/ The Beading Gem

Gorgeous Metal Findings from SupplyDiva

I have always loved the "alternative" metals to gold and silver. They have colour and are relatively inexpensive. If you're like me, check out this Mexican workshop called SupplyDiva. They have many different metal findings in copper, brass, bronze as well as silver.
Such bounties from tiny charms to gallery wire, to various embossed blanks ready for patina. Metal stampers will also find some excellent shapes here.

6 Beautiful Beaded Christmas Bauble Tutorials by SYLIANKY

It's never too early to bead a Christmas bauble! Why, if you were a die-hard reader, you could be beading baubles all year long for gifts.

Speaking of gifts, I love how the above peyote beaded ball peyote pattern shown above (3 designs) can be packed prettily into a gift box. The Ukrainian designer is Halyna of SYLIANKY.

Halyna is very creative. Here are just a few of my favourites so be sure to browse her shop for more. She also has a number of bead crochet baubles.

beadwork feature designer tutorials

5 Pretty Beaded Flower Jewelry Tutorials by Tezukuri Notes!

I love flowers - both the real ones as well as beaded versions. One excellent Japanese instructor is @TezukuriNotes. She delivers on the Japanese esthetic - simple yet very pretty designs.

She uses fine 0.17 mm (~ 6lb) monofilament fishing line which is stiffer than the usual beading threads such as Fireline that we use. You may well have to double up on the thread paths or go up to 8 lb. The advantage of monofilament fishing line is its transparency.

feature supplier

erdmetaljewelry's Laser Cut Metal Findings and Custom Laser Cutting Service

Turkish findings supplier, erdmetaljewelry, is a wonderful discovery for those who are hunting for unique metal charms and findings. They have an enormous inventory of all kinds of laser cut charms. The largest selection are their raw brass, stainless steel and gold plated sections. All are at reasonable prices.

beadwork feather designer tutorial

8 Gorgeous Beaded Hoops and Loops Earrings Tutorials

Hoop earrings have been popular for thousands of years. The picture below of a young girl wearing hoop earrings is from a fresco painted in Ancient Greece dated about 1650-1625 BCE.

Today we have all kinds of variations on the hoop style. Shown here are my favourites. Be sure to check out the designers' shops because they all have much more to offer!

brooch feather designer historical

Beautiful Celtic and Viking Inspired Penannular Brooches | How to Pin a Penannular Brooch on a Shawl or Cloak

Penannular brooches are incomplete ring brooches which has been in used for thousands of years. These were especially popular during the medieval age and were worn as fasteners by both men and women - usually those with the means to afford them. They are still popular today.

Shown above is the Wolf Head Brass penannular brooch from CELTICFUSIONDESIGN.

beadwork charms feature designer

Adorable Beaded Chubby Amigurumi Animal Charm PDF Patterns by asleepycreative

South Korean beader, asleepycreative, has only been on Etsy for just a short while. But her adorable beaded chubby animal charm patterns are already a big hit. Such small amigurumi charms can be jewelry as pendants or earrings. However they are a hot trend as they can also be for keychains and as bag charms.

Anka said :

I started the project "sleepy clouds" because I wanted to reconnect with my inner child through cozy hobbies. My favorite are beading, clay art, paper craft, and I want to start sewing, too. Expect to see patterns for these crafts in the future! :)

beading software beadwork feature designer tutorial

Beaded Fringe Earrings Pattern, Design Temples and Software by kowshop

I spotted a pair of beautiful beaded fringe earrings featuring bees on a friend not long ago. It was a gift from her friend. I think many of you love making fringe earrings. They are quick to make and more importantly can sport many themes.

Check out Ukrainian bead artist kowshop's wonderful range of brick stitch beaded fringe earrings designs. She has lots of animal inspired designs, especially cats!

Be sure to check out her store as she offers both beaded earring templates and a software program to help you design your own!

crochet feature designer tutorial

Crochet Hanging Potted Plants Patterns

Remember my previous post about tutorials for beading tiny little plants and pots? Well, that was a popular one. So I went looking for the tiny crochet versions and BOOM! There were absolutely tons and tons of patterns, so many that I've only scratched the surface. Crochet sure is wildly popularly today.

They are great as yarnbusters, as car mirror decor and even window adornment - hang several of these crochet hanging plant posts in the window for fun! You could possibly add some beadwork to some of the designs.

beadwork feature designer tutorial

Soothing Bead Embroidery Abstract Art Patterns by ALIFERA

Feeling a little stress? One of the most soothing things to do is crafting. Something easy, even mindless. Even better if the preliminary work has already been laid out and all you have to do is, simply do!

I was so impressed by the bead embroidery abstract art patterns by Latvian embroidery artist, ALIFERA. Just watch how she creates the hoop art beaded designs shown above and below. Her abstract line design collection include both bead embroidery and just embroidery.

accessories feature designer

Lovely Beaded Bag Charms by PreserveStudio

I featured of PreserveStudio's geometric beadwork tutorials before. However, there is more to this designer than just her beadwork. Her creative vision also extends to decorating other accessories. Her beaded bag charms shows her versatility from simple dangles with carefully chosen beads to leatherwork and bead embroidery.

feature supplier polymer clay tools

Unusual Clay Cutters and Tools for Making Jewelry and Trinket Dishes by BabylonCutters

Clever designers and the advent of 3D printers have contributed to an explosion of clay cutter designs, These can be used by polymer clay, air clay and ceramic artists to create unusual designs. The cutters are made from extruded PLA plastic.
Hungarian 3D printer Ufuk of BabylonCutters has a HUGE range of clay cutters including a collection of 4 inch trinket or ring dishes He also has smaller jewelry designs including those for barrettes and earrings. Many are combination cutters and embossers.
Shown here are some of my favourites including the daisy trinket dish above.

embroidery feature designer

Beautiful Hand Embroidered Pendants, Wall Art and Ornaments by JuanitaSauveFibreArt

My most popular items in my shop are the wood bezels - either as physical products or the laser cutting files. The most popular use of them are for embroidered pendants. How do I know this? It's when I discover a buyer also has a shop.
Canadian embroidery artist, Juanita of JuanitaSauveFibreArt does beautiful hand embroidered art as pendants, wall art and ornaments. She was interested in trying out new shapes so she bought the square bezels from me as you can see in her pendant design below which features autumn trees.

beadwork ethnic feature designer historical

5 Beaded Drop Jewelry Tutorials | How Umbrellas Were Once Made

We had a very wet spring this year, that and the cool weather delayed gardening for many. So rain drops are what inspired this post. When rainy days keep us indoors, there are always some lovely beaded drop beadwork jewelry tutorials to enjoy.

First up is the Swarovski crystal raindrop beaded pendant tutorial (shown above) from Isabella of bead4me. Here's where you can get the Swarovski 6022 xirius crystals .

feature designer felt

Adorable Felt Brooches by Little Wool Wave

I know I am not safe with the multi needle tools for needle felting! It was all too easy to puncture myself. That's why I am in awe of felt wool artisans who can create all manner of 3D sculptures. Shown here are the adorable felt brooches by LittleWoolWave. Many are of animals.

She uses both the needle felted technique as well as cutting up and sewing stuffed felt brooches. Her designs are fun and definitely a conversation starter if you have one of her designs pinned on your jacket!

beadwork feature designer feature supplier

Beautiful Japanese Beaded Jewelry and Other Making PDF Guides

Many of us love the Japanese esthetic - beautiful and often simple stunning designs. Be sure to check out the numerous PDF book guides from SunsetCuriosity. Currently on sale! Books are really cost-effective as you get many patterns for one low price.

Several craft types are covered including beadwork, tatting, embroidery, felting, sashiko and more. The largest section is crochet.

beadwork feature designer tutorial

5 Elegant Beaded Tennis Bracelet Tutorials for Special Occasions

Lots of people love narrower beaded bracelets which I like to call tennis bracelets. They're usually not too showy and quick to make. But there are always the special occasions when you want to wear something more elegant. So here are 5 lovely examples to inspire you!

First up is the gorgeous cRAW bracelet pattern shown above, created with 24K gold plated beads and complimented with a stunning crystal clasp. The designer is Cynthia Newcomer Daniel of JewelryTales.

beadwork feature designer tutorial

Pretty Beaded Triangle Jewelry Patterns by MadebyShila

I have featured many of Hungarian beadwork designer of MadebyShila before. But this time I want to highlight just her triangle inspired work. She is versatile as she can go from designs which lean on clean lines like the contemporary pendant tutorial above to more statement looks.

feature designer polymer clay

Gorgeous Polymer Clay Jewelry by GreenasBeans

Christina of GreenasBeans is a dedicated landscape artist but her creativity knows no bounds. She said :

I found painting when I was about 19; from there I have been creating with everything I can get my hands on! I love challenging myself and working with different materials and art mediums.

And so she has. Featured here are her gorgeous polymer clay jewelry. Her attention to detail as well as the effort she puts into her designs is evident.

beadwork feature designer

Fun Beadwork Jewelry Designs by RenovatiobyLuciela

I have featured Maria and Mihaela of RenovatiobyLuciela's fabulous beadwork before. If you haven't come across this mother and daughter team's work, you must see their stunning beadwork combination bracelet and clasp tutorials!

They also offer a great many other marvelous peyote beadwork bracelet designs. But the focus of this feature are some of their fun designs! Shown above and below is their beaded balloon dog charm! I love how the colourful dots and outline of gold beads elevates the design! Looks really good on a plain leather bag.