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?

Copyright 2014 Inspirational Beading
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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?

Copyright 2014 Inspirational Beading and Friends
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Inspired Artist: earthdeva

Today I want to introduce you to one of my new favorite designers. Marie of earthdeva creates the most amazing handpainted focals and sculptures - many with an Egyptian flair - that are gorgeous and one of a kind.

Inspirational Beading: When did you first get started with casting?

Marie: I first tried casting many years ago, when I was looking for new ways to create items to raise funds for a dog rescue organization. I'd made jewellery for them (one of a kind sculptures as brooches and pendants) and decorated all sorts of things, from boxes, pots and clocks to glassware, but I wanted to find something unusual and easily repeatable. The rescue organization was for a breed which had very little in the way of breed specific decorative items and jewellery. As I was already making sculptures I decided to try to make some moulds of them, and liquid latex was the best option for the quality of detail I required. I started with the brooches and pendants - producing small runs of each design - and moved on to more the difficult items (statues and wall plaques) later. Eventually, the mould making process spread into my other creative endeavors !

Inspirational Beading: Have you always been drawn to jewelry design as well?

Marie: I'd been making jewellery for years before I tried casting. My love of gemstones and crystals led me to creating jewellery for myself and my family - starting from when I was in my teens. Most of the jewellery I created back then featured gemstones in interesting combinations, and I would often use antique sparkly cut glass beads too. But, my first love has always been sculpture, which I incorporate into almost all of my jewellery now. Ceramics was my favourite subject both at school and at college. Unfortunately, I'm not able to have a kiln at the moment, but the discovery of hand casting has given me some amazing options. Also, I've always been especially interested in the healing properties of gemstones and colours and try to utilize this in each piece of my gemstone jewellery. I'll often combine different gemstones in the hope that they will work in harmony with the wearer. I have some beautiful silk ribbons, and can also combine their colours in this way too.

Inspirational Beading: Where do you look for inspiration?

Marie: A lifelong fascination with ancient Egypt and ancient cultures in general, more specifically the Gods and Goddesses of all cultures, was the starting point for most of my jewellery, but I can look out of my window when I'm working and see the ocean...another great source of inspiration as I love to create Mermaids and Whales. The sea glass I collect locally is also an inspiration, as it lends itself beautifully to the creation of Mermaids. The British Museum in London is an amazing place to visit for inspiration and ideas. Sometimes, even just a shape or a curve in a sculpture there, or a shadow cast in a hallway can be the starting point for my next creation. Many of my creations feature animals too - both real and mythological with Wolves and Dragons among my favourites. I keep a dream diary by my bed as I often have ideas in my dreams and wake up to write them down !

Inspirational Beading: What’s the most interesting or unique thing about your design process?

Marie: My design process always involves music, from the shapes I use, to the colours each piece is painted. Music will be playing when I'm sculpting, painting, packing sold items or typing. Right now No Rain by Blind Melon is playing and it's mostly pink and orange clouds of colour. I can see music (I have music-colour synaesthesia) and it literally colours and shapes all of my work as well as my life. If I looked back at a days work, I'd be able to tell what I was listening to when I was creating the pieces. Many of the artists/bands I listen to have a particular colour - David Bowie is golden yellow, Jimi Hendrix is lilac and golden, Nick Cave is crimson. To me, music is a series of colours, patterns and shapes, and my musical taste is extremely wide ranging and includes everything from Jazz and Classical to some very noisy Metal. Generally, the more complicated and intricate the piece - the faster, more complicated and noisier the music!

Inspirational Beading: Do you have a favorite color to work with?

Marie: My personal favourite colour is red, but it's a very strong colour and isn't often suitable for my creations. I do sometimes use it for Goddesses, as it does have associations with some of them, and is a good colour to combine with purple and gold for several of them. In my Egyptian inspired pieces I sometimes use it as a detail colour, but I'd be unlikely to create a scarlet Anubis - unless requested to! I do have a penchant for metallics, though, and as many of my creations can be painted in a single plain colour with one additional highlighting colour, I can fulfill my love of sparkly golden, silver, copper and bronze paint. Turquoise is also fun to use, especially for the Egyptian inspired pieces. The ancient Egyptians loved their turquoise ! I always mix the turquoise myself, so pieces painted on different days will be slightly different shades too.

Inspirational Beading: What are some of your favorite necklace materials?

Marie: Gemstones, especially the rarer and more unusual ones like Septarian, Kambaba Jasper and Prehnite - and particularly the natural chunks that haven't been shaped or polished. Sometimes I will add them to necklaces with wire - Copper or Bronze (my favourite) - and sometimes I'll sculpt around them and turn them into feature pendants...which leads me to clay, another favourite material. All of my hand cast pieces start out as clay sculptures, and I mostly will not make any initial drawings or sketches, I'll just create whatever comes to mind. It's the same for sculpting around gemstones - I'll create what I see when I look at each stone. For the hand cast pieces, I create a mould from each one and make an initial test cast to see how they all turn out. I'd normally only make one mould for each piece, but sometimes I will take another. My least favourite material would have to be liquid latex. If you ever use it, always remember to open a window!

Inspirational Beading: What is the most exciting design in your shop right now? What makes it special?

Marie: There are two that I'd like to mention, first is my Anubis Amulet. I took a little inspiration from Art Deco for the lines and shape of this one, along with the more classic ancient Egyptian style. It has turned out to be a very popular design too, possibly the most popular of all of my hand cast designs. I like to experiment with colour schemes for this one too, but do try to keep mostly within what would be acceptable for the ancient Egyptians!

Next are my Dragon sculptures set around gemstones. Each one is sculpted individually around a piece of stone I've handpicked in person specially for a Dragon. I see the stone, envision the Dragon and then go home and start work as soon as possible. At the moment, I have a particularly special double Dragon necklace, the Dragons are purple and golden and the stone they are wrapped around is a spectacular piece of natural Quartz Druse - with unusual inclusions and lots of rainbows. Dragons will always be special for me, as I'm part Welsh and I live in Wales - the Land Of The Dragon.

Inspirational Beading: Who do you hope to inspire with your work?

Marie: I hope I can inspire people to look further into the fascinating ancient history of our planet, and deeper into the mysteries of nature and the universe. For those on a Pagan path, I'd hope to inspire them to continue to search into the mysteries of life, and to create and follow their own path with honesty and courage. Also, for anyone out there who is on the brink of a decision about self employment, but still undecided - try it, take the plunge! I can say from experience that it won't be easy, but it is very fulfilling. You're never going to know how your journey will turn out until you actually start on the path, and think of all the amazing things you'll learn about the world, and more importantly, yourself. I have no regrets about becoming self employed - I wish I'd done it sooner!

You can see more earthdeva designs in Marie’s Etsy shop, and get the latest news on her Facebook page. For an even closer look into the unique design process behind these pieces and more, check out the earthdeva blog.

Copyright 2013 Inspirational Beading and earthdeva
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Inspired by Cthulhu

One of the most famous literary characters in fantasy and sci-fi is Cthulhu, a chimeric creature with features of an octopus, dragon and humanoid demon. Created by H. P. Lovecraft, Cthulhu has appeared on some level in many of the author’s works, and inspired many artists in every medium imaginable.



Cthulhu is a classic character of terror - huge, mysterious and omnipotent. Still, fans and followers are often putting a lighthearted spin on this character, with everything from plush toys to quirky kitchen ware. You’ve probably seen at least one Cthulhu inspired design somewhere, because they are just about everywhere.

Untitled by blini on Polyvore.com

Bride of Cthulhu by apokalipstick on Polyvore.com

An unpronounceable name is almost a prerequisite for any legendary sci-fi and fantasy character. The most common pronunciation for Cthulhu is kuh-THOOL-hoo.



1. Diablo Tentacle, 2. RUBY CTHULHU, 3. Day 83: Pensive Cthulhu,
4. Cthulhu, 5. Cthulhu, 6. Cthulhu

Are you a fan of Lovecraft’s creature? Who’s your favorite scary but fascinating character?

Copyright 2011 Inspirational Beading and Friends
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Coordinating Complementary Colors

Do you know where your preferences for color come from? Do you embrace the colors of your past, or avoid them and explore new possibilities?

I started to think differently about color choices recently, when I was confronted with some old memories of the role complementary colors used to play in my artwork and crafts. I had borrowed a copy of Disney’s Fantasia from the library, and hoped that my bead helper would enjoy the movie as much as I did when I was young.

Watching it again, I was momentarily stunned by the memories it gave me of using color. I can clearly remember a running theme with almost anything I made, where I would create copies of the same design, and use different sets of color until all possibilities where exhausted. I kept up this habit until a few years ago, when I was making daisy chain friendship necklaces in all kinds of flower palettes - the classic white and yellow daisy, purple and yellow violets, and yellow and brown for Brown-eyed Susans, among others.

If I didn’t know any better, I would say that Fantasia had a lot to do with this trend, particularly The Pastoral Symphony chapter, or Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6. The mythical story that the creators paired with the symphony has romantic overtones, and throughout the scene, creatures in a variety of colors pair off together.

The first example of this complementary color theme is the Pegasus family. The female is a traditional winged horse in white, and her eyes are blue. Her mate is midnight black. The animators could have given him eyes of any color, but they chose red, making him the exact opposite of the female. This use of opposites inspired the concept of pairing: make one bracelet in red and blue, and the next one in green and yellow.

The Centaurs inspired a slightly different way of using color. The combinations of skin, hair and coat colors created a desire to make copies of designs in as many palettes as possible, with only minor variations. A slight change in bead shape or size, while sticking to the same pattern, allows for endless design possibilities with very little risk. I was especially fond of the zebra Centaurs, which provide a great example of how not just color, but style or pattern, can be folded into a basic design for a totally new look.

I’m not sure why these color concepts departed from my design methods. Perhaps it is because I rarely have time to make the same thing twice, and new ideas are always forming. Recalling these old ideas has rekindled that creative spark, and a new lust for color combinations. I may just have to start repeating myself more often, if only to place two identical but complementary pieces side-by-side.

Do you like to make multiple variations on the same basic design?

Copyright 2011 Inspirational Beading and Walt Disney Productions
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Collections: Green and Purple Invasion

It’s time to announce the winner of my green and purple bead mix giveaway, and I have some good news, and some bad news. The bad news is, I’ve decided not to give these beads away - they are just too pretty to part with. The good news is, I’m totally kidding, because it’s April Fool’s Day!

I rolled the dice this morning, and our lucky winner is Cory of Tealwater Designs. Congratulations to our winner, and thank you so much to everyone that commented and entered the giveaway. It was a great turn out!

Traditionally, I put together a fun collection, inspired by the winning comment. In honor of today’s silliness, I’ve taken a different route. This collection features some slightly scary, but mostly silly, green and purple finds.

Enjoy, and prank safely!

Copyright 2011 Inspirational Beading and ArtFire.com
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Bead Color Triads: Jurassic Jungle

Dinosaur by *caglarcity on deviantART

Inspiration can come from many different places, and one of the best sources is the people around us. It’s amazing how easy is it is to become interested in something, simply because it is a favorite of someone we love. Many of us even began our obsessions with beads thanks to a friend or relative that introduced us to the craft. I find that my bead helper's interests provide a constant source for new adventures and inspiration. He has helped me remember how much I like Batman and Harley Quinn, and given new meaning to the Star Wars franchise. Lately, our obsession has become dinosaurs. Prehistoric beasts are now the dominating topic in my workspace. I borrow dinosaur books from the library, and have watched BBC’s Walking with Dinosaurs and related documentaries many times on Netflix. So when it came time to decide on a color palette for this month’s bead triads, dinosaurs were the first thing that came to mind.

Very little is known about what dinosaurs actually looked like. The images of living dinosaurs that we see in books and movies are based on educated guesses. Scientists take what they can learn from fossils, geology of the time period, and modern animals, and piece things together. The texture of dinosaur skin is the only sure thing, and color is pretty much a shot in the dark. Still, it’s easy to imagine what colors may have been common during the Mesozoic era. Natural, earthy shades of greens and browns are pretty likely. These are the colors that we most often see in dinosaur art, and they are the inspiration behind today’s palettes.

Dragon Garden features an interesting contrast of colors and hues. It started with a strand of dyed wood beads, with a subtle flower pattern in dark brown and pink. I added 8/o seed beads in transparent jade, which blend in nicely. These two colors alone would make a great necklace. A shock of apple green 11/o’s add extra life to the palette. They would make pretty flower accents in a boho inspired design.

Herbivore started with some Christmas green pressed glass leaves with a vitrail finish. Since this would be the darkest of the greens in the palette, I added chartreuse magatamas for the lighter half. The two didn’t exactly fit together until I added the warm transparent rootbeer seed beads. They provide a neutral background that allows the greens to work together.

Finally, we have Lizard. This palette most resembles the dinosaurs we imagine. The shades are subtle and muted, especially the yellow-lined black diamond seed beads, which have a unique olive color. Emerald AB hex cuts add a leafy green to brighten things up a bit. I included two accents here, because I couldn’t part with one or the other. I just had to use tortoise druks, with their irresistible prehistoric vibe, and topaz fire polish were just the right color. Since they are both 6mm rounds, they blend together easily. Do you ever find inspiration in natural history? Copyright 2011 Inspirational Beading COLOURlovers.com Subscribe to Inspirational Beading

A Necklace a Day - One

Back in June, I challenged myself to make one ring a day for 30 days, to help me achieve my goal of 100 active listings in my Etsy shop. Now I’m getting ready to set up my ArtFire studio, and I thought I’d take another 30 day creative journey to get things started.

I created the first necklace just for myself, to go with my Halloween costume. For most of this year, I had planned to go as Catwoman. Because my bead helper is head-over-heels obsessed with Batman, his costume choice was pretty obvious. I decided to dress up with him as Catwoman because she’s the easiest to copy in a mom-appropriate way.

My partner thought it would be better if we went as Joker and Harley Quinn, and I didn’t disagree. Harley is my all time favorite Batman character. Unfortunately, there was no way I’d have the time or talent to sew my own black and red body suit, and the Arkham Asylum version of Harley is a bit too…vivacious, for me.

So I started looking around on Etsy for some cool Catwoman masks that I could use to add some authenticity to whatever cat costume I could throw together. I came across a fantastic leather shop called Nokturnel Eclipse, and discovered an amazing array of fantasy character masks - including Harley Quinn. I was instantly sold, and vowed I would find a way to make the costume work.

I decided that it would be perfectly alright to make up my own Harley Quinn costume, using pieces from my own wardrobe, and I had a pretty great black and red outfit in mind. To make sure that there was no doubt about who I was dressing up as, I made a little necklace with a harlequin pattern beaded bead.

I used peyote stitch in black and white to make the diamond pattern, then strung it with more seed beads and some black-white druks. I ended up making the beaded tube way too big, and before I could string everything, I had to go back and cinch up the ends with picots and circular peyote.

We decided that as adults, we could get away with just painting our faces, so I was happy to have the extra accessory. My new mask totally made the costume come together, and I can't wait to wear it and the necklace again next year.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading, Nokturnel Eclipse,
Bruce Timm, Eidos Interactive Ltd.

Underwater Garden Necklace

Photo Credit: takau99

This month, the theme for the Etsy BeadWeavers challenge is “Secret Garden”. This topic was chosen by Ileana of Enchanted Beads, who encouraged participants to create their own real or imaginary garden. It’s a great theme for summer, with absolutely endless possibilities. There are so many ways to interpret the word garden, that choosing just one would be a challenge in itself.

The Inspiration:

Although I adore nature, I’ve never been a green thumb, and landscaping sort of baffles me. So there would be no realistic gardens in my piece. I started thinking about more magical, fantastic gardens. It occurred to me that the most secret of gardens would be one that humans could never reach.

I had already started seeing some possible shapes and designs in my mind’s eye, and I was most drawn to one with flat, six petal flowers. I thought it would be fun to turn all of my oval dyed shells into flower petals, so then an aquatic theme started to emerge. If the city of Atlantis had had a garden, what would it look like now, at the bottom of the sea?

The Beads:

Using the green shells for petals meant that I would have to be careful about choosing the rest of the palette. I wanted to be certain that the flowers would look as such. I finally decided on salmon pink, which is not only a very flowery color, but also reminds me of anemones and starfish, which one might find in an underwater garden.

For the background, I chose transparent cobalt - an excellent deep sea blue. I also selected some pink cat’s eyes, and 15/o seed beads to match the green and chartreuse shell coins.

The Beadwork:

To make the flowers I had imagined take shape, I used wide triangle weave stitches, with each wedge supporting a petal and a bit of the pink center. To fill in the spaces between the shell flowers, I made a few beaded flowers with matching pink centers and green petals.

Atlantis Garden Necklace

Choosing a technique for the necklace straps was a challenge. I wanted them to have body, but not distract from the flowery bib. Eventually I took the simple approach and created several strands of cobalt blue with assorted accents, including some blue and green pressed glass clam shells.

Voting for the Etsy BeadWeavers July challenge opens today. Stop by the EBW Team blog to see all of the amazing entries, and vote for your favorite! The challenge closes on July 15th.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading and The Sage's Cupboard

Poster Sketch: The Sky is Falling

Comets, shooting stars, and mysterious objects falling to Earth from outer space. These phenomena have been intriguing and inspiring humanity since the dawn of time. The idea that space rocks contain magical, mythical elements has been the theme behind many fantasy and sci-fi stories. Lovers wishing on a shooting star is a classic romantic hook.

This week's Poster Sketch/Treasury East is dedicated to jewelry inspired by these themes. Whether you're an academic or a romantic, there's no denying the allure of space rocks! To see the entire collection, and learn more about the artists behind these creations, visit The Sky is Falling.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading and Etsy.com

Poster Sketch: Space Invaders

One of the best things about the science fiction genre is the diversity of it’s characters. Robots and alien creatures are pure fantasy, and they can become whatever a writer, director or artist wants them to be. They can be terrifying, or hilarious. They can be hideous, or beautiful. They often have many human qualities, but they can also be soulless villains.

This week’s Poster Sketch is a tribute to the many faces of the sci-fi world. These robot and alien inspired beads and accessories are wonderful examples of the endless possibilities of imagination and creativity. To see the live collection, or see more work from these artists, visit the Space Invaders treasury. You can also search for these shops by typing the artist’s name into the Seller Search on Etsy.com.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading and Etsy.com

Magical Tree Bracelet

Anne Anderson's Little One Eye, Little Two Eyes, Little Three Eyes, 1935
Originally uploaded by Gatochy

Fairy tales, a popular sub-genre of folklore, have been passed down through the generations for hundreds of years. These dark and eerie stories are classic examples of good versus evil. The protagonist is often a beacon of goodness, though just as often the main character is as flawed as any average person, making mistakes and learning from them in the end. Over the years, the macabre nature of many fairy tales have been scrubbed away by countless revisions. Many of today’s readers would not recognize the stories that were told and performed by families before the Brothers Grimm published their famous collection.

When Disney released The Little Mermaid in 1989, I was incredibly disappointed with the happy ending. Although many fairy tales do end with the main characters finding good fortune, the villain usually meets a grisly end, and sometimes the hero or heroine does as well. This is the case with the orignal Little Mermaid, although the moral is just as clear as any “happily ever after”. It was then that I started to become more interested in obscure fairy tales, the ones that have not been much altered by modern values or censorship.

The Inspiration:

During a trip to Holland in the late 80’s, I received a wonderful collection of classic fairy tales. Some of them I recognized, like Snow White - although I was surprised to discover that the witch visited the dwarf’s cottage not once but three times with poisoned trinkets for the little princess. In addition to the few stories that I knew, there were many more that I had never heard before.

One of my favorite tales is called “One-Eye, Two-Eyes and Three-Eyes“. It is very similar to the Cinderella story, except that the heroine is shunned because she is the only member of her family who is not deformed. Terrorized by the cruel jealousy of her two sisters, Two-Eyes goes hungry until she is visited by a kind spirit. When the sisters discover that Two-Eyes has been receiving food from an enchanted goat, they kill her pet and force her to starve once again. When Two-Eyes buries the little goat in the garden, a magical tree grows with silver leaves and golden fruit that only she can touch. The wonderful treasure attracts the attention of a handsome prince, who rescues the poor girl and takes her to be his bride. In the end, Two-Eyes takes in her downtrodden sisters and cares for them with kindness.

The Beads:

For the Etsy BeadWeavers March challenge, Fairy Tales, I decided to recreate the magical tree that grew from Two-Eyes’ special goat. I started with some beautiful silver lined amber seed beads, which have a really great golden hue to them. I also selected some silver lined crystal seed beads, and brown and green 8/0 beads for accent.

The Beadwork:

When I was considering fairy tales to use for this challenge, I had almost decided on Jack and the Beanstalk. I had sketched out a spiral peyote bangle with coiling vines and leaf fringe. Although I liked the overall design, I wanted to highlight a lesser known tale from my favorite anthology. So, I decided to keep the technique, and change the colors to imitate the little goat tree from One-Eye, Two-Eyes and Three Eyes.

The base of the bangle is a peyote stitch rope with two rows of 8/0 seed beads adding texture like an ancient and enchanted tree. I added a fringe of silver leaves around the outside, which flow in a continuous circle, enhancing the spiral effect.

Voting for the Fairy Tale challenge opens on March 9th. Visit the Etsy BeadWeavers team blog before March 15th to see all of the gorgeous entries and vote for your favorite. You can also see entries by searching for EBWC on Etsy.com.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading

Basilisk Bracelet

Basilisk
Image Credit: kdm3000.

One of the most forgotten creatures of mythology is the fearsome and deadly basilisk. Known as the king of seprents, this creature has made appearances in many legends of ancient cultures, and has even been mentioned in the Bible. Although it's killing gaze and terribly potent venom were feared by many over the centuries, it rarely appears in modern fantasies - not nearly as often as dragons or unicorns.

The basilisk did make a brief return to the spotlight in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, in which a giant snake terrorized Hogwarts School. In earlier legends, the basilisk had characteristics of both a snake and a rooster. It was the counterpart of the terrible cockatrice - a gruesome halfbreed with features of a cockerel and lizard.

The Inspiration:

The basilisk that I know best is the fantasy interpretation - a deadly blue-black snake that can kill with a single stare. Lately, my interest in strange and obscure creatures has been renewed after flipping through an old D&D Monstrous Manual in my weird and wonderful home library. I wanted to create a piece of jewelry to represent the mysterious and scaly basilisk, with it's hard skin and dark colors. Although it is one of the least pleasant monsters of mythology, I like a challenge of making something terrible look beautiful.

The Beads:

To mimic the shiny hardness of a magical snake's scales, I started with a mixture of dark metallic seed beads in 11/0 and 6/0. To these I added 8/0 seed beads in metallic hematite and matte gunmetal. The combination of colors and finishes created exactly the effect that I was looking for. Each one could represent a different side of an endless, slithering monster.

The Beadwork:

To achieve the look of many tiny scales, I used my bead selections to create a hollow right angle weave bangle. First, I created a long strip from the 11/o seed beads, with a single row of black 8/0's at the edge. When it was long enough, I stitched the ends together to form a loop, and added a few rows of the grayish matte gunmetal to either side of the ring. Once these were added, I pulled the edges together, and stitched them shut using the colored metallic 6/0 seed beads.

The larger beads along the middle of the bangle create a ripple effect. For this piece, I like the way it looks - there's no need for perfection when you're recreating a fearsome myth - and the changes in texture look more like a real serpent. If I were to make another bangle with this method, I would stick to two sizes of beads to make the beadwork smoother. I wasn't sure how much the beadwork would shrink once the edges were cinched together, so I cautiously made the first strip of beads quite long. I discovered that there is very little change once the bangle is assembled, so it is larger than most bracelets. I have declared this piece to be my first guy-friendly accessory.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading

Quetzalcoatl Necklace

Yao Chi Portrait by thegryph

Like many ancient cultures, in Mesoamerican myth, deities often took the form of great, magical beasts. Each god or goddess was represented by a creature that was known for specific traits. Kind gods took on the form of gentle animals, and angry gods took on the form of fierce ones. One of the most interesting and beautiful of these was the Quetzalcoatl.

Worshipped by many groups, including the Mayans and the Aztecs, Quetzalcoatl was generally represented by a feathered serpent. Over time, he gained humanoid features, and became a reptilian man with colorful plumes. Quetzalcoatl was considered at different times a god of air and agriculture.

The Inspiration:

The Quetzalcoatl I know best is the fantasy version - much like a dragon with beautiful multicolored wings. Perhaps because of rainy winter weather, I have been craving rainbows. Rather than make something really upbeat and whimsical, I wanted to use a rainbow palette for something with a little more edge. The first thing that came to mind was a Quetzalcoatl serpent.

The Beads:

I started with a few green beads for a base, choosing emerald green hex cuts and a transparent green seed bead mixture. I also grabbed some yellow lined black 11/0’s, which have an amazing reptilian quality to them. To this I added transparent 11/0 seed beads in yellow, orange, red, purple, blue and aqua.

The Beadwork:

I wanted to make something that would look like wings, with the feathers on the underside spread wide. Using the green beads, I made a base of St. Petersburg chain, then added scalloped loops to the top. For the serpent body, I started with the transparent green mixture, and slowly increased the size of the loops. Eventually I added the colored beads in groups of four, and increased the loops with each new color. Green finished off in the middle again, creating a continuous loop of color.

Although the brightly colored stripes are clearly rainbow inspired, I think I succeeded in making something that wasn’t at all juvenile in mood. It reminds me a little of souvenirs from South and Central America, which is almost what I was going for!

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading

Poster Sketch: Beads, Potions and Trinkets

Any beader will tell you that a vial of beads is like a magic potion - open it, and wondrous things will occur. From the moment we spill those beads out onto our work surface, our imaginations soar. When we finally complete our creation, the magic continues to dazzle.

Beads themselves can be used to make all manner of coffers for treasures and trinkets. This week’s Poster Sketch is dedicated to marvelous bead containers - from beaded bowls to potion necklaces. These beautiful vessels are just as beautiful and magical as the items they carry.

Row 1:

Live Moss Terrarium Pendant by shesthatgirl
Glass Stash Bottle Focal Pendant by InfiniteCosmosGirl
Dichroic Glass Vessel Pendant by ZenArtGlass
Specimen Vial Necklace by sheathandpulp

Row 2:

Serenity Vessel by NEDbeads
Captured Monarch Butterfly Wing Necklace by heartworksbylori
Transitions Beaded Vessel by SalamanderHouse
Upcycled Confetti Bear Needle Case by thefrogbag

Row 3:

Red, Brown and Blue Knick Knack Bowl by homebycamille
Romantic Keepsakes Jewelry Box by enchantedbeads
Purple Mix Fairy Dust Necklace by FairyPrincessShoppe
Island Rhythm Beaded Textile Bowl by thekeepershouse

Row 4:

Energy Vampires Vessel by gothB4play
Mini Ruby Red Vessel Pendant by chickadeebeads
Power Goblet by njema
Glass Vial Necklace with Chalcedony by DreamsandJewelry

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading and Etsy.com

Chimera Necklace

When Zeus banished the Titans to Tartarus in the Greek myth, the giants took their revenge by sending forth their monstrous children to terrorize the realm of the new gods. Gaia gave birth to the serpent Typhon, and though he would also be defeated by Zeus, he was able to wreak much havoc on the world, and sired three more terrible creatues: Cerberus, Hydra and Chimera.

These three-headed beasts are well known in Greek legends, and are still favorite monsters in many fantasy stories. The least well known is the Chimera, though it is arguably the most interesting of Typhon‘s children. With the heads of a dragon, a lion, and a goat, this monster is often depicted as female. In some versions of the legend, the Chimera was the mother of the Sphinx.

In modern art and stories, the anatomy of the Chimera has taken on many different forms. A Chimeric Creature is a blending of three monsters and animals, sometimes with multiple heads, and often bearing the wings and tail of a dragon.

The Inspiration:

Before I took up bead weaving, I collected vintage acrylic and lucite beads, and used them to create tapestries of bead strands to decorate my home. After many moves and encounters with kids, some of them are a bit disheveled. One that has survived completely intact is made entirely with red and black beads. It’s one of my favorites.

Like any decoration that hangs around for a long time, I had started to take my bead tapestries for granted. The red and black strands caught my attention one day, and I wanted to refresh my interest by making a piece of jewelry with the same elements. When I thought of the red and black together, I thought it would be fun to create a tribute to the mythical Chimera, using the traditional three headed version as inspiration.

The Beads:

I started with three shades of 11/0 seed beads - light amber for the lion, Siam ruby for the dragon, and opaque black for the goat. For accents, I combined two mixtures of Fire Designs Furnace Glass beads - Queen of Hearts and Strawberry Shortcake. I selected my favorites in red, black and brown from this new mixture. I had a hard time choosing, and took a long while to create a balance between the single colored beads, and those with striped accents. I also added mixed strands of Czech fire polish beads in amber, jet and garnet, and a homemade mixture of hex cuts and Toho™ triangles in my Chimeric color palette.

The Beadwork:

I have always been a huge admirer of Margie Deeb’s Rainforest Cascade necklace, with it’s luscious strands of beads. I think most bead lovers can relate to the intense craving that thick strands of beads can induce. Although I love to look at them, I’m usually reluctant to use bare seed bead strands in my designs. My seed beads call out to be woven! So I sketched out a design that would have the same cascading feel that I liked, but used the tiny beads in a more structured way.

To create a pendant, I used black hex cuts to make a tapered base, then added 17 strands of wide fringe. Each of the 17 strands ends with a cane glass bead, and has long fronds of seed beads ending with hex cuts or fire polish beads. To add some depth to the fringe, I mixed my original three seed bead colors with color-lined seed beads in dark amber brown, mauve and jet black. The lion colored fringe is at the center, so that the outer colors match up with the tubular peyote rope. I love the way the wide fringe has elements of both beadweaving and multi-strand, and the furnace glass adds just the right amount of texture. I almost don’t want to let this piece go!

I would like to thank Artbeads.com for providing the Fire Designs beads used in this piece. Inspirational Beading has not received paid compensation for including Artbeads.com products or reviews in this blog post. I have shared my honest opinions about the products used in this design.

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading

Poster Sketch: Unforgettable Unicorns

Of all the mythical and magical beasts in popular lore, the unicorn may be the most loved, second only to dragons. Like horses, unicorns are a favorite among girls, probably because the only thing better than a pretty horse is a magical one.

There are many different incarnations of the unicorn in modern media. The most common is a white mare with a golden horn. Often they are depicted with goat-like beards, and feathered hooves similar to Clydesdales. These beautiful and gentle beasts are a great departure from the first unicorn legends. The creatures that are described by the explorers of ancient times were huge, dangerous beasts with unpleasant features. Like most mythical animals, the unicorn’s traits can usually be traced back to actual species that were mistakenly identified as supernatural. The unicorn that we know today was likely born from different tales of the rhinoceros, oryx and narwhale.

Although we know that early sightings of unicorns are mere exaggerations, even adults don’t mind imaging a world where horned white horses watch over the innocent and live peaceful, secret lives. Today’s Poster Sketch offers a glimpse of these lovely beings, through the eyes of Etsy artisans.

Row 1:

Unicorn Ceramic Necklace by Surly-Ramics
White and Teal Unicorn Necklace by artallnight
The Last Unicorn Ring by Aprilbella
Silver Unicorns and Golden Dragons Pendant by WaterHawksMetalwork

Row 2:

I Will Save You Unicorn Necklace by Pamela Henderson
Unicorn Horn Magic Wand by GimmCat
Mystic Charmer Unicorn Statement Necklace by magandajewelry
Rainbow Glitter Unicorn Buttons by airportlovestory

Row 3:

Enchanted Unicorn Pendant by superfumi
UniCorn Vintage Porcelain Cuff by RetroAtomic
Steampunk Unicorn Robot Pendant by buildersstudio
The Last Unicorn Ring by goodfriday

Row 4:

Wood Unicorn Pendant by MuddyFeet
Unicorns in a Pink Night Sky Resin Necklace by MySugarSkull
Pink and Purple Unicorn Pendant by lusterstudio
Pink Jellyfish Unicorn Horn Earrings by CMandMJewelry

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading and Etsy.com

Bracelet for a Mermaid

South Pacific Pearl Mermaid
Photo Credit: Joanne Schempp

The legendary sea creatures known as merfolk have been a part of many cultures for centuries. The half human, half fish beings are known for their beauty and mischievous antics. In fact, before being softened by popular media, mermaids in particular were considered somewhat villainous. They were thought to be dangerous, killing sailors and swimmers either by accident or for spite.

Whether mermaids and mermen are vicious or not, they are often considered to be protectors of the sea, defending other creatures from the dangers of fishermen and the like. In many stories and legends, these rangers of the ocean live in beautiful underwater cities, far from the eyes and influences of humans.

The Inspiration:

When I decided to rethink my entry for the Etsy BeadWeavers Ocean Challenge, I thought of what the theme really meant to me on a personal level. What came to mind were the plump, colorful starfish that dwell all around the Nanaimo Waterfront. The resilient little things seem to flourish, even though the environment is less than ideal. On any given day, one can see pink, orange, and purple starfish ranging in size from tiny coins to enormous dinner plates.

With the amount of oil, garbage and other detritus that ends up in this little stretch of seashore, it’s amazing that anything can live there at all. It was with this thought in mind that I started designing a bracelet for the EBW Challenge. I wanted to create an ocean scene that was fit for all aquatic dwellers, including something as fantastic as a mermaid.

The Beads:

I started with the starfish, using orange and purple 6mm cat eye rounds, and matching 15/0 seed beads. For additional accents, I also grabbed some green cat eyes, white CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Pearls, and Czech glass scallop shells in blue and yellow. For the beadwork, I selected an assortment of blue 11/0 seed beads, and added a touch of gray lined crystal to help blend them together.

The Beadwork:

After deciding on embellished herringbone for the base of the bracelet, I spent a lot of time working on a pattern for the accent beads. I had considered placing them along the beadwork at random, but I wanted to make sure that each bead was evenly spaced and well represented. Using graph paper, I sketched out a pattern of diagonal rows for the assorted sea beads.

Once I had started stitching, it occurred to me that the larger shell beads might cause the beadwork to appear crooked if they weren’t all together in the same row. I had to modify my pattern, but what happened was even better than my original design. The layout of the accent beads moves symmetrically in all directions, including on the diagonal.

The waves created by the bridges between herringbone rows really brings the ocean theme to life. I looks so much like tide swept sand that it’s almost possible to hear the waves themselves. Incredibly, if I hadn’t been so dissatisfied with my original challenge piece, this bracelet might never have been made. Sometimes failure is a great thing.

Voting for the Etsy BeadWeavers Ocean challenge opens on February 9th. Stop by to see all of the amazing team creations and vote for your favorite!

Copyright 2010 Inspirational Beading