Beading Babes Project 9 Reveal

Hi everyone! Today is reveal day for Project 9 of the Beading Babes group. We had lots of lovely patterns to choose from for this Project, and I love the one that I chose to work on, the SuperNova bracelet by Lucy Baker, Bead and Button, Feb 2013. I couldn't wait to see how she created the structure of the focal piece. It is a very intriguing technique, and I'm so very glad I tried this project. I did have a few issues, but they led me to creative solutions, so I'm a happy camper. Here is a pic of the original project.
 (from Bead and Button website)


I was not in love with the band on this piece, so I worked some craw magic for mine! I actually made four strips, and joined two together with bicones on either end to create the bands for the bracelet. That allowed them to bend into an ellipse when the bracelet is worn, which I think looks quite lovely.

 I also made the toggle clasp with craw, to keep the symmetry flowing. I love how the band circles mimic the shape of the focal.

I kept my colors similar to the ones in the project, I love the soft, subtle look of this piece.

See that cool shape? It really looks awesome on your arm!

 I used the bicones sparingly, to give just that hint of sparkle.

 I chose to finish the focal with size 15's instead of the bicones. I love how it turned out.

I was thrilled to be able to donate this bracelet for a fundraiser...Silent Auction for the National Inclusion Project's 10th Anniversary Gala being held in Charlotte NC.

Blessings, Shirley

Goodies from The Beading Room

A few weeks ago, I entered to win a $100 gift certificate for The Beading Room. The giveaway was hosted on The Beading Gem's Journal. If you've never visited Pearl's site, you are missing out. She has some of the best jewelry posts out there. Tons of information, cool and funky jewelry, a bit of a history lesson thrown in there as well. And she has some seriously awesome giveaways. I was so very lucky to win this one from The Beading Room! They are located in Canada, but they ship worldwide.

Now, when Pearl wrote about them, she focused on the wire they have available in their store. So, I was very excited, since that is an area I'm just beginning to explore. But, oh my goodness, do they have so much more than just wire! It was quickly apparent to me that the hard part would be to only spend the $100!!

Wanna see what I picked out? Okey dokie!

Here's the whole Pile O Goodies. Now let's get some close-ups, so you can drool properly.

 I did get some wire, and a pretty copper clasp and some earwires in bright copper. I'm going to play with oxidizing those...

 Several noted kumihimo designers on Facebook use these gorgeous Unicorn Beads in their designs. I've been panting after them for a while, let me tell ya. And that toggle clasp above them is lampwork! Oh so pretty!

I have HANKS of beads!!!! Just seeing '71 grams' written on the bag made me swoon. The far right and middle are both a luscious color called Black Diamond. The tiny charlottes are a purple iris.

 I've heard Druks referred to as the workhorse of Czech beads. And that they are often overlooked. The color on these is so very pretty, and I'm anxious to play with them. I finally have some metal beads! You wouldn't believe how heavy that tiny tube is.  Ok, see the patterned beads to the left? They are MOOD Beads!! How cool is that? My daughter immediately snatched one for herself. Lucky thing I like her...

 Here's a close up of those pretty Druks.

 Love bicones, and I also got that middle package in the Black Diamond color. And some tiny 3mm pearls. Thinking I'm gonna be hanging out with Sabine Lippert's Beaded Fantasies....

Have you ever seen this shape? I think it's very unusual. They are called UFO's. Look at those colors!! Squee!

 I've only made one kumi braid with rattail, and I really wanted to make more. These are each 5 yards. Can't wait to play with them. And I got Anne Dilker's Kumihimo book.

I'm so very grateful to The Beading Room for such an awesome gift certificate. And that they carry such a beautiful and diverse stock. 

Now, if you don't hear from me for a while, you know what I'll be doing.....:)

Blessings, Shirley

It's 'Time to Stitch' again!!!

This is one of my very favorite challenges! Hosted by the awesome Therese Frank, and Christine Altmiller, this challenge explores beadweaving stitches. Sparks your creativity, and helps you work on some stitches that maybe....you've avoided in the past?? Yep.
This challenge was just a bit different, in that we were asked to create something from a flat stitch, and a spiral stitch.
So, for flat stitch, we could choose brick, ladder, or square. Oh joy. None of these guys are on my top list of faves....
Ok, so what about the spiral? Those were Russian, Cellini, or African. Better, much better. I've made Russian and Cellini, and haven't tried African yet, so....cool. Now, back to that flat stitch...
I have done some flat brick, specifically the leaves in Kerrie Slade's English Rose pattern. Loved them!!! So let's just go see what we can find, cause of course, I needed to try something new, right?
I found this tute, and decided to try it. A friend had asked me to make a bracelet for her daughter, using some bicones that her daughter had been gifted. I thought this would make a perfect teen bracelet.

I love the color combo, and it is an eye-catching pattern.

 However, my tiny bit of OCD kicks in, and that uneven edge really bothers me. :)

But it was totally fun to make, and I think if I made it with an even edge, I'd really love it, so I'm going to try that. I'll post pics and you can help me decide. 

What I enjoyed was the opportunity to search out patterns that I may have otherwise overlooked.

I really thought I was going to try the African helix for my spiral stitch. I have Carol Cypher's book, Mastering Beadwork, and she explains that stitch very clearly. But I ran just a bit short on time, so I went with a stitch I knew I could do quickly....the Cellini spiral. I really love this stitch, and it's endless variations. However, I usually make a short tube of it, as I've found I don't love how it becomes stiff in a bangle or necklace. Now, I'm really not the best at decreasing smoothly, or transitioning from one stitch to another, so I was pleasantly surprised at how well I did this time.

 The color combo started with the beautiful, soft yellow Twin beads by Preciosa. In the Cellini, you are building from smallest bead to largest. My smalls were size 15 Hyacinth AB, moving to an orange-red size 11, then to the lime size 8's, and finally the yellow twins, then back down again.

I love the vibrant color palette, perfect for summer. I transitioned the cellini to CRAW. I made one side of the CRAW, measured it to fit my wrist, and embellished it. That's when my daughter spied it. She's almost 13, and a tiny thing. These are some of her favorite colors, so she immediately asked if it was for her. Hmmm, now I had a dilemma. I had to make the other side the same length as the first...but that would be too big for her wrist, after adding the toggle.

 Well, we discovered that using a small magnetic clasp would make the size work for her. It's just a bit loose, but she loves it. And I love that I get to see how well that clasp worked. Again, I would not have ever thought to use it, until circumstances pushed me there. Thanks Therese and Christine, for another great challenge!

Here is the list of folks participating in the challenge:

Therese Frank

Christine Altmiller

Maryanne Gross
Cynthia Machata

Bobbie Rafferty

Katherine Gale

Sally Russick

Niky

Alenka

Kim Hora

Karin Slaton

                     Shirley Moore You are here

Tami Norris

Amy Severino

Alicia Marinache

Lola Surwillo

Mandy Duffy

Kristen Stevens

Have a great time checking out all the eye candy! Blessings, Shirley

Beading Babes Reveal

Hi all! Today is reveal day for our current Beading Babes projects.  We were extremely blessed to be offered a pattern from Helena Tang-Lim's shop, Manek-Manek Beads at a special price. We also chose Helena's pattern, Nefertiti, from the June 2012 issue of Bead and Button.  I was able to make both projects, which was a close thing, due to my obsession commitment to some other challenges.
When I first started out, I couldn't understand why people would make someone else's design, if they were trying to sell their own stuff. It didn't apply to me, since I wasn't selling, but I just kept wondering. Well, now I know. Helena takes some simple ideas, and turns them into beautiful designs. Her instructions are well written, and easy to understand. And if you don't understand...she's so very available to answer any questions.  I also appreciate how adaptable her patterns are to your personal taste. The bracelet pattern could be worked up in one, two, or three rows. I chose to work mine in 2 rows, using some wonderful bronze iris Czech beads and white pearls. I love the contrast, and the organic feel the Czech beads gave to it. I followed that organic theme by using freshwater pearls for the clasps.

The Nefertiti necklace is a serious statement, designed to get noticed. I adapted the pattern a bit, since I didn't have any luck finding the coin beads needed for the project quickly enough. I chose an open MOP circle, and inserted a FP bead in the middle. I also decided to make the necklace with the 3 small pendants, since my personal style is a bit more casual than the full version.

I only used the small pendants for my version.

Close up of the clasp. I did not add the fringe beads to it, again going for that more casual look.

 I added more of the fire polished every 2 inches to the herringbone rope.

I fell in love with the clasp on this necklace.  And I know, without a doubt, that I would not have been able to make it if I hadn't made Nancy Dale's Trellis necklace for our last project.  That is what I discovered about other people's patterns. They make you better, and help you with your creative process. They also make you extremely grateful to the talented folks who spend their time and effort to make their designs available to everyone.
This has, as usual, been a blast, and I'm already excited about our next project reveal! To find out more, please head over to Karyn's blog, ReleasesbyRufydoof.blogspot.com.
Blessings,
Shirley