Saturday 13 April 2013

MY BEAD SOUP REVEAL!

At last the great day is here when I can reveal my bead soup to you, I seem to have been waiting such a long time! When the soup arrived from my swap partner Cathy Jakicic I unpacked it and spread it out and looked at it for a couple of weeks with no idea what I would make with it, I just kept going back to look and slowly ideas started to come together. 

The first necklace I made was with the blue nuggets (they look like Lapis but not sure) I added some large vintage brass beads and chain from my stash and the focal is the blue stone from my soup. I made a bracelet to go with the necklace but used one of my hand made beads as the focal point.



I had been looking at the pretty Cameo which is quite heavy and decided to go with a hand dyed silk ribbon as I felt it might be too heavy with a chain or pearl necklace so a ordered ribbon from Diane at http://www.sowzeredesigns.com she also has an Etsy shop  SowZerE 



For the next necklace I had great fun with my hammer, hammering the shapes I made and then putting it all together. As I was constructing it the beautiful Jasper leaf I added from my stash, a tiny tip from the top broke away it was so small I was unable to do anything about it, I don't think it detracts from the necklace hopefully. I named this one Floating Away, simply because the beads remind me of streams and leaves do float away on them.


The lovely green glass navette shape beads inspired a completely different design I really love it! I used the lovely lampwork clasp Cathy sent, the small white rice pearls came from my stash, as did the pink lampwork rose buds and deep green rondelles, I think it turned out very pretty!


My daughter had spotted the white opal glass spike beads of course she wanted those, just her sort of thing...!!!! so of course I said I would make her a necklace with them, I found a strand of pinky, purple vintage fire polished beads added some silver beads and now she has her spikey necklace.


This necklace , gave me quite a challenge because of the odd shaped squarish nugget beads, tricky! The colour looked like pieces of blue sky with pink blossoms perhaps from a cherry or almond tree so I designed a pendant with an old weeping cherry tree and Blossom Time was born! I used the pink pearls and silver from the bead soup and added a hand dyed silk string from Diane it is soft shades of blue and pink and a little silver hook clasp, I think it worked well, and I love it.



This is a last minute idea I had for the leaf and tiny heart Cathy sent in the soup, I found a tiny bird and a couple of 4mm Swarovski crystals and popped them onto a long headpin and added them to the leaf, the leaf is on a hand dyed silk ribbon I had in my stash and that folks is it! I do have a few things left over and I am sure I will use them in time.


I hope you have enjoyed your visit and hope you will take a look at the other participants of the bead soup. 
This is a link to the list for the second reveal http://lorianderson-beadsoupblogparty.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/preview-of-2nd-reveal-blog-list-for-7th.html 
I do hope it works
~Jackie~ 

Monday 8 April 2013

NEW DATE FOR SECOND BEAD SOUP REVEAL!

Lori has put the date back for the second and third reveal so of course I didn't post the items I have made on the 6th but will now be posting them on Saturday 13th April instead so I thought it might be nice to post a few pictures of some necklaces I have made either as gifts or commissions.



Amethyst & freshwater Pearls with a silver Agate & Amethyst pendant


South Sea Shell Pearls with Amethyst leaf and silver beads

Gemstone necklace Imperial & white Topaz with Citrine