Copper Earth-Tone Bracelet

I've used green jasper, taupe sea glass, and ivory natural pearls here with copper wire to make a bracelet.

Copper is such a pretty color.  I don't know why I don't use it more.

Purple and Lilac Stretch Bracelet

I used this really pretty crystal and brass connector to make a two strand stretch bracelet.

One row has pearly pale lavender beads.  The other row has translucent glass beads in two kinds of purple, a blue based purple and a red based purple. 

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.

Collage Bracelet

This was interesting and different for me.  The metal framework of the bracelet came as one piece.  I was accustomed to purchasing individual bezels, and assembling them myself, but I wanted to experiment with this one.  Then, instead of pouring resin into the bezels, I purchased clear resin domes.   These must have been made in a mold.  If I poured the resin myself straight into the bezels, I would not get such high domes.  I created my own "scrapbook paper" digitally using shades of ivory, plum and turquoise.  I prefer making my own as compared to finding something I like at the craft store. 

Although I am pleased with the way it looks, I don't think I'll go with the bezel bracelet blank again.  It is a much more costly finding than using the individual bezel blanks, and the resin domes are costly also.  When one is making items for resale, one has to think of the non-crafting buyer, who might not understand the cost of supplies.   I definitely plan to continue making my own scrapbook paper.  I like using my own colors and designs.  I never seem to find anything I like at the craft store.  And since I make it digitally, I know I can always print more, and not worry about the store running out of stock.

Gift Package

I recently created a set of jewelry for dear friends.  I used several metallic colors: gold, silver, copper, antique brass.

A silver barrette (acrylic and firepolished beads).

I used oval "Hope" beads, and round beads that had the sun on one side and the moon on the other.

Crystal Link Bracelets

I had to try these Swarovski crystal links when I saw them at Fusion Beads .  I made bracelets with peridot green, siam (think garnet), aquamarine blue, and padparascha pink. 

The padparascha color is a fairly close dupe to the "color of the year" pink hyacinth.  Padparascha is supposed to be the color of a certain type of pink sapphire, however, which is pink with a hint of orange.  It is really pretty!  

Black and White Lampwork Bracelet

I always like a black and white color pallette, so here I go again!  I've used flat shell disc beads with rondelle lampwork beads.  The rondelles have a black and creamy white swirl pattern that is encased in clear glass which gives it some nice depth.  I bought these lampwork beads some time ago before I improved my record-keeping skills, so now I have no idea where they were purchased and cannot buy any more of them.  Ah, I wish I had more!  (a common complaint from me)

Pink and Red Hearts Charm Bracelet

I recently got these red and pink heart charms, and was really pleased with their look.  They are about 5/8" long and was concerned that they might be too big for a charm bracelet, but you can see it turned out nicely.  Of course, it is not subtle, but then I don't do a lot of "subtle". 

You Can Never Have Too Much Blue

You might remember my post on this necklace back in the Spring.  I bought more of the same beads and made coordinating earrings and bracelets.  The clasp and connectors are pewter, which I think looks really nice with these blue beads.  These pieces always make me think of running water.

Scarlet and White

I wanted to design something with scarlet and white, the school colors of the University of Hartford.  I will be there this weekend at Homecoming with a craft booth.  I am an alumna of the university, getting my graduate degree there back in 19(mumble mumble).  I always like a coil bracelet, since there is never any problem with a clasp.  So I have used pressed glass, lampwork, crystal, and seed beads in different variations of red and white to make these coil bracelets.  I think they turned out nicely.  Although I am not looking forward to the long drive, it should be a nice day Saturday in Connecticut, and the University has a very attractive campus in Bloomfield, just on the outskirts of Hartford proper.

Black and White Leaves

I really like the color combination of black and white.  It is so classic.  Here I have made a chain bracelet with black and white resin leaf charms and matching earrings.  I am still trying to hone my photography skills.  I photographed the bracelet on an ivory background, and then used a grey background for the earrings.  I am wondering if I should have used a more contrasting background, such as red.  The jewelry looks much better in person than in the photo, which is not much solace when one is selling on the internet. 

The leaf charms have a nice dangle movement to them.  I don't know of any naturally occurring black or white leaves, do you? 

Safari Jasper and Friends

I have made a necklace and bracelet set using nuggets of safari jasper with goldstone and deep blue beads.  These colors all work nicely together, and end with a decorative pewter toggle clasp.

I know some designers like to make a piece either ALL gemstone, ALL glass, or ALL acrylic, but I tend to mix it up a bit.  I'm looking at the colors, shapes, and textures really.  Another important factor is the actual weight.  I want the piece to be practical to wear, and sometimes a strand of nothing but huge chunky gemstones can be quite heavy.  I always use high quality beading wire with good strength and size, but I never want to stress the wire so completely that I cannot be sure it will stand up over multiple wearings for my customers.

Animal House

I've made some dog earrings, cat earrings, and cat bracelets, so I though I would combine them in a post.  I need to find some other animals so I may incorporate them into jewelry, also!  When I first made the dog earrings, I wasn't so sure if it would work out well.  As it turned out, the first pair went into my private jewelry stash because I liked them so much.

Here is the black cat charm bracelet and its matching earrings.

Here are the silver pewter earrings.  The striped tabby is a clip-on, and the solid cat is on a french hook.  These darn cats never seem to photograph that well, no matter how many attempts I give it.

Perhaps later I will do something with turtles or birds?  I have a lot of favorite animals.  What are yours?