Silk Flower Brocch

Now that this has found its way to its new home, I can finally share the silk flower brooch I made in Candie Cooper's silk class at the Adornments Retreat last month.  The lovely kittykill helped me out by watching over the Craft a Craftster Friend Doll Swap while I was away at the retreat, and so I knew I wanted to make her something while I was there.  When we started in on these awesome flowers, I knew I had to make this for her!  Each petal was rough cut from silk fabric and lace, then the edges were lightly singed with a butane torch to seal them, and create an organic look.  They were layered together, topped with an awesome piece of Vintaj brass, and a cool rhinestone embellishment, and fished with some dangling bits of chain.  I couldn't resist adding some crystal beads to the chain.

Crystal, Pearl & Brass Necklace & Earrings Set

I almost forgot to post this!  This is my entry for the Bead Soup design contest at the Adornments Retreat earlier this month. Everyone was asked to bring a 16" strand of beads, matching some aspect of a provided color palette.  I assumed we were mixing all the beads that everyone brought, so I provided a 16" strand of the same beads.  But in actuality, we were in smaller groups, where we mixed beads with the few other people at our individual tables.  Some tables were full with 8 people, and others, like mine, were smaller.  We had just 4 people.  To get us started, Swarovski Crystal who was one of the sponsors, placed a few strands of their beads in each bowl.  The crystal rings, and the deep blue pearls both came from that.  The other beads were from my various table-mates. 

Since the other sponsor was Vintaj, and they provided clasps for the designs, I went with a very Vintaj-heavy feel for my design, incorporating some of their brass filigree components and bead caps, along with some antiqued gold chain, and some chain tassels.  The result is a simple piece, that I could wear comfortably.  (You should have seen some of the more awesome designs!  There was some crazy beautiful stuff in the mix.)

Layered Coordinating Pendants

Last week I had the great good fortune to attend the Adornments Retreat sponsored by Vintaj and Art Bead Scene.  It was 4 days of classes, make-and-take projects, and crafting fun.  One of the events on the first day, as a way to get to know one another, was a pendant exchange.  We were invited to bring a pendant we had made, strung on a simple cord or ribbon, all wrapped up. 

The base is Vintaj arte metal.  The middle layer is a piece of Vintaj brass that I hit with a little of their patina paint in a few shades of pink.  The top piece is an antiqued gold charm star charm with an opal pink stone in the center.  I popped some holes in the base art metal piece, and added drops made from rosewater opal Swarovski crystals.

Since I wasn't sure if we would be truly exchanging between two people, or if we would all place our pendants on a table, and randomly take another, or if we'd be able to meet up with one another in some way later, I decided to make myself a coordinating pendant, so my partner could find me later if need be, and so we would always have something to link us together after the event.

The base is the same arte metal, and the middle layer is the same Vintaj brass that I hit with patina paint in shades of green instead of pink.  The top piece is an antiqued gold charm compass rose.  I added drops made from chrysolite opal Swarovski crystals to go with the brass patina. 

I'm glad to say the recipient loved her pendant and was wearing it throughout the event.  :D

Morning Glory Pendant

Last week I had the great good fortune to attend the Adornments Retreat sponsored by Vintaj and Art Bead Scene.  It was 4 days of classes, make-and-take projects, and crafting fun.  One of the events was a Make & Take with Ron, a representative from Swarovski Crystal, & Jess Italia Lincoln, the Signature Designer at Vintaj. 

The crystal is a huge Swarovski crystal in their Orchid shape, and the brass piece is a vine of morning glories from Vintaj.  I later strung it onto a piece of green upcycled sari silk ribbon with sliding knots, so I can wear it tight tighter as a choker, or longer as a pendant.