Hats off to hatpins

Besides a bead-addict, I'm also a lover of vintage. I've always been this way - diving into library antique books, scouring thrift shops...you name it.

So, when my elderly neighbour was having a clear out, I couldn't resist. She left a bag full of old things to dig through. One of the beautiful treasures I found was this vintage coral hat pin.

I'm fairly certain it's made of brass and coral beads. The decorative brass plate is stamped with tiny dots in a simple pattern. Even the swirl along the pin is beautifully done.

If anyone knows anything about hat pins like this, I'd love to know!

6th BSBP - one down

Maryse, my partner in the BSBP has received her package. Like most of us, I was suffering from swap anxiety, so I couldn't be happier to know she liked her bead soup.

As I wait for the postman to bring Maryse's package to me, I thought I would share a few photos of the soup I sent her. Here's the whole soup.

 

The basis for my soup was Maryse's favourite colours. She told me she loved purple, turquoise, and cream, so I immediately dug through my stash to find some special beads for her.

I included a ceramic focal by Tania Grey, more of Tania's ceramic beads in mottled purple, a purple glass heart, turquoise coloured gemstones, and vintage beads in shades of blue and cream. The flecks of green on the ceramic focal made me want to add some green beads, so in came agate beads and Chinese crystals. My soup needed a bit more cream, so I added some Swarovski pearls. For a challenge, I chose some silk ribbon and a beaded bead by Liz Reed.

The final piece of my soup is the sterling silver clasp. This was my first time making a clasp with SS, and boy was it tough! Bits of hard metal were flying.

Mmm, soup.

 

Bead Soup Blog Party isn't just about swapping with other beaders. The challenge is to take the focal and clasp your partner sends you and create something beautiful. We all share our creations on our blogs - now that's a party! Here's a close up of the focal and clasp that Maryse will be using.

Don't forget to check out Maryse's, mine, and many more Bead Soup Blog Party reveals on July 28th!

TSBH In progress

Today is photography day as I prepare for my jewellery stall at a local craft event. While I had the camera out, I thought I'd share a few pics of my of my project for the Thrift Store Blog Hop.





Once I got home with my £0.99 copper ring, I immediately knew what I wanted to use with it. I cut up some sage green silk, frayed it, and started deciding on what ceramic beads to use.

I have a lovely stash of ceramics thanks to Tan Grey and her Swappage Emporium. The first thing I chose was the lovely, purple flower pendant. I accented it with two ceramic beads in light pinky-purple.

I had a few ceramic buttons in mind before I chose the heart. But the hearts won! Finally, I made a hammered copper clasp as a closure. I already know how I'm going to finish the bracelet off, but you'll have to wait until the reveal!

Don't you love the rustic, bohemian feel? Here's a final shot of Tan's ceramics. Check out the subtle texture on the heart.

6th BSBP

I'm sure all of us are excited to have joined Lori Anderson's 6th Bead Soup Blog Party. This is my first time at the BSBP, and one of the reasons I started my blog.

When I first read about this amazing international swap and blog hop back in March, it felt like it was a long wait. And here it is!

My swap partner, Maryse Fritzsch-Thillens, and I will be revealing our creations on July 28th.

 

All of the pairs (trios in some cases!) of swappers will be sending out their bead filled boxes and bags by July 2nd. Since that's just one day after a jewellery show I'm doing, it's going to be a busy week!  Luckily, I've already started on Maryse's package. Now for a little bit about my swap partner...

Maryse is a talented glass artist, and sells her beautiful beads in her Etsy shop, GlassBeadArt. I've grown to love lampwork beads, and feel lucky to be paired with such a wonderful beader.

Here are a few of my favourites from Maryse's shop.

Aren't these adorable?

 

Maryse also makes her own rosaries and Christian inspired jewellery in her other shop, which you can find here. Check out Maryse's blog to see what she's up to between now and the big reveal.

You can find the entire list of participants and reveal dates on Lori's blog here.

Happy hopping!

Thrift Store Blog Hop

Sarah Goode from Pookledo is hosting a blog hop. The challenge is to find something from a thrift store for under £1 ($1.50) and use it in a piece of jewellery.

I found this cute, copper ring for £0.99. I don't usually go for hearts, but I love copper and saw some potential in this.

In fact, I like it so much, it's going to be hard to use it! It's a nice, chunky ring, and I already know what materials I'm going to use with it - how is the question.

Stay tuned for my 'in progress' post on this challenge. The final post will be the blog hop itself on Saturday, August the 4th.

Here are the participants so for --

Sarah - www.pookledo.blogspot.co.uk
Deb - http://greenshoot.blogspot.co.uk/
Kimberley - http://goddessesandbeads.blogspot.co.uk/
Skye - http://skyescreativechaos.blogspot.co.uk/
Ambra - http://chicandfrog.wordpress.com/
Beti - http://stringingfool.blogspot.com/
Emma - www.apolymerpenchant.com
Shelley - www.shelleygrahamturner.blogspot.com 
Tammie -  http://ttedesigns.blogspot.co.uk/
Leah - http://beadyeyedbunny.blogspot.co.uk/
Denielle - www.somebeadsandotherthings.com
Keri Lee - http://www.pinklemonade.typepad.com 

Ceramics and Glam

A friend of mine sent me a hoard of ceramics and lampwork recently. I've mentioned Tan before, but this is the first time I've used her ceramics in my jewellery. And I love them!

I paired these adorable, blue ceramic buttons with Tan's etched lampwork beads. They didn't need much to transform into a cute pair of earrings.  

The buttons have a great texture, and the glaze almost has a gradient from blue to pale blue/white. They're super light and beautiful. I'm going to make a similar pair in pink with more of Tan's art beads and buttons.

The next piece I have to show you is a bit more intense. I've been wanting to use this large cubic zirconia for a while, and knew I wanted to pair it with purple and black. I entered this necklace in the UKBeader's June challenge - Summer nights.

 

For the focal area, I made a textured, copper cap for the CZ and added a beautiful vintage Swarovski crystal Lori sent me. I incorporated more of the shimmering Swarovskis, other vintage beads from Old Bicycle Shop, garnet, and amethyst. There's also a set of Tan's lampwork beads in the mix.

The back of the necklace is made of a garnet colored faux suede. Everything is connected with copper wirework, and a forged copper clasp I made. 

 

Here's a final detail shot of some of the Swarovskis and Tan's lampwork beads. Don't you love the purple-pink color of the little Swaros in this light?

 

If you'd like to get your hands on some of Tan's art beads, have a look at her site. She's more than happy to swap her lampwork and ceramics! 

Nod to Vintage

If you've been following my work, you'll know I'm on a vintage buzz. You also might have noticed I lean towards moody, gem-tones and don't always do 'zingy' colors.

When I received these orange and salmon flower components from Lori Anderson in our vintage bead swap, I immediately thought 'hippy chic(k)'. I couldn't resist using the metal flowers straight away and paired them with beautiful blue lampwork beads by Tan Grey.
 

 
The color combination and floral components made me think of the 60's (way before my time!). I kept the necklace fairly simple in design making up the length of the necklace with beaded chain. Lori also sent me the bubbly glass beads I used for the right side of the necklace.




I made a large, forged copper clasp that sits about halfway up the right side to break things up visually.

 

It was nice to break my personal mold with this necklace, and I'm hoping to keep moving in this direction. Maybe the Bead Soup Blog Party will be another chance to push the envelope!