Bead Hop with my Cousin Creative Sisters

Guess what.... Easter's around the corner and we're hopping again.... BEAD HOPPING!!!  Imagine when I sparked the idea mid-January to do another blog hop featuring Cousin Corporation beads... I can't even believe the last one was 2 year ago... holy cow!  How I thought jeesh, a Febrary reveal would be easy peasy.  My fellow creative sisters and I would all get the same beads, create awesome pieces that are uniquely "us" and feature them in a fancy, sparkly blog hop!  But mid-January Dawn had no idea how busy February Dawn or March Dawn was going to be.  So here I sit, feeling like a college kid cramming for a final... typing like mad to get my blog post up before I fall asleep.  I got 2 of 3 projects done... one is still waiting which, funny enough, is the one with the colors that are my total fave... but enough about me rambling... I've got some jewelry to show you.

First, rocked the chunky druzy focal with some bad ass spikes  (also from Cousin, but not part of the selected beads.)   I wore this piece to work yesterday and it got a few thumbs up... I'm more of a silver girl by nature.... but the brown's and gold really played in a earthy delight... and reminded me of sand... which takes my heart to the beach.  And even when I'm not sitting on the beach, I'm still at the beach in my mind! ;)

Spikes also inspired the next little project.  Stretchy bracelets!!  I've fallen in love with stretchy bracelets.  Stack 'em, match 'em, give 'em, make 'em... you gotta have some!  I have some of my bracelets featuring seashells for sale in a fancy pet spa where my furry fella gets groomed - Unleashed Pet Spa - Check 'em out! Beth and Dennis are the best!

But anyhow, stretch bracelets are a thing - and for me, I could add some spikes and those big silver balls... I did those.  Black, white and silver a classic pairing with a little goth twist.

And lastly... my third project.... which is still just a project.  I saw the turquoisey purple goodness dancing together in a mermaid fashion. And it still will, in an amazing project, but it is still just a twinkle in my artisan's eye.  What it will turn into???  Not sure yet!  But it's going to be awesome!

Thanks for playing in our little box of beads.  For the real fun, keep hopping and check out my dear friend0's creations too! We're brought together by beads, but we've become dear friend! Cousin Creative Circle Ambassadors  -  It's a great group of creative women that all have one of a kind style! ♥

Rebecca Grafton - My Girlish Whims
Shelly Owen - Razelia's  Designs
Lisa Crone - A Bead A Day
Rachel Nielson - Adventures of a DIY Mom
Jennifer Priest - Hydrangea Hippo

Happy to be heading into the weekend!! Peace, love & sunshine!!

WINNER - Erica Jahns PLUS Another Great DIY Jewelry Design

Last week I hosted a great giveaway of this fun, Florida inspired bracelet featuring Charms made with Swarovski Crystals!!!  And I want to congratulate ERICA JAHNS the winner of last weeks bracelet!!  Erica, please message me your mailing address and I'll get your bracelet right in the mail to you!

This weeks project features another really fun charm made with Swarovski Crytals!! 

I love this Ohm charm!!!  It's a fun pop of color with it's beautiful orangish/redish hued Swarovski Crystal backdrop.  Again this charm features a lobster claw clasp, so you can literally put it on anything that has a hole... okay, maybe not on a donut.  BUT you can hang it from a zipper pull.  You can put it on the hook of a suction cup on the patio door as a rainbow maker and here, I created seashell necklace... but here's the secret, find a seashell that already has a hole in it! 

Once you find your perfect seashell, using an eye pin, insert the eye pin through the hole and form a wrapped loop on the inside of the seashell. On the wrapped loop you just created, attach a bail with a jump ring.  Now you have something to thread your necklace chain through.  On the front side of your seashell, using the lobster claw clasp attach your charm made with Swarovski crystal. 

Find your favorite style of necklace chain and put it through the bail and you're finished!  Another quick & easy piece of wearable art! 

Thanks for following along, if you'd like to see other great project made featuring Charms with Swarovski Crystal, check out each of my fellow Cousin Creative Circle Ambassador blogs!  It's a great group of creative women that all have one of a kind style! ♥

Rebecca Grafton - My Girlish Whims
Shelly Owen - Razelia's  Designs
Lisa Crone - A Bead A Day
Rachel Nielson - Adventures of a DIY Mom
Jennifer Priest - Hydrangea Hippo 

Hope you have a super week!! Peace, love & sunshine!!

Featuring Charms made with Swarovski® Crystals

It's been a bit since I've had a project to do for Cousin Corporation as a Creative Circle Ambassador, but recently our ambassador team has been given some sparkly goodness to share so I wanted to bring you a couple of projects straight from my mermaid heart. 

I was given a set of Charms made with Swarovski® Crystals and asked to create something different and maybe out of the box.  So with the first two, I wanted to bring you a few designs where I incorporated the Charms made with Swarovski® crystals AND brought in a piece of my beloved Florida!  I used real seashells that I collected on Indian Rocks Beach.  These projects are great ideas if you go on vacation and want to create a momento of your trip that is beyond the keychain or magnet sold in the nicknack shops. 

The first project was a bracelet that I whipped up in no time!  The most time consuming part is waiting for the glue to dry!  Make sure you wash and dry your seashells thoroughly before creating  :)  Using an eyepin and adhesive of your choice (in this piece I used E-6000) fill the back of the seashell halfway with adhesive.  Insert the round side of the eyepin into the puddle of glue. Prop it up at an angle that will allow you to create a wrapped loop later for the bail.  Then wait... tick... tock... wait for that glue to dry.

 Once it's dry, fill the remainder of the seashell with adhesive and let it dry.  This is a multi-tasking part of the design, while you are waiting for the glue to dry you can bake cookies, clean, finish other projects, call your mom on the phone to tell her you love her, write a little note to a friend that you haven't seen in a while and send it .... or sit there and watch glue dry.  I opted for several of the above.

Why do we pour the adhesive in 2 phases???  Because eyepins have a tendancy to want to float to the top of the adhesive puddle.  So by pouring the adhesive in 2 phases, the eyepin is locked into the middle of the adhesive ensuring you won't loose your seashell pendant.

Once everything is dry, create a wrapped loop on the top of the seashell. Using the handy lobster claw that comes on the charm, clip it onto the wrapped loop of the seashell.  Now in this design I was given a peridot birthstone Charm made with Swarovski® crystals for the month of August.  The birthstone charms come with a rivoli and a second charm with the month and smaller birthstone on the back.  So I used a jump ring and attached the smaller charm too.

Then using a premade 7" bracelet (available from Cousin at most large craft stores) I slid the seashell pendant on the bracelet, clasped it and voila!  Nothing like a little quick and easy project to remember your favorite beach by!

GIVEAWAY:  Now if you've read this far, I want to thank you! I'd like to give one lucky winner this seashell bracelet.  Here's what you need to do to enter:
1.  Post a comment below letting me know who in your life has an August Birthday you'd like to give this to.
 2.  Share this post on social media... tag Dawn Doucette or Bella Amore Legacy Jewelry so that I can see you shared it.
3.  If you like my designs and want to follow me, I'd love to stay connected.  You can find a link below for all of my social media accounts.  Feel free to follow and share, but it is not necessary to follow to be entered to win!

I will pick one lucky winner next Monday, October 3rd to win this bracelet.  Good luck!  Stay tuned for another Seashell Design from the heart. . . it's coming soon!

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/BellaAmoreLegacyJewelry/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/designsbydawnmd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dawn.doucette/

FantaSea - Swarovski Jewelry Tutorial

When you get pretty sparkly packages of Swarovski Crystal Elements you can't help but want to pour them all into a container so you can just keep running your hands through them in the sunlight again and again just watching the rainbows appear.  Truly... thousands and thousands of tiny crystals that are all catching the light and radiating rainbows is absolutely magical.

As a brand ambassador for Cousin Corporation of America, we have recently become the major supplier for Swarovski Crystal Elements throughout the US.  As part of the agreement, we as ambassadors will be making lots of projects and tutorials to share just how you can use Swarovski elements in your own DIY jewelry designs and crafts!

The project I just completed is a complete jewelry set - with instructions and supplies so you can create the exact pieces I made!  (Click here for jewelry tutorial and supplies from primabead.com)

The gemstones are genuine Amazonite with an AB coating... combined with the sand opal Swarovski crystals and it was like a pairing made in heaven.  To my mermaid heart, it spoke of underwater exploration and fantasies on the high seas.  SO hence, the name of this set is FantaSea!

The gemstone Amazonite has many healing properties.  It is used to treat heart trouble and metabolic disorders.  It lifts depression and reduces anxiety.  It also helps alleviate headaches and migraines.  It promotes confidence, vitality and joy of life!! Amazonite has a calming effect, corrects mood swings and helps the wearer come to terms with grief.

If your zodiac sign is Aquarius, Amazonite is your power gemstone! 

To get the complete tutorial for this Amazonite necklace, earrings and ring set visit: www.primabead.com