Saturday, August 20, 2016

Playing with my Beads...Ivy Bracelet with Candy Beads


  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457)
  • 8/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457)
  • 8mm 2-hole Candy beads "Chalk Lumi Green"
  • 4mm druks "Bronze"
  • SuperDuo beads "Opaque Green Senegal Matte"
  • O-Beads "Opaque Green Luster"

I used our free "Ivy Bracelet" pattern to make this sample. I know that most kinds of 6mm 2-hole beads work well with the pattern but I didn't know if 8mm beads would also work. They do work but I had to make a tweak. Instead of the three seed beads on either side of the 2-hole beads, I used 4mm druks. When I tried using the seed beads there, they were stretched out straight instead of forming points. That made the beadwork too loose and the druks give the motifs more stability. Even so, this version is kind of soft but I think it would be fine while wearing it. The bracelet comes out only slightly wider than when made with 6mm 2-hole cabochons but it has a bolder look because the Candy beads are much larger than the 6mm cabs.

You'll find these 8mm Candy beads at Queen City Bead on Etsy HERE. Download the free "Ivy Bracelet" pattern from THIS post.

 

8 comments:

  1. Love this variation on the Ivy bracelet - again thanks for sharing your experiments

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  2. Looks amazing! I love your Ivy and Bluebell patterns anyway, and this version gives it a lovely twist.

    I only wish I could get that color Candy beads in any of the online shops I frequent here in Europe.
    But I guess since they're new, with a little patience, they'll eventually carry more colors. :)

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    1. According to the Preciosa site, they make them in 64 different colors. I have yet to find any site that has anything near that many colors to choose from and most of them seem to have the same ones for the most part. It's kind of frustrating that there are so many colors that aren't available anywhere.

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    2. Yes, I have been drooling about their Flickr page for the past few days: https://www.flickr.com/photos/preciosa-ornela/sets/72157667028448092
      And not to be ungrateful, I have been able to buy a few truly amazing ones here, but, but.... why does no shop store them all? :D

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    3. I think they're being cautious. They're afraid of getting stuck with anything that might not sell well. It's frustrating when you need two or three sizes of druks or other beads in a particular color and no one store has the color in all of the sizes.

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    4. Oh no, I don't think it would be sensible at all for a bead shop to stock everything. (Would that even be possible?)
      But like you said, it is frustrating sometimes for us bead-addicts.

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  3. I love the Chalk Lumi Green Candy beads!

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