Marilyn's Horn of Plenty!

Paterkillar Beaded Beads Necklace - $80.00
Eight beaded beads strung on a 32-inch leather string, each approximately 1 1/2 inches long. Interspaced between us are moonstone beads (13). This piece can be worn as a longer necklace, a choker, a bracelet. 2 blue and white, 2 turquoises and orange, 2 red and yellow and 2 purple and white- all on a black base.

Marilyn G of cigarboxbeads is a retired home Ec teacher from Seal Beach, California, with twins and a husband. Her retirement only makes it easier for her creative ideas to flow. She loves to knit, crochet, and do bead-weaving to create upscale elegant jewelry.

Her style of jewelry has abundance written all over it, from her caterpillar-like beaded necklace shown above, to multi-layered pieces such as this one called; Cottage Garden Bracelet.

Cottage Garden Bracelet - $85.00
Woven with a square stitch base and a vintage mauve-purple flower button, with loops on the other end of the bracelet, to accommodate a small wrist or a medium sized one. The bracelet measures 8 inches from one end to the other, with 2 loops of tiny gem chips, will fit a wrist of 6 1/2-8 inches.

To this elegantly netted piece below (this is an absolute steal for $85.00)! This is another piece you collectors should grab quickly. I have seen similar items made by other artists that are selling for about 2-3 times that price!

Chocolate Mocha Truffle Netted Choker - $85.00
15 inches long, except for the clasp. Choker is entirely netted into a cloth-like mesh.

To see more of Marilyn’s beautiful bead-woven jewelry, check out her Etsy store;
http://cigarboxbeads.etsy.com

To learn more about the artist and her current activities, make sure not to miss her blog;
http://cigarboxbeads.blogspot.com

A Tale of Beaded Tapestries

The artist behind A Rose By Name has been creating beadwork for 10 years and started experimenting with beads with her children, creating beaded animals. Over time she progressed to more and more refined designs of greater complexity.

Her tapestry-like style uses mostly flat Peyote and some Circular Peyote Stitch and she graphs intricate designs in tiny Delica seedbeads. Among the items she has made are votive candle covers, lip balm-case-covers, business card cases, and a variety of jewelry.

This Watermelon Plaid Cuff bracelet is so neat and precise, and the button used as a closure really tops it off and gives it an elegant look. These colors are beautiful and perfect for Christmas. They remind me a lot of that ribbon candy I used to eat as a child. The width of this cuff makes it all the more impressive!

Then there is this Rolling Waves Cuff that is equally beautiful but made of circular cylinders or beaded mesh attached at either end with a thin strip of bead-weaving that holds all parts together. The colors graduate from blue to green, and the button is a lovely translucent pink which creates a nice contrast against the blue and green. I just had to show two views of this one so readers could get the full impact of it, as it looks very different when open from closed.

Another ocean-inspired piece is Linked By The Sea. This necklace is actually a chain made of flat Peyote Stitch in short segments linked together to look like rolo chain. It is a shimmering blue-green with a sort of iridescent surface.

This artist belongs to Etsy Beadweaver, The Cleveland Rocks Etsy and BBEST-Boomers & Beyond Street Teams. For something truly lovely and high quality, go to her Etsy online store at: http://arosebyname.etsy.com

and to learn more about the artist go to:

http://arosebyname.blogspot.com

Reaching for the Stars…One Bead At A Time

Patricia Vener has lived a fascinating life spanning several careers; an accomplished and published writer, and retired ballerina, she also holds a Masters Degree in Astrophysics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy NY. She worked as an astronomer and still teaches astronomy as an adjunct professor for University of Maryland University College.)

Her earliest influence was the beadwork and textiles she saw in a Native American exhibit at the local museum on Rochester New York as a young child. Captivated by color and texture, Patricia became interested in Color Theory, inspired by the work of Impressionist painters and such Art Nouveau artists as Alphonse Maria Mucha, Paul Berthon, among others.

Given her background it is not surprising that she chose bead-weaving using tiny glass seed beads as her jewelry specialty, an array of techniques in which mathematical precision is an asset, and patience is a virtue, although her work clearly shows a sense of grace without being overly geometric or constrained.

Using Peyote Stitch, right-angle weave, and a number of netting stitches, the artist typically creates a woven flat base upon which she builds, layering it with various embellishments for texture. Many of her necklaces are elaborate bead-woven collars that celebrities and other VIPs would die for if they only knew about them.

In “Complementary “, ruffles around the neck are reminiscent of Victorian coiffure, while the brightly contrasting purple and orange color scheme and circular centerpiece look distinctly African-influenced. I particularly like what she’s done with this one, blending design elements from two so disparate cultures together within the same piece. Materials include; Seed beads, bugles, triangle beads, malachite chips and a vintage rhinestones. This necklace will appear in a print ad in Ornament Magazine during the months of October, December and March.

“Angle Waves” is a lovely pair of earrings in brown and very pale pink with a zigzagging pattern which evokes a feeling of excitement and liveliness, culminating in a spray of fringe at the bottom. They retail for a very reasonable $25.00!

“Red Sky at Night” http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=5176357 incorporates exquisite sunset colors in a Russian Peyote Stitch woven in a dramatic V-shape. These epitomize elegance and grace and would make a gorgeous gift for the holidays.

Patricia’s business, Silver Dragon Creations has two web-presences; on on Etsy and the other, a free-standing website. Those of you who have only seen her work on Etsy are really missing out on a treat, as she currently has most of her best work on her other site although she is working more of her elaborate pieces in gradually.

She belongs to the International Jewelry Designers Guild as well as the local Baltimore Bead Society.

Beadwoven jewelry has historically been under-appreciated mostly due to lack of public education about its value. Jewelry like this is worth a lot more than the traditional mark-up normally placed on other styles. It is a skill that takes years to master, so money spent on it is money well-spent. Part of its value is because often this type of jewelry is not mass-produced as you might see in jewelry that is casted, fabricated with a torch, wire-wrapped, or strung.

To see everything and to purchase please check out http://silverdragon.etsy.com/
and see more of her masterpieces here; http://vener-art.com/handmade-beaded-jewelry.html

A wide variety of payment options exist, and she currently offers free shipping inside the US.

Hemlock Wreath Reflecting Mountain Stream-Bracelet

This new piece is now available for purchase in my Etsy store. Buy that special gift well before the Christmas rush. This bracelet is one=of-a-kind, has a sterling silver box clasp on it with three leaves carved in it, fits a 6 1/2" wrist. Fine, water-clear quartz briolettes seem to drip from the ends of branched fringe which shimmers with a matte blue-green irridescence.