6th Bead Soup Blog Party®, 1st Reveal

I'm so happy you're here!

So what is the Bead Soup Blog Party?  It's a huge blog hop and beading challenge that has grown into so much more than I ever expected.  There's now a Facebook group for bead and jewelry designers and this October, a book!  To say I'm honored by everyone's participation is a supreme understatement (click here to see the maps!).


As with all my BSBP reveals, this is long, but I hope it's worth it!  Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and experience my pit falls, ah-ha moments, and be sure to visit the links to the many talented bead artists my partner sent me!


My partner for the first reveal was Patti Vanderbloemen.  Patti sent me two royal helpings of soup...

 

After the giddiness wore off, I thought I knew EXACTLY what I wanted to do, and even ordered some extra beads for my plan.  But as best laid plans often do, the plan changed.


I knew the blue Bead Soup would be my easiest, so I started on the black, red, and white one first.  I knew I didn't want to mix Donna Millard's lampwork with Marsha Neal's focal, and that focal was my first stumbling point.  I sat there at the table, beads everywhere, and idly picked up a bronze headpin, bronze bead cap by Lesley Watt, and a gold Swarovski crystal pearl from Bead Soup #2.  And guess what?  Brilliant.

I sat with the pendant for a few days and tried to figure out what else to do.  I ended up mixing part of Bead Soup #1 with Bead Soup #2 -- the clasp by Leann Weih became the focal ABOVE the focal, and I pulled out my newest favorite, bronze wire from Objects and Elements, to wrap around an olive green Lucite bead from my own stash.  I also wrapped the link that goes through the clasp with 22-gauge wire for a more substantial and interesting link.

I had bought that wonderful mother of pearl bead at the Bead and Button Show this year and it seemed destined for this piece -- but for some reason, I HAD to use the extra headpin and decided to drill a hole in it to make a link to the (poorly) wrapped Lucite bead.  And remember the gold tangle beads in Soup #2?  They were too bright for this necklace, so I did a QUICK dunk in Jax Brown, praying I wasn't going to ruin them.  I left them in a rustic state because that seemed to work for this necklace.

I wanted to add some color to the necklace, so used multi-faceted dyed red jade from LimaBeads from my stash and square Czech glass beads, also from my stash.  I made a couple of bronze wire cages and stuffed one with white sari silk and captured a jade bead in the other.  I've been super-interested in texture in jewelry lately, so that's what drove the decision.

And here's the finished necklace...

NOT the best photo, but it was 105 degrees outside when I took it and that just had to be that!  I'm rather fond of this.

So that was the first piece, and it made me feel I could actually DO something!  

On to the second piece, with Donna Millard's distinctively patterned lampwork beads.  When working with beads that have a strong pattern, it's important to let the beads do the talking and not have too many other conversations going on in the background.  

I made a pendant for this one with a piece of etched copper from an old project (I save EVERYTHING) and a larger piece of nickle silver.  I stacked a few metal spacers between the two pieces for depth, and riveted some random things in.  The funny thing?  I made this pendant a month before my soup arrived, yet it's perfect with those red beads!

I decorated the links of the red lampwork bead links with tiny copper beads... see them up there?

Then I let the beads do the talking and made a simple linked necklace.  I hope the relative simplicity and modernity of the pendant worked well with Donna's lampwork.  What do you think?

Since I had plans for the clasp Patti sent, I made my own using one of the sterling silver beads I was sent and a lot of wire....

I had one more bead left from Donna's lampwork and the silver beads, and I wanted to see if I could use as much of the bead soups as I could, so I made a two-strand bracelet with bead clusters from the seed beads Patti sent and onyx from my stash.  Here's where I used the silver toggle Patti sent (made by Lesley Watt.)

Then there were the two sets of headpins Patti sent!  I made one pair into a kind of Gothic style:

And the second set is made with some vintage rhinestone beads and photographed against my first wedding cabinet card (I collect cabinet cards, but never had a wedding one!).  It seemed fitting.

So that took care of Bead Soup #1 and part of #2!  

The second soup, the blue soup, I was giddy over because I LOVE fat, chubby lampwork beads.  These are gorgeous substantial beads made by Lea Avroch.  I also love blue, and really need a blue necklace.  I knew I wanted to incorporate my favorite things (dangles!) but I really wanted it LUSH.  

I happened to have a charm by Lesley Watt arrive on my doorstep a couple of days before I started work on the necklace, and since I'd already used the bronze clasp in the earlier necklace, I found another toggle from Lesley and went to town.

And the final piece, which took about three hours of intense wire wrapping.  

I managed to use almost everything Patti sent me.  I only had a few red seed beads, six cultured pearls, a bead cap, and a few Swarovski crystal pearls left over, and I think that's all!

Here's what I sent to Patti, and you can click here to see what SHE made!

And the rest of the BSBP6 Reveal #1 participants! 

Hostess, Lori Anderson, PrettyThingsBlog.com

Alice Craddick,  Alice's Beads and Baubles

Alicia Marinache,  All The Pretty Things

Amanda Tibbetts,  Amanda Made

Amber Dawn Goldish, Inventive Soul

Annita Wilson,  AW Jewelry

Beti Horvath, Stringing Fool

Birgitta Lejonklou,  Create With Spirit   

Candida Castleberry,    Spinning Spun Sugar

Carolyn Lawson, Carolyn's Creations

Cassie Donlen, Glass Beadle

Cheri Reed,  Creative Designs by Cheri

Cheryl McCloud,  One Thing Leads to Another

Cheryl Roe, BeadRoe

Christina Hickman, Vintage Treasures Jewelry

Cilla Watkins, Tell Your Girlfriends

Cindy Wilson, Mommy's Dream

Cindy Wimmer, Sweet Bead Studio

Cory Celaya, Art With Moxie

Cory Tompkins, Tealwater Designs

Cris Peacock, Cris' Page

Cynthia Deis, Shiny Little Things

Cynthia Machata, Antiquity Travelers

Cynthia Wainscott, Exotic Peru

Dana Hickey, Magpie Approved

Dana James, Dana's Jewelry Designs

Dana Lang, Tumblestone Handmakery

Debbie Price, Green Shoot Jewellery Designs

Denielle Hagerman, Some Beads and Other Things

Diane Valasek, Dragonfly Close

Doris Stumpf, Glaszwerg

Dyanne Everett-Cantrell, Dee-Liteful Jewelry Creations

Elaine Robitaille, Too Aquarius

Eleanor Burian-Mohr, The Charmed Life

Enikö Fabian, Perl-eni

Erin Prais-Hintz, Treasures Found

Heather Davis, Blissful Garden Beads

Heidi Post, Ex Post Facto Jewelry

Hilary Frye, FryeStyle

Ilenia Ruzza, Ilenia's Unique Beaded and Painted Jewelry

Inge von Roos, Inge's Blog

Jami Shipp, Celebrating Life

Jayne Capps, Mama's Got to Doodle

Jean A. Well, Jean A. Wells Handcrafted Artisan Jewelry

Jean Yates, Snap Out of It Jean! There's Beading to Do!

Jennifer Cameron, Glass Addictions

Jennifer Pottner, Rock Candy Beads

Jennifer VanBenschoten,  Jewelry, Art and Life

Jenny Davies-Reazor, Jenny Davies-Reazor

Jenny Vidberg, Shyme Design

Jessica Dickens, My Jewelry, My Life, Me

Jessica Klaaren, Beadful-Things by Jessica

JJ Jacobs, Coming Abstractions

Joan Williams, Lilruby Jewelry

Judith Johnston, Judith Johnston

Judy Riggs, Rigglettes

Judy Turner, Silver Rains

Julie Anne Leggett, The Peaceful Bead

K Hutchinson, Jumbled Hutch

Karen Meador, Dreamcatcher Ranch

Karyn Bonfiglio, Plus Size Bangles

Katherine Gale, Terra Beadworks
Kathleen Lange Klik, Modern Nature Studio

Katja Benevol Gabrijelcic, Slovonske Technobe

Kelli Jacobson, Creative Moon

Kelly Ramstack, Adventures with Kelly

Keri Lee Sereika, Pink Lemonade

Kim Ballor, Vitamin C... A Daily Dose of Creativity

Kim Bender-Hora, KimmyKat

Kirsi Luostarinen, Kirsi Luo Korut

Kitty Bozzini, Kitty Lampwork

Laura Demoya, The Bead Therapist

Laurie Hanna, Laurie's Jewelbox

Leah Curtis, Beady Eyed Bunny

Lesley Watt, The Gossiping Goddess

Linda Inhelder, Must-Haves Jewelry

Linda Landig, Linda's Bead Blog and Meanderings

Lisa Liddy, Metal Me This

Lori Dorrington, Lori's Adventures in Etsy Land

Lori Poppe, Adventures in Creativity with Lorillijean

Mallory Hoffman, For the Love of Beads

Marge Beebe, Rock Creek Creations

Marianna Boylan, Pretty Shiny Things

Marion Simmons, Shade Tree Studio

Marla Gibson, Spice Box Design

Marti Conrad, Marti C's Clay Blog

Maryse Fritzsch-Thillens, GlassBeadArt, Lampwork Beads

Melanie Brooks, Earthenwood Studio

Michelle Hardy, Firefly Visions

Mikala Coates, Maybe Just Perhaps

Nan Emmett, Spirit Rattles - Spirited Earth

Nancy Boylan, Snazzy Doodle Designs

Nancy Peterson, Beading From the Heart

Nicole Rennell, Nicole Rennell Designs

Niki Meiners, 365 Days of Craft

Niky Sayers, Silver Nik Nats

Norma Turvey, Moonlit Fantaseas
Paige Maxim, Paige Maxim Designs
Pamela Gangler, She Always Loved Pink

Patricia Johnson, Patricia L. Johnson Glass Art

Patti Vanderbloemen, My Addictions ... Handcrafted Jewelry by Patti

Perri Jackson, Shaktipaj Designs

Raida Disbrow, Havana Beads

Renetha Stanziano, Lamplight Crafts

Shannon Hicks, Falling Into the Sky

Shannon LeVart, Miss Fickle Media

Sharon Driscoll, Right Turn Art Werks

Shelby Foxwell, Sundown Bead Designs Rhetoric

Shelley Graham Turner, Fabric of My Life

Sherri Stokey, Knot Just Macrame

Shirley Moore, Beads and Bread

Skylar Bre'z, Brising Beads

Stacie Florer, Soul to Substance

Stacie Stamper, Park Avenue

Stacy Alderson, Iridal's Attic

Stephanie Haussler, Pixybug Designs

Stephanie Stamper, Rainy Day Designs

Sue Hamel, The Bottle Cork and Crystal

Suzette Bentley, Ellie's Bijoux

Szarka, Magpie Gemstones

Tammy Jones, Jewelry Making Daily

Tania Tebbit, Glass, Craft, & Artful Goodness

Tanty Sri Hartanti, TJewellicious by Tanti

Terry Matuszyk, Pink Chapeau

 Tina Bosh, Every Good and Perfect Gift

Tracy Bell, Copper, Glass and Recycled Trash

Vonna Maslanka, Just Vonna

Next reveal date -- August 11th!

 

Lori Anderson creates jewelry and bead kits as well as collaborative mixed media art with her son, Zack.  Visit her shops by clicking here.  She is also the creator of the Bead Soup Blog Party®   and author of the book Bead Soup.

Join her at the Facebook group Bead Soup Cafe for bead chat, swaps, challenges, and lots of eye candy!