Vampire Love Necklace

Every few years or so, young women and girls everywhere find themselves head over heels for a someone or something in the media. Once there was Elvis, and The Beatles, Brad Pitt and Jared Leto. These are names and faces that have driven girls of all ages totally crazy. The heart throb du jour has taken the form of books and movies, with the immense success of Stephenie Meyer’s creation, Twilight.

When I sat down, skeptically, to watch Twilight, I was surprised to find that I didn't hate it at first. I was even more surprised to learn that much of the jewelry worn by the cast was created by an Etsy design team. Sisters Silvija and Taya Koschnick of Tasi Designs started out like many of us did. Today, they enjoy the immense pride that must go with having your work chosen for a major film’s wardrobe.

Inspiration:

After reading a Beading Daily blog post about the gorgeous simplicity of the jewelry from Tasi Designs, and how it made it onto the big screen, I felt a boost of vicarious confidence. If these two gals can do that, just imagine the possibilities for other beaders and jewelry designers out there.

I was immediately inspired to create something that had the same elements of simplicity, plus some of the sensuality that goes along with a romantic vampire movie.

The Beads:

For this project, I chose some deliciously dark reds from Artbeads.com to start with. Black lined garnet 3 cuts had exactly the right tone that I wanted, and the coral AB 8o hex beads added a splash of sassiness.

I also included some navy lined yellow seed beads. The finish has a sort of magical quality. At first glance, they look like regular blue lined crystals - then a sudden flash of yellow adds an entirely new layer of interest.

The Beadwork:

For a pendant, I made two right angle weave hoops of different sizes, using the color lined beads. I then lashed them together with some transparent red seed beads. For the necklace straps, I braided strands of seed beads and hexes, and finished them with a hand stitched hoop and toggle clasp.

The necklace is really fun to wear, but I don’t think I’ll be making another. Braiding loose strands of beads is a task for someone with far more patience than I have. Next time, I’ll stick to stitching.

Copyright 2009 Inspirational Beading