clair074

This week I’ve got two necklace projects on the go, plus a necklace tutorial on the back burner that’s coming along slowly but surely. This week’s mini collar features long magatamas and large dagger beads. I’m trying out a new layout for drops, and if it works it might become a new favorite. The fringe necklace with coconut daggers is still underway. It’s been awhile since I’ve done any

What with my latest blue coconut dagger project and the cool spring weather we’ve been having in my area, I’ve really been in the mood for warm colors and anything that will make it feel like summer. Tropical themes are always great for adding a little spice, and offer plenty of options for inspiration. There are colorful flowers and fruits, and gorgeous blue waters to draw on – everything looks

It’s rather unfortunate that we can’t devise a way to have all of our favorite beads on tap, with a never-ending supply of them ready to use at the touch of a button. Because even bulk beads come in a finite quantity, only to be replenished on our next trip to the bead store, leftovers are a common occurrence. If, like many beaders, you also tend to purchase new types of beads on a whim, they are

I’m two projects in to the new Collar a Week challenge and I’ve already encountered my first snag. I was able to finish and photograph this week’s necklace in plenty of time, but now here we are on the last day of the week, and I’m much too tired to edit photos and put the piece up in my shop. I’ll have to save all of the technical work for a less full day, but I can share the design with you!

For the past several weeks I’ve been puttering away at a brand new PDF tutorial for one of my favorite herringbone necklace designs. This project is great for showcasing larger accent beads and heavy fringe. I’ve used it to display everything from lampwork beads to beaded flowers, and it is the basis for some of my all time favorite designs. Even after many fun projects using this design, I've

Glass beads are an invaluable material for beading and jewelry design. Versatile, varied, and affordable, glass provides a never ending source of inspiration. It’s no secret that some of the best glass beads come from the Czech Republic, and some of the most unique selections come from indie shops that specialize in designer Czech glass. Today’s guest is Kate of Maya Honey in Slovakia– one of my

This week I’m finally going to use some of my blue coconut daggers. Probably. I had a great idea for incorporating them into a scalloped St. Petersburg chain necklace. I’m not entirely certain that the shape of the daggers will work with the stitch, but I won’t know until I’m more than halfway finished with the design. Fingers crossed! Even if it doesn’t work out, I needed to revisit the design

One of my favorite times of year has arrived – the neighborhood is covered with drifts of pretty pink cherry blossom petals, and the light fragrance of flowers is everywhere. I’m especially fond of the way the blossoms look against a cloudless blue sky. The color combination is definitely bead-worthy! Flowers are one of those special jewelry inspirations that go around and around in a circle.

Our latest bead giveaway has come to a close! Thank you so much to everyone who entered, and to Harvey at The Big Purple Barn for sponsoring the giveaway. Our winner was Abigail, who chose Antique Uranium Glass Spacers as her favorite beads from the shop. They are definitely a perfect example of the uniqueness in salvage and recycled glass beads. Uranium Glass Beads by The Big Purple Barn

For many months now I’ve been saying that I have to use up some of my accent beads. Over the last couple of years I have amassed a pretty great collection of beads that I love and love to use, but I recently reached a point where I just didn’t know where to begin. I’ve long since passed the hoarding stage and am ready to see what my beads can do. I just never have an idea that I think is good

Blue and green have really been taking over my creative space lately, so for this week’s bead color experiment, I thought it would be fun to make a great blue-green pairing and then test out some of my favorite accents with it. You can never really go wrong with a blue and green palette, though some combinations are more exciting than others. For this set of color trios, I went with opaque slate

While putting together our Pantone inspired fashion picks last month, I came across this fabulous chunky bead necklace and bookmarked it for later. It has an amazing palette of deep raspberry, orange currant, cream, and black. The contrast between the neutrals and the incredibly juicy colors was very inspiring, and I couldn’t resist using it for this month’s fashion picks. Summer Berry by

I’m back down to just one bead tray this week, though I’m sure it’s only temporary. I’ve got a few more tutorials lined up that I want to get started on, but first I have to get caught up on some other design ideas. I had hoped that the new Christmas bead lariat would be finished long before now. It seemed like no matter how long I worked on it, the beadwork just never seemed to get any longer. I

For many beaders, there are few things more fun and satisfying than whipping up a pair of fringed brick stitch earrings. The classic design is easy to make and offers lots of fun possibilities for pattern and color play. You can create all kinds of variation within the fringe by tapering, adding drop beads, or incorporating a pattern. This week I discovered that brick stitch earrings are also a

Some of the most coveted beads in the crafting world have one of two very special qualities: they’re unique or one-of-a-kind, like handmade lampwork beads, African batik beads, or natural semi-precious stones; or they have a story, like vintage French seed beads, African trade beads, and found objects. Our latest featured bead shop, The Big Purple Barn, offers gorgeous beads with both of these

As one of humanity’s earliest inventions, the bead is one of those essential things that connect us all together. Creating beads is a skill that often flourishes in unexpected places. Some of the most talented lampwork artists got their start suddenly, leaving their day jobs to fire up a torch practically overnight. Other artists find their way to bead making and exploring the many possibilities

Have you ever been at a loss for what to do with your beads? I’ve been in this spot for a while now with some of the accents in my collection, and I finally figured out what I’m going to do with them. I’ve got something very special planned, and suddenly my bead stash has taken on a whole new level of inspiration. I can’t wait to start using them. Right now I’ve got my eyes on several different

So far in our Master Class series we’ve developed muscle memory with two-drop peyote stitch, and learned the basic techniques for working with flat even-count peyote - including how to zip up flat peyote and 'stitch in the ditch'. Once you’ve mastered those essential basics, a whole world of possibilities opens up. The simplicity of peyote stitch makes it incredibly versatile, able to curve,

This week I’m taking a little creative break and making something just for the fun of it. I’ve been craving an African Christmas bead project for months now, and I decided to just go ahead and make a quick chevron lariat with lots of colorful, stripey fringe. It took a little time to come up with a palette that I liked. It’s always tricky to decide which colors in a mix to highlight, but I

For years I have been saying that I would never use a bead mat, nor would I permanently line my beading tray with any kind of fabric or fiber. To me, the idea of handling an unwashable piece of fabric or foam for several hours a day is kind of gross. Although we beaders don’t necessarily rub our fingers all over our workspace during a course of a project, the idea that I can take everything off

With summer just around the corner I’m looking forward to light and airy designs, aquatic themes, and lots of gorgeous color. For this week’s bead colors I started with a strand of aqua blue mother of pearl coins that I’ve just barely tapped into. They’re always sitting in my stash, calling out to be used, but I rarely have any ideas for their shape. The best solution, of course, is to find the

Everyone has at least a few pet peeves. Even the usually-relaxing world of beading is not immune to the effects of irritation. A pet peeve is a thing that annoys you every time, which you inevitably love to complain about. It’s as human as our fascination with tiny bits of colored glass. Although each of us has our own unique list of favorite annoyances, many of them are common; most likely

In celebration of April Fool’s Day, I bring you a selection of some of handmade jewelry’s wildest, weirdest designs. Compiling this list was way more fun than trying to pull a prank like declaring “I’m never blogging again!”. As if that would ever happen. I started by searching "weird jewelry" on Etsy, and after finding more than a few interesting themes, I ended up going off on a keyword