This year, the Beadwork site will be participating in About.com's annual Readers' Choice Awards, and nominations will be accepted in nine categories starting on January 13, 2011.

The 2011 Readers' Choice Awards showcase the best in products, services and features in categories that range from hobbies to parenting to tech gear and gadgets. This year, the awards have greatly expanded to include 80 topics. Nominations are accepted in all categories from January 13th until February 4th at 11:59 p.m. EST. There are no "prizes" - the winners get bragging rights and a nifty little graphic to put on their web sites.

You can read all about the Beadwork categories and then fill out the nomination form. The top five nominees in each category will be used in the final voting, which begins in February.

Look for a special newsletter later this week that will contain the link to the nomination form. Have fun, and tell your friends!

Last year, I participated in my first-ever Bead Soup Blog Party through Lori Anderson's blog, Pretty Things. Lori is a self-representing lampwork and bead artist, and her blog is always full of thoughtful posts about beading, business and family.

I'm all ready to sign up for my second Bead Soup Blog Party, and you can, too! First, you have to have a blog. (If you don't have one, this is the time to start one!) Second, just follow the instructions for sending Lori your email address and blog. Third, once you send and receive your pack of beads, you will have about three to four weeks to make your creation - and then the fun begins! Lori will be posting links to everyone's blog on her blog, so we get to see who got what beads, as well as the finished piece made with those beads.

The Party is open to international beaders, too, so those of you who live outside the U.S. are welcome to participate. And there are just a few rules for picking out your Bead Soup to send to your swap partner: you need to include one (or more) large focal bead; you need to include some spacers and/or coordinating beads; and you need to include a nice clasp - not just a regular old lobster claw, but something that's special.

When I participated last summer, I received an amazing packet of beads from a beader in Arizona, and I quickly set out to create a piece that really surprised me, since the beads that I chose to use were not beads that I would normally have been drawn to. It was a lot of fun, very inspiring, and gave me some ideas for taking my beadwork in a whole new direction.

Sign up for the Bead Soup Blog Party opens on January 7 and closes on January 14. You can read all the instructions and rules on Lori Anderson's blog, Pretty Things, under the Bead Soup Blog Party tab. Don't miss out on this amazing party!

So, I'm five days into my Earring-a-Day challenge, and so far, I think I'm doing pretty well! There have been a couple of times when I've had to finish the second earring in a pair on the following day, but at least I get all the photographs and instructions done the same day.

The first pair that I did was almost enough to make me give up, but of course, that wouldn't have looked very good on the first day. I made this pair of Twisted Peyote Circle earrings using a simple peyote stitched ring as the base - but I was using Fireline instead of my preferred Nymo, and it took me three tries to get the tension right so that I didn't break any beads when zipping it together!

The second pair, the Disco Brick Stitch Earrings, I totally hated at first. But after I wore them a couple of times, I realized that they are just right for wearing with my favorite black t-shirt and jeans.

The third pair, the Peyote Wrap earrings, were so much fun, partly because I designed them in my sleep! I'm one of those people who likes to problem-solve in my sleep, and I also find that when it's hard for me to fall asleep sometimes, I'll start thinking about my next beading project in order to get myself to relax. The idea for these earrings came from seeing a little bag of large green Aventurine beads sitting next to a peyote stitch bracelet that I'm working on. I thought about the idea of wrapping the Aventurine beads with a piece of peyote stitch, and sure enough, it was easier than I thought! (Of course, it also gave me another idea for another series of beaded earrings, which you'll see later on this month.)

That's as far as I've gotten with photos and stitching, but yesterday, I completed a pair of earrings I'm calling Autumn Harvest that are made with seed beads and tiny 3mm amber beads, and then earlier today, I finished a pair made with two types of Czech fire polished beads and blue iris seed beads in three different sizes.

As I make each pair, I'll be posting tutorials and patterns on the site, so keep checking back for new patterns every few days! I'll have to make another pair tomorrow, but I have no idea what it will be. I'll have to see what I can come up with as I fall asleep tonight!

For 2011, I'm doing things a little differently. Since I've never made a beaded ornament before (and I've been beading since I was 16!), I figured it was about time I tried one. So this year, I'll be making a different beaded ornament every month from Deb Moffett-Hall's Ornament of the Month Club.

I have to admit, I was a little intimidated at the thought of beading one of these ornaments. But it was so much fun, and I loved embellishing the ornament with all the tiny loops of fringe and beaded drops!

The kit included everything I needed to make the ornament, right down to the needle and thread. It also included a white satin-matte finish ornament and a stand to hang the finished ornament. The finished ornament itself was even light enough to hang on my Christmas tree.

You can find all the information about Deb's Ornament of the Month and Bracelet of the Month kits on her website, Patterns To Bead. Deb has a preview of the February ornament up on the site, and I can't wait to get my kit so I can get started on the next one!