My Bead Table Blog Hop 2

Once again, Lisa Lodge of A Grateful Artist is hosting a wonderful challenge.

This time around, her choice of beads was inspired by the sea and the sand.  The beads I received were gorgeous shades of blues and greens with a bit of purple mixed in.

Lisa also added a few larger beads

and a few glass shards.

I used the sea glass first and channeled my inner Staci Louise.  Staci is amazingly talented and works in metal, clay and anything else you might imagine.  Definitely check out her jewelry shop and her component shop.

I love how Staci sometimes rivets a clay component to a flat copper sheet.  I didn't have rivets, so I tried wire wrapping.

The next thing I grabbed were some gorgeous triangle beads I dug out of the soup.  As I was pondering what to do with them, a tutorial for a pair of cubic right angle weave earrings by Marcia DeCoster came to mind.

I paired the triangle beads with luminous green Swarovski crystals and some scraps of chain I had laying around.

The idea for incorporating the chain came from Jill Wiseman's "Bohemian Earrings" in her book, Beautiful Beaded Ropes.

These earrings are long, dangly and fun to wear.

After completing the earrings, I saw a bag of moss green peanut beads on my desk.  They looked great with the soup beads.  I wasn't quite sure what to do, though, and started leafing through Bohemian Inspired Jewelry, by Lorelei Eurto and Erin Siegel.

I saw Lorelei's "How Does Your Garden Grow" necklace and found the perfect solution.  Lorelei had used double strands of drop beads between larger beads.  I substituted my peanut beads and found the perfect clasp by Melinda Orr.

I really love this bracelet.

After I finished the bracelet, I decided to tackle the large purple round.  I just started bezeling the round with seed beads.  I didn't really have a plan, but I am pleased with the result.

I found a scrap of leather cord and loved how it looked with the focal.  I tried several things with the leather, but ended up leaving it plain and added a string of seed beads and chain.

The necklace itself is very simple, but I love how it compliments the focal.

Finally, I  returned to the soup.  I wanted to use the remaining beads to create a necklace using one of the sea glass pendants.  I created a beaded rope and loved how it looked.

The different beads look great together.

Unfortunately, the rope didn't work as a necklace.  Instead, I strung one of the larger green rounds in the center and made a second bracelet.

I am especially pleased with this bracelet.  I have enough beads left (I think) to make a second bracelet.  This might be my next project because the kiddo liked this one so much that she promptly claimed it for her own.

Lisa, thank you for another great challenge.  I love how your soups push me a bit out of my comfort zone.

Please take some time to hop around and see what the other participants made with their soups.

Lisa Lodge (our host), A Grateful Artist

Eleanor Burian-Mohr, The Charmed Life

Mary Govaars, MLH Jewelry Designs

Tanya Goodwin, A Work in Progress - you are here

Kathy Lindemer, Bay Moon Design

Toltec Jewels, Jewel School Friends

Sharyl McMillian-Nelson, Sharyl's Jewelry

Marla Gibson, Spice Box Designs

Melissa Trudinger, Bead Recipes

Dot Lewallen, Speedie Beadie

Ema Kilroy, Ema K Designs

Kim Booth, The Pink Martini Boutique

Jami Shipp, Celebrating Life

Leah Tees, My Beady Littleeyes

Christie Murrow, www.charisdesignsjewelry.blogspot.com

Monique Urquhart, A Half Baked Notion

Gloria Allen, Gloria Allen Designs

Cindy Anderson Wilson, It's My Sea of Dreams

Suzi Campbell, Suzi Campbell Creations

Shaiha Williams, Shaiha's Ramblings

Annette Rivers, MamaOwl's Mess