OOAK!!!! Really!! No More!! LOL

Really!! This bracelet took over 10 hours to make. Sure it's the first one but I can't see shaving more than 2-3 hours off over time. I did it for me as a challenge to see what I could come up with. No books, no patterns, just my brain, eyes and hands. I'm happy with the results but certainly not practical for me to make to sell.

#28 wire, #5 double pointed knitting needles and the finished wire mesh

#26 wire to bind the edges. The mesh rectangle was unstable and wouldn't have supported beading without this edge.

 

Wire mesh rectangle with finished edge

Let the beading begin. End clasps have been added already

Finished bracelet; about 7 1/2" long x 2 1/2" wide

Gold earwires wrapped in silver with dangle to match bracelet

Beta Fish with Beads

Beaded Beta Fish on Fold-up Back Pack

Just finished!! Hot off the press!! A stylized Beta Fish with waves and beads! Made for a private customer.

I have a couple more unpainted fold-up back packs just waiting for you to design and for me to paint. Base price $30 plain; with beading $35.

without beading

back side, shoulder straps zip up for shoulder bag or unzip for backpack

close up of beaded bubbles

close up of waves with beads

finished and folded up, a small purse

Update on the Upcycled Messenger Bag

You know how you make something and look at it and you know something is not exactly right but you don't know what? That's what was happening to me with the Messenger Bag. I couldn't get out of my head that I wanted to put the 'vintage' pin* that I had found at the flea market a couple weeks ago on this bag but it would be too much with the gold pins already there. (Check the June 11, 2011 blog for original story.)

*probably not vintage as I look closely at it. LOL

I dug out the yucky feathers and made a place for some new feathers. After the glue set and the pin was moveable, it positioned it on the front flap of the bag. Moved it around some to find the right place and then voilà, sewed it on. Gold pins are saved for another project.


Next were the beads. In the meantime one of the glass beads had worn through the thread and a couple beads were dangling. I had some new plastic thread, like fishline but very thin, that I used to sew alllllll the beads back on. I added some medium sized and some quite small black seed beads and extended the area a bit

Now it feels finished. Take a look.

Completed version

Lower left side of flap with spaces filled in with the seed beads

"Vintage" pin with new feathers. It's probably made from filo dough but it is just right for this purse