THIS. Our Home on Wheels.

Oh yeah, no more sleeping on a cot for THIS GIRL.

Traveling in Style!

We Sneak across the Border Undetected

He's thwarted by our hard sided camper!

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So, what do you do when you have a home on wheels?

You Go To DISNEYLAND, thats what you do....or at least the State in General, Mickey Mouse kinda creeps me out.

Our New Neighbor. He can't get at us anymore because WE HAVE A HARD SIDE CAMPER...BWAH, HA, HA, HA...ehem...

OK, So here's what you really do when you move to Florida, you go to the Beach.

Oh yeah, that first sunset over the Gulf was SWEET.

One Days Haul, The Findin' was Good!

After the wonderment wore off, we began collecting a few shells.

This is just one days haul. No Kidding.

Hey, I'm from Minnesota, these things are just a figment of the imagination where I come from, all there are on our beaches is ROCKS.

You Want Me To Do WHAT?

So we decorated with them. 

We gave them to our loved ones until they locked the doors and pretended they weren't home.

Then we started packing them in totes until we didn't dare go past the scales with our trailer. Something had to be done.

I turned to my Dear Husband one day and said, "Hey, weren't you a Master Goldsmith, or something like that, like a hundred years ago before we met?"

"Yeeeeeessss..."he answered, "so what?"

Stay Tuned for What Happened next.......

New! Desk Buddy For Her! The No Tech Communication Device!

Finally! A Feminine Version of the Incredibly Popular Desk Buddy!

This is for the Woman who wants to be taken Seriously in the Corporate Work World, but still wants to retain Her Sense of Elegance and Style in her Personal Communication Device.

Desk Buddy for Her has a Sleeker, Lighter and more Stylish Design reflecting your Inner Sense Of Good Taste in a Plastic Cubicle World!

It's Timeless Classic Lines will compliment any outfit or decor making it the most versatile office accessory ever invented!

It's Half the weight of our Desk Buddy and features more delicate lines But Don't let its Good Looks Fool You, This Device has what it takes to get the job done on deadline and with no chance of lost calls or or missed voice mails so important in today's business dealings!

Desk Buddy for Her has the additional virtue of being COMPLETELY TEAR PROOF! When the BIG BOYS try to put you in you place, just pick up Desk Buddy For Her and pour out your frustrations in a constructive and safe manner, then get back to work and show 'em a Gal can have feelings and still whoop their caved in butts any day of the week!

Desk Buddy For Her WILL NOT TALK BEHIND YOUR BACK and cannot be stolen and harvested for personal information!

Desk Buddy For Her Has all the tremendous features of Desk Buddy:

• No annoying RING TONES

• No Service Contracts

• No Text Notifications

• No Harmful Electronic Fields Causing BRAIN CANCER

• Portable, Compact, Easy To Use

• No Games or Silly Apps

• No Need for Extra Batteries

• Can be used In Flight

• No Loss of Service, works in ALL Areas

• No extra charges for excessive Data Usage

• Always there for you, no matter what time of Day or Night

• Discreet, Assumes the Appearance of an Ordinary Shell when Not in Use

• Cannot Reveal Private Information About You if Lost

• You can hear the FREAKIN' OCEAN!

Be the envy of your office and the owner of the LATEST TECH Device Guaranteed never to be released in a faster, more powerful, sleeker and more user friendly mode EVER!

You can purchase this item at our Etsy Shop Here

It's Desk Buddy To the Rescue For all Your Communication Needs!

I have had this little invention on the back burner for some time and finally I have decided it's time has come for release to the general public.

For years I have been using my Desk Buddy and have yet to be disappointed in its performance, ergonomics or tire of it's timeless design.

For those tired of the plastic world all around us, this is the perfect way to communicate your desires and dreams with no fear of having your ideas stolen or your security compromised.

It has a lifetime guarantee and comes with it's cradle charger for no extra charge!

Have a Plastic Desk in a Fiber Board Cubicle? Feel like Florescent Lights are Sucking the Life out of You little by little Everyday? Need to Talk to Somebody Who Cares with No Negative Feedback?

You Need DESK BUDDY The No Tech Communication Device that puts YOU back in charge of you life. Desk Buddy is an Organic Natural Communication Device that has been around for Thousands, nay, Millions of Years, patiently supplying people with what they really need to hear when they need to hear it.

• No annoying RING TONES

• No Service Contracts

• No Text Notifications

• No Harmful Electronic Fields Causing BRAIN CANCER

• Portable, Compact, Easy To Use

• No Games or Silly Apps

• No Need for Extra Batteries

• Can be used In Flight

• No Loss of Service, works in ALL Areas

• No extra charges for excessive Data Usage

• Always there for you, no matter what time of Day or Night

• Discreet, Assumes the Appearance of an Ordinary Shell when Not in Use

• Cannot Reveal Private Information About You if Lost

• You can hear the FREAKIN' OCEAN!

Be the envy of your office and the owner of the LATEST TECH Device Guaranteed never to be released in a faster, more powerful, sleeker and more user friendly mode EVER!

Own The "Pet Rock" of the New Age! 

Desk buddy is available for a limited time at our Etsy Store Here

One Shoulder Eastern Tribal Elk Hide Dress...

Here's my latest dress, a nice little number of the Eastern Pre Contact one shoulder variety. It's made from vegetable tanned Elk hide suede. It has a left shoulder cape for covering the left arm on cool summer nights. The cape is not quite finished yet, I still have to cut the fringe into a curved edge as Eastern Tribes did pre contact. You can see on the dress I have already done this.

It's incredibly comfortable and light, I could wear this all day, and I just might! This dress is perfect for the gal who loves the one shoulder look, but likes to cover the upper arm in the Evenings!

I had a great time making it outside on the porch while Doyle works on his shells...

We have been having such a great time this Winter in Florida, it's hard to imagine going back to Wisconsin, but soon we must pack up and head up for our annual Spring and Summer Events...hope to see you at one soon!


Here are some pictures that this dress design is based on... 

Fringe and sleeve depicted were used....a male figure, but would have been worn by a female too

Dagget type fringe and showing length of garment

Another type of one shoulder dress and dagget fringe