November Pinterest Project

I haven't been very crafty OR stitchy lately. I'm thinking it's because my head is starting to spin a little bit because of the upcoming holidays. My December calendar is filling up with all kinds of stuff from appointments to actual fun events. Good reason? Probably not.

I did take some time to work on a project that I've been wanting to attempt for some time. It's called a captured bead chain maille bracelet and you can find the video instructions by Beadaholique right HERE.

I bought all of the supplies to make this bracelet at Michael's. I needed some 10mm jump rings, 6mm jump rings, 8mm round beads, and a clasp.

And there it is. It took me about an hour and a half to make this and that includes cat interruptions and ringing phones. I'd describe this as a good beginner project because it's all a matter of opening and closing jump rings, as well as inserting the beads.

I did take note of some comments on this video (and another similar video) about the rings moving around and then the beads falling out. Ugh. Who wants that? But I decided to try it anyway because I liked the look of this so much.

When I wore it to work I didn't have any problems with it, but earlier this week I wanted to show it to my sister, Sheila. Instead of wearing it, I stuck it in my jacket pocket because I was having trouble clasping it. (Note to self: use magnetic clasps whenever possible!). Here's what happened.

Somehow a bead worked out of it while it was in my pocket. So there was some truth to that comment after all! I've come to the conclusion that this bracelet will be ok A.) If you wear it and it fits well and B.) If you store it in a place where you can keep it straight and it won't get jostled around.

Next I wanted to know if it could be fixed by removing and replacing a couple of loops. The answer for me was "no". As soon as I removed the necessary loops, the next bead would fall out, and so on. I ended up re-doing the bracelet from the mishap to the end. And that wasn't too bad as the one that fell out originally was only the third one from the end. But after I thought about this for a while, I think there might be a easier repair method. Hmmmm, I'll try it if this happens again.

If it fell out in the middle of the bracelet, I would have had much more work to do.

Yay, it's repaired!

Would I make this bracelet again? I would, but only after buying different gauge jump rings. In the comments section of the video mentioned above, there is a link to some information on the recommended materials for a similar (more elaborate) project that uses some of the same rings. Honestly, I don't know what gauge jump rings I used; it didn't say on the package. So I would definitely look into that.

To sum it up, it's a really pretty and unique bracelet, and I'll keep wearing it. I'll always be on alert for escaping beads though.

I'll be back soon to show you the stitching I've (kind of) been working on lately!

Crafting In Unchartered Territories

This week Sheila and I attempted a new crafting technique -- making pendants using Ice Resin.  You've seen those pretty necklace pendants made from a metal bezel and some kind of decorative element to fit into the bezel, covered with a clear glass-like top.  Well, guess what -- they're surprisingly easy and fun to make! 

Bezels with paper glued in, one without.

Sheila ordered the supplies online, but I know that you can at least get the bezels at craft stores.  The creative part comes in when you have to decide what to put inside your pendant.  I will admit that I didn't do much to contribute to this portion of the creativity.  Sheila printed some tiny designs which fit the bezels and then sealed them with Mod Podge.  From there we trimmed them to size, glued them in and then added whatever else we thought would be marvelous.  On hand were glitter, glass chips and beads. 

Sheila adds tiny glass chips.

Sheila's finishes

Finished pendants ready for drying.

Next came the mixing of the two-part resin.  Very easy, just requires accurate measuring and thorough mixing.  And even though we opened windows for good ventilation, there wasn't a strong chemical smell.  Putting the resin into the bezels was very easy.  We just drizzled it in with the wooden sticks provided in the kit.  And if you ever consider doing this, just remember that a little goes a LONG way!  It's also important to dry these as level as you can.  It takes three days to cure, so sometime this weekend our pendants will be ready to wear!

All in all, a very fun project.  We'll do more for sure because we have a lot of the resin left.  Even though the resin seems pricey at first, you'll soon see how many little pendants you can make with just these two little bottles.  Not bad at all.  And now that we know the process, we're thinking about what to use in them next time. 

All Kinds Of Craftiness, But No Stitching

This week stitching took a backseat to other crafty endeavors.  First of all, remember that lamp that Mark made for me?  A while back I was mildly complaining about how I couldn't find a cute lampshade for it.  I had bought one that was OK, but was definitely not in the cool category.  Then someone commented that I should decorate that boring shade.  Great idea.  So, some ribbon and double sided tape later, here it is!  Just a few lengths of different kinds of ribbon completely transformed it.  Well, pretty much.

I showed you Sheila's necklace in my last post, and finally got to see it in person yesterday.  How beautiful!  We bought the materials for our necklaces at the Intergalactic Bead Show, which we attended last month.  The instructions, however, had to be e-mailed to us by the designer, Tin Tin.  Kind of mysterious, right?  I took all of my beads and stuff over to Sheila's and we spent part of the day visiting and making lovely jewelry.  I actually completed mine in that time!  It's made of pearl beads in shades of green with some pink, clear seed beads and Swarovski crystals in clear and amethyst.  And it may look complicated to make, but it was so easy! 

I just had to show you this picture of Moxie who seems to have appropriated my new necklace for herself.  She thinks it's divine!  Note the paw, like she's Vanna White or someone.

I also finished something new:  designing a cross stitch pattern.  My friend Patty had her first grandchild and said that she wanted to stitch a birth sampler.  The nursery decor is done in Scotty dogs.  A very cute idea, but also impossible to find a sampler with the little doggies.  My solution was to design one for her.  I've finished it and will soon be sending it to her for her approval and any changes that she wants to make.  I will be posting a photo of it in a future blog, and hopefully after Patty stitches it!
 
Are you ready for some good Cosmo news?  No more insulin shots!  He had a fructosamine test yesterday and was in the normal range, so all we have to do is keep giving the kitties the low carb food.  He goes back for testing in 3 months.  That sounds pretty good to me!

So, all in all, not a bad week for craftiness and for Cosmo!