Welcome to another Saturday at Saturday Sequins!
Today I'm participating in the Choose Your Own Adventure Freeform Peyote Challenge, hosted by Mandi Ainsworth and Karen Williams. I'm really excited -- not only are Karen and Mandi two of my favorite beady people, but freeform peyote happens to be one of my favorite jewelry making techniques... ever.
The challenge was to create your own freeform piece. Because I'm me, I decided to try a little experiment. What would happen if I combined bead embroidery with freeform in another way? Specifically, if I incorporated it into the embroidery instead of adding it after the fact?
Oh, and also? I made two pieces.
For the first pendant, I started by stitching around a found object, a broken post earring from the 80's. I embellished it with seed beads of different sizes and threw in some electrical wire snippets for added interest -- because I like them so much better than bugle beads.
I love how it turned out! Like a psychedelic fried egg. So of course, I had to make another.
This piece was also made from a broken earring, using the same technique. Once again, there are bits of electrical wire thrown in, and I also included some tiny Czech glass beads -- although they're hiding.
The biggest difference between the pendants is the way I finished them. The psychedelic fried egg was strung simply on beading wire with some beads a friend had given me and a clasp and crimp beads that another friend, my puppy nephew's mom, had passed on to me from her beading days.
(Why is the photo on its side? I don't know. Maybe it got tired?)
The second was going to go on a ribbon, but when I was looking through some of my old projects, I found a multi-strand electrical wire necklace that matched it perfectly. So the two came together with a button for a clasp, and voila!
This piece is my favorite, and it shows that freeform can be combined with any other beading technique. So versatile, and so utterly amazeballs.
So that's what I made for the challenge. Now it's time to visit the other participants, including hosts Mandi and Karen. You can find the full list of adventurers on either of their blogs! My guess is that their work will knock your socks off... so you might want to wear an extra pair or two.
Thanks for reading and commenting, and have a sequintastic day!
That is a freaking awesome psychedelic fried egg! It's 1:00am here and I popped out of bed to make sure all the posts and links looked right and had to come visit you site.
ReplyDeleteI think I'm in love! These are something I'd expect to see in a contemporary art museum.
So very cool and different. Love all the colors and the way you tied the focal colors into the necklace itself.
ReplyDeleteI love the second pendant and the electrical wire necklace! Woo! Fantastic goodness!
ReplyDeleteThese are so cool for so many reasons! The name (that I read while eating an egg sandwich), the electrical wire insulation snippets, the colors, the flow. You are so uniquely fantastic at what you do each and every time you post something. Love these and love the chain on the second piece!
ReplyDeleteLove them both!! Especially love the "electrical wire snippets". How did you do them??
ReplyDeleteI love you're pendants! I love that you combined embroidery and freeform. I've wanted to do that with a piece I have in mind because I love the idea of using both. Now, I know it works!!!!
ReplyDeleteWonderful!!!
ReplyDeleteYour post cracked me up!! Psychedelic eggs, too funny! I love how you combined all these disparate components and techniques and created amazing, brilliant, cohesive designs!!! I especially love and appreciate the up-cycling ideas. I have so much to think about after reading your post!! Although I may never look at eggs the same way again :P
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of up-cycling and you've made it so beautiful. Very inspiring!
ReplyDeleteI love love love it, in your words AMAZEBALLS! It is truly a very unique piece.
ReplyDeleteI love the name psychedelic fried egg! I agree with Karen, Modern Art for sure :) Fantastic usage of electrical snippets, and its awesome how the second necklace came together for you. I love the way you write with bits of humor and sidenotes. You're amazeballs in my book!
ReplyDeleteCool pieces. I love how you incorporated the electrical wire into the piece.
ReplyDeleteI love, love, love these. It's awesome that you incorporated embroidery and the bezels are fabulous. I love the multicolored strands in the last necklace. It's perfect for the focal.
ReplyDeletewhat cool pieces! I love how bold you are with color!
ReplyDeleteBoth great pieces and I do love your use of color.
ReplyDeleteGreat colours! Love the electrical wire elements!
ReplyDeleteBoth necklaces are great and the colors are so fun! Your experiment was a huge success :)
ReplyDeleteHow creative and imaginative are you! I would never have thought of using electrical wire. Both the necklaces are great but the electrical wire looks stunning.
ReplyDeleteGreat piece! I love the way you upcycled the broken earrings and electrical wire.
ReplyDeletewhat a very fun necklace!!!
ReplyDeleteYOU are amazeballs -- and I'm just amazed by the way you pull these exuberant colors into a piece that screams FUN!! Your idea of using electrical wire instead of bugle beads? Genius. And the psychedelic fried egg? It's like Dr. Seuss does Fashion Week. Love it!
ReplyDeleteWow Sarah, these are amazing. I love this freeform style leaves so much room for the artist to make her mark. xox
ReplyDeleteWell I've just spent a good 20 minutes looking back at your past projects and my goodness - you are amazeballs! I love your work - the rainbow sequin bracelet... oh my goodness Love it! A tutorial perhaps? OK so back to today. So much to like: the electrical snippets, freeform over embroidery how beautiful is that?! These colorful pieces are fabulous.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting and unusual!
ReplyDeleteThat's what I love about reading your blog, you always find a way to put an interesting twist on things. What a very cool idea! And I snorted over the 'egg' description. I like both necklaces, for very different reasons. Great job Ms. Sarah!
ReplyDeleteWow! Your pendants are so awesome, Sarah! Love them!
ReplyDeletePerfect example how versatile freeform could be.
Your colors just POP! Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteWow, how exciting. I love the use of the electical wire , I would never in a million years thought of using it, and it works so well with your designs. Congrats on such unique pieces
ReplyDeleteLove both of these! And I love your use of electrical wire snippets to sub for bungalow beads.
ReplyDeleteDelightful colorful pieces. I too love the use of electrical wire. Wonderful!!!
ReplyDeleteFirst you know, give me an orange cab and how can you go wrong? That is awesome. I love all the use of color too. You did great on both pieces.
ReplyDeleteNicole/Beadwright
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI love both of your pieces they are so colorful and bright. I like how you thought outside of the box and combined your two loves. Do you make your own electrical wire tubes?
Therese
Those pieces are so stunningly amazing. The way the black makes the colors pop, adding a sophisticated, mysterious air to the projects was inspired! I do have a preference for your second piece, like you, but both are superb!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous and bold
ReplyDeleteJust read your blog for the first time and you inspire me. I love your work and your attitude. you have definitely been added to my favorites. I do not do any jewelry making really, but I am semi obsessed with beads and love using them in my embroidery...though if I keep reading your stuff, I may have to convert ;). Thanks for making my day.
ReplyDeleteThose are cool! I've never seen freeform peyote applied to a focal pendant before... Awesome!
ReplyDelete"a psychedelic fried egg"!!! LOL!! that cracked me up.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE these pieces! Your work is gorgeous. They would be so much fun to wear. xox
Love it! The colors are SO me!
ReplyDeleteAwesome color combinations!
ReplyDelete