Bead Color Triads: Peacock Feathers

I recently appealed to fans on Facebook for a little help coming up with fun color palettes for this month’s bead triads. It’s strangely difficult to think of objects that have three distinct colors. I started to run out of ideas after Neapolitan ice cream.

Next month I’m planning a new design-a-day challenge, where I’ll share 30 necklaces over 30 days. If I’m going to make all those pieces, I’ll need a lot of great color ideas! So I was thrilled when my good friend Brenda of bstudio suggested peacock feathers.

The colorful, vibrant design of peacock feathers is certainly alluring. The feathers themselves make fantastic jewelry and accessories. I have a handful of them in a vase that were collected from a local peacock hobby farm. Apparently they fall out almost as easily as hair in a brush.

To create each palette, I looked for shades of rich blue, deep black and golden green-brown. The first beads I matched up have a pale, moody look. They remind me of the blue-ish light that seems to sink right into everything on a rainy day.

I created Raindrops Fall with black diamond 15/o seed beads, sapphire triangles, and 6mm jet druks.

Groovy Girl pops with much brighter shades. The Capri blue Swarovski crystals might not be the exact same color as peacock eyes, but they have the same electric quality. They stand out even more against opaque shiny black delicas. For accents, I added a pair of Czech glass grooved rectangles with a periwinkle travertine finish.

The last palette is a total departure, with shades that stretch as far away from the original palette as they can. Autumn Skies is made with deep orangey brown Czech glass leaves, aqua and black 10mm fire polish rounds, and matte black magatamas. I love the way the green-blue fire polish contrasts with the warm glow of the leaves.

Now I have a few more ideas for necklaces to make in November. During the ring-a-day challenge, I was able to make each piece one day ahead - to leave time for photography and blogging. Even the most simple beadwork necklace takes much longer than a ring, so I’m giving myself a little head start, and I have a few necklaces ready to go. The challenge will be to see if I can make almost 30 more in just one month. Wish me luck!

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