Making Beads Doing the Twist

Not too long ago I came across a package of beads deeply hidden in my stash.  I had purchased them at least 10 years ago in Freeport, Maine at The Beadin' Path, a wonderful bead store that is no longer in business.
There was a strand of beads that I really love nestled in among that long ago purchase.

Strand of Vintage Czech Glass Mottled Twist Brown Beads

 I thought I would try to make a set out of ceramic clay.  The tag gives a small  clue on how they might be made. ( see text under photo above)

I tried rolling out some round beads and twisting them but that didn't work.  Then I got the idea that if they were first made into a 3-d disk bead that maybe that might  work. That seemed to be the answer but the twist was more complicated that I had thought.  I put my fingers on the glass Czech bead to get an idea of how to I would have to twist them.  It was quite awkward as the fingers on each hand would have to go in the opposite direction.  I persevered and the first set of beads I made is in the picture below.

Since I did not take into account that my clay shrinks 12% during the drying and firing process, mine are rather smaller than the original strand but I am  happy to use them in some of my freeform peyote stitch work.  I have a bracelet I am working on that they would go well with.

photo

I also made some in blue and white to see how they would look. 

If I make more of the blue and white beads I think I will skip the white part and just have them in blue.    

But the first set of beads--  I am just crazy about the color and have been trying  it on other pieces as well.

Small stoneware pendant  by Mary Harding

I was quite happy with  how the above pendant came out and surprised how the colors had morphed during the glaze firing.

So I tried it again on a larger piece and was more than happy with the result

              Statement size pendant by Mary Harding  trying out what i learned from the smaller one.

Statement size pendant by Mary Harding  a variation on the one above

For me what works when I am creating is to follow my passion on however circuitous a route it takes me.  In the end it will bring me directly to my heart and soul.
Thank you for stopping by and reading my post.
Mary

A Charming Exchange

A Charming Exchange by Kelly Snelling and Ruth Rae

I first became aware of this wonderful book because I was participating in a charm exchange organized by Lynn Davis ( see December 1, 2008 post). I checked it out on Amazon and now it is in my ever growing library of jewelry making books. The theme of this book is collaboration, a theme that embodies much of my life. I love the energy and creativity that collaboration can ignite. And so it is always with enthusiasm that I join in on collaborative ventures. As the book points out, you don't need to live in an artistic community to have opportunities to collaborate with other artists: the internet has many online art groups for you to join, with many different media to choose from. Ah! And the best part of collaborations is that you find new talents and new ideas inside of yourself that you might have never discovered otherwise. The authors refer to this as "creating fearlessly."
What has really endeared me to this book is the wide range of techniques that have come together in such unusual ways. Although the book is not a step-by-step instruction manual to the projects described, it does highlight some of the unusual techniques the artists have used to combine disparate objects into jewelry. Since I am always looking for ways to make non-jewelry objects into linkable entities for jewelry, this book has been a treasure trove of ideas for me. Some of the unusual links they give detailed instructions for that really intrigued me are : coiled jump rings, capacitator charms ( I had some of these lying around, i.e. the capacitators), making a wire basket, eye of god links ,wrapped stone links, bar loop links, baby swing links, decorative swirl links, wire orb links, and I promise you, many more that I haven't mentioned.

Below is a photo of some of the charms that I created especially for the Blessings Charm exchange that I have been participating in. I had never made hand built ceramic charms before so I am so pleased that I dared to "create fearlessly" and came up with these.

You can purchase A Charming Exchange at Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble. You will love it I am sure.

New Jewelry

This is a close up shot of one of my new Peyote Stitch necklaces to be unveiled at the Artists' Studio Tour.
Here is a picture of some new chunky pendants on the new and stylish rubber cord with sterling silver clasps. The middle pendant has a Sterling Silver bail. These pendants are all made from earthenware ceramic clay. They depict wild plants that grow in the pastures surrounding my home and studio.


These are some new fused glass pendants and two bracelets of fused glass cabs.



All of these pieces will be on display at my studio during the Artists' Studio Tour next weekend.

Australian Beading Magazine

I just heard from Lisa Kan, fabulous lampwork bead artist and author of Bead Romantique, that her article about me has been published in Australian Beading. Wow!! She did a wonderful write up. Thank you so much Lisa.

Close up of one of my pendants in the magazine article

Art Bead Scene Submission for September

Above are two different photos of my submission for the ArtBead Scene September challenge. The theme for September was filigree. I used a lovely filigree piece in the center of the my handmade ceramic pendant. I wire wrapped some of my handmade ceramic beads and alternated them with wire wrapped mookaite beads. I used one of my toggle clasps. I really like participating in the ArtBeadScene monthly contest because I do work I might not try otherwise. I like trying new things and I like having to struggle within the parameters of the task. I am not completely pleased with my results this month but will keep working on it.