2009 Spring Bead Jewelry Designer Trends

I recently gave a presentation on designing jewelry. The audience really enjoyed it so I thought that I would do a posting on it for all those novice jewelry designers out there.

When I design a piece of jewelry, the first thing I do is research the colour trends for the upcoming season. That way I know that the piece I make will match the clothing that is currently being sold in the stores. Each season, Pantone surveys the designers of New York Fashion Week to collect feedback on prominent collection colours, colour inspiration and colour philosophy. I check their results and then I start creating jewelery.

According to Patone, the Spring/Summer 2009 fashion palette includes pops of vibrant colour which represent the optimism of new life that comes with the spring season. This is combined with sophisticated neutrals and a spectrum of fresh greens.

Pantone lists their top 10 spring '09 fashion colours as:

Palace Blue, Lavender, Super Lemon, Dark Citron, Vibrant Green, Lucite Green, Salmon Rose, Fuchsia Red, Rose Dust and Slate Gray Blue .

I also research the fashion themes of each season by checking out the fashion shows on TV or online and reading the fashion blogs. The themes for spring 2009 are floral (i.e., using beads with flowers in them or using flower clasps), romantic (i.e., using pastel shades such as pinks and purples), and ethnic (i.e., using beads with bold prints on them in bright colours in ethnic tribal inspired prints). I also noticed a lot of chain being used on accessories, so I try to put chain in many of my designs.

Lastly, I use the principals of design when designing jewelry so that the finished piece looks stunning. The principals of design are repetition (doing some kind of a pattern), balance (using similar sized beads throughout the piece, making sure one side of the necklace balances the other), contrast (using colours that contrast each other to make the piece stand out), texture (using similar textures so that the piece flows) and colour. All of these elements help to define the final product.

Bead Cell Phone Charm

I recently saw a cellphone charm that I absolutely loved, so I decided to recreate it for myself. This is a a quick and easy jewellery making project that only takes a few minutes and looks amazing when completed.

This is how I made it.

For this project you will need the following:

1) 2" head pin.
2) 2 glass beads.
3) 1 5mm swarowski crystal.
4) 4 silver spacers.
5) cell phone charm holder (these can be purchased at most craft stores or bead supply stores).

You will also need a pair of needle nosed pliers.

First take the 2" head pin. Holding the head pin, thread the first spacer. Next, thread one of the glass beads, then thread another spacer. Thread the swarowski crystal and then another spacer. Finally, thread the remaining glass bead and the last spacer. Using the needle nose pliers create a loop at the top of the head pin. Slightly open up the loop that you just created and insert the end of the cell phone charm holder. Close the loop at the top of the head pin using the needle nose pliers.

Good luck.

Below is the pic that inspired my cell phone charm.

Environmentally Conscious Bead Parties

We will be adding a “green” party package to Beading Buds. This package is an environmentally conscious alternative because we use beads made from recycled glass, reusable beading boards and encourage parents to use the jewelry the kids make as the loot bag, therefore eliminating all the plastic and other by-products that are usually in loot bags and other party favors.

While researching for beads made from recycled glass, I came across a company in Africa that explained how these glass beads are made. I found it fascinating and encouraging that beads are being made out of old glass.

This is how the beads are made. Recycled glass is crushed by hand. Dyes and colours are not added so the glass that is being crushed has to be the colour that you want the beads to be. Once you crush the glass, the mixture is called a "fritt". The fritt consists of mainly crushed glass, but some larger pieces can be left as they melt down during the baking process. Before the fritt is poured into the moulds, the moulds are coated with a fine mixture of kaolin clay and water to prevent sticking. The moulds are placed into a special machine that heats up and when the right temperature has been reached the bead making artisan takes out the moulds. He uses two awls, one to hold down the mould and the other to shape the bead, he also uses one of the awls to make the hole for the bead. This has to be done quickly before the glass cools. When the beads are completed every single bead has a slightly different shape and size to it because each bead is made by hand. Below are some pictures showing the different colours of the beads and what the beads look like.

Baby Name Bead Bracelet

I recently had a baby girl and since I am a jewellery designer and a first time mom, I just had to make my daughter her first piece of jewellery…so I made a baby name bracelet.

The following materials are needed to make the baby name bracelet. Flat nose pliers, tiger tail wire, a sterling silver lobster clasp, (6) 6mm swarowski crystals, sterling silver letter beads, (6) 4 mm sterling silver beads, (2) 6mm silver beads,(14) sterling silver spacers, (2) sterling silver crimp beads.

To make the baby name bracelet, put the crimp bead on one end of the tiger tail, loop through one end of the lobster clasp and thread back through the crimp bead, squeeze the bead using the flat nose pliers. Thread 3 of the swarowski crystals, 3 of the 4 mm silver beads, 1 of the 6mm silver beads and 7 of the sterling silver findings onto the tiger tail. I suggest the following pattern, sterling silver spacer, sterling silver 4 mm silver bead, sterling silver spacer, crystal, sterling silver spacer, 4 mm sterling silver bead etc. Thread the 6mm sterling silver bead and the sterling silver letter beads to spell out your baby’s name. String the remaining crystals, sterling silver beads and spacers repeating the same pattern as you did on the first side. Attach the other part of the lobster clasp to the tiger tail using the crimp bead and flat nose plier the same way you attached the first part of the clasp when you started the bracelet. Trim the tiger tail at each end using a pair of scissors or cutting pliers.

HINT, if your baby’s name has more than 6 letters, omit the 6mm sterling silver beads.