LadyGypsy.net - the personal website and online diary of Kimberly Dowd

March

2008

Stupid Beading Tricks: “Vintage” bracelet

A few months ago I idly sketched a bracelet idea on a sheet of paper. The next day, I happily started it, but completely screwed up the first crimps, so I threw away the sketch and abandoned the idea entirely. Other than a few pair of earrings here and there, I haven’t been able to bead anything since. I even went to Bead Binge to try and break my beader’s block.

Last night I had a dream in which a Penn Jillette-like voice told me to do the darn bracelet already. So I did.

(Beowulf is in the Netflix envelope. Haven’t watched it yet.)

I used:

silver lined crystal delicas (DB0041)
4mm swarovski black bicone crystals
silver-esque spacers and toggle

Strands 1 and 3 have this pattern repeated 5 times:
spacer | 10 delicas | crystal | 10 delicas

It ended up 7 3/4″ long, and I’m pretty proud of it. Strand 2 is a little saggy between the last 2 spacers (I didn’t pull the strand taught enough before I crimped) but you can’t tell when it’s on me. Maybe NOW I’ll be able to use up some of the heaps of beads I’ve been accumulating.

Posted at: 1:38 pm in Beadiness, General, Play | Permanent Link | Comments Off
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October

2007

Stupid Beading Tricks: Wrapped Loops

I haven’t beaded in a while, but I still wear my necklace to work. Last week someone asked me about one…and I mentioned that I had made it myself.

Next thing I know, Co-worker Sharon’s asking me to make stuff for her…since her birthday is coming up.

Wa-huh?

See I’m not kidding you or trolling for praise when I tell you I’m good at precious few things in my life. (Eating. Sleeping. Walt Disney World. The “Web.” Explaining to octogenarians — and their parents — how to find stuff on the C-P site.) I’m mediocre at most other things, which is more than enough to get by.

But this beady thing…it’s fun. And the things I come up with are moderately pretty. And they don’t break. And I really enjoy it. So this weekend I broke out my beading equipment and now I’m doing dumb things like working on techniques.

Like the wrapped loop above. To the right, the beads are on what is called a head pin, which you can think of as a straight pin, but without the pointy bit. With a few twists of the wire around a set of round-nose pliers, and some squeezing with regular pliers..I can make a loop, wrap the excess wire underneath the loop. and make dangly things.

Now, if I only knew what to do with aforementioned dangly things…

****
Edited to add: Thank you for your opinions on the hair thing…it can be a sticky situation…and it’s easy to see all sides of the situation. Here’s how it went.

Me: Hey! Your hair looks cute!
She: (smiles proudly) Thanks!

So much ado over nothing, I suppose.

—————-
Listening to: The Puppini Sisters - I Will Survive
via FoxyTunes

Posted at: 7:30 am in Beadiness, General, Play, Work | Permanent Link | 1 Comment - add yours! »
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September

2007

Stupid beading tricks, episode 4 - the oval dangly necklace

It’s been a tough week. I feel like I’ve run around all week long, and Ollie’s been keeping me up. Not Ollie exactly…but my worrying about Ollie. Did he whine? Is he sneezing? Why is he trying to lick Max’s teeth? Will I roll over and kill him?*

So I swore to stay home most of the weekend. My only exception was Wegman’s this afternoon, when I bought a beading magazine and the brain started churning. So I broke out the beading supplies and hopped to it.

I had a bead set that I bought from Michaels a few weeks back that had one mauve oval focal bead (the biggest bead on the necklace, basically), some round purply beads, some black patterned flat round beads, and some black teardrops. I wanted to use the large oval bead, but it was drilled a bit off-center. And let’s face it…life is enough off-center as it is. So I needed a plan B.

I took a head pin and strung a silver spacer, round bead, silver spacer, flat bead, silver spacer, round bead, silver spacer onto it. I took my roundnose pliers and made a loop at the top. Then I lopped off the “head” of the pin and twisted that wire into a loop.

I strung about 22 inches of beading wire through the bottom loop, strung 30 Miyuki 11/0 sparkle pewter lined crystal seed beads (J11-242) on each side of the bottom loop, then crossed both sides of the string through the top loop. I wonder if I strung 40 seed beads on each side, would it have been rounder. Oh well. This is what it looks like, close up.

I had a lot of the purple beads from the purple necklace left over and I decided to use those as accents. Once I strung the wire through the top of the dangly loop and created the oval, I started beading the sides. For some mathematical or scientific reason the oval dangly lays flat only on one side. There is definitely a “right side up” on this necklace. The more I think about it, it’s most likely how I crossed the wires over when I looped them through the top - maybe I shouldn’t have crossed them and kept the wires on the same side they started on. Again, oh well.

On both sides of the loop, this is how I progressed. One seed bead, one small purple bead, 20 seed beads, small purple bead, black flat bead, small purple bead. Then 20 seed beads, small purple bead, round purple bead, small purple bead. Then 20 seed beads, and 3 small purple beads, repeated 3 times. Finally, 2 seed beads, crimp, toggle. Here’s how it turned out - it measures about 17.5 inches, and the oval dangly is 1.5 inches long.

It took me almost 4 hours, because there was a dog walk in the middle, a puppy who shall remain anonymous knocked against my bead board and caused a spill, and basically I made up the pattern as I went along. But I really like it. It’s almost a glamorous necklace. This beading thing is dangerous. Especially since there are magazines out there with ideas.

Stringing is fun, but I wonder how much more fun it’d be to make my own beads. I should start with polymer clay, but I really want to try my hand at lampworking, which is the process of making beads out of glass.

No. I should work on technique. The advanced stuff will come in due time.

Speaking of lifelong learning, I’m taking 2 online classes at Camden County College starting next week. One is Intro to PERL, and the other is Intro to Flash 8. This is not my first Flash class. I really keep trying with Flash, hoping something will click and stay with me. They run 6 weeks long and I don’t even have to go to the campus. Sweet!

Since WM, Max, Ollie, Misty, and Charlie are all asleep, I think it’s time for me to follow.

*I’m not a fan of crate training. I know it works for most dogs, but it doesn’t work for me.

Posted at: 1:14 am in Beadiness, General | Permanent Link | 1 Comment - add yours! »
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August

2007

Stupid beading tricks, episode 3 - the purple necklace

If I could work at home in my jammies with my 4 pillows and 3 blankets with some Wandering Minstrel-made cocoa when I’m sick, I’d never call out of work.

Call PETA!

I was up most of last night. Chilling (literally at times) in bed, drifting in and out of a fitful sleep. At one point, Misty climbed on my chest and dozed off, her head mere inches from my chin. She’s done this since she was a kitten and since she’s not the 30-lb cat, I don’t feel her. I dozed off for a few, until I awoke with a terrific wet sneeze. Right on the cat’s face. She was moist. I tried to dab her off with some toilet paper*, but she ran off. (Understandably so.) I feel so guilty. She’ll probably be dead within the week.

Beady goodness

Mom and I went to Michael’s to pick up some beading stuffs. I picked up way too much, and once I woke up this evening I decided to fashion myself a quick necklace. This one is made of size 6 “Czech Glass” seed beads in Royal Amethyst (LT6emix62) and silvertone spacers in a knotty pattern. It is about 15 inches long. I strung a spacer, then 15 beads. After the last spacer on each end I strung 5 of the purple beads, 2 tiny (size 10 or 11?) clear beads, my crimp bead and the toggle. Believe it or not, nothing went wrong with it. Extreme closeup below.