Art Bead Scene - team members’ challenge blog hop (July 2014)

When this impromptu blog hop was suggested a couple of days ago I had a couple of doubts. I knew I didn’t have any art beads that obviously fitted the subject matter of this month’s Art Bead Scene challenge image.Little_Mermaid_-_mermaids_treasures_-_Edmund_Dulac_for_Andersen

(Edmund Dulac - illustration for ‘The Little Mermaid’, 1911)

But also - can I admit this? - it’s not an image that’s entirely to my taste. Also, I’m not a great enthusiast when it comes to mermaids and other mythical creatures. But I wanted to play along and take part in the challenge with the rest of the team. So, I decided to be led by the colours and some of the textures and shapes, rather than focusing on the narrative content. In concentrating on the colours, I found Brandi’s colour palette post really handy. I started with a pair of earrings.

ocean bed 1

I received these scrummy turquoise droppers from Scorched Earth earlier this week. I’d left them on my bead table because I knew I was keen to do something with them. I’ve added some faux coral lampwork beads from Glass Bead Art. They have all sorts of colours swirled through them; primarily, they’re a plum colour but there are also purples, blues, reds and creams.

ocean bed 4

The frayed sari silk bow and the copper twists (from Cinnamon Jewellery) nod to the fronds of seaweed in the image. I’ve listed these earrings here on Etsy.

I had planned to use some of my precious selection of Carolyn Saxby‘s fibre beads to make another pair of earrings. They seemed a perfect match for the many shades and textures in Dulac’s painting. However, I didn’t have two in the right colours that matched in size. So, I decided to use just one as a pendant focal instead.

ocean bed necklace

Along with Carolyn’s bead, I’ve used a lampwork barrel from Helen Chalmers, some patinated chain and a hammered ring from Grubbi, and some of my own patinated chain. It’s a fairly simple necklace but it’s a style I really like to wear so I think I’ll be keeping it for me. Now I’m off to see what everyone else has made. I’m anticipating some great designs!

Mary Harding
Rebecca Anderson
Ema Kilroy
Claire Lockwood (you are here)
Humblebeads