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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Tutorial: Holiday Candy Cane Bangle Project

One of the best things about dressing for the holidays is getting the chance to wear kitschy things like ugly Christmas sweaters and incredibly literal jewelry. Though there’s something sort of wonderful about Christmas light earrings and charm bracelets – especially ones that light up – edible inspirations have to be the best. Luckily for beadweavers, there are a lot of stitches and bead shapes the lend themselves well to food themes, especially for the holidays.

This easy to make bangle puts seed beads and herringbone stitch to good use recreating the look of a tasty candy cane. All you need are size 11 seed beads in opaque white and transparent red or green, plus some thread and a clasp of your choice. Although you can use basic twisted tubular herringbone to make this bangle, we’re going to use a variation that creates an even tighter spiral for the classic candy cane stripe look.

Another advantage of this super twisted stitch is that it makes the rope much sturdier, allowing us to add multiple rows of color without losing the tubular shape when the bracelet is brought into a curve. If you want to add even more stability, you could string your herringbone tube over a core of beads or rubber tubing, and add a clasp with crimps. For added strength, I highly recommend weaving this bracelet with Fireline or another braided beading line.

1. On a comfortable length of beading thread, pick up 4 white seed beads. Slide them down to the end, leaving a 10 inch tail. Stitch up through the first 2 seed beads again, and pull snug to form a ladder. Pass down through the second pair of beads.

2. Pick up 2 red seed beads and stitch down through the same 2 white beads again – moving in the same direction as the thread. Pull snug, and stitch up through the 2 red beads. Continue weaving with ladder stitch, adding 2 beads at a time until you have a strip that is 10 beads wide, with the pattern shown.

3. Bring the ends of the ladder together and stitch the first and last rows together twice. Exit from the nearest red row at top of the ring, opposite from the tail thread.

4. Pick up 1 red and 1 white seed bead. Stitch down through the topmost white bead in the ladder below, and pull snug to bring the new beads in place along the ring. Stitch up through the topmost white bead in the next row.

5. Continue adding 2 beads at a time around the ring, matching them to the rows below until you have added 5 pairs total. To step up for the next round, stitch up through the top 2 red beads in the next row and exit from the top of the ring.

6. Repeat step 4 and 5 to add another round of tubular herringbone, but this time, stitch up through 3 beads to step up.

7. Add the first 2 beads of the new round as usual, but stitch up through the top 2 beads of the next row to exit the ring, instead of just one. Continue around the ring, stitch up through 2 beads in each stitch, and stepping up through 3 at the end.

8. Continue weaving with twisted herringbone until your rope is about 1 inch short of the desired length. Be sure to test the fit, as thicker ropes will fit a little bit differently than more flexible bracelets.

9. To close the final stitches and match both end of the beadwork, you’ll need to do a dummy stitch. Work one row of twisted herringbone without picking up any beads, stitching up through 2 beads at a time. Work a second row without any new beads, stitching up through 1 bead in each row. (Look carefully at the beadwork, and follow the natural thread path until all of the beads have the same connections.) Finally, work a round of ladder stitch in the opposite direction, moving 2 beads at a time, to flatten the edge of the rope.

10. Once you’ve woven in all of your tail threads, you can finish your bracelet as desired. My favorite technique is the crown picot finish for herringbone tubes. You could also string the bangle on stretch cord with a focal between the ends for a true bangle look.

Happy holidays!

Mortira

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Copyright 2015 Inspirational Beading

Bead Wish List: Winter Wonders

Although fall is going to last for several more weeks, it certainly feels like winter with the combination of dropping temperatures and an abundance of red and green in every store window. As soon as the heat goes on, thoughts of egg nog and holly berries are sure to follow. This puts me in the mood for woodland themed designs, warm scents like pine and amber, and of course a nice blanket of white snow.

This month I did a little window shopping with natural winter themes in mind. I was picturing a pine bough on snow with a few little winter birds flitting about. These are some of my favorite finds:

1. Winter Birds Lampwork Focal by Laila Strazdina
2. Forest Green Glass Pearls from Smiley Boy
3. Vintaj Copper Pinecone Charm from FusionBeads.com

4. Forest Mix Glass Druks from Artbeads.com
5. Miiyuki Ceylon Pearl Bugles from FireMountainGems.com
6. Swirled Wood Rondelles from HappyMangoBeads.com

7. Bird Decoupage Beads from Artbeads.com
8. Betel Nut Beads from Beadaholique.com
9. Chartreuse Glass Bird Coins from LimaBeads.com

10. Banyan Bay Tucscon Wood Pendant from LimaBeads.com
11. Winter Holly Lampwork Beads by Serena Smith
12. Silvered Ivory Lampwork Beads by Spawn Of Flame

I can practically smell the pine trees and fresh snow! What are you favorite elements in a woodland theme?

Mortira

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Copyright 2015 Inspirational Beading and Friends

Work in Progress: Tasty Tutorial

Exciting things are happening in my workspace right now! I’ve just finished the new fringe necklace, and it turned out so luscious. The contrast of orange and creamy blues came out exactly the way I had hoped, and the gradually changing colors in the rope finish everything off perfectly. I ended up topping the fringe loops with amber colored horn rondelles, and I love the look so much that I’m definitely going to keep it in mind for future projects.

I haven’t yet had a chance to start anything new, but I’ve got the colors picked out for a fun new holiday tutorial project. I can’t wait to cut into that hank of transparent cherry seed beads! I’m still working out the exact pattern that will make this piece come together – however it goes it will be delicious-looking. Can you guess what it will be?

I have a growing list of new tutorial and project ideas, but if you’re looking for instructions on a particular stitch let me know in the comments and perhaps I’ll add it to the queue. I’m crossing my fingers that no one will request African helix stitch, though I do have plans for mastering it for 2016.

What are you making right now?

Mortira

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Mood Board: Pina Colada

It wouldn’t be summer on Inspirational Beading without a little pina colada inspiration. I suppose I could be a little obsessed with pineapple and coconut, but there’s just something about tropical yellow and blue that makes for irresistible summer palettes.

For today’s mood board I combined fruity elements with shades of yellow, blue, and cream - and a little cherry on top. I had hoped to find lots of natural bead jewelry with coconut wood, acai and the like. I did find a really fun coconut statement necklace, and an abundance of pineapple inspired jewelry. Although transparent blues would really enhance the tropical feel, I had to settle for fabrics this time around - the do pair up nicely with creams and browns.

Pina Colada by mortira featuring rhinestone jewelry

The pina colada bead selections include some matte accents with natural coconut shell and coconut wood, plus lovely transparent seed beads. Though the hybrid seed beads don't fit with the transparent theme, they do make a great stand-in for fresh coconut! I went with a matte finish in yellow to get that really fruity look, and the blue seed beads are ocean waves all the way.

1. Flower Coconut Shell Button from Artbeads.com
2. Round Coconut Wood Beads from Happy Mango Beads
3. Lampwork Glass Pineapple Beads from Fire Mountain Gems

4. Matte Transparent Yellow Seed Beads from Auntie’s Beads
5. Sparkly Light Sea Foam Seed Beads from FusionBeads.com
6. Light Beige Apollo Seed Beads from Lima Beads

What’s your favorite tropical color palette?

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Work in Progress: Secret Right Angle Weave

My top secret projects and beading experiments are moving along, and this week I’m working with a little right angle weave. It’s tough to explain how excited I am about the soft neutral palette for this project without letting the secret out, but perhaps its enough to say that I’m incorporating a new bead color that’s simply gorgeous. Pearl cream Czech seed beads are among some of my new gold replacements, and it’s amazing how well they work with different colors. I can’t wait to use more of them in the future.

The medallions that I was working on are mostly complete. Some didn’t work out at all and have been added to my scrap pile, while the special embroidery pendants are turning out great. I’m not quite ready for the big reveal just yet, but it should be coming soon!

What are you making this week?

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Work in Progress: Moon Cobra Necklace

Things are finally staring to move along in my studio this week. I took a short break from the Egyptian gods to get started on my Ugly Necklace design, then packed it all away to start on a necklace for Tefnut. The goddess of moisture and wife of Shu proved to be a very easy inspiration. She is associated with the moon and cobras, so what better way to represent her than with a blue and white beaded rope?

I haven’t decided on any accents yet. I wanted to jump right in with this piece and just see where it lead me. Rather than work out a snake pattern like for Apep’s necklace, I went with a simple Egyptian stripe design. Once the herringbone rope is complete, I’ll have to comb through my stash to find just the right accents for some fringe.

Shu’s lariat turned out really great. I couldn’t decide which colors to use in the fringe, so I went with a combination of al the neutrals in turn. Although the color block effect isn’t as obvious here, I still love the way things turned out, especially with all that lovely Java glass. Hopefully there will be some good light for photography this week so that I can get caught up on finished designs.

What are you working on this week?

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Work in Progress: Breezy Lariat

The ombre project for the Egyptian God Shu is coming along slowly but surely. Beading time is always pinched down to a minimum at this time of year, but I’m getting in as much as I can. After choosing colors for this piece last week, I decided to go with simplicity and make a lariat for Shu. I concluded that the extra long beadwork allow the palette to really shine, and I could use the striped beads for fringe.

It took six or seven attempts to get the pattern just right. I tried several different ways of blending the colors, and even switched from Capri blue Czech beads to cobalt Miyukis, but there was far too much contrast between them and the aqua. I finally had to give up and work the pattern without dark blue, but it may still make an appearance in the tassels.

The previous Egyptian Gods piece, Sekhmet turned out fabulous. I’ll need to set aside some time to get her posted as well!

What are you working on this week?

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Work in Progress: Ombre Air

This week’s bead tray is covered in beads, as I’m just starting the planning stages for a new Egyptian Gods design. So far all I know is that it will be ombre, and that the seed bead palette will come as close as I can get it to match a strand of deliciously striped Indonesian glass beads. I can’t wait to get started!

The palette of whites, blues, and creams is inspired by Shu, the Egyptian god of air. I actually started with the seed beads, and realized that if I added a touch of topaz, the palette would be perfect for my striped beads. How could I resist?

What are you working on this week?

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Treasury: Winter in the Woods

The winner of last week’s winter bead giveaway is Linda - congratulations, and thank you so much to everyone who entered! This month, I asked about your favorite holiday color palettes, and as always the results were varied and full of inspiration.

Linda’s picks were sparkly white with sky blues and the greens of a winter forest. With these color inspirations in mind, I set out in search of some pretty winter inspirations. The bead and jewelry picks especially put me in the mood for snow!

Frosted glass and soft mossy greens do make a gorgeous combination - and one that is easily achieved with beads. May all of your holiday projects be full of cheer!

Copyright 2013 Inspirational Beading
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November Bead Stash Favorites

Yesterday morning all of the puddles in the neighborhood were frozen solid - winter has arrived. I suppose that means it’s time to start thinking about festive bead colors and holiday jewelry designs. Although I love a good red and green combination as much as anyone, I often find myself drawn to the more elegant and fancy holiday palettes, like burgundy and frost, gold and emerald, or plum and cobalt.

This month’s bead picks include two new favorites, and some beads that I’ve been neglecting lately due to so many other ideas and designs vying for my attention.

First we have a lovely bunch of shiny, gold dyed freshwater pearls. I love the organic shapes - not only are these slightly imperfect pearls very affordable, but they have a primitive quality that I adore for ancient inspired designs. Although I’ve added a lot more pearl and shell to my stash this year than I usually do, I couldn’t resist snapping these ones up.

I’ve been so busy with Egyptian Gods and craft fair goodies these past few months, I keep forgetting that I’ve been eager to make ladder cuffs using my new selections of Czech bugles from Shipwreck Beads. These opaque white bugles are perfect for Egyptian and tribal pieces, but would make for lovely frost and ice designs in winter as well. I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do.

Finally, I have some transparent cobalt 8/o seed beads that I can hear calling to me daily. I recently started keeping a list of bead styles and colors that I wish for when designing pieces, so that I can remember to add them to my purchases and bead shopping time. I don’t know how I ever got by without one of my favorite colors in this size, but it’s been remedied thanks to these beauties from Fire Mountain Gems. The large boxes that Dyna-Mites come in are a little too big to fit in my usual storage bins, so they’ll soon be heading for some baggies.

Do you have a new favorite bead to work with this winter?

Copyright 2013 Inspirational Beading
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Bead Giveaway: Winter Wonderland

Although fall is still technically here, once we’ve put away our pumpkins, it’s time to start thinking ahead to the delights of December. With snow and ornaments in mind, I’ve put together a pretty bead giveaway for you with pieces from my personal collection.

First we have a handful of gorgeous vintage acrylic beads in translucent white and clear with frosty accents. The swirl beads are a personal favorite, and the carved pieces are perfect for holiday designs.

Also included in the giveaway are some metallic gold acrylic cubes, and a wonderful strand of silver spacers from Kenya.

How to Enter

For a chance to win all of the beads shown, simply leave a comment on this post, and answer the following question:

What is your favorite winter color palette?

Important: Comments must be made here on Inspirational Beading to qualify. Please make sure to include a contact method in your comment, or through your profile, so that I can get in touch with you if you win! Incomplete entries will not be included in the final draw.

One lucky winner will be drawn on Wednesday, November 13th. This giveaway is open to readers in the US and Canada.

Good luck!

Update: This giveaway has closed.

Copyright 2013 Inspirational Beading
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Blue Mummy Collar

After working on two three-bead netting projects back to back, I’m starting to feel like I can’t remember how to do netting any other way. Although the technique is much more time consuming, it really makes a gorgeous collar.

When I first set out to make a project for the Egyptian god Osiris, I knew that a collar was the way to go. In his familiar mummified form, Osiris can usually be seen wearing a collar, and closely stitched netting could provide an opportunity to incorporate a wrapped linen pattern into the beadwork. This idea fell through, but the necklace turned out great anyway.

I combined two shades of blue with black for the ‘jewelry’ portion of the pattern, then wide rows of opaque white and bone for the ‘mummy’ bits. Since Osiris could have either blue or green skin, I had planned on adding some emerald to the inside row, but found that the black not only looked better, but fit better as well.

I have more plans for using three-bead netting in the future, along with some experiments with new materials. I’ve gotten a little ahead of schedule with the Egyptian gods, and the challenge should be wrapped up nicely come December!

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Work in Progress: Mummy Collar

This week I’m working on a new ‘traditional’ netted collar, using a palette inspired by the Egyptian god Osiris. I’m on my third attempt at getting the right pattern, and finally things are moving forward.

Originally, I had wanted to create a pattern within the white and beige sections to mimic overlapping linen wrappings, but couldn’t get things to flow the way I wanted. In the end, I decided to make these sections wide, and split the remaining colors into halves instead. So far I’m happy with the results.

This piece will put the new collar technique to the test again, as this time I’m using beads of all the same size and shape, with the exception of some emerald Japanese seed beads that I hope to use in the final row. Next the plan is to tackle some shaped netting and more complex patterns.

What are you working on this week?

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