Bead blog recap weeks 33-34

As usual I almost forgot the bi-weekly summary of what I've written at Manekis Pärlblogg. Two weeks seems to just fly by. Posts include topics such as beading party tips, bead alongs, fun ideas for chains, flapper dresses, contests, transparancies tutorial and egg shell mosaics.




Bead party tips
Tips and ideas for anyone interesting in hosting a beading/ jewellery-making party.

Bead along
Do something together despite not being able to meet IRL by participating in a bead along. Everyone working on the same project independently and sharing photos, ideas, troubles etc online. Looking for a bead along? Beading Daily recently announced their first one.

Create from scraps and waste
ScrapLab Design Contest is an international contest focusing on designing with waste materials. One of the nine categories open for pros, students and amateurs is jewellery.

Flapper dress with beaded fringes
Making a dress from scratch might be a bit too daunting for someone not used to a sewing machine, but using bead fringes you can easily turn a simple dress or slip into a fun flapper girl outfit.

Chains as design elements
Chains can be used in so many ways other than just for suspending or linking beads and pendants. Here are some ideas for weaving, embroidering, braiding and linking chains, giving them a well deserved spot in the limelight.

Contrast as contest theme
Swedish bead shop Sirlig is hosting a jewellery design contest with the theme Kontraster (contrasts).

Birch Bark Beads
Beads can be made from many different materials. These fun rolled beads are made from birch bark.

Eggshell mosaics jewellery
Eggshell mosaic might sound like a kid craft, but it can be made into fun and sophisticated jewellery for adults as well. And used in such a way, people won't believe it's actually eggshells, otherwise destined for the compost heap.

Air-dry paper clay
Paper clay can be used to make jewellery and it's not least used in deco, creating miniature pastries and sweets in japanese style. The japanese clays even come in different colours and textures, ideal for the miniatures. Learn about the pros and cons of this type of clay. Not to be confused with the ceramic paper clay used by potters.

Layered collage pendants by Tim Holtz
Learn how to make beautiful pendants in different styles using papers, inks, acrylic tags and mroe by this master of paper crafts. Includes instructions for distressing papers using ink pads and making transparencies.

Blackboard jewellery
Make fun pendants, brooches etc using blackboard/chalkboard paint. The fun thing about them is that just like a blackboard, you can write, draw and doodle on the pendant, wipe it out and do it all over again.

Hinged pendants
They come in many different shapes, sizes and styles, but they have one thing in common: you can use them to frame both two- and tree-dimensional objects. Includes links to projects.