Pretty Palettes :: August 2016

Hello, Pretty Palette makers! Were you as excited as me about this month's palette? I just LOVE it! For more information about Halcraft's Pretty Palettes blog hop, visit Halcraft's Inspiration Blog. Bead team member Erin Prais-Hintz is always on the hunt for new guest beaders, so send me a line (or a comment here or the Halcraft blog) if you're interested in playing along and would like to partner with Erin and the rest of the Halcraft team!

Thank you, Design Seeds!

I went to Michaels and purchased my Bead Gallery beads right away for this one, because they were so fun to choose. I chose a couple from the selection that Erin made, but I couldn't help myself: I chose even more!

Erin's Pretty Palette beads

My Pretty Palette beads (give or take a few) from Michaels

Seeing all of these beads in the strands next to each other made me really want to see them that way in the piece, so I decided to create a big, chunky braided necklace. I found some cornflower bluish-purple connectors as well, to tie in that pretty purple hue in the palette.

Without further ado, I present the Bodacious Blueberry necklace!

Bodacious Blueberry, not for the faint of heart!

This necklace is so much fun to wear and make. It's bold as well as feminine, and it's practically bursting with beady goodness!  It was great to capture each of the colors in the palette with this month's challenge. I do still have some 6mm rounds left of four colors, which I'm considering using to make a bracelet. We'll see! 

I can't wait to see what everyone else made. Thank you for a Pretty Palette, Erin!

An InLinkz Link-up

February Pretty Palettes :: Pink Lace Knotted Pendant Necklace

I missed the Pretty Palettes day this month, but I've been dying to make up the necklace that's been in my head! Finally I took the time to get it done and I hope that I'll be able to squeeze it onto the InLinkz today! Here's a link to Erin's Pretty Palette February 2016 reveal post, and here is the inspiration and beads she chose:

 






I love the idea of lace as a theme. Last September my mom, daughter, and I all traveled to Stratford, Ontario to the Shakespeare Festival! My daughter loves theater, and this was nearly as good as a trip to The Globe in London. If you ever have the chance to see a show there, take it. The costumes, actors and town are all wonderful! We chose to do a tour of the costume warehouse before the shows and had an amazing time together. They even had a section with costumes that had been used but were out of circulation that you could try on!

My brief time as a Shakespeare player!

But, to tie this into the February Pretty Palettes post, while we were there, there was a local artists' show, and this lovely lady was making lace! Watching the bobbins fly all around was mesmerizing.

The lace-maker's husband carved all of these beautiful bobbins for his wife.

Watch those bobbins fly!

I always go to nature for inspiration in my beadwork, so when I saw the lacy golden leaf pendant, I knew it was meant to be part of this Pretty Palettes challenge.

One thing that had thrown me off my scheduled Pretty Palettes work was a request to make some knotted necklaces for an upcoming look book.

 It's easy to see why I wanted to make more. These are too much fun & look great!

I had such a great time making these necklaces with Bead Gallery beads (which you can find at Micaels) that I wanted to incorporate the knotting technique into my project for Pretty Palettes as well. The knotting reminds me of the repetitive nature of knitting that I love so much, and the waxed cord is a great fit for most of the beads I wanted to use. The knots weren't too big or too small, and its waxy nature makes it easy to thread. I found some pretty pink stone rounds (these have a bit of purple in them as well), a few accent beads, and set to it.

Here's my knotted necklace for the challenge. I call it the Seychelles Necklace, after the archipelago of islands in the Indian Ocean. (I'm wishing for some tropical weather. Won't winter just stop, already?)

So happy Pretty Palettes! I can't wait to see what Erin will come up with for tomorrow's Pretty Palette challenge, March 2016 edition!

There are some AMAZING pieces in this month's challenge. Check them out by clicking the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

December's Pretty Palette: Nordic Inspiration

I'm a knitter, but I've yet to master much colorwork. I love cables, though. Lots of them! 

I love a good knit!

December's Halcraft Pretty Palettes challenge uses inspiration drawn from Nordic knitting patterns that do use colorwork. There are so many wonderful patterns and icons. The socks below are from Annemore Sundbo's collection. Read more about them on the Halcraft blog. I'd love to learn how to "float yarn" and make these great patterns on my own.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/annemorsundbo/3968568771/

Look out Mrs. Weasley; I've got mad knitting skillz, too! 

I tried to teach myself (without much luck) how to do this and make some super cute advent mitten ornaments. But it was a bust; I'm going to my local yarn store, Yarn Stories, to get the scoop on how to do this two-color stuff!

Instead, I made my family tiny initial sweater ornaments. I must admit I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out! 

When I saw Erin's challenge, I thought about how I could incorporate the patterns into my beading, and I came up with an idea: I've always been interested in learning how to use a beading loom, and grid-like design matches so well that this would give me the perfect opportunity to learn a new technique!

Enter the Jewel Loom® from Beadalon. I once had a chance to meet the bubbly and talented Juliana Avelar, inventor of the Jewel Loom, in the Green Room when I was taping episodes for Beads, Baubles & Jewels. (Which reminds me that I have a much overdue post about my escapades with some amazing beading women last month! Look for that in the near future.) I've been hoping to pick up a Jewel Loom ever since!

Some quick jotting with graph paper made my pattern come to life!

Today was the day. I bought my loom, WildFire cord, and some basic 3mm rounds from the Bead Gallery aisle in red, black, and AB clear at Michaels. Then I set it up according to the booklet that came with the loom, which was really easy. To map out my design I used some graph paper and pens. 

I found the experience really relaxing, sort of like knitting. Once I got started, I really didn't want to stop! After I finished the weaving and tied it off, I decided to use ribbon ends with glue to finish the piece.

My first loom project! I'm sure I'll do more. I loved it!

Thanks for visiting my blog, and don't forget to visit the rest of the blog hop by clicking on the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Halcraft's August 2014 Pretty Palettes Reveal with Barb Switzer

I'm so excited to finally have this blog post up! Have you ever had a project that wouldn't come together for you? I do occasionally, and this was one of them. I'm late to the party, and in being late, I also have made Barb Switzer's entry late as well. You'll be excited to see Barb's project later in this post!

If you've never played along, here's how the Pretty Palette Blog hop goes: Halcraft Dream Team member, Erin Prais-Hintz of Tesori Trovati shares a palette as well as inspiration beads from the Bead Gallery line available at Michaels Stores on the first Wednesday of each month. Anyone who wants to play along can visit her local Michaels--or just find something that she already has in her stash--and make something that follows along with the inspiration image.

Here's the beautiful palette that Erin found along with Bead Gallery beads that coordinate for the August Pretty Palettes challenge. Click here for more information and to see what others have made.

 

I grabbed some of my favorite beads, faceted pink agate, larger swirled pink agate in smooth rounds with light swirls of white, and Phoenix stone round and ovals. There were a few other strands I chose, but incorporating them seemed to complicate and muddle the design. 

First this was a bracelet, then this was a necklace, then, well, I felt like giving up because the deadline was looming close and I wasn't happy with what I'd made. 

But then I found this strand of beads:

I loved them! The palette has a distinctly Bollywood flavor to me, and these beads resonated with the colors. Using these beads made all the difference for me. Suddenly, I had a focal point and a shape that dictated the rest of the piece.

I quickly used this bead as a focal point in what I thought was going to be a bracelet, but as I incorporated some gold chain, I realized that this was one of my last chances to make a summery project. It just had to be a bottomless sandal! Is there a name for one of these? It's nearly the end of summer, so I named them Last Fling Summer Anklets. It's more than an anklet but less than a sandal, and they're surprisingly comfortable. And my hubby thinks they're sexy! *blush*

The following project is by Barb Switzer, Wire Maven, who wanted to participate in the blog hop, but doesn't maintain a blog. I'm so excited to include her project here!

********************Designing Diversely*******************

By Barb Switzer

This month's Pretty Palette color selection is very diverse. To compose the colors together, I felt I needed to start with a focal element. Because wire is my most favored medium, and I am obsessed with teardrop shapes, I had an idea of where to go next.

Barb Switzer's Wire Wrapped Centerpiece

I designed the focal element to anchor the colors as well as the shapes and styles of beads. This allowed me to build a mixed bead chain without having it overshadow the focal. Design challenges are your best ally, encouraging creative solutions and innovative elements.

If the colors are strong, the shapes can also be bold, and the size can even be pumped up a bit. This design reminded me of some of the things I learned in design school. Don't ever be afraid of strong colors, big beads or dominant shapes. Instead, let these elements set the mood. Step away from your safe place; I guarantee it will surprise and delight you to get outside of the fence.

Barb created her own components using different gauges of wires.

Pretty Palettes :: Jubilee Necklace

Jubilee Necklace by Molly Schaller

It's time for Pretty Palettes! If you've been following along on the Halcraft blog, you know what I'm talking about. Each month Erin Prais-Hintz presents a gorgeous color palette for anyone who wants to participate to use as inspiration for a piece of jewelry or accessory. She uses beads from the Bead Gallery line available at Michaels Stores. 

Halcraft's Pretty Palettes Blog Hop Reveal

Have you checked out Erin Prais-Hintz' inspiring Pretty Palette posts on the Halcraft USA blog? If not, you're missing out on a great opportunity to stretch your beading muscles. I love how it feels to design with colors that aren't on my usual "menu."

Here's how it goes: Erin posts an image with an amazing color palette, and you follow along using her guidance of bead choice--and any others you might want to use--to create a project. Then you write a post about it on your blog and link up to the Halcraft USA blog to see what others have created. It's so much fun to see what others have made using these inspiring palettes and beads.

This month, I was lucky to have a beading buddy want to participate with me! Joyce is a friend who I recently learned has a talent for beading that had been on the back burner. Joyce's daughter and my daughter are friends, so we planned some time for the girls hang out while we treated ourselves to a play date of our own!

It was so wonderful to sit and chat over tea and cookies and BEADS! Joyce told me that she'd put her beads away in a special cabinet after her daughter was born, and she had wanted to pick them back up again. She was game for my challenge, and I'm so excited to say that we're going to make the Pretty Palette challenge a monthly "play date" for ourselves as well as the girls!

Here's this month's palette, which Erin pulled from the fabric of a dress that a friend is wearing to a wedding:

I love this palette--and the dress that inspired it--but it's definitely out of my normal range of colors.

It took a little bit of time to choose our directions, but once we got started, the time flew by. Joyce made some amazing earrings. She didn't put earwires on them because she has to use a specific type for her sensitive ears, so she's just holding them up in the photo. I wish I would have taken a photo of them on their own, as I loved how she was able to use wrapped loop drops to really make them special.

Joyce's choice of shirt goes really well with our color palette this time!

 Here are my own creations. Once I got started on the earrings I had a hard time stopping! I used mostly blues and purples, with a gold chain and inspiration beads.

Lots of little wrapped loop gold drops make these simple earrings look deceptively complex.

Beaded links and an amazing faceted bead give this necklace a vintage appeal.

The wrapped loop drops with bigger focal beads make a relatively simple bracelet a standout.

The textured chain makes these earrings longer than some, but I think the length is balanced by the pretty blue faceted drops.

More wrapped drops give sparkle to simple earrings with a lot of texture.

Here is a photo of the carnage on the table when we were done.

Remember these great little bead cups from my book club post? They still get a lot of use.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even William got in on the fun and was quite the helper!

I hope you enjoyed my blog hop post! Visit the Halcraft blog again on February 5th for the next Pretty Palettes reveal from Erin. And let me know if you hope to play along, too!

Favorites...

 

As a designer, I'm challenged to make beautiful things almost every day. Most of the time, it works out, and I'm happy with what I make. Sometimes, a design is successful, but it's just not my style. Occasionally, it just doesn't work, and I have to leave the bead board and come back after a quick walk outside or a good night's sleep.

But every so often I make something that I love and wish I could keep. I'm sure you all know what I mean. I know Erin understands, as she wrote about feeling just that after designing her Toast of the Town Necklace which started the Quick Fire blog hop.

Well, The Collector's Necklace is one of my favorites. I designed it over a year ago for an episode of Beads, Baubles and Jewels, which you can usually find on your local PBS station. As it turned out, I wasn't able to present this project because I was late into my pregnancy, but Katie kindly picked up and did a glorious job presenting this project. Thanks so much, Katie! Just click here to see Katie present a how-to video, or click here for written instructions.

Everywhere I wear it, I get compliments, and it's such a versatile design! I made three different versions of it for the show, and there are so many more variations that I'd love to make, using a cute "you are my home" charm from swoondimples or maybe an aquatic themed necklace with this toggle from green girl studios. The best part of the design is that it makes it easy to use up those favorite beads of which you have only one or two left.

Even more exciting is you can win this version of the design by clicking it in Halcraft's Holiday Glam Giveaway!

Here's my first Collector's Necklace along with a two other versions I made for the show. Have fun making your own Collector's Necklaces. They're great gifts that also use up the favorite beads of which you have only one or two left!

Calorie-Free Candy Canes, Anyone?

 

Here's my take on Christmas Cane mittens. These tiny pearls were just the boost this pair of mittens needed to make them Christmas gift-worthy. I used the Wild Fire cord and a wide-eye needle, following the criss-cross pattern of the basket weave mittens.

 

I saw a few Christmas trees up in our neighbor's windows today. I wonder if it's too early to get out our tree as well. When do you decorate for the holidays?

 

 

Embellishment and the Bead

 

My most recent Halcraft Design Team challenge was organized around the theme of Holiday Gifts that are one-size-fits-all. I saw these beautiful gloves at my local Target store, and I thought that they could use a bit of beady embellishment! I used the glamorous Inspired by Vintage comonents from the Bead Gallery encap at Michaels to dress them up for a night out!



All I used was some Beadalon WildFire in white to stitch the sliders securely onto the gloves. I debated for a while about the "ring," but I thought that it looked like a little snowflake, so I went for it. What do you think?

I had so much fun that I made these two pairs as well!

 

 

 

I love the simple sophistication of the pendant on the blue gloves and I think the squared crystals on the tan gloves will peek out from the sleeves of a favorite wool coat perfectly.

The holiday crafting season is about to begin! Hooray!