Black and White Obsession

Black and white. It must be the colorless Midwest pseudo-winter we've had....but black and white seed beads are my current obsession. That and big, statement necklaces that cover the throat and upper chest  in bling!

SO, just how many black and white seed beads do I need? My favorite online bead suppliers (Bello Modo and Charlenes Beads) probably think I'm nuts. But their great "no minimum order" policies make it easy to go online and find the exact next size bead I want!!

 How many are out there? Lots - more than I have already purchased, but I have some cool ones.

I'll admit, the differences are subtle. But when focused on creating a round peyote-stitched medallion that looks good, lays flat and stays round, the beads make a huge difference.

Here are the current pieces piling up, waiting to be joined together into a black and white statement bib necklace. Here is the first one. see on Pinterest

For the detailed minded, note that the medallions are all a little bit different, except for 3 black on white starbursts and 3 spirals that are almost the same. Hence the spiral rope and the spiral sterling wire hook. Yay! It's a theme!

I should also  note that the whites are not all the same - some are WHITE shiny opaque and some are WHITE OPAL GILT LINED - which lends a slight goldish glint to the whole piece.

It' was my first time making spiral rope (so easy, so versatile - genius! Thank you whoever first figured this out!). BUT they don't tell you exactly  HOW to attach the spiral rope - which is woven with a single continuous thread - to a large piece or to a clasp. So I made up my own way....

and clasp

Strong. Reinforced. and Scaled appropriately. Guess I'd better write THAT out so I don't forget what I did.

Danielle's Green Dream

So, about a year ago, Danielle (from Minneapolis, college classmate and friend of daughter Laura's) found two fused glass pieces she loved. "Make me a necklace..." she said. Now, Danielle is one of those women who are unselfconsciously stunning. She's the young wife and mother of 3 with a speaking career and the style of a super model.

Her taste in jewelry tends to the big and bold and fabulous. Huge rings. Bold bracelets. Boots. Scarves. Headbands. Birds in her hair (seriously, at a wedding!) And it wasn't a live bird.....

She has the knack of wearing the unusual or something that would look awkward or even ridiculous on most of us and making it look good. (never mind that she is half my age....and probably half my weight....I'm still slightly envious.)

 

So this gives my quite a lot of room to make something with her glass pieces that not everyone would wear. I finished one last night and am actually wearing it today before I mail it to her. (Got to make sure it doesn't scratch, that it sits on the neck correctly, right?)

Here's the piece of glass - a twisted green and silver dichroic fused glass figure 8. The necklace uses these colors plus black with silver wire and findings. Some beads are plastic, some glass.

Combining disparate pieces is possible in a piece like this, which includes a piece of a broken vintage rhinestone bracelet, a cracked-marble, plastic beads, green and crystal vintage Mardi Gras beads from back when they actually threw out real beads instead of the mass-produced plastics of today.

There are also some funky glass beads, a large faceted quartz bead, a silver earring, a piece of rhinestone chain and part of a restrung 60s era multi-strand costume jewelry necklace.

The base chain was once a biker chain to attach to a wallet, so the clasp is correspondingly large.

So Danielle, it might take another year to make something with the other piece since I really need to spend my studio time on items to sell......but I hope you like your creation.

Blue Moon

This new piece is going into the Arts on Grand gallery in Spencer, Iowa.....

It's fun to repurpose old costume jewelry - but I do get distracted by the tiniest of details. You would not believe the time spent in August just on rhinestones: researching the best prices for replacement stones, measuring, comparing colors with online photos, ordering and waiting, being disappointed in the quality from one vendor, ordering again....then popping off old or loose stones, cleaning and removing old glue, resetting or gluing in replacement stones! (I use 2-part epoxy - those puppies will not fall out!).

But IMHO (in my humble opinion...) you can't have too much bling on this type of piece.
This piece includes:

• large blue rhinestone brooch
• small blue and pearl brooch
• large pot metal shoe clip - all stones gone
• rhinestone circle earring with blue rivoli added
• moonstone sterling earring drop
• rhinestone ball bead
• silver metal stamped earring
• length of vintage silver metal, pearl and AB rhinestone bracelet
• pieces of beaded chain in silver with pearls and blue links
• vintage 2-hole rhinestone spacer bar
• 3mm blue Swarovski bicone crystals
• large blue Czech glass bead
• vintage pearls, crystal, and glass beads
• fine silver balled headpins
• silver jump rings
• silver craft wire
• vintage clasp
• pieces of rhinestone chain
• rhinestone earring (faux Diana style)
• blue, cream an crystal drops

I am getting the hang of the asymmetrical  design - the trick is to design on a dress form, not on a flat bench. Time is lost crawling around on the floor searching for dropped jump rings or beads, but it's the best way to create something that hangs properly on the neck.

Amber Sunset Necklace

One more necklace completed....called Amber Sunset. It's a sparkly confection of vintage jewelry pieces, chain, pearls and crystals.

Metals are all gold-toned. Crystals and rhinestones range from dark pink aurora borealis  to salmon to red. Length is about 18", although it fills up the neckline nicely. It looks heavy, but is actually quite comfortable.

Elements include:

• part of an amazing, vintage necklace with pearls and rhinestones
• large starfish brooch with pink rhinestones, white antiquing and iridescent cab settings
• double heart pearl and rhinestone brooch
• leaf dangle with stone
• large gold-tone metal flower brooch
• gold sunburst vintage earring
• salmon lucite cab in gold setting earring
• vintage round brooch with red and orange rhinestones, pearls
• lucite/foil earring setting
• Swarovski Siam crystal bicones
• Pink AB vintage crystal beads
• Red Czech crystal beads
• Vintage pearl beads
• Various reclaimed pink dangles from vintage jewelry
• Vintage double ring twisted Gold plate chain and findings
• New rhinestone clasp, brass wire, headpins

Currently on display and available at Eclectics, 7015 Oak Street in Kansas City, MO. Find us on Facebook at Eclectics Gallery.

Whoo-Hoo!! Sold it, Jan. 27, 2012! Thanks to whoever you are - please wear it lots and tell everyone to check out Eclectics.

Noir Fleur - the Black Flower

I love buying old "junk" jewelry and recently found an Etsy shop that sells great stuff - do not know how many hours a day this vendor must spend sorting, or where she finds her "finds" - but I'm addicted.

I first found Savage Attic when searching for rhinestone jewelry for a friends' wedding in May....now I visit her shop nearly every day. Recently, a lot of black beaded jewelry caught my eye and soon it was on its way to my studio. Combined with other black and gold beads, pins, findings and brooches already hiding in my stash, last week my vision came together as Noir Fleur.

This piece is comfortable (I'm actually wearing it now!), not too heavy and could be worn with something very classy  - your best LBD. It would also work great with a crisp white shirt and a little black leather jacket.

Gold metal (brass and some gold-plate) brooches and chain, black glass and acrylic beads and brooch, a large black/gray/cream stone bead of unknown pedigree, rhinestones and glass pearls, a couple old earrings and some found metal pieces and dangles.

Clasp is also re-purposed...and matches perfectly.

My current fave is the "statement necklace" - ever since seeing Mrs. Obama where a fab Tom Binns necklace at the Kennedy Center Honors....

So great - wonder how he attaches those old pieces together??? Or maybe they are NOT vintage pieces, but new ones??? Anyway, that's what I like, in case you want to get me something for my birthday.....
but for now, guess I'm content making up my own creations.

Sweetie Belle

Okay, I admit it. I am ADDED (Attention Deficit Disorder Extra Distractible).....but my latest favorite thing to create is widely known as Statement Jewelry.

After making Rachel's wedding necklace (see previous post) I tried again, using reclaimed vintage brooches, earrings, beads and pearls. Nothing in this is innately valuable - the white daisies are some type of hard plastic, the petals of the large blue brooch are also plastic.

• Blue plastic and metal brooch
• Gold and pastel brooch
• Brass flower with blue rhinestones
• Enameled 3-flower earring
• Section of white daisy bracelet links
• Metal earring with large Aurora rhinestones
• Yellow and blue faux pearls
• Blue glass oval beads
• White and Pink glass beads (various shapes)
• Antique Faceted glass Mardi Gras beads
• Large blue Rhinestone set dangle
• Bezeled glass chain

The large center brooch is brass or gold-colored metal with enameling, aurora rhinestones and glass pear and navette cabs.  All the beads and faux pearls came from reclaimed jewelry. I replaced corroded wires and used new shiny brass headpins for all the dangles.The clasp is custom made by me....but the back dangle is from a real Mardi Gras necklace from back in the day when they actually threw real jewelry from the floats.

I love re-using these pieces. It looks great on and the individual pieces would just be sitting in an old box somewhere, unused...

Now, what to do with it? I never wear these colors! So maybe it will go into Eclectics Gallery or to my Etsy store....but first pricing, the most difficult thing for me.

OK - It's on display and for sale at Eclectics Gallery in Kansas City. But if you want to purchase it, contact me through my Etsy shop at www.bylynette.etsy.com. Price is $240.

Statement Jewelry - 2nd verse

This lapis collar has been bumping around in my head for two years, ever since I bought strands of luscious, large round, oval and rectagular lapis (or something that LOOKS like lapis) beads at the local gem show.

Building the collar was an organic thing, gradually adding pieces and trying to keep the shape working (and hanging) properly. Also included are some sparkling faceted Chinese crystals, a lovely vintage filigree floral pin

and an costume jewelry earring that was my mother-in-law's.

 Bits of chain, jump rings, gold-toned beads and a spool of vintage 70s brass wire were all that was needed. I used the wire to make a wrapped hook for the back and did put a few beads onto a 2" dangle to weight the back and keep it centered. I'm wearing this, at least this week on our trip to Chicago - but will make another. This one was a learning experience and I've got ideas for changing my connection techniques....

Statement Jewelry

Ha! It worked! Starting a new medium (foiled & soldered glass pendants on fiber garlands) got me creative again. And guess what? My jewelry is bigger - literally. Not a tiny seed bead in sight.

Statement jewelry is in (for a couple years now....) and some of the outstanding designers I love are making totally amazing things.  I guess this one makes a statement too - as in "I love wearing jewelry!!"

Inspired by my garlands and seeing fibers used in various ways in jewelry recently (just about everywhere...) I went back to my wonderful stash of cream colored silk from making my daughter's wedding dress in 2003 and found yards of leftovers, which were used to make yards of bias strip to wrap cotton upholstery cord.

I added a strand of pearl beads from deconstructed multi-strand castoff, a strand of strung faux pearls and several vintage rhinestone jewelry pieces. One of them was an earring from my mother and the large blue centerpiece is a pin found recently in a resale shop. The rest were dug from my cherished bins of vintage jewelry.....

A few little sew-on individual rhinestones were added randomly to emphasize the blues below.

The "clasp" is a vintage silk-corded button toggle which slides easily through the looped cord at the back. This piece used as many sewing skills as it did jewelry-making techniques.
My husband thinks its "gaudy" but I'd totally wear this - and will, if it doesn't sell at Eclectics Gallery. However pricing is my bugaboo. I'm thinking this should be priced at $185.....it did take a long time to construct and it contains all those great vintage pieces....we'll see.