About Me

Lindsay M Starr is a beadwork and mixed media artist currently based in Nashville, TN. She spent her early childhood in Alaska, and her school age and college years in Oregon. Lindsay has a great appreciation for history, science, and nature and is consistently inspired by insects, sea life, color, and the significance of beads and beadwork throughout human history. She spends her days beading, walking at the zoo, and practicing yoga. Lindsay loves to share her knowledge and passion for beads and beadwork to hobbyists of all skill levels.

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

AJE Component of the Month May 2016

This month over at the Art Jewelry Elements blog, we had the chance to play with some of Sue's SueBeads tiny heart and star cabochons...Just look at them!  They remind me of candy and I just want to gobble them up!
I asked Sue to send me some stars, but asked to be surprised with the color choice - a color challenge is always my favorite type!  When my package arrived, I found that Sue had chosen 3 stars for me in varying shades of turquoise...one of my favorite colors!  But then the challenge turned into, what do you do with such teensy cabs...
Well, a few days later a package of goodies from Joan Miller arrived, and I just knew what to do!  Presenting StarryEyed - a brooch -
This periwinkle eye cab by Joan Miller worked perfectly with the 3 little stars.  I wanted to make sure that each element stood out, so I did the bezels around the stars and much of the background beading with chalky, light grey seed beads.
I added some white drops at the valley of each star arm for texture.
I knew I wanted eyelashes after I finished the bezel around the eye, so I went with a golden orange bead, and tipped each short fringe with a mauve bead to pick up the lavender in the iris.
To add a little movement, I used some of Sue's fantastic headpins.  I added a few more lampwork beads (by Sue and other artists), plus a few purple Czech glass beads, and roughly coiled the rest of the wire around the uppermost beads to make these dangles.  On my last row of the edging, I worked them into small loops, so they dangle directly from the edge of the brooch.
Normally on my bead embroidery, I do a simple picot edge.  This time I decided I wanted the edge to be more of a frame, so I used 6/0 and 8/0 seed beads to build a few rows of brick stitch before doing my picot row.  Part of the reason I did this was because my scrap of ultrasuede for the foundation and backing was small...this way I was able to build out the brooch to a more substantial size that I had originally envisioned.  It also allowed for a gentle ruffle to occur, and provided a connection point for the lampwork dangles.
I had so much fun pulling all of these elements together, and the finished product just makes me happy!  This color palette is a bit of a departure for me - usually I lean towards black or gray as a neutral, but in this case white and light gray were the way to go!  This brooch is going to decorate my new Baggallini purse - it's bright turquoise, like the star on the right.  I can't wait to tote this new piece around!
Please hop along and see what everyone else created with Sue's tasty lil cabs this month!  I'm off to do that now...I can't wait to see the other colors!

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15 comments:

  1. Fringe Sea anemone eye lashes! Fab colors. I really like the off center dangles. and the drop beads nestled in the star corners. It is SO you. Very cool.

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  2. Fantastic work Lindsay - I adore those dangles.

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  3. Great piece of jewelry! The colors are very festive. The design is perfect for Sue's pieces.

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  4. Oh.My.Goodness! How awesome! You always make the most interesting pieces of jewelry and this is no exception - I can't believe what you made! It is so cool! Thank you so much!

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  5. Such an "eye" you have for creating amazing pieces.

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  6. "Eye" love your brooch, especially the dangles! When it comes to accessories, color, movement and a teeny bit of sound are key for me. Your brooch fulfills those requirements beautifully!

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  7. This might be my favorite piece you've done. The theme is brilliant and those eyelashes are killing me! This will definitely be fun jewelry for your bag!

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  8. Gorgeous design Lindsay... and a perfect colour palette, I love it!

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  9. I love it! Love the name, love the design (especially the eye lashes), love the colours! Completely in awe!

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  10. You had me at 'Joan Miller'! Lol!
    You've done her eye cab proud! The eyelashes are adorable, as are the dangles which I liken to 'tear drops of happiness'! The little drop beads really make the stars blend as one unit. Amazing work!

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  11. Lindsay such a wonderful piece. It will get you lots of notice. Everything about the piece is beautiful.

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  12. So fun to "meet" another Baggallini addict( or soon to become one, cuz you CAN'T have just one)! I can SO see this on your Bag! Lovely creativity and awesome execution!!

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    1. Definitely an addict - I have at least half a dozen purses, and 2 weekender bags...they are the best! I can't wear them out!

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  13. Hi Lindsay, your piece only need one word PERFECT!!

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