Mo beads – black with hints of yellow

Mr Mo, my black cat, has golden yellow eyes that are quite striking in contrast with his velvety black fur.  Last summer I made a series of pet beads in colors of several animal friends, and the Mo series were mostly black with hints of gold and yellow, with clear encasing.

Here are three Mo beads mounted up as a necklace and earrings, with black seed beads providing dangling accents.  It is always fun to have part of any jewelry be in motion when the wearer is.

Black bead dangles

Click on the photo for a close up of the earring and pendant set.

Below is a shot of the champion snoozer Mr Slikypants Mo, sound asleep with his feet in the air.

Mo snooze

Twinkles like the winter sky

black and white necklace with earrings

Black and white beads set each other off; the white ones twinkling like the stars in the winter sky.  Here I have the necklace I created a few weeks back with new matching earrings.  I added a third row of beads on the necklace as well.  Looping and branching as you work is a nice change from beads strung in single file.  Click on the photo for a close up view.

There are three handmade Aura Sun Arts beads in the set, the large black and white beads.  They have traces of goldstone and bluestone glitter jazzing them up.

Speaking of the night sky, Venus makes an appearance in the early morning hours.  Check with Astronomy Magazine for the best viewing in your locale.

Festive beads

Festive set

Today’s featured beads are on the festive side.

The three large encased glass cylinder beads were hand made at Aura Sun Arts as a matched set; they have air bubbles, traces of gold and bright splashes of colors inside.  The largest measures 16 x 14 mm and is strung on an 18 inch necklace with a double strand of accent and seed beads in the same colors.

The matching earring beads measure 14 x 11 mm and dangle on shepherd hooks.  Click on the image for a closer view.

This morning’s broadcast of Sunday Morning on CBS featured a segment on “Beads of Courage” an organization that donates beads to children with serious illnesses.  They accept donated beads and have a page that details what beads they especially need.  I look forward to creating some special beads for them.  Either link will get you to the video of the segment that was aired this morning.

For the children involved, having a necklace that details their treatment milestones is a tangible way to be proud of their courage.

private reserve: multistrand necklaces

tubular seed beads with focal bead

There are many different styles for stringing beads into finished pieces.  These are not for sale, but are examples of my work.

This one shows a focal lampworked bead with a choker made of seed beads, woven in peyote stitch into a tube.  Mo approved.  These will be fun to make in a rainbow of colors.

multicolored multistrand

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On the left is a set of multicolored seed beads; coral, turquoise, deep blue, with chips of opal and chunks of coral interspersed.  The multistrand necklace has a coral focal bead, and the peyote stitch bracelet has coral buttons.  Click to see entire view.

brown buddha

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On the right, is  a multistrand  seed bead necklace in a gradient of browns, interspersed with brown pearls and larger brown faceted glass beads.  Click to see the matching earrings.  I did not carve the lovely boxwood Buddha bead, the signature on the back might be Japanese.

best of 2008 blues

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Lastly, a single strand that has the best of the blue beads I made in 2008 during classes at Glass Expressions, in Burien, WA.  The clear and frosty beads are quartz.  Also shown are matching earrings.

Click on any of the photos for a larger view.

blue oceans of glass

Blue has to be one of my favorite colors.

oceanic blues and greens

Blue glass beads can remind one of the fabulous colors of the ocean.  Tropical waters are very clear, with little plankton, and the water is clear all the way down to the sandy bottom, showing off those gorgeous turquoise tints.  Northern waters, with richer plankton, are a dark blue green.

When you paint with watercolors, you can combine or layer colors to blend and mix until you achieve new colors.  Glass is much the same, so start with a sandy layer, then add pale blues and greens, deeper blues, some flotsam, jetsam, and a few bubbles, and you can almost imagine yourself snorkeling, rocking in the ocean to the sound of your breathing.

watercolor painted in Belize

Click on the photo to see more big blues.  Those with a layer of clear glass on the outside – “encasing” –  have an extra sense of depth.  This layer refracts and bends light just as water does.  Quite a few of these are matched pairs or sets.  See all the blue beads on the Blue oceans page.  Other new sets are featured on the Earrings page.