Free Beading Pattern - Ivy Bracelet

 IVY BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457)
• DiamonDuo beads "Jet Silver Picasso"
• SuperDuo beads "Chalk Copper Picasso"
• O-Beads "Gold Matte"

This is the first in a series of patterns based on the eight beautiful bracelets that Teejay sent me for my birthday earlier this month. Click HERE to read my original post about this bracelet. Teejay created the wonderful diagrams for this pattern so it should be easy to follow.

You probably won't find the SuperDuo color that I used anywhere and the Etsy shop where I bought them no longer has them. "Chalk Lazure Blue" or "Opaque Green Luster" would be good substitutes. The "silver" in the black DiamonDuo beads is really a sage green which is nearly the same color as the SuperDuos that I used.

UPDATE: I just discovered that Aura Crystals has "Opaque Green Copper Luster" SuperDuos and that is the same color as the "Chalk Copper Picasso" beads that I used. You can buy them HERE.

Click HERE to download the free pattern.

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NOTE: I don't mind if you sell the projects that you make with my patterns, but please mention that you got the pattern from Linda's Crafty Inspirations. Please contact me for information about teaching this or any of our other patterns in a class.

 

Bracelet of the Day: Regina Bracelet

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Antique Bronze" (223)
• 8/0 seed beads Toho "Antique Bronze" (223)
• CzechMates beads "Opaque Pale Jade Bronze Picasso"
• SuperDuo beads "Opaque Purple Picasso"

If you haven't visited Reggie's Etsy shop to see the beautiful bracelets that she has for sale, click HERE. She and I are kindred spirits when it comes to bead color choices. I love to browse her shop for ideas. One bracelet in particular kept drawing me back. Reggie calls it her "Czechmate Tile and Superduo Cuff Bracelet" and you can see some examples of it HERE, HERE and HERE. The design is Reggie's own creation and unfortunately she doesn't have a pattern available. I really wanted to make some so I figured it out and I'm calling it "Regina Bracelet" in honor of Reggie's pretty design. 

UPDATE: You can buy Reggie's pattern in her Etsy shop HERE.

I made the same bracelet twice with a couple of subtle differences. I used Toho seed beads the first time and Miyuki beads in the second bracelet. I also added an accent SuperDuo color to the second bracelet as I'd seen in some of Reggie's bracelets. I will need to experiment a little more to be sure but it looks like Toho beads might work a little better than Miyuki's because they're larger. The Toho beads add a little more space for the SuperDuos so the bracelet comes out more flexible. My bracelet with the Miyuki seed beads is stiffer and has a tendency to warp a little. What I'm not sure about is if it is actually the bronze accent SuperDuos that are the cause of the warping rather than the seed beads. They're a little fatter than the other SuperDuo beads that I used and I think they might be causing everything to go a little wonky. It's not obvious when I'm wearing the bracelet though and I doubt that anyone else would notice it. The two bracelets in the photos above were made with Toho seed beads and no accent beads. Here is a photo of the other bracelet, which was made with Miyuki beads and accent beads for comparison:

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457)
• CzechMates beads "Opaque Pale Jade Bronze Picasso"
• SuperDuo beads "Opaque Purple Picasso"
• SuperDuo beads "Crystal Gold Luster"

I also made three small samples to try the pattern with transparent/translucent CzechMates. Instead of my usual black thread, I used thread that matches the bead colors so that it wouldn't show as dark lines through the tile beads. I'm happy with all of them and this design will be a nice way to use up some of my transparent CzechMates. I generally avoid using them because I'm fussy about thread showing. This is the ideal pattern for them because there aren't many seed beads for light colored thread to show badly between.

I should mention that I used Toho seed beads in all three samples and they don't feel stiff or warped even though I did add accent SuperDuos. However, something like that is not always readily apparent in such small samples.

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• 8/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• CzechMates beads "Rose Gold Topaz Luster"
• SuperDuo beads "Crystal Pink Luster"
• SuperDuo beads "Crystal Gold Luster"

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• 8/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• CzechMates beads "Milky Pink Moon Dust"
• SuperDuo beads "Crystal Violet Luster"
• SuperDuo beads "Crystal Gold Luster"

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• 8/0 seed beads Toho "Bright Bronze" (221)
• CzechMates beads "Transparent Green Luster"
• SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Olive"
• SuperDuo beads "Crystal Gold Luster"

Bracelet of the Day: Dragonfly - Gold & Pewter II

DRAGONFLY BRACELET

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (4222)  
• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (4222)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (4222)
• 8/0 Czech seed beads "Etched Amber Gold Full"
• Tila beads "Smoky Black Picasso" (TL-4511)
• SuperDuo beads "Bronze Gold"

This is the same bracelet in the same colorway that I blogged about yesterday HERE except that I replaced the CzechMates with Tila beads. Because Tilas are smaller and thinner than CzechMates, this bracelet came out narrower as you can see in the photo below. I also had to use one more Tila than CzechMate bead for the same reason. This pattern works great with Tila beads but it does curl a little more than when made with CzechMates. I actually like how that looks and I think it gives the bracelet a nice shape.

Below are photos of both bracelets so that you can compare the differences between them:

Made with Tila beads

Made with CzechMates beads

The pattern is from In Memory of Eridhan on Etsy and you can buy it HERE (Unfortunately, this pattern is no longer available).

 

Bracelet of the Day: Dragonfly - Gold & Pewter

DRAGONFLY BRACELET

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (4222)  
• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (4222)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Duracoat Galvanized Pewter" (4222)
• 8/0 Czech seed beads "Etched Amber Gold Full"
• CzechMates "Metallic Suede Dark Green"
• SuperDuo beads "Bronze Gold"

I told you in THIS post about some interesting Czech "Etched Amber Gold Full" seed beads that I found at 1960 Beads and I mentioned that I wanted to use them to make a Dragonfly bracelet. It was tricky finding all of the necessary beads in colors that go with those seed beads and also go well together. I had no other seed beads in 15/0 or 11/0 that matched the 8/0 etched beads or the gold SuperDuos that I wanted to use. So, I did end up using Duracoat Pewter seed beads as I mentioned that I might do in my other post. Oddly enough when they are next to the gold beads the colors sort of blend to form a very soft golden color. Plus, I went with the softer colored "Bronze Gold" SuperDuo beads rather than the brighter "Crystal Amber Gold Full" ones which were a little too harsh and yellow next to the other beads.

I also had a hard time finding CzechMates in a color that would go well with the Czech etched beads. I settled on some very dark "Suede Dark Green" tiles that I thought would make a nice contrast to the lighter, glittering gold beads. I decided that if I were to use a light color for the tile beads, the pretty details made with the golden beads wouldn't show well enough.

Because I wanted to incorporate more of the special etched seed beads into this bracelet than just a few half-hidden along the edge, I embellished the edge slightly differently than I've done with other Dragonfly bracelets that I've made. Instead of adding one 11/0 seed bead between each pair of SuperDuos, I used one of the 8/0 beads with a 15/0 pewter bead on either side of it. This created a soft, scalloped edge that I think is pretty and I will probably use that idea again sometime. That tweak might not work well when using Tila beads instead of CzechMates though because the pairs of SuperDuos don't flare out quite as much with the smaller Tila beads. I did make a sample with Tilas and found that just a single 8/0 seed bead fits nicely in that spot. I will show you that bracelet in tomorrow's post.

The pattern is from In Memory of Eridhan on Etsy and you can buy it HERE (Unfortunately, this pattern is no longer available). 

 

Birthday Bracelet 8 - Bluebell Bracelet

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• DiamonDuo beads "Chalk Lumi Blue"
• SuperDuo beads "Jet Picasso"
• O-Beads "Jet Valentine"

This is the last of the eight birthday bracelets from my dear friend, Teejay. This bracelet is a variation of the "Ivy Bracelet" and Teejay has filled in the gaps between the DiamonDuos with more DiamonDuos. I blogged about the "Ivy" bracelet HERE. This version has a very different look and feel than "Ivy" but I like it just as much.

I'd better get to work collaborating with Teejay on the patterns for these wonderful bracelets. I don't know about you, but I want to know how to make all of them.

 

Birthday Bracelet 7 - Snapdragon Bracelet

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• DiamonDuo beads "Turquoise Bronze"
• Pinch Beads "Chalk Green Luster"
• O-Beads "Peridot Vitrail Matte"

I really like the clever way that Teejay linked the motifs on this bracelet and once again she framed the DiamonDuos with O-Beads. Like the other birthday bracelets from Teejay, we plan to eventually make a pattern available for this one. The "Ivy Bracelet" pattern is coming along nicely and might be ready to post in about a week.

 

Birthday Bracelet 6 - Honeysuckle Bracelet

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• DiamonDuo beads "Chalk Light Rose"
• SuperDuo beads "Opaque Green Picasso"
• O-Beads "Opaque Blue Luster"

This bracelet from Teejay also reminds me of little flowers. I'm pretty sure that this is a variation of the "Ivy" and "Clover" design which I blogged about HERE and HERE. I think that this delicate design would also make a wonderful necklace. The color of the DiamonDuo beads is called "rose" but it's actually lavender. I love how that color looks with the green and blue beads.

 

Birthday Bracelet 5 - Clover Bracelet

• 15/0 seed beads Matsuno "Copper" (457A)
• 11/0 seed beads Matsuno "Copper" (457A)
• 6mm 2-hole cabochon beads "Chalk Blue Luster"
• SuperDuo beads "Metallic Suede Gold"
• O-Beads "Matte Metallic Antique Copper"

Today's bracelet is the one that I mentioned on Monday. This is almost the same design as the "Ivy" bracelet but it has 2-hole cabochon beads instead of DiamonDuos. The bright copper O-Beads really give this bracelet a pop of color and they almost look like tiny butterflies. I didn't think to mention it in my previous posts, but notice the clever way that Teejay has used O-Beads on the ends to connect the clasp with jump rings. She did the same thing on the "Petunia Bracelet" and "Lilac Bracelet", which you can read about HERE and HERE.

By the way, Teejay and I have started working on the pattern for "Ivy".

 

Birthday Bracelet 4 - Lilac Bracelet

• 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Brown Iris" (458)
• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Gilded Marble Black" (1706)
• 4mm druks "Pink Turquoise Luster"
• O-Beads "Opaque Blue Luster"

This sweet little bracelet from Teejay has only druks, O-Beads and seed beads. Something about the arrangement of the beads reminded me of little flower clusters and that's what gave me the idea to give these bracelets from Teejay flower and plant names.

 

Birthday Bracelet 3 - Ivy Bracelet

• 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Metallic Chocolate" (461)
• DiamonDuo beads "Coral Bronze"
• SuperDuo beads "Aquamarine Dark Travertin"
• O-Beads "Peridot Vitrail Matte"

This is birthday bracelet #3 from Teejay. Don't you love how she framed the DiamonDuo beads with O-Beads? This bracelet has a light and airy look with lots of space between the main beads. This is one of the bracelet designs that you will see again later with different main beads. She also made a variation of this one that has more DiamonDuos instead of the open spaces. The pattern looks very different when made that way, especially with the color of the beads that she used.

UPDATE: Click HERE to get the free "Ivy" pattern.