Rings!

I took this photo a while ago but I never got around to blogging about it! Probably because as far as photos go, it is not the best. These rings just kind of lie around when they're being photographed like this. They look so much better on a hand!

I really enjoy making these rings, which are from the upcoming book Contemporary Geometric Beadwork. They work up pretty quickly and easily, which makes them a great way to swatch colors for a larger project while still ending up with a finished item. It's also a good way to fill up color holes in your jewelry collection. Have one shirt in an off shade of green, but you don't want to make an entire necklace to go with it? Whip up a ring in an evening.

The top green one has Dichroic Aikos and 2mm Swarovski crystals as accents. The black and silver is also accented by those 2mms. The bottom two are made with nothing but Delicas. The rounded one is less pokey to wear, since you don't end up having a point facing in to your hand, but I don't like it as much. Really, the points tend to soften with wear anyways. The only time I really had trouble was when I tried to play zills while wearing one that was still stiff and new.

I'll probably make myself a few more of these. I like the idea of having rings to coordinate with most of my outfits.

All of my Olives

Wow, I made this back before the gem show and I'm finally getting around to posting about it! This scrumptious bracelet is a slight variation on a design by Jean Power. The awesome thing about this design is everyone seems to do it a little differently. I chose to make each triangle one solid color, with a "spine" of one color that unified them all. Others choose to make each half of the triangle a different color. Some put patterns in the "spine." Some stick to a very simple color palette, others make every triangle a different color. Sadly I did not have quite enough shades of olive green Delicas to make every triangle different, but I did manage to get a good variety in there.

My main innovation with this pattern was the addition of 2mm Swarovski crystals! After using them as an accent on my triangle ring, and seeing this bracelet pattern, I began to daydream about a bracelet with 2mm crystals along the spine. When Kate McKinnon sent out an e-mail asking for test beaders to make variations on some of the designs that were going to be included in the upcoming Contemporary Geometric Beadwork book, I decided it was time to stop daydreaming and start creating!

So I am very excited about the fact that this bracelet, the coordinating ring, and another bracelet which I'll post tomorrow will all be shown as possible variations of the projects in the book. This is my first time having my work included in a book! Previous to this my only published beadwork was when a past LL-BFAC project was included in the article that Bead Unique did on the charity. And not only is it awesome to be included in a book, but it's a book that was largely dreamed up and created here in Tucson! I had some fun afternoons sitting in Kate's house or back yard, beading along with her, Jean Power, Gabriella van Diepen, and other lovely beaders who came to visit.