African Recycled Glass Discs

My Newest Obsession

I've had a couple colors of these African recycled glass discs in my stash for quite a while but only recently became obsessed with them--it was when I saw them in a bunch more colors! And then I had to start working on having them all (my Mom is so lucky I missed the Pokemon craze). This is the color assortment I currently have, from Happy Mango Beads and Afrobeadia. They are also available in clear, dark green, pale brown, purple, cerulean, clear with gold speckles, orange, and black (and sometimes maroon). Ima need 'em all.

What I like about them is 1) they are the perfect size for anything, not too big, not too small, 2) They are lightweight, so, great for earrings, 3) The holes are plenty big so you can get lots of cording or wire through there to create sturdy links (and if you have to ream them bigger, the reamer goes through like buttah), 4) The holes are smooth so not likely to cut through your cording, and 5) They have a rustic texture, somewhat like a stone, but translucent. What's not to love?

The first thing I used them in was a bracelet (I've posted this one before):

And then I wanted to use them in earrings. Some of them had slightly smaller holes, so I had to ream them a bit to make room for the wire I wanted to use. I was pretty sure I could make it work. So I went to town and this is what I came up with:

This pair has azure discs, as well as Indonesian striped beads (this color is my absolute favorite) and blue glass rondelles, all from Happy Mango Beads. I used a little silver, and a little copper--plenty of room in the hole, after reaming a little, for a hammered 20-gauge headpin at the bottom, and two courses of 22-gauge wire at the top.

Carny Girl

This pair is all about autumn (also featured at Earrings Everyday today)--light green discs from Afrobeadia, amber glass lampwork rondelles from Happy Mango, and sterling silver torpedo beads from Monsterslayer.

Autumn Turning

This is a real southern belle pair of earrings! The colors make me think of sunny French Country decor, and the stacked tulip beads make me think of petticoats! Yellow discs from Afrobeadia, ice blue tulip beads from Happy Mango, and little turquoise glass seed beads also from Happy Mango (these little turquoise seed beads harmonize perfectly with turquoise stones, I love them). (My secondary obsession is these little African recycled glass tulip beads, also available at Happy Mango and Afrobeadia, in multiple colors--azure! purple! (oh wait, I have purple) olive green! brown! gold! orange! white! black! maroon! red! yellow! Ima need all those too.)

Alabama Petticoats

With this pair I went all earthy. I was determined to use the smoky glass discs (they remind me of smoky quartz, or even labradorate without the flash--Hey, heads up, glass disc people in Africa--AB finish on these, 'kay? They'll go like hotcakes!), and I wanted to contrast them with a warmer color, so I put them with peachy pink lampwork from The Spacer Bead Shop and copper torpedoes from Monsterslayer. These discs really make me think of sea glass, which I love.

This pair I got kind of crazy with--they're very long, like 4". I used "Mali Blue" discs (a teal blue) from Afrobeadia, carved black horn feathers, amber rondelles again from Happy Mango, and big Unicorn "Chocolate Luster" lampwork rondelles with an amber center from Stinky Dog Beads.

I'm sure I will be doing more! As well as some multicolor knotted bracelets, constructed like the one above, so stay tuned!

(Sorry, all the stuff above is sold, so I didn't include any Etsy links.)

Happy weekend to you!
Keirsten

Mixed Metal Craziness

The last couple of months I seem seized by the compulsion to--GULP--mix my metals (I'm sure I would have been put to death for this in Biblical times--I'm such a rebel). I recently acquired some absolutely fabulous handcrafted African beads in brass and copper from Afrobeadia on Etsy, and they cried out to be together, so I obeyed. I was feeling all rustic and rudimentary so I dispensed with any color other than the metal, and the dark cocoa brown of my leather and linen cording:

I've been playing with making charms from wire--that's my heart charm at the bottom of the picture. I have also fallen in love with Mykonos cast charms--you can see a tiny little heart at the top hiding under the toggle bar--I've been getting Mykonos from Stinky Dog Beads. I love the heft of it and the lovely, antiqued finishes.

I've also been soldering toggle rings and connector rings lately, and embossing them on both sides with my metal texture sheet/hammer technique (bashing the crap out of them with a hammer hides my messy amateur soldering!)--you can see them above. The trick is to sandwich your metal element between two texture sheets, and hammer the texture into both sides at the same time. I've been making my own texture sheets, etching nickel sheet with my favorite patterns.

I adore these brass beads below (also from Afrobeadia)--they're sort of like a cut-tube, but slightly rounded, and lightly soldered on the side. They have a light texture on them, that I think just came from the fabrication process. I dropped them in a strong liver of sulfur solution to really bring up the gold tones, and then tumbled them for a couple hours and they came out simply glorious (the lighting yesterday just didn't do them justice).

I got a whole spool of this lovely deertan leather lacing at Blue Peacock Beads on Etsy...

And a whole spool of solid, raw copper ball chain from Rings & Things--because it's raw, it's super easy to antique as you wish. I do a little bit at a time in the liver of sulfur, and tumble it until it's a rich, shiny chestnut, and then I seal it with ClearGuard before I incorporate it in my jewelry.

I went kind of crazy for these "torpedo" beads a while back--I got a bunch of them in copper and sterling from Monsterslayer. I hammered them lightly to give them a bit of texture (they are a seamed bead, so you have to do this carefully to avoid deforming them). These are more of those Mykonos heart charms from Stinky Dog Beads, you can see them lots better here--one in "bronze" (which is actually a very nice copper color) and one in brass.

This bracelet also includes some brass "cocoon" beads I made using a tutorial by Kharisma Sommers of Popnicute jewelry. Sometimes they add just the right texture.

I went back to my favorite brass beads for this one below, and did some variations on my wire heart charm--I made this one with 12 gauge wire. Whew! I must have annealed it 6 times while I worked on it. I love the heavy chunkiness of it--12 gauge wire from now on for these! Unless they're necklace-sized, and then they'll have to be 10 gauge wire. I better start doing some upper body work at the gym!

I also did some different connectors for the clasp section of this bracelet, and the one above--with strips of textured sheet instead of just jump rings. (I get bored so fast...)

So then I got all excited and ordered a pile more of brass beads from Fire Mountain Gems because I didn't have enough different kinds--just in time for my obsession with color to reassert itself, so I made this yesterday:

The discs are recycled glass beads from Happy Mango Beads (and they're all out of my favorite coke bottle blue-green color--DAMN!); the oval bead at bottom left is some delicious aqua chalcedony; and the carved flower at the top is green aventurine. I did a hook and eye clasp on this one, made from a strip of 22 gauge copper sheet, textured on both sides. I used big-hole copper rondelle spacers from RioGrande in between the discs--perfect if you've got thick, or multiple strands of cording.

After I did this last bracelet, I ordered more of these glass discs in a bunch of different colors, and they will arrive just in time for me to get obsessed with something else. Why can't I ever get obsessed with stuff I already have?