Friday, February 24, 2017

Making Wrap Bracelets



I have been having fun making these wrap bracelets from a tutorial by one of my favorite bead artists, Nancy Dale. They are so much fun that I've been making at least one of them every week. I love seeing how they look in different colors.

Even though I use the same basic stitch on every bracelet, each one is a one-of-a-kind project. That is because using different beads for the accents makes each bracelet unique.

This pink bracelet, for instance. I knew that I wanted to use the rectangle pink beads with the gold design for my main focal beads. Then I rummaged around through my bead storage and pulled out all the beads I have that are 3 to 6 millimeters in size and that are in the pink color range. I have pearls, Austrian crystals, rondelles, druks, Superduos, fire-polished crystals, wooden beads, and more. As I was making the bracelet, I decided which of these beads I wanted to use for each section. Making these is a great way to use up small amounts of beads left over from other projects!

The seed beads in this bracelet are Miyuki Permanent Gold,  #P0471, size 11/0. I am using Fireline thread, 6 lb. The stitches are a combination of RAW, herringbone, a modified daisy stitch, and picots. There are six sections, broken up by the five main focal beads, and each section has its accent beads added with a different stitch.

I've been using magnetic clasps on them, which has been working out beautifully. They are just as much fun to wear as they are to make! I've been wearing the bracelet that I made for myself for about a month now, almost 24 hours a day, and it is holding up well. I always get compliments on it. I feel confident with the quality of these bracelets and am going to go ahead and list them in the Bead Street Studio Etsy shop for sale. Give me a few days to write up the listing and take more photos and then they will be in the shop for you to get a closer look at them.


Cat


The blue dragonfly is the one I've been wearing. It's not for sale.