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Welcome to my blog! I love beading and this blog is an attempt to share a few of my beady tries and things, thoughts and thrills and inform you about what's new (patterns, jewelry, etc..) I got hooked by the wonderful art of beading in 2004 and never stopped since then. I live in Switzerland, in a small town between Geneva and Lausanne.
I participated in the Spring Swap organized by the Etsy Beadweavers Team, which I'm part of. A swap is something fun and exciting at the same time. One has to make (bead) something for another participant, according to guidelines transmitted by EBW leader Jacquie Champion, who lives in Canada. Swaps are exciting. Beading for another beader without knowing her personally is quite an adventure and expecting a little package from another mystery beader adds even more fun. It was just wonderful to open the little box I received from Erica Sándor. She made a lovely brooch in bronze and pink for me. I love it.
Keeping everything secret during more than 2 months waiting for all the participants to receive their swap was the hardest part for me. It is
always difficult to wait to show something we feel proud of.
My "swapee" is the lovely Meg Thomson who lives in Australia. Exactly on the other side of the globe for me - right under my feet. I love how we are connected with friends all over the world thanks to the Internet. Meet Meg and see the beautiful beadwork she makes and sells in her Etsy shop, ABeadedWorld.
Meg said that she likes Victorian and Edwardian jewelry, but... she added that she didn't like chokers... That was challenging, because I love to make chokers, and during these two eras, chokers
were legion.
I wanted to make something special and beautiful Meg would love to wear and perhaps even
cherish, so I did a bit of research to find out what kind of longer necklaces were
fashionable back then. It appeared that besides the simple long pearl strands and fine sautoirs, jewelled tassels were a rage under Edward
VII, so I decided to make a tassel for her. But not just any tassel: I included
a little perfume bottle; and to 'cathify' the necklace, I used my butterfly rope design. I had
great fun.
The little bottle was in my stash since a while, waiting to be used in a special design - this was the right occasion!
Edwardian jewelry is often composed of pearls, in combination with diamonds, sapphires, emeralds and other expensive, A+ grade gemstones. I had a hank of lovely sapphire blue faceted crystal beads and matte gold Superduo beads. These two were begging to be associated with something pearlescent, so I chose Preciosa Ornella pearl seed beads.
I started by embellishing the little bottle, which ended up looking like an Edwardian corset. This feminine aspect is enhanced by the lacy, skirt-like tassel.
Seeing the very small cork, I was a bit puzzled. It was not attached or glued to the bottle, and could be lost. To hold it in place and make sure that it would not come off of the flask too easily, I attached a - centered - fringe to it with two strands on the side, and these two strands pass through the double connections of the neck cord, so even if Meg has to run for some reason and the cork comes off, she won't loose it.
In the end, the resulting design looks more Gregorian, or French Louis XIV to me. That made me a bit nervous, but Meg said that she really loves it, so I am happy - and also relieved that this "Philtre Phial" has safely arrived.
Wait a second - I nearly forgot to say that I made it using herringbone (with a bit of Diamond Weave 'hints' to take it further), and MRAW and a little netting.
Take some time to visit our Etsy Beadweavers Team Blog
to see all the beautiful pieces made by the participants in this swap,
everything is worth seeing, and/or read the impressions of participants on Erika's blog.
Spring is extremely lovely here, warm and sunny. It is wonderful to see the trees put on robes of flowers and unfold their leaves. Have you ever looked at a chestnut tree when it opens its leaves? It looks as if all the leaves are folded up and when the weather allows, they unfold like a fan. Fascinating!
The blackbirds sing their courtship songs every morning and every evening and it seems to me that it is more beautiful every year.
It's been a long time since I wrote something here. I was waiting for
something special to share with you. What I have to share with you is very special! Look at this:
Interview in Bead & Jewelry!!
I've been interviewed by US-editor Brita Moore from Bead & Jewellery Magazine a couple of months ago, and she wrote not less than a 3-page article about me as a person, a beader, an artist. I am so pleased! It is in issue #70 which has just been added to their website!
DW cascading squares
In collaboration with editor Katie Dean, I also wrote in the "Tips & Tricks" column, as a guest editor, to introduce Diamond Weave to you, including a lovely earring project. The main subject of the magazine was "Something old, something new" and even though this does not necessarily apply to the Tips & Tricks article, I kept it in mind. This pair of shoulder dusters are made with the new 2mm firepolished beads and with old findings I took from a pair of earrings which belonged to my mother. I didn't like the dangles attached to them, but now I'm very happy with the result, and glad to have something to wear that was hers before.
I hope that you will enjoy playing with this introduction to Diamond Weave. It is only basic stitch, which is only a very tiny bit of what the book Diamond Weave has to offer. You can buy the book from major Amazon stores in Northern America and Europe, or directly from the press. If you want to place a group order, you can contact me for a discount, via my Etsy shop or on the DW Facebook page.
Talking about Etsy: they changed many things to our shops and asked me to "relook" it. I had to upload a huge photo for the first page. I don't know if you like it. I also had to choose a logo. I had a logo which is now up there, and I think hat it doesn't look bad. What do you think about it?
"Grace"
I wrote not many tutorials the past months. One using two-whole triangle Kheops beads with Herringbone stitch, the Klapukin bracelet; one for the simple square earrings held by the action figure of my beloved Doctor Who, an introduction to basic Diamond weave; one for the bracelet "Grace", which combines basic Diamond weave and Variation no. 5.
Klapukin
I like how this makes me think of "Chanel #5". The various stitches in the book (so many!) are nearly all building upon the previous ones, and so they are in a logical order. It also allows easier communication between friends who have the book.
I hope to write more tutorials soon, but for now, I am taking a little bit time for myself, to bead 'just to bead', and have quality time with my husband, take care of my birds and home, because tuttifying is a lot of work, and the past 2 years have been nearly exclusively dedicated to the book. I have projects and bits and pieces of beadwork that I left aside, which I would like to finish. Knowing myself, I will probably tutify projects even if I have all these others things on my bucket list...
And of course, there is the "From Petal to Pod" group, counting already more than 600 members! Who knows where that is going to take us!
Diamond Weave
is COOL
So much to do. So much to learn. So much fun and love to share.
Happy New Year! May 2016 be healthy and bring you lots of joy!!!
I have
a project to start the new year with, and I hope that you will
participate in it.
A sampler made by my mother
First a little flash back.
My mom had learned beading very well from her friend Berthy Bijlard, but all I can remember was how to make my own
kidney earwires with wire and pliers. And cross-stitching. That, I have never forgotten. I was 14 when I learned this from Berthy. She was an Art
Therapist. In fact, I don't know how they called her profession back then, but what I remember is that she had a huge art class in a clinic, where patients
could learn painting, knitting, sewing, beading, cross stitching, etc.
A necklace crocheted by my mother
approx 25 years ago, thanks to
Berthy's instructions.
I loved to be at Berthy's home. It was fun and peaceful. Her daughter Lisette and I were best friends and often spent our holidays together. I am grateful beyond words that she welcomed me so often, and for having lit the spark of creativity in me. It has made me a happier person.
There weren't many tutorials and beading instructions available, but with a bit of research, I could find the needed instructions published by generous beaders, and with a lot of trial and error I learned the basic off-loom stitches and started exploring my "own inner voice". This is how my Jewelry Set "Roma" (also called "Peeking Pearls") was born, and thanks to this design I had the incredible honor to be the winner of the Grand Prize of the Firemountain Gems and Beads contest myself in 2006.
With peyote stitch, seed beads fall into place very naturally and the beadwork can be zipped easily. I prefer shapes with an even number of increases (or peaks or wings), because they can be folded, like a square, which becomes a triangle bail when folded, or a hexagon, which becomes a trapeze, or a multi-wing morphing into a puffy flower when zipped. These are all shapes which were and still are explored and taken further by masters and beginners, worldwide, in particular within the framework of Kate McKinnon's "Contemporary Geometric Beadwork" project.
a little petal
While playing with peyote to make geometric shapes, I thought “why 3 or more peaks and not just 2? So I tried. And there it was, a little petal that cupped a little bit. It is very modest at first sight, and one could be tempted to think that it is just another little leaf, but I think that it has great potential.
The past years, I worked on many different things but this petal always came back on my beading mat and each time I promised myself to take it further 'when time allows'. I think that now is the right time.
Petals like this hold their shape well, and can adopt various positions when cupped in or out, or both. In addition, thanks to the little dented edges, one petal can be part of a group of petals, zipped together, leading to endless design possibilities. I made several patterns using petals. When the other day I added a partial Elegant Guide Round to the petals of a large flower, I understood that I would never be able to explore all the possibilities in a lifetime, even if I had two other me. So I took example on Kate and decided to make this petal exploration an open source project. I don't know exactly where it will take me. Maybe I will write a book with instructions for the best designs arising from it.
The video below shows a few things I made with petals. I am not a very good film-maker and apologize for the quality. I seem to never keep my hands in the frame of the image so I had to cut pieces and bits of 3 videos and assemble them in one.
Do you want to download the instructions for the petals and learn more? Join the Facebook 'Petal to Pod' group, a place to share our Petal design ideas. It is my wish that it becomes a community of friendly enthusiasts playing with these petals to create new, playful designs, may it
be single petal, two-petal or many petal designs, Flowers, buds, pods,
pistils, in layers or abstract forms; short, long, wide or thin, cupping
heavily or only slightly... whatever your beady brain comes up with. Ask questions, share your designs, trials and errors. Errors are very welcome, they often teach us much more than successes. It is entirely free.
And through this, I hope to light sparks of creativity in you!
I have not enough words to express my excitement! The book Diamond Weave is now available on Amazon, worldwide. It is printed by CreateSpace, which means that when you order it from Amazon, it will be printed just for you, in your country, or nearby, which means that it doesn't need to travel far over the oceans to reach you. You can find the links to the various Amazon stores below.
What you are buying?
I could answer: two years of my life. And many more of Gerlinde's, who developed the weave and all the stitches on her own since approximately 10 years and who continues to develop them. She has found a new stitch in the meantime.
I could also mention the number of photos and illustrations made... but you are probably more interested in what this book will bring you. Well, brace yourself: You are going to be blown away.
When I tried this stitch for the first time, I was happy that I was sitting on a chair. My first reaction was "Why would I start the beadwork in such an odd manner..." but then........ oh my gaaaaaaawd!!! That was the first of a long list of oooohs and aaaaahs. Of course, I wouldn't have taken so much time out of my own life, sitting in front of a computer, if it hadn't been so.
Diamond Weave back cover
First of all: This is a book with plenty of very clear illustrations. And it is crammed with knowledge.
There is not just one stitch, but many stitches, and even more in potential. Diamond Weave is so incredibly versatile, you won't believe it unless you see it: You will not only discover Basic DW and the variations built upon it which result in beautiful woven fabrics including various hexagon weaves, 3 different octagon weaves and 2 Chinese coin motif weaves, but also instructions how to get the best out of them with seed beads, resulting in beautiful patterns and awesome textured beadwoven fabrics.
In addition, there are instructions on how to tailor the beaded fabric with increases and decreases, tapering or sculpting, at the edge or in the middle of the weave.
You will find a flurry of hints, tips and design options which can result in a thousand different pieces of jewelry. The projects are there only to walk you through one of the countless possibilities.
You will never bead the same.
We
could have made 3 or 4 books. One about the basic stitch, one for the
variations, one for the seed beads, one for the increases and decreases
(which are the basis for Dimensional DW). But we prefer to give it to
you all in one and watch you fly with it. This is the Table of Contents:
Gerlinde says that this book is a miracle of friendship and it sure is.
But it is even more. It is a victory. A victory over my fibromyalgy and
on my light intolerance. I haven't felt this accomplished and proud in a
very, very long time.
The last months, I didn't write anything here. I thought that I would write one post per month, but couldn't find time/energy/material to write something. Not that life is boring. I'm just too busy with the book Diamond Weave. The thing I regretted not blogging about was my Etsy shop's B-day, but the special sale had a great success. I'd like to say that I am deeply grateful that there are so many of you out there liking what I create, and even taking time to tell me that you do. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
I wish that I had 2 other me. I'd bead, my second me would work, my 3rd me would be with husbest taking a holiday. But even with that math, there are so many beautiful beads, so many designs crossing my head, so many lovely things I would like to make, I don't have enough of a life to do it all. This is why I like to put things out to the world and see what others come up with.
Today I am happy to share something new with you. But first an update about the book about Diamond Weave.
Seduction, necklace and collar
with the crystals on the outside
Everything is in place. 200 delightful pages of photos, illos, texts and
graphs. We are nearly done with the corrections and more corrections
and more corrections (it seems to have no end). I'm fortunate to have
wonderful proofreaders who come up with great suggestions and
encouragement. I'm deeply grateful.
The last steps are the hardest. I learned and
re-learned a lot. For example: I have been doing and undoing a necklace
a gazillion times just to find out that, as the French say "better is
the ennemi of good". Read: you cannot always obtain the result you
envisioned with this or that material in this or that design and forcing
it won't solve the problem. Right. I hate that. I generally succeed in
making what I envision, lol. In my latest neklace, 'Seduction', the
embroidered part also reminded me to not overdo things. Read more about this necklace
farther in this post.
It's been a struggle translating my best knowledge in the clearest possible way to enable the future readers to make all the projects in the book. There is something for everyone. For all levels. My friend Darcy Rosner says that all the beaders will be beginners with this stitch. That sounds surreal. It means that everything I write, each word or expression about the weave and its variations will have double impact. It makes me feel responsible, and vulnerable too. In fact, publishing something, a photo of a creation, or a text, is somehow quite frightening. I rethink everything a million times and still doubt "couldn't I say this better" or "wouldn't there be a more accurate word for that". For example, with DW, cylinder beads wedge into one another, mutually stabilizing each other by ... imbrication? overlapping? capturing the corners? What's best? This has taken a lot of time and work from both Gerlinde and myself trying to find the best description, explanation, and simple and precise words. And then suddenly I rewrite whole pages because we found better. Dang. Writing in English is not natural for me as French or Dutch. It takes a lot of concentration and time. But it's nearly finished!
Klapukin
When I get tired from Diamond Weave and writing and illustrating, I bead something with a different stich. This is Klapukin, with a cab from Kinga Nichols, and kheops beads from Puca, and the idea for the setting from Klazine de Bas-Verdonschot. Klapukin sounds like the name of a game, which it actually is. Playing with beads. I hope to write a tutorial for this soon.
Complex Bail
I also made a complex, jeweled bail with dimensional peyote and would like to develop it further, make it easy enough to explain in a tutorial too. It initially was supposed to be a bezel for the pendant (from Nikia Angel's Etsy Shop) but it is the small size. If I had the big size, it would look more harmonious, I think, but... I would perhaps succeed in making the bezel and wouldn't have made this bail. It's a beautiful mistake. I hope to make more mistakes like that in the future.
It may sound silly, but playing with other stitches is an antidote these days. Not that DW is poison. Not at all. I love it, it is marvelous. You will love it too! The poison is when work, work and more work puts the fun in the shade. Kinga Nichols describes that very well in her blog post of a few days back.
I made my latest necklace when I needed a break. It is a nice beady adventure. A combo of Diamond weave and Peyote,
MRAW and bead embroidery.
DW embellished flask
Top of perfume bottle
It started as a gift to myself - a lovely little perfume bottle - and as a challenge to myself - the colors Custard, Tangerine and Marsala are not my comfort zone. I regret not having a photo of the 'nude' flask, its body is light topaz with lovely cream speckles, and the top is opaque in exactly the color of the brick red pearls I used. Now I adore the colors and also what I made. I thank Nancy Dale for sending this lovely flask made by Tan Grey to me. I embellished it with Diamond Weave in the Round.
Positioning of artwork
I also created a collar with 'collapsable' links to make a beaded curb chain.
Something I hadn't seen before. I bought beautiful 25mm red magma
Swarovski asymmetric flat back squares, matching perfectly the curve of
the links with their 'wonky' aspect, and a huge pile of firepolished
beads. I hesitated between using the crystal stones or beautiful artwork
and suddenly though 'hey, use both - to protect the back of the
crystals and for a
reversible collar.
I made a short video to better show the MRAW links the collar is made with. I
appologize for the quality, I am really
not at ease in videos. Also, I thought that cable chain was the right word for this, but voilà, now I know better.
I had another hesitation. I loved both the perfume bottle alone and the curb chain alone... Here again, I decided to use both together, but freely. They still can be worn separately. Design-wise it was quite a challenge to put together the
two parts; in short, I went through all stages of creation to
find the best middle
part offering balance and transition of color and use of beads. I'm
very happy with the result.
Bottom part alone
I
started the bead embroidery over and over. The griffin's and the
dragon were more beautiful on their own than surrounded by beads so I
finally ripped off the bead embrodery. The result is lighter, better balanced if worn without the collar.
The
'bezeling' method of the image is made as in Diane Hyde's book, Break the Rules. It is a very nifty way to embellish and
frame an image. If you haven't tried it yet, you should. The fan-shaped brass blank is from Diane Hyde's shop. I printed and
sealed the images myself. Plenty of images. It took some
time to find the right subjects.
The closure was a real adventure. This collar needs to be hold firmly,
otherwise it could unfold. An ordinary clasp would not have helped. I
though of using a shunky magnetic bracelet clasp, but it would not have
been reversible, and I would not have been able to add the second part
of the piece.
Here you can see a photo of the open link I
made using two Elegant Guide Rounds on the inside of the link, to pass
memory wire through the extra beads. The memory wire forces the link to remain closed even when both the
necklace and the collar are hung from it. The collar is kept well in
place. It still is a bit prototypy. In fact, it was very difficult to make due to the angles in the wire. I would like to
improve the concept but I don't have enough time now. As said, I need 2 other me.
Closure with both the collar and the necklace attached.
It can be used for the necklace alone too.
Closure in the make
I wish that I could go to Boston in October to meet with those of you who are going to the the seed bead summit organized by Kate McKinnon, to show you how gorgeous it looks when worn in real life. But, as you probably know, I have to stay away from lights, sun, neons or spots... If you can go, do yourself the favor! I will be present in spirit.
See below the photo for the names of the masters and their work shown in the images.
Seduction, shown with the artwork on the outside.
Squares from left to right:
Frank B. Dicksee, The Mirror 1896
François Boucher, Jupiter in the Guise of Diana, and the Nymph Callisto, 1759
Leopold Schmutzler, Young Girl with Jug 1864–1941
Fan shaped image:
Dicksee, La Belle Dame Sans Merci, about 1890
Thank you for reading this far. Now I'm going back to work. :-)
I participated in the Spring Swap organized by the Etsy Beadweavers Team, which I'm part of. A swap is something fun and exciting at the same time. One has to make (bead) something for another participant, according to guidelines transmitted by EBW leader Jacquie Champion, who lives in Canada. Swaps are exciting. Beading for another beader without knowing her personally is quite an adventure and expecting a little package from another mystery beader adds even more fun. It was just wonderful to open the little box I received from Erica Sándor. She made a lovely brooch in bronze and pink for me. I love it. 
Seeing the very small cork, I was a bit puzzled. It was not attached or glued to the bottle, and could be lost. To hold it in place and make sure that it would not come off of the flask too easily, I attached a - centered - fringe to it with two strands on the side, and these two strands pass through the double connections of the neck cord, so even if Meg has to run for some reason and the cork comes off, she won't loose it. 
