Bead Soup Blog Party Reveal

It’s time for the Bead Soup Blog Party Reveal!

As usual, the party is hosted by Lori Anderson. This time around, my partner was Donna Krtil Hoblit. She send me a gorgeous set of Lemon Kitten Lampwork beads. The focals are a pale blue and the flowers are green and purples.That detail work in the flowers is just mind blowing. They really are a stunning set of beads.

But, flowers? Not really my thing. That was challenge number one. Number two is the unique bead shape. I love the shapes, but I was quite thrown for a while figuring out how to tackle them. I may, or may not, have finally landed on a design yesterday.

First, I decided to use the focal drilled on the longer end on its own. It hung so nicely that it just begged to be a standalone. But, then when I strung it with some of the accent beads, they just didn’t nestle up to the focal very nicely, leaving a slight gap I just didn’t agree with. A happy accident uncovered the (faux, I think) turquoise slab and turned the lampwork focal into a new and interesting statement pendant.

Second was earrings. I knew the polka dotted accent beads wouldn’t quite go with my main piece. I definitely wanted them to be earrings. There was some trial and error here, but I landed pretty quickly on the stick peals. I absolutely adore these, and will definitely be keeping them in my own collection. They look pretty dashing with my purple hair!

And last, but certainly not least, is my main piece. I had something totally different planned (once again), but I was pawing through some of my bead stash and realized the Indonesian purple glass vase beads looked perfect with the Lemon Kitten beads. The labradorite rounds quickly followed. I topped it off with some simple bead cones and some twisted strands of rainbow fluorite. Indecisive to the end, I was torn between centering the focals or keeping it asymmetrical. I accommodated both by attaching a lobster clasp to each end of the focal segment and hiding them in a bundle of coordinating silk ribbon. I left some of the ribbon ends exposed to add some contrasting texture. This one feels very Easter Bonnet-y to me, but in a good way.

All in all, this was another great Bead Soup Blog Party. I love the idea of using hoarded beads, and I love the Lemon Kitten sent Donna set, even as challenging as it was. I hope you enjoyed my reveal, comments are always appreciated! And please do continue visiting the rest of the participants, the list can be found here.

Update: To celebrate the Bead Soup Blog Party, I finally opened an Etsy shop! Use Coupon Code BSBP2017 to save 20%!!

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