Craft Diva

Beadwork; Not Just for Jewelry

Above: dolphin pattern worked in single count peyote stitch using Miyuki delica beads. This pattern could be repeated, to make a 3D amulet bag. Left as is, and framed, this pattern can make an interesting home decor item. Original design by Lynn Smythe.

 

Decorative Beadart

I used to create a ton of seed bead jewelry. The smaller the bead, the more interesting. I got bored only making wearable art, so I decided to create some larger beadwork patterns. The larger patterns can be attached to a fabric covered cardboard backing, then framed, to create unique, beaded home decor items.

 

Above: large single bead peyote stitch beadwork pattern using Miyuki delica beads. Original design by Lynn Smythe.

 

Above: beadwork attached to a fabric covered cardboard backing and framed. Original design by Lynn Smythe.

 

Above: Three peyote stitch bead pictures; Angel Heart, Isis and Butterfly Fairy. Original designs by Lynn Smythe.

 

Beadart or Bead Jewelry

The three fairy/goddess bead pictures could be worked in a smaller bead to make a piece of wearable art. Try using size 15 seed beads to make an amulet bag sized beaded bag.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Make a Fabric Covered Memo Board

Above: fabric and ribbon covered cork board

The other day I blogged about my home office decorating project: Craft Diva Decorates Home Office. I mentioned the fabric covered memo board that I made for the office in that post. Here are the instructions on how to make your own French inspired, fabric covered memo board.

Above: finished memo board hanging above desk

Fabric Covered Memo Board Supply List

• Wood frame cork board
• Measuring tape
• Old sheet or towels
• Can of spray glue - I used Elmer's from JoAnn Fabrics
• Quilt batting - I used cotton, but polyester would work too
• Decorative fabric - I found brocade fabric for 50% off in the clearance section at JoAnn's. It was the perfect color for my home office decorating project.
• Ribbon - satin, silk, grosgrain, etc...
• Scissors
• Metal upholstery tacks
• Hammer
• Staple gun - with small 1/4 inch long staples
• Screw driver
• Hanging hardware - to attach the finished memo board to the wall

Above: cover back of cork board with quilt batting.

Above: cover front of cork board with a second layer of batting, and wrap around the sides and attach to the back.

Instructions for Making French-style Memo Board

1. Measure the cork board so you will know how much fabric to buy. I bought my fabric on sale, and got what was left on the bolt. I had enough to cover the front and back of the cork board, and enough leftover to make matching pillows for the home office futon.
2. Spray glue is a bit messy. You need to cover your work surface with a drop cloth, or old sheet, or a couple of old towels. I skipped this step, and the spray glue got all over the carpet. Luckily I have a carpet cleaner and was able to clean the rug as soon as I finished making the memo board.
3. Cut a piece of the quilt batting to fit the front of the cork board.
4. Spray the front of the cork board with spray glue, and attach the piece of batting.
5. Cut a second piece of batting that is large enough to cover the front of the board, wrap around the sides and attach to the back of the cork board. I used spray glue to attach the second layer of batting to the front of the board, and the staple gun to attach the batting to the back of the board. Trim the corners to get rid of excess batting.
6. Cut a piece of your decorative fabric which is large enough to cover the front of the board, wrap around the sides and attach to the back of the board. Use the staple gun to attach the fabric to the back of the board. Pull the fabric taught, while wrapping it around the sides.
7. Attach the decorative ribbon to the front of the board in a diagonal pattern. Wrap each piece of ribbon around the sides of the board, and attach to the back of the board using the staple gun.
8. Attach decorative upholstery tacks to the front of the board, where 2 pieces of ribbon cross over one another. Use a hammer, if necessary.
9. Cut a piece of fabric that is just slightly larger than the back of the cork board.
10. Fold the edges of the fabric under, then attach the fabric to the back of the board using the staple gun.
11. Attach the hanging hardware to the back of the memo board using a screw driver.
12. Attach 2 screws to the wall, where you want to hang the memo board.
13. Hang the memo board up, and enjoy!

Above: cut a piece of fabric large enough to cover front of cork board, and wrap around the back.

 

Above: attach the ribbon to the front of cork board in a diagonal pattern. I decided to use orange ribbon, instead of brown, to complete my fabric covered memo board.

 

Above: attach a piece of fabric to the back of the memo board using the staple gun. Attach hanging hardware to the board.

To Measure or Not to Measure

I had a heck of a time trying to figure out how to equally space the ribbons on the front of the board. I measured it a couple of times, then tried to add ribbons evenly spaced on the board. But I kept redoing it because I couldn't get the math to work out. I'm an artist, not a rocket scientist - HA! So I ended up going for the free form look, and adding ribbons wherever. So my diagonal placement is not equal, but I think it came out looking okay. You're going to be adding a lot of items to the memo board, so it doesn't really bother me that mine isn't perfect.

 

Above: close up of board showing ribbon placement and decorative upholstery tacks.

Above: another photo of the finished memo board. No need for thumb tacks. Simply place items to be displayed underneath the ribbons.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Seed Bead Sculptural Flowers

 

Sculptural peyote stitch beaded flower by Lynn Smythe. I attached a pin/necklace finding to the back of the flower, which is covered with a scrap of suede. You can wear the flower as either a pin, or attach a gold or silver chain through the finding to wear the flower as a necklace. I used size 11/0 Japanese seed beads for this project. The leaves are made using the brick stitch technique.

Sculptural Peyote Stitch
Peyote stitch is one of my favorite techniques to use along with seed beads. Sculptural peyote stitch, is a kind of free-form technique that uses various bead sizes and bead counts. Sculptural peyote stitch can be used to create an organic, 3-D beaded effect, which is perfect for making beaded flowers.

Here are a few pictures of beaded flower projects I've created using the technique of sculptural peyote stitch.

 

Sculptural peyote stitch flower necklace by Lynn Smythe. The neckstrap also uses the sculptural peyote technique. Each row of peyote stitch has slightly more beads than the previous row, causing the beadwork to ruffle and undulate, which creates a very organic looking project.

 

Closeup of previous seed bead flower necklace. Size 11/0 Japanese seed beads. Brick stitch used for the leaves.

 

I call this necklace the sea anemone. I created this project as a bead sample for a multi week class I used to teach when I had a bead store. Besides the sculptural peyote stitch technique, this necklace also uses tubular peyote, beaded fringe, spiral rope chain and tubular African helix.

 

Close up of beaded sea anemone. I used a combination of size 11/0 Japanese seed beads and Czech seed beads.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Heart Themed Jewelry

 

Necklace by Lynn Smythe, featuring art clay silver heart pendant by the artist.

Heart themed jewelry can be enjoyed anytime of year, not just on Valentine's Day. This post features some of my beaded jewelry creations which feature one or more heart components.

 

Beaded necklace by artist Lynn Smythe.

 

Beaded necklace by Lynn Smythe, featuring amber heart pendant, lampwork glass beads, vermeil bead spacers, and swarovski crystals.

 

Beaded pendant by Lynn Smythe, featuring Venetian lampwork glass beads.

 

Beaded bracelet, featuring fused glass hearts created by Lynn Smythe.

 

Beaded bracelet by Lynn Smythe, with vintage German heart beads, seed beads and vermeil clasp.

 

Close up of beaded bracelet created by Lynn Smythe. Featuring new Czech glass beads, vintage German glass beads and Venetian foil-lined glass beads wire-wrapped with copper wire onto copper chain.

 

Heart necklace and earring set by Lynn Smythe. Featuring lampwork glass beads, swarovski crystals and sterling silver.

 

Heart themed necklace by Lynn Smythe. Featuring lampwork glass beads, swarovski crystals and sterling silver.

 

Beaded heart watch created by Lynn Smythe.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Beaded Needle Cases

Three beaded needle cases by Lynn Smythe

Beaded needle cases were all the rage a few years ago. They are a bit like a larger version of a beaded bead. Beaded needle cases are popular among beaders, quilters, sewers, and anyone else that uses a variety of sewing needles in their craft work.

Beaded turtle needle case by Lynn Smythe. I created a pair of matching earrings, using size 14/o seed beads. View my Turtle Powered Beadwork post to see a picture of the earrings.

 

Detail of turtle needle case

Wearable Work of Art
Both the body and the lid of the needle case are beaded. Decorative fringe is usually added to the bottom of the needle case. I liked to add a beaded strap to many of the needle cases that I created. That way you can wear your needle case as a piece of decorative artwork.

Pretty cool, a functional craft tool become a one-of-a-kind work of wearable art. Here are a few more pictures of my beaded needle cases, which feature my own designs.

 

Patriotic needle case by Lynn Smythe

 

Detail of patriotic needle case

 

Long and skinny beaded needle case by Lynn Smythe. Featuring size 14/o seed beads. Fringe beads include copper, freshwater pearls and goldstone beads.

 

Beaded needle case by Lynn Smythe. Featuring a citrine cabochon on top of the lid.  Fringe beads include Swarovski crystals, copper, freshwater pearls, tigereye and amazonite.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Beaded Amulet Bags

Close up of my Dolphin amulet bag. This bag is featured in the book The Sea, Selections From the First International Miyuki Delica Challenge (Caravan Beads, 1998).

Yesterday, I blogged about my miniature, beaded amulet bags. As promised in that post, here are some photos of my full size amulet bags. These bags are large enough to hold a credit card, driver's license and/or a few business cards.

Dolphin amulet bag, featuring 4 of my beaded beads in the neck strap.


Hummingbird amulet bag, featuring vintage German glass beads in the fringe. This bag was featured in an article I wrote for Beadwork magazine.


Iris amulet bag. Beaded lid slides up and down the neck strap.


Seahorse amulet bag. Larger beads are new Czech glass, vintage German glass and Venetian foil lined lampwork beads.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Miniature Amulet Bags

When I first became interested in seed beading, amulet bags were all the rage. I'll post up photos of some of my full size amulet bags in a future post. Today's blog post showcases some of my miniature amulet bags. They go together a lot more quickly than the full size bags. The miniature amulet bags are just big enough to hold a lucky coin, or a favorite gemstone.

ABOVE: Star of David miniature amulet bag. This design was featured in a past issue of Beadwork magazine. The fringe includes bronze freshwater pearls and gold plated feather charms.


ABOVE: This was the second miniature amulet bag I ever created. Fringe features rhodochrosite and turquoise nuggets.


ABOVE: this was my very first attempt at creating a miniature amulet bag. The fringe features turquoise heishe, malachite chips and silver plated feather charms. The strap is macrame using 4-ply waxed linen.


ABOVE: the rainbow miniature amulet bag was featured in a past issue of Beadwork magazine. The neckstrap includes two of my beaded beads. I used tiny size 14/o seed beads to create the twisted fringe.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Loom Woven Bracelets

ABOVE: Loom woven bracelets by Lynn Smythe

Today's post shows a few of my loom woven bracelets featuring my original bead design patterns. The bracelets are created with Miyuki delica cylinder beads and one of my one-of-a-kind fused glass cabochons.

ABOVE: Garden loom woven bracelet by Lynn Smythe

My last post, Turtle Powered Beadwork, mentioned that I'm looking to purchase a bead design program. Once I decide on which software program to purchase, I'll get all of my loom woven bracelet patterns graphed out. I'll eventually offer the patterns for sale through my Etsy.com shop.

ABOVE: Detail of fused glass clasp created by Lynn Smythe for her Garden loom woven bracelet

Famous Craft Diva
My Garden loom woven bracelet, featured in this post, was featured in an article I wrote for Beadwork Magazine a few years ago. Pretty cool.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva

Turtle Powered Beadwork

ABOVE: Beaded earrings by Lynn Smythe. Turtle pattern on one side, bugs on the other!

Here's a couple of photographs of two turtle themed beadwork pieces I created. The earrings use tiny size 14/o seed beads, while the beaded needle case uses size 11/o Miyuki delicas.

ABOVE: Beaded sewing needle case by Lynn Smythe. The case features a beaded neckstrap so the piece doubles as a piece of wearable art.

The pattern featured in both pieces is my own original design. I'm going to be researching bead design software in the very near future. My plan is to start offering my original bead patterns for sale. Once I get my patterns all graphed out, I'll have loom woven bracelet patterns, beaded earring patterns, beaded needle case patterns and amulet bag patterns available.

The patterns will be available on my Etsy.com store: Craft Diva's Shop.

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Craft Diva