Winter Pearls

This is my latest completed peice. I really enjoyed making this jewelry set because it was something that I have wanted to try for a while now. I like to think of the necklace and earrings as old school Native meets new shool Native beadwork. Aaaih!

Anyways, I had been brainstorming about the necklace for a while now and I finally got the chance to try it out. The necklace is completely done with the peyote stitch. I love the tubular peyote stitch, but I have noticed in order to make a quaility necklace that will uphold to years and years of wearing one must do one thing. Do the tubular stitch around a piece of rope or jewelry wire in order for the tube to keep its shape and also as a way to put a clasp on it. I chose to use run of the mill beading wire, which worked out quite well.

I started the necklace out with the pearl section. After completing the pearl section I ran my beading wire through it and continued to bead with the delicas around the wire. The pearls are a beautiful gray with hints of purple and blue-green in them. I accordingly chose delicas that went well with the pearls.
After making the necklace I decided that it really did need some earrings to go along with it, so I made the earrings below. They were made with the flat peyote stitch. Of course they needed a few pearls dangling from them to finish them off.
All in all I am really happy with the necklace and earrings. I was really tempted to keep them for myself this time, but I had already decided to give them to a friend as a birthday gift. I did test them out all last week before I gave them away. I have a feeling that I will be making one for myself in the near future, seeing as I really did enjoy wearing them.