Of beads and birds

Well.....  I didn't really need another jewlery project, but ...



...I ran out of the dark copper beads for the last project I told you about, and I'm at a design impass on my other jewelry projects.  And I wanted to do something for the Copper Collection with slightly larger, size 8 seed beads - a piece that would be less delicate, go from casual to office, and have a lower price point.  So, after much deliberation, and consideration of the beads I already had, and wanting to try and use what I already had, rather than going out to buy more beads, which I was already avoiding (!), I came up with the above piece.  I'm thinking of doing an adjustable clasp so that the necklace could be worn a bit shorter or a bit longer, about 20" , plus or minus a bit. 

Personally, I think this necklace will look dynamite with a simple black top and black jeans or pants, or with a classy black suit and white top. 

And I really like the size and feel of size 8 seed beads, despite the fact that they are not widely used.  (Perhaps that is precisely why I do like them.  Conformity is not my strongest suit!)  Sometimes you just don't want a delicate look, but you sure don't want large plastic baubles either!  I find that the size 8 seed beads are a really good solution.  When you use them for tubular peyote stitch, as I have done here, they create a necklace that drapes better than the more rigid shape of the tiny size 11 delicas that pack together so tightly. 

So there I was yesterday morning, stitching away on this necklace, when this strange noise, like pipes groaning in an old home, happened again, and this time my husband was home!  So I muted the tv and we waited.  A few seconds later it happend again, and I asked, "What was that?"  He replied, "It sounds like a bird pecking on top of the metal chimney cover."  So I told him I was betting it was a flicker, and he went out to take a look.  Sure enough, some lovesick fool is up there jackhammering away.  Probably one of those juveniles that Mom and Pop raised right here in our backyard.  Obnoxious teenagers!

Wake up!