Bead Soup Blog Party - Second Reveal

As we embark on today’s Bead Soup Blog Party reveal, I’d like to start by thanking Lori Anderson, the visionary and organizer extraordinaire behind this fun and fabulous event...and my partner in this second reveal. If you haven't already, click over right now to her Pretty Things blog to see what Lori created from the Soup I sent her.

Here’s a reminder of the sumptuous Soup I received from Lori.

 

The Thai silver focal is embossed with elephants and my first design was inspired by the power and beauty of these animals, resplendent in their colorful trappings and ornate saddle cloths.

The pendant arrived complete with fringed tassel added by Lori and her note let me know the chain was from AD/Adornments.  Kathy Domokos still stocks the chain, so I was able to order some and separate the tiny metal drops to use as fringe on my brick-stitched bail.

Although I used only the focal and the pewter spacers in my first piece, my color palette comes from the rest of the soup ingredients - the intensely saturated blues and aqua blue-greens of the Kazuri beads;  a muted version of the orange-red from the handmade glass discs and the lighter purples in the amethyst. I wanted the necklace to have a tribal vibe, so I constructed two kumihimo ropes, using size 11 sterling, pewter and zinc metal beads, along with opaque gunmetal that closely matches the drops in Lori’s fringe, and wrapped the ropes tightly in peyote-stitched bands.

The rope ends are finished with Kazuri rounds and the pewter spacers from Lori’s soup, which proved to be the perfect embellishment for my handmade S-clasp. I wanted this necklace to be adjustable from 16 to 19 inches, and I was reserving the pewter clasp for my second piece.

The nearly matte finish of the deep amethyst discs is striking and brings out the luminosity of the Kazuri beads. For the bracelet, I scaled the kumihimo ropes down to one inch and used Japanese charlottes in pewter and silver to complement the silver tones in Lori’s clasp. The elephant charm is from Nina Designs.

Again, thanks to Lori for sending such fantastic materials to inspire me. I still have lots to play with after today's challenge. But wait… the fun has just begun. Click on this link to explore the designs of all the other participants in the Second Reveal.

#OpenHand

The American Dialect Society chose the Twitter-inspired term, hashtag, as their word of the year for 2012. My word for 2012 was explore, and it was a great year for new challenges and discoveries. If you followed along on my blog, I am so grateful for your readership. This year, I’m trying something different – I’m setting the tone for 2013 with a symbol instead of a word. A symbol to guide me spiritually, personally and professionally.

 

A lot of things in my life were pointing me to my symbol of the open hand – the writing of Jennifer Rothschild, as some friends and I took up her study, Missing Pieces. Jennifer encouraged us to greet each morning with hands open to receive whatever God has for us in this day.

 

This print by mixed media artist, LalyBlue, drew me in with its open hand. Finished while we were both taking Kelly Rae Roberts' online class, Flying Lessons, LalyBlue asked the group to help her name it and chose “Touch the Dream” from the many suggestions.

 

LalyBlue's painting was my inspiration for this lariat, which I plan to wear often this year to keep me focused on the goals I've given myself. Three weeks in, it's a gentle reminder that 2013 encircles me, supple and fluid. And that turning my ideas into actions begins with a hand open to the promise and the possibilities.

Color Challenge - Monochromatic

My color challenge this week was to make three monochromatic pieces, using three elements in each. Starting with my favorite hue - green - I chose a cool aloe green seed bead to make up the greatest percentage of these Diane Fitzgerald pointed oval earrings, accented with a warmer yellow-green in a luster finish at the tips and a matte finish around the edges. A pale green crystal nestles in the center.

Next, I liked the way the smooth, creamy surface of the blue-green pearls in this earring design from Fusion Beads is countered by the brightness of the pure blue indicolite drop. I topped them with a small aquamarine crystal.

My final project is a kumihimo woven bracelet that combines 4mm translucent glass beads in dark and light blue with two different size 8 seed beads; a matte shade of midnight blue and a silver-lined tint of blue. A glance at this on your wrist proves the theory that a single color can be interesting if the tone and finishes are varied!

Beads and Braids

Last week I took a beginning Kumihimo class with Becky Patellis. While most beading classes end up being social gatherings to get to know like-minded students and swap ideas, this class was a little different. We were all so intent on repeating the mantra: right down, left up, turn while moving the cords across our kumihimo discs, that I don’t think I even remember anyone else’s name! Still, a fun afternoon learning a lovely and fast technique – all of us finished our bracelets in the three-hour class.


My bracelet colors were inspired by the liriope that bloom all over Atlanta this time of year.