Busy, busy

 Does this look familiar?  It is a variation on an earlier design.  This pendant features a "Sphinx" Swarovski rivoli, green, blue and silver seed beads and crystal bicones.

A beaded rope in a new color (peridot bronze-lined and rainbow) with a fun little flower clasp.  A pendant that can be added is in the works.  I'll be excited to share when it is complete.

Mother of the Groom Set

This is the set I designed for my girlfriend, Diana.  In my haste, I'm afraid I didn't get the very best pictures.  The grey Swarovski pearls and the Indicolite 2AB bicones are an amazing complement to each other and the whole effect was truly elegant.  Or maybe it was my friend who was so elegant.  Either way, they made a lovely match.

The focal crystal is a 16mm Swarovski rivoli called "Sphinx."  It has amazing flashes of blues and greens.  I had never seen this particular color before the day I went shopping for this project.  Divine intervention, I think!

Bridal Challenge Week One

Ta-da!  My first challenge is complete.  If you were on my Christmas list this year, you know that I have gone crazy for beaded ropes and think everyone should have one.  So, it is no surprise that I think every bride should have one, too.  This design is a choker-length Russian spiral in silvery and champagne tones with a beaded, bezeled rivoli pendant.  The bezel is adorned with Swarovski pearls and hung from the rope with a simple herringbone bail.  The pendant can easily be removed to wear the rope alone.  Since I was very familiar with the stitches that comprised the main design, I decided to learn a new stitch to improve on my sometimes boring clasps.  This "button" clasp is made by doing a circular brick stitch around a silver-tone filigree bead.  (Thanks, Beadaholique.com, for the tutorial! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66srPd6V_Qw)

It occurs to me that it may seem very random that I decided to make bridal jewelry all of the sudden.  Well, let me explain.  Last weekend, we had the privilege of attending the wedding of my good friend's oldest son and his sweet bride.  Their day was lovely and it is a big blessing to celebrate with such a well-matched couple.  My friend has all sons, so she was absolutely delighted to add a girl to the family!  It was also that lovely girl that made me start thinking about bridal jewelry.

Bezel a rivoli????

Beading and jewelry-making has its own dictionary. The first huge lexical speedbump that I encountered was "bezel a rivoli." Huh? a what? I really wanted it to be pronounced "bee-zul a rivoli" but my quest to be informed taught me that it was pronounced "be (short-e)-zul."

A bezel is a jewelry setting that encircles a stone, gem, or other element. It is often a flat-back piece of metal with a lip around the edge. In beading, it is a stitched ring that encases a decorative element.

Once I figured out how to say it and what it was, I set out to learn how to do it! Good fortune would have the front sides turn out fabulously well. Good fortune would also keep you from looking at the back sides...ever.