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For the last few months I've been "sketching" if you will the layouts for a necklace for one of my own bridesmaids' weddings, Kelly, and her sisters, her bridesmaids. The wedding is this weekend, and I must admit, I am just now getting around to making the necklaces (thank you parents month long visit). It's not for lack of intent or interest, it's actually because I have been thinking and re-thinking the designs in my head over and over. And with little time left (I leave for the wedding tomorrow), I finally had to settle on a design and stick with it!
Let's start with the bridesmaids necklaces. Kelly sent me this picture of what her sisters will be wearing and literally said to go to town and create whatever I wanted. I loved the color of the dress and it's strapless quality, and immediately thought that something like this necklace 
I made for my own rehearsal dinner outfit would be a good match, only in blue and pearls. When shopping in Chicago for beads, I stumbled across a ton of blue crystals and Czech glass beads. Then when shopping at my new favorite store in Chinatown, I found some SUPER cute (and affordable) teeny tiny pearls, which I figured would go GREAT with the ensemble (I'll be talking about them next week when I blog about the bride's necklace).
A few things were going to be different with this necklace compared to it's inspiration piece. First, the components were much smaller than the red and black crystals (I am pretty sure these bridesmaids aren't as into funky chunky as I am). On the first piece, I used crimp beads to space the crystals out on a silver wire stringing thread (crimp beads are little silver beads that, when smashed on a wire, stick to it and can thus sandwich beads into place and give them a "floating" appearance). Since the beads I would be using for the bridesmaids necklaces were so small, I feared that the crimp beads, being around the same size as the beads themselves, would be a distraction. I thus invested in some illusion cord, 
which is essentially teeny tiny fishing wire (my first beading medium before I discovered Artbeads!). And since crimp beads were not an option, I invested in some jewelry glue, which I had never used before. (Thus the waiting until the last minute to make the necklaces - I was a little nervous about how they would turn out since I have never tried this technique before!)
So, my materials included:
- pearls (which measured 1-4mm each)
- the blue crystals (3-5mm each)
- the illusion cord (cut at about 20" each strand)
- crimp beads and a crimping tool (to secure the ends of each strand)
- the cement
- sterling silver clasps and wire rings
- and a paper bag on which to work (don't want any of that out-of-control cement on my dining room table, do we?)
First step was getting these bad boys glued on the super clear and super small string. This wouldn't have been so hard if 1.) the glue didn't come oozing out at an unstoppable force and 2.) if it didn't take a whole hour for the glue to dry! I put a drop of glue (well, that which I could contain) onto the string and then slid the bead over it. This made measuring the distance between the beads an additional challenge, but after awhile I was able to do 4-5 beads at a time before setting the strand down and repeating the process on another.
After letting them sit overnight, I then crimped the ends of each strand so as to have a way of hanging them from the end clasp. To crimp, you simply place the crimp bead near the end of the stringing material (give yourself at least 2 inches), loop the string in the crimp bead, close the loop to measure about 4-6mm, and, with the crimping tool, smash the bead down. You then have a nice little and permanent loop (there is a way to make the crimp bead smaller and not as flat looking by folding it over on itself and re-smashing, but I have had terrible experience with that and only end up breaking the bead and losing the whole strand). Make sure the strand measures to your desired length before crimping - in this case, I made the necklaces 15" each, which means they will fall right on the collarbone.
At first I had planned on doing many layers of these strands of pearls and crystals for each necklace, like the inspiration piece. However, the combination of the crazy amount of time it took for these things to dry and their delicate nature made me kind of fall in love with the simpler 2-strand look. So I took the two strands, looped them onto a spring ring, also looped a sterling silver clasp on a spring ring, and closed them off. Next thing you know - I had a necklace on my hands!
I like the way they came out, even if it wasn't what I originally had envisioned. I think they will be subtle enough yet lovely enough to add just a touch of adornment to what the bridesmaids (who are both very slender gals) are wearing. I will of course take TONS of pictures this weekend and show you how they turned out! I posted this item on Etsy, too - though next time I will be better prepared to work with the crazy glue and it's delayed drying habits!
I've said before how much I am fan of what I call "Blog Lovin,'" i.e. when blogs give shout-outs to other blogs with awards, links, comments, give-aways, etc. Well, wouldn't you know, today I was surprised to see not one, not two, but three blog awards bestowed upon this lil' ole' blog o' mine! So awesome!
The first is by my buddy and co-worker Cheryl, who just started her own CUPCAKE blog (insert salvation here)! I was honored to help her in the graphic formatting of the blog and have already had some of my own cupcake work featured - sweet! Cheryl took the initiative to create the "Golden Cupcake" award ... and gave it to me :) I am going to bestow it, in turn, to my other cupcake sister, Chrissy, who is working on creating her own cupcake catering business!
The next is from a customer I met through this blog, actually - which is the best kind of connection! Karen lives in wine country, Nor Cal and we have recently discovered we have a lot in common (ie
love for So You Think You Can Dance, which I saw in person last week and will be blogging about very soon!). The award is called "The Lemonade Stand," and it's rules of acceptance are to "Choose seven ladies who according to this award show an attitude of gratitude." Awesome! Here's my list of seven lovely ladies!
- My first bloggin' buddy, who gives invaluable encouragement and is ever so patient with me, Nilsa of SoMi Speaks
- My first give-away winner who blogged about her love for the necklace she won, Regina of Creative Kismet
- Sara, who posted pictures of the necklace she bought from Bead Up that she wore to a wedding! NoTeaForYou
- A high school classmate, Lindsay, who is embracing her creative urges and starting her own Etsy shop! Krafty.Kolby
- Fellow Knitter who makes the most precious cozies and has provided a lot of positive feedback, On A Roll
- And two Sorority Sisters, Rachel and Lindsey, whose blogs about their babies truly reflect an attitude of gratitude! When A Duet Becomes a Trio and Baby Webb Site
Lastly, another gal who I met through Bloggin, RedRubyonFire, (who did an interview about me on her website a few weeks ago) bestowed upon me the "Honest Scrap Award." I have seen this award floating around the bloggin' hemisphere and am glad it finally found it's way to my site, as it's rules are awesomely interactive!:
- I must thank the person who gave me the award and list their blog and link it
- I must list 10 honest things about myself
- I must put a copy of The Honest Scrap Logo on my blog.
- I must select at least 7 other worthy bloggers & list their links (see above)
- I must notify the bloggers of the award and hopefully they will follow the above requirements.
Which means, Bloggers who I listed above, feel free to embrace this award for yourself, too!
Ok, 10 honest things about myself. Here go's:
1.) I feel quite guilty that I have turned my obsession of scrapbooking over to jewelry making. I sometimes just sit there looking at all the supplies I have accumulated over the years and sigh with remorse. Will I ever get my outstanding scrapbooks done?
2.) I majored in Chinese language and Philosophy in college. 
I got my Masters in Christianity and Chinese religions. Now I work at a movie studio. Your guess is as good as mine! (picture is of me climbing the Great Wall in 2004).
3.) My favorite two musicians are the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Mozart. I literally listen to them all day long (in random order)!
4.) Though the hubs and I have made our second guest room into my craft room, I hate working in there. I feel secluded and away from the action that is usually happening in the living room. For that reason, I make most of my jewelry on a card table in the corner of the living room or on the ottoman.
5.) On that note, I am afraid to admit that I can't even contain all my supplies in the craft room (especially when we have house guests living in that room!). Here is a picture of all my Etsy mailing supplies and products stuffed into our linen closet!
6.) In light of #4 and #5, I am quite OCD about clutter and tidiness. Ask my poor husband. (Example: I can't leave the house without first cleaning out the sink of it's dirty dishes. Seriously.)
7.) I have had over 500 stitches in my body. And I hate needles.
8.) I've been a vegetarian for 11 years. Though I would gladly make a series of Arby's Roast Beef Sandwiches part of my maternity diet if totally necessary.
9.) Guilty pleasures: Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List and N'Sync. Along with spending large amounts of money on unnecessary items at Target and Forever XXI.
10.) This blog makes me happier than you will ever know!
Whew! There you have it!
Thanks again to Cheryl, Karen, and Yini for the awards! Made my day!
Let's start with the bridesmaids necklaces. Kelly sent me this picture of what her sisters will be wearing and literally said to go to town and create whatever I wanted. I loved the color of the dress and it's strapless quality, and immediately thought that something like this necklace 
I made for my own rehearsal dinner outfit would be a good match, only in blue and pearls. When shopping in Chicago for beads, I stumbled across a ton of blue crystals and Czech glass beads. Then when shopping at my new favorite store in Chinatown, I found some SUPER cute (and affordable) teeny tiny pearls, which I figured would go GREAT with the ensemble (I'll be talking about them next week when I blog about the bride's necklace).
A few things were going to be different with this necklace compared to it's inspiration piece. First, the components were much smaller than the red and black crystals (I am pretty sure these bridesmaids aren't as into funky chunky as I am). On the first piece, I used crimp beads to space the crystals out on a silver wire stringing thread (crimp beads are little silver beads that, when smashed on a wire, stick to it and can thus sandwich beads into place and give them a "floating" appearance). Since the beads I would be using for the bridesmaids necklaces were so small, I feared that the crimp beads, being around the same size as the beads themselves, would be a distraction. I thus invested in some illusion cord, 
which is essentially teeny tiny fishing wire (my first beading medium before I discovered Artbeads!). And since crimp beads were not an option, I invested in some jewelry glue, which I had never used before. (Thus the waiting until the last minute to make the necklaces - I was a little nervous about how they would turn out since I have never tried this technique before!)
So, my materials included:
First step was getting these bad boys glued on the super clear and super small string. This wouldn't have been so hard if 1.) the glue didn't come oozing out at an unstoppable force and 2.) if it didn't take a whole hour for the glue to dry! I put a drop of glue (well, that which I could contain) onto the string and then slid the bead over it. This made measuring the distance between the beads an additional challenge, but after awhile I was able to do 4-5 beads at a time before setting the strand down and repeating the process on another.
After letting them sit overnight, I then crimped the ends of each strand so as to have a way of hanging them from the end clasp. To crimp, you simply place the crimp bead near the end of the stringing material (give yourself at least 2 inches), loop the string in the crimp bead, close the loop to measure about 4-6mm, and, with the crimping tool, smash the bead down. You then have a nice little and permanent loop (there is a way to make the crimp bead smaller and not as flat looking by folding it over on itself and re-smashing, but I have had terrible experience with that and only end up breaking the bead and losing the whole strand). Make sure the strand measures to your desired length before crimping - in this case, I made the necklaces 15" each, which means they will fall right on the collarbone.
At first I had planned on doing many layers of these strands of pearls and crystals for each necklace, like the inspiration piece. However, the combination of the crazy amount of time it took for these things to dry and their delicate nature made me kind of fall in love with the simpler 2-strand look. So I took the two strands, looped them onto a spring ring, also looped a sterling silver clasp on a spring ring, and closed them off. Next thing you know - I had a necklace on my hands!
I like the way they came out, even if it wasn't what I originally had envisioned. I think they will be subtle enough yet lovely enough to add just a touch of adornment to what the bridesmaids (who are both very slender gals) are wearing. I will of course take TONS of pictures this weekend and show you how they turned out! I posted this item on Etsy, too - though next time I will be better prepared to work with the crazy glue and it's delayed drying habits!
