I have to say that being a Cousin Creative Circle Ambassador is not only an honor, but is a fabulous way to be able to play with some really cool beads and materials!

This set I'm showcasing today is a casual, asymmetrical necklace set in spring colors accented by espresso colored leather and bold silver-toned framed medallions.  

Here is a list of the materials I used:

brown leather cord

turquoise/green glass beads

medallion beads

earring hoops

head pins

beading wire

crimp beads

20g wire

clasp

This is a simple set to make, and will compliment just about any casual friday outfit!  I made two bracelets, just to highlight the versatility of the medallions:

The matching earrings are simple yet impactful:

Don't you just love those green and turquoise glass beads? 

Check back next week for more Cousin/Prima Bead projects!

Vintage Beads

I got an e-mail a few weeks ago from Vente at Vintage Beads asking if I would be willing to promote their site if they sent me some free beads to make jewelry from.  Of course I said yes!  I was so excited to get my little package in the mail from Europe and was even more excited to see what was inside it!

Here are a few pieces I made with their beautiful beads:

This first piece is a lariat-style necklace that can be worn either single-stranded or doubled:

I handmade "beaded beads" to make into links that I interspersed with links made from beautiful teal and clear vintage Lucite beads and links from a vintage chain I had in my stash.

The ends of the lariat each have different vintage beads:  the first is made of silver-toned drops and the second is made with three frosted clear Lucite flowers.

Here's a close-up of the beautiful teal Lucite beads and the beaded beads.

The second project I made was a pair of earrings using vintage glass headpins, vintage crystals and silver heishi from my own stash:

The third project I made was another pair of drop earrings using vintage Lucite faceted pearl drops and vintage pink pressed glass flowers:

Thanks again to Vente for the fun beads she sent to me!  If you get a chance, check out Vintage Beads' great selection of beads and findings!