New blog address

I am no longer posting on this blog.

Please go to my new blog site:

Tracy Stillman Designs

http://tracystillmandesigns.com/

YOJ Challenge - Midnight

Last week's Year of Jewellery Challenge on the Australian Beading Forum was "Midnight".  It has been a long time since I've entered a piece into the Year of Jewellery but I love this theme and had the perfect pair of earrings in mind.

Here's the inspirational banner for the theme:

And here's my design:

My 'Midnight Dreams' earrings are designed with firepolished beads, seedies and Swarovski crystals which represent the sparkle of the stars in the midnight sky.

Purple Day - OTTBS March Moodboard Challenge

It has been ages since I've entered the monthly Moodboard Challenge over at Operation Tackle that Bead Stash, but I couldn't resist the rich purple colour palette. The March challenge is also timely as it coincides with Purple Day ~ the global day of epilepsy awareness which was earlier this week on Monday 26th March.

Here are the March Challenge colours as represented by these pretty floating flowers.

And here's my design:

I really like the simplicity of this multi-strand necklace, which is designed with just two shades of 11/0 seed beads ~ a metallic plum (Miyuki) and transparent dark amethyst (Matsuno), and is finished off with sterling chain and decorative silver plated end cones.

Beadalong Earrings Challenge - March 2012

Another month, another collection of earrings. Here are my March earring designs for the OTTBS Beadalong Earrings Challenge.



Week 10 - Victorian tassles with pink/purple glass
pearls and light purple cats eye beads



Week 11 - Vintaj filagree diamonds with topaz and
crystal brandy crystal bicones.

 

Week 12 - Dangly brass connectors with
sterling silver jump rings



Week 13 - Black and silver rings with copper jump rings



Ooh-la-la - French inspired Art Bead Scene Challenge

March's Art Bead Scene Challenge is a painting of a street scene in Montmartre, Paris by impressionist artist Vincent Van Gogh. The colours that stood out for me initially in this colour palette were the reds and blues of the French flag, and the additional use of red and blue in the windmills. The couple walking arm in arm left of centre in this painting also suggest to me, romance and a young couple in love. 



Street Scene in Montmartre: Le Moulin a Poivre by Vincent Van Gogh

Oil on canvas

34.5 x 64.5 cm.

Paris: February-March, 1887

My design for this challenge focuses on the red and blue colour palette. The focal beads in this necklace are  handmade Peruzi clay beads with impressionist splodges (I'm sure there's a more technical term) of blue/grey/white. The transparent glass heart has a red centre and symbolises the romance of this street scene and the young couple. I've used copper accents and findings to convey the rustic warmth of this painting and have strung this design on copper red beading wire. Denim blue spacers separate the clay beads, and the blue and red seed beads are symbolic of the french flag.

You can view all of the entries in the March Art Bead Scene Challenge on the Flick group page.

Reveal Day - Bead Soup Blog Party

It seems like ages ago that I signed up for Lori Anderson's Bead Soup Blog Party, but now it's REVEAL Day and we all get to share what we came up with.

My partner (Carmel McGinley from Canberra) was extremely generous with her soup mix, including a gorgeous toggle clasp which she handcrafted from PMC3. I must admit, my first thought when I opened my soup package was "oh my gosh, seed beads..what am I going to do with those", closely followed by "how do I get these warm autumn colours to work with the sterling silver focal and clasp?" 

Here's the Bead Soup that Carmel sent me:

And, here's my Bead Soup Design:

A closer look:



For me, this Bead Soup was a resounding success. I love my final design, and I challenged myself by working with seed beads and colours I would never ordinarily have considered using in the same piece.

I also stretched myself in terms of techniques - this is the first time I've worked with waxed linen thread and the first time I've attempted a macrame type knot technique which I'm calling a '3-thread half-knot' although whether it's a true macrame knot, I'm really not sure.

Thanks to Lori for organising this Bead Soup Blog Party and to Carmel for sending me a lovely soup mix to work with.

Check out Carmel's blog for her bead soup design.

Visit Pretty Things for the complete list of Bead Soup Blog Party participants.

Beadalong Earrings Challenge - February 2012

The challenge continues...during February I've continued making a pair of earrings every week as part of the OTTBS Beadalong Earrings Challenge. Here are my February earring designs:


Week 6 - Native American inspired chain dangles

Week 7 - Chinese floral beads with gunmetal findings



Week 8 - Vintage German amethyst beads with double chain



Week 9 - Moroccan inspired with Vintaj beadcaps
and opaque caramel firepolished beads

Coming soon, my March earring designs...