Bead Arts

So, I’ve managed to end the year still on schedule! I spent the month of December thinking about how the word beaver makes me giggle in a very juvenile way, and realizing that I really didn’t want to do an actual portrait of a beaver on my beaded page for November’s Beaver Moon.

What to do, what to do? A friend had shown me how to do simple needle felting, and I ended up using that technique to create a log that had been “gnawed off” by a beaver. It was fun to try something completely new. I used an off-white pipe cleaner for the armature of the log, and letting the ends stick out does look somewhat like chewed off wood. Ok, that’s a stretch, but I’m happy with it!

You can find links to more of the Bead Journal Project’s participants on Robin Atkin’s blog.

You can also click on “Bead Journal Project” under “categories” in the right-hand sidebar (of my blog, that is!) to see the past five months’ beaded journal pages. Here’s a link for last month’s page.

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Keeping my eye on you

This is just the beginning of Rebecca Brown’s amazing work!

Make Art Monday

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This card is so simple, but so cute! I’m sure you could make it a bit more elaborate if you wanted to, but I really like the simplicity of this design. Combine your card-making and your beading manias together…what could be better? Thanks to HobbyCraft for this idea!

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Make Art Monday!

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Easy, fast, and each one will be unique…just what we want for a holiday gift! The instructions are at the Threads website.

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Make Art Monday

All of the pieces that I sent for consideration for the upcoming book, 1000 Jewelry Details, have returned home. I was very happy to see them again, especially Orinoco Flow. It happens to be my current favorite

I don’t know which if any of my pieces will end up in the book, but there were six in all that they asked for in order to consider them. The pieces they wanted spanned a wide variety of styles too. Here are two samples:

All the Daughters of Eve

Orinoco Flow

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Hunter’s Moon

Even more warm browns and golds! I spent the month of November reflecting on the month that had just passed and creating Hunter’s Moon. There isn’t really any hunting symbolism that really appealed to me to bead, so I decided upon the pawprints following a trail…or are they creating one?

You can find links to more of the Bead Journal Project’s participants on Robin Atkin’s blog.

You can also click on “Bead Journal Project” under “categories” in the right-hand sidebar (of my blog, that is!) to see the past four months’ beaded journal pages. Here’s a link to last month’s page.

bead-embroidery, beads, beading, bead-journal-project, mixed-media

Altered Couture
A hand-me-down sweater … a raggedy old skirt from the thrift store … a plain T-shirt … Using just a few tools coupled with your creativity, all of these items can be transformed into fantastic works of wearable art! The publisher of Belle Armoire and Somerset Studio invites you to submit your own altered and embellished clothing and accessories to be considered for the third volume of this exciting publication. Chapters will include Skirts & Dresses, Pants & Overalls, Jackets & Vests, Shirts & Tops, Children’s Wear, Sassy Shoes, and Accessories.

Deadline for artwork to be received: Dec 15, 2007. Please read submission guidelines before sending your submissions to: Stampington & Company · C/O: Altered Couture · 22992 Mill Creek, Suite B · Laguna Hills, CA 92653

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Dori’s work is different from any other you’ll ever see. At first glance it seems like bead embroidery, but her style and technique is truly unique. Visit Dazzle & Shimmer and see for yourself. From her website:

“While living in Paris, Dori started creating an original line of jewelry and fashion accessories, made in a needle work technique that is similar to the traditional “passementrie”. Back home, she set up her design studio in Tel-Aviv, some twenty years ago.

From here on, Dori developed and expanded her line of accessories and jewelry with an original, fashion oriented, but personal touch. Dori’s creations, referred to by some as “Modern Decadence”, present scene stealing pieces as well as classic designs. The collection is made in small, often changing series and includes one-off and limited edition creations.”

Other posts on bead embroidery:
Betsy Youngquist

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Harvest Moon

At last! The warm browns and golds that I love so much! I spent the month of October reflecting on the month that had just passed and creating Harvest Moon. I think I’m going to have a very hard time with the moon for October, which I’ll start the first week or so of November. It will be the Hunter’s Moon. It’s not that I have anything against hunting, having grown up in a school district that took the first day of deer season off without any sense of irony. It’s just that there isn’t really any hunting symbolism that really appeals to me to bead. Oh well, hopefully I’ll think of something, or else I’ll just make it an abstract.

You can find links to more of the Bead Journal Project’s participants on Robin Atkin’s blog.

You can also click on “Bead Journal Project” under “categories” in the right-hand sidebar (of my blog, that is!) to see the past three months’ beaded journal pages.

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Filigree Drops by Jamie Hogsett

It Takes Two Earrings Challenge
For this challenge, combine two - and only two - different techniques from the ten techniques below to create an original pair of earrings.

1. bead embroidery
2. brick stitch
3. Dutch spiral
4. ladder stitch
5. macrame
6. netting
7. PMC (precious metal clay)
8. square stitch
9. stringing
10. wirework

The Rules
You must be a Beading Daily member to participate. (Your email address will be used to verify that you are a member.) It’s free to sign up if you’re not already a member. Only one submission per person. Deadline: November 2, 2007. Winners will be announced November 30, 2007.

To enter, please send an email to: beadingdaily@interweave.com and include:
a high-resolution photo (JPG, 300 dpi) of your finished project
your name
your email address
your phone number (this will be only used to notify you if you win)
project name
the two techniques you used
in the subject line, please include: “earring challenge”

Prizes

The editors will select their three favorite entries.
First Place: A $50 gift certificate from Interweave Press.
Second Place: An autographed copy of Mastering Beadwork by Carol Huber Cypher, plus a $10 gift certificate from Interweave Press.
Third Place: An autographed copy of Create Jewelry: Crystals by Marlene Blessing and Jamie Hogsett
The winning projects and their designers will showcased on Beading Daily.

Other posts about earrings:
Inspiration Galore!

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And the winner is…Grace Danel! Grace is one of the participants in the Bead Journal Project, and we are so proud of her! Her 6 x 4 inch piece is called Justine.

Margie writes about the piece:
“Grace Danel’s bead embroidered piece uses a very muted, amethyst purple with bright yellow, and creates one of the most usual, and successful combinations. She very consciously limited yellow to a few distinct focal points. Her piece won by slim margin because of how successfully she used a wide variety of purple, violets, and lavendars with yellow. She combined an amazing array of tones and tints in exquisite balance.”

You can see all the other winner’s at Margie’s website. I think many of the pieces are amazing, but I have to be honest that I’m somewhat biased towards Grace’s since we’re both involved in the Bead Journal Project.

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I rarely add to my list, because I wanted to keep this list for just the best of the best. However, Bead & Button has forced me to add them. When they redesigned their website recently, they made a lot of areas more accessible and better organized. On their techniques page, you’ll find links to pdf downloads on most of the major stitches and important beginning techniques. Here’s the direct link to the new page, and here’s the link to my full list of online bests!

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I found this wonderful vintage rolled-brim felt hat with a built-in scarf in an old musty antique shop. I loved the style and the color, and knew immediately that the structure of the hat would stand up to a lot of altering! Sifting through my collection of vintage buttons and jewelry showed me just what direction to go with this hat. The name, “Dreaming of Spring” came to me before the hat was completed. I filled the brim, but still something was missing. The final piece was still sitting on my work table: a small vintage bee pin. Obviously, the bee was to be the focal point, the one who was “Dreaming of Spring”!

Now as cold weather approaches, I can wear this hat with the promise that spring will one day return to New England.

Materials and tools:
Vintage hat
Buttons, beads, seed beads, and vintage jewelry
Black nymo thread, size O
Beading needles
Fabric glue

1 Consider carefully the structure of the hat you choose. I was attracted to this rolled-brim style because there would be no need to line the inside after finishing the sewing: the style itself hides all the loose ends. I also looked for a hat with the structural integrity that could stand up to the weight of the embellishments I wanted to add.

2 Gather together all of the embellishments from your stash of button, beads, and jewelry (broken or whole) that you think you might want to use. Choose a theme or a color palette to unify your choices. Although I chose a solid colored hat, multi-colored would be a lot of fun to work with too. The color of my hat led me to develop a springtime theme in a monochromatic palette, with gold-toned accents.

3 Stitch shank-style buttons around the top of the brim, using nymo beading thread.

4 Stitch or pin your major focal pieces into place around the face of the brim. I used some larger vintage pins to divide up the surface.

5 Stitch buttons and beads in a pleasing pattern between the larger focal pieces. Use size 8 or 11 seed beads to decorate the threads holding the buttons. Take an extra anchoring stitch or two before and after stitching on each new piece.

6 After all your buttons and larger beads are attached, go back and “fill in” each large gap with a size 8 seed bead. I used bronze iris beads to add just a hint of extra color.

7 Use a small dab of fabric glue on each knot on the inside of the hat. If you’ve used a roll-brim hat like mine, there will be no need to line it, but if you’ve chosen a different style, consider adding a line lining fabric to protect your hair from getting tangled in the underside of the stitches.

Copyright 2007 Cyndi Lavin. Not to be reprinted, resold, or redistributed for profit. May be printed out for personal use or distributed electronically provided that entire file, including this notice, remains intact.

For more inspiration, check these posts:
The Best of the Basics Online
Bead Embroidery Techniques

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