Spooky Inspiration

I love to design, and I love to be challenged. Sometimes, it can be very difficult, but it helps you to grow. In this post, I will show you what I came up with using this very "creepy" picture.

Each month, SJ Designs Jewelry has a challenge. Her husband, for the past five years, has been giving her a challenge to get her out of her comfort zone and also help her use some of her bead stash. They call it Honey Do List.

This month's Honey Do List is a "creepy" picture of some skulls. This photo was taken in Czech Republic, at Kutna Hora which is "bizarre bone church" they visited. This was definitely a challenge for me.

Well... I don't have any skull pieces I could use, and I don't work with bone. I did remember, I had some white howlite that might look like bones....sorta. I wrapped the howlite bead with brown copper wire and added some dangles for more interest. 

As I studied the picture, I saw reds, oranges, golden hues, dark brown, and copper. I remembered, not long ago I received dark brown Brecciated Jasper beads from a Bargain Bead Box subscription, and knew they would be perfect in this piece. In October 2020 Bargain Bead Box, I received some faceted garnet crystals I knew I wanted to use. The only thing...they were teeeeeny tiiiiiny, which meant ity bity holes.

I gathered red jasper, sesame seed jasper, golden crystals and copper and started creating. 

Funny thing is, when I'm creating, things get changed quite a bit. I went from having a long necklace to a short one. I went from one clasp to another, and some of the beads changed a bit. 

I chose this bamboo looking toggle clasp, because it reminded me of bones. 

Oh! I had to make some matching earrings...

I'm actually working on a video that will soon be posted to my Tappingflamingo YouTube Channel. It shows how I went about putting it all together. Hope you go check it out and let me know what you think. 

No, this pieces is not that creepy or spooky, and it, honestly, it was not really that challenging. I find, that once I get started with a piece, things just kind of fall in to place. 

Fall is Quickly Coming

I am really not ready to say good-bye to summer and hello to fall, but the reality is....fall is just around the corner.

As a jewelry designer, I have to always be ahead of the game. In other words when it is summer, I am thinking about Fall and the holiday season. In the winter, I am designing and making things for Spring and  Summer. 

Since my favorite place is the beach, I like to design things that are inspired from the ocean. I made this necklace YEARS ago for my personal collection, and I wear it all the time. The shells from the earrings were just found this past summer, and I was lucky enough to find three so I could make a matching necklace earring set. 

 You might also notice that I love to mix my metals. I find it makes things a little more interesting. 

This next set was made to match. You will find a wide variety of beads in this ensemble, including some paper beads I made from an old magazine.

I added carnelian, jasper and crystals and some glass ebeads to give these pieces a variety of texture and depth. When I designed these pieces, I had just bought a dress and I wanted something to go with, and these came out perfectly! 

So.....what have I been working on to put in my Etsy shop for Fall 2018?

Here is one piece. This beaded chain necklace is made with crystals, obsidian and maifanite beads. I added brass beads and a brass chain with no clasp, so it is very easy to put on and take off...just over your head. 

Here is another necklace from my Broken Shell Inspirational collection. This one is a bit shorter and made of crystals, purple glass beads and green jasper. I used copper wire to wrap the shell and added some copper beads to this 18" necklace.

This shell fragment has become naturally distressed as it traveled through the ocean, eventually being tossed up on the shore, waiting for someone to discover it and appreciate its different shape, angels, and size. While this bit of shell is no longer a whole shell, the harsh conditions it experienced in the ocean transformed it into something distinct and beautifully unique. It is my hope that as you go through your own challenging experiences, you will become a better version of yourself, an individual who has gained wisdom through adversity. This beautiful shell piece is to help remind you of the positive growth that you will take away from your experiences.

--TappingflamingoBling

Whether she cruises the high seas on a ship, hang tens on a surfboard or just likes a quiet walk along the shore...Wearing a creation from TappingflamingoBling will keep her favorite places close to her heart and soul.