Bead Arts

I’ve become a magazine hog! Those of you who frequent online forums know the term “thread hog”…well, this is the magazine equivalent, I guess. There are three of my articles in the newest issue of Jewelry Crafts magazine.

The first piece is one that I made in collaboration with my friend Amy Fraser. You can read more about Amy’s art in the artist profile that she wrote for me. Check out Jewelry Crafts for the instructions to make one of these mixed media necklaces.

Passion Flower

The second piece was made from beads that my sister-in-law brought back for me from Kenya! The article shows you how to do the simple stringing on cord.

Ethiopian Cross

And the last article exlains how to paint muslin to create a neck full of fabric beads like these!

Spring Fling

P.S. There are also some wonderful articles by regular contributors Rebekah Wills, Carole Rogers, and Judy Atwell, plus more

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

“And just think…..all I ever wanted was a box of 64 colors!!”

So says extraordinary bead artist Cassandra Graham. You’ll need to set aside some serious time to take in all of Cassandra’s gorgeous pieces on her website, Wilde Jewels. Amazing pieces live there, like this Bead Dreams finalist called French Vanilla:

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

In the ocean of information that is the world wide web, there are a few websites that rise to the top when it comes to covering the basics of beadwork. Not surprisingly, one of them is the Beadwork Site at About.com. Paula Morgan has compiled the very best tutorials on just about every aspect of beading that you can imagine: bead weaving stitches, stringing, wire work, and loom weaving. So really, this is the place for you to start.

One other brilliant site has made my list of the best of the best: Beads East has animated tutorials on many of the most popular off-loom bead weaving stitches! This is one of Ann Benson’s sites, and if you haven’t seen Ann’s beadwork before, prepare to be amazed!

There are a few additional sites that each have great tips to offer:

Bead Jewelry Making
Some harder-to-find seed bead instructions

Beading Help Web
Well-written articles and tutorials geared mostly for beginners

Jewelry Making at About.com
Tutorials and tips on all aspects of the art, including business

BeadStyle Magazine
Some good tips on working with wire

Fire Mountain Gems
How to use specific tools

Bead&Button Techniques
Pdf downloads of instructions available

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media, tutorials

I finally managed to finish this monster necklace that I’ve been working on:

Orinoco Flow

My daughter was home for the weekend, and she came up with the name. She pointed out to me that the piece uses several very primitive symbols, like concentric circles and jagged lines, which often represent watering holes and the rivers that connect them.

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media, bead-embroidery

I am so excited!! One of my pieces, one that I slaved over, cried over, and sweated over, has won an honorable mention in the Your Designs Rock! contest sponsored by Rings & Things.

This piece evolved slowly in my mind when I became obsessed by the restoration work my husband was doing on an antique piano. You can read the full story here.

Andante

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Make Art Monday!

Using beads and wire crochet, this piece uses amethyst nuggets to good effect!

Faerie Bells

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

Something I finished recently, made from vintage beads that came from 4 or 5 different necklaces:

Earth Day

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I’ve subscribed to livebeadclass’s new videos!

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

Turquoise Donut Pendant

Turquoise looks particularly good in the chunky ethnic styles that are popular again this spring and summer.

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

Two of my articles are in the April issue of Jewelry Crafts Magazine. The first one is instructions for making a mixed media necklace like Drum Beat, shown below. It includes fabric beads, wire, and pre-made ceramic beads.

Drum Beat

The second article concerns the theme of the issue: choosing colors. I’ve used one of Jeanne Kent’s beautiful fused glass V pendants, and written a practical lesson in color theory, along with (of course) instructions for making the necklace. This poor little necklace remains unnamed. Those of you who know how name-challenged I am…maybe you can give me some suggestions?

Unnamed

Jewelry Crafts Magazine

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Christi Friesen, winner polymer clay category
The competition is open to professional and amateur beaders from the U.S. and around the world. All work entered in the competition must be original.

Deadline: April 9, 2007

Bead Dreams contest information

Finalists will be on display at the Bead&Button Show, June 6-10, 2007 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Enter the Bead Arts Awards - Fill in the online form

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

Technique Tuesday!

1. 
   Cut 2 pieces of beading wire to 2 feet each. Center a soldered gold loop on both pieces, and pass all four ends up through a large gold bead and a large glass bead. Split the wires, and string 2 up through each hole in the V pendant.
2. 
   String each pair of wires through a large gold bead. String the rest of the two necklace strands, alternating between small beads and seed beads on a single wire and larger beads on both wires for about 4 to 5 inches. String both wires through several large beads, and finally through about ½ inch of smaller beads.
3. 
   Create 2 dangles on headpins and make wrapped loops around the soldered ring below the V pendant.
4. 
   Autumn Woods
   Use crimps to attach the loose ends of the beading wires on one side to a soldered gold ring, and to a 2 inch piece of chain on the other side. Attach a gold hook to the ring. Create another small dangle on a headpin, and make a wrapped loop around the loose end of the chain.

Materials:
V Pendant (available from New Terra Artifacts)
90 small glass beads, approximately 4mm, in 6-7 colors
20 larger glass beads, from 8-12mm, in similar colors
#8 gold-lined seed beads
3 gold beads, 6-8mm
2 soldered gold loops
2 pieces of .015 inch beading wire, each 2 feet long
2 gold crimps
Gold hook
2 inches of gold chain
3 headpins

Tools:
Wire cutters
Flat nosed pliers
Round nosed pliers
File
Alligator clips
Measuring tape

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.

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media, tutorial

I know it’s the wrong time of year to be thinking about Autumn, but these are some of my favorite colors, year-round. You see, despite my profile picture with the wild turquoise hair, I’m really a redhead.

Anyway, here’s what I made with another one of those beautiful V-pendants that I got from Jeanne Kent at New Terra Artifacts. I haven’t decided whether to keep this one or to put it on one of my websites for sale. I guess I don’t have to decide right now!

Tomorrow for Technique Tuesday, I’ll give you the instructions for this one!

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media

Belle Armoire Jewelry (vol 3) covers a broad range of mediums, from art clay to polymer clay to found object to fiber to wire to beads and much, much more. Whether you are a creator of necklaces, bracelets, earrings, brooches, pendants, rings or other jewelry, we welcome you to submit your artwork for consideration of publication.

Deadline: April 15, 2007

Belle Armoire special edition information

Publication: September 1, 2007

Submission guidelines

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Betzie made this beautiful blue and gold necklace and shared it a couple days ago on her blog, Time Enough (don’t you just love the name?) She writes that it features “a moon face pendant made from polymer clay. I used pearl x on her face which doesn’t show on the photo, but adds a touch of ‘glow’ to her in person.”

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