Tendril Necklace

It's been quite a while since I last blogged... This is my newly finished project - Tendril Necklace, which is beadwoven with seed beads, fire polished beads and druk beads. I enjoyed designing this project, mainly because my muse cooperated excellently all way long  and offered me ideas for another two versions for the necklace... I love how soft the necklace turned out and how beautifully it sits around the neckline. A tutorial is already available in my Artfire and Etsy shops, in case you want to try it for yourself...

The winner of the Battle of the Beadsmith 2012 was announced today, and it is Alla Maslennikova from Russia. Congrats to Alla on winning the first BOTB! And thanks to Steven Weiss for arranging such  a great happening for the beading community! 
I was one of the judges in this years competition (I plan to participate as a contestant next year, and I hope my muse won't get intimidated by all those gorgeous works presented this year!... ), and I have to say that from the very first rounds, it was really, really hard to pick one work to move forward to the next round. But in the final round was almost impossible for me to decide who is the winner - Alla with her absolutely gorgeous Baroque necklace, or Ann Braginsky from Israel, with her stunning, artful and interesting New Age Valkyrie neck piece. I love both of the pieces and even though I had to pick just one (I voted for Ann's work), still - both Alla's and Ann's works are winners in my eyes! The two works are so different from each other, but each one is amazingly and beautifully designed and beaded!

Baroque by Alla Maslennikova, Russia

New Age Valkyrie by Ann Braginski, Israel