Land
of Odds :
Seventh Annual, 2009
The
Ugly Necklace Contest
A
Jewelry Design Competition With A Twist
...GO
VOTE & EVALUATE...
Lynn
Margaret Davy
from Colehill, Wimborne, Dorset, ENGLAND
"The
Story of My Beading Life..."
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Wearing
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POEM
The
Story Of My Beading Life...
Unfinished
objects - UFOs.
All beaders have a lot of those,
Enthusiastically started
Before you got a bit half-hearted.
I
pick beads up, I start to stitch,
But just can't make decisions... which
Of all these beads spread on my table
Will make this cuff most fanci-able?
And
so I put it to one side,
Leave it till later to decide,
Get out some other beads and things
And start a range of fancy rings.
One
ring down and six to make...
My beady willpower starts to flake.
I know, I'll stitch some leafy collars
In hopes of earning lots of dollars.
Half way along, with leaves aplenty
(17, 18, 19, 20...),
My eyes are closing and I'm yawning.
I'll make the others in the morning.
That
night I have a great idea
Seen in a dream all bright and clear.
I'll win Bead Dreams! Find fame and glory!
By lunch next day, a different story...
Rings,
cuff and collar still half-made,
Now I need beaded beads to trade.
This one is wonky, here's a flat one,
Won't even try to finish that one...
And
so the pile of UFOs
Just multiplies and grows and grows.
However many things I bead,
I never have the time I need
To
finish them, to make and mend
And fasten off each dangling end.
I have unfortunate suspicions
These are my beady life's conditions
And
when at last I've served my time-O
And fate steps in to cut my Nymo
I'll plead and argue all the way
To live and bead just one more day
And
when the Reaper comes for me
I'll go with him reluctantly
My plaintive cry still undiminished:
"I can't go yet -- I HAVEN'T FINISHED!"
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Front View
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MATERIALS:
o Seed beads: Japanese, Czech, Indian
in sizes 15 through 5
o Glass beads: Czech pressed and fire polished glass, Indian foiled
glass, catsye, handmade lampwork by Tania Grey, Japanese fringe
drops, Swarovski Crystallized Elements, Japanese cube beads
o Enamelled copper wire, green and blue
o 'Gold' plated craft wire
o Polished Cornish beach pebble
o Plastic coated steel beading cable
o Beading threads: Nymo, K.O., polyester, cotton, FireLine
o Nylon monofilament
o Mother of Pearl
o Unakite
o Shell
o 'Silver' plated metal charms
o Plated metal crimp beads
o Copper wire
o Acrylic beads
o Japanese cylinder beads
o Bugle beads
o Hand painted silk fabric, some laminated
o Freshwater pearls
o Brass eyelets
o Brass beads and charms
o Vintage plastic buttons
o Bubble wrap (stuffing for Xmas bauble)
o Plasticized metal beadas
o Faux pearls
o Copper beads and charms
o Tibetan silver spacers
TECHNIQUES USED:
o Stringing
o Crimping
o Knotting
o Wirework: simple loop, wrapped loop, wire wrapped pendant
o Square Stitch
o Herringbone stitch: tubular
o Peyote stitch: flat odd- and even-count, spiral, freeform, tubular,
circular, increasing and decreasing
o Cellini spiral
o Dutch spiral
o Eyelet setting
o Ladder stitch: flat, tubular, embellished
o Whipstitch
o Right angle weave: single-needle flat, tubular cabochon bezel
o Netting: odd-count, curved even-count, 3-D
o Nepali flowerbud braid
o Wire crochet
o Branced fringe
o Simple fringe
o Anemone fringe
o Brick stitch: circular
o Lamination
o Silk painting
o Sewing
o Bead embroidery
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Close Up
Clasp Assembly
Toggle made with glass bead and beaded loop
Use of Little Beads
And lots of unfinished threads
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...GO
VOTE & EVALUATE...
Lynn
Margaret Davy
from Colehill, Wimborne, Dorset, ENGLAND
"The
Story of My Beading Life..."
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What this piece might have been, if I'd gotten all these UFOs
finished!
o A green and blue strung necklace with beaded beads and green
'lollipop' lampwork by Tania Grey (I salvaged the clasp bead and
loop)
o A set of frosted red tubular beaded beads strung into a bracelet
o A keyring with a green wire spiral bead
o Several sets of beaded beads in assorted colours and stitches
o Two 'nemesis' peyote spiral necklaces with foiled glass pendants
and big tassels -- one green, one silver
o A black and green version of my 'Midnight Garden' cuff project
o A symmetrical netted cuff in elegant cream and green
o A sparkly blue, teal and green 'mermaid' choker with lavish
fringing
o A bezelled beach pebble collected at Studland Bay, Dorset, on
a beautiful day in summer 2006 -- I beaded the bezel on the beach
but never got round to the necklace
o A freeform choker in lavender and grey
o Another bezelled pebble - the pebble fell out, the bezel broke,
and it was never repaired
o A yellow and cream pendant and earring set in mother of pearl
o A gorgeous bridal herringbone necklace with trumpet-shaped flowers
o A set of handpainted silk circles edged with beads and stitched
to a cuff
o A coppery bronze beaded flower pendant
o A green bail for a ceramic bead, on a black cord necklace
o A pair of delicate Cellini spiral bangles in creams, greens
and pink
o A set of 'sea anemone' earrings to go with a green and red collar
I made
o Two Nepali flowerbud bracelets
o A grey and pale pink shaped peyote collar
o A circular brickstitch coaster in purple and black
o A peyote pumpkin for a Halloween workshop
o A pink and blue netted coaster
o A netted collar with a button fringe
o A set of laminated handpainted silk 'leaf' charms for a pair
of lightwieght earrings
o A leafy, lush peyote stitched collar with butterflies, flowers
and gemstones
o A set of ladder-stitch samples for a 'better beading' training
module that never got written up
o A gold and silver peyote zigzag choker with leaves on the points
o A cuff made from squares of laminated silk, edged with beads
and joined together
o A black anemone fringe necklace
o A dutch spiral cuff in bright orange and red
o A charm bracelet with lots of fun mementos of my Cornish holiday
two years ago
o A chequered cuff in cylinder beads of different sizes
o A herringbone light-pull for my bathroom, with a nautical feel
and lots of swirly seaweed, fish, starfish and coral (in my dreams!)
o A wire crochet collar with leaf pendant
o A set of Xmas tree ornaments
Additional Information:
o I made this piece as a way of coming to terms with my biggest
handicap as a beader: my inability to finish one project before
starting the next six! I was swilling about in a sea of unfinished
bits of beadwork, so I accepted the fact that the pieces in this
necklace would NEVER be finished in their own right, and stitched,
crimped and wireworked them together into the ultimate neckpiece,
which is itself unfinished (hence all the loose ends). I tried
to make it as clashing, uncomfortable and unbalanced as possible
while still a functional item of jewellery; the assembly is strong
enough to take the weight of the piece (although the ends are
untrimmed, they are securely knotted or crimped) and the clasp
is a fully functional one clipped from an unfinished necklace
design. The pendants are all off-centre and there are 'bald' spots
and places where lots of components are bunched together -- this
was so hard for me to do, but very therapeutic! When I wear the
piece it's impossible to ignore its presnce, as it's heavy and
prickly and noisy and unbalanced; it reminds me of the wide range
of techniques I've learned, but also of my own limitations. It
makes me determined to conquer my remaining UFOs now!
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