Wednesday, March 29, 2017

March's Pretty Palettes - Reveal!

The end of March is creeping up on me... and that means it's time for this month's Pretty Palettes reveal! Hurray!

The inspiration for this month's challenge was this picture--taken by Molly Schaller, featuring tulips from her front yard:


From that picture, she came up with this palette:


...which she then translated into these beads:


Now, my Michaels was actually sold out of the green jasper stone chips... As a result, I did a little searching and came up with a slight variation on that theme:


...including that lovely Sedona pendant on clearance! I picked out a few darker greens to match the emerald hue of the pendant--meaning that, overall, my pieces have a bit of a bolder color contrast than the original palette. You'll see what I mean in a minute!

Now, it's been such a busy month that I was actually had to spend this morning finishing up my pieces for this challenge. (That's why I'm posting a bit later, for those of you keeping track.) It felt a little bit like writing a paper for a college class--knowing that there's a deadline looming and trying to get motivated to finish, all while longing to take a nap. Ha!

Despite my last-minute antics, I did successfully make two necklaces and three pairs of earrings.

Here is the first necklace:



Yep... there's a tassel! You're so surprised, I'm sure.

There is also that bolder color contrast that I was talking about... the juxtaposition of the dark green and the bright orange is much more stark than in the original color palette. Still, I think it works!


The tassel was made by me using a collection of different sizes and textures of beads. I used similar beads to make the body of the necklace itself, which I knotted on brown waxed linen in a semi-asymmetrical pattern.


Again, it's probably not a huge surprise that I used some of those same beads to make a matching pair of earrings. You know me and making matching sets! :)



...However, I also made a pair of earrings that don't quite match:


These earrings were made with wood saucers and two different styles of Czech glass--the hues of which don't exactly show up in the tasseled necklace. And that's okay! Look at me, branching out of my normal matchy-matchy tendencies. :) 


So, that covers one of the necklaces and two of the pairs of earrings. That leaves one more of each left to cover.

Below, you can see a hint of what the second necklace would become...


I'll give you a hint: it involves the beautiful Sedona pendant, and the beads on the right.


...It also involves no orange whatsoever. Heh.


I actually tried several different patterns, all involving orange, and none of them worked for me. And so, I decided to just focus on the green (Czech glass and crystal) and brown (wood), brought together with goldtone wire and findings.

  
That colorway is also seen in the matching earrings (reverting back to my matching ways).

  
  
Even though it doesn't resemble the inspiration photo in the slightest, I still think this set counts... After all, it incorporates the colors of earth and growing things--perfect for the beginning of Spring!



So, there you go... Those are the pieces that I made for this month's Pretty Palettes! Thank you, Molly Schaller and the Halcraft Blog for hosting this challenge!

And thank you for stopping by to see what I made... Be sure to swing by the official reveal to see what everyone else created for this challenge.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Wednesday!

3 comments:

  1. I love the color palette you chose! You tassel is super fun and funky! Perfectly executed!

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  2. I love how you played around a bit with the hues of the challenge! And that pendant--a steal! What a deal! I always look forward to your tassels, so you pleased me a bunch here. I love the versatility of the seed bead hanks that you can find in the Bead Gallery! Lorelei left hers together and you and Heather Powers took it apart to create a bunch of pretties! Those reddish Czech lentils are some of my favorites, too. I'm happy to see them in the pretty earrings that DO coordinate without being too matchy-matchy!

    Thank you so much for playing along! I'm getting next month's inspiration going today! Check back in next Wednesday for April's inspiration and Pretty Palette!

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  3. I think you're right about the bolder green color pairing--I really do love that darker green with the orange! It has such a pretty, earthy feel to it. Just right for this time of year!

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment! :)