Monday, May 27, 2013

Oooohhh...Genea!

Genea's Beads - so full of color, texture, and endless creativity!  That is what I think of when I see her beads.

She named this bead - Desert Serpent Jewel / Mermaid ....

Photo courtesy of Genea's Etsy Site
First of all, the base of turquoise blue DOES remind me of my past travels to the Caribbean - the water so transparent, so teal-blue, so tranquil, that one can actually feel the stress leave your shoulders.  The rainbow raku reminiscent of the sea shells found along the beaches.

Photo courtesy of Genea's Etsy Site
The tiny spacer beads - above - reflect the colors of the focal perfectly.  I like that the focal is etched, a contrast to the shiny rainbows in the spacer beads.

So what to do with these beautiful beads???  The focal is large - 25mm - and I did not just want to string it on beading wire - it had to stand out! So...


I took some very heavy gauge copper (12 gauge I believe), forged the bottom end into a paddle shape, slipped on the lovely focal, added a few jump rings in the shape of love knots - and one more cranberry red bead to complete the focal.  I forged the other end of the paddle in the opposite direction and wired this to a handmade bead connector.  I oxidized the pieces, buffed, and gave them several hours in the tumbler to add that beautiful shine!





That clasp is made by Genea, too!  I made some bead connectors from heavy gauge copper, and I wired the spacer beads to the copper links.


The clasp is in the front to the side - I could not bring myself to hide that beautiful clasp!

I had some spacer beads leftover, so I made a matching bracelet.




If you look closely in the picture above, the links for the bracelet are the same as the necklace - I just made them much smaller.  This link was inspired by a bracelet made by Cindy Wimmer in Wire Style 2 - I do love this link!


I made a simple pair of earrings - I balled up the ends of some 16 gauge copper and made some quick swirls.  Tiny deep garnet seeds have been wired to the copper ear wires (admittedly - those seeds look black in my picture....it may be time for me to get a new camera???!!)

I really love how this turned out!  Please be sure to visit Genea and see all of her beautiful, wearable art: 


To end this post - a sincere thank you to all of those who have served our Country and continue to serve - Have a Blessed Memorial Day!

Photo Courtesy of http://www.middletowninsider.com/


Thank you for stopping by!

8 comments:

  1. Patti - I love what you did with her bead - your pieces are stunning!

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  2. Patti - such beautiful work! and that focal bead is truly stunning! wow!! Hope you had a wonderful weekend

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  3. Gorgeous beads and I love how you showcased them!

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  4. I love this necklace, the bracelet and earrings too! The focal bead is just gorgeous and I love the links you made. Hope you had a great weekend.

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  5. Patti~I just love those links and how you made them! They are so beautiful and creative and fun! The beads are gorgeous too.

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  7. Patti, I agree Genea's lampwork beads are really gorgeous. You were certainly inspired by starting with her beautiful focal! Your wirework is the perfect complement! Funny thing is that I thought the links looked familiar...it's been a while since I saw those - they are addictive to make, aren't they? If you like wire links, I think you'll like the ideas I have coming up in my book. You're gonna want to stock up on some serious wire! ;-)

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  8. Your wire work is so creative and so perfectly done. What a pleasure to visit your blog! The beads are gorgeous! Beautiful in every way!

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