Saturday, March 3, 2012

When Life Gives You Beads... Make Bead Soup!

I'm participating in the 5th Bead Soup Blog Hop Party.  The way it works is that you are partnered with another bead lover -- one whose pieces are quite different from your own.  My lovely partner is Cindy Cima Edwards and you can find her work at  www.zimaj.com, www.etsy.com/shop/zimaj,  and www.cindycima.com/.  She even told me how to make a favicon, which is the little black cat at the top of my blog... which looks remarkably like Cindy's favicon.

You send your partner a bag of beads, a focal, and a clasp and your partner sends you a bag of beads, a focal...



...and a clasp.  Here's the clasp Cindy sent me, and some of the beads.


Then... you make something with your beads and focal and clasp, and so does your partner.  Elsewhere other partners are scratching their heads and wondering what to do with their beads.






I was a very lucky partner.  Because, though my partner's tastes and mine are quite different, she selected a disparate group of elements that appealed to my eclectic nature.


She gave me beads in colors I rarely use...

...

...and metals that I've never used...


...but in colors and textures that looked fabulous together.


This forced me to think out of the box, break out of my comfort zone, and experiment.

Some of the Bead Soupers made several pieces out of their "soup" but I was enchanted with the way my bits looked together.  I went out and got more chain in matching metal but un-matching patterns.


I got myself some bronze colored copper wire, knowing I'd be able to wrap with that.  I got myself some stringing material and some end loops and started pondering how I was going to join chain with strung beads.



And I came up with a concept -- something I'd been wanting to do for a long time.  I wanted to make a complex and long lariat necklace.  A lariat necklace, for inquiring minds, is generally long, with an open end and a loop through which the open end can pass.












Of course, first I had to figure out how to do that with the pieces I now had heaped in front of me.  I figured out a way to join strung elements and chain.



Then I figured out how to make one end of the necklace split off and form a loop big enough for my tiger's eye focal bead to pass through.



I even figured out how to combine the elements so that each element enhanced the others.


I wire wrapped and strung and strung and wire wrapped.



I struggled with the beautiful clasp.  I also struggled with the concept that a lariat necklace doesn't HAVE a clasp.  Mine does.




It turns out (as you may have already guessed, that if your necklace has open ends and a clasp, you can end up with two disconnected pieces of necklace.  I'm still working on that.  ;0)

But it was all okay because the necklace was looking cool.



Really cool.




I mean, seriously cool.





It is, in fact, so cool, that I am going to give it as a gift to my friend Melissa, who faithfully follows my blog every single day (as do her cats) and who supports my jewelry and writes me wonderful emails even when I'm too buried in beads and work and cat fur to email back.




And it's going to look very cool on her.

Now... if you would like to hop to the other blogs, coolness awaits, and here's a little "map" for you.

Enjoy and thanks for sharing my beady adventure.



Hostess, Lori Anderson 
(who made this utterly amazing list and organized the whole beady shebang)


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)


59 comments:

  1. Wow oh Wow...thank you Eleanor! I was reading and looking and reading and thinking How cool is this necklace, and I LOVE what Eleanor came up with. Then I read you are giving it to me! Yip Yip. I am soo thrilled. Thank you, thank you!! This is so cool, and so very thoughtful of you. Congrats on such a fabulous design...and HUGE thanks! Love ya.
    Wow oh wow, oh wow, oh wow, oh wow....etc. etc.

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  2. Eleanor - This is a super cool necklace! I just keep looking at it going: "Shiny, pretty, neat, shiny, pretty" etc. Beautiful!

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  3. I am glad that the beads I sent allowed you to do something you had wanted to for a long time!
    I believe anything goes in jewelry making so the fact that you defied the norm and have a clasp for you lariat is great! Yes - your necklace is seriously cool!!!

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  4. What a lovely, earthy bead soup you received. I love all the colors and textures. Your lariat is just gorgeous--what a great idea! Your friend will cherish it for sure.

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  5. Absolutely beautiful! I'm glad you embraced the spirit of the hop and made something different from your norm! Well done.

    I hope you join me again this summer!

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  6. Your necklace is beautiful! The colors and earthy but there is still a feminine feel to it! Your friend is one lucky lady to receive that necklace! :)

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  7. You did a wonderful job! I'm sure your friend will have a lot of fun with her present!

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  8. Lovely necklace! I like the blend of chain and beaded sections. I like how it feels earthy but not heavy, rather elegant and romantic. Well done!

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  9. Very unique and romantic as well
    I love it

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  10. Beautiful job, Eleanor. I am a big fan of lariats, and tend to make them a lot. This one is just gorgeous, and I think your friend will be thrilled with it! Fabulous!

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  11. Melissa is one lucky cat owner and friend. This is a gorgeous necklace steeped in romance. I love all the differnt components and how well each complements the other.

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  12. Great necklace, I really like it. It's great that you're giving it to a friend too. She is a lucky woman.

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  14. You have a wonderful friend and she is one lucky lady to receive this one awesome necklace. You have blended all the elements together just perfectly!

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  15. Your necklace is so pretty! Love the design! Suzette

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  16. your friend is going to LOVE that piece, it turned out to be an awesome piece!

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  17. I just know Melissa is going to love the necklace. It is gorgeous!

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  18. Your friend is lucky! I love long necklaces, and this one is so pretty, and just right to wear all dressed up or with jeans and a cute tee. :D

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  19. Well, so many wrote the best word that my early morning joy could not come up with when I read about the beautiful necklace....romantic. It is a very, very romantic piece with all the warm, earthy elements and especially the great detail to wrapping the beads and how they are worked with each other. Romantic says it for sure. And....everyone was spot on that I am one lucky, lucky woman to have the necklace, and most especially to have a friend in Eleanor! Life is good.

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  20. You have made such a beautiful necklace! The focals and clasp you were sent are stunning, and yes, Melissa, you are one very lucky lady!

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  21. What a pretty mix of elements. I also love the length of this - makes it very versatile.

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  22. Very pretty lariat..great piece
    I like your photo layout also.:)

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  23. Melissa is one lucky Lady. This necklace is gorgeous!!!! I love the colours in the soup that you were sent but you made something beautiful with it!

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  24. What a drop dead gorgeous necklace. LOVE the soup you got and your friend is a lucky gal.

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  25. That is lovely. I would wear that in a heartbeat.

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  26. gorgeous, love the asymmetrical nature of your designs...

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  27. STUNNING! Love the marriage of the chain and earthy beads with the sparkle of the crystals!

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  28. I, too, love the earthy tones Cindy gave you...beautiful palette! Your lariat is spectacular! I love your design! Great job!

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  29. You received a wonderful mix of soup ingredients and I love what you created out of it. I'm a big fan of asymmetrical designs, yours is stunning!
    Cheers!
    Lori D.

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  30. Beautiful design that just rocks beyond words! I luv luv luv it! So Boho, earthy, see this design dressed up or down! U hit home run with ur design! U got serious skills!! Ur friend is gonna flip!!

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  31. You are right - that necklace is really cooooool!
    Your wirework matches perfectly with the other ingredients. The flower is lovely and so is the clasp.
    You've done a great job.
    Sabine

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  32. Too right! That is one super cool necklace. I think a lot of us are envying Melissa right now :)

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  33. How fun!!! I love what you did with the beads and I'm blown away by how many folks participated!!!

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  34. Just gorgeous, I wanted to do a lariat with my soup too, but could not figure out how to get it together. You have done such a great job with yours!

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  35. Really nice lariat style. Well done.

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  36. A stunning necklace! I have no doubt Melissa will wear it with great pride. Beautiful :) x

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  37. So pretty. Love the earthy beads with the chain!

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  38. Love the fun asymmetry in your design!!

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  39. Your necklace is great! I love how you used the beautiful filigree flower. Well done. :)

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  40. Very cool *g*! I thought about doing a lariat as well, and it just wouldn't come together in my head, or my fingers (although I have made others, not to be this time). It worked beautifully for you, I love it!

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  41. Cool is right! What a gorgeous lariat you've created with so many wonderful elements! I've never made a lariat before... you've inspired me to try it out... now I just need to pick some beads... :-)

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  42. Love the long beautiful necklace you made - very cool indeed!

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  43. Beautiful. Has a romantic vintage feel to the design. It is great that you created a style you have been wanting to try out-that is what Bead Soup is all about!

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  44. While I very much enjoyed the wonderful colors and textures sent for your bead soup creation, I appreciated, nearly as much, the word and photo buildup to your ultimate presentation! I DO love suspense!! Yours was an impressive use of most of the materials received (and a few more)! The Swarovsky crystals added a lovely touch of sparkle, nicely balancing the other elements. Wonderful creativity and great FUN! ~Sydney

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  45. I think it turned out wonderful. I love all the different components and the fact that it's a lariat necklace. Great piece.

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  46. You had great ingredients! And I love the way you photographed and teased us. :) Your necklace is absolutely wonderful! I love that it is a lariat! Congrats.

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  47. I think you were very clever to highlight your elements individually as you did and I really like the lariat concept. A beautiful piece!

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  48. You are so right, that necklace is way cool. I love lariat necklaces and yours is so beautiful. I usually make them in a rustic style, yours is so feminine and pretty. Love the crystals. Great job! Your friend is very luck to get it, but sounds like you are very lucky to have her.

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  49. your lariat rocks. makes me want to make a lariat... hm....

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  50. Lovely piece, it is gorgeous! I love the subtle colors, the way you mixed up the chains, the focal, love it all!

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  51. Very nice piece - earthy tones, but not too subdued, very strong and feminine at the same time. For the clasp - you can use the 2 elements as... connectors throughout the existing chain (making it even longer, or taking a few of the other elements off). That way - your lariat will stay put and not disconnect in 2 individual strings. And you have used that beautiful clasp (I like its leafy shape!)

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  52. I love your lariat, it is really beautiful! And I love that you were able to use all the components in one piece!
    Sonya

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  53. Those colors would have seriously stumped me, but you really made something quite beautiful. I hope you are proud of it because you totally SHOULD BE!!

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  54. wonderful, I love your "balance" in the piece.

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  55. Beautiful! I love how you assembled your piece with you lovely components!

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  56. What a lovely long necklace! Your soup turned out well.

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  57. Just the perfect balance it came out lovely!

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  58. Wow, this is really cool! And thank you for sharing the whole story :-)

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