More Sample Pieces

Have I ever mentioned that I am a slow beader?

Have I ever mentioned that I only bead on Sundays?

During the week between working and commuting I have about 1 spare hour at the end of the day which I spend reading instead of making jewelry.

On Saturdays I shop.  I begin with a run to the West Side Market (think spectacular inside farmer's market) the grocery store (they do not sell chips or Lean Cuisine at the West Side Market) Target, where paper products are cheap, Einstein Bagels- for my daily breakfast fix.  I do laundry.  I clean.  I cook dinner for the rest of the week.  I clean again.  Sometimes I can even squeeze in a short nap in the afternoon.

Sundays I read, bead, and write a blog post.  Thus, my progress is slow, but it continues.

Today I stitched test pieces for one of the chains for my turquoise slab necklace. 

My first test piece used silver beads to join the woven piece.

Chain joined with silver Delicas

My second test piece used this great shaped and carved coral bead.

Test chain, made with size 10 and 11 Delicas and a size 8 Czech seed beads, with carved coral bead.

Here they are side by side.

Test chains for slab necklace side by side.

I am going to go with the coral bead between the woven pieces.

This test piece is the right lay-out but is not what I want in my finished necklace.  I was not successful at was making this one long chain.  I tried a several methods of weaving the pieces together with a single thread and did not like the results.  There is too much thread showing on the silver beads butting against the coral bead and they do not lie correctly.  I am going to have to weave each individual clover piece and then join the pieces together.  I am hoping the top and bottom beads are stabilized by being a part of an individual piece with a knot in each.  I am not happy that the finished piece is going to have that many knots- or to my mind that many points of potential failure. 

Yesterday was not spent shopping, cleaning, and cooking.  Yesterday I went to the Intergalactic Bead Show and picked up some new 8 mm turquoise rounds for the necklace.

8 mm turquoise rounds and slab turquoise

The turquoise slabs are somewhere in between blue and green turquoise.  I think the beads I picked up yesterday are a good color match.

One more picture of the turquoise rounds; it is a bit off center but for some reason I liked this picture.  I think it is because I really like the detail on the piece of slab turquoise.

Slab turquoise again and 8 mm round turquoise beads

Hmm... I wonder how many of those little clovers I am going to need for this necklace?