Nouveau Navettes

Interweave has recently been offering kits, all sorts of kits, and I've purchased a few - mostly weaving kits, but also beading kits.  I ordered this one last Monday and received it yesterday.  All of the other beading kits that I have ordered have been seed bead kits, this is the first time I've done anything with chain.  I decided to try the kits because I thought it would be a fun way to try some new techniques and new bead shapes/types that I don't have in my stash.

I decided to do this kit last night because I was tired and didn't feel like knitting, and didn't want to fall asleep on the daybed after supper, which I have been doing on a fairly regular basis lately.  It is a strange thing, but when I bead time just seems to stand still and my fatigue and any worries just fade away.  I put this necklace together in about 4 hours.  The instructions were a bit skimpy, and I didn't really like their order of construction so I modified things a little.

I started out mounting the sparklies in their settings.  That was easy, and was the first step in the instructions.  Then I cut the chain for the two top strands to the length in the instructions (7 1/4 inches and 7 3/8 inches) and whatever was left became the third strand.  I put the two top strands on a jump ring and started adding the beads on the head pins.  I worked from left to right.  The head pins are attached to the bottom strand with small jump rings.  After I had all of the beads on the head pins attached to the top two strands I attached the other jump ring on the right side, and attached the bottom strand of chain.  When attaching the head pins to the bottom strands I worked from both sides to the middle, alternating.  I did this because the spacing didn't seem to be working out right when I worked from one side, by working from both sides in I could at least make sure that the spacing was consistent and symmetrical.  Then I attached the dangling sparklies to the bottom chain, centering them as best I could between the head pins.  All that was left was to attach the larger chain and the clasp.  Easy peasy.

The necklace has some weight to it, so it hangs pretty well.  The two smaller beads are glass and the large ones are lucite.  If you wear it as designed it hangs down a bit and the curve is compressed, so I put the clasp into the chain itself to pull it up so it hangs just below my collar bone, which also opens up the curve into a nice arc pretty much as you see it laid out here.  I worked this necklace on one of my beading trays (you can see it in the background of the picture).  You will recall that last year I came home from Bead & Button with a large rectangular bead tray.  Last month I ordered a second one - a 12 inch circular one, which I thought would be perfect for working from while sitting on the daybed.  It was.  You can get your own Bead On It Beading Board here.  They are a little spendy, but well worth it - beautifully made and wonderfully functional.

Project:  Nouveau Navettes, kit available from Interweave