TOOTH DAGGER MAGNESITE / CORAL NECKLACE FOR FUN!

My own JDreams design using magnesite tooth daggers, Czech turquoise Picasso stones (like marbled lava rock) and authentic coral pieces inbetween.  Love this piece.  Very fun to wear and these colors are oh so popular.  Earrings to match.  I purchased the daggers in Helena, MT and the lava rock from my favorite bead shop, yes... Bead Street of course.  The coral I had in my stash... where so many of my wonderful beads live.

VARIED COLORS CHANGE THE LOOK!

 A varied version of Svetlana Einy's design from my last post.  I think my choice of colors on this bracelet makes it look more Native American with the turquoise, mustard and dark coral/copper.  I did alter the pattern ever so slightly by inserting a few dark coral / turqoise bricks inbetween the triangles, which kind of gives a hinge look. I finished it off with button/peyote loop closure. 

 

 

A side by side comparison of my two versions of the same pattern - color can certainly change the look!

 

 

2-HOLE BRICKS - SWITCHING GEARS TO A TONED-DOWN, MODULAR DESIGN

It just seemed like the right time to try colors I wouldn't normally choose, and this selection (thank you Sandy Taylor!) fit the bill.  This combination is wonderful with denim, which I happened to be wearing that day to class!  This is a design from artist and Starman Trendsetter Svetlana Einy, called "Shadow Valley".  A fun pattern using 2-hole bricks, coupled with two colors of 2-hole triangles, 11.0 and 15.0 seed beads.   This bracelet feels great on the wrist - light, flat and airy!  At first glance, the directions in the pattern are truly daunting, but it really comes together very well, as long as you pay attention to the direction of your beading, left or right.  If you forget, say... on one row, you might just have your triangles going down under instead of upright!  Ha ha ... Not that I would know anything about that.

 

 

My closure is a button/loop.  I embellished the brass flower with a Czech glass star flower and 11.0 and 15.0 sb.

TAGUA NUT ROUNDS FINISH OFF PEYOTE CUFF

Bright , playful summer cuff, complete from my last post!  It took me awhile to figure out which fringe looked best and what might go in the center.  It just needed some flair... I have these wonderful tagua nut rounds in differing colors (took me awhile to find the darn things in my stash...) but once I did... oh, I thought the bright pink was perfect, topped with a small lucite flower and 11.0 sb.  I think the three center pieces really brought the free-form project together.  This is a bright piece, not to be worn lightly-- a statement all in itself. I love this bracelet!

 

LENTILS, FIRE POLISH AND PEARLS ... +

A fun Saturday afternoon spent b-e-a-d-i-n-g!  Imagine!  This is a pattern designed by Eileen at Bead Street while she was in Paris a couple years ago with her besty Barb, with newly written instructions and class taught by Sandy Taylor.  Beads used were two hole lentils, 4mm fire polish, 4mm pearls for the center of the flower, 11.0 and 15.0 seed beads for the outer scroll stitch. 

This is one of my own JDreams designs using flat 2-drop even count peyote.  Colors added to colors.  And, it's still a work-in-process, so stay tuned for the finished version.  I started to use one fringe, and then took that off - started another version, and who knows where it will end up.  These are definitely beautiful spring colors that will go with so many things...

MULTI-COLORED SUPERDUOS BRACELET

I  really love designs that provide me an opportunity to make them my own, like this pattern - a bit of color, a tweak here and there, and it becomes a personal project.  I enjoy multi-colored, seasonal jewelry that will go with just about anything, and this fits that perfectly!  Love love love my color choices, with the changing flowers and the 2mm orange AB crystals inserted with bright purple 15.0 on either side, making it complete (they kind of look blue in these photos, but they really are a bright purple).  You can see just what you can do with color, by looking at my last post of this same design ["Annelies Bracelet" by Ellad Des and taught by Sandy Taylor at Bead Street].  On this version, I used antique brass jump rings and toggle clasp for my closure, which made that part easy.

NEON SHADE OF SUPERDUOS MAKE A SPLASH!

A wonderful three-day weekend - one afternoon of it spent beading, chatting, laughing, etc. with my friends and fellow beadaholics at Bead Street!  I chose one of Eileen's new neon shades of two-hole superduos (magenta-ish) for this project below and oohhh la laaaa.  It's absolutely a jaw dropper color in person, at least I think so!  The pattern uses superduos, 8.0, 11.0 and 15.0 sbs, plus 4mm fire polish.  I added a 3mm round with 15.0 on either side down the middle to make the flowers pop, plus added drops to my closure loop.  I've gotta say, that's my favorite signature finish to any pattern -- and depending on the button used, it makes getting the bracelet on and off much easier.
 

A beautiful pattern named "Annelies Bracelet", designed by Ellad Des, and taught by Sandy Taylor at Bead Street.

A couple other projects I played with as time permitted over the Memorial Day Holiday. A wonderfully fun change of pace -- a Happy Mango Beads project designed by Erin Siegel for HMB.  The bright colors, wood rounds and brass Ethiopian beads grabbed me, plus it's multi-wear -- as a double drape necklace or a multi stack bracelet.  I like it best as a bracelet, but love the versatility.  All done on 1.5 mm leather with fun heart attached anywhere you want!

And, last but not least, another  casual wrap bracelet on 1.5 leather using wonderful crow glass beads (and czech donut rounds) with that same darlin' heart dangle -- because the glass can get heavy, I only did two strands.

Additional Spring Color projects . . .

A couple additional projects . . . Colors are not as true in these photos as I would have liked, but you'll get the idea.  I tried the dark silver, almost black, chain link with the pink leather and LOVE IT, for both the necklace and the wrap bracelet.  It shows the deep contrast of the two -- really shows off both the leather and the chain links, I think.  I've also shown the earrings again from my last post to show how cute the group is together.  The darlin bee pendant (It's really a clasp, but I used it as a pendant!) is a Gaea original; the pewter heart button is green girl studios. 



A turquoise necklace with an adorable owl. I found "him" in Helena, MT. It's not ceramic, but more of a pliable clay-like material. This piece just came together - I had the right beads in my head and in view - and it all worked well, from strining the first bead... Can't remember where I got the ceramic flower beads, but the roughened Czech glass turqoise beads came from Bead Street and I tossed in copper for the spacers and closure.