Autumn leaves

It's Sunday and I'm as usually spending the weekend writing a week's worth of posts for my other blog so today will be more pictures than words. As it's (still) autumn I thought the colours and theme in these old photos was fitting.

This is a handmade boro glass cab surrounded by hessonite garnet chip beads. Like a lot of beaders, I'm not a big fan of chips, but I like how they can feel like autumn leaves sometimes. So I figured they might look good with an autumnal cab like this one. This is how far my ideas for this cab has come.

It's almost like a flower, a chrysanthemum of some sort, in that flat cab. Love it!

The bouclé chain necklace

I made this necklace for the Vintaj monthly challenge, but never submitted it as I didn't think it was good enough. The focal is a boro glass cab that I set in a "Whimsical Spray" Fastenable riveted to a brass blank. The cab is a little bit too fat for the setting in my eyes, but it's not too big to be securely fastened. I just wanted the prongs to show a little more.

Anyway, the part I was pleased with was the chain. I've woven space-dyed rayon bouclé twice through a ladder chain (also by Vintaj). A very simple technique, but I really like the result. Especially when being careful to let the yarn/floss "wind" between the links when you weave the second layer. The result remind me of braided cords (e.g. a simple kumihimo braid) and if you don't overdo the weaving, the chain will still be subtle and flexible. I think the wavy texture of the yarn works especially well here.




The variegated thread makes the weaving more visible and also pick up several of the colours in the cab. So far so good. Only thing I worry about is that rayon is notoriously frail compared to many other fibres and bouclé is a very loose type of yarn, meaning there's both an issue of snagging and of abrasion when weaving, but also when using the finished piece. I do hope the yarn is heavy enough to stand up to some wear and tear because I like this chain.

Van gogh glass

Friday and Monday I've got some fun mail. The result of spending my birthday money on a few small orders. Yesterday I got scales and anodized aluminum tags from Canada and a few bits and bobs from the UK. Last week I got this. Van gogh glass mosaic tiles.

I've been meaning to buy van gogh glass for ages, it feels like. I think it looks gorgeous with those lovely rime-like patterns. The pattern is the result of applying glue chips on clear glass and then cover it with metallic paint in one or several different colours. This does make the back of the glass somewhat delicate and it's a pretty boring dark grey/black colour. But it's a lovely glass, even if you do have to be more careful when working with it compared to e.g. stained glass where the colour is inside the glass.

My tiles are 1x1,5". Not sure how I'll use them yet, but I thought that'd be a useful size and shape so I asked the seller if she could cut them like that. Perfect for a pendant, really: not too large, but still big enough for the pattern of the glass to really show.


Only downside... Now I'm temped to buy more coloured and patterned (art) glass... This could get expensive... There are so much lovely glass if you happen to find an art glass supplier. Glass is truely an amazing and diverse material!