My Last Kisses of Summer Bracelet....

I'm still into the beadweaving and my latest (and definitely greatest) beadweaving is the 'Last Kisses of Summer Bracelet' by C. J. Bauschka from the August/September 2012 Beadwork issue.  I liked the picture on the front cover of the magazine so much that I decided to start with making one in those colors....
 

Ooh... isn't it so sparkly and pretty?    So one in this colorway (except I used tortoise colored fire-polished 6mm beads and a matte bronze seed bead) and because it turned out so splendidly, I made another in a silver colorway with blues, greens and purples...
And so this is how mine turned out.  The only other change I made was making it smaller than the pattern called for (made the bronzey one 14 right angle weave squares long and the silver one 15 right angle weave squares long).

I was planning on making this bracelet in all blue crystal colors but ordered the wrong size crystals - ordered 4mm instead of 3mm - which is needed for this bracelet.  Oh shucks, now I'll have to find a piece of jewelry to use the 4mm crystals with.  :)   Anyone have any beadweaving ideas for 4mm crystals?

Epoxy Clay

My friend and I took an Epoxy Clay class this past weekend.  This is my first time using any type of clay.  The results were less than stellar.  I don't know if polymer is easier to work with than epoxy or if it was because we weren't given any tools to use - just told to shape a pendant and earrings with our fingers but the final product kind of looks like play-doh with some crystals on it.  I think it would have looked nicer if we were given stamps for the surface or more cutting or shaping tools but with our fingers and a plastic sheet, it was hard to get the fingerprints out and to have clean shape lines. 
This may not be my medium...    But I'd still like to try polymer clay.

Trying some new Beadweaving...

I've earmarked several projects from Beadwork magazines and Bead & Button magazines and always wishfully looked at them - when I have the time I'll get to them, I think.  Well, now's the time.  5 minutes here, 15 minutes there.  Maybe only time to get one row of beads on between frantic uproars from the kids and eventually things get done.  Here's the first one I tried...

 It's supposed to be a 3 hour, $12 dollar bracelet - I don't know if I totally agree with either of those titles (especially when the project list includes a sterling silver clasp and SS 16 gauge wire - but it didn't cost too much and after figuring out the tension on the netting, I guess it didn't take too long.

 In different lighting, those big crystal beads look much more blue than purple.  It looks kind of cool.  I may even make another with different colors.  Does anyone know if TOHO size 8 beads are smaller than the Dyna-Mites purchased from Fire Mountain?  My friend is making one too and using TOHO beads - the beads seem smaller than the ones I used but it can be hard to really tell.