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October Trick or Treat GIVEAWAY!

black bat leather hair stick barrette

Happy October! Let’s celebrate with a little Trick or Treat Giveaway…

TRICK:
Thanks to everyone loving up these little bat barrettes! They’re flying off the shelves 🦇
Sadly, I’ve been tipped off that the counterfeiters love them too. So please beware – I only sell on my Beadmask website and my Beadmask Etsy shop. I don’t use any other business names, and I don’t sell on Amazon – not even when the listings use my exact photos. Please don’t fall for that old trick – there’s no telling what you’ll get when you buy from these ©reeps!

TREAT:
As thanks to all who support my craft, I’m giving away two of these bat barrettes on October 16th!
To enter, just leave a comment with a kind word or two. I’ll pick one winner from my Instagram page and one from my Facebook page. Make me smile, make me laugh, and help me to break this ©opycat spell by reminding me of the good people who make my job worthwhile!

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Wild Hairs

My mom has been sending old photos. Here’s one of my daughter and me from 25-ish years ago. Based on her expression and the hair clip in her hand, I’m betting that I’d just chased her down to try to corral those wild hairs. It was a common occurrence back then 😂⠀

This child came in to the world with a full dark mane, and I just loved making her pretty little hair clips. I’d been making my own hair accessories long before she was born. Today she’s in grad school, and my once dark hair is now salt and pepper (extra salty). All these years later, and I’m still making barrettes for our wild hairs…

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Red Rose Hair Slide Photos & Review

A client shared these gorgeous photos over the weekend, along with this stellar review:

“I have a LOT of hair. Because of this, it’s really difficult for me to find a hair slide that does the job and does it durably. The ones that Andrea makes at Beadmask are my go-to when I need something pretty that will also hold up all day. I have been able to use these hair-slides for all-day style without hair gels or sprays. Most other hair accessories I’ve tried break under the tension, or cause my bun to collapse. Not so with Beadmask! I recommend the longer sticks for long hair like mine.” 

My heartfelt thanks to  @thegurlwhodoesboth (model) and  @andrewjosiah206 (photographer)  for sharing these wonderful images & review of my red rose hair slides!

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Birch Leaf Hair Slide Review

birch leaf hair slide

“I am completely obsessed with the olive birch leaf hair slide! It is extremely well made and sturdy enough to hold 3ft worth of thick hair. The packaging was carefully and thoughtfully done. I will absolutely be purchasing more of these! If you are thinking about ordering, you will not be disappointed! Thank you!!!”

^This sweet review  made me smile. It means so much to see that people are enjoying my work!

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A Classic Updo

red rose leather barrette

Returned from vacation to find that I’d been tagged in this stunning photo! Her updo has such a classic look. Not sure if it’s “classic 40’s” or “classic Victorian” – but either way, it’s elegant. I’m always envious of folks who can pull off these perfectly coiffed looks. Thanks so much for sharing this beautiful photo!

PS. Came home with a mean winter cold. I’m resting and healing, so please bear with me if I’m slow to reply or don’t post much for a bit.

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July Shop Drop

purple dragonfly barrette

A small collection of new work will go live on the website tonight at 6 pm PST (or 9 pm for those of you on the east coast).

It will include a smattering of mixed media jewelry pieces:

beaded leather luna moth necklace with boulder opal and gemstones

Those little  dragonfly hair accessories that I previewed last week:

beaded leather dragonfly barrettes

As well as a small selection of leather peacock feather hair slides and French clip barrettes:

leather hair accessories

I sincerely hope you’ll love these offerings!

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If you see my creations on Amazon, be skeptical.

red rose leather hair stick barrette

Friends, I do not offer my creations on Amazon. Nor have I authorized anyone else to do so.

Should you see my work there, be skeptical. I’m not affiliated with any active Amazon shops, and cannot be held responsible if they rip you off. Even if the hypothetical listing uses my exact product, images, logos, titles, and descriptions.

I was invited to sell on Amazon Handmade during their beta phase, and I did start setting up a storefront there during the early stages of their launch. That storefront was never opened, because I had reservations about their policies. That is the ONLY Amazon shop that is remotely connected to my business – and it was never (ever) stocked.

So if you like my work, please shop directly from my site. Here, you can be sure that the work is authentic and handmade by me.

Last but not least, If you sell jewelry or hair accessories, you might want to do a quick search over there for your own stuff. I’m no expert, but it looks as though these vendors have copied entire product categories from another well-known handmade crafts site.

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Celebrating Wild Things – Little Brown Bat

leather bat barrette

Sharing this leather bat barrette in celebration of the wonderful little brown bat that I found in my driveway yesterday! I’m not sure if it was injured, or if it was in a torpid state. Perhaps the high winds knocked it out of its roost, and out of hibernation?

The wildlife rescue that I called was unable to make it out until the next day, but someone explained how to safely capture the bat until qualified help could get there (bats can pose health risks to humans & animals, so it’s really best to leave rehabilitation to the pros). .

Thankfully, the little fella made it through the night, and the rescuer was able to pick it up today. She’ll check it for injuries and tend them if needed … or just give it a safe space to crash until it’s ready to come out of hibernation. In either case, the bat survived, and is now in more capable hands. I’m so grateful that there are folks with the knowledge, skill, and heart to do such work!

Bats get a bad rap for being vicious and spooky, but in truth, they’re lovely creatures who play an important role as pollinators. With that said, this post is a celebration of bats in general, and particularly, the little creature that I found yesterday. This barrette is a fantastical shade of shimmering burgundy-purple, but the real life bat that I met was an adorable little brown bat.

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Pacific Northwest Ravens

Pacific Northwest raven barrettes

 

I love these recent customer photos so much that I wanted to share them with you! This client had me customize my Pacific Northwest raven barrette design to accommodate a larger size of French clip, and they wanted them paired so that the birds would face (or look away from) one another, rather than facing the same way.

The metal clips on these are quite a bit bigger than the ones that I usually use. Because they hold a fairly substantial amount of hair, most people will only wear one clip at the back of the head. She has so much hair that she was able to use these as a pair of side clips!

She and her husband are repeat customers, and such nice people. They’re beekeepers who share my love for nature (they even offered to help with tips and advice when my husband and I are ready to start our own beekeeping adventures!). I sincerely love when I’m able to share my work – and make connections with – people like this. You are the reason that I love my job!

 

Leather raven barrette with starry night forest design
Pacific Northwest raven barrette

 

 

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May Shop Update – You Must Believe in Spring

 

Today’s shop update is a celebration of spring! It’s an explosion of colorful butterflies, birds, flowers, and jewels. Like most artisans my work tends to mirror my interests, and this collection is no exception. My garden is my happy place, and these pieces are a clear reflection of the fact that it’s finally warming up enough for me to get back out there to start planting again. For my east coast friends who are still slogging through snow and ice, perhaps these creations can serve as a symbol of hope –  it may not feel like it at the moment, but spring is coming!

These offerings include a variety of leather barrettes and hair slides, as well as a few pair of hand crafted semiprecious stone earrings. You can find them here, and I do hope you’ll enjoy them!

purple and blue leather dragonfly barrette with quartz crystal dangle