sparkle sparkle

Farewell to the money-saving virtues of Use What You Have month... I threw it all away this weekend in DC, unable to resist the siren song of Beadazzled, where I dropped $50 and didn't even buy a single bead. I had to stock up on supplies, because I needed to make my donations for an art auction that starts this weekend.

Well, I almost made it through May. And I'm still working on lots of projects with the stuff I already had - in fact, although I had to buy some wire and stuff, all the beads for both of these necklaces were stuff I already had. The necklace you see here is the 'silver starfish necklace,' made from an old vintage silver brooch, and it has both old crystal beads and new Czech glass beads. I don't like the clasp all that much so I'm just showing you the pretty part. I don't know if you can tell but there are tiny green beads between all the crystals - very subtle. I almost wore this to work today, but if I had I would have wanted to keep it and you know how that goes. So it's in its box, ready for the auction.

The other necklace is the funkier one - I'm calling this the 'sacred stones necklace.' It was made with a lot of beads that my friend Nora brought me from Nepal several years ago.



The big center stone is a carnelian, and the beads are carnelian, jasper, coral and bone. The silver is a mix of old and new beads. Some of them are so tarnished I just can't get them clean, but I actually like the way tarnish on silver looks with red stones, so I'm not too worried about it.

Lest you worry that I didn't get anything for myself out of this project, take heart. While I was rummaging around in my desk looking for jewelry boxes to use, I found a particularly ratty one with a surprise inside.



Holy cow! Art deco earrings! The white parts are abalone. Aren't they gorgeous? I have no idea where these earrings came from. I can only imagine that I bought them at some antique store ages ago and forgot where I put them. At any rate, I can't wait to wear them. I adore jewelry and design from the 1880's through the 1940's, but it's not easy to find and the pieces are usually pretty beat up, but these earrings are in great condition, despite some obvious wear. What luck!

If you're in North Carolina, you should come out to the Scrap Exchange for this art auction to benefit Student Action with Farmworkers. The opening 'Sneak Peek Reception' is this Saturday May 27 from 10am to 1pm, and the closing party will be Sunday June 11 from 3-5 pm. The gallery show (and the bidding) will be open from 5/27 to the closing party on 6/11. It's a great cause, and as you can see, the art will be fabulous.