Anyways, I have been incredibly busy with my needle, thread, beads and a smattering of Swarovski rivolis and am pleased to show you my latest bracelet:
As you can see, I used Jean Power's amazing Rick Rack pattern, started off by using the incredible Contemporary Geometric Beadwork MRAW start. As this isn't the first Rick Rack bracelet I've done, I also made the Double Layer Rick Rack bracelet last year, I noticed that those delicious v shapes could be perfectly filled using Swarovski pear shaped crystals. This got me thinking....
I used delicas in Dark Bronze Matte and Galvanised Light Champagne Duracoat for the front. I used the champagne for the ladders in the MRAW on the stones so decided to echo that in the main bracelet as well and then do a zigzag stripe of the gold to really draw those crystals into the design as a whole.
As you can see in this shot, the bracelet is double layered. It could work single layered but I think that because I decided to use the bigger crystals, the body needed to be much more sturdy than a single layer. I'm a tight beader and even one layer of rick rack is pretty strong but I really didn't want this bad boy to buckle over time with lots of wear! The reverse of the bracelet is just plain matte dark bronze as there was no need for there to be any ornamentation as it generally won't be seen.
It was finished with a simple gold slide clasp, the loops of which were securely attached and hidden inside the bracelet to give it a fully finished and sleek look.
I must admit that I'm really proud of how well this bracelet turned out. It sits really closely to the wrist (well, mine anyway!) and looks quite chic and elegant - not my usual style at all! It is exactly what I imagined when I first put needle and thread to beads - that never happens! I hope you like it too.
Isn't that MRAW band so useful. I use it for my beaded toggles, peyote starts, all over the place. And since I'm finding bezeling impossible, maybe I'll try using it for that too. You're bezels look wonderful and they're irregular regular too
ReplyDeleteIsn't it just?! It's been an absolute revelation to me and my work and I simply can't get enough of it.
DeleteHonestly, bezelling using MRAW is so much easier than the traditional peyote method and it really allowed the stones on this bangle to meld in with the rickrack. It was also quite fun(!) to use the ladders on the bezels to attach to the ladders on the bangle.
What a lovely creation, a very unque bracelet and I love your color choice. It's very rich and earthy looking.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much. I loved these colours when I put them next to each other, after agonising on finishes and colours for weeks!
DeleteThank you so much. I loved these colours when I put them next to each other, after agonising on finishes and colours for weeks!
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