I'm calling these "Beth SuperDuo Earrings" after the name of the woman who created the original design. I saw her earrings on Pinterest a few days ago and figured out how to make them. The photo below that I saw on Pinterest linked to Beth Clark's ArtFire shop HERE, but she no longer has those earrings for sale. I did find them in another color in her gallery, HERE. While I was there, I saw her "Duo Fan Earrings" which I've also made and will blog about another day.
UPDATE 7/28/21: Beth's pattern is no longer available.
Beth's original earrings
Although I think a solid color looks pretty, I decided to try a more variegated look with mine. I used one color for the top part of the earring and a different, but complimentary color, for the bottom part. I made a change at the top of my earrings so that I could add some seed beads to cover the empty holes in the SuperDuos. I like that with my method the earrings lay flat. When I made them using Beth's method, they bulged in the center and there were those pesky empty holes. Below are two sample earrings that I made using my method:
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Pink"
- SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Orchid Aqua"
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Teal"
- SuperDuo beads "Green Iris Matte"
After making a few samples, I decided to play a little more with the design because the top had a tendency to come out a little crooked. I'm also not wild about how the bottom of the earring is rather wide.
Prototypes
So, my next experiment was to omit the seed beads between the SuperDuos on the inner "flower" and see if that allowed me to do something a little different with the top part of the earring. I really liked how this new sample turned out. It still looks similar to Beth's original earrings but has a longer, narrower shape and no empty SuperDuo holes showing. It also lays nice and flat. I've made this version in quite a few color combinations. Below are a few examples of my version, which I call "Bethany Earrings". After making a few earrings, I decided that they'd look better with the center "flower" in one color and the rest of the SuperDuos in a different color.
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Bronze" (457)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Bronze" (457)
- SuperDuo beads "Opaque Green Luster Iris"
- SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Aqua Teal"
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (D4222)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (D4222)
- SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Copper Rose""
- SuperDuo beads "Pearl Luster"
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Pink"
- SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Orchid Aqua"
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- SuperDuo beads "Opaque Ultra Green Luster"
- SuperDuo beads "Opaque Olive Bronze Picasso"
SAMPLE 1 (left)
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Teal"
- SuperDuo beads "Green Iris Matte"
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
- SuperDuo beads "Gold Copper Iris Matte"
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
- SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Pink"
- SuperDuo beads "Polychrome Orchid Aqua"
Just for fun, I made a sample using almost the same color that Beth used in her white earrings and also made a sample using my method for comparison.
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| Beth's version on the left and my version on the right |
- 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
- 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (457L)
- SuperDuo beads "Pastel Cream"
Linda where did you start your earring? I love your changes and color combo's they are all really pretty. Some times I can look and see what the steps are to an earring just from a sample but these have me stumped. TFS Ann
ReplyDeleteWhen I made the original version, I started with the top loop and worked my way down. When I came up with my tweaked version, I started with the center "flower" then added the bottom part and then worked my way back up to add the top part. It might be possible to make them from different starting points but I try to come up with a method that flows nicely without a lot of backtracking.
DeleteI started in the middle, fyi.
DeleteVery nice post! I am so glad I could be an inspiration. I really like these earrings in the beautiful jewel tones you used!
ReplyDeleteHi Beth! You sure found my post quickly. I really love your design and just had to recreate it. Do you have a pattern for sale? I'm sure that my visitors would love to have one.
DeleteI've gone a bit nuts lately buying all the "matte iris" SuperDuo colors.
DeleteI found this quickly because ArtFire provides info about incoming URL's :) Thanks! I don't have a pattern/tutorial available right now. If I ever make one I will let you know, and be sure to contact you about your variations!
DeleteThat would be great, Beth.
DeleteVery nice! my favorites are the cream colored ones. I love all your posts and variations
ReplyDeleteThese are gorgeous. I only wish I had your ability to re-create from a photo.
ReplyDeleteMy way of looking at it is that it can't hurt to try. Start by looking for components that look familiar to you from other patterns you've made and build from there. If that doesn't work, start from a different spot and so on. As you go, think about what you might need to do to move on to the next step. Use the stitches that you've learned from other projects to guide you.
DeleteRecently found your beading blog and love it. Your posts on tweaking or experimenting with the patterns are very interesting. Also I appreciate you listing the colors. Have a good day!
ReplyDeleteJeanette
Blue Bell, Pa.
Thank you, Jeanette. Hopefully my blog will give you lots of beading ideas.
DeleteLinda, I just saw this post from 2015. Do you have a pattern for your re-creation of these earrings?
ReplyDeleteHi Donna. Yes, Beth gave me permission to publish my adaptation of her pattern and they're called "Bethany Earrings". You can download the pattern from THIS post.
DeleteI found it - thanks so much
ReplyDeleteTRES BELLES
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Delete