Bees Heart Honey Necklace Tutorial

It’s the first day of September, which means that no matter how many more sunny days we may have to look forward to, it’s officially time to say goodbye to summer. With help from the Monochrome Bead Box from Blueberry Cove Beads, I decided to create a pretty necklace with a hint of summer colors, inspired by bees and honey.

This asymmetrical design is super easy to stitch, and you can create it with just about anything that you’ve got in your stash. You’ll need two focal beads of similar shape and size to get the effect – otherwise you can mix and match any seed beads and round beads that you’ve got on hand. I’m using a pair of faux lava rock hearts from the Monochrome Box in black and white; accents of yellow and topaz bring out the summery honey bee vibe. Have fun experimenting with different palettes of your own!

Materials:

About 4 yards of Fireline or your favorite beading thread
2 x 18-25 mm focal beads
2 8mm rose beads
11 6mm druks
22 5mm howlite beads
44 size 8 seed beads (yellow)
26 size 8 seed beads (black)
4 grams size 11 seed beads
Button clasp of your choice

Bees Heart Honey Necklace:

1. Attach a stop bead to a 2 yard (1.8 m) length of thread, leaving a 10 inch (25 cm) tail. String on one 11/o, one 8/o, one 5mm, one 8/o, and repeat. Add one 11/o, one 8/o, one 11/o and one druk. Slide all of the beads down to the stop bead.

2. Pick up 7 size 11/o seed beads, and pass back up through the druk again. Pull snug to form a loop of seed beads around the druk. Repeat to add a second loop.

3. String on one 11/o, and one 8/o, followed by the same pattern from step 1. Repeat until you have 4 looped druks.

4. String on one 11/o, one 8/o, one focal bead, one 8/o, one 11/o, and one rose bead. Add two loops of seven seed beads around the rose.

5. Repeat the pattern from steps 1-3 until you have added 3 druks. Add one 11/o, one 8/o, one 11/o and the second rose bead. Add seed bead loops to the rose.

6. String on one 11/o, one 8/o, and the second focal bead. Add one 8/o bead, then repeat the pattern again until you’ve added 4 more looped druks.

8. Pass back through the first 2 seed beads from the set of 10. Continue through the 8/o, 11/o, and druk and pull snug. Weave around the loops in the druk and retrace the thread path to secure the button. Weave any remaining thread into the beadwork, tying 2 half-hitch knots, and trim.

9. Remove the stop bead from the start of the necklace. Pick up enough seed beads to form a loop around your button. Pass back through the first seed bead again, and through the following beads to the nearest druk. Retrace the thread path to add strength to the loop, then weave in any remaining thread and trim.

Happy beading!

Mortira

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Mini Collar a Week: Black Lotus

This week’s mini collar was a bit of a whim. When I opened my tray of daggers and drop beads to plan the next design in the challenge, I was once again a bit overwhelmed by how many choices I have. Although I have months to work through and try them all, deciding each week where to go next isn’t always that easy. Eventually my gaze fell on the last 5 jet black daggers from a strand that I picked up ages ago, and I thought it would be nice to finally finish them off and remove one entire option from the list.

Choosing colors to go with the daggers wasn’t easy either. Whenever possible I want to stick to Egyptian palettes, while also trying out new patterns in the chevron chain. Although I wasn’t sure how well the finishes would mix at first, I finally settled on opaque slate blue and dark cream Ceylon to get a faience and alabaster look. For pattern I went with some simple blocks of color to get a horizontal stripe effect.

For next week’s collar I’m going to try out a recent bead color trio, and then perhaps it’s time to go for some smaller accents like my teal magatamas.

Mortira

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Work in Progress: Threads and Dregs

This week my bead tray is in ordered chaos as I once again tackle multiple projects at once. Over the weekend I started a new collar with a simple pattern in black and pink. I still have to finish weaving in all of the tail threads, but I couldn’t wait to move on to my next idea and get it rolling.

I’ve been collecting up a reserve of seed bead dregs – all of the 1 and 2 gram remainders of colors I don’t plan on stocking again. I’ve already used some of them up in colorblocked herringbone cuffs, but many colors are too low in quantity to really make a big impact. I finally thought that it would be fun to incorporate dozens of colors into a single cuff, with bold black stripes to balance everything out. This piece should help put a big dent into the leftovers.

My helper and I have also picked out beads for a new embroidered medallion, starting with a dove oval and some forest green triangle seed beads. That piece will be underway once I’ve finished with the threads on the new collar.

What are you making right now?

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Work in Progress: Teardrop Collar

This week I’m juggling a couple of small projects while I wait for my next big inspiration. I started a new fish leather medallion a few days ago, and I’m very excited about how it’s coming along. I had been holding on to a handful of bugle shaped African Christmas beads for ages, wondering just how I was going to use them. I kept coming back to embroidery, but I couldn’t think of a decent pattern to work with. Then it occurred to me that with fish leather, I could use some negative space and avoid needing a pattern altogether. In came some Czech glass face coins, and all of a sudden I had a great idea for an asymmetrical sun design.

While I was waiting for the E-6000 to dry on the medallion, I needed a quick new project. Part of my New Year’s resolutions for beading is to consolidate and even out my jewelry shops, and I need some new chevron collars for balance, so I started there. A quick scan of my drops and fringe beads ended with a really simple palette of pale blue, beige, and black.

What are you making this week?

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Halloween Skull Pendant

I’ve made a bit of a tradition of whipping up a simple necklace to go with my Hallowe'en costumes each year - which gives me a chance to make a little something for myself, while trying out techniques or materials that I wouldn’t normally use. Last year’s rifle pendant is still my favorite, although I lost the necklace somewhere. I’m still pretty annoyed about that, but I made up for it a little by throwing together an old daisy chain with another toy gun just in case I’m in the mood to wear it.

This year’s necklace was quick and easy to stitch up, especially because I had just the right focal waiting, as luck would have it. Months ago we were set on going as The Doctor and Donna Noble from Doctor Who, but changed our minds. My son decided on Pinocchio from Shrek, leaving me with a tough choice to make. I toyed with a lot of different ideas, until I realized that all of them required wearing a skirt or dress. I was running out of time when one of my favorite YouTube channels, albinwonderland, posted a tutorial for skull makeup.

When I realized that I could just paint my face and wear whatever I wanted, everything else fell into place. I decided to go a little more scary than posh, and thought it would be easiest if I told people that I was going as a lich. That meant I needed a phylactery – a magical object to store one’s undead soul. And I just happened to have a Swarovski crystal skull hanging around to do the job.

I didn’t manage to get a good photo until the end of festivities, when most of my makeup was smudged, but I think it turned out great. We had a fantastic Hallowe'en, and now I’ve got another great necklace for my stash.

Do you like to dress up for Hallowe'en? What did you go as this year?

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Work in Progress: Crystal Phylactery

At last I have a project in progress that isn’t too secret to share! This week I’m taking a quick break from my big project to make a necklace for this year’s Halloween costume, and it’s going to be awesome.

I picked up one of the new Swarovski Elements crystal skulls a while back, mostly just so that I could see one up close. I had no idea what I was going to do with it, and it’s been sitting in my glass bead box for ages, not being inspiring. So it was very exciting when I decided to go as a lich for Halloween this year, and needed something spooky to make a pendant with. What better jewel to hold a sorcerer’s soul than a crystal skull?

I’m making a short chain with red-trimmed St. Petersburg stitch. I want the necklace to fit like a choker, so it’ll be very quick to whip up. So far I’m loving the look of the ruby beads along the edge. They’ll definitely stand out!

What are you making this week?

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More Halloween Beading Tutorials

It’s that time of year again, when all of our thoughts turn to pumpkins, ghosts, and bats. One of the best things about the beading craft is how well our materials can convert to holiday themed designs, just by mixing the right elements and color palettes. Round orange beads can transform easily into pumpkins, red crystals into vampire blood, and stripes into candy corn. The possibilities are endless!

Here are a few of my favorite Halloween beading and jewelry projects this year:

There’s a lot of beadwork and fringe in this Trick or Treat Trail cuff project from Artbeads.com.
The crystal trim really stands out against a black peyote stitch base.



1. These Orange Ombre Paint Chip Earrings from Minted Strawberry are a easy to make, and require only a few simple tools.
Plus, the palette can be adapted to any style you choose.

2. Soft Flex’s wireworked Black and Orange bracelet project from All Free Jewelry Making
showcases the beauty of simple glass beads in a very festive palette.

3. Margot Potter takes the potion necklace to a whole new level with her vampire In Case of Emergency mixed media project.
For a fast version, try My So Called Crafty Life’s Mini Apothecary Jar Necklace tutorial.
Also check out Margot’s Crystal Web Collar necklace project for a great October statement piece.

4. Cameos and peyote patterns combine in this elegant and spooky Colette’s Choker tutorial from Beadaholique.




1. Another great project from Minted Strawberry - would you believe that these spooky
Skull Earrings started out as tongue depressors? All they need are some ruby red flatbacks!

2. This quick and easy Fall Leaves earring tutorial
from Auntie’s Beads will satisfy your cravings for orange.

3. If you love an authentic holiday craft experience, check out Gingerbread Snowflake’s tutorial on
dying and stringing your own fresh pumpkin seed necklace.

4. This Edge of Darkness Bracelet project from FusionBeads.com is beadiful and spooky.
Too grim? A touch of red, purple, or green would make it really pop.

Happy beading!

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Work in Progress: Bee Collar

The past week has been a very busy one at our house, with lots of work and plenty of fun summer activities. For the most part, I’ve had very little time for beading, and when I do I’m often too tired. You know you’re exhausted when beading is too much work. So, the necklace that I was hoping to start on a few days ago, and hoping to be finished by now, is only just under way. It’s already turning out great though.

I really had a craving for black and yellow, so I decided to whip up a quick daisy collar. And since I didn’t want to skimp on the yellow, I reversed the colors and put the white at the center. I’m also putting a flower on every stitch, which at first I worried would look too busy. Instead, I think it will give the impression of a continuous chain of flowers, rather than a row of embellishments, since the background is so simple. I definitely wouldn’t want to have less yellow with spaced flowers.

I’m also still working on a patterned cuff in black and golden yellow. It’s going much quicker than the prototype I made, which used Czech seed beads. I’d almost forgotten how much larger Japanese seed beads can be. The new bracelet will have far fewer rows and a bolder look than the first. It’s going to be a part of the top secret project, and it’s definitely a favorite so far. More on that in just a few short months!

What are you making this week?

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Work in Progress: Black and Yellow

So many good things are happening in my workspace right now, I don’t even know where to begin. I’ve just poured out three lovely Japanese seed bead colors in jet black and deep, deep shades of yellow for a new cuff bracelet. This one is going to have a pattern that I’ve been meaning to use for years. It’s another piece for my big project, which is getting closer to completion every week. I’m really looking forward to the big reveal.

I haven’t pulled the colors yet, but I’m also planning a new daisy chain collar with black and yellow. I’ve been seeing the combination a lot lately, especially on Polyvore, and I couldn’t resist using it in a quick project. I suppose it might be the fact that summer is about to end, but I’m craving some bright colors and contrasts.

I’ll be starting the new collar as soon as our dove embroidery pendant is done. I love the colors that my little designer has picked for this one (I’m secretly hoping for one more round of lemon lime). I was working on a freeform piece with baroque pearls on the side, but the beadwork came out too tight and all wonky, so I’m turning it into a necklace for myself, whenever I get around to finishing it.

I’ve also got some new materials on the way that I can’t wait to try out. I’m planning a new stringing experiment and I think (hope!) that this one will turn out much better than the ones before it. I’m still trying to work out what I’m going to do with all the sari silk I bought.

What are you working on this week?

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Work in Progress: Ancient Roman Glass

I had been drooling over Ancient Roman glass beads for over a year when I finally got lucky enough to spot a big sale on a fresh haul, while I had enough room in my bead budget to shop. The least expensive strands are always the first to go, so it's a race to snap them up in time. It was so exciting to finally get my hands on a strand of 900 year old glass! This week I've been experimenting with the unusual pieces for a necklace or two.

What’s interesting about Ancient Roman glass is the variations in color. Some are perfectly clear, while others have strange patterns in varying shades of brown and white. Many of them look matte, but in fact the surface is very smooth - the “flaws” are within the glass, not on the outside. I decided to use this as an advantage, and I started by sorting out my beads by color, then matched palettes to each group. So far I’m loving how they look with simple beadwork.

What are you making this week?

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Summer Moon Inspirations

Last week’s bead giveaway for summery silver and green vintage beads has come to a close. Congratulations to our winner, and thank you very much to everyone who entered! This month I asked about your favorite colors for evening wear jewelry designs. As always, the answers were varied and inspiring!

The winning comment, from Here Bead Dragons, nominated silver and turquoise for elegant jewelry designs. This combination makes a great palette for all kinds of themes to grow from: Western, aquatic, fantasy and many more. With the addition of a little black and some summer fantasy elements, it’s perfect for a dreamy evening.

What’s your favorite way to use silver and turquoise?

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Mood Board: Pink Lime

Nothing fuels inspiration quite like a collage, whether it’s clipped and glued or a digital mood board. With so many different and varied things happening in my workspace right now, I’ve been craving some creative time that’s totally freeform and experimental. To shake things up a bit, I wanted to try a new approach to jewelry collage from the usual Wear It Twice segment. Rather than focus entirely on fashion, I wanted to gather ideas and designs in one place along with gorgeous beads.

Fruit Punch by mortira featuring glass vase fillers

To start this new experiment, I went in search of a great statement necklace. The one I found features a wonderful collection of pearls and charms, with a summery mix of flowers and tropical colors on a black backdrop. This piece has plenty of personality to go around.

Featured beads and components include:

Lucite flowers from Artbeads.com and LimaBeads.com
Black Java glass from HappyMangoBeads.com
Chinese knotting cord from Lytha Studios on Etsy
Magnesite flowers from AuntiesBeads.com
And Freshwater pearls from Beadaholique.com

This collage turned out pretty well for a first try, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the idea evolves! To top off the inspiration, I found some really fantastic jewelry tutorials featuring similar styles and beads.

Collect a gorgeous bunch of touchable pearls in your favorite colors with the Clustered Pearl Necklace tutorial from Dismount Creative.

Create some unique flower components with polymer clay using the Six Petal Flower Cane Tutorial from tooaquarius.

Mix fibers and beads in a cute Flower Ribbon Necklace Project from Panda Hall.

The Montery Pop bracelet tutorial from Artbeads.com combines kumihimo with long magatamas for tons of texture.

And for good measure, one more lovely Flower Cane Tutorial for polymer clay from Georgia P. Designs.

Where are you finding inspiration right now?

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Desert Fringe Lariat

Things are finally getting back to normal in my workspace after a great craft show weekend. This means that tons of new ideas are piling up, while fresh designs are slowly making their way into my shops. I finished my latest Egyptian Gods piece just in time for the show, and although I didn’t get to see it find its owner yet, I’m happy to be able to share it now.

I’ve created several chevron lariats throughout this year’s challenge, each with their own unique variations. One thing that tied them all together was the presence of blues. It was very refreshing to try the design out on a totally new color palette, with some interesting accents as well.

For Set, the god of chaos and barren deserts, I started with a simple black chevron chain, with accents of opaque pepper red. Red is Set’s color, but I didn’t want to overdo it. I had already decided on using some African Christmas beads in the fringe, and a neutral background was just the thing to bring out all the colors and lovely stripes.

I ended up pushing back a design for the sun god Ra in order to get this lariat finished in time, and I’ve decided to put it off yet again. I’ll be moving through some of the other gods first, and saving Ra for the end of the challenge. I already have a design in mind, and as it’s going to be a big one, I think it will make a great finale.

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Work in Progress: Chaos Lariat

It seems like the closer I get to craft fair day, the less free time I have to bead. I lost a few days working on Halloween costumes (totally worth it), and one to falling asleep instead of staying up to bead (not really worth it). Even though things are now feeling really rushed, I’ve decided to go ahead and work on one more lariat for the collection, and hopefully I’ll have enough time to whip up a few more rings and pendants, too.

This piece is inspired by the Egyptian god Set. It took awhile to decide on a palette and proportions, but I finally went with mostly black and red accents for the main beadwork. I’ve got some really great black and white bone beads for the fringe, along with a handful of bold and colorful African Christmas beads.

What are you working on this week?

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How to Style a Skull Necklace

For this month’s necklace collage, I was hoping to find a great statement necklace with bold orange beads - something pumpkin-y that would be perfect for fall outfits. I was picturing some leafy green ensembles with perhaps a hint of warm yellow. But when I went on the hunt for some great orange jewelry, I came across an exciting skull charm necklace with orange leather and shell dangles. It was too good to resist.

With this necklace as a starting point, I switched gears and opted for a more Beetlejuice inspired look - stripes, black and white, and spookiness. Although I don’t normally go for printed tops, I thought that something graphic would make a great backdrop for skull beads, and found one that went perfectly with the gold and brown palette. To bring back a hint of pumpkins, I added a Chan Luu bracelet with orange rounds.

Necromancer by mortira featuring an ivory necklace

The skull necklace features a lot of great jewelry elements that work well in fall outfits. Below are some fun tutorials to try for similar looks. If you like to go authentic, try out Ouija Bored’s bird skull necklace tutorial, which includes instructions for cleaning and preparing real animal bones.

Peter Pan Skull Collar Tutorial
Safety Pin Skull Necklace Tutorial
Skull and Roses Earring Tutorial

Carnival Charm Necklace Tutorial
Halloween Delight Charm Bracelet Project
DIY Pom Pom Chain Necklace

Here are my favorite Polyvore collages features some of this month’s fashion picks:

put yo hands up by theywerebulletsmofo featuring a leather flap bag

HUE + You: Perfect Leggings for Fall by pamelakstanley featuring a brown fleece jacket

Sem título #577 by insanenyc featuring black earrings

Do you like to use skull beads in your designs?

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Collar of Death and Decay

With the huge variety of bead color and finishes available to us, one might think that every color palette would be perfect, sensational, or spot on. Perhaps if every beader lived across the street from a huge bead store and had an unlimited budget, this might be the case. Tragically, most of use are limited to what we’ve got, or what we can occasionally get our hands on, so it’s a real treat when a palette totally clicks and couldn’t be improved even a little bit.

My most recent Egyptian Gods piece was inspired by the mysterious and lovely Nephthys - daughter of the earth and sky, wife of chaos, and mother of the god of mummification. Like her sister Isis, Nephthys was a healer associated with kites (a bird of prey), but she was an underworld goddess representing darkness, decay, and regeneration. She embodied the cycle of life where new growth springs forth from death.

I knew right away which colors I wanted for Nephthys. Lots of black was essential, along with hints of green - not fresh and vibrant greens, but dark and mysterious ones. I mixed together some dark emerald and brown 8/o’s, some Indonsian glass beads in a brownish-green, and olive green seed beads, which look a little sinister among the other colors. I also grabbed some lime green long magatamas, hoping to incorporate the same wing-tipped design that worked so well for Isis.

When I brought all of the colors together, I decided to set the magatamas aside and let the more organic glass beads take the spotlight, and then everything just clicked. Who knew that darkness and decay could look so pretty? I created a netting pattern with just a single band of olive green, representing Nephthys’ domain, the edge of the barren Egyptian desert. The small green circle reminds me of my favorite poem, Ebb by Edna St. Vincent Millay - “…A little tepid pool, Drying inward from the edge”.

Nearly halfway through, I decided to bring the magatamas back in for a little texture. There are just a few ‘feathers’ at the center of the collar, facing away from each other. I couldn’t resist a connection between Nephthys and Isis. Although I do wish the green was a little less electric, I love the way the shapes of the beads work in the collar, even in just a small section.

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Borrowed Baboon Necklace

When designing jewelry, or any type of artwork, we are often faced with tough decisions. When we use specific themes, sometimes we have to decide whether or not to stay true to an idea or concept, or bend it to what is more mainstream or widely accepted. For instance, way back when I first started making beaded starfish, I was confronted about the misnomer (they’re actually called sea stars) but ultimately decided to stick with the common name.

This week I had a little battle over staying accurate and making something really eye catching. When I sat down to sketch out ideas for the Egyptian baboon god, I had no idea where to begin. The hamadryas baboon sacred to the Egyptians isn’t the colorful and showy primate that we know from cartoons and caricatures. They’re pretty much just brownish and fuzzy. Babi himself wasn’t offering much inspiration either. His most memorable attributes are impressive nether regions, and a taste for entrails - in other words, a little more of a challenge than I’m willing to take on at this point.

Before I had really started my research on Babi and Egyptian baboons, I had been thinking of dark Montana blue and a nice shade of brown. Whenever I’m working on a less common deity, there’s always temptation to fall back on shades of lapis or turquoise blue. I decided to trust my instincts and stick with these colors. I just needed something to indicate the baboon, like a pop of color. Unfortunately, the brightly colored mandrill has nothing to do with Egyptian mythology, and I was rather annoyed about it. Then I realized: I can make what I want! Not only would a combination of turquoise and red give my palette a hint of baboon-ness, but it’s a perfectly Egyptian.

I added some black to my main palette, and used red and aqua white-hearts for the accents. There’s just enough color to liven up the darker shades of the collar, and the baboons will never know that I cheated.

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Sacred Bull Necklace

It’s always gratifying when a design idea turns out the way we planned, but it’s an even rarer treat for a finished piece to greatly exceed our expectations. There was a rather long period when I thought that my latest Egyptian gods necklace was going to be a dud, and it wasn’t until the last minute that I realized it turned out perfectly.

My subject was Apis, the black bull of Memphis. Priests of the cult of Apis worshipped an actual bull, believed to be the reincarnation of the god Ptah. It was identified by several white markings, and treated like a king, including a lavish Egyptian burial.

I decided to blend a little from both gods, and included both black seed beads with beige, white, and real bone. For a hint of Ptah, I included some African trade beads in a dark lapis blue. Happily, I also had one more spiral bone pendant left, which would make the perfect focal for a bull necklace.

I was really eager to use the trade beads, but they aren’t as regular as new seed beads. I decided to go with spiral rope to give them a place to shine. The beadwork came out rather chunky thanks to the extra large beads. To mimic the white triangle on the forehead of the Apis bull, I switched from black and blue to white at the center of the rope. I added some natural bone heishi to replace the trade beads and provide a backdrop for the pendant.

I wasn’t at all thrilled with how the rope was looking at first, and I was sure that I had made a mistake. I was already committed, so I decided to see how the rope would turn out, and perhaps make another use for it. It wasn’t until everything was assembled that I realized how well the pattern and colors work together. The shock of white at the center of the necklace creates a great contrast.

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Warrior Goddess Collar

Although many of the lesser known Egyptian gods offer very little in the way of inspiration, some of them are instantly appealing. Anat was one of Egypt’s borrowed goddesses - a fierce warrior and wife of Set. I knew right away that only a collar would do for her, and it had to have daggers.

I put together a palette of black, red, and dark topaz for the netting, and cut into my new strand of triangle daggers. It wasn’t until the beads were loose that I realized they’re actually double-drilled, but I was already committed. The color and shape are perfect for the spear-wielding goddess.

I made this collar quite short, fitting close to the neck like armor. I love the shape of the fringe beads with this piece. The angular shape is a much better fit for the protector of the Pharaohs than a traditional dagger bead.

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Halloween Skulls and Flowers

When I started the destash challenge, my purpose was to use up and eliminate all the beads I had been keeping around for more than a year - that is to say, since before January 2011. It’s been almost a year now, and I’m starting to eye some of my older new beads in the same way. So when I realized that summer was officially behind us, I decided it was time to try and use up some of my Czech glass skulls for a fun Halloween design.

I took a while deciding just what type of project to do. I didn’t want to fall into my old habit of making something to suit the beads, even if it didn’t suit me. I’ve been having fun with beaded flowers lately, so I thought I would to start by making a few jet black daisies to go with the skulls and see where that got me.

I used jet AB druks for the flower base, and opaque black 15/o seed beads. The shimmery finish of the druks called out for another dash of color, so I made sure to include some jet lined garnet AB 6/o’s when I started compiling a final palette. From the destash tray, I grabbed those gunmetal E beads that never seem to go away no matter how many times I use them. To help the white skulls blend in, I also added the last of my batik bone beads.

Rather than make something elaborate that would showcase the skulls and flowers in a really obvious way, I made a simple, though very long, Y necklace. I really like the way the red seed beads help to blend everything together - skulls and flowers, blood and roses.

Have you made any spooky designs for Halloween this year? What was your inspiration?

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