Artbeads Winter Enchantment Project

My backyard in January

For this season's Artbeads.com blogger project, we were asked to design jewelry based on winter. Here in Wisconsin, winter is a long season. Our first cold snap comes in October and we're usually not seeing daffodils until late April. The season is long, but it isn't bleak. We have wonderful white snow, beautiful bare brown branches, and brilliant blue skies peeking through whenever we can. For this project, I wanted to explore working with some new-to-me materials. While I often use glass beads in my designs, I haven't worked with artisan-made lampworked beads before.  I was immediately drawn to these lampworked art beads when I started planning my winter-white necklace. Brass accents and just a hint of blue completed the palette, and I had this design together in no time.



Winter White necklace



Earrings

Beaded links connected by large jump rings

This necklace and earrings set came together very nicely. My original intention was to string the necklace, but I wanted the lampworked beads to be visible from all sides. Making beaded links instead set the beads off. I rummaged through my supplies for brass jump rings, thinking 5 or 6 mm would be the perfect size. I only found these super-sized rings, though, so I decided to try it out. I like the look even better. It's more open and airy. 

Do you design by purpose, by "happy accident," or a little of each?

Disclaimer: The lampworked beads, brass beadcaps, and brass findings  used in this project were provided to me free of charge by Artbeads. My review is my opinion and I have not been paid for my endorsement.

Colors of Fall Design Challenge

My first job out of college was at a small advertising and public relations firm in Philadelphia. I was a PR writer and I loved everything about that job -- my new Mac (circa 1985), my downtown office and commute, crisp business cards, exciting clients, demanding deadlines -- all of it. But what really intrigued me was the art department. They did magical things with x-acto knives, tissue paper, typography books, markers, fine-line pens, and Spray Mount. But the most magical of all was the Pantone color set. I found it mesmerizing.

I must say 25 years later the world of graphic design is still magical and mysterious to me. But thanks to modern technology, I can pretend every now and then, and play around with type, color, and layouts on my own.

That's why this month's Artbeads Blog Partner challenge was so much fun. We were asked to visit Pantone's site and review the newly released Fall Fashion Color Collection. I had a little too much fun playing with the Color Scheme Designer 3 tool. It helped me see combinations in new ways, and kept me from relying on my usual favorites.

For my inspiration colors, I selected lagoon, chocolate truffle, rose dust, and endive. I started with chocolate truffle (who wouldn't?). In the glass bead category I found 8mm deep cut nuggets in brown tiger eye and topaz. For the endive, I went to the gemstones and selected these adorable little peridot rounds. The copper-plated leaf links brought in the rose dust. At first I was challenged to find a blue that was true to Pantone's Lagoon and then I remembered to check the ceramics. These aqua glazed porcelain roundels were just the accents I needed.

Here's my two-strand necklace, accented with autumn leaves and copper chain. For fun, I tried adding color to the copper components with ammonia. My hope was to capture the color of the porcelain beads. You can see traces of aqua on the leaves. It worked much better on the earrings!

These earrings combine peridot dangles with porcelain beads and copper leaves. Perfect for summer-into-fall accessorizing.

Finally, I took all the extras and assembled this jumbled bangle bracelet. I love how the tiny peridot beads peek out from the copper web.

What are your inspirations this fall?

Disclaimer: The beads and copper links used in this project were provided to me free of charge by Artbeads. My review is my opinion and I have not been paid for my endorsement.

Summer Days, Summer Nights

This month's Artbeads blogging theme was summer-time fun. When I think of summer, I think of sun, sand, and slowing down. These sunny day bracelets are a perfect way to capture the mood.


I love, love, love the Czech glass from Artbeads. My new favorite is the fire polished fuchsia and lemon. Just like a summer sunset! I combined the fuchsia and lemon with Ruby AB, Orange AB, and a mix of pink tones. I like using pre-mixed blends for bracelets like these, because there are always some unique colors I may have not found myself.


Whenever I went on vacation as a little girl, I would always pick a silver charm for my charm bracelet to remind me of my trip. Today, you can pick charms like these to represent a memory, or maybe just to dream about a vacation you wish you had! Check out all the charms here.

When I finished my sunny day bracelets, my thoughts immediately turned to summer nights. What better frame for this dragonfly charm than a twinkling of crystals, just like the first stars that emerge from the twilight?

I am still having camera trouble, but hopefully these pictures are clear enough to spark your imagination and inspire a little summer time creativity!

Disclaimer: The charms and Czech glass beads were provided to me free of charge from Artbeads. My review is my opinion and I have not been paid for my endorsement.

Happy Spring

Today is the first day of Spring, and after a little snowfall yesterday, we have sunny skies and warm(er) temperatures. In honor of this delightful day, I bring you my latest Artbeads creation.

When I heard the theme was "The Beauty of Spring" I went immediately to the Czech Glass and selected large bell flowers in translucent white and pink crystal. I also chose small fuchsia crystal and a blue/purple/jonquil combination. I knew balled headpins would add the detail the flowers needed. Because I would be using plain loop connections, I only needed 1 1/4" long headpins. Here's my tray of goodies before I got started:





I was going for the look of a group of naturalized flowers that had just burst forth from the ground. While we do have a few shoots peeking out from the muddy ground, we're still about a month away from flowers, so I had to use my memory and imagination for inspiration. Fixing the looped flowers to chain would give the clustering look I wanted. I started with the largest beads, since I had fewer of those. I added a tiny daisy spacer to the headpin, and then the glass flower.




Are you wondering about that out-of-place coral round? Well, that's what I use to measure so I get uniform loops. It takes 1 cm of wire to turn a plain loop. My red bead is a 10mm. So, by placing it on my headpin, making a flush cut above it, and then removing the bead, all my loops will be even. I ended up making more than 60 for this necklace, so having a guide really helped.




Here's the cut wire just before I made the loop:



Enough of the tutorial! I know you really just want to see the end result! Here's the necklace:




And a closer view:




I made these silver connectors to help space out the crowded chains. I like a lush fullness but not a jumbled mess!




I liked the connectors so much, I thought they would make nice earrings:



And just for fun, I made a hula-hoop inspired pair:


How did you celebrate the first day of Spring? To win a pair of earrings, leave a comment and let me know! Become a follower or link to this post on your blog, and you'll get a second entry. I'll draw the winning names on March 31 -- one for the hoops and one for the dangles.

Disclaimer: I have received these beads (glass flowers and headpins) free of charge from Artbeads.com. My review is my own opinion and I have not been paid for this endorsement.

Hearts!

This month, the Artbeads blogging project was hearts. Imagine my delight! I had a really hard time selecting, because there were so many amazing choices. I finally honed in on these unusual copper heart pendants and beads. I also chose a few heart-themed charms. See more copper choices here. I had a great time working with the copper hearts. They are so warm and inviting.

Here are the hearts, charms, and clasp I started with:
I raided my stash of 3 mm and 4 mm gemstones and pearls for this necklace, and added a second strand of tiny size 15 copper charlottes:



This piece is what I had in mind when I placed my order. I dipped into my collection of Czech crystals, leftover copper beadcaps, and chain for this unusual assortment. I love how the entire piece came together:


Finally, the largest pendant needed just a simple backdrop. I had a too-short chain piece, but by combining it with the silk ribbon and just two bead links, the necklace is the perfect length. That's why you should save your scraps! You never know:


So what are your plans for Valentine's Day? You still have time to make yourself a special accessory. I'll be wearing these necklaces all month!



Disclaimer: I have received these beads free of charge from Artbeads. My review is my own opinion and I have not been paid for my endorsement.

New Work

A few weeks ago an early Christmas present arrived from Artbeads ... some Hill Tribe Silver components and some Czech glass. It's taken me a while to make jewelry to show you and to get the pictures taken, but I'm finally done. Meredith stepped in and took over the photo shoots for me. She's much more dedicated than I am and I hope you enjoy her photography here.

The first pieces I worked with were Hill Tribe Silver. I've written about Hill Tribe Silver before. It's one of my favorites, perhaps because the pendants are so natural, or perhaps because the tribe is named Karen...

Here's a description from the Artbeads Website:

These Thai beads and pendants are made by the Karen Hill Tribe in northern Thailand using traditional tribal methods passed down from generation to generation. Purchasing these Thai beads helps sustain a traditional craft and provides the Karen people with a reliable source of income. The silver content in our Hill Tribes silver beads and pendants is typically 95-99%, even higher than sterling (92.5%). This higher silver content is softer and therefore easier to shape into all the unique and wonderful styles. On close inspection you will notice that no two pieces are exactly alike, attesting to the handmade nature of these beautiful pieces.

When Hill Tribe Silver was first available, there were pendants and beads to choose from, but not many findings. Now, you can find everything you need to complete a necklace. I fell in love with this flower pendant, but I'm also happy I could choose cones and a clasp to match. Because the silver is more pure than sterling, it has a whiter appearance. I'm happy that the finishing components match the focal pendant. For this necklace, I mixed in some tiny 3mm pearls, seed beads that reminded me of the sea and sand, and some knot-shaped accent beads I had in my stash.

Here's another view:

Next came these cute Hill Tribe Silver hearts. I was in a Twilight mood, so I added ruby red crystal drops. Meredith's photo treatment creates a softer, more organic mood, though -- similar to the spirit of the original hearts.

I switched gears when it came to the Czech glass, going for a more sophisticated holiday-party look. I love these fire polished dark green round beads, and while my design may not be the most creative, it's classic, especially for this time of year. I created a cascade by extending a length of chain, and wrapping a bead on each side of each link, with three on the bottom. Then, I added a few linked beads to accent the chain. The necklace is about 15 inches, with a 3-inch dangle.

While I was compiling my order, a suggestion popped up. I really like it when websites have the "you may also like" feature, because honestly, there are so many choices it can be hard to decide. I never would have seen these beads, but I was intrigued by the silver lining. I chose five 10 mm and decided to pair them with 4 mm silver and blue rounds. By stringing random patterns and adding 6 mm silver rounds, I created an icy holiday mix that really catches the light.

Just because I can't choose from Meredith's great shots, here's one more of the flower pendant:

So, what do you think? Did you make any gifts for yourself this year?

Disclaimer: I have received these beads free of charge from Artbeads. My review is my own opinion and I have not been paid for my endorsement.

Playtime

Now that I've finished the book and taken a little break from jewelry making, it was fun to take some time and play. Making jewelry just for me helps me explore new ideas and push myself into new areas. This week I had great fun with some unusual Swarovski products from Artbeads.

I had never seen this crystal-wrapped faux suede before, and now that fall is here, I was in the mood to experiment with browns and coppers. I used the smoked topaz and golden yarns blended with indigo-crystal accented copper chain. I really like the combination of soft and hard materials. To finish, I used a topaz rock pendant. For me, it gives the right weight to the design while keeping with the natural theme. What do you think?

Next up, I wanted to experiment a little more with my copper wire. I love the combination of the indigo with the dark copper. Isn't this copper ball just the cutest thing? I made it in the same way you'd begin to ball yarn, and just strung crystals along the way.

Once you start working with new metals like copper, you quickly realize that if you've made a necklace, it's time for coordinating earrings. I'm not a fan of matchy-matchy, but I love to coordinate.

And just because I couldn't stop, I made a silver pair.

If you're a crystal geek, you know that Swarovski has recently discontinued its line of bicone crystals (5301) and replaced it with the new Xilion cut 5328, seen here. I'm happy to report that from a distance, they look just like bicones, but the sparkle is significant. If you have a stash of bicones, you can easily blend them with the new cut. These have a 2x AB finish.

Thanks, Artbeads, for letting me play.