Orange Creamsicle Delight

I’m sharing destash projects a little out of order this weekend, because I just couldn’t wait to show you my latest collar. It all started with a vial of trade bead style Czech seed beads. Since I had culled these from a larger mixture, there weren’t quite enough to weave a full piece with, and I didn’t want to simply mix them in with my old African Christmas beads. I had to come up with a design that would use all or most of them, preferably in close-together groups that could easily be seen.

Naturally, I gravitated towards a collar design - I seem to be on a roll with them lately. With chevron stitch, I would be sure to have lots of loops to use the striped beads as accents. All I needed was a palette. After looking over my seed bead selection for something that would complement the variety of stripe colors, I finally settled on orange and vanilla.

I was actually really excited to see how this piece would turn out. I often shy away from orange, especially in such bright hues, but there was something about this palette that really clicked. Before I could begin, I had to separate my beads by size and count them, to make sure that I would have enough for a full collar, and help plan the pattern that I would use.

Each of the loops at the outside of the collar has three striped beads - two white with blue, and a larger one in the center. I chose colors at random, favoring the browns and yellows a little bit. I almost wish that I had chosen a different pattern - I still have lots of dark colored stripe beads left, and I find that the blue and white stripes hide the full effect of the accents a little bit. Still, I am thrilled with the design overall, and I’ve been craving an orange cream treat all week!

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