Monday, August 04, 2008

Making Jewellery. My Process Part 1

About a month ago I finally finished a couple of sets for a friend of mine. She talked to me at the beginning of the year, could I help her. Her sister had given her a necklace and bracelet set. She loved some of the beads but the necklace was plain and the bracelet cut off her circulation.

I asked her if she had anything particular. She said that she didn't really but, 'could I emphasise the green more than the pink and could she have a necklace, bracelet and earrings please'. So with those instructions I set to work.

Well, setting to work for me means mulling. I set all the beads out. If I was to make a three piece set pretty much only the green beads, that meant I'd need to add things. Luckily, I'd just purchased some cheap turquoise cabs that were just the colour.

To keep costs down, I decided I'd use brass wire. I wrapped the large turquoise cab and started to string... and got completely stuck.

After some months of mulling, I took the beads with me to a bead day with friends and asked for help. This is the idea that they came up with.




Armed with these new ideas, knowing I could use the read and yellow beads for a completely different set, I happily went home.

I wrapped the small cabs and went about putting them with the beads for earrings. I put one together... and hated it. Perhaps I could work the necklace itself. That didn't go well either.

In the end I cut all the wires, put the turquoise set in one bag and the red beads in another and set them aside.