On the Bead Table...

"Welcome to my Blog" to new visitors.

Here is my introduction for the purposes of joining the Swap 'N' Hop.

I started by stringing beads after several of my store-bought costume jewelry pieces broke.  I looked at the methods of construction and the stringing materials. I was already a quilter, and had tried many other crafts, so stringing beads was the next step. Here are some early pieces, still some of my favorites:

 

The style of jewelry I make has changed over the years, from stringing to more mixed media, as I became a Michaels Jewelry instructor and started following blogs of jewelry makers such as Lorelei Eurto. I soon became aware of artisan beads and have started to incorporate more hand crafted beads and to move beyond store-bought findings to working with wire to create my own eyepins and connectors. Technique-wise, I joined a bead guild a couple of years ago, which has expanded my interests, so I am trying out bead-weaving and bead embroidery as well. I have tended to use seed beads primarily as spacers.

My attraction to semi-precious beads comes from my training in Chemistry and my interest in minerals. I also like the natural look of stones and fossils. I now have a collection of glass beads, tending more towards the Picasso Czech beads. I’m not much of a fan of bling, but I do appreciate a nice Swarovski crystal now and then, as an accent. I avoid most acrylic beads, although I have used a few for their color.

The bead colors I tend to buy are fall tones plus warm tones such as turquoise. I have yellow and orange in my stash but don’t reach for them often. I don't wear pink, so it's not often a first choice. I’m pretty open to new items that I have not used before. (I have a collection of gears marketed to jewelry making, but have not used many.) That sums up my jewelry resume!

 

I signed up for the Bead Journal Project, in which we commit to doing a journal-type bead project (doesn't have to be bead embroidery, but that was the original concept) each month for the year, with an option to do every other month for a total of six projects. I got started on a January/February piece this week.

Christmas Gifts:

The year closed with a few last-minute jewelry gifts to finish up. I took an in-progress photo and then finished this necklace just as we were going out the door. Thus no final photo. The gifted proudly wore it the next day, and has recieved many compliments, so success!

Carnelian chips and silver plated wire, gift in-progress

New Year, New Opportunities:
With the holidays past, and decorations put away, there's time for organization, and reflection and planning. Some informal resolutions in the back of my mind. On my list of new techniques to try are metal working, particularly stamping and dapping, and cold connections such as riveting.

I'm trying out a few new designs, experimenting with "jewelry assemblage arrangements".

Work in-progress, study for an assemblage necklace

Thanks for stopping by! Now I am off to photograph some jewelry for posting on my Etsy site. Keep warm and safe this January!