The sequin stash

Sarah of Saturday Sequins announced her first blog hop, Sequinastic September, not long ago. Of cause I was temped to join in. I have only used sequins a few times since I grew up (of cause I craved sequins a lot as a kid). Once for a fun wirework necklace, once for some sort of garland. Never really used it in my beadwork. Sure, there have been a few ideas, but in the end I often stick with other materials I like better.

That said, I do have a small stash of sequins that I've both either because they looked pretty or because I got one of my weird ideas of using unusual jewellery materials. As they are often bought in bigger packs than I need or in mixes, I end up with lots of leftover. Some I've destashed a couple of years ago, but much I chose to keep for one reason or another.

I have two favourites in this pile of plastic:

• The matte bronze sequins. I bought these on sale because I really liked the colour and the flowers were so cute. My sis bought the third shape available: you can see part of one of the oval sequins she got in the back.

• The big flowers. This is from a package of big mixed sequins. Pretty much all of the big and colourful sequins in the first pic are from this mix, which included everything from stars and leaves to fish and turkeys. I think these flowers are fun and very retro. (BTW, they are purple, not blue.)

So now that I have signed up, what will I do with these sequins? To be honest I have no idea. The hop is on September 29th so there's lots of time to do something. With a deadline so far off, it doesn't feel like I have to rush any ideas -- but I'm trying not to get too lax as it's so easy to forget about it all and then sit up on the last night, trying to make something with the mind blank and stress levels rising.


I'm hoping to be able to create something without going shopping. I've seen lots of interesting sequins out there that'd be fun to play with -- and I do want to get my hands on some punchinella/sequin waste too! -- but it's better to work with the stash. Especially knowing how long these sequins have just been lying there in a drawer: even if I like them now, buying new stuff might just result in an even bigger stash of unused materials...


But, on the other, if I do use much of my sequins for this challenge, I have a legit reason to buy some new sequins, right? Some more useful shapes and nicer styles than the ones I have.

If you like sequins -- or if you want to be challenged to use them -- you should check out Sarah's blog hop. The rules for this creative challenge are simple: create original work using sequins -- it doesn't have to be jewellery or beadwork -- and post on your blog on the reveal date. And, finally, have fun! Sign ups are open through August 20. Complete information can be found here.