Jewelry design

[Caitlin]

Caitlin - if I'm breaking some rule about posting designers' pics, I apologize and please pull them as you see fit.

Can you put up a link? We have never had a complaint from any designer yet. So many people will see this- it is good to have links, then people can actually go to the site, if anything appeals to them. Voila! We are a site that promotes sales for them........who could complain about that?


I love, love, love the birdies, but I would wear them with a shorter chain

[Caitlin]

check out this weaved pearls

That looks like peyote stitch as it is known in the bead world. That stitch results in the laid brick effect. It is painstaking work-especially if you put a design in it. I once made a long necklace made of this stich and iridescent blue beads with a very tiny diamond pattern. I often had to undo it for a row or two to fix something- a missed stitch esp. Below are some key ring holders from powwows.com LINK

[Ashley]

I LOVE Love Love the Bird Earrings!! Love them I say!!

Stephen Webster has been one of my favorite designers for awhile now- I recall seeing that necklace done all in White diamonds with some kind of blue stone shaped to look like pearls about a year or so ago...

[Caitlin]

Are those earrings from Stephen Webster?

[Ashley]

I think gravity said they were from Lorenz Baumer... They are too fabulous aren't they?! Funny- I just re-read through the last couple of responses and I see both you and I had the exact same response! I guess great minds think alike!

[perlas]

Hi Caitlin,

How long does it take you to do the an inch of the peyote stitch? I think it would look nice on gemstone beads made into opera necklace.

[Caitlin]

Hi Sam
Opera length peyote stitch with what size gemstones? Like those seed pearls? Although much larger than beads, that would be quite a project!

I should have said peyote stitch is the most challenging kind of beading and although I learned it, I never got over dropping stitches and such, thus I did more undoing than doing, but I did finish that project. (Whew!)

Where were the necklaces you posted made?


In any case, all the beads need to be the same size or the stitches get messy looking. I have even had to undo to change out beads when the variation was to big.

I put that second picture in wrong and messed the post up and now the edit and all the other buttons are gone.

[perlas]

Hi Caitlin,

I plan on small gemstones the size of the seed pearls.

The peyote pearls are just made here by a beader. She just had 4 pieces but all sold out. (colors were mauve, white, bronze, and peach).

I do not know if the beader was pulling my leg but she said it takes a month to make (necklace and bracelet) and she has to look for stocks of seed pearl strands. She said 10 strands for the necklace and bracelet.

I asked her to make me an opera length peyote pearl necklace and the beader hasn't come back to me yet. If it's painstakingly difficult to make then an opera gemstone necklace would probably stay as a figment of my imagination unless I ask the beader to do it for me (if she agrees...)

[Caitlin]

Peyote stitch takes a fine craftsman/woman. It is rather unforgiving. Easy to make mistakes and any mistake looks really bad, including variations in sizes. If regular length takes 8-10 strands, opera length would be double that.


If I were you I would start collecting the gem stones- that in itself is a project-to get them all the same size. It may take double the amount of strands to get matching sizes.


If you gather all the gemstones needed, you may be able to talk the beader into doing it.

[knotty panda]

Caitlin, have you ever seen a piece done in Peyote that length? I haven't that I can recall. I think you're right, not only would it be a labor-intensive undertaking, the cost would be prohibitive imo. The reason seed beads work so well in Peyote is you must pass through the bead numerous times and the holes are very large compared to gemstone drill holes. I'm not sure it's feasible.

[Caitlin]

NO.

When I was pregnant with my youngest, I compulsively did a peyote necklace about Matinee length. It was so difficult to get it right. I passed the thread through twice, once to add a bead and the second time to add another bead one row lower. Top and bottom rows can have 3 pass throughs with the thread to finish them.

I did a little research on tubular peyote stitch. All the explanations were too difficult to understand. This stitch is traditionally learned as hands on, being shown by an expert and copying their moves.

If you want 24 beads in diameter. String on all 24 beads (this is your first and second row too. For the third row add a bead to the thread and then through the first bead of the first row. Add a bead and go through the 3rd bead. Continue on adding beads and picking up every other bead to make row 2 until you finish the round. You will now have first and third row aligned with the second row going in between. It comes out as the brick pattern.

[gravityalwayswins]

Ashley is right - everything except the necklace is Lorenz Baumer. The necklace is Stephen Webster. I'll edit the original post to add links.

The Lorenz Baumer pieces were under Collections->Pour Elle. The birds are in the Jardinier section.

The birds are my favorite, too!!! Good thing they weren't for sale! I have a moluccan cockatoo at home so the shimmerly, off-white, peachy look of pearls matches my little guy!

[Nora]

I want to share this amazing Greek designer jewelry and warmly recommend a visit to the Lalaounis museum when in Athens.
http://trendsurvivor.com/2011/06/30/...aounis-museum/

My avatar was taken from earrings worn here by Aikaterini Lalaounis.
(the pearls here are 6.8 mm x 4.6 mm. FW typical rice pearls.......)

[pattye]

That is fabulous! Such bold pieces must be worth a fortune now! Great idea to display the jewelry with gowns, too! I've always loved your avatar, Nora.

[Alex]

how extraordinary

You have such a good eye for beautiful things Nora

thanks for sharing them...... :-)

(love the B&W picture of JK at the very bottom)