Bead Annex

Klew polymer clay bead necklace

2010-11-18T11:33:00.000-08:00

I've finally made a crochet rope to go with this bead from Klew . I have enjoyed wearing it.

Idele's Fish Pincushion

2010-11-03T09:59:00.000-07:00

This pincushion was inspired by an antique metallic one Idele owns.

It is beaded instead of metallic.

Idele's Greenhouse

2010-11-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

My friend and miniature bead artist extraordinaire Idele Gilbert has a new series going. Right angle weave boxes that are full of pictures that you pull out of the box.

The first one in the series is a Greenhouse. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy. Idele herself took some of the photos. I think they are just amazing. They remind me of the magic boxes of David Chatt with Idele's own creativity.

Bead Around the World Necklace

2010-11-02T14:13:00.000-07:00

This necklace is from the swap of 2008. I have been very slow to post lately.

The focal bead is Angelica's contribution. Better late than never?

Brass Filigree Set Opal cabochon

2010-06-30T11:16:00.000-07:00

I found this blue cabochon at the Tucson show in February 2010. I used Vintaj findings to bezel it and make a bail for it. The necklace part is herringbone chain made with Toho Treasures 22L and inserts of Swarovski crystals in zircon complete the materials.

I like magnetic clasps because they are so easy to use. So there is no beaded toggle clasp and button for me.

Crochet rope necklace with hidden clasp

2010-06-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

I finished this rope some months ago. Finally I put on a magnetic clasp. Then I made a beaded bead to hide the clasp. The beaded bead is a simple peyote beaded tube that I zipped together around the necklace. I think I like this idea of hiding the clasp. It is comfortable to wear.

Idele's Fantastic Blue Parakeet

2010-06-22T22:28:00.000-07:00

My friend Idele loves beading and parakeets. Her birds are real talkers.
Last year she beaded this bird in peyote stitch. It can stand, and turn its head and the body has a secret hinge and it can open up into two pieces. It is a wonder to see.

Idele's bird is here.

Idele's own website and a link to her blog are here

Springtime with Tulips and Irises

2010-06-22T16:42:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from the lovely Descanso Gardens

To view the slide show, go here

Huntington Gardens in the spring

2010-06-22T14:06:00.000-07:00

See the cactus flowers and the lovely Puya alpestris here.

NancyCainNecklace

2010-06-22T13:53:00.000-07:00

My friend Joyce made the Nancy Cain bracelet from Beadwork magazine into this lovely necklace.

Wildflowers June 2010 Santa Anita Canyon

2010-06-22T13:39:00.000-07:00

J

This is a wet year in California. And the wildflowers are blooming late into summer at higher elevations. These are from June 21st.

Bracelets for Ed

2010-03-07T21:00:00.000-08:00

Two new crochet bracelets for Ed. He has been wearing a pair for years that has gotten tired and old looking.
Black one is Holle's Rainbow bracelet with color changes.
The diamonds are in peacock colors.

Knitting baby jackets

2010-03-07T20:37:00.001-08:00

Third birthday of my nephew's twin girls. I knit these jackets for a present.
The free pattern is from Knitty called Helena. I made the buttonholes from Lucy Neatby's Gems video. I think these button holes were worth learning.

Self striping synthetic yarns top down construction.

Crochet necklace

2010-03-07T20:29:00.000-08:00

I have loved this free pattern called Rainbow of Holle's. I changed the black to turquoise, and the blue to black. This necklace for me was the result.

It's 18 inches around and fits at the base of the neck.

Invisible magnetic clasp required some peyote around it because it was too thick to fit inside this rope.

Snow in Los Angeles

2010-01-25T13:00:00.000-08:00

After a week of rain and snow, our local mountains look lovely with a snow coating.

In between the storms, we enjoyed an afternoon at the Arboretum in perfect weather.

Susanne's beaded bead

2010-01-25T12:35:00.000-08:00

Last spring while I was in Frankfurt, Susanne gave me a beaded bead as a going away present.

It took me the rest of the year to make a crocheted rope and a nice bail (slider) to hang this bead from. The results were worth waiting for.

I have worn it many times already.

deco lotus earrings

2010-01-21T20:59:00.000-08:00

I had two glass bead drops, so I made these earrings from Beadwork Oct 2009 issue.
I changed the 8/0 beads in the instructions to 3 mm teal vitrail fire polished beads. 8/0 beads really looked clunky.

I used the pictures in the article to make them. The word instructions were really unclear and went in a strange order too.

Earrings

2010-01-21T20:54:00.000-08:00

I got two wonderful beaded beads from my friends Nicki and Ricki in (Australia. NO!) AUSTRIA. This was to go with the 13 other beaded beads that came from Germany.
These two were very alike in color and really unlike all the others. So I made earrings out of them.

Sorry about the blur. I'll try to get a better photo. Here is the better photo so you can see how lovely these Austrian earrings are!

I think the star bead is Nicki's?

2010-01-10T15:11:00.000-08:00

I posted some photos of the Rose Parade Floats from January 22, 2010. Here is a link to the slide show.
http://picasaweb.google.com/turmaline1/Rose_Parade_Floats2010?feat=email#

Sylvia

Beaded bead necklace

2009-11-18T17:12:00.001-08:00

I get an F for photography in this case. But I have sent it off. This is the only photo I ended up with.

Better pictures for this piece are in Dulcey's blog.

I have always loved making beaded beads. They are so satisfying to make because they do not take forever and are so pretty.

Knitted beaded ball necklace

2009-11-18T17:00:00.000-08:00

I made a new necklace. Knitted out of fingering yarn with size 1 needles, it has beaded stripes and includes 16 mm wooden balls which I had painted with gold paint.

This was in Knitter's magazine December 2008. It took me until now to knit it because it was hard to find size 1 double pointed needles in L.A. Once I got started, it was not too long nor hard to finish. It's 9 stitches around and uses double pointed needles. It was very awkward to knit with 3 stitches per needle; needles kept coming off the stitches. My solution was to put 5 stitches on 1 needle and 4 on the next and knit with a third. Unfortunately, 9 stitches is too wide to knit on two needles. It leaves a bad gap where you slide the stitches over.

It weighs nothing and I really like wearing it.

Service Awards Dinner

2009-10-20T12:25:00.000-07:00

Here we are with Mickey Mouse, my husband Ed's boss, at an awards dinner on Oct 16, 2009.

It was for recognition of Ed's service at KABC-TV for 30 years. Disney bought KABC about 10 years ago, so Mickey Mouse became his new "boss." Ed received a brass statuette of Jiminy Cricket ( a cricket in a tuxedo, top hat and a folded umbrella for the younger set who may have never seen this animation) for this occasion. "Jiminy!" I say, as people used to say in obsolete English slang around the time that cartoon was launched to show their amazement and awe.

I post this for all the lovers of Mickey Mouse. At the head of that list is of course Ed.

Frankfurt pictures from May 2009

2009-09-27T15:18:00.000-07:00

My pictures from my visit to Frankfurt and to Susanne's home are here.

Frankfurt city pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/turmaline1/FrankfurtCity?authkey=Gv1sRgCMyh9Zn_1__HzwE&feat=directlink

My first Perlentreffen in Frankfurt Meine erste Perlentreffen bei Susanna

http://picasaweb.google.com/turmaline1/Frankfurt_May2009?authkey=Gv1sRgCNDqsbn9rdbCGQ&feat=directlink

Visiting Irmi:
http://picasaweb.google.com/turmaline1/VisitingIrmi?authkey=Gv1sRgCIv9joy7uvK67AE&feat=directlink
Countryside, horses, castle etc.
http://picasaweb.google.com/turmaline1/AltenstadtAndHorseTrainingDay?authkey=Gv1sRgCNWKjayZoKbJpwE&feat=directlink
Botanical Gardens PalmenGarten:
http://picasaweb.google.com/turmaline1/PalmenGartenFrankfurt?authkey=Gv1sRgCKyU2srLhP-izgE&feat=directlink

Crochet rope with glass cabochon

2009-09-25T12:56:00.000-07:00

This is a lampworked bead from Mingo and Asho. It has a hole and the backside is clean so it requires no embroidery bezeling. I made this necklace during my vacation in August. Crochet ropes are good for vacation work. Once you string the beads, you can relax and work anywhere.

Needle Lace (oya) as necklace

2009-09-25T12:50:00.000-07:00

Oya which is a form of needle lace used for head scarf edgings, and doilies in Turkey has found a modern application.

During my vacation (June 2009) I found it used in jewelry and had to get some samples. I am posting my necklace to show this new application of an old craft.

Bracelet becomes necklace

2009-09-24T16:26:00.001-07:00

Here is the lovely bracelet that Nickie made for me two years ago on a Christmas gift swap.

I have a small arm, so it would fit over my elbow and fall off without opening it up. And it was too pretty to hide in a drawer and be able to wear it.

I made a similar color crochet rope and used nylon transparent snaps to join it to the main piece. Now I have a brand new neclace. Thanks Nickie G.

Back from vacation

2009-09-05T14:25:00.001-07:00

Little Tuffet beaded box

2009-08-06T21:44:00.000-07:00

This little box is made of Delicas as the book calls for. It is based on a hexagon. The problem I had was with the base hexagon. If I really used high tension, it made a dome, and if I relaxed enough to make it lie flat, then it was a very loose and flexible bottom. This in spite of the cylinder beads which lock together. Here is a view of the bottom and the inside lid.Both the lid and the bottom are based on the same chart. And they both dome. In the case of the lid, this is a good thing. In the case of the bottom--it is what it is.

Here is a view of the neck construction. The "hem" that Julia has designed is what makes these boxes hold their shape without any structural support. The hem is a double walled structure of about 1/8 of an inch which is fun and easy to make. It makes the box.

I really enjoyed my learning phase with these boxes, but I think I need to work on something else now.

To dispel the idea that only Delicas make vessels and boxes, I give you this link to Julia Pretl's website. This zebra vessel is made with seed beads and it has all the strength and body one would need in a beaded vessel.

http://www.beadcave.com/julia/galleries/vessels/zebrafull.html

Seed Beads make great little boxes

2009-08-06T16:07:00.001-07:00

There was a discussion on Perlenhaekeln about how one could not make a little beaded box without using Delicas.

I finally finished making the triangular Kaleidescope box out of size 11/0 Japanese beads (Miyuki).

It was a learning experience for me, and I did not get the lid to fit perfectly. But this is my fault as a beader. The box is very stiff, holds its shape without any auxiliary help from sprays, wires, or trickery.

I also made one from Delica beads which I will post next, but it was not any more stiff than the seed beads. And it was harder to make the hexagonal bottom lie flat.

So make all the little boxes you like from seed beads if like me, Delicas are not your favorite thing. They break too easily, and are way too expensive for what they offer in my opinion.

2009-07-20T12:48:00.000-07:00

Here is a Julia Pretl box done with seed beads. Round ordinary seed beads.

So much for you must use Delicas or other cylindrical beads.

If your beads are decent quality, and you use good tension and never forget the step ups, you can make beautiful triangles or any other shape you like.

This I posted to let someone see that it can be done. I'll add the finished item on a later day.