Downtime with Author Tracey Clark… Everyone needs a hobby… to find beauty in the world!!!
muhahaha… I am not usually a pink gal, but I found these big marble pieces to work with… but I didn’t want to make bracelets made only of them… so I used them as connector pieces…
the hole is big enough that I could thread the string through the hole when I finished the first strand, and started on the second…
later guys, tracey
sad but true… most adults prefer a more plain look to their clothes and jewelry … lol… kids are still experimenting… deciding what they love to look at and wear… by the time we reach adulthood, most of us have our favorites… mine is purple, but I also love mixtures of color…
that’s part of the reason I love crackle glass beads… or the ones that have a marble top look… I call this my MS bracelet… 😛 orange is the Multiple Sclerosis color for ribbons… it isn’t my normal go to color, but this is one of my favorite bracelets…
Kids bracelets are always fun to make… sometimes more so than the adult versions… with the kid bracelets you can be as crazy as you want, like working on an abstract painting… lol… those are great…
always mix and match your beads until you have a look that works for you… later guys, tracey
I love for my beads to have that marbled look… it opens up the possibilities to mix them with both light and dark colors… each bracelet I make has some element that speaks to me… if it looks cheap or boring to me, why in the heck would I expect someone to buy it… I wouldn’t… and if I wont wear it, and no one else is picking up for a gift or for themselves, then I am just wasting my time…
always makes something that you love… I know that everyone has differing likes and dislikes, but I can only make what appeals to me on some level… it’s like a chef… if they love food, they want it to taste delicious, and their best dish will be something they have been making over and over again for themselves… know what you like, try to branch out, and always try new things… in the end you will make something that you and everyone else will love…
keep it simple, mix and match, add some connector and decorative items… playing with your beads can be stressful or soothing, hopefully more soothing than anything else… make sure you have enough light to work by, cause low lighting makes those tiny holes a pain in the arse to get your elastic string through…
have fun, and create … later guys, tracey
okay… you guys are probably tired of my beaded bracelet posts… lol… but they are my go to art project when I want to relax… after this one, I promise… just one more on beaded bracelets this month…
this one is about making the most out of the beads you cant see making an entire bracelet out of … hmmmm … why would you even buy these??? especially when you can make simple and easy???
those bracelets are beautiful, but having something a little different can be just as inspiring… plus… different stands out… if you can make something that is different and beautiful, you have made something great
I took beads that I would choose to wear by themselves… but once I mixed them with some other beads and used them as connectors, I had bracelets that I loved and would be happy to wear…
later guys, tracey…
Mix and match your bracelet designs… if you have been to your local arts and crafts store, you know that the variety of beads is heady… there are so many to choose from… mom wanted a simple feel, but look at the wavy clear beads… those are so cool, and yet very simple… since these bracelets were made for mom’s taste, there isn’t a lot of varying beads thrown in, and still they look great…
when you work on your bracelets, just remember to have fun with the beads… like this one…
get the wild, the plain, the sparkle, and the solids… and mix them until you see something you love… later guys…tracey
here a few more bracelets … a little greenish blue, mostly in very light shades
I love the leaves… for the first bracelet, I used some of my wooden beads, a few of the smaller greenish/blue beads, and those cute little glass leaves…
this piece just screamed for a silver connector… and I have to admit, these circular silver connectors are my favorite… I have lots of different connectors, but my hand seems to stray to silver more often than the gold or brass…
see how the brass goes so much better with the purple beads… even though I love the silver connectors, the color of the beads plays a big part in my choices… so even though I love the silver circles, I would use it with my lighter beads before picking it up for one of my darker beaded pieces… later guys, tracey
okay I’m biased, but I do love purple… I have to stop myself from making everything in my favorite shade…
I also love using a connector … but not all of my bracelets have been all purple… it is hard to steer away from my favorite color, but no matter the color I always make something that I would like to wear myself… okay… maybe a few of the childish bracelets I might pass on… lol
nope… I would probably wear those too… 😛
I really like the necklaces… and pairing them with some of the bracelets… I will have to make some more of those… necklaces are a lot of fun… plus… I just elastic sting, so even the shorter necklaces can be pulled over your head… (which basically means I haven’t mastered the clasp yet… lol)
later guys… tracey
this is another friendship bracelet… but extra long so that you can wrap it around your wrist twice…
I really like the twisty look… best of all… when you are first starting it is easier to go with the twisty look… that means when you are lacing the string, you only have to remember one side of the string to go on top… otherwise (for a flat look) you have to alternate which side goes on top…
also… when making a bracelet long enough to wrap around your wrist twice, I suggest using the embroidery thread… it is more flexible… but I haven’t tried this with the hemp yet… who knows… I may change my mind… lol… that is what is great about art… each time you try something new, you find something else that you will either love or hate…
later guys, tracey
as you can see with some of my pictures, I am not a photographer… shaky hands… grrr… but I wanted to share a new type of bracelet… fun and easy…
beads, and either hemp or regular string… easy peezee…. so far I have learned how to make flat bracelets and ones that twist…
the hemp makes a thicker bracelet… the embroidery thread comes out thinner… the second bracelet in the first picture (the pink one) was made of embroidery thread… cute but barely there….
as for the instructions ??? make sure your starter thread comes with a friendship bracelet guide… personally, I got more out of the pictures than the words… for a flat bracelet, you are lacing up your shoes, but switching off which side (string) is on top when you lace and pull tight… I will try to remember to take some pics of the instructions, but really… lol… my photography is so back you would be better off grapping some string with your own instructions…
adding beads is simple, and the string pulls so tight that it looks like they were made as a part of the string, no bumping around… friendship bracelets are tied onto the wrist… and when they finally fall off, you make a wish… and go out and get another one… lol… later guys, tracey
Mom and I found these cute letters that you can stick on your bling (or any art project really)
this piece is great because I found these clear shiny disks to connect the beads (no metal needed) mom mostly likes her bracelets without the connector, but I like to add a little extra to my work… with this disk, I had a piece that was beautiful and had a flat surface that was perfect for the stick on initials… I don’t know if I should make more of these with random initials or if I should use the letters for something that will remind the wearer of the book event they were at when they purchase the bracelet, or … really there are a lot of possibilities…
if I adhere the letters before the event instead of allowing the readers to pick their own letters… I have a resin that provide a protective coating, making sure the letters last longer…see… decisions, decisions… 😛
clark arts and crafts 