Jewelry Designs from Nature Inspiration: Poems and Photos

Today over on the Art Bead Scene I'm hosting a design challenge inspired by the poetry article in my book, Jewelry Designs from Nature.  I sent everyone a packet with a bead, poem and a photo for inspiration.  My book is now available in Hobby Lobby and Michael's.  I never tire of seeing it on the shelf when I walk in the door!  And even more exciting and worth celebrating is that my book is now in it's second printing! 

You can see the results and read more about it here.  

Below are the poems and photo inspirations that I sent along with jewelry that I created for the challenge. The designer tips are some ways to think about how to interpret a poem with beads.

The Sea

 

Designer Tips

• Use real beach stone beads mixed with silver or pewter metals to capture the feeling of water hitting the pebbles on a beach.
• Smaller stone dangles hanging on larger metals loops could symbolize the continuous cycle of waves hitting the shore.
• Pair rough textured or bumpy beads with frosted matte glass.

 Designer Tips:

• A complimentary color combination of gold, copper and purple, taking its cue from the colors of a sunset would be a good place to start.
• Add a little boat charm bobbing on a sea of lampwork beads.
• Play with the line of sight on a necklace, adding in dangles on a chain to symbolize the bobbing of boats on the water.
• If you could find an opal pendant with flashes of gold, orange and purple that would be the perfect focal for this poem.

Designer Tips:

• Sprinkle red enamel bead caps with gunmetal ball headpins on a bracelet filled with teal blue and the bleached out golden hues of sea grass.
• On a metal ring with a white patina, add charms of tiny red beads, sea shell charms and blue glass drops.
• Pair a large poppy pendant with matte faux sea glass, pebbles and wood beads for a necklace that takes it cue from treasures found along the sandy shore.

 The Woodlands

 

Designer Tips:

• Mix gold with brass metals to symbolize the change of the seasons.
• Add in charms and pendants with leaves and trees.
• Combine monochromatic tones of gold and light green in stones, glass and ceramic beads.  
• Wrap wire to create entwined textures. 

 

Designer Tips:

• Picked beads in hues of purple or navy blue in ombre hues to reflect the twilight night sky.
• Pair a tiny bird bead with tree pendant.
• A charm bracelet with birds, hearts, trees, tiny houses and wings uses all the symbols reflected in the poem. 

Designer Tips

• Silver is the easy choice for this poem.
• Use glass headpins in clear and light blue to mimic raindrops.
• Pick stones in rock crystals or quartz to symbolize rain.
• Pick birds, crowns, hearts and music notes charms or pendants.
• Use Twig connectors and clasps mixed with white and green beads.

 

 

Designer Tips:

• A grape leaf toggle with clusters of tiny amethyst and leaf charms are an easy choice.
• Add a crow bird bead to a leaf pendant along with a lush collection of beads in autumnal colors.
• Create a lariat with two leaf pendants on a beaded chain to symbolize the falling leaves of fall.

The Garden

 

 

 Designer Tips:

• Pick the blushes and pinks of rose petals in stones and glass.
• Find bee and rose charms.
• Use wire and branch connectors wrapped in a bramble of wire to represent the thorns.
• Layer leaf pendants in metal and ceramic for a dynamic focal.
• Create ribbon roses in sari silk to add texture.

 

Designer Tips:

• Cluster faceted citrine beads to sparkle and shine like a row of daffodils.
• Soft silk ribbon in golden hues ties on a chain can mimic the delicate petals of the flowers.
• A long chain interspersed with tiny yellow dangles and a floral focal would reflect the never-ending line of flowers.

Designer Tips

• Gather a cluster of Czech glass leaves to symbolize a forest floor.
• Thread silk cord in a chocolate brown through a chain and attach tiny white flower beads. 
• Pair s single flower pendant among a lush dangle of leaf charms.

Visit the Art Bead Scene to view the blog hop results.

Which poem speaks the most to you?  Do you find inspiration in literature - using phrases and quotes as the basis for your jewelry?