Fall Colors for Caramel's Claws Necklace in Cinnamon

I was asked for kits in both the Sage and Cinnamon colorways, and have been out of them for ages.  It's really hard to find viable focals, but I have a set of each colorway now, and I am happy with the choices I have gathered together.  Here's a quick rundown in a larger scale than I can show you on Etsy.  These will go live in my ETsy shop tomorrow, Sunday, March 12th,  at noon CST.

Some deep jade greens, with cinnamon swirled throughout.  Deep and mysterious.

The most old-school Red Creek Jasper in the group.  Spectacular, and the last of its kind that I can find.

Also quite a classic collection of Red Creek markings and colors.  

Predominately cinnamon, with golds, greens, and deep, dark veining.

Nut brown with jagged deep green veining, and just a few hints of gold.

Various shades of brown and copper with a quartzy lightning strike.

The simplest of the group, in deep rich chocolate.  

This focal would feature the pretty curves and details in the bezel.

Some interesting dark inclusions in this focal bead, with creamy highlights.

The dark tones in this focal are almost purple, maybe best described as midnight.  

It has a petrified wood quality.  Unique and unusual.

For this week, I will leave these kits priced as they are at $52.  A kind of sale, because as I calculate my kit cost each time, it seems to go up, just like the cost of housing and groceries.  Then, on the 18th, they will go up to $55, so if you are interested, grab your favorite by St. Patrick's Day, to take advantage of the old pricing.  Caramel's ancestors demand to be fed, and the cost of peanuts has gone up...

Fall Colors for Caramel's Claws Necklace in Sage

 Three different people have recently requested kits for the original colors of the Caramel's Claws Necklace.  I have Berries and Honey, but Cinnamon and Sage have been sold out for quite a while.  So I decided it was time to try and make a final few more of each colorway.

The SAGE kits are done, and will be posted in my Etsy shop tomorrow, March 8th at noon.  It's a challenge finding respectable focal beads, as the Red Creek Jasper vein appears to have been mined out, but I am happy with my choices, and hope you will be too.  So without further ado...

I love the markings on focal A.  Those slash marks have their own highlights!

Dark and dreamy.  And it looks as though it has been dipped in chocolate.  

Would really feature the bezel nicely, as do all those with darker markings.

Focal C has two interesting curved markings and they mesh nicely with the bezel curves.  

Each focal has two sides, and sometimes I like both, despite mild pitting.  

Which side to use is always your choice.

Similar to focal C, this D focal has a dark ground with lighter shadowy markings, 

so also simpatico with the bezel.

Focal E is soft, milky green-grey, with warm caramel.  An interesting stone.

Focal F has three distinct zones, and the warm chocolate brown relates nicely to the wood beads.

If only I had turned the G stone the other way, you might have seen a Mocha Frappuccino with a hint of mint! And this mocha also compliments the beads, and the hints of gold 

in the bezel edge of Oceanic Metallic 15/0 beads.

I also have a final set of Cinnamon kits underway.  I am waiting on a few final beads, 

and I'll keep you posted.

Find this listing at the link I will post here tomorrow.  For now, it's just a link to my Etsy shop.  

https://www.etsy.com/shop/HauteIceBeadwork

Thanksgiving Pumpkin Pie and Cranberries

 Maybe it's the month, but as I worked on these kits, I kept seeing Pumpkin Pie and Cranberries!

I recently attended a local bead show, "Bead Bazaar" and was sad to see very few of the 30x40mm ovals used in these kits still available.  I visited Dakota Stones this week to pick up dome wood beads to finish the kits and asked about that.  One of the things I was told, specifically about Red Creek Jasper, is that the stone is just no longer available in good quality.  So sad.  Anyway, I have these Sunset Mookaite cabs in my stash and they feel very seasonal to me, so here are the last of the Honey and Berries kits.  You might think of them as  "Turkey with Cranberry Sauce"  or "Pumpkin Pie and Cranberries"!

This A cab might have some whipped cream swirled on the pumpkin pie.  And please note, I changed out the wood beads in my sample for Sandalwood I found at the Bazaar.  It has a smell that I love, a little spicy and tangy, but in my kitting experience, not everyone finds it appealing.  Also to let that scent shine, the wood is bare and discolors in time.  So I am making these kits with the more neutral Bayong wood in the upper right corner.

A more traditional Sunset Mookite B stone, with the swirls of burgundy wine in its caramel.

A very light, simple C stone with an interesting vein.  Almost turkey color!

The simplicity of this D stone will make the bezel edge stand out.

The E cab is deep, rich and spicy pumpkin color, with a few Mookite markings.

 F is the deepest in color, with some cranberry swirls.  

They all look yummy on complex cool reds.  Burgundy, fuchsia, and cranberry are all great backdrops for this little beauty, as are beige and tan.  

Happy November!  Find these in my Etsy shop HERE!

Visit Blue Hawaii on a Dreamscape Dragon!

 After a long, lush summer in the garden, and a fall about a remodel (still not fully done), I am back to beading. I am starting with re-kitting projects that have been out of stock for a while. Like Blue Hawaii Pineapple Blossom Necklace.  It's an exploration of Chenille bezeling, and how Chenille expands to make a bell connection. Plus great with faded blue denim, and all soft blues.  Find the kits here in my Etsy shop.

I got a few Dreamscape Dragon kits finished last week and they sold out in a hurry, so more are now back in my Etsy Shop here.  They are vibrant, with great harvest colors.  I love my dragon on matte black, so it really shines!  I managed to locate some of these jewels, and I hope my source will provide a solution to the missing jewel for the Paradise Dragon as well.  I have samples ordered, and will keep you posted! 

I was honored to be featured on the wonderfully curated "Seed Beads and More" Facebook page last Saturday.  I showed a lot of my competition work, which is how my beadwork design developed and matured.  If you'd like to take a look, here's a link to that post.

In the meantime, I'll be wearing my Dreamscape Dragon for Halloween festivities. Seems reasonably magical and spooky.  Happy costume holiday to you all.  ENJOY!

Next up, some Honey and Berries Caramel's Claws.  They always remind me of pumpkin pie!

Vintage Jasper Kits on the Way

 I am slowly working on getting the materials I have in my studio into kits.  Here are the last of the Vintage Jasper Cabochon sets, in the original size, done in the silver colorway, with a few descriptive words.  They will be in my Etsy shop on Saturday, October 8th, around noon (Central Daylight Time), for those of you who like to pre-consider your purchases and get exactly what you like.

Set A is a soft sage green with hints of warm salmon and a slash of gold glow.

Set B is very typical Red Creek Jasper with hints of green and gold, and an umber arc.

Particularly vibrant patterning with lots of sandy fawn and deep sunset pinks.

For me the most pictoral of the group.  There's even a partially occluded moon in the autumn sky!

Nicely patterned with lots of color variety.  Flaming treetops against a stormy sky?

And here are images of the sets themselves, because I have them to show you...  Keep in mind you can choose any orientation for this cabs that you prefer.  Some are beautiful more than one way up!

Here's a link to my Etsy shop, which I will point at this listing after I get them up.

As always, digital e-tutorial sold separately at this link.

Thanks for reading, and Happy Autumn!!!

Caramel Goes Boating!

I am racing to get the kits for this colorway done for a Saturday, June 25th noon CST release!

 It's Caramel's Claws for the summer.  I think it has a nautical feel, but it also resonates with Independence Day, so I am trying to work FAST, so that you could possibly wear it on the 4th.  OR, if not, for any of the patriotic holidays, Labor Day, Memorial Day, Veteran's Day... you name it.  Or just anytime you are feeling "nautical"!

I found these pretty Dyed Impression Jasper cabs at the local Gem and Lapidary Workers Show, from Dakota Stones.  They have a bit of a Lapis feel, but the patterning looks both a bit watery, and like the smokey night sky at a fireworks display.  I have used Czech Fire Polish to give it a festive sparkle, and some bright silver Toho Permanent Finish Galvanized, along with some #713 Aikos, which have a real silver metal coating.  Those Aikos explain the slightly higher cost of this kit, along with the Czech bling.

I also adjusted the beads in the yoke just a bit, to get a striped red and white effect, and that's pretty fun and an easy adaptation.  And I used deep cobalt beads to edge the bezel face, which makes the little picots stand out and be noticed, almost like tiny explosions.

Here are the adaptations, just FYI.  I have to get back to kitting, but will add pictures of the 9 available cabochons by the end of the day.

As always, your kit will come with a charts and text to help you navigate the small adjustments.

Here's the acorn bead placement, worked around a 12mm Czech Firepolish bead.

And here's the bezel bead placement, broken out by row.  I got a little stripe in there, see it?  I'll add a bead key to both diagrams for you too.

Cabochon Images Below!!

I just don't have time to comment on each one right now, but are are good quality.  I am particularly fond of the lightning bolt (B), and F for its drama, but any of the tamer, more evenly patterned ones would feature the picot explosions of the inner bezel edge.  

OH!  And so you won't think I am making up the Squirrel goes boating thing,

I want to introduce you to 

Twiggy, the Waterskiing Squirrel!!!