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Friday, September 2, 2011

Bead Spotlight: Resin

Although I try to avoid synthetic, or petroleum based, beading and jewelry materials, I can certainly appreciate the beauty of some of the best plastic, acrylic and resin creations. Vintage Lucite and Bakelite are hugely collectible and can be expensive. Luckily, resin provides the same look at a fraction of the price, and thanks to mix and pour products, beaders can even create their own unique beads using resin. Highly affordable resin beads in every color and shape are everywhere, and handmade resin bead imports are an inexpensive way to add color and history to a design. You’re probably already familiar with the chrysanthemum cabochon, which became an instant favorite for designers and bead shops.

Assorted Resin Beads and Cabochons

1. Dark Teal and Purple Resin Coins, 2. Colorful Triangle Resin Beads, 3. Resin Filled Shell Beads, 4. Resin Rose Flatback Cabochons

5. Resin Christmas Light Charm, 6. Chrysanthemum Flower Cabochons, 7. Indonesian Matte Purple Resin Beads, 8. Transparent Flower Cabochons


I have to admit I’m often a little jealous of mixed media designers that get to use stunning resin beads and their own encased collages. These designs offer just a few examples of the beauty and versatility of resin.

Handmade Resin Jewelry Designs

1. Vintage Resin Slice Earrings, 2. Resin Evil Eye Bracelet, 3. Orange Operculum Shell Necklace, 4. Coral Rose Mixed Media Cuff

5. Teal Green Resin Flower Ring, 6. Honey Bee Resin Pendant, 7. Floral Coral Pendant, 8. Zombie Princess Necklace


Here are a few fun projects to try using resin beads:

Faux Turquoise Necklace
Resin Macramé Necklace
Unchained Melody Necklace

And for the DIY designers, some excellent tutorials on making and embellishing resin beads:

How to Stamp Resin Beads
Layered Resin Pendant Tutorial
Unlock My Heart Pendant

Do you like to use resin in your work? What’s your favorite style?

Copyright 2011 Inspirational Beading
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6 comments:

  1. CatherineSeptember 2, 2011 at 3:49 PM

    Your blog posts are always so interesting and inspirational, Morti! I read each and every one - need to comment more, I know, I know :) Many thanks for showcasing my operculum shell necklace. Am like you, I don't usually use synthetic items in my designs, but those shells were just too cool to pass up! Guess they are only 1/2 "un-natural" And I see you included some others in a different color combo. Will definitely check those out! Thank you, my friend! Hope you have a wonderufl weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  2. WTF StoreSeptember 2, 2011 at 4:10 PM

    Thank you, Catherine, and you are most welcome! I admit I had a huge moment of doubt when I saw those shell and resin beads. They are truly awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Liz @ Lush BeadsSeptember 2, 2011 at 7:37 PM

    Thanks for including my pendant. My resin pieces are handmade by a fellow artist in my studio building. She is The Intuitive Garden, and her work is amazing! Just wanted to give her props. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousSeptember 2, 2011 at 9:38 PM

    A very neat blog post. I'm not a resin fan as a rule but I have some beads left over from teaching kids classes and have used a few. Thanks for including that evil eye bracelet.

    ReplyDelete
  5. etki alanıSeptember 2, 2011 at 10:59 PM

    Merhaba,
    Ben İstanbul'da yaşıyorum.Fotoğrafları görünce heyecanlandım.Her hafta o boncuk dünyasını ziyaret ederim...

    TüTü

    ReplyDelete
  6. Linda LandigOctober 27, 2011 at 11:07 AM

    Hi Mortira! I love reading your posts! Always so interesting. Thank you for including my resin slice earrings.

    ReplyDelete