Soutache Fever

I’ve been infected!!! Yes, I also have caught the soutache embroidery bug!!!

After years of not knowing what to do with the soutache braid that laid unused in one of my many boxes containing bits and pieces that I may, or may not use one day… I finally broke down and bought a soutache tutorial! :-)

First of all, let me start by saying that I probably would never have even thought of trying this technique had it not been for my dear friend Miriam Shimon who not only inspired me with her stunning soutache work but also encouraged me and shared some of her secrets with me.  If you are not familiar with her work, please visit her shop, you will not be disappointed!!!  

Here is one of my favourite souache pieces that Miriam designed:

So armed with inspiration and all her support and encouragement I bought a beautifully explained tutorial by Jodi Horgan, who also makes superb soutache work:

and as I’m unable to follow instructions (in terms of design, not technique) this is what I made from the tutorial… my first soutache pendant:

It’s not perfect…. but I love it and it’s the perfect winter pendant for me and I’ve been wearing it non-stop! :-)

As I said… I caught the bug… so I started making more pieces… these are my first (well made) earrings:



Can’t wait to make some more pieces!!!! so stay tuned!

Rust can be beautiful!

Well… as always I find time slipping away and the next thing I know… weeks have flown by!!!  Ethan was off school for a couple of weeks… Succot holidays… my parents were here… for the holidays and for my cousin’s bat-mitzvah in Jerusalem, which was a lot of fun!!! I made the jewellery for the gorgeous bat-mitzvah girl! (if I get permission from my cousin I will post photos at a later stage)…

Whenever my parents are here they take my car (ok, their car seeing that they paid for it) I become even more of a hermit than I usually am and become almost house bound… well what can one do when stuck at home???… bead of course!!! and bead I did!!! :-)  Apart from the necklace and earrings I made for my cousin, I made 2 necklaces, 2 pairs of earrings and 3 cuffs… would have made 4 cuffs and 3 pairs of earrings had I not been busy with family festivities and had I not got my car back today :-)

Here is the first necklace:

Diamond Rust – OOAK Bead Embroidered Necklace

 
I’m so in LOVE with this necklace, the photos don’t do it justice!!! it’s a really long piece and it was hard to photograph it all without making it look really small (which it is not)…. I was inspired by the colours of rusting metals… I used a gorgeous MAKUstudio raku cab (the square top one) and lots and lots of gorgeous burgandy Swarovski crystal pearls… I really need to take this picture on a body to show it in it’s best light… will get round to it! :-)

For now got to go and work on the photos for all the other pieces… hopefully I will post them all during the week… so come back and check them out! :-)

Sea urchins + JL - Necklace

I’ve been nursing a stinking cold! Unbelievable!!! 30 degrees centigrade outside (and inside, come to think of it, as I try not to use the air conditioner too often) and I’m as sick as a dog!!! :-)

The only thing that could have possibly cheered me up was the arrival of notification that a package was waiting for me at the post office… so I quickly went to see what could be waiting for me! :-)

It was a package from Janice Abarbanel of Naftali!

Remember my post at the end of May about a new necklace I created with Naftali’s gorgeous polymer clay cabochons for her stand at the Bead and Button Show…. well Janice sent it back to me after the show was over… but that is not all…. she enclosed inside the package one of her  gorgeous…… and I mean GORGEOUS… Sea Urchin Cabochon!!!!!!!!! How exiting is that?!?!?! I’ve been ogling at these beautiful cabs since she posted them in her shop!!!! and now I’m the lucky owner of one of them!!!!! thank you sooooo much Janice!!!!!

I was too eager to post about this, but as it’s the end of the day here I was unable to take photos of my urchin (a gorgeous silver-grey one, similar to the one in the top left picture) so instead I will show you some of the Sea Urchins she has available in her shop!

 

Click on the photos above to be taken to the listings and to see more details - These are only some of them! there are more in red, green, lilac and other colours.

and… as the necklace has now returned, I have listed it in my shop:

JL – OOAK Necklace

 
As soon as I get past this stinking cold I will start to create something with my gorgeous sea urchin!!! don’t know what… but something for sure!!! :-)

happy beading everyone!!! :-)

The best laid plans….

Remember how in the last post I wrote about Janice Abarbanel of Naftali’s gorgeous cabochons that she sent me…. and how I was going to make something out of them for the Bead & Button Show…. and how I was going to “have to” ship them by Tuesday or Wednesday at the very latest!!!…. well… the best laid plans… Tuesday and Wednesday I had to deal with some unpleasant legal stuff, which I won’t bore you with… but I had to deal with it!…. and I thought never mind, I’ll finish the necklace off Thursday morning and send it by 4 pm on the same day…. what I hadn’t taken into consideration was my little boy getting really sick yesterday and having to spend all day trying to nurse him back to health…

he’s a bit better today, still has a bit of a fever but he is on the mend…. So the necklace was finally finished yesterday night… after having made 3 other chokers for it till I finally made this one which I liked the best! (hopefully I will use at least one of the other chokers for something else). Here is the finished piece:

I’m really, really happy with how it turned out…. and hope that Janice likes it too! :-) and…. really, really hope that it gets to the US in time before Janice leaves for the Bead & Button Show! I’m going to send it express first thing Sunday Morning (should take 4-5 days)… this is cutting it so short, but unfortunately sometimes life happens and it interferes with our best laid plans! If all goes well, and you are one of the lucky ones going to the Bead & Button Show, go and check out Janice Abarbanel of Naftali’s booth (#1244) and you should be able to see this piece in the flesh! :-)

Wishing everyone a very happy weekend! happy beading! :-)

BAO Items – 3 days special

This week the BAO are having a 4-day special!!! We are changing the Items of the Week! Instead of Mondays, the Items of the Week will be published on Fridays. Here are the items for this very short week :-)

Check out all the special offers available for the next 3 days!!!
http://beadartoriginals.blogspot.com/

My item this week is:

Ancient Cuff

Purchase and pay for this cuff between now and 13th August and receive 20% off!!!

Stepping Stones - Bead-embroidered collar

Well, here it is the piece I blogged about a couple of weeks ago.... After a few false starts I finally settled down and stuck to one idea and carried it through to the end. I was so petrified of not getting this piece right because I was using one of Lisa Peters' Art's beautiful ceramic cabochons and I really didn't want to mess it up!!! hence all the starting, unpicking, cutting up... but I am pleased with the result and doubly pleased that Lisa liked it!!! :-)

Stepping Stones

Lisa is a fellow member of the Bead Art Originals and she makes the most beautiful ceramic beads, buttons and cabochons. If you are not familiar with her work, you must check her out!!! http://lisa-petersart.blogspot.com/

I am the proud owner of quite a few of her pieces (and have some on the way).... Between wanting to do her pieces justice and selfishly wanting to keep them all to myself so I can look and touch them (they are sooo gorgeous) I've been reluctant to use them.... hopefully I've gotten over that little mind obstacle and you should be seeing quite a few of my future pieces incorporating these gorgeous ceramic treasures! :-)

If you are interested in finding out more about the materials used for this piece and the measurements, please click on the picture or here.

For now, I'm off to play with my new keyboard.... at the age of almost 42 I decided to take up piano lessons and I'm loving it!!!! and I'm one of those people that when they start something new they need to get all the equipment! :-) of course a piano was out of the questions (too expensive) but a keyboard, that I'm sure my son will end up using as much as me, didn't break the bank, so 2 days ago I went and got one! :-) and I'm so glad I did, and by practicing a couple of hours every day I have already seen an amazing improvement... my piano teacher will be so impressed and surprised! :-)

Wishing everyone a great day and happy beading! :-)

Creative Process - Bronze Embroidered Collar - Part 2

OK!.... this has been one of my most challenging pieces ever!!! and not because of the technique, but because of the design.... so here is an update on the piece, which has now been renamed Sunflowers.... you will see why... or at least I hope you will :-)

All was going well.... I was enjoying it, I knew where I was going.... I liked how it was turning out.... but then I went to pick up my order of beads, including the grey ones which I was running out of and..... Nooooo, they had run out of stock!!!! :-( panic attack!!! :-)

Never mind, think out of the box.... and within my new order of beads there were some gorgeous Czech Baby Pillow beads mix.... and I thought they would look lovely with the shell... so I started changing my design.... (see top right and below) also, this month's EtsyBeadweavers' Challenge was on my mind... the challenge is "Spring Break" ... so I'm thinking, spring... flowers.... sunflowers.... and the baby pillows naturally fit in.... I've found a solution for my lack of grey beads problem.... all is going well.... or so I thought :-)

I really was unhappy!!! I liked the effect that the baby pillows gave, but something just wasn't working!!!! so I unpicked the cause of so much misery :-) and took a deep breath... and re-thought the design....

and as you see above right.... a vast improvement.... I have this tendency to buy beads just because I like them... not because I need them.... am so glad I do that, because I really didn't know how to finish off.... so back to my stash.... I found these great transparent matte brown seed beads, that I probably bought 2 years ago and have never used before.... and they are just perfect!!! I wanted something to tone down the shine and sparkle at the same time as compliment it.

Now comes the next challenge.... coming up with the perfect (or close enough) closure....

till the next time.... I'm hoping I will have finished it by Sunday or Monday... always hard to tell how much beading I can do at the week-end.... depends on how long my son's nap lasts :-)

Creative Process - Bronze Ebroidered Collar - part 1

I decided to keep a photographic record of my thought process while designing some pieces, because I find myself forgetting too many ideas that I get whilst working on something.... so I now keep my digital camera on my beading table and click away! :-) so here is the latest piece I'm working on.

Preliminary sketches: you will see how it changes and how I sometimes get ideas for possible future pieces.

Below: I sketch out an idea of what I'm aiming for, not necessarily using those stones... I just try and get an idea of proportions. Picture on the right is now my template.

Below: I actually badly-placed the right bead, unfortunately didn't realise it until I finished stitching both (and I don't mean only the actual bead, I mean all the work on top!!!) .... so had to un-stitch one and start again... next time I'll double check! :-) the photo on the right shows the corrected version.

When I get a bit stuck, I go through my bead stash and pull out more beads just to give myself a new perspective and usually it helps and new ideas come up, some good, some less good :-)

Right photo: I decided to include the shells and grey square beads, but not the pearls, although am thinking of using these colours with the pearls for a future project.




I have progressed a bit more, but now it's almost midnight and I don't have enough light to take the picture, it will go in the next installment :-)
So, if you are interested to see how it develops and turns out, come back in a few days! or sign up to my monthly newsletter (above right ) :-)

Mayan Treasure

I just couldn't wait to post this necklace.... I finished it today, just in time to be able to still take photos outside.... I'm so, so, so pleased with how it turned out and with my photos!!! I absolutely LOVE this colour combination... bronze and grey.... the crocheted necklace is nice and chunky and I just love it to bits!!!! I actually started making it the day after I finished Ancient Bronze Treasure... but between work, my son, the Etsy BeadWeavers Red Challenge, where I've entered 3 pieces, Judy's birthday necklace and a few other prior commitments, I only just managed to get back to it yesterday.... I thought I loved the other one, but now I look at both and there is no competition.... this new one is definitely the winner in my eyes!!! but then again I seem to feel that way about each new piece that is completed... at least the ones posted on here... the ones I'm not happy with don't make it for public viewing :-) If I don't like something because of some element of the piece doesn't (in my opinion) work, I usually put it in my "see-what-can-be done-with-that" box (if I think the original idea behind it has potential but needs to be re-calculated) or it gets cut up (when the piece has no potential)... In the case of this necklace, I got stuck half-way through, hung it in front of me so that I would see it every time I sat at the beading table.... and I'm so glad I didn't scrap it!!!!... I guess inspiration hit.. I started thinking of Aztec and Mayan images... which I'm fond of (I even have an Aztec-inspired armband tattooed on my upper left arm) and the piece started speaking to me...

Above: Back view

For more info on this piece, please go and visit my Etsy shop


Mayan Treasure

ALSO.... PLEASE DON'T FORGET!!! VOTING IS IN PROCESS AT THE ETSY BEADWEAVERS' BLOG..... THE CHALLENGE FOR THIS MONTH IS RED.... THERE ARE 42 ENTRIES.... I HAVE 3 ENTRIES IN THE CHALLENGE.... YOU ARE NOT TOO LATE !!! AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO VOTE FOR ME!!! JUST PLEASE.....

Go vote for your favourite piece! http://etsy-beadweavers.blogspot.com/