Thursday, April 21, 2011

Salad Days :-

SALAD DAYS
Refresh your look with an exilirating shot of tantalizing cherry dangles and bunches of grapes.

Cherry Dangles Bracelet



Bunches of Grapes Earrings

"The sun, with all those planets revolving and dependant on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it has nothing else in the universe to do."
- Galileo Galilei -



Materials for Cherry Dangle Bracelet :-

8 x 11mm round acrylic beads in cherry/salmon
5 x 10mm faceted beads in bronze
4 x 8mm faceted acrylic beads in amber
8 x red glass leaves (with brass loops)
8 x twin leaf charms in antique brass
8 x antique brass spacers
8 x antique brass head pins
9 x antique brass eye pins
19 x 5mm antique brass jump rings
12 x 6mm antique brass jump rings
1 x lobster clasp in antique brass

Step-by-step :-

1.  String an antique brass spacer on a head pin, followed by a cherry coloured bead.  Make a plain loop above this bead and trim the excess wire.  Open a 5mm jump ring and slide the cherry bead dangle onto it.  Close the jump ring.  Open another 5mm jump ring and slide the previous jump ring and an antique brass twin leaf charm onto it.  Close the jump ring.

2.  String a faceted bronze bead on an eye pin and make a plain loop above this bead.  Trim excess wire.  Make a second link as previous, but with an acrylic amber bead instead.  Open a 6mm jump ring and slide the one loop of the bronze bead link, the cherry bead dangle, the brass loop of a red glass leaf and an open loop of the acrylic amber bead link onto it.  Close the jump ring.

3.  Continue this sequence with six more cherry-and-red leaf dangles (as per step one) with alternating links of bronze- and acrylic amber bead links inbetween.  End with an acrylic amber bead link and a total of seven cherry-and-red leaf dangles.

4.  Use a 6mm jump ring, followed by a 5mm jump ring to attach the lobster clasp to the open loop of the original bronze bead link.  For added interest, use a combination of both 5mm and 6mm jump rings to make a chain of desired length to be attached to the open loop of the final amber bead link on the other side of the bracelet.  If desired, you may even end this chain with another cherry-and-red leaf dangle hanging from a bronze bead link.  The lobster clasp can then be connected to any jump ring on the chain according to fit.

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Materials for Bunches of Grapes Earrings :-

18 x 6mm faceted crystals in violet
8 x turquoise gemstone chips
8 x malachite gemstone chips
34 x silver head pins
18 x 5mm silver jump rings
2 x silver eye pins (tall)
silver chain
2 x silver earring hooks

Step-by-step :-

1.  String a violet crystal on a head pin and make a plain loop above the crystal.  Trim excess wire.  Make eight more crystal dangles for one earring.  Also make four turquoise chip dangles as well as four malachite dangles.

2.  Open a jump ring and slide a violet crystal dangle onto it.  Close the jump ring.  Open another jump ring and slide another violet crystal dangle, the previous jump ring plus another violet crystal dangle onto it.  Close the jump ring.


3.  Continue with this sequence, adding a violet crystal dangle on both sides of a jump ring connecting with the previous jump ring.  After all nine crystal dangles were used, still continue with this same sequence, but use the four turquoise dangles, followed by TWO malachite dangles.

4.  To attach the remaining two malachite dangles, open the loop of a tall eye pin and slide a malachite dangle, the previous jump ring and the final malachite dangle onto it.  Close the loop.  Pick up your piece of chain of desired length and thread the eye pin wire criss-crossing through each link of the chain.  Pull the chain down towards the bottom of the eye pin and spread the chain to cover your desired length of the eye pin.  This will created a twisted “vine” effect along the eye pin.  Make sure that you don’t thread the eye pin through the final link of chain as well.  End the eye pin with a plain loop parallel to the final open link of chain.  Trim excess wire.  Open a jump ring and connect the eye pin loop and the open chain link with the loop of an earring hook.  Close jump ring.  Make a second earring to match the first.

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