This Summer’s Toronto Bead Society (TBS) Challenge “Spice Girls" palette felt like it suited Autumn more than Summer!
Travelling back to Toronto, we bailed off the 401 Highway in
Cambridge, ON. With the Summer Bead Challenge on my mind, I remembered there
was Iguana Beads located on King Street in the heart of Cambridge. By the
time I arrived to shop at the bead store, Iguana Beads was squished into one
section of Mint Vintage shop at the same address. Plus everything in the Iguana
Beads section was now 50%.
I started by finding a large lampwork bead that embodied the spice theme. It was one of a kind Art Deco-ish design with interesting colours inside gold rings. I really liked “Red Spice” and decided this would be my focal pendant. Next, I starting looking through jars for interesting beads for creating a spiral rope. Because the focal was large I could go for chunkier beads.
I was drawn to strings of 25 table-cut Topaz-Picasso coated beads with three cuts revealing the topaz core. I bought all 11 strings and ended using nine of them. There was one Topaz-Picasso window bead which I thought would be perfect for the fringe under the Red Deco lampwork pendant.
Then, I added two packs of 6/o transparent red pony beads. I figured a small tube of a Iris AB-coated black-lined transparent red 8/o seed bead would be perfect for the core of a spiral bead rope. All these goodies were purchased at 50% retail. The black-lined light topaz triangle beads and matte red 6/o will have to wait for another project.
AUDITIONING BEADS & TESTING THE SPIRAL LOOPS
I love playing with texture by graduating shapes and colours of beads. To frame the thick cut Topaz-Picasso beads, I had a big bag of bronze-metallic coated ‘O’ beads.
They are thin slivers which in my mind mimicked the gold rings around the dots of color on the Red Deco focal bead. Next I strung 6/o transparent red pony beads, followed by opaque bright red 8/o seed beads from my stash. I thought a spot of green would tie in with the bottom of the Red Deco focal bead, but it was way too much in an ugly way.
To start making the spiral rope, I tied on a stopper bead and went up the focal bead. Then I strung the full tube of Iris AB black-lined transparent red 8/o seed bead. I finished by going down through the focal and tied on another stopper bead.
Next I secured a new long thread and started testing the loops: How many beads per loop? How many core beads long? How many core beads apart?
The ideal loop graduated from the cut Topaz-Picasso down to
the 8/o red seed on both sides. GO UP 7
BEADS OF THE CORE. Sting an 8/o op. red, 6/o transparent red, bronze ‘O’, cut
Topaz-Picasso, bronze ‘O’, 6/o transparent red, 8/o op. red. GO DOWN TOWARDS
THE FOCAL. GO UP 9 core beads (7 for loop + 2 for distance).
Emerge. String next loop. Go downward outside and UP inside 9 core beads. Emerge. Keep repeating by placing the loops to the side so they are spiraling upwards.
SPIRALING ROPE
Because all the beads are Czech glass, they are heavy. I found that by wearing the necklace, I was able to create looped sections because the weight was distributed. I used gravity to my advantage! I would just have to turn the completed sections out of the way and continue stacking the loops.
I was able to successfully layer the loops by consistently going up through the core 9 beads at a time. It was the perfect solution for this near-sighted beader!
This is a great photo showing the core versus the twisted rope.
It’s amazing how many loops are needed to cover the 8/o core! The were 230
loops framed by 460 ‘O’s and 6/o and 8/o
seed beads. I know because I used 9.20 strings of 25 cut Topaz-Picasso beads.
Once I completed the last spiral rope loop, I went down
through the focal bead, added a 8/o seed bead and tied around it to create a
plug. All the loose thread tails were woven into the spiral rope for a clean
finish.
Lastly, I created fringe by stringing 15 - 8/o red seed beads, 1-bronze ‘O’, 1-topaz lozenge and a red seed bead turn-around plug. I anchored the fringe up through the spiral loop and came down the focal to create a few more fringes.
I’m happy with my Red Spice Deco Spiral Rope. Since the weight is distributed it should be fun to wear without falling. It will be a fave going forward!
Summer challenges are fun once you have an idea and a deadline. This is one way to do something out of the ordinary and enjoy wearing something new and original! Check out the Gallery to see what my fellow beaders created for the Spice Girls Summer Challenge.
