Time for my quarterly review of ArtBeads.com offerings!  Last quarter I featured stark black and white to celebrate winter’s bare trees and snow.  This quarter it’s all about Vintage and I mixed what I got from them for blogging with my own work to come up with this one-of-a-kind necklace and matching earrings.  Not my usual style but now that I have copper etching down I’m looking for ways to incorporate it into my jewelry and art work.  The great thing about recycled copper – or at least the copper sheets I have -s that once it’s etched it’s light as a feather.  So these very solid looking pieces have hardly any weight to them and are very comfortable to wear!

I should also note that ArtBeads.com is having a special sale for Mother’s day.  When you check out, use this code for a 15% discount on a purchase of $45 or more:  ZZ-MOM15.  And here’s the perfect thing:  the pieces I received total $40.05, so you can buy some other supplies for the perfect gift! (Good through Thrusday April 21 so don’t delay!)

The focal is the Antique Brass Winged Link. It’s 3.5 inches wide by 2 inches high (regular cm/mm bead measurements don’t work in my head so you’re getting inches instead).  It is not punched when it arrives.  I used my jewelry punch to put holes where I wanted them.  I used 16mm and 4mm Swarovski Crystals in Red Magma for sparkle, 2 25x21mm Antique Brass Vintage 1930 Filigree Round Beads and an antique Vintage Brass-plated Pewter Toggle Clasp.   The 25mm Round beads are expensive, $10.27 apiece before your discount, but so worth it!  Sometimes you just have to splurge if you want to make a spectacular piece.  I figured if it was going to be vintage, it should also be spectacular!

For jump rings, I took links from the chain I used as it is faceted and it spiffed the look up.  The button hanging from the focal is one I found in my Mother’s bead box – but it was mine.  I remember buying 5 of them at Woodward and Lothrop’s at Seven Corners in Virginia when I worked there at 17 (let’s see that was about 46 years ago…never throw away anything!).  I think it found it’s perfect home on this necklace!

I also mixed in some amber crystals I got at a wholesale show as I didn’t completely plan out the pattern when ordering my beads from ArtBeads.com (I never do – I have to have them in hand before I know what I’m going to do with them), and I didn’t have any extra Red Magma Swarovski crystals hanging around.  As with everything, it seems to work best if you make do with what you have, and it also lends to the one-of-a-kindness of the piece.

Vintage necklace brass bead and etching details

Wylde Women’s Wisdom

If you celebrate your differentness, the world will too.  It believes exactly what you tell it – through the words you use to describe yourself, the actions you take to care for yourself, and the choices you make to express yourself.  Tell the world you are a one-of-a-kind creation who came here to experience wonder and spread joy.  Victoria Moran