These are the entries to Weekly Contest #1

Theme: Summer

Entry #1
	Elena Siff Erenberg www.elenamarysiff.com A vision quest is what I would want to do this summer...this quirky little pin is made from shell from the beach and blue faux jewels...ocean... and a bottle cap...refreshing drink of beer in the hot summer and a glass lucky charm from Turkey to ward off the “evil eye”...this pin creature is off to have  lots of summer adventures:
Entry #2
	Donna Johnson www.dancinglightjewelry.com What is more summer than "A Day at the Beach"?  That's the name of this bracelet, made with Jayne's etched glass swirl beads and plenty of Thai silver shells and sea life.  What I miss most about moving away from Southern California... a day at the beach.
Entry #3
	Nancy Sathre-Vogel I began working on Desert Fantasy as I cycled Baja California last winter.  We had escaped the American winter by heading south, and were entranced by the magic of Baja. The magic of Valle de los Cirios in Baja appeared one day.  We cycled around a corner and I fell headlong down a hole and ended up in Wonderland!  I felt like Alice as I gazed in wonder at huge boulders strewn around as though they had been tossed by a giant toddler. Nestled in the nooks and crannies between boulders we found cacti of every species imaginable.  Enormous cardons, resembling its sister saguaro, towered majestically over the valley floor as though protecting its inhabitants with its enormous arms.  Alongside the cardon stood the almost silly-looking boojum trees, like gigantic upside-down fuzzy carrots with pathetic crowns perched haphazardly atop them.  Hiding in the crevices of the rocks we found a multitude of other types of cactus.  Along with the impossibly tall cardons and boojums, equally tiny cacti like foxtail littered the ground, as well as cacti of every size and shape in between.  Long skinny organ pipe cactus grew alongside short squatty barrel cactus.  Teddy bear cholla, with its detachable balls that tend to jump out and grab you, fought for space amongst the multitude of other plant life.  Elephant trees, like miniature baobab trees transplanted from the African savanna, shaded rainbow cacti and a myriad of different species of yucca and century plants. It is said there are over 125 different species of cactus found in the Baja, and I have little doubt that each and every one of them resides in Valle de los Cirios. I was Alice exploring Wonderland as I pedaled my bike through the bizarre, magical landscape.  Each new twist and turn of the road brought new wonders to behold and new sights to gaze upon.  Granite boulders, as big as a house, served nicely as the Mad Hatter´s table. I felt impossibly small and insignificant standing next to gigantic cardons, then the next moment I was impossibly huge towering over lesser cacti.  Old man cactus, with its dense shaggy spines like an old man´s grizzly gray beard, reminded me of the King of Hearts.  The queen´s army was ready to attack, perched upon their steeds of galloping cactus with strong sharp spines as weapons.  But the queen was conspicuous only in her absense.  I laughed out loud at the ridiculous boojum trees, and delighted in scrambling over and around massive boulders with my children in search of Wonderland´s hidden spectacles.  At one point a rabbit scurried away, and I could have sworn I heard him mumble, "I'm late!  I'm late!  For a very important date!"
Entry #4
	Andréa The piece is named...."Cool Water", and its quite self-explanatory! I had the need to make something cool, flowing, with a play of light and texture during a heat wave we had 3 weeks ago. Cool Water is the result.  The necklace was worked in twisted Ndebele for the rope, with a transition to freeform peyote to capture and adorn the large focal bead, from which hangs a lush and sparkling fringe. The quartz chips spiral towards the focal and reflect light, giving the illusion of cool running water, while the glass pearl and Swarovski embellishment on the rope mimics bubbles, and adds movement and  interest to the bichrome effect of the seed beads.
Entry #5
	Lori Mendenhall www.members.cox.net/lorimendenhall Summer always makes me think of soft lovely colors, such as these pastels. With a touch of sparkling sunshine in the form of Swarovski crystals, these pieces sing "summer" to me. The beads are hand-made by me from polymer clay.
Entry #6
	Jessi Clark-White
Entry #7
	Marilyn www.starwavesdesigns.com This is just a simple set, of MOP rings & Crystals wired together. The necklace has no clasp, (34" long) just slip over the head, and a nice set of earrings to match. It could be worn with any outfit, and worn throughout the summer. It has all the summer pastel colours to match whatever you wear.
Entry #8
	Tyra Summer Sorbet Bracelet I made this braclet over the weekend whilest sitting on my couch wishing the weather wasn't so rainy for a summer weekend. I haven't played with my seed beads lately since doing the Mona Lisa bracelet and thought maybe playing with some pretty colors would brighten my day.  So while digging through my delica box I looked up and noticed my Vera Bradley purse sitting in the one ray of sunlite that Sunday had and it just glowed yellow orange and melon, so I kept digging through my box till I found the colors I saw and then started beading.  Seed beads are fun because they are literally a canvas for anything color combo you can come up with. Instead of doing the standard solid seed bead tubes I decided to get funky and do some twisty tubes.  I am not one who sees math problems in my head well so I took a minute and charted the tubes out and then got to work.  The rest of the bracelet just fell into place after that.
Entry #9
	Bonnie Fresh lemons and limes squeezed into a pitcher of sugary chilled water and stirred with lots of ice cubes for a refreshing summery drink to quench a thirsty soul. These vibrant leaf beads would look smashing in a necklace to compliment a breezy crisp white cotton tank top against a smooth bronze tan.
Entry #10
	Jen S I made this necklace a couple years ago. It's still one of my favorites.
Entry #11
	Angela Gusta Busy Beads I recently got into chainmaille and had this lovely teal and lavendar dichroic set I was dying to use up so.....  Yesterday I made this.  It's dyed crazy lace agate, silver-blue miracle beads and anodized aluminum jumprings in teal and violet.  I think it sums up summer in a bit of flash with an "ooh and aaah".  Very soft yet it'll turn heads, which is what I think summer's all about.
Entry #12
	Julie Vallejo www.RockerJewlz.com My entry, "Ocean Ink" is just that...a mix of deep oceanic purple that raises the wonders of what could exist down in those inky depths...and then fresh, light teal that snaps you back to the bright sparkle of our great green ocean!  Add swirls of white to remind you of ocean waves just about to break and the clouds of froth left at the water's edge as the tide pulls it all back to do it all over again!
Entry #13
	Becca Meeks www.beccasbeauties.etsy.com I made this a few months ago. It reminds me of little girls making daisy chains in the summer. The white with a touch of soft yellow is so fresh. It makes me think back to the summer days as a young girl when I was still innocent and we would go to the swimming pool or run through the sprinkler in the front yard. It also has a touch of "hippy" and/or "Flower Child" to it and Hippies always remind me of summer with their long flowing hair and skirts, maybe a crown of summer flowers in their hair.
Entry #14
	June Josten (Summer)   IS at the beach.    In Alaska we can't swim in the surf, but collecting shells, drift wood and beach glass is a must....  So this necklace is all things beach and water. I collected the driftwood wood, the beach glass and over 50% of the shells here in Alaska, the rest is pressed glass and metal charms of beach theme items. The base of this necklace is a peyote style with white foam waves.    Its so covered in beach items you cannot see the wavy, water splash look.   But I love wearing this necklace.
Entry #15
	Karen Brennan "At the Beach"
Entry #16
	Becki Michalski www.NanuksIgloo.com "Beach Dreams" Some of the best times I've had were spent napping on the beach as a teenager listening to the waves crash on the sand.  Those memories are relived in this necklace created with Aqua Quartz Leaves, Caribbean Blue and Colorado Topaz Swarovski Crystals with Pale Agate pendant.   The Aqua Leaves recreate the rise and fall of the crashing waves while the Swarovski crystals represent the sand and the sea.  The pendant is the prize shell found during a beach walk.
Entry #17
	Vonna Maslanka www.justvonna.com Ugg - Do I really need to make any more beads? Don't answer that question, I will thank you ~ NO, I don't need to make any more beads, I need to list the ones I already have - pictures, editing, descriptions, list, post, oh ~ post on this place post and then go post hear their everywhere. Yes, naming the darn set, & CLEANING THESE DANG BIG HOLE BEADS!  (Then have a family life!)