This is the underside of the butterfly. Those are size 8 beads so they go down very fast (and are getting very heavy - this is going to be one lead-assed butterfly!) It is one of the biggest of the animals in the teenie beanie babies.

Here you can see the top side before I start adding the sequins. I will be glad to get rid of that pink and the blue. I am eager to see if changing bead colors - on the beads used to anchor the sequins, will give a feeling of the change of color in the pattern of butterfly wings. Today will answer that question, and probably a lot I have not yet asked!

The minnow! A silver fish done with the sequins. One fish - one day. These I could sell for $25 at that rate. I was fairly pleased with the outcome. I had no idea how much patterning the lines of sequins would impart to the fish, but they do blend in. I was able to cover the whole fish without having to stop and start a new row of the sequins - not a job I like to do. The liberated sequins, from the ends, are now floating about the room. I love seeing the sparkles on the carpeting. When I open the door to let the cat out, the wind blows in, picks up the loose sequins and decorates my room with flashing lights.

Meet the snake! This is the year of the snake. I was very pleased with how the sequins worked out as snake scales! They go on so fast! I think I could sell this one for $25. My lack of sales at CHAC is pushing me to lower my prices. It is easier to do that when I can no longer recall exactly how many hours of beading went into a piece. The snake only took about 16. When I figure 1/3 of the price of an item is for gallery rent, boxing, and gallery staffing that means I am now making about $1 an hour. That is up considerably with the other animals. For them I figured I was making about 25 cents an hour. I am working on a fish now so I can try out the silver sequins.

Here is the promised head shot of the giraffe. In the close-up the spots turn back into beads of different colors. . .

This is not a great photo either. I need more energy to force the camera to see what I see in him. It is easier to start a new animal. The order from Paper Mart came and I got the sequins! Have to do a snake with sequin scales. Feel I must add the sequins last so I am doing the belly and then the tongue and only then - finally the fun stuff!

Probably this is the last time you can see the giraffe with a patch of original skin showing. If I could  have a good day of beading I could get him done today. I have little hope, however.Yesterday, in a fit a madness (desire to find some photographs) I cleaned out the big closet under the stairs. It was good to find so many things I forgot I had (the photos of Heidi and Bambi when they were 16 - 17 which are now framed over the table), pictures of the old studio in Dinuba, and the pictures of rocks in the desert for which I was looking. As result of a coming storm, and all that bending and lifting, I am aching mightily. I do not know how long I can sit and bead. I see this photo does not show off his charming ears and horns. Must remember to get those in his official protrait.

I know that if I am going to use 15s, and I do love the way they nestle together, I have no right to gripe when the work goes so slowly. I do not mind the time the 15s take, but when I look at my pages here on the blog and see so little progress I seriously wonder if I should take a photo and report so little progress.  I still have the ears to do - always hard fiddly work AND the horns! For some reason I decided to do the hooves after the legs were done so that means anchoring four threads - a job I dislike - to do each little hoof. In hind sight it would have been easier to do a couple rounds on the legs, drop back down to do the hoof and then continue up the leg. I love looking at the way the pattern goes over the body. I hope that beauty stays there when it is beaded.

The giraffe at sunset, just before the light goes a deep gold. By evening that leg was done and the other back leg had about that much beaded. I was so tired I was not doing good work so stopped, turned on the little computer and searched the web for the acrylic boxes I like so much. I found out that Paper Mart offered them at less than half the cost of Clear Bags so put in a big order this morning. Now I have to stay with the animals to fill up all those boxes. Truthfully I adore doing the animals so much the call of jewelry projects from the beading magazines falls on deaf ears. I figure I have 3 - 4 normal working days to finish this guy. Good that he keeps me entertained with the development of his spots.
I keep thinking that the Mello's are raising giraffes just outside of Point Arena and I feel I should go take a look at the real thing but getting in and out of a car makes me ache for hours afterward. So I continue in my make-believe world.