March 21, 2012

Bead Soup (uh, well Bead Stew)

I'm so late to the Bead Soup Blog Hop party it's embarrassing.  But due to the fuzz of pain medication and the avalanche of stress preparing for the Bead Cruise, I was laboring under the delusion that the reveal date was March 23rd.  Don't ask me why I thought it was then! 

My bead partner Genea was sweet enough to email me a sneak peek and then I discovered my big mistake.  I promised her I would do my reveal as soon as I got back, but let's just say my brain finally arrived on shore today. (Yep, it was on the slow boat home!)

I LOVE Genea's wing dings!  They are such a fun shape and she always does them in the yummiest colors.  Genea really challenged me with the bright color palette.  It's was great to stretch myself to use this tropical inspired set of beads!


When designing this piece I had the two sides laid out and went through several options for my focal beads.  I finally settled on a key as a connector and added a ceramic house. (I'm sorry, it was a gift and I don't know the artist's name.) Along with Genea's lampwork beads I paired them up with some of my polymer clay beads in matching shades.  The little house reminds me of the colorfully painted houses on the islands we've visited on past Bead Cruises.

The clasp was a fun button created by Genea.  The heart chats nicely with the house and key.  There is a story there.

The focal bead and headpins seemed like they went nicely together with the confetti of Czech glass that arrived with my soup.  Ideally, we are suppose to create a piece of jewelry with the focal, clasp and some of the extra soups - but Genea sent me such a heaping help of delicious bead soup, there were enough beads for an appetizer, main course and little dessert!

I really love this piece and with the silk sari ribbon and adjustable length it will be one of my go-to pieces for the summer.  The focal bead is a bead-within-a-bead = AMAZING!!!  And something I treasure!

For the bead dangles I created the wire loops with enameled headpins from SueBeads.  They add a little dot of color to each dangle. At the bottom I used one of Genea's headpins with one of my polymer clay disk beads. 

And for dessert - I wanted to use some of "My Elements" pieces that Genea sent in the soup mix.  I found the rubber O's in the bright colors and the plastic sputnik beads the most appealing and paired them up with some of my lime disk beads and more of the headpins from SueBeads.


You can see all the amazing jewelry that Genea created with the soup that I sent her: Genea's Bead Soup Reveal.  And if you'd like to get a hold of some of Genea's beads for yourself stop on over to her Etsy shop!

And the whole party can be found on Lori Anderson's Blog

Hopefully the soup simmering and stewing was worth the wait!  Thanks Genea and Lori!

29 comments:

Jessica said...

Wow that was a lot of beads!! I love the earrings, they are my favorite, and that large glass focal bead was amazing!

Anonymous said...

Wow! This was well worth waiting for!! Each and every piece I was saying "I want that, I want that!" Excellent job all around. So pretty, cheery and colorful.

Keri Lee Sereika said...

Oh yes this was SOOOO WORTH THE WAIT! Loooove all of it, you did a great job with the bright color palette and wow her work on those beads and yours looks FAB together!

Jewels By Ine said...

OMG! That is just a wonderful collection!! Genea send you such nice beads! And you made lovely thinks with it ! I'm a fan! :)

lunedreams said...

Absolutely phenomenal! I can't even pick a favorite! Your little house focal and clay bead are perfect complements to those wing dings! Love all those shapes together. And the second bead is so perfect with the sari silk and avalanche of dangles! I seriously love the earrings, lime and turquoise is one of my favorite pairings, the little sputniks are such a perfect foil for the other round shapes.

Lorelei Eurto said...

WOW! So inspired by that first necklace. I love it!! I think that house bead is from Elukka.etsy.com
:)

stacilouise said...

You did such an amazing job of taking those bright colors and humbling them down a bit- my favorite is that first piece. Lovely.

Jean said...

You did fun!!! I think I could wear all those, and I am one who Never wears any earrings except my silver hoops!! Love it!

Lori Anderson said...

I love Genea's beads and I love your style -- and this really pushed you! I'm sorry about the pain meds -- there sounds like a story there! Thanks for showing this!!!1

Alicia said...

Very nice - I like all three pieces, and I love the focal bead necklace: it's so cheerful and happy :) The pins are beautiful and I can see how you'd wear it all summer long!

mairedodd said...

really really nice, heather... we weren't going anywhere... hope you are starting to feel better?!

Lori Bowring Michaud said...

Simply divine use of your soup ingredients Heather! It's nice to see what one can create when we step outside our comfort zone!

Bead-Mused said...

Love the pieces, Heather. I don't think I could come up with a favorite if you paid me to. And I am now a Genea fan.

Unknown said...

Everything looks wonderful. I especially like the green earrings and the button clasp on the first necklace and the the combination of copper and the darker metal on the last necklace.

tappingflamingo said...

I love your creation, so colorful, just like I like it!

Julia said...

I absolutely adore the soup you received-- LOVE LOVE LOVE the colors!-- and the jewelry that you made with it is so whimsical and bright. That first necklace is something special~ I love what you did for the clasp/closure (the flower is so cute!!!), and the asymmetrical look is perfect for this design. I'm in jewelry-love! <3

And more than that, I know EXACTLY what you mean about the "fuzz of pain medication". I have chronic pain myself, so I know all too well just how hard it is to create art when you are dealing with pain. Either you take the medicine and your brain is fuzzy, or you go without and can't focus because of the pain. I'm sorry that you know this, too-- it's the kind of thing that no one should truly know about.

I've been feeling quite under the weather, lately~ my pain has been giving me a having a hard time lately. I hope your situation has been better than mine-- it sounds like your cruise was lovely! Looking forward to seeing you around! <3

*~* Julia *~* http://beautifullywhimsical.blogspot.com *~*

Cindy said...

Heather, you and Genea make an incredible team! What beautiful pieces...absolutely worth the wait! I especially Love the first necklace and how you combined one of your polymer focals with the wingding beads....the colors are scrumptious.

Malin de Koning said...

So beautiful! So perfectly combined!

The house looks like Elukka I think.

Courtney Breul said...

Your ingredients are amazing! I love the second necklace ~ so bright and cheerful. I can completely see why it will be your go to piece for summer. I love how you used all the czech pieces, so wonderful.

Rosanne said...

Such great pieces! You did Genea's beads proud. I love her stuff too. Bright happy colors. Couldn't pick a favorite...loved them all. House came from Etsy shop Elukka, Szilvia is her name.

Spirited Earth said...

i love your soup and what you created with it is wonderful

Kathleen Lange Klik said...

Everything is beautiful and worth the wait! I love the variety of color and textures in the first necklace-really fun design. I also really like the silk ribbon necklace and the vibrant beads and colors. You are right, it does look like a great go-to summer piece!

TesoriTrovati said...

That was mmmm....mmmm...GOOD! I love Miss Genea's wingdings whenever I see them. The first necklace works so seamlessly with your pretty beads. And that house is so great. Really beautiful spread you created! Enjoy the day.
Erin

Off the Beadin' Path said...

You really created some beauty out of that large assortment! Your colors just soar! I think you put some of that island fun into each piece!

Therese's Treasures said...

Heather,
All of your pieces are gorgeous and full of fun. How could they not be fun with all the bright beautiful colors you were given to work with.
Therese

Charm Bracelets said...

I like the soup that has been cooked here.Nice and colourful and very pretty with the lock and key of the house.

Charming Peggy said...

OH How I love the Wing Dings! You did a really good job putting all of these pieces together!

Rebekah said...

LOVE your creations Heather! Genea's beads are awesome combined with yours! I'm a bit late doing my hopping, so you're right on time for me! :-) But I do have to say you were one of the first blogs I checked on reveal day. I'm so glad you were able to get some beady goodness made!

Best wishes to you!

Cece Cormier said...

Really great designs. Love all that color!