Bracelet of the Day: Loretta Variation

LORETTA BRACELET VARIATION

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Metallic Bronze Antique Gold" (225)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Opaque Brown Tan Picasso" (8-4517)
• SuperDuo beads "Opaque Green Picasso"
• SuperDuo beads "Chalk Travertine Dark"
• 4mm fire polished beads "Chartreuse Picasso"

I made this bracelet for Teejay for Christmas last year and also made the earrings below to go with it. This is a slight variation of the free tutorial posted on Pinterest HERE. I think that the only difference is that I omitted the 15/0 seed beads and used 11/0's instead. I thought this would be my last Bracelet of the Day for a while but I've got one more Loretta set to post tomorrow.

Pattern Review: Sidonia's Sunset Glare Earrings

This afternoon I watched Sidonia's YouTube video tutorial and made two sample earrings. You can watch the video HERE. As usual, it's very easy to follow along with Sidonia and see what she's doing. I made the sample on the left while watching the video the first time through. I then watched it again and took down notes so that I could make the other sample without having to sit at my computer. I was using scraps of thread so ignore the white thread that shows in the first sample.

I made one change to Sidonia's pattern because my stones were a little loose in their bezels and I like how they look with my tweak. I added a second, inside round of netting on the fronts. After adding the first round as directed, you'll end up with a color #2 seed bead sticking out toward the center at each intersection. To add the extra round, simply add a string of 5 color #1 seed beads between each of those sticking out beads. This makes a nice little frame around the stone.

I like the second sample, with the pearly ceylon accent beads, but I think I'd like it better with all bronze seed beads on the "petals" that go around the lower section.

These are the beads that I used in my samples:

SUNSET GLARE EARRINGS SAMPLE 1

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Brown Bronze Matte" (15-457P)
• 3mm fire polished beads "Bronze"
• 4mm fire polished beads "Transparent Gold Topaz Luster"
• 14mm "Amethyst" rivoli (has a point in the center)

SUNSET GLARE EARRINGS SAMPLE 2

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Eggshell Ceylon" (15-421C)
• 3mm fire polished beads "Ruby"
• 4mm fire polished beads "Transparent Gold Topaz Luster"
• 14mm "Garnet" chaton (flat in the center)

Bracelet of the Day: Diamond Chain

DIAMOND CHAIN

I don't have any bead info for today's bracelet. I got the gun metal seed beads at Walmart and the bicones didn't come with any color information. I found them in the Chinavoski bin at Beadoholique and have never seen this color again since. This was one of my earliest bracelets made from what was one of my favorite patterns when I was just starting to learn beading. It's very easy to learn yet looks very pretty. You can get the free tutorial from the Fire Mountain Gems site HERE (this pattern is no longer available). I substituted a single bicone for each pair of seed beads called for.

Here's another way that you can use the cathedral beads that I posted about yesterday. I used Deborah Roberti's "Dewdrop Earrings" pattern and used the cathedral beads as drop beads. You can buy the earring pattern HERE on Around the Beading Table.

Bracelet of the Day: Mingles - Topaz

MINGLES

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
• 4mm Cathedral beads "Topaz/Silver Ends" (BCP-6410)
• 7mm Cathedral beads "Topaz/Silver Ends" (BCP-6356)

This was my first variation of Sabine Lippert's free "Mingles" pattern and is the closest to the original. Download the pattern HERE. I changed the small seed bead motifs between the larger ones. I bought the beautiful cathedral beads from Beadaholique HERE and HERE.

While deciding which Bracelet of the Day to post for today, I discovered that I've only got two more bracelets left to post about. I think I will take a bit of a break after posting the last two so that I can make some new bracelets to write about. I actually do have a few more but they're going to be birthday presents for my friends and I don't want to spoil the surprise. I will post them after their birthdays. One birthday is in June and the other one is at the beginning of July.

Bracelet of the Day: Double Diamond - Copper & Teal

DOUBLE DIAMOND BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Cousin "Copper" (Walmart)
• 8/0 seed beads "Matte Teal" (F259A - unknown brand)

This was one of my earliest bracelets. I know that because it's made with some of the seed beads from Walmart. Although the tube says they're 11/0 seed beads, they're really a bit larger. I like the larger size for this bracelet. True 11/0 seed beads are a little too delicate.

I noticed something odd about the 8/0 seed beads that I used. They pretty much look like solid teal but they used to be variegated colors. I wonder if the color has worn off. On the other hand, maybe I purposely picked out the teal beads when I made the bracelet but I don't recall doing that. I also see that some of the stitching is coming loose near the clasps. I really like this bracelet so I will take it apart and remake it some day. I'll just make a point of using very fine needle and thread because the Cousins Chinese seed beads have very small holes compared to Japanese beads. At least I won't have to cull the copper beads. I'll just re-use the same ones.

The pattern is free and you can find it at Beading Daily HERE.

Bracelet of the Day: Crystal Picot - Amethyst

CRYSTAL PICOT BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 4mm fire polished beads "Amethyst"
• 6mm fire polished beads "Amethyst"

Once again, I used all fire polished beads in place of the bicones that the pattern calls for. I also used my tweak on the picots again. You can read how I made them in my post from April 7th HERE. 

You can download the PDF file with my tweak HERE. Click HERE to download Deborah Roberti's pattern, which is now free.

Bracelet of the Day: Renaissance Bracelet - Jet Black

RENAISSANCE BRACELET

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
• 4mm fire polished beads "Jet Capri AB"
• 6mm fire polished beads "Jet Celsian

This is such a plain, simple pattern but it looks kind of dressy and is very comfortable to wear. This is the "Hugs & Kisses" pattern with the seed bead embellishment only going in one direction. That one little change gives the bracelet a totally different look than if it had the netting going in both directions. You can find the free pattern HERE (Unfortunately, this pattern is no longer available). I posted about a red version of this bracelet HERE back on February 26th. That one is also one of my favorites.

Bracelet of the Day: Crystal Tile - Pale Blue Picasso

CRYSTAL TILE BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Metallic Bronze Antique Gold" (225)
• 4mm bicones "Taupe - #C24" (Beads One)
• 4mm fire polished beads "Pale Blue Picasso" (Nirvana Beads?)

This was the first Crystal Tile Bracelet that I made and it's still my favorite. Unfortunately, fire polished beads this color are not easy to find. I bought them locally at Beadoholique but I haven't seen them there since. They have some on the Nirvana Beads site that look like they might be the same color and I know that Beadoholique gets many of their Czech beads from Nirvana. You can see them HERE. They're calling them green instead of blue but they look more blue in the photo to me. This is the last of the Crystal Tile bracelets that I've made so maybe it's time to try the pattern in a new color.

You can buy Deborah Roberti's pattern HERE.

Bracelet of the Day: Crystal Tile Bracelet - Cream & Topaz

CRYSTAL TILE BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• 4mm bicones "Light Smoked Topaz" (#C29 AB - Beads One)
• 4mm fire polished beads "Opaque Beige Luster"

I made this for a Christmas gift last year. It just happened to be my size so I snapped a photo of it on my wrist. You can buy Deborah Roberti's pattern HERE.

Bracelet of the Day: India Bracelet - Limon Travertine

INDIA BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• SuperDuo beads "Chalk Travertine Dark"
• SuperDuo beads "Limon Travertine Dark"
• 4mm fire polished beads "Opaque Light Beige"
• 4mm druks "Bronze"

This was the first "India Bracelet" that I made. I don't have a larger photo of it. I gave it to my cousin for her birthday so I can't take more pictures. I also made the "Loretta Earrings" and "Wave of Love" pendant below to go with her bracelet. You can buy the "India Bracelet" pattern HERE.

UPDATE: To buy the "India" pattern, try contacting Nicole Hublard on her blog HERE. Click where it says "Contactez l'auteur" (Contact the owner of the blog).

LORETTA EARRINGS

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)   
• SuperDuo beads "Chalk Travertine Dark"  
• SuperDuo beads "Limon Travertine Dark"
• 4mm fire polished beads "Goldenrod Picasso"

Download the free "Loretta" pattern HERE.

WAVE OF LOVE PENDANT

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (8-457D)
• SuperDuo beads "Chalk Travertine Dark"
• SuperDuo beads "Limon Travertine Dark"

Download the free "Wave of Love" pattern HERE.

Bracelet of the Day: Double Diamond - Black

DOUBLE DIAMOND BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 4mm bicones "Jet #C04" (Beads One)

As I mentioned in an earlier "Bracelet of the Day" post, this is a combination and adaptation of two similar patterns. You can read the details HERE. Although I love this bracelet, I made it for a sad occasion and call it my "mourning bracelet". I made it to wear to my husband's father's funeral. I had only been beading for a little over a month when I made this one.

Bracelet of the Day: Sweet Romance - Light Topaz & Copper

SWEET ROMANCE BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Matsuno "Copper" (11-457A)
• 4mm bicones "Brown Medium AB" (#C26 AB - Beads One)

I made this one quickly on Friday to wear to a wedding last night. I have a necklace and earrings that my husband gave me many years ago and I needed a bracelet that would go with them. Here's a picture of the necklace and earrings:

The pattern is from Sidonia's YouTube tutorial which you can watch HERE.

Bracelet of the Day: Nouveau SuperDuo Chain - Jet Bronze

NOUVEAU SUPERDUO CHAIN BRACELET

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (8-457D)
• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Hybrid Antiqued Metallic Black" (TY-11-Y0503)
• SuperDuo beads "Jet Bronze Picasso"

I love this bracelet because it goes with just about any outfit. I added accent beads between the motifs like I usually do when I make this pattern. The 11/0 black accent beads that I used also go by the name "Jet Bronze Picasso", or at least the two colors appear to be identical even though the numbers are slightly different. The "Jet Bronze Picasso" seed bead number is "TY-11-Y0506". Just as I did with the other bracelets that I've made with this pattern, I added 8/0 seed beads on the ends for attaching jump rings and my clasp. Here's a close-up showing how I attach my clasps when making this pattern:

You can buy the pattern from Jewelry Tales, HERE, for $5.00. 

Bracelet of the Day: Crystal Flower Bracelet - Aquamarine

CRYSTAL FLOWER BRACELET

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (15-457D)
• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (11-457D)
• 4mm fire polished beads "Aquamarine Celsian"
• 4mm bicones "Sea Foam" (Cousin AJM66011006 - from Walmart)

Here's Deb Roberti's "Crystal Flower Bracelet" pattern in a delicious color combination. As I did before with the ivory colored one, I made a small change to the pattern where the clasp is added. Rather than making a loop of beads as directed by the pattern, I came out through a fire polished bead on the end, added 3 seed beads then the clasp, went back through the last seed bead added and then added 2 more seed beads and went through the fire polished bead on the other side.

Bracelet of the Day: Sweet Romance Variation

This is the other bracelet that Teejay sent me for my birthday. This is her adaptation of Sidonia's YouTube video tutorial. I don't have any bead information for this one other than that she used rondelles instead of bicones. Teejay also eliminated the small diamond motifs in between the larger motifs. Here is the photo that I took of the sample that I made from the video so you can compare the differences: