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Friday, March 2, 2012

Bead Soup Blog Party Time!

My partner was the very generous Debbie from Prairie Emporium.  She sent me some wonderful ingredients -- though I didn't use everything. The leftovers will surely come in handy in future projects.
She sent feathers!
 A ceramic donut she made, a lampwork owl, some Czech glass, crystals, chain & a sterling toggle!

The first thing I made was the owl necklace. I had gotten it into my head that I had to do something other than my standard wire wrapping, so I picked up some black silk thread I had. I tried 100 different combos, but was never happy with any of her beads to go with the owl. So I dug through my stash and found some more Czech glass and some vintage glass with an "oil slick" finish, as I like to call it. Combined with my last saffron Miss Fickle Media ring and some antique brass rollo, I was satisfied at last!



I decided I had so much fun with the silk, but I really wanted some of that waxed Irish linen thread that all the kool kids are using - so I ordered some, and set to work on some feather earrings while I waited... It took me quite some time and a few destroyed bits of metal & findings later to figure out how to successfully attach a feather to something, but I did it!


The following week, my waxed linen arrived and the design I'd been struggling with just magically unfolded. Funny, it happened in stages. First, I knew how the focal would go with the chain. That was the very first thing I did out of anything. Long before the idea for the linen. Once I got the linen, I saw some faceted amazonite beads in my stash that NEEDED to be included that I hadn't even considered previously. So then it was a little counting out and laying out and ta da! The strung part was perfect. I knew I'd connect the back to some chain, but I assumed I'd use some smaller copper stuff I had, and that it would be short. But after I got all the beads knotted onto the cord, I realized that I needed to use that teardrop copper chain that had been sitting there staring at me for months. Except it was bright & shiny. Well, I'd been needing to break out the Liver of Sulfur for several other things as well, so I spent last Saturday morning taking care of all that. So by that evening, it was done and sealed and ready to join the rest of the necklace. But as big and beautiful as it was, it couldn't be relegated to small connector chain in the back. It needed to be seen! And so my short necklace became long. I am just thrilled to death with the result! It's definitely my favorite piece of this soup.


 
Lastly, I made this bracelet. I got to use more of my waxed linen, and a long hoarded Green Girl mermaid focal - but as I expected, the focal was way too heavy for this dainty bracelet. So I might see if I can add a few more strands of something to it and make it a multi-strand to balance the weight. It could probably be done with some patience. Or I might just take it all apart and chalk it up to a learning experience. But it's cute in theory, right? I've never really been too good with bracelets anyway.


Thanks for stopping by and please remember to visit ALL the participants!



Hostess, Lori Anderson Special Book Sneak Peeks, Cindy Wimmer
1.  Adlinah Kamsir (Singapore) and Hajer Waheed (Kingdom of Bahrain)
2. Adrienn Lukacs (Hungary) and Agata Grygiel (Poland)
3.  Agi Kiss (Hungary) and Carolien Muller-Genger (the Netherlands)
4.  Agnes Asztalos (Hungary) and B.R. Kuhlman
7.  Alicia Marinache (Canada) and Dita Basu
15.  Bonnie Coursolle (Canada) and Fay Wolfenden (Canada)
16.  Carmel McGinley (Australia) and Tracy Stillman (Australia)
21.  Cheryl Brown (Canada) and Diana Ptaszynski
22.  Christina Stofmeel (the Netherlands) and Eva Kovacs (Hungary)
24.  Cilla Watkins (Canada) and Elaine Robitaille (Canada)
25.  Sabrina Straub (Switzerland) and Kathy Combs
32.  Dee Elgie (UK) and Joanne Lockwood (UK)
33.  Dian Hierschel (Germany) and Eniko Fabian (Austria)
37.  Doris Stumpf (Germany) and Eszter Czibulyas (Hungary)
39.  Elke Leonhardt-Rath (Germany) and Marjolein Trewavas (UK)
41.  Erika Nooteboom (the Netherlands) and Giorgia Rossini (Italy)
43.  Evelyn Duberry (Canada) and Gaea Cannaday
45.  Ginger Bishop (military, Okinawa) and Martina Nagele (Germany)
48.  Helene Goldberg (Australia) and Karen Vincent
54.  Joanna Matuszczyk (Poland) and Julianna Kis (Hungary)
55.  Joanne Tinley (UK) and Michaela Pabeschitz (Austria)
65.  Kristina Johansson (Sweden) and Penny Neville (Canada)
66.  Krisztina Erlaki-Toth (Hungary) and Nicole Keller (Germany)
76.  Lori Finney (Canada) and Marie-Noel Voyer-Cramp (Canada)
78.  Marta Kaczerowska (Poland) and Milla Starchik (Canada)
83.  Michelle Jensen and Sandra Young (Canada)
92.  Rosa Maria Cuevas (Mexico) and Tejae Floyde
93.  Sabine Dittrich (Germany) and Sally Russick
95.  Shanti Johnson and Tracy Mok (Canada)
97.  Sonya Stille and Traci Zeller (Canada)
98.  Stefanie Teufel (Germany) and Tania Hagen (New Zealand)

87 comments:

  1. Awesome Heidi!!! Love the necklace with the ceramic donut; it would be so much fun to wear. You did a great job with the feathers; I need to learn to use them. I am amazed with everything you made!!! I hope you had as much fun as I did, Thanks for my great soup.

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  2. I agree that you did an amazing job with the feathers. I would have been clueless as to how to use them. I'm hardly the kind that would wear feathers in my ears but I can definitely see myself wearing your earrings. Love the long necklace too, thanks for telling us how it all came together. Have fun hopping around the blogs!

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  3. I am peeking on my phone as I have stayed the night at the house of some friends, so I'll check it out again when I am home with the computer, but I really like the photos that I can see (my phone is sometimes obstinate about loading photos....very annoying). Beautiful feather earrings! I love the frames. And the multi strand necklace is a knock out. I'll be back later to see the rest!

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  4. This is too weird, yesterday I pulled out my beads for the forst time in a month and decided to go back to silk thread and knot the beads in place instead of wire wrapping. It felt so refreshing and I'm loving how the necklaces drape around the neck.
    I love the designs you did for this soup, still very much you but on a softer side, probably because of the thread. My favourite piece is the first necklace with the owl pwndant, I love the clever use of light and dark beads :-D

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    1. That is weird! I do love wire wrapping, and I am by no means abandoning it, but like you said - the cord gives a nice drape :)

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  5. Coooool! Love that owl-piece. And what you did with that - btw great copper chain (want some) - divine!

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  6. P.S. Totally forgot: Love hte feather earrings!

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  7. Love that long copper chain necklace, too! Fabulous! :)

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  8. How talented you are! I love the donut and the owl necklaces. I agree with the other commenters and would really struggle with the feathers but you have risen to the challenge.

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  9. Which one, which one, which one? Oh my, they are all so beautiful Heidi. You have been so productive. I love how you mirrored the sides in the owl necklace. That is an absolutely fantastic solution, and I am sure I will "steal" it in a very near future. ;-) The colors and choice of beads is also awesome. The owl is so adorable.

    The turquoise necklace is plain beautiful. The double strands of the knotted beads and the larger chain perfectly balances that large focal. I love the colors together. And your knotting with waxed linen, I love it.

    So many pretty things Heidi, looks like you've had a great time with your soup.

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  10. Beautiful work!!!Everythings looks very nice!Well done!!!

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  11. that was a great soup, original and beautiful and all you have done with it is great :)
    I'm a partecipant from Italy, I'm trying to visit all of you.
    this was really a great experience!
    ciao ciao

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  12. Wow, your pieces are so beautiful, I don't know what I would like to wear first;)
    Lovely greetings
    Sabrina

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  13. Love that owl focal and that last bracelet is so sweet! Love how you displayed your pieces too, that last prop is wonderful!

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  14. Lovely bead soup and great creations! The necklace with the donut is my favorite but all of the mare gorgeous!

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  15. That little owl is to die for! You've done a wonderful job on letting the individual pieces shine in beautiful settings. Your work is lovely.

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  16. Beautiful pieces! I love the way the smooth round turquoise you added to contrasts with the nuggets and focal :) x

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  17. Beautiful pieces. I love what you did with the feathers. Those would have stumped me but you made them work!

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  18. Heidi,
    All of your pieces are gorgeous, I love them all so I will not pick a favorite, but the long necklace and the owl necklace are running neck and neck! LOL
    Therese

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  19. WwwwooooooWWWWW! I love all the pieces you designed, they are gorgeous! I love the owl bead and the necklace you created, but I think my favorite is the 'donut' necklace. Everything goes so well together, the donut doesn't seem so overwhelming.

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  20. everything is just so darn pretty!! amazing!

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  21. Lovely all of them! I like how you designed the owl necklace, it's so balanced and yin-yang, love it.

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  22. I love the touch of yellow in the necklace, and adore the donut necklace! The feather earrings are really cool -- I never knew how to connect feathers to anything.

    Awesome job!

    I hope you'll join me in the summer!

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  23. I love that owl necklace. The beads and colors go great with the focal. Feathers are so in right now. You did a great job using them in earrings.

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  24. Your combination of beads with the owl was perfect. The other necklace with the large focal is also a show stopper. Great job.

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  25. wow they all look amazing. i like the silk cord and the owl is fabulous!!

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  26. Wow! Each piece is so cool! The copper teardrop chain is DELIGHTFUL and the PERFECT addition to the beads & focal she sent!

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  27. Everything is amazing but I'm really in love with those feather earrings. Feathers are so trendy right now and I've been wondering how I could use them for my daughter and now I know! I have some earring findings enroute similar to what you used in yours! Thanks for the splendid inspiration. You're a marvelous designer for sure.

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  28. All your pieces are beautiful, but I have to say my favorite is the second necklace with the gorgeous colors and the ceramic focal (though the owl is darling too).

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  29. Love it all Heidi! I really, really love the subtle asymmetry in the owl necklace - so simple and yet so original and clever! That owl is a really awesome bead. And I still love the multi-strand necklace - the colours are perfect and the chain you've used is just so cool! Do you mind my asking where you got it from? I love it! I seem to really struggle getting a good variety of chain in the UK.

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  30. WOW! What some awesome creations. I love the lampwork owl necklace. That is so cool and FEATHERS! How fun is that. I love how you made them into earrings. And the necklace with the big focal is stunning. I also love your props. Those are super cool! Great job!

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  31. Gorgeous designs! That owl is so cute!

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  32. That little owl has one of the cutest faces I have seen, the necklace adds perfectly to his adorableness. I am in love with your feather earrings they are so divine, and the frame that you used around them finishes them so nicely. Wonderful necklace!! You did an amazing job with your soup!!

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  33. Wow! Gorgeous designs. I loved the lampwork owl necklace - what a great bead to design a necklace around. Your second necklace is stunning! I love the focal and choice of beads - just beautiful :)

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  34. Great work. You did some very nice pieces. The feathers are fun!

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  35. Everything you made is beautiful but I especially like the necklaces. Great use of your soup!

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  36. Good call with the black silk and saffron ring with your owl (he is so CUTE!!) The "oil slick" beads are great with it--almost black but luminous with just a hint of color. Very clever with the feather earrings! I also like those clear beads (is that quartz? citrine?) with the rectangular stone beads. They look really neat together!

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  37. Oh gosh I love that owl, how cute are it's eyes. The feather earrings are pretty cool too. Lovely work!

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  38. I love how you mix beads and colors and shapes. You have a really strong vision. The amazonite piece is a stunner.

    Great work!

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  39. That second necklace is truly a stunner.

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  40. Great group of pieces. I'm partial to the owl though, it's very cute and I like the balance of the beads you put with it.

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  41. LOVE the owl necklace! It's all great, but the owl is something I'd wear. Love the combo on the raku Buddha necklace in your shop too. Thanks for the treats for the eye. Blessings to you from Okinawa, Japan.

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  42. My favorites have to be the earrings, and the asymmetry you went with on the necklace. Bravo!

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  43. The necklace with owl is beautiful!

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  44. nom nom nom...that owl looks like candy! I love them all but I like the simplicity of the feather earrings the most....That could also be because I have an obsession lately with making frames and dangling and wirewrapping things in the center!!!

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  45. Oh beautiful! The owl necklace is so sweet, but I absolutely love the long donut necklace.

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  46. I loved the owl necklace. But then I saw the donut necklace!!!!
    Amazing work. Love it!!!

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  47. That owl is so cute! And I love the colors in that second necklace

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  48. living in the Southwest I can't help but love alllll your creations! They are stunning and the colors are amazing!

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  49. I love what you made with your beads!
    My favorite is the necklace with the donut pendant.

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  50. Your my favorite stop on the hop so far! Amazing work! I love your feather earrings, the owl piece and how you staged everything. That hand is perfect. Cheers!

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  51. Heidi, you did a wonderful job. I'm totally in love with this cute owl necklace! But also the long necklace it something I would immediatly wear! Well done!

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  52. OK. I love, love, love the necklace with the ceramic focal. I would wear that in a heartbeat!

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  53. That owl is too cute for words. And the way you set it off by keeping the design simple with clean lines really made the piece. I love the earrings too. The last necklace is a true statement piece would look amazing dressed up or down. My hats off to you!

    Cheers,
    ~Maria Rosa

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  54. Downright radically fierce designs!! Even that owl, cute as he is, looks like he might kick some butt if you mess with him. My absolute fave are those feather earrings. The mix of such softness with such hardness just rocks my world. Great job!!

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  55. I love the feather earrings! They're fun and neutral enough to wear with so many things! Your necklace is really cool too! The darker wire is showing up so much in this blog hop...I love!

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  56. Your long necklace is my favorite too. Stunning!
    Cheers!
    Lori D.

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  58. I love the rustic feel of your all your creations, nicely done!

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  59. Great job with your soup! I love the owl necklace, so cute.

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  60. I love the owl and what you did with it! Really cool and beautiful pieces!

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  61. What fun! I love that Owl! And the donut, I have stayed away from those as I haven't been able to think of a thing to do with them - that is a really cool look. Great job cookin'!

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  62. What a wonderful soup! Your designs are beautiful! I especially love the necklace with the owl.

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  63. Lovely jewellery! I really like the colour combos. And the simple and clean design of the feather earrings make them feel so delicate and light weight. Great job!

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  64. I love the earrings! They are so unique!

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  65. Fun feather earrings..The clay donut focal necklace is beautiful and I really like the goddess bracelet! Every woman needs one!

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  66. Love that owl and the necklace you made with it! Love the earrings - great new idea for using feathers!
    The second necklace is my favorite! The bracelet is great too!

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  67. Those earrings are super cool!! I love the owl pendant necklace, but you're right - the donut pendant necklace is "to die for!" OMG! Love it! And, I do like the look of your bracelet, but understand when things don't 'work' right once you get them together. Let us know what you end up doing w/that one! :)

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  68. I love all of these. I think the owl may be my favorite!

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  69. Heidi - I really relate to your blog description of yourself. I also march to my own beat. Here's to originality! Really love the owl necklace and the feather earrings.

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  70. Okay...first I fell in LOVE with the owl necklace - so cool! But then, I fell in love with the earrings with the feathers...awesome! But then....you get my drift! Everything is just so creatively beautiful!

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  71. All the pieces are great, but OMG the feather earrings! I'm dying for them. So amazing AND more original than the typical feather designs that are all the rage right now. You rocked it!

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  72. Ahhh, all these pieces are so cool! I love the beads you used for the owl necklace.

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  73. Love that sweet little owl! All of your pieces are so beautiful! The feather earrings are awesome!

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  74. Feather are always a challenge for me, I don't even know if I like them or not, but you showed them off in a wonderful way.
    I also find the necklace with the donut amazing!

    Ambra

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  75. I love all your pieces! Esp. the earrings, they are just lovely!

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  76. The Owl necklace is so cool. I would definitely wear the copper and feather earrings. Great work

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  77. Love everything, but my favorite is the two strand necklace. Welcome to the kool kids! I love waxed linen - it has such a fantastic drape to it. And I love the way your two strands drape without competing with one another for space. That is trickier to accomplish than one might think. Enjoyed reading your post. Great job!

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  78. Each one of these pieces had me swooning. And you know. . .I'm not surprised! You always make such beautiful things. These were no exception. Best of luck getting that bracelet to work out. I'm not so good with them either.

    (Oh, and by the way, I also call that an oil slick effect! ;) )

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  79. I love the owl necklace. It's such a cute pendant, so simply presented so it's not lost in the design, excellent!

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  80. you took out of the box soup, and made some awesome stuff! Love it

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  81. That owl necklace is just perfect! Love the Czech glass with it!

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  82. I love your bead soup the owl necklace is gorgeous

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  83. All of your pieces are great but the donut necklace is my favorite!! Love the chain with it.
    Sonya

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  84. Love all your pieces, but that amazonite necklace is my favorite, with the owl being a close second. Great stuff!

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