COLOR OF SPRING AROUND YOUR WRIST!

Here's a color variation on the Thorny Twig (Preciosa) design from an earlier post using the wonderful new Chilli beads .  I do love color, which you already know... and these colors shout S P R I N G! And, the button - isn't it a great final addition?  Can't even say where I might have gotten it, but when I saw it, I knew immediately it was the finishing touch for this piece. And, then I added Czech dragon scale beads around the loop for interest.

"RIGHT IN LINE" PUBLISHED BRACELET DESIGN!

A beautiful new bracelet design (Right in Line) by my mentor, bead store owner, incredible designer, and MOST IMPORTANTLY good friend, Eileen Barker -- just published in the Bead & Button, February 2016 issue.  An ELEGANT design, and one that will take your breath away, both while you are making it, and once completed.  It's a substantial, weighty, gorgeous piece.  

We convened for a group beading day, and tried to follow the condensed instructions in the magazine.  It doesn't get any better than having the designer at the beading table with you!  I like to have a longer thread, which for this piece, I now know I need to reconsider.  My length of fireline kept catching on all the other beads, the further into the piece I got.  Yes, Eileen, I'm listening... I need shorter thread.  Thank you for this incredible design.  LOVE IT!

And, as you'll see below, I altered the design ever so slightly and added in two 4mm fire polish on my first row, when it was supposed to be one, so I went with that and alternated every fourth row with the two, plus used a different color.  

AN OWL FOR ALL SEASONS!

Another New Year creation, which started with the beaded beads (using superduos) in black/brown/brushed gold.  I saw the pattern for a bracelet in Bead&Button, Feb 2014, (Michelle McEnroe) and knew individual beads would be awesome in a special piece.  And, the pendant (Golem Design) was too adorable, and went perfectly with my color choices. Love this owl and the look of the whole piece.  I'm getting more and more confident in my wire wrappings.  I really enjoy the contrast between, and the combining of, wire, stitched beading, ceramics and anything else I can find to incorporate.

BACK TO IT IN STYLE!

The Holidays are behind me and this New Year 2016 well under way!    The first three months of this year will be filled with lots of new designs, creativity with my wonderful beading friends / designers, and some gift making, all with a happy heart as I sit down to bead.  There really isn't anything I'd rather be doing when I need to "zone out" and be one with my inner creative girl.  It is a very therapeutic hobby, which I love.  So... Here I go...this set is new for 2016.  A lovely pendant from Tracee Dock at the Classic Bead, went beautifully with the daintiness of the final piece.  The copper twigs are wonderful (altho little hard to find) and I added a little patinaed wire wrapping to attach the pendant to the necklace. As I was making the earrings I knew they would be wonderful, and they are!  The horseshoe shape (design by Jennifer and Susan Schwartzenberger (Beadwork, winter 2016) adds a new dimension I think -I am still in love with the art of stitching around a component (of any kind). The bracelet is a pattern from Preciosa they named Thorny Twig, learned en masse with my beading buddies in our first gathering for awhile.  It was a wonderful Saturday!  Note the new Chilli beads which Eileen is carrying at Bead Street.  Thank you to Sandy and Eileen for helping us make this new design.