Mit dem jungen Herrn Nussknacker wünsche ich frohe Weihnachen und glückliches Neujahr für alle liebe BlogleserInnen!
Dear visitors, I wish you all merry Christmas and a happy new year - Mr. Nutcracker sends his best regards, too :)

Some more fiery colours...

 This pendant is not a new one, it was made more than a year ago, but I had no idea, how should it be finished, so laid aside, and at the end I totally forgot about it. I found it now, and was really surprised, how nice it looks - it has such an interesting, three-dimensional shape, but unfortunately I couldn't recall, how it was achieved :( (The only thing I remember that I was watching Murdoch Mysteries while beading...). Neither have I an idea, why on earth had I chosen this colour back then. It's "Fireopal", a gorgeous, but definitely not a modest one.

Since I found the shape of the fire-pendant so interesting, tried to make something similar - I guess, the technique now used is quite different from the original, but the final result looks not bad... I think, I will make it in silver-white too, but now I was rather in the mood for these coppery reds (which are normally not really my colours). Apparently I've spent too many time  fangirling about Jenny Dolfen's pictures of Maedhros again... XD

From the ashes...

Well, that was a long pause - but I'm alive, and I'm back :) Actually I wasn't that idle in the last weeks (regarding beading and other crafts, I mean), I was just too lazy for blogging about them.
And as for the title: fitting for this re-awakening, flames will spring indeed in this post ;) Well, not actual ones, but sort of...

The colours of fire... glowing, passionate reds, bright oranges and yellows, noble golden and copper - they are undoubtedly beautiful, but somehow not really my colours, in most cases I prefer cold hues.
But sometimes I can't resist, because there are so many gorgeous beads in this shades...

...like for example the new "Scarlet" colour by Swarovski. For me "Light Siam" was a bit too bright, and "Siam" althogh lovely, but for some projects already too dark . But this "Scarlet", it's just a perfect shade of red!
I bought more chatons and rivolis in this colour in order to try them in different combinations.

This was the first try (because I couldn't choose between gold and silver, so black became the "tertius gaudens"). I know, the picture is terrible, but I was in a hurry...
The only problem is (and that's my problem with every reddish jewelry): what shall I do with it? I can't wear it, doesn't fit my style... I could imagine this little cutie for example on the neck of a Spanish senorita, a tango-dancer or something... but definitely not on me :)

 And the next one... if somebody had said a few months ago, that I would use orange in a beaded project, i would have laughed about it. It was totally-absolutely never-ever my colour... But the "Tangerine" Swarovski crystals (maybe it too is a new shade, I don't know) looked so gorgeous in the bead shop, I had to give them a try. And well, if in for a penny, in for a pound... the tangerine rivoli needed some matching bicones too.
The result was this "Blossom of fire", a variation of my "Silver Cristal"-pendant, using bicones in the following shades: sunflower, tangerine, scarlet and garnet (now thinking about it, dark siam would have been better...)

To be continued in the next post... ;)

Some more little thingies

So many ideas, so many inspiring occasions, but so little time... :(

For Halloween, more precisely for a thematic design challenge - without success of course, but at least they were fun to make.

My self-imposed challenge: do not watch a long-awaited movie without some fitting jewelry! So after the Hobbit-bracelet, the minions, Cap. America's shield and the TIE-fighters here is a little Mjölnir for the new Thor-movie :D Well, maybe no the best choice, but I had no better idea.
Now, it's time to think about something new from a galaxy far, far away... ;)

Last but not least... I'm working on a tutorial for these bracelets, but can't promise to finish it soon - writing the instructions turned out more difficult than expected. It would be great, if someone could spend a little time for checking it, whether it's understandable or not. Any help would be appreciated!

Small things

Tried a new hairstyle for this little girl (older version: http://convallariacreations.blogspot.hu/2016/04/japan-babak-japanese-styled-dolls.html) 

She really looks better this way - at least more kokeshi doll-like. And since that was my original aim, I'm totally happy with the result :)

Two new colleauges joined the group of  my yellow buddies :) 

If minions are cute, then mini-minions are extra-super-cute, that can't be argued...

Some of my works were displayed at an exhibition organised by the library in my hometown :) 

Happy birthday, little hobbitses! :)

I started the blog more than a year ago, but haven't shown my greatest pride yet. This ought to be mended - and now is the perfect occasion for it!

Firstly,  now is the 80th anniversary of  The Hobbit - it was first published on 21. September 1937. On the other hand, as can be read in The Lord of the Rings, Bilbo and Frodo happen to have their birthday on the same day, September 22.

I was never good at knotting, I made only small friendship bracelets and thought that for a bigger piece I wouldn't have enough skill and perseverance. But when I discovered this great LotR-pattern on friendship-bracelets.net by the user frenchfry_piggy here, my fate was sealed :) It was a very-very long labour (especially because I used rather thin thread), I had almost gave it up, laid it aside for months, then started again... All in all, it took more than two years to finish it. 

The Hobbit-bracelet has a totally different tale. In December 2012 I was terribly (and looking back, I must say a bit unjustifiedly) excited about the oncoming Hobbit movie, so when finding this pattern by Baya, I decided to made a bracelet to wear in the cinema. Time was pressing though, only a week was left, but I hoped, it will be enough. It could have been a good idea... when we ignore the fact, that it was already exam period at the university. You can imagine the situation... But finally, I made it! I passed the dreaded exam and finished the bracelet just before the movie :)

Sure, that was ages ago... at least it seems so for me. I've already forgotten all the definitions and formulas I had learned for that exam, but my feelings for Tolkien's writings are the same :)

Kleine Geschenke

Aus verschiedenen Anlässen für meine Schwestern.

2. "Maboroshi no ginzuishou" (the legendary silver crystal)

I've already shown this little cutie (it was the central piece of my necklace inspired by the Sailor Senshi), but here are some more pictures...

As you can see, it's not life-sized and the number of petals isn't correct either... but all in all, i'm pretty satisfied with it :)
Using these "crystal silver shade" Swarovskis was a good choice, they look somehow more... oh well... magical and noble than simple clear crystal beads. So the long and tiresome search wasn't in vain :)

Yeah, I've finally taken the necklace to pieces... I think I'll use the single elements for individual pieces of jewelry. It will be a fun and interesting challenge, creating jewelry matching to the characters :)

What do you think of it? Shall I start a series of posts about this project?













PS: I was asked how the pendant is attached to the ribbon - it has a loop on its back side, so it can be worn either on the ribbon (choker-style), or hanging from a chain.

 

Some more SM-inspired thingies 1.

 I've made a new pair of earrings - these are based on the ones Sailor Moon in her Eternal form wears in the original series. (The earrings I made earlier - described here - were inspired by the new anime...)

They are made with PRAW (prismatic right angle weave) - I really like this technique, one can make almost anything with it! :)

Noch ein Set - diesmal in Grün

Schon langweilig? Vielleicht. Aber ich mag diese Muster :)

Moonlight, starshine... Again? Yes, why not?!

...but now from another aspect :) Apparently I'm in a "moony" phase right now XD

I've already wrote a quite long post about my favourite pendant ("by light of moon and ray of star"). Of course it's not a perfect piece, but I really like it, so I decided to make a matching ring too.

White flowers, moonlight, shimmering stars...
Btw, did you realise that this story was born 100 years ago? ;)

The first try...

I wasn't satisfied with the first version of the ring, because it didn't go well enough with the pendant - although the materials were the same, the shape was too different...

...and the final version

So I then tried to replicate the pendant in a smaller size - keeping the form, but using smaller beads. Fortunately I had got some 3 mm crystal moonlight bicones (they had been bought actually for another project, but nevermind), so I could make a miniaturised version of the pendant, which was small enough for wearing as a ring - even if a very big ring :)

Just an other senseless project by me... Somewhere deep inside I know that spending so much money on beads for unwearable, useless, weird-looking jewelry is stupid irresponsibility :( But it's so hard to resist the temptation of a challenge...

As mentioned earlier, I've been watching Sailor Moon, which naturally had an inspirational effect on me from the aspect of beading. Y'know, seeing jewelry and crystals of every sort can really inspire one for beading something shiny or cute...

For example while I was watching the first season, where pratically everybody was searching for the Silver Crystal, I obviously felt urged to buy some "crystal silver shade" Swarovskis and make a pendant. Sounds simple, doesn't it? Well, it wasn't. Actually finding beads in this colour was almost as difficult as finding that crystal itself in the story - I tell you, at the end I could totally sympathise with Beryl & Co... And being obstinate enough, after running around in the city for hours, visiting at least seven shops,  then browsing in different webshops (which I normally don't do), I finally have gathered the desired materials.
Creating the pendant wasn't either an easy task, I had to tear it down three-four times in order to find the best solution - but I'm now pretty satisfied with the result :)






The problem was that I couldn't stop at this point... When I saw the May Design Challenge by Facet Jewelry, I... well, I failed miserably. Few years ago I already vowed not to enter any contests again (because why should I waste beads, time and energy, when I've no chance at all?), but now my conceited, competitive, childish self proved stronger.
I decided to enter the challenge, but well, for a contest one must create something spectacular and extravagant... a simple pendant weren't enough.
I thought that Sailor Moon could actually fit the theme "heroes & villains" - maybe I was mistaken, dunno... Of course they must rather meant Western superheroes, but I'm cosmopolitan ;)
After a lot of musing and planning I decided to make a piece of jewelry inspired by not only Sailor Moon herself, but by her friends and comrades too. So the each smaller element of the necklace represents a Sailor Senshi (inner or outer), made in the signature colours of her outfit (skirt, bow, tiara gem), while the focal piece symbolises the Silver Crystal, thus representing Sailor Moon. I used silk ribbons for the ends - frankly I was just too lazy to make the collar long enough, but I think ribbons really fit the concept, don't you think?
Finding Swarovskis in matching colours was fun, but sometimes challenging - the result isn't perfect, but I sincerely hope not too bad, either...

Some closer pics:

Neptune & Uranus

Mars, Mercury

Venus, Jupiter

Saturn, Pluto

 Sailor Moon & Sailor Chibi Moon

And now? What shall I do with an uncomfortable (heavy and  edgy thanks to the bicones), almost untastefully multi-coloured, flashy necklace?
Sure, tearing apart and re-use it is the only sensible (if heart-wrenching) choice - I just wanted to show you in whole...

Little thingies

 I was invited to my friend's wedding, but in the night before it I suddenly realized that I hadn't had a matching necklace to the dress I've so carefully chosen for this occasion... In less than an hour this small pendant was ready, and I could finally go to sleep.
Guess what  I've left on my desk, when leaving in a terrible hurry next morning? (I was late as usual, thanks to my eternal nemesises: the nail polish which didn't wanted to dry and eyeliners...)
 Yesss, that's right, the necklace... silly me! ^.^"

An other little pendant. The pattern is similar but not the same  - here I used only 15/0 seedies for the embellishment.
The picture may not show it, but the chaton is "Garnet" - one of my favourite colour, but it's too hard to make a proper photo of it...

Which side are you on?

What can a beader do, if she wants to make a pair of earrings, but has only a very limited quantity of round beads, and can't choose between two possible colour combinations?
Well, she can make two-sided earrings ;)

Recycling

A múltkor említett diadémot természetesen lebontottam azóta, hiszen semmi értelme nem lett volna megtartani egy ilyen hordhatatlan darabot - a központi elemet viszont nagyjából megmentettem, és átraktam egy sima nyakláncalapra, a "visszanyert" gyöngyökből pedig készült hozzá egy karkötő (amúgy is kellett egy fekete kari a rövidujjú blúzomhoz...). Sőőőőőt, a maradékból még egy kis gyűrűre is futotta.

I've torn apart the headband (mentioned in the previous post), but saved the central piece, putting it as a simple pendant on a rope. From the rest of the beads a bracelet and a little ring were created. So  a smart, practical little set has arisen from the remnants of a totally unwearable, weird piece :)

Pattern of the "Freiheit" pendant

As promised, here is the English tutorial of my Freiheit pendant - oh my, I can hardly believe that it's finally ready... making a proper translation is more difficult than ever imagined... It contains most probably lots of stupid grammar mistakes and funny wording, but I hope the pattern itself will be understandable. If something is unclear, or you find some really awkward mistakes, let me know, I'll correct it!

You can download the tutorial here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0dU9Iqx80g5VG1xU1Z2YVFhbTQ

Some other colour variations, if you are interested: green, white, copper, purple, blue, brown, teal.

And why this name? Well, that's a long story...

"Freiheit" is actually a German word, means "freedom". But no, I did not just opened a dictionary...

Last spring, when the idea of the pendant were born, I was kinda obsessed with the anime Shingeki no kyojin (Attack on Titan). I made the first versions while I was listening to the soundtrack,  reading the manga, or simply mourning and cursing the autor for killing off my favourite characters...

I wanted to give this pattern a name that fits somehow to this memories, so I've decided for "Freiheit", inspired by the second opening song, in which "Flügel der Freiheit" (= wings of freedom) are mentioned.

Besides, this pattern is a really flexible one, you can choose and mix the materials at your heart's content: the pattern grants you the freedom of varying ;)

Az elmúlt hetek termése / From the last few weeks

 Egy különleges alkalomra egy különleges ruhához... Azonban mivel a rám jellemző módon az utolsó pillanatban csaptam össze őket (elment az idő a tervezgetéssel), még nem 100 %-os az eredmény... A karkötőt biztosan újra fogom fűzni, de gondoltam, megmutatom ebben a formájában is.
A rivoli befoglalását egy orosz oldalon találtam, a fülbevalót pedig O Espírito das Artes egyik tutorialja (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy49pz-1RvQ) inspirálta - bár végül eléggé eltértem az eredetitől, de a formához és a technikához egyértelműen ő adta az ötletet.

For a special occasion you need a special dress... and for a special dress some special jewelry. Well, that was my plan, but I wasted most of the time with planning, I had hardly time for the beading itself. That's why the results are not so satisfying - the bracelet I'll surely re-design...
The square bezel for the rivoli is to be found on a Russian site. The earrings are based on a tutorial by O Espírito das Artes (here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy49pz-1RvQ) - I deviated from the original, because I wanted to use delicas, but the inspiration came definitely from her work...


Na igen, már magam sem tudom, hanyadjára fűzöm ezt a mintát - de ha egyszer beválik, miért ne? És persze nem is én lettem volna, ha nem éppen Attack on Titan-nézés közben állok neki... XD
A mintát egyébként itt találhatjátok: Freiheit medál - és hogy miért ez lett a neve, elolvashatjátok ebben a bejegyzésben ;)

I've already made this pattern several times - but hey. why not doing so, if it works well? And yes, not suprisingly I started it while I was watching Attack on Titan XD

(English pattern is coming soon...)








A Facet Jewelry áprilisi ékszerkészítő pályázatára pedig ezt követtem el: http://jewelrycontests.secondstreetapp.com/MYTHOLOGY-AND-FOLKLORE-The-April-Design-Challenge/gallery/62413158 (remélem, nem baj, hogy a linket osztottam meg, de lusta voltam külön posztolni ide is. A szavazás pedig már véget ért, szóval nincs jelentősége...)
A májusi téma pedig... hmm, igencsak nekem való :) Ááááá, máris túl sok ötletem van - túl sok az imádott fandom, naná... és persze mindenhol kristályok és egyebek, melyek valósággal könyörögnek a "meggyöngyösítésért" XD

I also entered the April Design Challenge of the Facet Jewelry. Here is my workpiece: http://jewelrycontests.secondstreetapp.com/MYTHOLOGY-AND-FOLKLORE-The-April-Design-Challenge/gallery/62413158 (Sorry for sharing the link, but I'm too lazy for uploading the pic here. And the promotions has already ended, so it doesn't matter anymore...)
And as for the May challenge theme... hmmm, I like it :) I've too many ideas already  - too many beloved fandoms, too many favourite heroes, too many shiny magical items XD

Még mindig nem unom... / Not yet tired of...

Nem, nem feledkeztem meg a múltkor mutatott gyöngyökről, csak éppen más projektek kötöttek le az utóbbi időben...

Mivel végre volt megfelelő színű delicám,  gondoltam, kipróbálom, milyen azzal megfűzve Eren kulcsa. (na meg mert végre itt az új évad, és awww, az az opening... *.*), Delicával tényleg jobb lett, mint anno 15/0 kásával, bár az is igaz, hogy a tökéletes megoldás a két gyöngyfajta kombinálása lenne (a négyzetes rész vékonyabb, legalábbis az általam használt referenciakép tanúsága szerint). Majd egyszer, talán... bár már két másik kulcs is szerepel a to-do-listámon ;)

No, I've not entirely forgotten about the lately shown crystal beads, only I was busy with other projects...

Because I've finally got delicas in the right colour (and because yay, season two is finally here!), I made a new version of Eren's key. It really looks better with delicas than with 15/0 seedies, but I guess combining the two bead types would give the perfect result. Well, maybe later... but I've already two other keys on my to-do-list ;)

Can you guess, what am I currently watching? ;)

Na, vajon mire függhettem rá mostanában? ;)

Hint: the Swarovskis are "crystal moonlight" and "crystal silver shade"...

Yup, the answer is Sailor Moon... ^.^" Now considering that I'm that kind of weird person who can be inspired to beadweaving even by a seinen (e. g. here: Eren's key), so easy to imagine what happens, if I start watching something, where everything shines and sparkles, some guys named after gemstones search for a crystal, and the heroine wears loooooooots of jewelry XD

Hát igen, a Sailor Moonról van szó, ciki vagy sem ez ennyi idős fejjel ^.^"
És ha figyelembe vesszük, hogy engem akár még egy óriáskaszabolós seinen is képes volt gyöngyfűzésre inspirálni (Eren kulcsa), könnyű elképzelni, milyen eredménnyel járhat, ha elkezdek nézni egy kellően csilivili sorozatot, ahol ásványnevű fickók egy kristályt keresnek, a hősnőn meg annyi smukk van, hogy karácsonyfának is elmenne... (Na jó, talán kicsit túloztam. De most komolyan, az ember lánya  vagy tiarát hordjon, vagy hajcsatokat; vagy medálos nyakpántot, vagy brosst, de nem ezt így egyszerre mind, hát nem?)

Me, while watching Usagi transforming: "Hey look at that earring - I can also make something similar!" (I've made earlier moon and starlets too) - So I've got now one more pair of crazy earrings :)

Valahogy így ment: *Usagi épp átváltozik*
 - Hoppá, nézzük csak azt a fülbevalót! Ilyesmit én is tudok csinálni, nem? (Tekintve, hogy mind holdacskát, mind csillagokat is fűztem már.) - Szóval a pillanatnyi felbuzdulás eredményeképpen most van egy újabb pár lehetetlen fülim...