Getting ready for the Steamfest!

Yes, later this month there is a Steampunk fest in SLC! I'm so excited. For those of you who didn't know, Steampunk is like my guilty pleasure, especially creating jewelry in this fashion.

So when I got my monthly box of goodies from Blue Moon Beads, and I found so many cool metal connectors, I knew that I had to create a Steampunk masterpiece to wear to the Steamfest!

 

 The reason Steampunk is so interesting to me is because ANYTHING GOES! Industrial meets beauty equals an awesome piece of jewelry that I guarantee you wont find anywhere else

Anyway, enough of my ramboling. This piece, as you can see, includes many elements. Almost all of it is metal, except for a leather cord that I knotted, to give it more of an uneven and different look.

I used mainly metal connectors and fun beads. Urban Warrior line is featured, as well as the normal Blue Moon Bead line. I especially love the patina-looking beads. I added a little bling as a pendant to give it a girly aspect to it.

Despite all the metal, it is very comfortable to wear

I even made earrings to go with it! Made with connector hoops and simple black beads.

If you haven't tried your hand at Steampunk, I encourage you to try it out. Remember, anything goes, the sky is the limit! Take those nuts and bolts you have laying around the house and make a work of art out of them!

Summer Fun

Summer is such a great time of year. The sun is out, the pool is open and most of all, you can wear fun colors as well as fun jewelry!

This piece is inspired by the essence of summer. All these pieces were brought to you by the fabulous Blue Moon Beads and I had so many charms that I wanted to use that I couldn't fit them all on the bracelet.

The charms include: Watering can, owl, strawberry, flower, camera and some fun metal beads as well as connectors. These charms are so fun to sort and create things with. Blue Moon offers so many different ones.

Hook all those fun charms to a gold chain with some fun connector gems and Viola! You can wear this bracelet all summer!

Silver is the Name of the Game

I love the color silver. Nothing brings out your tan like silver does and it just looks great on everyone. So this month, I dedicated my projects to the color...you guessed it...silver!

 My bracelet may look familiar, that's because I used the basic design in another bracelet of mine. I just thought it was so great, I had to have it in another color.
Basically, layers of cord, pearls and beads, secured with a magnet is what this piece is made out of. And it looks FANTASTIC!

 These earrings were made out of a bead  tin from Blue Moon Beads called Mud Pie. Such a fun name  and such cute earrings!

 For a fun project that was a little different, I made a ring out of 20 gauge wire and a bead from a Bead Tin by the great Blue Moon. It is different with it's twists and turns, but I like it a lot. In fact, I'm wearing it already.

 For my necklace project, I decided that since I was already on a roll with layers, I might as well stick to it. This necklace had many layers of chain hanging from it and also beads that give it a fun texture. And most importantly, it's SILVER!

So there you go, there's my Silver projects. I think they all came out very well and remember that all these projects can be made in any color....even gold! (Gasp)

So let your creativity fly!

Pin Me Another

Safety pins aren't just a tool used for clothing. You can make them into fun jewelry with a funky twist.

Here's what you'll need:

 Safety pins,

Stretch cord,

 Seed beads, 

Pliers, 

Crimp tubes,

 and Imagination!

You can use any color combination. I was thinking about wearing green today, so I created a bracelet to match. 

As you can see in the pictures, this isn't very hard to make. For more detailed steps, check out my watch tutorial, which explains how to thread and string these fun safety pins into a bracelet. 

For this, I grabbed a fun set of my Blue Moon seed beads and went to work. The fun thing about this is that the safety pins create a very sturdy bracelet, and I love that it's stretchy for easy wear.

Try your own. Make it colorful, black and white, or various shades of one color. Let your imagination soar!

Happy Creating!

Ankh Necklace

I absolutely love the amulet line from Blue Moon Beads. It has taught me so much about symbols that I've seen before but never knew what they meant. 

Take the Ankh with a scarab for example. Did you know that this cool Egyptian piece symbolizes life and is worn for strength?

I could just imagine back in the day when everything you wore had a meaning for how you were feeling that day. 

This necklace was put together with chain and a few fun connector beads. I tried to keep the bronze and blue theme going, even with the earrings. I left the earrings quite simple because I wanted the focus on the necklace.

I think it turned out great.

Remember, you can find pieces to make this and many more ideas on my page at stores that hold Blue Moon Beads products. 

Happy creating!

Learn a little Culture

Here's a little Cultural lesson for you. This hand symbol is called a Hamsa. It symbolizes protection and defense.

The Hamsa is often seen in the Middle East and Northern Africa. This symbol has been accepted to signify many things by numerous religions.

So now that you know a little about the Hamsa, did you know that Blue Moon has a pendant line that has these cool little hands in many styles and colors?

What I did with this bracelet was took the Hamsa pendant and built off the color of the stone in the middle, which is a very pale green. I grabbed some chain with large links and took to making a charm bracelet of sorts, but only used colorful beads and not charms. I slapped on a toggle clasp and Viola!

Make a Wish

 Make a wish! I think we've all, at one point in our life, pulled a wishbone with a friend or family member and wished with all our might for something we wanted. It's cool to think of what wishes I wanted as a kid. If I had it my way back then, I would probably be a super hero today.
Wishbones don't only symbolizes wishes and desires, it also symbolizes success. So with all that good stuff in one symbol, why not wear it everywhere?

Blue Moon Beads has a fantastic line out that is full of symbolic pendants. Not only are they gorgeous, but they all have really cool meanings.

With this necklace I made little hoops with seed beads to add texture. I love the blues (as if you couldn't tell from previous posts I've done). This technique is very simple and makes for a one-of-a-kind necklace.