Zion Necklace

I also made this Zion Necklace last week.  It's a super easy design.  I received this kit in a Best Bead Box subscription as well.  You can find the tutorial here.

I wasn't a fan of the colors at first, but it's actually very pretty stitched up.  I will always go for blue goldstone given a choice.  I love the necklace though!  The thread shows a little more than I would like around the bigger beads, but it's not as noticeable when it's worn. 

I got the Potomac Beads box subscription for six months last year and finally decided that I much prefer creating my own "kits" by choosing a design and then buying the beads myself.  I barely had enough of the tiny seed beads to finish.  I think I have just five or six left.  Anyway, I still have two kits from those boxes, but they aren't designs I would ever have chosen, so I keep debating whether or not to make them or just save the beads for something else.  It would be good practice, at least, and then I could give the completed necklaces as a gift to someone else.  One of these days!  :)

Orange Blossoms Necklace

I got this Orange Blossoms Necklace kit in a Best Beads box subscription last year.  I finally made it last week!  It's the most complicated bead weaving project I've ever done and I'm very proud of myself for doing it.  I absolutely love the design by Potomac Beads.  You can see the video tutorial here.

Isn't it gorgeous?  I love the pretty little flowers and definitely need to make this again in other colors.  Those tiny drop beads make the cutest petals.

It drapes really nicely on the neck.  The tutorial was easy to follow and I highly recommend it.

Gamer Birthday

My son Benjamin's birthday is today and he is a big video game fan, so I just had to use the Level Up stamp set by My Favorite things to make him a card.  This is not my design.  I copied a card from Amy Rysavy because I was in a hurry to get it done.  (of course!) 

The card was super quick and easy to make.  I pulled out the Game Controller dies by My Favorite Things, which I've had for ages and never used, so it was about time!  I simply stamped the sentiment in Onyx Black ink on white cardstock and layered it on True Black before adding it to a white card base.  I cut the controller out of Smokey Shadow cardstock and then glued on the little pieces using various colors of cardstock.  I used foam tape to pop it up for dimension.

I like how it turned out and I think my son will love it.  :)

Stamps:  Level Up (My Favorite Things)

Dies:  Game Controller (My Favorite Things)

Cardstock:  White, True Black, Smokey Shadow, Bright Buttercup, Pure Poppy, New Leaf, Hawaiian Shores

Misc:  Onyx Black (VersaFine); foam tape

Cat Earrings

I made these two pair of earrings as a birthday gift for a friend who loves animals and owns several cats.  I had these Czech glass beads in my stash, which is what sparked the idea.   The first pair uses black cat head beads with a gold wash.

While I had everything out, I made another set for my daughter Emily as a little surprise.  The second pair of earrings uses alabaster sitting cat beads with a copper wash and some coordinating metal spacer beads.

I made a little gift box using the Curvy Keepsakes Box die by Stampin' Up and stamped it with cats from the Say What: Pets stamp set by Lawn Fawn, but I forgot to take a picture of it before I gave it to my friend.  She really loved her birthday gift!

Yoga Bracelet

Here's the last of the jewelry projects that I've made over the past month.  I actually made it on Wednesday!  This was another kit that I received in a Potomac Beads subscription box.  Prior to this, I hadn't done macrame since I was a teenager.  It was really easy and quick to make following a tutorial on their Youtube channel.

The bracelet uses colors that I wouldn't have chosen for myself, but my daughter really likes it and it was good practice with a new technique.  I didn't have enough thread in the kit or I would have added at least two more wraps.  It's definitely a make-again design once I get some additional thread in other colors. 

This design would be a great way to use a variety of smaller beads from my stash.  I think next time I'll do a random mix instead of sections of the same bead.  It would give the bracelet a completely different look!

Hawaiian Tropics Necklace & Earrings

I made this Hawaiian Tropics necklace from a kit that came in a Potomac Beads subscription box last summer.  It involved lots of wire loop practice!  I followed the tutorial on their Youtube channel.

I love the fun colors in this necklace, as well as the Czech glass leaves and melon beads.  I also made some matching earrings using some of the same bead links that I made for the necklace.

Here's a few more close-up photos.  I took my time and had to remake a few links through the process, but I love the final result.  It's a fun necklace to wear!

Autumn Rhapsody Pendant

I have one more Humblebeads project to share.  This design was a tutorial by Heather Powers for The Great Bead Extravaganza group on Facebook and you can find the video for it here on the Humblebeads Youtube channel.  I was lucky enough to get a kit when they were available last year.

It features some soft sari silk and one of her polymer clay house beads, as well as a cool technique using SuperDuo beads.

I love the little Czech bell flower bead dangles and the metal leaf charm.  This design has so many textures.

The design uses 2-ply waxed Irish linen thread with a custom SuperDuo bead mix that came with the kit.  You can see another Humblebeads design with more SuperDuos on my blog here.

I love how the design forms oval-shaped links and will definitely use this technique again with other colors.

I love this necklace and can't wait to wear it in the future.  The tutorial was easy to follow and it turned out really well!

Harvest Earrings

I'm back with a second pair of earrings that I made with a kit from Heather Powers of Humblebeads which I purchased last fall.  I love this design and it would be so easy to change it up with different colors and beads.

You can find a tutorial here on the Humblebeads Youtube channel.  Super easy and quick to make!

Autumn Equinox Earrings

I'll be posting some jewelry over the next few days that I've made from kits over the past month.  These earrings are a design by Heather Powers of Humblebeads.  They use her polymer clay beads and feature some simple wire working to create mini bead pumpkins.  I bought this kit last fall and finally got around to making them.

Aren't they fun?  They were really easy to make too.  You can find a tutorial here on the Humblebeads Youtube channel called Autumn Leaf Earrings.

Christmas Tags 2021

I meant to post these last month, but here we are in a brand new year.  2021 seemed to fly by so fast.  December was crazy busy and I'm ready for a much calmer month.  My daughter Emily helped me make the tags this time, mainly by choosing the cardstock colors and getting me started by die cutting a lot of the pieces.  I decided to use the My Monthly Hero kit from Nov 2021 because I thought it would go quickly and I was short on time due to procrastination.  Ha!  It took about eight hours start to finish.  It was fun though!

Aren't those cute?  I debated over buying the Nov 2021 Hero Arts monthly kit, but I couldn't resist those adorable dies.  I didn't have time to get super creative over choosing stamp sets and designing four different tags this year, so this kit was perfect with the four different characters.  As usual, I made four of each tag.

First up is this cute little elf.  The main reason these tags took so long is that I cut pieces in multiple colors so that I could layer them.  If I'd had more time, I would have stamped some details on the hat and collar for this tag, as well as the hats or scarves on the others.

Dies:  Nov 2021 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts); Tag Sale #3 (Papertrey Ink)

Paper:  Blush Blossom (Stampin' Up); New Leaf, Green Parakeet, Dark Chocolate, True Black, Terracotta Tile (Papertrey Ink)

Misc:  white gel pen

Next is the reindeer tag.  I added Glossy Accents to the nose for some dimension and shine.  My daughter added the little highlight dots to all of the eyes of each tag with a white gel pen.

Dies:  Nov 2021 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts); Tag Sale #3 (Papertrey Ink)

Paper:  Creamy Caramel, Shaded Spruce (Stampin' Up); Pure Poppy, Dark Chocolate, True Black, Kraft (Papertrey Ink)

Misc:  white gel pen; Glossy Accents (Ranger) 

Next up is Santa.  I love the little pierced details on his beard and mustache.  For this tag, I added white flocking to the hat trim.

Dies:  Nov 2021 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts); Tag Sale #3 (Papertrey Ink)

Paper:  Blush Blossom, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up); New Leaf, Terracotta Tile (Papertrey Ink)

Misc:  white gel pen; glue pen; Cotton Ball White (Fun Flock) 

The last tag is the snowman.  I added a little sparkle to the scarf by using a clear Wink of Stella pen to color subtle circles.

Dies:  Nov 2021 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts); Tag Sale #3 (Papertrey Ink)

Paper:  White, True Black, Pure Poppy, New Leaf, Kraft (Papertrey Ink)

Misc:  white gel pen, clear Wink of Stella pen

These tags were really fun to make.  Next year though, I need to start much sooner so I can really take my time.  I've gotten into a bad habit of waiting until the last minute the past couple of years.  I'm really grateful for my daughter Emily's help in getting all these done.  I couldn't have done it without her!  She doesn't join me in the studio very often, so it will be a lovely memory of this past Christmas.