Rosette Embroidered Cuff

I had been working on a new necklace project last week, but it didn't go as good as I thought. So after the 10th time I had to unpick the beadwork and try different "engineering", I thought it would be better to take a break, relax and work on something else for a while. Nervousness doesn't go well with a needle and thread... ;)
I bead embroidered this cuff, using one of Lisa Peters Art beautiful cabochons as a focal and used the cabochon itself as my source of inspiration for colors and shape. I especially like the the gentle sparkle Lisa added to the center of the cabochon - a beautiful white opal Swarovski stone.

It was a good decision to take a break, and by now I have managed to finish the beadweaving project I was working on... :) Photos coming soon, and maybe even a tutorial.

BAO Color Challenge

This is my entry for the Bead Art Originals June Color Challenge. Our source of inspiration was "A Gentle Notion" - a beautiful illustration by Jeannie L Paske of Obsolet World on Etsy. Check out the BAO blog and see other entries for this challenge.

The bracelet is made with tiny 1.8 mm Miyuki cube beads in gorgeous color of metallic green patina iris (#2008) and a beaded Swarovski crystal navette stone as the button clasp. I love how soft this bracelet came out, thanks to the small size of the cubes.
At first I wasn't sure if I had enough beads to finish it, but eventually the bracelet was completed and 3 (!!!) beads were left out of 30 grams... I always thought that it's better to have a little more beads than you think is needed. Missing just a few beads to finish a project would be a disaster!... ;))

A Gentle Notion by Jeannie L Paske 
of Obsolet World on Etsy 

New Set of Jewelry and a WIP (and some other things...)

In the last couple of weeks I have been having some issues with my eye sight. I don't see very clearly and there were times that no matter how hard I tried to focus, everything looked blurry. So I thought I should go see a doctor and check if new glasses are called for. The doctor took some tests and she found out that besides the new glasses I do need, there's a start of cataract (at my age?! I though that only elderly people have that, and I'm not even 47 y/o yet!) and there's also a small scar on my right eye retina that needs to be further checked... Of course I set up an appointment with a specialist in the hospital, but what a nightmare! - the earliest available appointment in for next month! Now I get a whole month waiting and thinking whatever this scar is, would I be able to work and bead like before?! :( But I really try to chase away the horrible thoughts and stay positive...I keep reminding myself that it could be a minor thing after all, and except for the new glasses, maybe I won't have to do anything, just live with it... I just hope that time would fly faster this month!....

Okay...on a happier note - this is my newest finished project - a jewelry set of a necklace, earrings and a bracelet, made with seed beads (of course ;), fire polished beads and with Swarovski crystal bicones and drops. A tutorial is available, both for Personal and Personal & Commercial use.

And below is my current work in progress - I'm making a necklace with an embroidered pendant with a Lisa Peters Art beautiful cabochon as the focal. Inspired by the gorgeous artwork of Bead Quilling Queen, Kathy King, I combined a little bead quilling for the first time in this work (it's a fun technique!). I hope I will be able to finish the necklace on time for the next Bead Art Originals color challenge. I still haven't decided on which kind of a necklace to attach the pendant to. BTW, Lisa Peters is attending the Bead&Button show (booth #1213) and she's offering some great deals at the show and in her Etsy shop. You can read all about it here.

Today is Shavuot holiday, the Jewish holiday I like most, especially because we eat many kinds of cheese and other yummy dairy food. I spent a great time yesterday afternoon preparing a nice holiday eve dinner, and I even got some help from my boy, who made us tasty pasta with cheese and vegetable sauce. The cold cheese cake is the only thing that is left from what I made, but I promise you it won't stay in the fridge for a lot longer... ;)

Happy Shavuot Holiday! !חג שמח

Spiky Branch Bracelet

This is my new bracelet named Spiky Branch. I couldn't decide if its pattern reminds me of a pineapple with its leaves or a palm tree with wide branches... Anyway, everyone in my family said it definitely reminds them of some kind of a branch...so branch it is! :) It's a relatively narrow bracelet, which is made with Miyuki long magatama beads, seeds, crystals and fire polished beads.

I love the long magatama beads, as they are offering more possibilities for a play with different textures and shapes in a piece. But their large, diagonal hole makes them quite challenging to work with. I was challenged by their unique shape in the past and have created Sparkling Wreath pendant / beaded bead, but this time I wanted to design something with a bit more of them in the piece and that's what I came up with. 
I learned a few things about this special beads while I designed this bracelet and I still have more of them in other colors and finishes, so playing with them isn't over yet... ;)

A tutorial for the bracelet is already available. I am also happy to let you know that all my tutorials are now available for both personal only and personal & commercial uses. 

Wheels of Fortune Bracelet

Wheels of Fortune Bracelets

When I designed my Wheels of Fortune bracelet, I tried to find a way to avoid the less enjoyable part of sewing the round components together. I often give up on an idea for a design if it would involve many separate parts that needs to be connected and too many threads that needs to be hidden. I played with the basic design and then came up with a rather easy way to do it. It's actually a way that can be easily implemented in other symmetric designs. 
But I can't tell you exactly how to do it, because the project of this bracelet is published in the latest (June/July 2011) issue of Beadwork magazine. So you would might be interested in getting a copy of the Beadwork magazine, which includes more than a few other wonderful projects; Quick and Easy bonus section and the fun, inspiring Pattern Play section!

The EBW May challenge voting is up! Check out the EBW blog to see what our members came up with for the Lord of the Rings challenge. Voting lasts until the 16th, so don't miss out, there are gorgeous works to see!

And...

***Happy 63 Birthday to Israel!***

  

!חג עצמאות שמח

Another Publication & a New Tutorial

I have designed a new eight-pointed star pendant - Cubic Star-, using Swarovski crystal Rivoli and bicones, Miyuki Tila beads, cubes and seed beads. I like the way the pendant came out, especially the "pixelated" look of the edges. A tutorial is available .

I am also happy to tell that my Pewter Lace bracelet project is published in Interweave Publication "Best of Beadwork 12 - Right-Angle Weave Stitch" e-book.  I am honored to have my bracelet included in the great company of many of the most talented artists in the beady world, like Marcia DeCoster, Jennifer VanBenschoten, Leslee Frumin, Shelley Nybakke, Kate McKinnon and others! 

This e-book includes 12 beautiful creations, all done in RAW stitch.  It's a part of a whole series of e-books, each dedicated to a different beading stitch. I bet you want to have them all!... ;D

S for Small Serpents

"S for Small Serpents" Bracelet

Things don't always come easy... The initial idea for this design had popped in my mind a while ago, and I was sure I could easily stitch the bracelet as envisioned.

Well, as simple as it may have looked at first, it wasn't so. It took me quite a few trials before I have found the way to maintain the repetitive curving pattern the way I wanted it, and more time and trials to find the shortest thread path for stitching it.
Who said that designer's work is always fun?...I had the initial image of the bracelet stuck in mind all the time, and the more I tried and it didn't work, the more annoying the whole process became... It eventually came out a little different from how I envisioned it, but I had to either compromise on a few minor details, or give up on it all together.

But when the designing process was over and everything worked smoothly, I had much fun working on the bracelet. I was also pleased to realize that a few other possibilities for playing with the basic design were born thanks to the compromises I had to make. So I guess that sometimes being stubborn pays off... :)

"S for Small Serpents" Bracelet - Version 2

A tutorial is available (for the two versions shown)

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Inspiring Beads

A new necklace with a bead embroidered pendant. My inspiration for this necklace came from the focal beautiful donut ceramic bead by a fellow Bead Art Originals team member, Lisa of Lisa Peters Art.

I liked how the pendant in the first necklace came out, and since I already had the right beads on my table, I created another necklace in similar colors, with a leather embroidered pendant.

And then I beaded a matching embroidered leather cuff... I love it when my inspiration comes from the beads themselves... It all started with the beautiful ceramic bead by Lisa Peters... Thank you, Lisa! :)

Fashion Through the Ages - EBW Challenge

I can't believe that another month had passed so quickly, but it's already time for posting the Etsy Beadweavers challenge again!  March challenge theme was Fashion Through the Ages.

My Echo of Deco bracelet design was inspired by the Art Deco era between in the 30's. In my bracelet design I used repetitive, symmetrical pattern of geometric shapes, which are often found in Art Deco designs.

Please visit the EBW blog between now and the 15th to see all 38 entries (my entry is #17 on the list) and vote for your favorite.

  Images from: http://tiddley-bits.blogspot.com;

http://www.art-deco-style.com/art-deco-fashion-2.html

A tutorial for my Echo of Deco bracelet is available

A Trip to Marrakesh

One of the places that I am dreaming of visiting to is Marrakesh, the Moroccan "Red City". I'm not seeing a trip to Morocco happening in the future (not only because of personal reasons, but also because it's difficult for Israelis to enter this country freely), so for now I have to see the views of Marrakesh on the internet. I am fascinated and excited by the abundance of details, patterns and colors that are in the traditional Moroccan architecture, art and fabrics, and even their food and spices look more tastier and richer to me... The richness of colors and details makes me dizzy just by looking at the images on the screen. I wonder how it would feel to actually be there...I think I could happily get lost in a city like Marrakesh...

"Marrakesh" bracelet was inspired by patterns that can be found in Moroccan windows and home decor. I used beads in warm colors - reddish copper, copper, padparadsha and burgundy, that I found in many of Marrakesh images.

The other Marrakesh bracelet, in grey/blue colorway was created for the next BAO Color Challenge. Also, a tutorial for this bracelet is available, in case you would want to bead your own little piece of Marrakesh... :)

Below is a mosaic of a tiny bit of the amazing, beautiful, vibrant images of Marrakesh I found on Google Images. It worth the click if you are looking for excitement and inspiration...

BAO Color Challenge

This geometric net bracelet was created for the new Bead Art Originals Color Challenge. We had to pick any three colors from the beautiful image below for inspiration. I picked fuchsia, violet and light blue (there is light blue in the seed beads - fuchsia lined light blue AB, although the photo doesn't show it much..). Check out the BAO blog to see what other members of the team created for this challenge.

A tutorial for this bracelet is available

Crystal Flower Cuff

New Tutorial - Mystic Stars Bracelet

This new bracelet is designed to be created in one continuous stitch. I love jewelry that consist of a few repetitive elements, but I don't like so much that part of work of sewing them to one piece, and hiding too many threads is always a pain... ;) A tutorial for this bracelet is available and also includes instructions for a matching clasp and a few other ideas of using the basic design for other jewelry items.

I have also created another variation of this bracelet with much more crystals in it, but I'm waiting for the sun to come out so I will be able to take photos of it. I will update this blog when I have them, hopefully soon... and 

*** HAPPY and CREATIVE 2011 to ALL! ***

Asian Geometric Bracelet

About a quarter of this bracelet was beadwoven by my son. I think he did a great job! He is younger than I, and can concentrate in following a pattern much better than I do... ;D).
I thought I'd offer my kids something else to do during their Hannukah vacation from school, instead of the TV/PC routine... My daughter still didn't finish her bracelet (a different one, which we designed together), and I hope that now that the vacation is over, she will soon find the time to finish it. I don't have high hopes, though. Both my kids love to bead and find it relaxing, but they don't commit to finish anything they start... I guess Japanese Manga and Anime are much more attractive for them than playing with Japanese seed beads... ;)

So I had to finish this bracelet myself and can mark this one done!. A tutorial for it (including a few other design ideas) is also available now. Yay for a productive weekend!

Urban Night Bracelet in Beadwork Magazine

My Urban Night bracelet is published in the latest (Oct.-Nov.) issue of Beadwork magazine.The bracelet is worked in a combination of odd-count peyote, square and fringe stitch.

Don't miss out this issue, as there are many beautiful projects in it! Peter Sewell's Sonja necklace (on the cover); a gorgeous set of bracelet and earrings by Lanai Kinsky and a beautiful bracelet with metal beads by Shelley Nybakke are just a few of them.

Also, an article by Marlene Blessing about Copyright and Ethics is published in this issue and is a recommended read for beaders who want to learn about the subject.

The clasps I used in both of the bracelets shown in the magazine are from Claspgarten.com.