Table of contents for December 2019 in Bead&Button

WIRE & FIRE: BLEND WIRE WEAVING AND TORCH TECHNIQUES FOR BEAUTIFUL JEWELRY By Kaska Firor and Katherine Firor Colque With this book, Kaska and her daughter Kat show the creative ways you can combine wire weaving and metalworking to make earrings, pendants, cuffs, and necklaces. If you’re new to these skills, start with the Basics section, which contains thorough step-by-step instructions for all techniques used in the book, such as wire weaves, annealing, soldering, bezeling, drilling, finishing, and more. Use these techniques to create 14+ dazzling jewelry designs. Finally, a gallery with examples of the artists’ work is sure to inspire. Kalmbach Media 978-1-62700-636-1 JewelryAndBeadingStore.com BEADS: A REFERENCE AND PRICE GUIDE By Sindi Schloss This book provides a historical jewelry review. It includes a comprehensive guide for identifying, dating, and…

peyote / bead weaving BASE Work two-drop odd-count peyote stitch the same way as basic flat odd-count peyote, but treat a pair of beads as if they were a single bead. 1) On a comfortable length of thread, and leaving a 24-in. (61 cm) tail, pick up 10 color A 11º cylinder beads. These beads will shift to form rows 1 and 2 as the next row is added. End and add thread as needed. 2) Following the pattern in figure 1, work rows 3–12 in odd-count peyote stitch using As and picking up two beads per stitch. 3) Row 13: Work the first stitch with As, work the second stitch with color B 11º cylinder beads, and work the last stitch with As. The Bs form the first half…

Springtime is ALEX ROEDER’S favorite season—when color pops all over in her hometown of Kennewick, located in the southeastern portion of Washington state. That’s when this bead designer’s imagination runs wild with botanical inspiration, as evidenced in her bead-embroidered and beadwoven body of work. “I’m totally inspired by spring colors,” says Roeder. “And I love the wonderful fragrances in the springtime.” In fact, one of her necklaces of bright flower blossoms and leaves is aptly named “Her Sweet Perfume.” Roeder’s love for the peach and pink colors of azaleas and rhododendrons inspired her design called “Blushing Blossoms,” and “Lily” emulates lily pads and their delicate, floating flowers. “Lily” won the Grand Award in the BeadDreams 2019 competition. This was the seventh year in a row in which one of her…

PEYOTE BAND 1) On a comfortable length of thread, attach a stop bead, leaving a 6-in. (15 cm) tail. Starting at the upper-right corner of the pattern, pick up 11º cylinder beads for rows 1 and 2: one A, one D, one E, 16 Fs, one E, one D, and one A. 2) Following the pattern or the Word chart (get it at FacetJewelry.com/resourceguide), work in flat even-count peyote stitch using the appropriate color cylinders. End and add thread as needed. When the band is complete, remove the stop bead, and end the threads. CLASP Attach 1 ft. (30 cm) of thread to one end of the beadwork, and exit the third up-bead from the edge that ends with an up-bead (figure 1, point a). Pick up a 60 seed…

DIGGING FOR GEMS UNEARTHS SEA MONSTER Remember the enormous sea lizard in the movie Jurassic World? In the action flick, the beast is shown jumping out of the water to grab a sizable shark and swallowing it in one gulp. It turns out that this leaping lizard is based on a real creature—and one was found recently by miners! While digging for ammolite (see more on this gem, p. 61), miners unearthed a nearly-complete, fossilized skeleton of the marine reptile known as a mosasaur. Scientists believe it to be the genus Tylosaurus, which lived during the dinosaur age about 70 million years ago. It seems Alberta, Canada, is where ammolite and mosasaurs can be found! Do you have what it takes? It’s time to enter BeadDreams and the Metal Jewelry…

Peggy Vargas LET’S GO 3-D Winner • “Beaded Spice Box” • Based on the decorations at the Jubilee Synagogue in Prague, Czech Republic, this box is made with Japanese cylinders and Swarovski crystals. Jacquie Moffat LET’S GO 3-D Winner • “Japanese Dragonscale Handbag” • This silk-lined, chain mail purse is made of aluminum jump rings with a Swarovski crystal star and a magnetic clasp. Cliff Swain-Salomon THE BIRDS AND THE BEES Reader’s Choice Winner • “Dream Helpers” • This necklace incorporates herringbone, peyote, African helix, fringe, right-angle weave, and ladder stitches. Rosemary Holland THE BIRDS AND THE BEES Winner • “Luna Moth Necklace” • The bead-embroidery necklace highlights a hand-painted glass cabochon, featuring a luna moth. Fringe gives the focal point a fluttery effect. ENTER TO WIN We invite you…

CRAW / bead weaving CRAW BASE 1) On a comfortable length of thread and leaving a 6-in. (15 cm) tail, use 11º seed beads to work five units of cubic right-angle weave (CRAW) (figure 1). End and add thread as needed. 2) Sew through the beadwork to exit any bead in the center unit. Work two units perpendicular to the strip (figure 2). 3) Sew through the beadwork to exit the opposite side of the center unit on the original strip, and work two more units in the other direction (figure 3). 4) Sew through the beadwork to exit the shared bead on the top surface between the two new units just added (figure 4, bead outlined in red). End the tail but not the working thread. BEZEL 1) Pick…

odd- and even-count peyote PEYOTE BAND 1) On a comfortable length of thread, attach a stop bead, leaving a 6-in. (15 cm) tail. Starting at the upper-right corner of the pattern, pick up seven color A 11º cylinder beads for rows 1 and 2. 2) Following pattern 1 or the Word chart (get it at FacetJewelry.com/resourceguide), work in flat odd-count peyote stitch using the appropriate color cylinders. End and add thread as needed. 3) Exiting an end 11º, pick up three 15º0 seed beads, and sew through the following two edge 11ºs to form a picot (figure 1, a–b). Repeat this stitch for the remainder of this edge. 4) Repeat step 3 on the opposite edge of the bracelet. Remove the stop bead, and end the working thread and tail.…

You found a fabulous peyote bracelet pattern. Now what? Bracelet patterns often omit steps that show you how to complete the bands, such as attaching a clasp. This is mainly due to the many options for finishing (which are personal choices!). To help you complete your pattern projects, here are a few suggestions. METALLIC FINDINGS SLIDE TUBE CONNECTORS PRO: Available in different colored finishes and sizes. CON: Most versions are limited to use with 11º and 15º seed beads; not suggested for beadwork that is tapered to a point. To use: Slide the end row of the beaded band into the hollow clasp, and gently press the flaps on the tube’s edges down with chainnose pliers. Attach a clasp of your choice by using jump rings as connectors. Repeat on…

peyote stitch: flat and tubular / ladder stitch BEZELED CRYSTAL 1) On 4 ft. (1.2 m) of thread, pick up seven 11º cylinder beads, a color A 15º seed bead, 17 cylinders, and an A (figure 1, a–b). Pick up this same sequence of beads again. Leaving a 2-ft. (61 cm) tail, sew through the beads again (not shown in the figure for clarity), and tie the beads into a ring with a square knot. Continue through the first eight beads to exit the first A (b–c). These beads will shift to form the first two rounds as the next round is added. 2) Work rounds of tubular peyote as follows: Round 3: Using cylinder beads, work nine stitches (c–d) on the first side, four stitches on the second side…

bead weaving SNOWFLAKE PATTERN 1 1) On 1 yd. (.9 cm) of thread, pick up six color B 80 Demi beads. Leaving a 6-in. (15 cm) tail, sew through these beads a couple times to form a ring (not shown in the figure for clarity), and sew through the first two beads (figure 1, a–b). 2) Pick up a color C 11º Demi bead, and sew through the next B (b–c). Repeat this stitch five times to complete the round (c–d). 3) Pick up a color A 80 Demi bead, a color E 11º Demi bead, and an A, and sew through the next B (figure 2, a–b). Repeat this stitch five times to complete the round, and step up through the first A added (b–c). 4) Pick up an…

Holly green and berry red are traditional holiday hues. As a special seasonal supplement, we offer you a list of gemstones that wrap up both colors together. What wonderful winter projects will you make with these? 1 OREGON SUNSTONE, the state gem of Oregon, is the only sunstone with copper inclusions. Also, it’s the only sunstone that can be transparent and have a natural red and/or green color. Before the discovery of Oregon sunstone in 1980, the term “sunstone” was only used as a trade name for feldspar minerals that had a glittery effect or golden sheen. Gemologists call this phenomenon aventurescence. It’s caused by light reflecting from flat crystals of copper, hematite, or other minerals inside the stone. Dealers tend to use “schiller” to describe the twinkling effect of…

Blizzard For this cool necklace, I blended white, silver, and clear crystal components for a luxurious appearance. When using a monochromatic color theme, I like to incorporate different textures, finishes, and sizes. I created contrast and dimension by mixing several strands of tiny Murano glass seed beads with large Swarovski crystal baroque pearls, groupings of crystal pendants, and several strands of small round crystal pearls and beads, which are all held together with the multi-strand “Confetti” clasp from Alacarte Clasps. Linda Hartung Forestville, California linda@alacarteclasps.com alacarteclasps.com Rose Hips My designs are often inspired by nature. This piece honors my love of rose hips, which cling to vines and shrubs after the flowers are gone. I used coral beads for the hips, and the Russian-leaf technique to develop the spiky-edged, cupped…

peyote / bead weaving COMPONENTS 1) On 1 yd. (.9 m) of thread, pick up 36 seed beads as follows: one color D 11º, one color G 15º, one D, six Gs, two color H 15ºs, two color I 15ºs, two Gs, two Hs, two Is, one G, two Is, two Hs, two Gs, two Is, two Hs, and six Gs. Leaving a 6-in. (15 cm) tail, sew through the beads again (not shown in the figure for clarity) to form a ring, and continue through the first D picked up (figure 1, a–b). The beads in the peyote section of the component will shift to form rows 1 and 2 as the next row is added. 2) Pick up a G, skip the next G in the ring, and…

kumihimo This necklace and bracelet is a beaded eight-cord kongoh gumi braid. You can work it either on a marudai or a foam disk. The instructions are for the disk. SETUP 1) For a necklace, cut four cords to 8 ft. (2.4 m) each. For a bracelet, cut four cords to 5 ft. (1.5 m) each. Fold the cords in half, and tie an overhand knot near the fold to make a small loop to hang the counterweight. There will now be eight cords (photo a). 2) Coat the ends of the cords with Fray Check or white glue, and allow them to dry. Trim the end of each cord. 3) Align the kumihimo disk so you have a dot at the top, the bottom, and each side. 4) Feed…

flat peyote / tubular peyote This embellished tin is highly customizable. Samples shown include: top with painted glass cabochon (two techniques); top with metal filigree; beaded or unbeaded base. Mix and match these options for an unlimited collection of one-of-a-kind trinket boxes. You can also choose to purchase any domed 40–42 mm round cabochon that strikes your fancy. HAND-PAINTED GLASS CABOCHON Hand-painted glass cabochons are fun and easy to make and offer the perfect mini canvas for self expression. Choose either the wet-paint technique or the dry-paint technique, depending upon the look you want to achieve. Visit youtube.com/YdpKx_PPgcA to watch a video that demonstrates the following two cabochon painting techniques: Wet-paint technique The wet-paint technique results in a cab with a soft, variegated look. The tin with the blue cabochon…

the commercialization of the season can catch up to us easily. We peruse local brick-and-mortar stores, hunt through malls, and scour online for the perfect gifts at the best prices. Buying this, that, and the other thing for what feels like everyone under the sun. Wouldn’t it be great if we could do all this shopping while supporting the environment and contributing to the success of others? Good news—we can! Here are a few options to treat yourself, others, and the world in which we live. Glass does good Artist Maureen Henriques of Pumpkin Hill Beads makes lampworked pendants in the likeness of elephants, rhinos, and pangolins. She donates a percentage of the proceeds to charities that work to rescue the type of animal you buy. Find her creations at…