I was lucky enough to be selected as one of the bloggers to participate in Lori Anderson‘s January 2012 edition of her BeadSoup Blog Party – essentially a jewellery exchange where beadmakers and jewellery designers from around the world exchange a kit of beads and must design a piece based on the kit they receive. I was partnered with Gaea Cannaday, a ceramic artist from California. We have no idea what we will receive so it’s all about working outside your comfort zone and having a bit of fun along the way.
This is what i received (forgot to take a pic before making the necklace) – a wonderful square heart focal in soft red with some coordinating accent beads which i have yet to figure out how to use – a bracelet or earrings maybe? The ceramic beads are all made my Gaea herself and I think the copper clasp as well. I’d never worked with ceramics before so at first i was perplexed. I considered making some coordinating beads of my own to match and was testing various colours before finally deciding NO, they would compete and it was best to design a piece that really showcased the rich colours and textures in her beads on their own.
Soooo… i went digging through my gemstone stash to see what i could find. At first i was leaning toward some aquamarine but in the end decided on these serpentine jade tubes with red coral and deep gold glass accents. This necklace is so fresh and spring-like, i’m quite happy with the result! The pale green jade really makes the coral and the glaze on the heart pop… i love red, it’s like an instant pick me up during this long dreary winter.
Here’s what i sent in for the exchange – an earthy goddess, a couple matching accent beads, some agate and citrine nuggets, freshwater pearls and a clasp made from shells. Unfortunately, I had one shipping snafu after another so Gaea didn’t have much time to design her pieces but i think she did a pretty stellar job – you can check out her BeadSoup post HERE to see what she did with my beads. Can’t wait to see how she finishes one of the oval tabs she’s bezeled in copper to create a pendant…
This is the fifth BeadSoup hosted by Lori and i can’t even imagine how much work it is to coordinate details for such a large group, so just wanted to say: THANKS LORI!
You can check out the full list 200 participants below – grab some tea and a comfy seat, it takes a while.
Evelyn Duberry - Glass Artist 
such a sweet necklace! the colors are so happy!
Very pretty piece…makes me happy …great colors..
Bright, cheerful, and utterly perfect. 🙂 Love the green!
I love your choice of the serpentine to go with the red ceramic! I have been afraid it would go too Christmas with the red and green, but it’s just fresh and springtime perfect. Great job balancing the colors to achieve this effect.
I think you went a really kewl way with the focal and the color mix!
I love Gaea’s beads. You did great with the bead soup she sent. I never know how to use green/red palette without making it look Christmassy. You clearly don’t have that difficulty – your necklace is fun and bright, and doesn’t remind me one bit of Christmas. Great work!
Wonderful colour mix – I love the jade tubes and how they bring up the colour in the coral and focal. Lovely piece!
I love the necklace. The green goes perfectly with the red. Great job!
Oh you lucky thing having Gaea as a partner! I love her work. Adding the soft jade green to the red focal was perfect, it works beautifully and brings out all the details in the focal. Lovely work!
I really like your necklace. The pale green DOES make the red pop. The colors remind me of a poppy field. I would have thought that the green and red would look like x-mas colors, but they do not at all. Very beutiful.
I love the green with the red! You did the focal justice! It rocks!
Beautiful necklace! The green really makes the heart pendant pop with color. Great job!
I never create with red and green in the same piece out of fear of making a season necklace. You have pulled the colors together beautifully into a stunning necklace.
I rarely use red and green together in fear I will make a christmas necklace. You have pulled the colors together quite beautifully!
I really like that contrast of the cool green and bright red. It definitely brings a smile to my face. I think you did an excellent job with the soup you received!
Genious how you used the serpentine jade tubes with the red focal. It really goes so well with the red. Lovely for summer!
Gaea’s beads are truly fantastic…I LOVE YOUR COLOR CHOICE FOR THIS NECKLACE! It is truly beautiful! You did a beautiful job!
Beautiful! I love the green jade tubes along with the bright red focal, and the copper.
Straggling in! Love the the pop the green gives to the red – great choice!
Super cool necklace – love those colors!
Thanks everyone for visiting and for all the wonderful comments! 🙂
Fabulous colour combination, it’s a lovely piece! I hope you wear it with pride 🙂 x
What a cute necklace, I love the colors. Great job.
Lori D.
What a great necklace! I love the colors. Good Job!
Lori D.
What a fun design! Love the color combination, very summery!
I love the goddess you sent Gaea very cool bead! I like the colors in your necklace and the way it all just works really well. A really pretty spring piece!
Very nice! The green just makes the RED pop even more! ~KM
What a wonderful bead soup you had to work with. Love Gaea’s beads and you did an awesome job with the colours 🙂
What a fun bead soup to work with! I especially love the pendant. You put together a very cool necklace!
I love that focal! The serpentine Jade was perfect. Beautiful piece!
Beautiful focal and I also love how the green compliments the design. Great job!
The green was a bold choice to go with the red. Congratulations on making it and making it work.
I LOVE the green! That was a great color choice!
Oooh, Evelyne, I love that you used the serpentine jade to make the Gaea’s pendant really pop. What a fabulous idea! The color combo is surprisingly and pleasing and most definitely make us dream of spring.
Those colors are so fun! You made a fun design to go with them too!
Such a classic color combination but one I forget to use.
Great work!