Saturday, February 28, 2015

Bracelet of the Day: Art Deco Chain Variation


ART DECO CHAIN VARIATION
  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 3mm druks "Champagne" (Nirvana Beads)

I blogged HERE about this cute little chain bracelet that I adapted from a beadwork photo that I saw on Pinterest. Here is my original bracelet:


One day, while wearing this bracelet, I got to wondering if I could enhance the chain by inserting other kinds of beads between the "links". As you can see, it worked quite well. I only had to figure out how to add some of the links from the other end so that I could alternate which direction they faced on either side of the pearls. You can see on the left side of my sample that I first tried connecting two links end to end but I didn't like the look of that. I think it looks much nicer with pearls between all of the links.
  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 3mm pearls "Peach - #40" (Beads One)

The pearls that I used in my sample above are called "peach" on the Beads One site but they're really more of a very pale, slightly peachy cream color. As you can see in my photo, they just look like a neutral pearl color.



UPDATE: I just found out that the original pattern that I got this motif from is for sale HERE. The design is called "Colombine" which is interesting because I was calling the motif "Bluebells", which is a similar kind of flower. The tutorial is in French but I've seen it and the illustrations are very good and should be easy to follow.


Friday, February 27, 2015

Pattern Review: Retro Fans Earrings


These pretty little earrings are super easy to make and work up very quickly. The pattern is from Extrano on Etsy and you can buy it HERE. For some reason the pattern says that they take between two to three hours to make but I doubt if it took me more than 15-20 minutes to make a pair once I'd done the tutorial once. The instructions are very clear and easy to understand and the materials list is quite short; just 11/0 seed beads, a couple of 8mm round beads and SuperDuo beads. Of course you'll need some earring wires and there's the option of using a drop bead at the bottom, if you like.

The only problem I ran into was not having enough 8mm beads in my bead stash to work with. All I have are a few solid black crystals, a few very pale "Champagne AB" crystals and some bronze pearls. Surprisingly, I was able to come up with quite a few color variations using just those three round bead colors.

I made my first sample earring by following the pattern exactly as written for the shorter version. As I've mentioned before, I'm not keen on the idea of leaving any open SuperDuo holes in my beadwork, however, the one open SuperDuo at the very bottom doesn't bother me too much. Of course I did try covering up the hole but I wasn't happy with how this changed the shape of the earring as you can see below:


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
  • 8mm crystal "#C25 AB" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Gold Copper Iris Matte"

I also tried adding some seed beads to add a point at the bottom but I liked that even less and removed them. As you can see, I also tried a different kind of loop at the top of that sample but I didn't like that either. I do like the colors that I used for that earring so I did make a pair in those colors as you'll see below. I tried a few other ideas for loops and eventually settled on one made with two 11/0 seed beads on either side of an 8/0 bead. I like having an 8/0 bead at the top so that I can attach my wire to a jump ring.

Monika does mention that you can adjust the number of seed beads that you use near the top of the earrings and I found that it was necessary to do that with some of the 8mm round beads and seed beads that I used. When I used fatter Miyuki "Light Bronze" seed beads, eleven was just right. But, when I used the slightly smaller Miyuki "Dark Bronze" seed beads, my 8mm round beads wouldn't fit in the hole without sticking out. Using thirteen worked just right though. I also got some odd results when I used some copper colored beads that must be even fatter than the "Light Bronze" ones. I got points on the sides of the earring instead of rounded curves. It's an interesting look though and kind of Art Deco:

I tried using some 8mm rondelles in that sample but they didn't work well at all even though I added some extra seed beads on the side. These are the beads that I used in that sample:
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Medium Bronze" (457F)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Medium Bronze" (457F)
  • 8mm rondelles "Metallic Amethyst" (Chinese - no info available)
  • SuperDuo beads "Purple Gold Iris Matte"

Next I thought I'd try adding a SuperUno bead at the bottom but I've only got some of those in two colors. I tried the black ones and used two different SuperDuo colors in this sample:


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8mm crystal "Jet - #C04" (Beads One)
  • SuperUno bead "Jet"
  • SuperDuo beads "Jet"
  • SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Copper Rose"

After that I tried making a few samples with a drop bead at the bottom. I had to pick and choose them carefully because the really pointy ones were too tall and bumped up against the SuperDuo above and then didn't hang nicely. The Chinese drop beads that I have are very irregular so some of the holes are very close to the top point and others are down farther. I also had to throw out quite a few of them that had holes that weren't straight across. They're useless if they won't hang straight. Anyway, here are four samples with drop beads:


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8mm crystal "#C25 AB" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Opaque Smoky Topaz Gold Luster"
  • 6x12mm drop bead "#C29" (Beads One)



  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
  • 8mm crystal "#C25 AB" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Gold Copper Iris Matte"
  • 6x12mm drop bead "Champagne - #C26" (Beads One)


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8mm crystal "Jet - #C04" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Jet"
  • SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Blue"
  • 6x12mm drop bead "Black - #C04" (Beads One)


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8mm pearl "Antique Brass/Brown #13" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Chalk Rembrandt"
  • 6x12mm drop bead "Gray" (Chinavoski - no info available)

Below are the three complete pairs of earrings that I made using each of the three 8mm round bead colors:


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
  • 8mm crystal "#C25 AB" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Gold Copper Iris Matte"


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8mm pearl "Antique Brass/Brown #13" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Pastel Montana Blue"


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8mm round crystal "Jet - #C04" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Copper Rose"
  • 6x12mm drop beads "Amethyst AB" (no info available)



I just noticed this morning that DrBead Etsy shop has the 3mm "Jet Copper Picasso" aka "Siam - Matte Copper Picasso" druks in stock. They didn't have that color when I placed my order recently but I've still got a good supply of them at the moment. Click HERE to see them. Also note that there is a 15% off coupon code in the shop right now.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Bracelet of the Day: Lace Flowers Variation - Lilac & Silver


LACE FLOWERS BRACELET VARIATION
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Antique Silver-Nickel" (11-464A)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Antique Silver-Nickel" (8-464A)
  • 6mm rondelles "Lilac Matte AB - #C69" (Beads One - not available online)

This bracelet was a Christmas present and made from my adaptation of Ellad2's "Lace Flowers Bracelet" pattern which you can buy HERE. I originally blogged about my tweaks HERE.



Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Playing with my beads...O Mosaic design

I ran into this design on Pinterest and it led me to THIS blog article. There is no pattern available there, only information about Rachel Nelson Smith's book "Seed Bead Fusion" which contains the pattern. I liked the look of the tile motif so I thought I might be able to figure out how it was made by looking at the diagram posted on that blog and I also found an excerpt from the book HERE which has a bit more information and helped me see how to get started. Below are the two samples that I made:


  • 11/0 seed bead Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Bronze Bronze Matte" (457P)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Matte Opaque Light Denim Luster" (2038)

  • 11/0 seed beads Toho "Gold Lustered Pale Wisteria" (455)
  • 11/0 seed beads Toho "Opaque Lavender AB" (412)
  • 11/0 seed beads Toho "Inside-Color Montana Blue/Oxblood Lined" (363)

Although it was fun making these samples, I don't like the pattern well enough to make a bracelet from it.


Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Earrings Number One

I made these for Christmas using my adaptation of Nunzia's free YouTube video tutorial, which you can watch HERE. I previously blogged about the pattern HERE, HERE and HERE. Both pairs look similar but one has turquoise "blue" SuperDuo beads and the other pair has turquoise "green" SuperDuos.


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (D4222)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (D4222)
  • SuperDuo beads "Blue Turquoise Picasso"


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (D4222)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (D4222)
  • SuperDuo beads "Turquoise Green Picasso"


Monday, February 23, 2015

Marquesa Earrings

  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 14mm rivolis Swarovski "Light Amethyst"
  • SuperDuo beads "Pastel Burgundy"
  • 4mm druks "Bronze"

I made these for Christmas using the "Marquesa Earrings" pattern from NannyPinksPassion's Etsy shop, which you can buy HERE.


Sunday, February 22, 2015

More "Noah Earrings"

Here are two more pairs of "Noah Earrings" that I gave for Christmas last year. Download the free pattern from Elfen Attelier HERE.

  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 6mm rondelles "Lilac Matte - #C69" (Beads One)
  • 4mm rondelles "Lilac Matte - #C69" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Crystal Gold Luster"



  • 15/0 seed beads "Metallic Chocolate" (no color info available)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
  • 6mm rondelles "Aqua Gold AB - #B26" (Beads One)
  • 4mm bicones "Seafoam AB" (Walmart)
  • SuperDuo beads "Chocolate Bronze"

Saturday, February 21, 2015

Noah Earrings - Purple & Silver

  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Antique Silver-Nickel" (464A)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Antique Silver-Nickel" (464A)
  • 6mm rondelles "Silver" (no info available)
  • 4mm bicones "Purple AB - #C12 AB" (Beads One)
  • SuperDuo beads "Opaque Violet White Luster"

These were another Christmas present. Download the free pattern from Elfen Attelier HERE. You can also read my original blog post about this pattern HERE.


Friday, February 20, 2015

Easy Earrings - Emerald Green


  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
  • 4mm rondelles "Opaque Emerald Green" (Chinavoski)

These were a Christmas present that I adapted from Nunzia's free "Easy Earrings" video tutorial. You can read about my tweaks and get the link to the video in my post HERE.

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Rulla Bead Inspiration

I made one more "Arula Earring" sample last night and took a photo of it today:

  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • Rulla beads "Chalk Green Luster"
  • 3mm druks "Jet Picasso"

I also looked through my pattern stash and did a little searching online for a few more ways to use Rulla beads. Here are some ideas:

Chandra Bracelet (free pattern) - The bracelet in the photo is my tweak of the pattern

Rulla Brick Road Bracelet (for sale on Etsy)

Flores Bracelet (free pattern)

Margarita Bracelet (for sale) - I have this pattern but haven't had a chance to try it yet

Little Ditties (free pattern)

Trestle Bands (for sale) - This is my bracelet

Rulla Bead Earrings (free tutorial) - These earrings look very similar to the "Arula Earrings", don't they?

Pulsera con cuentas Rulla (YouTube video)

Flower Earrings (YouTube video)

Rulla Bracelet (YouTube video)

Cherry Blossom Lattice Bracelet (free pattern)

Picasso Bracelet (YouTube video)

Any Bead Bracelet (for sale)


 

The Original Arula Earrings

After I blogged about my version of the "Arula Earrings" HERE yesterday, I realized that I could try the original version because now I do have some Rulla beads. I didn't have any back when I came up with my version. Below are the original "Arula Earrings" from the Mézesmama Gyöngyei blog:

Original Arula Earrings from the Mézesmama Gyöngyei blog

It took me a few minutes to figure out what I was supposed to do by looking very closely at the photos of the original tutorial which you can see HERE. She doesn't show every step and the text is in Hungarian. I could see that she used 15/0 seed beads on the inner ring of Rullas and seed beads. I used 11/0 seed beads on my variation because they happen to work better with the way my earrings are made.

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised at how lovely they turn out made the original way. It's a very clever use of Rulla beads and I'm happy to have another use for them. I bought them in quite a few colors only to realize later that I don't know of very many patterns for them that I like all that well. Where my version of the earrings comes out quite flat and somewhat soft, the Rulla version is very sturdy and slightly thick and compact. I tried to take some photos of them from the side, so you can see the thickness, but it was difficult to get them from that angle:



 
They are thickest in the center where there is the ring of Rulla beads. The seed beads are added to the front and back in two layers so that they go through both holes of the Rullas. The beads taper to a single thickness along the outside edge of the earrings where the druks are added. Like I said, they're very cleverly designed. After I made two samples using 3mm druks on the edge, I thought I'd see if 3mm fire polished beads would work and they do. My last sample below has fire polished beads. I suppose that 3mm bicones might also work.

As you can see, I did change the top loop once again and left off the dangle at the bottom. I don't have any drop beads that go well with the Rullas that I have and I really like them without the drop bead anyway.



  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • Rulla beads "Aquamarine Travertin Dark"
  • 3mm druks "Forest Greens" *

* I suspect that the "real" color name for the druks is "Aquamarine Dark Travertin" because they match the Rulla beads perfectly.
 

  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • Rulla beads "Chalk Lazure Blue"
  • 3mm druks "Jet Copper Picasso" aka "Matte Siam Ruby Bronze Picasso"


  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • Rulla beads "Senegal Brown Violet"
  • 3mm fire polished beads "Transparent Gold Topaz Luster"