Now, on with the Reveal. To jog your memory, this is what I received from my fabulous partner, June Butt, from New Zealand - a generous helping of soup that included some gorgeous paua beads.
Guided by the colour palette, and the fact that June lives by the sea, I decided my creations would have an ocean/sea theme. The soup also made me think of Shakespeare's The Tempest. Don't ask me why. My mind is a strange place sometimes.
I also decided that I would explore new techniques and materials (for me) in my creations. I knew there was a possibility I would fail miserably but I figured - isn't this what the BSBP is for? An opportunity for us to get out of our comfort zone when designing and creating? In the end, I think I had a mix of hits and misses.
First up....a wire-crochet necklace. May I just say here - I have the utmost respect for those of you out there who wire crochet (or just plain crochet or knit) on a regular basis. Those hooks are a menace! Just so you know, I took apart this necklace about 3 times before I was satisfied.
And a matching bracelet:
I call the necklace/bracelet set Miranda's Pretties.
You can't see the clasps in the photos above but the bracelet is closed with a faux leather button in a vaguely snakeskin finish (first time ever using a button in jewellery) and the necklace has a mermaid clasp.
Edited to include a close-up of the gorgeous paua focal. June drilled 3 holes in it and I couldn't leave well enough alone, so I strung some seed pearls to form a bow on the side.
After I finished those, I then did a 180 and made a couple of pieces that are much less polished and, for lack of a better word, 'unpretty'. If anyone asks, I think I just ran out of pretty. LOL.
I was attempting to recreate the look of a fishnet. It was supposed to be a caught-in-a-trap sort of concept. I think the earrings turned out looking rather squid-like (octopus-like?) instead. Which, if you think about it, is still in keeping with my sea theme. Anyhow, I call this Caliban's Treasure.
And since I honoured Caliban, I couldn't possibly leave out Sycorax (Caliban's witch mother, not the Dr Who alien). So I made Midnight Magic.
It's supposed to be a scallop shell made of wire and beads. It needs to be re-worked, clearly. I think Miranda might have made this as a child from scraps gathered from around the island. So maybe this is Sparkly Scrap Shell?
By now, some of you must be thinking - "wait a minute, where's the clasp? I thought we had to use the focal and clasp?" Well, yes. It's a rule and I didn't forget.
The clasp June sent was too pretty and detailed to be stuck at the back of a necklace or bracelet, so I used it in a pair of asymmetrical earrings. Along with the wee silver frog and beautiful Swarovski crystals she sent. The earrings are now the property of a froggy-loving friend. I didn't name them btw but I was leaning towards Ariel's Light. What do you think?
So there you have it! My six bead soup pieces. June - I hope I did OK with your beads, and thank you for being such a wonderful partner. Everyone else - do let me know which pieces you think are hits and which are misses. I'll work on the misses, I promise! Thank you for hanging in there - I know I rambled more than usual.
Now, since I've taken up enough of your time, let's go visit June and the other participants of the 3rd Reveal.
