Bead Soup Blog Party 2014: Reveal - May 10

Once again Lori Anderson, Pretty Things, has organized and hosted another awesome blog party. Each artist sends a partner a collection of beads, including a focal bead and a creative clasp. My partner is Carolyn Lawson of Olympia, Washington. Her blog is http://carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com and below is the "soup" she sent me. Please, visit her blog to see the "soup" I sent her and what amazing beaded item she made with it! Find the list of links for all 461 participants and partners here: www.beadsoupblogparty.com Please, cut and paste as I can only get one link here for my partner. Enjoy!

I fell in love with the red Swarovski crystals and had to create something with them. I located a strand of 4mm black onyx beads that were just right. Off I went using the crystals, the lamp work bead and the beautiful silver clasp. It is opera length, so there is a variety of ways to wear this strand. Long opera length necklace, a shorter double strand necklace and, my favorite, a wrapped bracelet.

The rest of the soup just broadcast one of my favorite color combinations, jade/moss green and burnt sienna/terracotta. I proceeded to create polymer clay beads to coordinate with these beautiful focal beads. I made 28, 13mm striped rounds and 10, 17mm discs and drilled them to slide onto a waxed, woven linen cord. I wanted to keep the sizes coordinated, so the piece would appear to be an organic whole. There was a large square bead of green moss agate and a large teardrop of picture jasper to use for the focals but, I was unable to drill the hole out for the moss agate. Hence, it didn't appear in my finished piece. Fortunately, the terracotta complimented the greens I had created and all is well.