Another Michaels Challenge!

I was so excited to see Heather Powers and Lorelei Eurto were hosting another Michaels challenge.

Heather picked out the beadss using this as her inspiration.

The colors in the paisley fabric are so awesome!  And Heather picked out the perfect beads to match!

(Both of these are Heather's photos.  I completely forgot to take a photo of the beads before I started playing.)

I love the fuschia and the blues and greens -- gorgeous colors and ones I seldom choose for myself.

When I got these beads, I had been playing with Gwen Fisher's Conway Bead design.  I whipped up a few, thinking it would be fun to include them.

The Conway beads are slightly bigger than the large green beads, but I think they work well.

I also used the white rondelles and the brown cube beads along with the green ones.

I made a half Persian 3 in 1 chain to go with the beads and managed to create a necklace.  :)

After I finished this, I realized that I pulled the beads I was most comfortable with -- green, brown, earthy tones.  I added a bit of pink to the beaded beads, but conveniently forgot the pink and blue Michaels beads.

I grabbed those beads -- jewel tones I don't usually work with -- and decided to create something with those.

I turned to a favorite pattern from Sabine Lippert and used the pink beads to create a Bollywood version of her Granada pendant.  (You can find the pattern for this in Sabine's book, Beaded Fantasies.)

I wanted to make an elaborate necklace to showcase the pendant and tried several different things, none of which seemed right to me.

In the end, I went with something simpler.

I love the green sari ribbon.

These are colors I never ever .. ever would have chosen and I am so pleased with how this turned out.

I took a part of the Granada pendant and made a single components.  They made great earrings.

At one point during my necklace trials, I made a few drops with the blue/gold beads.  Not one to let anything go to waste, I whipped up this simple pair of earrings.

I was sad that I didn't find a use for the brown rectangle flower beads.  However, I did use them in the last Michaels challenge.  That counts, right?

Heather and Lorelei, thank you for a fun challenge!  I have a new favorite necklace thanks to the two of you!

Please check Heather's blog for the link up and see what the other participants did with these beads.