Yes, I am late... several days late in fact, which is very unusual for me. I have been a bit under the weather lately, and it took a big hit on my creativity so I had to wait for it to clear somewhat before I could post. First of all, I want to thank Lori Anderson over at Pretty Things for hosting us for this special hop. I get a lot of strength and energy from Lori and I couldn't wait to participate in her hop.
The whole theme of this Hop is going into your stash of beads and using those special ones that you have been hoarding. It is time for them to come to life into something beautiful that everyone can see. After all, your bead storage knows they are special beads so share with the world! I have had these sweet little beads by Diana Rast for some time. Check out her wonderful work here. I have started an obsession in the last year for lampwork beads and these khaki colored ones with the little pink dots are just adorable. Add in the sand dollar bead, and I am in love. Anything beachy makes this Florida girl happy.
The beads are very delicate, so I didn't want to overpower them when I made a necklace. So, I decided, soft, muted colors were the way to go. I love brown and pink together and the color of the nubs on the lampwork beads made it easy to go with my favorite color of pink. These little light rose glass beads are cultured sea glass so they fit perfectly with the sand dollar bead as well. I added amber color heishi cultured sea glass to add some interest between the softness of the pink. Here is a closeup:
I think you can really see the detail in the sand dollar now. I just love how this necklace came out. It fits well into my sea collection of pieces.
And, of course, I can never participate in a blog hop and not make earrings. This time, I worked within the color palette from the necklace, but the beads are a bit different.
This time, the bumpy lampwork (I am sure that has a name, so bead artists out there, please enlighten me. Even though I love just calling them bumpy) is by Nancy Sinclair. The khaki color is very close to the beads in the necklace, so they would work if you chose to wear them together. I added some of the light rose cultured sea glass and finished them off with faceted crystal rondelles. They look like sweet confections to me!
Thanks again for your patience in waiting for my post and to Lori for hosting us. I have enjoyed participating. Please take a peek at the other artists who also took part:
Robin Kae Reed http://www.willowdragon.blogspot.com/
Melissa Trudinger https://beadrecipes.wordpress.com/
Regina Wood Gina's Designs
Melissa Trudinger https://beadrecipes.wordpress.com/
Regina Wood Gina's Designs
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