From my Bead Peeps Swap n Hop partner!

Wow,  the beads arrived and I`m so excited I can't wait to get started! My partner this time is Krafty Max  . Looking up at her work and her site, I realized what an avid beader she is. Her  work is simply gorgeous ! Here`s a link to all the lovely jewellery she makes . Some of her award winning pieces are featured here !

She`s been so generous  and sent a lot of  different beads  for me to play with. Not only  a whole lot of beautiful seed beads but lampwork beads, focals, handmade findings and strands of  gemstone beads. It`s going to be fun trying out all the things she has sent me , most of which we don`t get to see here in India. My mind is reeling with ideas , and I love what I've put  together so far , really love it! I don't yet have final designs worked up but I definitely have the general idea of  I want to make from most of them.

And here`s the stuff I sent 

It was challenging to have to send her items for this swap.   What could I send her that she would like  ? She has  been making jewelry as a full time job/business for years !! I And  being an avid beader, she had so many of the beads I shortlisted for sending her, already made into beautiful jewellery. And I was totally confused . I was sure I wanted to send something that was not similar to what she already had.  And when she told me she would love something   traditional from my country, it made the selecting a bit easier.  I sent her a double sided focal Buddha bead  , apart from a lampwork heart focal, and other beads made in India.    I also included a few brass findings  , and a stone cabochon and cute little wooden bird beads, from Rajasthan India.  I can't wait to see the jewelry that she makes from what I sent her.  

Stay tuned in for more on the Bead Peeps Swap n Hop challenge ! Comming soon....

motidana

My latest WIP - using the antique chinese dragon bead pendant !

It`s been nearly a month since I blogged about the antique chinese dragon bead necklace that I had made years back .  I started off quite enthusiastically cutting off my necklace to create something that is really spectacular with the bead! But , I did not take into consideration the time it would take to complete the project to my satisfaction.

The beads all ready and shiny after a bit of polishing are so exciting to look at , and I immediately started to plan my design . But after making and discarding one sample for another ( delayed by  a week ) I still was undecided as to what technique of beading I should use . Finally after putting in a lot of thinking I settled for a tubular bead netting technique and started working on the necklace . Mortira of Inspirational Beading  posted a lovely tutorial of tubular Bead netting stitch which caught my eye . You can find it here

But here too I came across another block  . The limegreen beads were bought years back and I quickly ran out of them and had to spend days getting more of them   !  Once I started the netting , I liked the combination so much that I refused to settle for another shade . And here in India , as we  have a very general system of   sizing or branding  beads , I had to give the samples to a friend to get it from another city ! ..... Again a fortnight lost .

  But finally after all the delay ,  here`s the completed necklace. I`ve named it "The Dragon Room " necklace , because for a few days my work room was dominated by only one thing , the dragon bead ..LOL!

                                                        " The Dragon Bead Necklace "

close-up of the pendant 

I love the tiny red eyes of this fierce little dragon !

the necklace all complete with blue onyx focal bead , and vintage carved turquoise  beads as well as silverbeads.

 

   Don`t  you think the dragon bead  looks better in this new avatar ?  I think so and am quite pleased that finally I was able to make the necklace to my liking even though there was a lot of delay .

Do drop in a line , for like always I will be waiting to hear from you , and do stop soon to see a couple of pieces I created when I was waiting for the lime green beads to arrive .

bidding a beading goodbye '

motidana 

Some more Ganesha Pendants !

Here are a couple of pendants from my Ganesha collection .

This one I have created using pearls , gold foil beads , jade green malachite beads ,and carved coral Ganesha idol. I thought it would make a lovely focal piece for my coral mangalsutra that I have made for my previous post  " Another Treasure from the Sea - Creations in  coral " ( here ) . So I thought of  re-stringingthe necklace and add the newly created pendant in the center........... but after uploading the picture I realized that the beading wire that I had used is visible where I had joined a new one and that will not do !  . And so ......... I have decided to make it again .

And in this one though the center Ganesh  idol is identical , I used a different technique to make the necklace. I love collecting Ganesha`s and since I had three idols of same size I decided that I would use all three in different ways to create jewellery .

 Somehow the combination of lusturous pearls , coral ,  and gold really looked good together and so I made this one , using bead weaving technique slightly different from the first one . And I made the  loop  big enough to go through a gold chain .
  My plan was to complete the entire collection for Ganesh Chaturthi but I was slow in completing these two pieces as I was working on another designer  necklace that I will be posting soon .

 Till then ciao ! and do pen  in a few words about these latest pendants ,and , drop by for the new statement piece that I will be showcasing soon !

motidana

Unique Jewellery finds - It`s all about Nuts

Yes you guessed it right . This post is about jewellery that`s nutty and off beat and that`s why I call it a unique find .
  In my quest for learning new things , especially about jewellery , ( as lately  that`s what interests me the most  ) I came across a novel material that was made into jewellery . And I had to share it with other enthusiasts ....................so here it is !

Can you guess the material used in this one ?

here  have another look , maybe that will help

Does the shape of beads remind you of something  ? ..........no ..... still no guesses ?

Ok Ok .... I won`t trouble you any  more
.........
here`s the complete story

 A few weeks ago , I came across an interesting craftsman from Haryana , who has been in the family of Master carvers since the last 6 generations. After a mutually satisfactory purchase, I in my usual curiosity asked him a lot of questions and stumbled across this unique material that he has carved into beads .
 This is what Chander Kant Bondwal  the mastercraftsman had to share

 " I come from a family of wood carvers. My family has been in this craft for generations . I specialize in carving animal and floral designs in sandalwood and earlier my ancestors were skilled craftsmen in carving ivory. Each piece I carve takes a week to a few months depending upon the size of the piece and the intricacy of carving.
 But since the ban on ivory and now on sandalwood , I use rosewood for the base material
Some of my pieces are  turned into jewellery and since the scale of the piece does not exceed more than 3 to 5 centimeters , it takes a few weeks to carve each pendant . "

He then proudly showed me the National Award winning necklace set for which he was honoured by the then President of India . I was amazed at the intricacy and even more so when he told me it was made from carved Almond shells .

  Shells of Almonds are carved and the inner almond gently scraped and extracted away carefully without breaking the shell or damaging the carving. And imagine he had to make several attempts and at least twenty such beads , before he got the perfect sizes to make this set !

 I marvelled at his  innovative thinking and at the patience he had in creating this masterpiece !
For , to me , it definately is  a Unique Jewellery Find ! , I came way happy to have met him and to be be inspired by such a wonderful artist . Hope his creativity rubs off a little on me too ...

 He can be contacted at dodibondwal@gmail.com

Do drop in a line about how you found this blog post

bye for now till I return with some more interesting materials that are used in making jewellery.

motidana