Some Simple Beading

This has been a bad week from a knitting perspective.  I've had a migraine most of the week.  I actually missed work on Monday and Friday.  Friday I pulled out some beads that I bought from Artbeads and did some stringing.  This necklace is a variation on the Tunisian Bazaar Bracelet.  I bought extra beads and made a necklace instead.  I really like the green arrow heads.  I added some glass beads that I had bought at Bead and Button a couple of years ago.

This set is based on the Nebula Bracelet and Earrings.  I bought extra beads and an extra clasp and made a matching choker.

Boho Blue Necklace

I decided to take a little break from knitting and do a little bead work.  This is from the Learning Center on the Artbeads web site.  It is the Boho Blue Necklace, I guess I've been in a blue mood lately - color-wise anyway  The instructions are explicit on the first strand, with the large oval gemstones, but on the other two strands they tell you to "randomly string" various elements.  I hate that.  I cannot do random.  Here is a list of components pulled from the project page.  I used Soft Flex to string the beads on.

Dakota Stones Lapis Lazuli 4mm Round Bead Strand (R0186, qty 1)
Dakota Stones Blue Apatite 6mm Faceted Roundel Bead Strand (R0440, qty 1)
Dakota Stones Blue Apatite 4mm Round Bead Strand (R0437, qty 1)
Blue Daisy Jasper 15x20mm Drum Bead Strand (R2351, qty 1)
JBB Antique Brass-Plated Brass Flower Bush Hollow Round Bead (BEAD-0387, qty 3)
Czech Glass 15x12mm Multi-Colored with Picasso Finish Oval Bird Bead Strand (BEADS-0422, qty 1)
Czech Glass 8mm Opaline Green Blue with Picasso Finish Faceted Round Bead (15pc Pack) (BEADS-0197, qty 1)
JBB 4.9mm Antique Brass-Plated Pewter Daisy Spacer (BEAD-1372, qty 33)
TierraCast Brass Oxide Pewter 3mm Faceted Heishi Spacer (BRO-0422, qty 21)
11x7.5mm Antique Brass-Plated Textured and Plain Link Chain By the Foot (BTF-0602, qty 1)
JBB Antique Vintage Brass-Plated Pewter 3 Petal Leaf Toggle Clasp (PBA-TOG004, qty 1)
8mm Antique Brass-Plated Open Jump Ring (BBA-OJR08, qty 4)
5.5mm Antique Brass-Plated 21 Gauge Open Jump Ring (BBA-OJR06-A, qty 6)
14K/20 Gold-Filled 2x2mm Crimp Tube (GF-CRM2, qty 6)
14K/20 Gold-Filled 2.5mm Crimp Cover (find-0022, qty 6)

Cape Cod in Bloom Necklace

Remember this bracelet?

Lovely design, but...it is a bit long and will slip off of my hand with very little encouragement, and those focal beads add a fair bit of weight.  I wore it to work one day, and while it never came off, it was worrisome.  So, I decided to get a second kit and make a necklace.  I was going to try to do matching earrings, but when I did that the necklace came out just a little too short.

Project - Cape Cod in Bloom.

Swarovski Splurge

I spent all of last evening assembling some Swarovski jewelry that I bought components for.  First I finished up this necklace, Gulf Stream, which I got from Artbeads.  This is a variation of another necklace that I recently made, Nouveau Navettes.  This version did away with the extra length of chain, and it is all Swarovski beads.  I do like it, but it is a lot heavier.

List of Components:
Swarovski 13304 Rhodium-Plated Navette Charm with Crystal (13304-RCRY7, qty 16)
Swarovski 5810 10mm Round Pearl Turquoise (5810-TRQ10, qty 16)
Swarovski 5000 8mm Faceted Round Sapphire (5000-SAP8, qty 16)
Swarovski 5028 6mm Crystal Globe Bead Peridot (5028-PER6, qty 16)
Antique Silver-Plated Brass Curb Chain (BTF-0204, qty 2)
3-Inch Head Pin, 20 Gauge (Sterling Silver) (SS-HP03, qty 16)
6x15mm Stainless Steel Oval Trigger Clasp (CLASP-0361, qty 1)
4.5mm Gunmetal-Plated 21 Gauge Open Jump Ring (BGM-OJR04-A, qty 4)

This necklace and earring set I got from Fusion Beads, another great place to shop.  It came from their inspiration page and you can order all of the components and download a pdf of the instructions from the project page.

 

Cinnamon Sparkle Necklace and Cinnamon Sparkle Earrings.

Materials for the Necklace:

28 - 4mm Crystal Copper Swarovski Crystal Round Beads (04RD0203)

10 - 6mm Crystal Copper Swarovski Crystal Round Beads (06RD0250)

1 - 18mm Crystal Copper Swarovski Crystal Rondelle Bead (SC3935)

20 - 8mm Maroon Swarovski Crystal Pearls (PL6535)

6 - 10mm Maroon Swarovski Crystal Pearls (PL6536)

2 - 12mm Maroon Swarovski Crystal Pearls (PL6537)

1 - 4x.5x12mm Gold-Filled LobsterClasp with Ring (GF2801)

1 - 6mm Gold-Filled Closed Jump Ring (GF2722)

2 - 2x2mm Gold-Filled Crimp Beads (GF2788)

2 - 3.4mm Gold-Filled Crimp Bead Covers (GF2101)

2 feet - Clear Soft Flex Beading Wire .014 Diameter (SM0310)

Materials for the Earrings:

4 - 2mm Crystal Copper Swarovski Crystal Round Beads (02RD0106)

4 - 4mm Crystal Copper Swarovski Crystal Round Beads (04RD0203)

4 - 8mm Maroon Swarovski Crystal Pearls (PL6536)

2 - 18mm Crystal Copper Swarovski Crystal Rondelle Beads (SC3935)

1 pair - 20mm Sterling Silver Ear Wire with Front Loops (SS2600)

2 - 22 Gauge Sterling Silver 2 Inch Head Pins (SS4011)

 
This bracelet features the new Swarovski color - Tangerine.  I like simple sparkly bangle bracelets.

Tangerine Dream Bracelet.

Materials:

32 - 4mm Topaz Swarovski Elements Crystal Bicone Beads (04BI1137)

16 - 6mm Smoked Topaz Swarovski Elements Crystal Round Beads (06RD0132)

16 - 8mm Tangerine Swarovski Elements Crystal Round Beads (08RD0314)

1 - 11x16.5mm Gold Plated Base Metal 2 Strand Tube Bar Clasp (BM3068)

18 inches - Clear Soft Flex Wire .014 diameter (SM0310)

4 - 2x2mm Gold-Filled Crimp Beads (GF2788)

4 - 3.5mm Gold-Filled Crimp Bead Covers (GF2101)

Polymer and Pearls - Last One

This is the last Polymer Clay bead in my bead stash.  I used Peacock Green and Pale Cranberry pearls, both from Artbeads.  Strung on Soft Flex Extreme Flex 925 Sterling Silver Metallic Flex Wire, Fine (0.014 in diameter).  Now that I have made necklaces with all of the Polymer Clay beads I will have to decide which beads to tackle next.

Bracelets

I went on a bit of a bracelet kick this past week.  You know how it is, sometimes you see a design and it just grabs you.  A couple of weeks ago this bracelet design was featured on the Artbeads web site and I just had to make it.  This is the bracelet that got me to buy Swarovski crystals.  I have resisted the sparkle for years, even though the bling is plentiful at the Bead & Button show every year.  This is the Emerald City bracelet.  You can buy all of the materials right from the project page.  Pretty clever of Artbeads...

List of Components:
Swarovski 5625 10mm 2-hole Stairway Bead Dark Moss Green (5625-DMG10, qty 19)
Swarovski 5000 5mm Faceted Round Crystal (5000-crys5, qty 32)
Swarovski 5000 3mm Faceted Round Crystal (5000-crys3, qty 40)
Swarovski 5328 3mm XILION Bicone Dark Moss Green (5328-DMG3, qty 24)
Swarovski 5328 3mm XILION Bicone Crystal (5328-crys3, qty 24)
Swarovski 5000 10mm Faceted Round Crystal (5000-crys10, qty 2)

I liked the design so much I bought more beads to make another bracelet in Amethyst and Topaz.  I would have finished it this week as well, but one of the square beads was chipped.  I emailed Artbeads and they are sending along a replacement, with their profuse apologies.

While I was perusing their website I also picked up a couple of kits.

This is the Cape Cod in Bloom Bracelet.

And this is the Tanzanite Temptation Bracelet.

These kits included everything you needed except the beading wire for stringing, which I have.  They called out a different brand in the instructions, but I always use Soft Flex.  Both of the kit bracelets were strung on the Soft Flex Extreme Metallic Flex Wire Medium (0.019 in diameter), in the 925 Sterling Silver.

More Polymer Beads and Pearls

I put together some more necklaces with the Polymer Clay beads that I've had in my stash for quite a while.  I bought a number of these beads my first couple of years going to the Bead & Button show and they've been sitting in my stash ever since.  I've been trying to work through some of my bead stash lately and these are easy pieces to work up.  I had to order some more Soft Flex and clasps, and some more pearls and my orders came in last week.  For this one I used Glorious Green pearls from A Grain of Sand, accented with Blue Peacock pearls from Artbeads.

For this one I used Blue Peacock pearls from Artbeads and accented with leftover Glorious Green pearls from A Grain of Sand.

For this one I used Blue Peacock pearls accented with Purple Peacock pearls, both from Artbeads.

All of them are strung on Soft Flex Extreme Flex Metallic Flex Wire, Fine (0.014 in diameter).  I used the 925 Sterling Silver for the first one and the 24k Gold for the other two.

A String of Pearls

Every woman needs a string of pearls, or three.  I love pearls, their lustrous sensual beauty, the way they feel against your skin.  They are classic, elegant, timeless, and you can't help but feel classic, elegant and timeless when you wear them.  The graduated strands I bought from A Grain of Sand, and the multi-color strand I bought from Artbeads.  All three are strung on Soft Flex 24k Gold Extreme Flex Metallic Flex Wire, Fine (0.014 in diameter).  Typically pearls are strung on silk, separated by knots, but silk needs to be replaced every few years, so I use Soft Flex.  I separated each pearl with a size 14 bead, transparent crystal for the white and multi-colored strands, and transparent pink for the pink strand.