Re-evaluate, Repurpose, Re-use

The time  is at hand: that moment when I look at my large inventory of completed works and conclude that some of those early pieces are never going to sell, no matter how many times I relist them on Etsy, or put them out at shows. They have undergone many photo upgrades and price reductions to make them enticing, but nothing is going to make them budge toward a new home.

There is nothing wrong with these early jewels; they are very simple in design and skill requirements - simple stringing really.  It's time to cut bait and reuse as many of the materials as I can in something more elaborate, new, and exciting.

The first piece to face rehab was this three-strand pearl and muscovite necklace made back in 2006.  I liked the pattern of the glittering plum purpley-brown muscovite beads at the center and vowed to keep that feature in the new version.  Lucky for me I have more of the muscovite in my bead stash! I made some pretty bead embroidered motifs to connect the pearl strands together, then added a fancy box clasp. I think it is a big improvement, fitting in with my "more is more" philosophy of late. You can see more information in the shop listing.

 Next up to face my nippers and deconstruction was this carnelian and hessonite garnet necklace, also from 2006.There was a lot about this one I wasn't happy with: a single strand of the red carnelian rounds which wasn't long enough to show at the front when worn, the thick cluster of strands of the brown and amber-colored garnets which was too long to hang asymmetrically as planned, etc.  I also had a LOT of extra carnelian beads, and by "a lot" I mean A. LOT.

So, how do I fix this one? That was my conundrum.

A big fan of chunky ethnic-style jewelry, I recently saw some pieces by the very talented Faria Siddiqui online. She combines big, bold stone beads with delicate bead embroidery to great effect. I raided my bead stash and found a large, deep red carnelian oval cabochon and some funky paua shell oval beads. My vision for a new and better piece took hold.  Add in some dyed blue agate rounds and gold-plated accent beads and what do you get? A big, beautiful, bold new statement necklace. I used up most of the carnelian rounds I had in stock (yay!) so I am happy with this necklace on a number of levels.

You can find the shop listing here.

I have a huge quantity of large stone beads leftover from those early days of jewelry making. At that time, my hand was in recovery and I didn't have the dexterity to use more delicate beads. As I regained strength, and my skill set expanded, I moved onto tinier and tinier beads, leaving the big ones to languish in their drawers.

Adding another layer to my current thought processes, my Battle of the Beadsmith 2013 piece is large and very intricate. It took nearly 250 hours of high-powered intensity beading to complete. This process was fairly ruinous to my hands and wrists, so I can see more pieces like the carnelian necklace in my near future. A little touch of bead embroidery and some big chunky beads to fill out the piece. Just until my hands settle down again.

Now which pieces want reworking?? Stay tuned...

copyright 2013 Shibori Girl

I Dream of the Sea

I do dream of the sea... often. But in this post, I refer to my newly finished set of statement necklace, bracelet, and earrings. Several people have said it reminds them of something a mermaid might wear, hence the title.

"I Dream of the Sea"

The pieces came out spectacularly: full of texture, subtle color, and fluidity of design. I couldn't be happier with the final result.

The process was good for me, too, as it stretched my design limits. I originally planned to do a simple bead embroidered collar. MAYBE a pair of earrings to match. When I "finished" the embroidery on the collar, well, the beads were still out on the bead tray, and a good movie was streaming on Netflix, so I kept going. And going. Until I had 11 or 12 new, loose components made. As I finished each one, I laid it next to the collar so I could start the next.  When I looked down and saw what was happening to the collar layout, well, all I can say is "mind blown".

The next thing to do was decide just how over-the-top this piece would get. I played with the pieces like a puzzle, and came up with four viable possibilities.

As you can see by the photo at the top of this post, I went all-out with the bottom left design.

 

Statement Necklace

 

Bracelet

 

Earrings

I love when a project becomes a lesson!  Next up: reworking some old necklaces to reflect my new design style. Stay tuned...


 copyright 2013 Shibori Girl

Passionate For Purple

I promised pictures of the polymer clay pieces made from my first attempt at mokume gane. As I gathered them all together for their glamour shots in the light tent, I realized... that's a whole lot of purple going on there.

Each necklace is reversible, which I think is a great selling point - two necklaces for the nice (low) price of one.

I need to make two halves of each bead anyway, and it doesn't take that much more effort to make the second side slightly different than the first.

As with the brocade pattern I referenced in my last post, I didn't want to waste any of the trimmings from my round beads. I put together this great pin using those curvy leftovers. And, of course, MORE purple! I think it came out very well.

Of course, I finished out the session with swirlies made from the scraps!

While those pieces were baking, I took time to finish some more brocade design stuff. Earrings:

And another pin, this one is considerably smaller than the previous ones:

I'll be spending the next few days listing these in my shop so be sure to stop by often to check them out.

copyright 2011 Shibori Girl

Polymer Clay Play Time

Since returning from Canada, I've been in the studio learning new surface design techniques with polymer clay. I've had this book for some time but needed a good stretch of designated quiet time to crack it open. My favorite technique so far: a brocade look using gold leaf and acrylic paint. I also tried my hand at mica shift, which is very cool...

There's a lot of work in the brocade technique, so I didn't want to waste any of it. I used the curvy trimmings from the bead to make this pretty fan pin.

I purchased a couple of really wonderful tutorials from Naftali Studios for making hollow lentil beads and crackle finishing. These are very well-designed tutorials with clear instructions and good photos. I followed the crackle finish tutorial and decided to use the instructions verbatim. My finished result looks just like her design. Once again, I made it reversible - two necklaces in one... I love that!

Because the bead is hollow, it's very lightweight and comfy to wear. Now to use the technique to make beads in my own design.

This weekend I did my first attempt at mokume gane. I just love it when I can take out my aggressions on an inanimate block of clay. My first successful sheet of mokume gane:

I've got a bunch of beads half done, so I'll be posting those images soon. I'll have some of these new pieces listed for sale in my Etsy shop this week. Until then, you can find me in my playroom.

copyright 2011 Shibori Girl

Today's The Day...

Today's the day I decided to make time to crack open Marcia DeCoster's "Beaded Opulence" book. I've been itching to try the layered right angle weave that Marcia demos in the instructions for her Quetzal ring project.

But do I start with the beautiful one inch square shown in the final picture? NO! I chose to make a cuff bracelet: something with stylish structure, and far too many seed beads to count.

To begin, I beaded a piece 8 units wide by 60 units long (a unit being 4 beads stitched into a circle).

This bit of beading was nicely fluid, like a drapable piece of fabric. I began adding RAW layers, decreasing width of each. Each new layer added rigidity and weight to the final piece.

At the beginning of the project, I'd planned a total of three layers. But after finishing the third layer, there were beads left in my bowl and I just couldn't stop. I kept going until there were five layers of RAW and the piece had a pronounced domed structure.

When it comes to finishing, I really like the little feminine details that designer, Lisa Kan, gives her pieces. I pulled her book, "Bead Romantique" off my shelf to find instructions for encasing the ends of a bracelet in peyote stitch.

The final touch: add a single line of Czech fire polished crystals down the center of the bracelet's dome for sparkle.

"Jacqueline" Cuff

The lines are simple, but there was nothing simple about its creation. Ten hours of work, and the equivalent of a full hank of size 11 seed beads later, I have a piece fit for someone like Jackie O to wear. Anyone who puts it on will feel like royalty.

copyright 2010 Shibori Girl

Today's Worktable

After last week's post, I knuckled down and made progress on a couple of the UFO's shown in the What's On My Worktable shot. I spent the weekend making serious headway on the clutch bag, and I'm delighted with it's progress. The blue and brown fringed foliage necklace is finished and listed for sale. The other items in that shot will have to wait for another day.

This week's shot includes two new pieces:

The mailman delivered a shipment of lovely Lucite cabochons and I've been busily putting them to work:

I like them all, but my favorites are the blue and gold cabs.

The first piece turned out to be a pretty, sparkly brooch and is now listed in my Etsy shop.

The other one, well, it's turning into one of those pieces that takes on a life of its own. The main bead embroidery is a fringed pendant.

I completed that phase last night, and all that's left is to weave a neck strap for it.

I hope you all are enjoying a wonderful Holiday season!

copyright 2010 Shibori Girl

Sparkles and Texture Galore

My time has been divided between beadweaving more sparkly goodness and tweaking my booth design for the show, which is less than TWO WEEKS AWAY!

My work modus operandi is to start a piece without a plan, then to run out of a specific bead. The piece takes up residence in the Closet of Abandonment, and I forget to order more of that-thing-I-ran-out-of. The result of this behavior: my project graveyard is full. Last week, I bit the bullet and placed a massive order with Fire Mountain Gems. The box arrived over the weekend and I knuckled down to finish some pieces.

I now have two very beautiful bracelets finished and listed for sale in my shop.

"Medici" Bracelet

"Blue Ice" Bracelet

The rest of this week will be devoted to booth design. This is the first time I'll be showing my polymer clay pieces and they present some display issues. Like, what's the best way to display brooches?

copyright 2010 Shibori Girl

Recycle... Reuse...

For a couple of years now I've been relisting expired items in my etsy shop. Every four months: another fee incurred and little very little interest generated in those early pieces. Frankly, I can understand this disinterest. Take this piece, for instance. It's a pretty necklace, but very simple and stringing was the only real skill involved with its creation. I decided to cut bait on this one.

I took the pearls off and used them in a new beadweaving project. I loved weaving this over-the-top gorgeous piece. First, I made a focal bead of Swarovski crystals and tiny little seed beads. Some vintage French bead caps make a beautiful frame for this spectacular bead.

Those rescued freshwater pearls went into the tubular netted rope for a nice rich texture. The final touches were beaded end caps and a gold-filled magnetic clasp.

"Cleo"

Once this piece was finished, I felt compelled to do another. I didn't have any other pieces to recycle this time, so I went full out with golden yellow Swarovski faux pearls.

"Natasha"

Fourteen hours (and a wicked hand cramp) later, I can't decide which one I like better.

~~~

Something I've learned about myself recently is: whatever skill I'm using at a specific moment in time is my favorite. Right now, it's beadweaving. Next week, it could be polymer clay. It's nice to know that when I need to take a break from one favorite thing, there's another waiting in the wings for me to enjoy next!

copyright 2010 Shibori Girl

Busy, Busy, Busy...

Thankfully, my days of perching against a heating pad while staring, glassy-eyed, at the tv are done. My number of good days FAR outweighs the bad and I've been crazy Productive Girl. I'm still on a beadweaving kick and have a number of new pieces listed in my shop.

I love making earrings - especially glamorous statement pieces like these:

(Click on the images to see individual listings)

Twilight Earrings

Seafoam Earrings

Flower Jade and Faux Pearl Earrings

Some super-sparklie netted beads:

In addition, I'm sprucing up my Etsy shop listings: improved photos, marking prices down, etc.

Glamorous Two-Piece Beadweaving

Cobalt/Lavender Beaded Lariat

Seed Bead Necklace

All this recent effort is with the Holiday season in mind. More pieces will go on sale in the coming weeks, so check back often.

copyright 2010 Shibori Girl