Bead Color Ideas: Leftover Druks

I’m currently working my way slowly through my workspace clean up and as always I’m making new discoveries and inspirations along the way. One thing that occurred to me as I was putting beads away in their proper places is that I still have way too many druk beads that haven’t been used in years. Some of them are nearly 10 years old, while others seemed really exciting a short time ago, but haven’t quite lived up to their expectations. I thought it was time to pair some of them up with seed beads and see if any ideas arise.

Romantic Turquoise Palette

The first trio was surprisingly easy to build, considering just how long I’ve been holding on to the pink druks. I so rarely have a reason to use pink, and this particular shade of transparent rose is way too subtle for anything I’m making these days. At first glance, I couldn’t possibly imagine what I could make with them. That all changed once I started adding the right seed beads, though. First came transparent topaz AB, which I love with this shade of pink. It’s a romantic, champagne-in-Paris kind of pairing. All it needed was a dash of lustered turquoise and...voila! I definitely think this palette needs a spiral design - perhaps a rope lariat or an embellished bangle.

True Blue-Green Palette

The next druk color still makes me a little sad. When I ordered them I was so excited to have this color in my stash of accents, but in person they just didn’t deliver. It might be because these are actually a coated finish, and not a true lime green. Even though I couldn’t wait to use them at first, I’ve barely touched these beads. The first color I chose to go with them was black-lined aqua – definitely my favorite blue right now. When the light hits both beads, they really zing. To finish the palette, I didn’t want to use a contrasting color, so I added lustered emerald instead. I almost went with metallic June bug, but it looked much too moody next to the bright green. I’d love to use this trio in something netted or freeform with lots of fringe.

Cherry Bomb Palette

The last palette was actually a pre-planned one. I’ve got something special in mind for these colors, but I wanted to test them out first and see how they played together in person, not just my mind’s eye. This palette begins with opaque cherry druks – a long time favorite that have started to lose their appeal after all these years. Although I’m sure a project or two might come up in the future where they would work, I’d really like to move on and try some other reds instead. The first seed bead color I chose for them was opaque lime. I’ve used these two colors in projects before, and they always look fresh and fruity. To keep things looking chic, a backdrop of jet black was all the trio needed. I think the palette would look amazing in flat beadwork like a cuff, but I’m planning to use it for something light and fringy!

Do you have any not-so-inspiring beads just hanging around? What was the last project you used them for?

Mortira

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Work in Progress: Modified Collar

My bead tray is looking a little tidier this week and it feels like I’m finally getting back down to just one project – not counting the ongoing ugly necklace and my herringbone rope which I might just finish this weekend. Right now I’m working on the prototype for an upcoming collar tutorial. I'm keeping the palette simple which really makes a difference in how messy my creative space feels. I haven’t made much progress on the collar since I got hit with an annoying cold bug, and I have very strict rules about beading while under the weather. Even if I could manage to sit upright long enough to get any work done, I just don’t think it’s worth it.

Although my bead tray is in pretty good shape, my workspace is currently a bit of a disaster – I haven’t yet complied with my resolution to keep a weekly clean-up schedule. Once I’m feeling better I plan to do a complete overhaul of my space and then maintain it ongoing. I got some new organization tools for Christmas that I haven’t implemented yet, and I can’t wait to see how well they work into my routines.

What are you making right now?

Mortira

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Book Spotlight: Leather Corded Fusion Ties

Some of the biggest trends in jewelry of late include knotting and cords – from wrap bracelets to paracord jewelry, the possibilities are constantly evolving. One of the best places to learn new knotting techniques for jewelry design is the Tying It All Together channel hosted by J.D. Lenzen. There are oodles of videos for tying gorgeous and interesting knots and creating unique knotted jewelry.

J.D.’s latest book features some of the prettiest and most versatile knots for jewelry making, paired with gorgeous leather cord and large hole beads for deceptively simple jewelry that looks stunning. Leather Corded Fusion Tiescombines a variety of traditional and innovative knotting elements into wearable jewelry designs that anyone can try.

There are 15 projects in all, each one introducing or expanding on techniques that can be used to create one of a kind leather necklaces and bracelets. My favorites are the Divided Double Coin Knot Bracelet, and the Beaded Ashoka Chakra Knot, which look so good they make me want to drop everything and delve into a whole new medium. The combinations of elegant knots with colorful leather and classic beads is incredibly appealing, and the possibilities for variation are very inspiring. These designs look great on their own, and could easily be adapted to include additional beads or even bead wrapping. Plus I love the metal-free clasp techniques that go along with leather cord designs!

Ashoka Chakra Knot Pendant and Noble Heart Knot Pendant

Each project includes easy to follow, step-by-step instructions, and clear photographs of each new technique. The close-up images clearly illustrate the steps, and include handy arrows to really guide you through the process of tying the essential knots. Each design begins with a full materials list, finished project size, and a list of the techniques used. Some projects also include a Decoded section, which is my favorite feature of Leather Corded Fusion Ties. These sections highlight design elements and possible variations for alternative design ideas, including example photos or step-by-step instructions. These extra tips provide valuable information and inspiration that give readers the tools they need to adapt what they’ve learned to make even more beautiful jewelry.

Although the knots look complex, the techniques are very straightforward and are so well explained, you’ll be knotting away in no time. J.D. has included some excellent tips for getting started, such as how to select the best leather cords and beads to use, and which tools will give you the best results.

If you’re looking for an exciting new medium to expand your jewelry design repertoire, Leather Corded Fusion Ties will definitely deliver!

Leather Knot Pendants and Beaded Leather Cord Bracelets

I would like thank J.D. Lenzen and Tying It All Together for giving me the opportunity to enjoy this wonderful book. Inspirational Beading has not received compensation for including products or publications in this post; however, actions you take from this page may result in a commission for Inspirational Beading.

Mortira

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Copyright 2016 Inspirational Beading and J.D. Lenzen

Jewelry Resolution Update

When I made my New Year’s resolution to wear more jewelry, I didn’t really think much about my methods for achieving that goal – so long as I was putting on a piece or two every day, I’d be winning. As I started to look at mixing and matching pieces in new ways, I decided it would be a fun challenge to quarantine everything I’d worn and work my way through the entire stash a bracelet and necklace at a time. Not only would this give me a chance to wear some of my oft-forgotten designs, but I would have to make some interesting choices in how to mix pieces with each other, and my wardrobe.

So far things are going really well, and at this rate I’ll probably be through the stash in no time. It’s a bit difficult to set aside some of my favorite pieces – especially the ones that I already use to combine and bring together different designs. I can’t promise that I won’t cheat and pull out some essentials here and there when I need a dash of something or other.

The first combination that I wore was my new floral chevron bracelet and a fish leather pendant. Normally I don’t worry much about matching color in accessories, but I like the way the reds connect these two pieces together. I'm a little sad to be putting the pendant aside as it's one of my go-to pieces when I just want to throw something on and run out the door. It goes with basically everything and it's a really fun piece to wear.

Some days I kept it simple with just a cuff or a pendant. Other days I want to experiment. A few times I went with old stand-bys.

I really like to wear a big stack of bracelets whenever I’m in a fun mood, or when I’m wearing a top that doesn’t work with a necklace. I always start with 3 or 4 simple stretch bracelets and an ombre crochet chain wrap. Then I layer on some petite bangles, and maybe a leather cord bracelet. I’ve already used this combo twice, so I’m running low on options. Soon I’ll have to discover new combinations from the bottom of my bracelet box.

One of my favorite new combinations so far was a German glass scarab pendant with a super long St.Petersburg chain necklace. When doubled or trebled, the chain creates an awesome cascade look. With the scarab at the center it looks even better. Once again this combo has a few hints of similar hues, so it really comes together.

At some point I’ll have to transfer the ‘used’ jewelry to a new location, as my current out-box gets filled up. This will give me an opportunity to really reorganize my collection, so that’s a nice bonus.

Are you sticking to your creative resolutions? What’s your biggest success so far?

Mortira

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Seed Bead Aught Size Comparisons

The aught sizing system is probably one of the things that frustrates new beaders the most, along with the first few rows of peyote stitch. Although it’s easy enough to remember that the larger the number, the smaller the bead, even seasoned beaders can get confused sometimes. After working with beads for a while, we start to associate their aught numbers to them and all is fine, until we come across a size that we don’t use very often. While I was putting this post together, I had a moment where I couldn’t remember if 7/o comes before or after 8/o.

The word aught – meaning null, or nothing – is sometimes used to size things that are smaller or larger than standard. A product might come in sizes with regular integers as well as aughts. Seed beads are always and – as far as we know – have always been sized entirely with aughts. Though it’s not completely confirmed, the general story is that each size refers to how many beads will fit into an inch when lined up side by side, with the holes facing up. If true, that rule was created many, many decades ago. Although the overall process for making seed beads hasn’t changed much, standards have, and there are a lot more seed bead makers in the world today.

I decided to test out the aught sizing theory, and compare how each bead size measures up to an inch, as well as each other. I gathered one color of each size in every brand I had available, and counted out the quantities to match each – fifteen 15/os, eight 8/os, etc.

TOHO 15/o

I wasn’t surprised that the 15/os didn’t quite measure up. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting any of the beads to match their size exactly. What’s interesting is just how close these beads came to making the full inch length. Spoiler alert: almost no other bead sizes came quite as close.

Preciosa 11/o and Toho 11/o

Another interesting development was that all of the 11/o seed beads came in at almost exactly the same length. The TOHOs are a little bit longer, which isn’t surprising since they tend to be a bit on the bulky side. Otherwise these seed beads were all pretty much the same when lined up this way, even though they can seem drastically different in actual beadwork.

Matsuno 11/o and Delica 11/o

I included 11/o Delicas in the test, even though they are sized by a completely different scale than round seed beads or rocailles. I thought it would be interesting to see the difference, and since I happen to have some, why not? It’s interesting to see just how diminutive they are next to round seed beads of the same size.

Vintage Czech 10/o and Matsuno Dyna-mites 8/o

I only had white-hearts in size 10/o, and I wish that I had a few more styles to test out. After only 3 sizes, a pattern seems to emerge. Except for the Delicas, each size seems to get progressively further away from the 1 inch length as we go up. What makes this very interesting is that these particular 10/o seed beads are vintage – which could mean that bead sizes haven’t changed much in the past 50 years or so. It makes one wonder just when the 1 inch standard fell by the wayside.

Preciosa 8/o and TOHO 8/o

The 8/o seed beads sort of smashed the reduction trend, as each brand came pretty close to the 1 inch mark. Unlike all of the other sizes so far, there was less than a full bead’s length left to fill. Once again, all 3 brands came in at almost exactly the same length.

Preciosa 7/o and TOHO 6/o

The 7/o beads so far have the record for being the closest match. It almost seems that the shrinking trend in the smaller beads has reversed for the larger ones. The inconsistency seems to make the entire theory of aught sizing origins rather unusual. Imagine what our seed beads would look like if they all followed the 1-inch standard!

Preciosa 6/o and Matsuno Dyna-mites 6/o

Finally we have the 6/o seed beads. This group was the only one with a noticeable size difference between brands. It could be argued that accuracy is more important with the smaller bead sizes, as they tend to be used in large quantities at close quarters. On the other hand, it’s really hard to make a nice Cellini spiral if your 6/o beads are way too big.

How did you feel about aught sizing when you started beadweaving? Which size is your favorite?

Mortira

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