Wonder and Whimsy Monthly Challenge - October Reveal

This month's Giveaway is now closed! Want to see who won? Go here!
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Guess what day it is!

If you said "it's the last Friday of October," you would be right. If you also said "it's the reveal day for the Wonder and Whimsy Monthly Challenge," you would also be right! Yay!

As a reminder, this was my challenge this month:

...Namely, my challenge was to make something with those beads. As I mentioned in my Challenge Introduction Post, that box is actually from middle school, when I was a budding jewelry designer. It's been in storage for a long time, and I thought it would be fun to make something with those beads. A trip down memory lane, if you will.

And I certainly did make things! Overall I created three sets--one for each of the colorways shown above.

So, without further ado... onto the jewelry!


Colorway #1

This first colorway was a lovely combination of white, pink, and purple. I decided that I was going to try to make something using only those beads... and this is what I came up with:

...Why yes, it has a tassel. This is so surprising, I know. (In my defense, I was making tassel necklaces before they were trendy. So nice of fashion to catch up--hah!)

When I was making this necklace, I was having a hard time deciding what focal to use. I liked the way each of those beads looked with the rest of the design, but by themselves they weren't quite enough--namely, they both got a bit lost among the rest of the beads. I actually pondered breaking down and using a bead from my stash as the focal... defeating the purpose of the challenge, perhaps, but I was stuck.

...That is, until I realized that I could use both of them together.

The rest, as they say, is history.

I really like the way the final necklace turned out. It has a beautiful sway to it, and I like the way the silver blends in with the white... together, they cool down the warmer pink and purple. 

Not too bad, if I say so myself. I think Middle School Me would be most pleased. :)


Colorway #2

This second colorway was perhaps the most challenging of the three. There was a lot of red--but not enough of the other colors to really balance it out. I tried quite a few different designs, but nothing really seemed to work--everything felt unbalanced and sloppy. Still, I really didn't want to pull in other beads from my stash... Again, I was stuck.

Eventually, I decided on a compromise: I borrowed a few of the blue and green beads from Colorway #3. They were still components from the box, so it wasn't completely cheating. It just helped me get a better color balance!

Eventually, after a lot more trial and error, this is the design that I came up with:

The final design is an asymmetric necklace. It's made with 22 gauge wire, glass, and lots of textured spacers. (And not a tassel in sight... See, I am capable of not making everything into a tassel. Heh.) I worked very hard to make sure that both of the sides are balanced but different... asymmetry isn't my strongest skill, but I think I did all right. :)

Oh! And I also made a pair of mostly-symmetrical earrings:

Full disclaimer: I designed those at night, in the living room, while watching my husband play games. The problem with that is that the lighting isn't the best in the living room. I didn't realize until the next day that the bicones are a slightly different color. Hah! Ah well. They still fit the aesthetic of the set, so I think I'll keep them. :)

I really wish I could get a picture that truly captured the richness of this necklace... the glass is truly brilliant and jewel-like. In addition, all of the silver spacers really give it a glorious weight... It feels so luxurious and elegant. I am very pleased with how this turned out--especially considering how much trouble it was giving me!


Colorway#3

And now, it's time for Colorway #3. This was by far the easiest of the necklaces for me to design--even with some of the beads pilfered for the second set. I am extremely comfortable with these colors together, and there was even a nice balance of them in the box.

I knew that I wanted to make a fringe with the bigger beads, and that I wanted to use the seed beads for the necklace itself. I went poking around for some matching waxed linen, and here is the result:

Just as with the other sets, all of the beads are from the box. Now, I did add the central silver ring and the "Journey" charm from my stash--but I consider those more findings, so I think it works. ;)

Fun side note: I used Vintaj patinas to color that "Journey" charm while I was visited my parents last month--yes, on the same trip that I found the bead box. How fun that this necklace is a little combination of past and present: the beads from middle school, when I was just starting, and the charm that shows where I am now. It definitely has been a journey!

Also, I made a pair of earrings to match this set--again, using a combination of waxed linen and silvertone findings.

Overall, I am very pleased with how this necklace turned out. It is different from the other two--using the linen instead of wire-wrapped links makes it feel much more organic and free-flowing.  The weight of it is quite lovely, as well.

I definitely call this a success--as I mentioned before, it is a fitting representation of my own personal jewelry-making journey! 

(And do you know that I only just now, while typing this up, realized the significance of using that charm? When I was making this necklace, I picked it because it was the right color! Hah. Sometimes these things just fall into place.)

So, there you go! Those are the pieces that I made for this month's challenge. I'm honestly really happy--and a little surprised--at how lovely everything turned out to be. In the middle of the month, I was definitely starting to worry! 

Overall, though, this was a very fun challenge for me--getting a bit in touch with where I started as a jewelry designer all those years ago, and seeing how far I've come. It was wonderful getting back to the roots of creating things, and just letting my creativity explore. Sometimes I forget how much I need to just sit down and make things... I have always been that way, and it was nice getting back to that this month. 

Thank you so, so much for stopping by today to see what I made! I really appreciate you stopping by... It makes me happy that there are people who like going on this crazy jewelry-making journey with me.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!