BRACELETS GALORE!

A design by Eileen Barker renamed "Along the Seine" River (created during one of her trips to Paris!) and taught by Sandy Taylor at Bead Street.  It uses herringbone stitch down the middle with the 2-hole superduos (I interpersed both matte and polished super duos in the light yellow), 1.5 or 1.8 cubes for the peyote stitch and then finished with 11.0 sb.  It's a great pattern with lots of possibilities, which is another good teaching for me -- I bead tightly and as I continued to stitch this design, it continued to pull in the length... leaving me with a bracelet that was shorter than when I started!  Here's where the creative side of my brain has to kick in.  I haven't finished the bracelet below yet - no longer than normal closure designed as yet... so stay tuned.  However, the next pictures are the same pattern - a little more SPRING (in my step!) for sure.  I do love it when my creativity kicks in...

This is a pattern where it is important that your beads are close to the same size, and all in good shape -- culling them would be a good thing to do -- I was tring to pay attention, but alas, didn't notice and one of mine is slightly mis-shapen so it didn't fit in as well as it should have - if you look real close you will see it in the picture above.

This is the same design as above, just finished with a great closure, adding two rounds of super duos (on both side ends of the bracelet) and 11.0 sbs and a peyote stitched bar!  Aren't the colors fun?!  I think I may have lost the "Seine River" in this version - the center super duos are not as pronounced using two colors, but I love the different feel and look of the same pattern.  And, the added focal point of lucite flowers in the middle - large orange, mid sized bright pink and smaller turquoise, layered, add some add'l fun.  This is gonna be an eye catcher!

I continue to strive to make a leather wrap that goes flawlessly!  This one is getting there...I like the European looking Edelweiss clasp/button.

I think this is my favorite thus far, and it's a single wrap!  The mustard leather is so awesome with the turquoise 6mm Fire Polish and the closure is FANTASTIC -- it's a ceramic bead/button, made by Tracee Dock at The Classic Bead  Tracee is one of my favorite artists for sure!

SPICE BRACELET DESIGN

A Saturday bead class at Bead Street was just the medicine needed for my swirling emotions these days.  Still in the midst of our 2-yr old grandson's short-term health prognosis, I needed to just sit and bead and try to get my "diversion" groove back... it worked!  Thanks so much Sandy Taylor!  This bracelet is a lovely design by Linda Roberts, taught by Sandy.  Time consuming because every RAW unit needs to be reinforced twice (and the RAW portion of this pattern was a challenge at first!), to cinch it up a bit, but well worth the time and effort.  I think my version looks very southwestern.  Love the matte finish blue/gold multi colored SuperDuos I chose, along with the brighter purple, mixed with the SuperUnos I interchanged on the outer edge - every other one. See what you think.

 

LIFE, FAMILY AND MISC. BEADING

Life happens... and our priorities change for a time... mine sure have.  Unfortunately, our little 2 year old grandson, has been ill, so my beading has taken a very very back seat for a few weeks.  I just didn't feel much like beading... but I have been trying to finish a project here and there, and I had a leather wrap special order, so that one was done before all the stress began.   There have been many miles driven between Idaho and Montana, lots of calls and texts, and lots of concern, love, prayer and tears shed.  But, we are hopeful and full of very positive energy this afternoon - his platelets have headed back up and I just feel all those prayers and love have helped. Thanks everyone! Not sure what I would ever do without my peeps. 

Another version of the Crystal Windows pattern, but with only three windows instead of five from my previous post.  I thought "less might be more" so to speak, plus fewer to bang on a desktop or wherever during wear.  Tnis is a special version for my sister, Susan, who turned 61 last week. Hope she likes it!  The colors in this version turned out so great together! 

This is the special order wrap bracelet - I used "pleather".  It was awesome to work with and unlike the leather, it doesn't crack and look worn before you even put it on.  I had another bracelet completed, except for the thread tie off, and I can't really even describe what happened.  As I started to knot the end, the thread got all pulled and bunched up and I could not get it to straighten back out.  I was a little stressed by the time I cut that one apart and then finished this one!  I do love these bracelets, but the start and the finish give me a slight kick in the butt.  Can you spell a-n-a-l?

 

And, here's our sweet red headed boy, Noah.  WE LOVE YOU!

 

 

SHERBET COLORED LENTIL BRACELET +

It's been awhile (2011!) since I've stitched this lentil pattern, so when I heard it was going to be offered again (thx Sue!) at Bead Street, I jumped at it. Why not?  I love seeing Bead Street owner and beading guru extraordinaire Eileen, love her store, and all my beading friends... It's an awesome place to be on a Saturday afternoon!  So, I was ready to make something in a mixture of orange, pink, turquoise, and metallics, so this bracelet worked into my plan perfectly.  I started with a base using 8.0 seed beads, and from there used a mixture of 8.0 and 11.0 seed beads, lentils, 3mm rounds, drops and orange shell rounds for my "sherbet" lentil bracelet!  I stitched through the bracelet twice to get my desired fullness - I love this color combination.  Dang, but I could not get a picture to show the "true" colors no matter what lighting I used, so unfortunately, these shots do not show the absolute yumminess of this bracelet.  Have to see it to appreciate it, but you get the idea.  See what you think...

PLUS, I do love to alternate the types of projects I'm working on, so here's my previous project.  A pattern I found on Fusion Beads website,  using two-hole lentils with beading wire instead of fireline.  Fun change and very versatile. 

MORE BEADED PUFF BEADS

Here's the fun necklace made with three of the beaded puff beads from my last post (designed by SashaSi).  I beaded two in more of a navy color to intersperse with the sky blue bead.  It's an airy light necklace with an easy drape, and mixed with the sky blue earrings, a fun set.  The beads are fun to make - and, depending on your preference in stringing material - mine is FireLine at the moment - these beads will lay flat or puff up.  I tend to bead tight anyway, and with the FLine, they really puff!  Fun for a casual or middle of the road look... 

BEADED BEAD AND VERSATILE BRACELET DESIGN

My last post included the copperish/turquoise bracelet called Crystal Windows with peyote and RAW. I reworked it slightly and used larger beads (8.0) and AB crystals instead of the montees. Really a different look -- plus a bit more flash on the wrist.  These deep red AB bicones really show up in the picture, but they are much more subtle in person.  But, the contrast is lovely.

 

 

 

Here are the bracelets side by side -- a nice difference using small/larger seed beads.

 

 

These are my newest project - lovely beaded puff beads by SashaSi.  A fun class at Bead Street taught by Sandy Taylor.  I'll have a necklace to post in the near future using a few, different colored beads.  Beaded beads are so versatile and each one definitely has it's own look.  This pattern uses two-hole super duos.  And, love the new FP beads at Bead Street.  They just added the needed subtle glow to the drop.

 

 



 



2-HOLE TRIANGLE AND LENTIL BRACELETS

Here are a couple new pieces I learned at  Bead Street recently, using the two-hole triangles, which are the newest addition to my bead stash.  There are many new patterns being tested right now, and several are still in the testing phase as I mentioned in my last blog - those I won't be able to post for awhile.  But, these two patterns are out of the testing phase.  They use these awesome CzechMate beads, wich are so fun to work with!  The first design is "Cupids Crown", taught by Sue, adapted from a pattern designed by Nicole Starman and it uses 2 different colors of 2-hole  triangles, along with lentils, FP and 11.0 sb.  The class was to make a bracelet, but I thought it would be fun as a necklace... so I intermingled and reversed the colors in the crowns , using the same FP on each as the constant.  As with all these designs, the color combinations are only limited by the colors of the two-hole beads available.

Next, a design by Adele Kimpell perfectly named "Crystal Windows", taught by Sandy Taylor.  This pattern uses 11.0 seed beads, and is embellished with small crystal montees.  It's peyote stitch with RAW and picots for the centerpieces.  I'm trying the same pattern with 8.0 seed beads, and it's looking great so far.  Haven't decided what I'll put in the middle of the RAW--it'll be something other than the montees.

 

COLORFUL EARRING DESIGNS!

I've been participating in some "test" classes at Bead Street, and unfortunately due to the newness of the patterns and copyright issues,  I am unable to post the pretties.  But, suffice it to say... they are wonderful patterns using all things 2-hole, including lentels, super duos and the new triangles.  I hope to post them at some point in the future.  But, in the meantime, I'm playing with earrings for Spring.   

I LOVE THESE little bird nest  earrings!

 

I used a couple of the new 2-hole triangles, lentils and daggers in this pair. 

 

Lucite flower petals stacked in blue, green and turquoise w/3mm crystals
                                                                                                                               Mixed metals in silver and bronze

 

                  Some chain, some tiny drops, throw in a couple Tagua nut rounds, lucite flowers and Tagua nut rondelles and what ya got?  SPRING!  Ha ha.  If only it was that easy...