Swimming in the heat

Hooray for long weekends and indoor crafts before a heat wave. (click to enlarge)

I made two necklaces and two goldfish. I downloaded the goldfish pattern from Abby's site While She Naps. You can print a pdf of instructions to make this ornament or part of a mobile.

I still can't get over how easy it is to make a necklace. You need the crimper tool, 2 crimp beads, two seed beads, Fireline wire or other stringing material, a needle to pass through the decorative beads and a mix of beads. I use a beader's tray to make it easy to lay out to study and measure the length of the necklace: 17 inches, with another inch for the clasp run it up to a nice length of 18 inches. At both ends of the necklace, pass a threaded needle through the crimp bead, a seed bead, the loop on the clasp, back down through the seed bead, back through the crimp bead to finish down a couple of inches into the decorative beads. Tighten all firmly and crimp (tighten) first with the funny hole and then again with the round hole on the crimper tool. Do this at both ends and voila. Don't cut the wire until you are sure it will hold (meaning the crimper bead is tight enough). You will find other ways to secure things. I do a hidden knot about two inches down and use clear fingernail polish to glue.

Beading for Beth's Birthday

At beading Thursday, Nita showed a new "sapphire" necklace which reminded me of daughter-in-law Beth, whose birthday is this week. I immediately forgot all the thinking I had done about a gift she might prefer and ran immediately to the bead store. I bought some beads that turned different colors under different lights. That would not do. Back to another bead store where I found the stable "sapphire" string that stayed the same color. ( you can click on the necklace)

I got out my unused bead tray (I had boys, seldom wear necklaces, and barely know how to make them). I lined up the bigger beads, alternating 5 seed beads between them and started stringing on beading wire (6 lbs strength) until the length was 17 inches and the clasp would make 18 inches. I used a beading needle with a big hole in the middle to run the tiny wire through sterling silver crimpers, up through the clasp hole and back down through the crimper and into some beads. After pulling firmly I crimped with the crimper's funny hole first and then the round crimper hole to finish. I learned to leave the ends of the strings on until I was sure all held together, since the first necklace fell apart. But artists don't give up. I next performed extra security with an invisible knot and some clear fingernail polish and clipped the wire. The earrings, are just headpins and beads with the pin end wrapped around needle nose pliers and twisted to make a loop to attach to the earring findings, which I opened, inserted the loop and then closed off.