Black Tie Affair - part deux or dos or 2

Whichever your language... late last week I blogged about Nicole's BeadBacking which is my base of choice for bead embroidery.  You can read why back here.  And since we're on the topic, this is a sneak peak of a design I've be working on made with N.B.B.s purple shade... which is COMPLETELY wonderful.  More on that (because it'll be finished with JulsBeads you are going to LOVE!) Seriously!

But more on this next time...

In the mean time, I want to share with you the compliment to the Black Tie Affair Necklace I shared with you in the NBB review post.  Using shades of black, pewter, silver and finally a creamy white, I've created a pearl bracelet that is the perfect accompaniment!  Hence, calling it Black Tie Affair Part 2! Using Delica Seed Beads, Fire-Polished Czech glass rounds, and glass pearls, this bracelet was born.  I finished it on a 20 ga. full-hard wire with a wire wrap so it wears stiff like a bangle bracelet.  I love it!  More to come with this pearl netted style.  Wouldn't it be the perfect rope to display a bead embroidery pendant... maybe, just maybe? :)

Available in my Etsy Store

http://www.Custom-Made-Jewelry.info

Hope your day is full of sunshine!  I've baked cookies (rhubarb coconut w/ a cream cheese frosting - sorry about the drool), I've blogged, I've gotten laundry done and now I'm off to bead!

Have a fantastic afternoon!
{Hugs!}

Inspired by a Friend

"Where does your inspiration come from?"

People ask me that all the time, and my answer is "Everywhere - people, nature, songs, artwork.  There's no rhyme or reason, inspiration just hits you when you're open to receiving it."

I recently saw this blog post on The Hive from my good friend Dawn in Alaska.  She had created an incredible chainmaille bracelet that "captured" Swarovski Crystal rondelles in a "net" of jumprings.  I happen to own one of these wonderful bracelets from when Dawn and I did a jewelry swap earlier this year.  I just love it - the way it's netted makes you look twice.

So after seeing this post I thought, how cool would it be to have a "netting" of sorts filled with pearls or gemstones or crystals... but the netting was made of beads.  Heck, I know how to make a netted rope, why not fill it up with pearl goodness?  After all, I'm a glass half-full sort of gal!

I chose a mix of Delicas that had some greens, pinks and peaches and mixed it with some vintage peach little round crystals... I scooped up a whole batch of beads in an estate sale when I first started experimenting.  I love the sparkle of them, mixed with the delicas the net turned out really well... fill it up with positivity and somebody will really love wearing this comfortable bracelet.

But I still wanted to be able to see more of the "filling" - after all the best part of an eclair is that ooey gooey last bite that has the remainder of the custard filling.  Mmmmmm  So I continued experimenting.  I tried lots of things, un-ravelled and finally it struck me, build the filling into the netting!  So I did... and so it worked.  I love it when a plan comes together (even if you weren't sure what the plan was to begin with.)

Wouldn't this be beautiful with white pearls & silver seed beads as wedding jewelry?

This bracelet is more stiff than the peach one, and I threaded copper wire through it to keep the perfect shape.  It wears like a bangle, but this would also be awesome strung on Softflex beading wire for a more flexible necklace.  So I owe Dawn a big thank you for inspiring me to learn something new and expand that already exploding brain of mine!  You're a gem!

Hope you find yourself in a state of awww at something wonderful today!  Appreciate and love all around us as we're blessed to be right where we are~
{Hugs!}
Dawn

Practice, practice, practice

I'm a firm believer that no matter what your method of expression, as artisans we are always learning.  (In life too!)  While I've been working on some new bead embroidered jewelry, I am always looking at new styles and techniques for the "chain" part of the necklace or matching bracelet.

I've always loved a beaded rope style necklace - there's something about the "tube" that just says WOW on a piece.  So I've used a russian spiral for most of my pieces so far.  Flipping back through a past issue of Beadwork magazine I saw a bracelet by Nancy Cain that featured a netted tube.  I hadn't tried that before, so I thought I'd give it a whirl!

I was surprised at how quickly the netted tube built on itself!  After finishing the embellishments, I had a blast with this piece!  It does have a good structure that can be string with bead caps or spacers and end beads to make a full necklace!

So, stay tuned for more bead embroidery pieces (one I'm finishing up today that's a whole lotta WOW! and a bit of bling too).  As long as we're always learning, we're always growing, right?

What's new in your creative space this weekend?  I'd love to see what you're up to!
{Hugs!}
Dawn


P.S. If you're looking for a great outlet to share your blog and design creations, I strongly recommend you check out The Hive!  It's a free forum open to all mediums of creativity!  I've met some incredible people through The Hive and would love to extend the invitation to you to share there too!  Click here to sign up and it out for yourself!