Contrast and Shine

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Autochthonous Evolved, Julie Schmidt Bowen

I’m lucky enough to have scored some lovely pendants by Julie Schmidt Bowen of Autochthonous Evolved. Recently she paired some of her lampwork beads with drilled rocks (and seriously wonderful wire wrapping) to create pendants. I love the hard and soft together. This photo doesn’t do justice to the luminous quality of her lampwork bead. It really has a light inside of it. The gray, mottled rock is the perfect foil for the delicateness of the glass. 

In deciding what to use to complete the necklace, I wanted to bring out that contrast. I chose some vintage German glass beads with an AB type coating. The lampwork bead has these same colors. I thought about adding some granite beads, but that would be carrying the hard/soft theme too far and hitting the necklace over the head with it. 

I also used matte grey seed beads in between the glass. I like the overall soft color of this necklace. I had quite a number of these vintage glass beads and have enjoyed using them. In two other necklaces, I was using them to represent snow. I do think they look like snow but also like the smell of new flowers or the feel of a soft breeze on an early spring day.

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A Perfect Match

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Autochthonous Evolved, Julie Schmidt Bowen, My Elements, Yvonne Irvin-Faus

Sometimes things just come together perfectly.  I was so thrilled with how this necklace came together that I submitted it to a magazine.  I never heard anything one way or the other, so I’m going to show it here now because it’s too cool not to share with the world (or at least the people reading my blog!)

I got a beautiful lampwork focal by Julie Schmidt Bowen of Autochthonous Evolved.  Like most things, I put it in my stash so it could wait for its project to come along.  And it did!  I then bought separately, not thinking about the glass focal, a group of beautiful acrylic MyElements components by Yvonne Irvin-Faus. I realized they were such a fabulous match!

I still can’t get over how much they match; it’s like they were made for each other.  I added some dangles and a bead I got from My Elements.

I alternated some turquoise enamel components to bring out that little swirl in the lampwork focal, and finished it all off with some black chain from My Elements. Sometimes things come together so easily, and that’s really fun.

Productive Weekend

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Andrew Thornton, Autochthonous Evolved, Julie Schmidt Bowen

I had an especially productive weekend mostly because I had a good patch healthwise and partly because as I clean and organize my studio, work is easier. I made a bunch of pieces for an upcoming blog hop as well as got in some practice with a silk thread and made a couple of other quick pieces.

Lately, my mom has been on a ball chain kick.  She’s making all sorts of cute necklaces on a variety of cool ball chain.  That has influenced me. So a while ago I bought this fabulous vintage glass ball pendant that I thought would be cool on some colored ball chain.  It turned out to be too heavy, but when I got a great lampwork pendant by Julie Schmidt Bowen of Autochthonous Evolved, I realized those ball chain colors were perfect for it!

It’s perfect, right?  I really love this easy to wear, great looking necklace.  It’s got good mojo too.

Then I was going through my boxes of Czech glass because, frankly, they are out of control.  I saw these white and coral kind of big beads and the little matte gold ones I got to go with them, and I decided to put something together.  I can’t describe the quality I was going for with these except to say that there is a certain 1970s vibe I liked about them.  I laid out a pattern and then looked for a pendant.  I tried a variety but thought this owl pendant by Andrew Thornton was just the ticket.

I’m pleased with how both of these came out.  They were quite quick but have just the look I had in mind. I love when that happens!