Beading Arts

  Gia Scarano Along with the new artists that we've met this month, I think you'll be very inspired by visiting some of the talented people we've profiled previously! Jean Campbell Tina Murphy Andrea Trank Gem Designs by Lee Gayle Tillem Benator Gia Scarano Jessica Russell Jelena Louie Patricia Chauvin Sandra Merwe Ruth Borsky Ann Skydell Harmon Vanessa Walilko Sunflower Meg's Crochet Jewels Nomi Joyrich Wendy Van Camp Kelly Alvarez Mace Penny Purdie Leah Hitchcock-Ybarra Deborah Kwitney Bernadine Stoopman Olivia Competente Puakea Soares-Mercado Paul Bishop Kathy Pine Bonnie Riconda Arriel Goodwin Terry Pugh Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

Sabine Lippert's Beaded Fantasies: 30 Romantic Jewelry Projects (Beadweaving Master Class Series) by Sabine Lippert Necklaces 101 by Katie Hacker Making Wire & Bead Jewelry: Artful Wirework Techniques by Janice Berkebile and Tracy Stanley Earrings 101 by Katie Hacker Contemporary Native American Artists by Suzanne Deats and Kitty Leaken Stitch Workshop: Herringbone Stitch: Basic Techniques, Advanced Results by Editors of Bead&Button magazine Unconventional Chain Mail Jewelry by Laura Poplin Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

This week for Take a Stitch Tuesday we looked at the knotted Cretan stitch !  I love all the viney types of stitches we've been doing, because they all fit really well with the underwater theme of my manipulated fabric quilt . I placed three rows of very (deliberately) uneven knotted Cretan stitch near the herringbone stitch that we did for week 5.  I'm liking the two together. TAST week 1 - fly stitch TAST week 2 - blanket stitch TAST week 3 - feather stitch TAST week 4 - cretan stitch  TAST week 5 - herringbone stitch TAST week 6 - chevron stitch TAST week 7 - detached chain stitch TAST week 8 - chain stitch TAST week 9 - couching stitch  TAST week 10 - running stitch  TAST week 11 - whipped wheel stitch  TAST week 16 - French knot  TAST week 17 - wheatear stitch  TAST week 19 - half chevron stitch  TAST week 20 - bullion knot TAST week 22 - knotted Cretan stitch   Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelr...

Basic Wirework informational and suppliers links Book reviews:    Wire Wrapping    101 Wire Earrings    Contemporary Copper Jewelry    Chain Style    Lacy Wire Jewelry    Classic Chain Mail Jewelry    Beautiful Wire Jewelry for Beaders    Making Beautiful Bead and Wire Jewelry    Handcrafted Wire Findings    New Dimensions in Bead and Wire Jewelry    Simply Bead and Wire    Chains Chains Chains    A Bounty of Bead and Wire Earrings    Spotlight on Wire    Absolute Beginners Guide: Making Wire Jewelry    Show Your Colors    Making Wire & Bead Jewelry Some simple tutorials:    Making a wrapped loop    A multi-strand necklace with wrapped loops    A "leftover" toggle necklace    Creating a wire and ribbon necklace    A freeform seed b...

A guest post tutorial by Paul Bishop of Bishop Wire & Bead .  Paul first shared this amazing wire necklace with us at the beginning of this month as we transitioned from Spring Fever Month (April) to Celebrating Wire Month (May).  Thank you so much, Paul, for making this tutorial available free exclusively to readers here at Beading Arts .  You can download the pdf file for Midnight in the Garden of Good and Medieval at this link until July 28th! Midnight in the Garden of Good and Medieval This tutorial will explain how you can make this lovely, artful necklace.  This will be a limited-time exclusive free tutorial for Beading Arts readers.  Later, it will be available for purchase on my Etsy site, after I've expanded with detail pictures. This necklace was originally created free-hand, and I worked off wire spools.  Wire lengths are not possible to provide at this time. To finish the necklace I used a black chain.  The finishe...

  Beads & Books Michelle makes over an old pair of earrings. Come see the dramatic before and after photos!  Resin Crafts! The 2012 Diamond Jubilee inspires these new resin filled bezels.   Snap out of it, Jean! There is beading to be done! Jean reviews Sharilyn Miller's extraordinary, not to be missed book, Arty Jewelry IV. You will agree that you must own this book when you read the review!   About.com Jewelry Making Tammy has some summer time jewelry tutorials for you.   Art Bead Scene Heather shares a post about colors using bead supplies, showing monochromatic, complimentary, and analogous color selections   Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

Terry Pugh Wired4Style We first met Terry here two years ago when she shared all about her creative process and inspirations , as well as some aspects of her journey that had led her into working with wire.  Well, Terry's passion for wire has not faded!  My main medium to work with is copper wire but last year I also ventured into Stainless steel  and aluminum wire.  Steel has a beautiful antique look and sometimes can even have an industrial feel, as well. I love working with a torch. Fire not only make beautiful head pins but leaves a gorgeous patina. I spent a lot of time researching natural and home made patinas and found ways to make beautiful greens, blues and reds for my copper.     I love to recycle things. "One man's trash is another man's treasure." I am an eclectic artist/jewelry designer. I love to incorporate different objects and textures into my work. One can imagine my desk scattered with buttons, broken jewelry, ...

Trillium, who writes Trillium Creates , is the winner of the wonderful new book  Show Your Colors !

Have you done enough wire work that you feel comfortable with the basics, and now you'd like to see some beautiful ways to put them all together?  Then you're going to love Making Wire & Bead Jewelry by Janice Berkebile and Tracy Stanley.  There are 2 dozen projects which will challenge you to use those basic skills in easy but elegantly attractive ways.  But wait!  Do you need to learn the basics first or brush up on your skills?  The techniques section will walk you through, with attention to detail and precise instructions. Are you a visual learner?  Maybe books don't always have enough details for you.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised then.  The claim to fame of this book - besides the gorgeous projects - is the 500 how to photos!  Each step is carefully described and illustrated by the usual fabulous Lark Books photography.  I was very inspired by a free form flower created by Janice.  As usual, I didn't...

We met Vanessa Walilko , who runs Kali Butterfly last year, and so I asked her if there were anything new wire projects in her life.  Oh yes, there certainly are! The biggest news is that I recently created a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for my most epic chainmaille project, a chainmaille wedding dress.  The Kickstarter campaign was fully funded (and then some).  You can read all about it here on the Kali Butterfly blog . I'll have to link together 100,000 rings together to complete it.  :)  In other news, my chainmaille flapper dress was chosen as a finalist in the Bead Dreams competition. Also, I'll be teaching at Bead&Button again .  Here are the links to all both classes: http://www.beadandbuttonshowstore.com/b122633.html (The Friday session is sold out) http://www.beadandbuttonshowstore.com/b121077.html   Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media...

Look what my friend Jackie was giving away on her blog, Kydo Jewellery !  And guess who won...? Yup, me! It's a sari ribbon necklace/bracelet that Jackie made with the items she was sent by her partner in a Bead Soup swap. The leaf is ceramic and the beads are lampwork.  Jackie's next giveaway is going on NOW!  Don't miss it! Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

These delicate earrings are well-balanced to give you a lot of volume and movement without too much weight! Materials & Tools 5 inches of 20 gauge sterling silver wire, or 1 pair of pre-made earwires 6 inches of 20 gauge sterling silver wire, cut in half 6 ½ inches of sterling silver chain 14 head pins 2 round pearls, 8 mm 4 faceted crystal rondelles, 7 x 4mm 2 rice pearls, 6mm 2 round pearls, 4mm 4 sugilite rondelles, 6 x 3mm, or other gemstone to match your color scheme A few size 8/0 seed beads Chain nose pliers Round rose pliers Wire cutters File Ball peen hammer Ruler 1. If you want to make your own earwires rather than using pre-made ones, cut a 5 inch piece of 20 gauge sterling silver wire in half.  Wrap a small loop at the end of each 2 ½ inch piece and bend the wire approximately 90 degrees away from the loop.  Form the wire with your fingers or around a pencil or jig and adjust the curve until you are satisfied.  Clip off the ...

Gretchen Hind Gretchen Hind Designs Gretchen creates modern, stylish, and affordable wire wrapped jewelry. She uses a variety of metal wire, gemstones, beads, and rocks in her unique creations. She has a number of signature designs and is constantly brainstorming new ones. Gretchen loves repurposing vintage beads as often as possible and is eco-friendly conscious in all production processes. Her inspiration comes from the challenge of looking at a spool of wire, and some beads, and contemplating what to make next. Gretchen starting making jewelry when she and her little boy started collecting rocks on the beach. She experimented with wire wrapping the rocks into pendants and it took off from there. Wire wrapped rings have been her biggest sellers, but earrings are now a close second. She has sold jewelry to customers all over the world. Gretchen is a proud member of The Artisan Group , an exclusive, juried group of artists who gift their hand...

  Beading Arts We're celebrating everything to do with wire this month! Come and visit with some fabulous wire artists and try your hand at working with wire yourself!   Carmi's Art/Life World A fabric bead is always fun to create and uses up leftover beads too! Resin Crafts! Working in a shell pendant with resin...difficult but possible!   Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! What do you think of the idea of making your business more successful? Sound good? Check out what's on Jean's blog today!   A Bead A Day Get your crystals ready, the Swarovski Elements design contest sponsored by FireMountainGems opens June 1st!!   About.com Jewelry Making Tammy has some jewelry tutorials that incorporate ceramic pieces in them.   Art Bead Scene Art Bead Scene highlights some of the handmade beads that are entered in the Bead Star competition. Come and see some of the entries and place your votes for your...

Mimi and Moi Handcrafted Art Jewelry  http://www.mimiandmoi4519.etsy.com http://www.mimiandmoi.com Using hand wire wrapping and soldering I mix wire with sparkling crystals, upcycled stained glass, ceramic faces and more.  You'll find some of the most beautiful and one of a kind handmade jewelry around. Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

Sharon Lowery is the winner of our Making Wire Jewelry giveaway!  Congratulations, Sharon!

What do you get when two beading superstars team up to explore the limits of colorful flexible beading wire?  Non-stop fun, that's what!  Jewelry artists will all know the work of Jamie Hogsett and Sara Hardin Oehler.  Show Your Colors is the result of their collaboration: 30 fun and fabulous jewelry projects that keep the colorful wire front and center! The new colored flexible beading wire is used as a key design element instead of hidden away.  This unusual treatment adds a fun and very colorful flair to the contemporary designs that the authors share. This book is especially excellent for beginners, since Jamie and Sara decided to make their projects accessible for all ability levels.  They've included all the basic techniques you'll need, plus...you're really gonna like this!...sources for all the beads and components.  Yay!  Although the ladies want to encourage us to explore color and pattern for ourselves, they also recognize that many...

This week for Take a Stitch Tuesday we visited with a beautiful stitch, the bullion knot !  The usual thing with bullion knot is to use it to form flowers or flower buds, so I decided that I'd make a starfish to go along with the underwater theme of my manipulated fabric quilt .  So why does it look like a flower, you ask?   Because the best laid plans of needle and thread... It looks like a flower because it is one.  Despite my resolve to be creative, I fell prey to the floral charms of this stitch.  I also didn't do a very good job keeping the wrappings even.  I'm going to have a go at it with a needle and see if I can get them to lie a bit better.  But just in case I screw them all up, I thought I'd share the picture now!  More practice in my future :-) TAST week 1 - fly stitch TAST week 2 - blanket stitch TAST week 3 - feather stitch TAST week 4 - cretan stitch  TAST week 5 - herringbone stitch TAST week 6 - chevron...

Bonnie has put together lots of fun new styles for Spring 2012 at Calico Juno Designs !  We've seen Bonnie's work here several times during our annual Wire Month.  Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

For part one of this tutorial, Creating the crocheted front , please visit the link to find last week's post! Creating the straps 1. Measure your finished crocheted piece and determine how long you want your straps to be.  Cut two pieces of beading wire, each about 4 inches longer than the intended finished length.  I made each of my straps about 3 inches long.  2. Slip a crimp tube and a glass bead or two over one end of the first piece of beading wire.  Pass the end through one of the wrapped loops and back through the beads and the crimp.  Tighten and flatten the crimp with your pliers. 3. String your Czech glass, stone, and additional pearl beads in a pattern that pleases you, alternating these larger beads with 8/0 seed beads. 4. At the other end, string a crimp bead and another glass bead.  Pass the end of the beading wire through the toggle end and back down through the crimp tube and several more beads.  Pull snu...

  Art Bead Scene Tari shows off her colorful garden, a clear source of pride and inspiration in her life and artwork. Carmi's Art/Life World A kumihimo cord showcases a Mary Harding pendant. Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Andrew Thornton creates a special kit for Lima Beads featuring Earthenwood birdies for a great springtime challenge! Resin Crafts! Jewelry Resin is a great way to repair a mistake!   Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean tries very hard not to say,"Wow am I busy!"... because, of course, so is everyone else! But in this post she gives up and admits what a zoo it has been here. Read to see why!   About.com Jewelry Making Summer time is the perfect time to consider making Bohemian style jewelry, and Tammy gives you her take on a new book recently released that is full of Bohemian style jewelry techniques and designs.   Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelr...

Peggy Li Creations I have been a jewelry designer for over 10 years. I started making jewelry for myself and people would stop me on the street and ask where I got the pieces. Soon I decided that I'd like to sell my pieces, mainly so I could keep buying new beads! Since then, my work has been featured on TV shows like "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer", "Private Practice" and in the movie "Superbad". I've also had my pieces in magazines like Oprah and Lucky Magazines. It's been a great ride designing and creating jewelry pieces that I love, in a medium that I love, beads and wire. There is so much instant gratification to wire and bead work! My jewelry designs are simple, feminine and easy to wear, featuring beads, charms and other handcrafted details. Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

If you're going to learn to work with wire, practicing by making classic elegant designs is just plain smart.  They are classic for a reason...and you will learn all the basic skills needed to handle future wire projects with finesse!  In the most recent addition to Kalmbach's Absolute Beginners Guide series, readers will learn about wire types, tools, findings, and a lot more. Martine Callaghan has put together 28 beautiful projects in Making Wire Jewelry which will teach you all the basics and will leave you with a closet full of beautiful new adornments.  Even though I've been turning wire loops and spirals for more years than I care to admit, I am really impressed by how perfectly beautiful Martine's are, mixed with just the perfect beads and pendants.  Great projects, wicked versatile techniques, the usual easy-to-follow instructions that you expect from Kalmbach.  ***Free Stuff Alert!!!*** Just leave me a comment below and you'll automatic...

This week for Take a Stitch Tuesday it's a stitch I've never heard of before, the half chevron stitch !  I didn't feel that doing the stitch on two straight and parallel imaginary lines as it's usually done would really give me the right look for the edges of my manipulated fabric quilt .  So I changed it up a bit and made all the various legs uneven.  Trust me, it would have been easier to actually make them even! TAST week 1 - fly stitch TAST week 2 - blanket stitch TAST week 3 - feather stitch TAST week 4 - cretan stitch  TAST week 5 - herringbone stitch TAST week 6 - chevron stitch TAST week 7 - detached chain stitch TAST week 8 - chain stitch TAST week 9 - couching stitch  TAST week 10 - running stitch  TAST week 11 - whipped wheel stitch  TAST week 16 - French knot  TAST week 17 - wheatear stitch  TAST week 19 - half chevron stitch Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , neckl...

Check it out!  How cute are these links and this clasp?  And they are soooo easy to make too.  This project is a teaser to get you interested in the book that I'll be reviewing tomorrow.  And guess what?  I'll also be giving it away!! For a preview, check out The Absolute Beginners Guide: Making Wire Jewelry   Technorati Tags: handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading