The 'Idylle' Necklace in Olive

The relief I feel, when a large project is completed, is immense!  

Relief that an unfinished project is no longer hanging around on my desk (in its proper place, mind you)...

Relief that I can now move on to the next exciting project without getting a case of the 'UFO guilts' (that is, feeling guilty for the number of UnFinished Objects lying around on said desk)...

So whilst sitting back and enjoying this lovely feeling of relief, I can finally show you photos of my completed 'Idylle' necklace in an olive colourway.  You may recall seeing me working on it here and here.  (And you can find the original 'Idylle' necklace in the lilac colourway here.)

'Idylle' 

(French for 'romance')

I used the most delicious matte metallic rainbow turquoise/light green delicas for the main body of the necklace.  Depending on the light, they exhibit shades of olive and denim and yellow...and they perfectly compliment the gorgeous light green Swarovski crystal pearls...

For this variation of the Idylle necklace, I used flat spiral stitch ropes rather than St Petersburg chain as in the original version.  Beautiful 3mm cream Swarovski pearls are sprinkled throughout the ropes, and I have finished the necklace with my unique floral toggle clasp...

As always, I have made the reverse side of the necklace as pretty as the front...

Thanks for looking, and be well!

Ophelia earrings

I love creating earrings.  

They are a small enough project to provide almost instant gratification.

They give me the opportunity to test colourways, metals and materials on a small scale before commiting to a larger and more time-consuming project.

Oh, and I love wearing them too :-)

My 'Ophelia' earrings are one of my latest designs...

In shades of olive and sage, with antiqued brass findings and chain, they have a decidedly vintage look to them...just the look I was aiming for!

Ophelia was a character in Shakespeare's 'Hamlet', and the subject of a number of paintings by John William Waterhouse...the name seemed just right for my romantic, vintage-look earrings...

There is a matching 'Ophelia' bracelet and necklace to come.  And the set will form part of a future collection that I have planned.  Stay tuned!

Thanks for looking, and be well!

Idylle

Idylle, which is French for 'romance', is my latest beadwoven creation. A romantic, lacy, Olde Worlde necklace in shades of lilac and cream.

This is a great example of how one idea can lead to another. The beaded beads and pendant in my "Vintage Rose" necklace inspired me to push those ideas further to see what I could create. And this is the result, variations on the same theme but a completely different outcome:

Detail of the floral motifs (they are identical front and back, so the reverse side of my necklace is just as pretty as the front):

Detail of the floral clasp. As usual, I wanted it to blend in with the rest of the design:

I hope you explore some variations in your own work. We all need a good dose of 'What if...?' occasionally. You never know what it will lead to! ;)