K for "Control" ;o)

Couple of months ago I went gem-shopping in Stockholm. At Kristallrummet in the Old City, I've noticed gorgeous kyanite healing chrystals. This stone is one of my absolute favorites, I'm just dragged to it (pretty much as to labradorites & spectrolites).

Those chrystalls reminded me of Superman cave, how sci-fi nerdish is that? ;) Boy, I was giggling when the EBW September challenge theme was announced.

Although kyanite reminded me of those good chrystals in the cave, its name rimes really well with kryptonite (which everybody knows was quite bad for the poor Superdude). Than my husband gave me an idea - my necklace was going to deal with superhero infestation problem :o)

You can read the complete story here.

Materials: 11/0 Permanent Finish and nickel plated Tohos and Swarosvki bicones 3 and 4 mm; 3D RAW all the way. Do not know what is going on with me - I'm getting addicted to Toho and Swarovski lately. Odd.

And here are all the fantastic entries for the EBW challenge this month.

Please visit our blog and vote for your favorites from 9th to 15th of October! Thank you in advance :)
My favorites are numbers 3, 5 and 14, but I have not made up my mind yet. Which one are you going to vote for?

I was gone for too long :)

Hi guys!

Time to come out from the closet - I am combatting depression. Tired, worried, down, blue - you name it. So far, no medication, just long biking tours around Uppsala. And some beading.

I bough some gorgeous brass stampings this winter, from a fellow Etsian who owns the The Brass Boutique. One of them was a dragonfly that I used for my Temptation necklace. I thought that the branch of ivy will make a nice company to the Russian serpentine cab (Valentina's shop, as usually). After aligning those two, I've got sort of elvish vibes from this combination of brass and green veined stone. Than both the vine and the stone were put aside, until unnouncement of EBW August challenge - The First Ladies of Style.

Lúthien, mother of Elrond, grandmother of Arwen, daughter to the Mr Wood Elf Himself, etc, etc, etc - all can be read in Silmarillon by Tolkien if you have desire (and time)... So, I thought of the fair lady of wood elves. Brass and green, what could better? And I picked up the ivy and the serpentine cab.

Embroidery part was easy. Making the chain took me almost a week. First, I made a wide freeform colar. It has killed the focal.

Than I made several vines with RAW and thought to build a keltic-knot structure. The focal did not look any better.

Finally, the idea of RAW-based chain came into my mind. I did not have enough of serpentine beads, and ordering them all the way from Russia would have taken ages, therefore they are mixed with white onyx beads. I think that is adds a bit of moonlight glow to the piece.
Only than, the focal came alive.



I will let you know when it is time to vote ;)

Be well!
/Olga

Water... Everywhere is water...

Guys, now it is official: I am hooked on blues and turquoise.
I have bought those cool dyed dragon-skin agates at Facett. It was kind of an impuls-buy. That's why I wanted to make something with them as soon as possible, otherwise they would have joined other things in my stash-pile.

I have borrowed the idea from Karton, with her kind permission (thanks for showing it to me, Kristina!).

So, these are the stones:

And here is what I have done with them:


This is the view from behind:

And this is the fringe-part:

I think those two do match :)