Beading weekend

I'm spending this weekend giving in to my heart's desires and beading away. It's partly due to a sale in the local craft store (khem, khem) and partly to a slight cold that makes it too hard to do anything else.

This first ocean-colored bracelet is now pretty much finished. It misses findings but other than that...

The blue necklace is thought as a mixed media piece. The white chain serves as a basis and the blue beads are the body. I am thinking of adding more white lace crochet to make the piece more airy and light. However, it is work in progress and I am not working of any pattern so I can't say what it will end up being.

Are you having a good weekend?

Space Invaders Earrings

Inspired by my success with the bracelet I sat down yesterday to make earrings to fit. They came out nice and perky. Unfortunately the endings in small objects are even more difficult to make. I did my very best but I will have to continue practicing until I get the trick.

One way or another I still love the technique.

I hope you are having great Sunday!

Space Invaders Bracelet

I have recently bought beading loom - it was really cheap and I couldn't stop myself - and during the past few days I had a crack at it.

The choice of pattern for my first project was quite obvious. As an old geek, friend of geeks and a geek fiancé I was obliged by geek law to start 0with space invaders (if I had more colors, it would have to be old school Mario Bros).

So, with the pattern in mind and the instructions from The Encyclopedia of Beading Techniques in my hand, I was off to a great start. The beginning was very easy and the pattern showed immediately. And I was doing a very good job all the way until I managed to tangle the beading thread and had to cut and reattach it. Which in turn caused some nasty knots on the side of the bracelet - well, I guess this means that I will wear it, rather then sell it in my etsy shop.

Beading on a loom turned out to be a great technique. Very simple and effective. It is easy to introduce the pattern and control it while beading.

And it would be an amazing way of creating jewelery, if not the problem of ending the project. I find it incredibly difficult to find fasteners that would fit beading bracelet. Any gold, silver or metal in general is too heavy for minute beads and beaded endings seem unreliable.

This time I stick to simply knotting the threads, once the bracelet is on my wrist. I think it looks very well and fits the style of this bracelet but I am not sure if it is "professional" enough. So I am still on a quest for better solution. Anyone has some ideas?