Jade Buddha Head

I picked up a strand of antique jade Buddha head beads at a bead show a while back. I liked them, but then had a difficult time deciding what to do with them.  They are a bit large and heavy, so they don't lend themselves to earrings.

 I eventually made a necklace with one bead as a pendant, using organza ribbon.  I think I was in a "ribbon phase" at the time.  I combined it with some pewter beads.

The bead is also too large and awkward for bracelets.  I might attempt a different design with chain or cord.  I don't want it to be paired with anything heavy, because then it would make for a really heavy necklace.  I'll continue to muse over this for a while.  I still really like the beads.

White Pearls on Antiqued Brass Chain

I made this necklace some time ago.  The chain is brass, with an antiqued finish.  It has a "rough" look to it.  I thought it would display the soft sheen of pearls nicely.

I like putting opposites together.  The matte brown of the brass is nice with pearls.

Black and Gold Pendant on Twisted Cord

This necklace was an experiment in using thick braided cord.  I made a pendant from a large acrylic bead and gold plated pewter bead caps.  The cord is black intertwined with gold metallic thread.

The trick was getting the correct size for the endings.  The cord is probably 4mm thick and was from a fabric store, rather than a beading store.  It all ended up well, and I think it looks rather Elizabethan.

Ruby Red Three Strand Necklace

I was thinking about Valentine's Day coming up, which led me to thinking about red.  So I collected many red beads, round, oval, faceted, in several shades of ruby red and made a nice three strand necklace.

 This has a nice rich look to it.  I like the pewter clasp and end bars, too.

Blue Mother of Pearl Bracelet

I like the colored mother of pearl nuggets quite a bit.  These are in a pretty aqua color.

I've paired them with pastel aqua crystal pearls, and then accented them with chocolate brown seed beads.