Pretty Palettes: February 2017

I was running late with my design pieces for the February 2017 Pretty Palette Challenge. They weren’t finished on time for linking up but that’s okay. The inspiration for February was this pretty beach scene, taken by Molly Schaller a few year ago

Photo Courtesy of Molly Schaller

The idea of the challenge is to use some of the recommended beads, selected to fit the colour palette of the chosen inspiration. The blog is really meant to encourage folks to try out the Bead Gallery beads, available at Michaels Stores

I have made a decision to use beads from my large stash and though I try to use any of the Bead Gallery selections that fit, I don’t always have any, which was the case this month

What I did have were gemstone chips in several colours that fit perfectly with the colour theme – Aquamarine, Quartz dyed several shades of blue, Rhyolite and River Stone. Using these I was able to make several pieces. First up is this necklace:

 

Beach Cabana Necklace

The little chips which make me think of waves splashing against the sand on the beach, a crisp ocean view in the distance, are strung on beading wire. The little house makes a great beach cabana to which I attached a watery blue silk ribbon to wave in the breeze. More gemstones dangle on waxed linen in a tassel underneath the cabana, hanging from a copper bead cone shaped like a sunhat

With lots of the gemstone chips on hand I made these earrings to match:

On The Beach Earrings

The same gemstones, silk ribbon and copper accents were used in the earrings

Mixing 4 strands of gemstone chips means there are lots leftover. A bracelet with 3 full loops strung on grey steel memory wire came next. There were enough chips to make a smaller bracelet too, with 1 ½ loops

On The Beach Bracelet

While rummaging I also came across some sandblasted agate rounds in 2 sizes. With these I made a shorter necklace that layers nicely with the beach cabana necklace

 

Sand Stone Necklace Layered with the Beach Cabana Necklace

All of these pieces are available in my online store here. There’s also a direct link on the photos

Please visit the blog reveal to see what everyone else made

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day