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Showing posts from April, 2008

How to make time…

Well, how to make the Time to Run necklace at any rate! Wish that I knew how to make more time in each day :-) Time to Run Materials - Metal parts from Beadaholique 3 copper discs, 26 mm 4 hammered oval links, 20 mm Copper curb link bracelet, cut in half 5 ” piece of heavy brass chain, cut in half 12 ” piece of small copper curb chain, cut in three 4 brass jump rings, 8 mm 12 copper jump rings, 6 mm Miscellaneous watch parts Two-part epoxy resin Tools Flat nose pliers Wire cutters Ruler Toothpick 1. Attach oval links together with copper jump rings as shown. Add dangling 4 ” pieces of small copper chain and copper discs with jump rings. 2. Attach oval links to the brass chain pieces with large brass jump rings. 3. Attach copper bracelet chain to each end of the brass chain with large brass jump rings , with the clasp on the outside to use as a necklace clasp. 4. Stir up some epoxy resin and use to adhere watch parts to copper discs.

The best of the basics online

In the ocean of information that is the world wide web, there are a few websites that rise to the top when it comes to covering the basics of beadwork. Not surprisingly, one of them is the Beadwork Site at About.com. Paula Morgan has compiled the very best tutorials on just about every aspect of beading that you can imagine: bead weaving stitches, stringing, wire work, and loom weaving. So really, this is the place for you to start. One other brilliant site has made my list of the best of the best: Beads East has animated tutorials on many of the most popular off-loom bead weaving stitches! This is one of Ann Benson’s sites, and if you haven’t seen Ann’s beadwork before, prepare to be amazed!There are a few additional sites that each have great tips to offer: Bead Jewelry Making Some harder-to-find seed bead instructions Beading Help Web Well-written articles and tutorials geared mostly for beginners Jewelry Making at About.com Tutorials and tips on all aspects of the art, inc

Artist Profile: Bernadine Stoopman

Artist: Bernadine Stoopman Location: Brisbane, Queensland (East Coast of Australia) Websites and Blog: Bridal Jewellery & Hair Accessories by Bernadine Designs to Love: Bernadine’s gallery Handcrafted Jewellry & Special Occasion Creations Hooked on Wire blog Bernadine, your work is so unique. How do you describe it? Inventive and inspired are probably the first words that come to mind when describing my wirework. What is your creative process like? Sometimes I pull bits and pieces out of my storage boxes to see what goes together but that’s not always successful for me as I don’t have an unlimited collection, so I leave it for a couple of days and surf the net for interesting beads and components or go to a trade show if there’s one on and from there I’ll pull the design together. I sometimes design on paper for customers who’d like a couple of different options, but mostly I’m given a few descriptive words such as, Black, Crystal and Glitzy and left to my own

Wirework

Getting Started with Wirework A nice basic article with good overall information Wonderful Wire Jewelry Projects Lots of projects with lots of pictures to get you started by Tammy Powley. Also links to Tammy’s informative articles on types of wire. WigJig University Supplies and instructions for making jewelry with beads and wire Rings & Things Argentium Sterling silver. Learn about Argentium Sterling Silver at The Artful Crafter’s blog . Rio Grande Tons and tons of metal and wire information and supplies Creative Wire Jewelry Forum A place to hang out, talk, and learn about…what else?…wire! Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

Book Review: Making Polymer Clay Beads

Making Polymer Clay Beads by Carol Blackburn Don’t hate me because I’m not a polymer clay person! Please! If I decided tomorrow that I wanted to make polymer clay beads, this would be the book I’d choose to take me on that journey. I almost fell victim to polymer clay fever as I read through this gorgeous book! Carol Blackburn starts with the most basic of information that a polymer newbie would need to know, including information of the various brands and additional materials that you might want to use, tools that are nice to have, and basic techniques and baking instructions. She then leads you step by step through additional techniques that you will need for making all the blended colors, special shapes, canes, inlays, transfers, and other special effect beads you could want. Each technique is beautifully photographed. But wait, there’s more. So much more. The second half of the book is devoted to faux techniques. This is where I almost lost my resolve and started making a

The best seed bead books

There are literally hundreds of books that you could buy on the art of working with seed beads, and most of them are good books, with something good to offer. And since I’m a book and magazine junkie, I own most of them. The ones that I don’t own, I’ve read, courtesy of the local library. It was hard, but I’ve whittled the list down to the very few books that I think are really the best of the best. The first two are excellent books that cover many techniques. The rest are specific to a particular stitch and go into an amazing amount of detail. The Art of Seed Beading By Elizabeth Gourley The author emphasizes the how-to in this book. Every one of the more than 25 projects focuses on a specific tool or technique, complete with color graphs, a list of materials, size and measurements, a color photo, and diagrams. Making Designer Seed Bead, Stone, and Crystal Jewelry By Tammy Powley Beginners will find enough detailed instructions to get started while more advanced jewelry maker

Treasure Chest: a basic bead-embroidered project

After finishing my monster embroidery project Andromeda’s Pearls , I thought that it might be a good idea to share a really basic tutorial on bead embroidery, a project that can be finished in a few days (or even possibly one long day). Treasure Chest is the name of this piece. More and more often, modern jewelry is being influenced by techniques from other mixed media art forms. That is how Treasure Chest came to be: although I originally bought a set of watch-maker’s tins to use in some assemblage work and altered books, it occurred to me that a tin would also be a perfect little niche on a pin or pendant. Just the right size to hold a favorite token, the glass-topped tin can be sealed to make it permanent, or left loose to allow for an ever-changing display! Materials: Watch-maker tins Rub and Buff 4x4 piece of buckram 4x4 piece of ultra-suede E6000 Selection of seed beads to coordinate with button ~ delicas, 11/0, and 8/0 Cabochons, pearls, other beads, and charms to c

Artist profile: Dulcey Heller

Mary of Burgundy, created for Beading for a Cure Artist: Dulcey Heller Location: Minneapolis, MN Websites: Dulcey Heller’s Beadwork Buy the Kit Rubber Gaskets Bracelet Published in the June/July 2006 Beadwork Dulcey, would you tell us how you describe your work? My work is mostly driven by shapes, and to a lesser extent, colors, of things I observe. I am most interested in creating interesting shapes, and finding the seed bead technique that will give me the result I want. For example, I wanted to modify herringbone to get a different profile of the stitch, so I experimented to get the points of the seedpod set and the cuff bracelet that I sell on Buy The Kit. I recently made a mushroom, and it was a combination of peyote, herringbone, and brick stitch that resulted in the shape that I want. I’m still trying to figure out how to get a smooth, controlled, increasing, self-supporting, three-dimensional curve that I really like… What is your creative process like? My creati

Making a Cherry Donut…necklace

Cherry Donut Cherry Donut is constructed with beading wire, so it works up really quickly and easily!  An updated version of the original tutorial is at the link above!

Artist Profile: Melissa Lee

Something Wicked This Way Comes Artist: Melissa J. Lee Location: Illinois Website & Blog: Strands of Beads blog Melissa J Lee etsy shop Kissing Bandit Button in the focal piece by Sarah Moran Melissa, how do you describe your work? I like to think of my jewelry as being a little bit quirky, often reflecting my odd sense of humor and almost always reflecting my rather eclectic interests. In my personal life, I tend to be a bit quiet. In business (I am a lawyer by training, although I am not currently practicing), my demeanor has to be conservative and professional. My jewelry provides a “voice” for other aspects of my personality that I might otherwise be too shy to articulate. What is your creative process like? My creative process is informed primarily by the fact that I am first and foremost a mother. Before my son arrived, I spent fairly long hours in the office or on the road and the timing never seemed right to pursue any type of jewelry-making beyond really b

The Basics: Suppliers to get you started

Here is a list for you which will be updated as we go, of various Suppliers that I’ve found to be reliable and good to deal with. So that you don't have to bookmark it, you can always find this link in The Basics , listed in the sidebar. Seed bead suppliers Vintage bead suppliers Czech glass bead suppliers Gemstone bead suppliers Swarovski crystal suppliers Antique and trade bead suppliers Full-service catalog suppliers Venetian and Murano glass bead suppliers Metal bead suppliers Polymer, clay, and porcelain bead suppliers Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

Online jewelry design tools

Help, help! I know nothing about formal design theory! What do balance, unity, line, color, movement, and contrast have to do with making jewelry? Don’t despair. If you don’t have time or funds for a college-level course on design, check out some of the best the web has to offer: Formal Visual Analysis A good introductory article by Jeremy Glatstein on the elements and principals of composition. Art, Design, and Visual Thinking An entire online design course by Charlotte Jirousek. 50 Ways to Become a Better Designer Tips supplied by various artists. The Color Wheel and Itten’s Color Theory