Creative Soul Designs

School Fundraiser Donations of Earrings, Necklaces, Friendship Bracelets and more

2011-12-19T14:35:00.000-06:00

My kids' school had a PTO fundraiser this month, so I decided to make a few things for it. Eight total was the requirement. Poor photo below, but I was spinning my wheels at the last minute and wanted to attach my items to cardstock scrapbook paper, round the edges, and attach stickers with my website to each piece. So I took a quick photo before running out the door, and this was it:

I watched some cool YouTube videos to learn how to make this bracelet. It's actually simpler than a Friendship Bracelet. I love these blue cube beads and found another use for them.

Simple black dangle earrings:

Christmas stretch bracelet:

It was a learning experience because it was the first time I made friendship bracelets. I'm going to make more with the area schools' colors and put them up for sale here.

French Brass Three-Tier Ruby Red Danglers - SOLD

2011-11-14T16:30:00.002-06:00

SOLD FOR $18

My first real sale! Thanks to whever bought these on Thursday night at the salon. I have been making jewelry as a hobby since early spring, and finally tried my hand at selling something; this marks my first sale, which is fun. I hope whoever bought these enjoy them!

I used a pair of new brass findings to make these, then added 3 matching brass chain links to each (one in each hole at the top, then the third one connects to the hook). I attached brass french hooks to the top and three dangles to each earring.

The dangles have a longer center, a pattern of 2,3,2. For the shorter sides, I used eye pins to attach a ruby red bicone bead, then a head pin for a faceted ruby red bead. For the middles, I simply added an extra bicone bead with eye pin. This is one of my favorite pairs, very elegant and hopefully will get a lot of compliments!

Blue Cube Bead Earrings

2011-11-03T17:07:00.001-05:00

I made a pair of earrings to go with this necklace, and this is one of my favorite jewelry creations so far! These are flirty and fun, geometric with a soft look.

Blue glass cube beads have frosted round Czech glass beads on either side, and alternate with translucent ones on either side for the middle blue bead. I closed the headpin with a loop after adding a french hook to each.

Blue and Silver Cube Bead Necklace with Pendant

2011-11-03T16:48:00.002-05:00

The blue glass cube beads were the first element of this design. I fell in love with these and decided to make a necklace with them.

Pendant or no Pendant?

Originally I planned for this to be a simple string of beads. But it’s hard for me to resist the temptation of a pendant, and I decided to put a cross in the front. None of my crosses looked quite right, and I ultimately went with this silver square pendant to bring out the silver cube beads and balance the entire look.

I added two 4mm jump rings to the bail holder, rather than a larger jump ring, to keep the pendant close to the string. Having two of them adds durability and added to the look. I also put two small barrel glass Czech beads, one on each side of the pendant, followed by the rectangular Czech beads used in the pattern, to surround the pendant and separate it further from the blue beads.

I attached the waxed cording with crimp beads to a silver extender on one side and a lobster claw clasp on the other, for elegance and flexibility.

This necklace is perfect for the holidays, the beach, the office, or a simple T-shirt and jeans—very versatile!

I made a pair of earrings to match.

Three is the Magic Number

I prefer to have three elements when I string a long piece, not a hard and fast rule, but two can be hard to pull off because of the redundancy—every other, every other, etc. With three elements, there is a uniqueness to a piece that gives it a balance without creating a dizzying “matchy” appearance. For this piece, I experimented with a few options before deciding to use silver cube beads slightly smaller than the blue ones (so that the blue beads would stand out), and a translucent rectangular Czech glass bead.

Silver Leaf Earrings for Autumn

2011-10-31T12:27:00.002-05:00

Leaf designs in jewelry are definitely in right now, and lately I find myself creating a lot of necklaces and earrings with leaves.

The leaves used for these earrings were originally part of a semi-vintage necklace I found in a thrift store. The design of that necklace was somewhat dated, and I felt that the parts were greater than the sum of its whole. I removed the leaves from it to make these earrings. (There is one more leaf that I plan to make into a necklace, so check back later for that.) These leaves are silvertone, an antiquey clean silver, perfect for this project. Although they measure 1 ½” inches tall, they are lightweight.

I experimented with several beads for the eye pin, and chose these oval faceted 7mm glass beads. The faceted design really captures the piece and complements the leaves. I chose eye pins that match the silvertone of the leaves. The eye pins were too large, so I cut them down to size for the bead and made a simple loop on the other end.

French hooks with a mini silver ball were added to the end of each eye pin, and voila! A lovely pair of earrings for fall.

Elegant Vintage Necklace circa 1940s with Antiqued Brass Chain

2011-10-17T15:50:00.002-05:00

Here is a vintage necklace I made from vintage materials.

The brass-gold and pearl centerpiece pendant was once part of an earring.

The brass-gold and off-white pearl chain was once part of a multi-strand necklace, from the same era.

I attached a brass jump ring to the chain for the center piece, clipped the chains on either side to match in size, added a gold

lobster claw to one chain and a 6mm jump ring to the other one.

Very elegant and classy piece!

Necklace: Oval Pendant with Turquoise Dangling Beads

2011-09-18T06:51:00.003-05:00

I love doing custom work! This necklace I made for a woman who loves Southwest and turquoise jewelry. I bought the pendant, then added two silver tone jump rings to the bale.

TIP: When I wear a necklace, I don't like the pendant to be flopping all over the place when I move. I had to add two jump rings in order to get the pendant to face forward, since every other jump ring does the opposite. A little extra work, but worth it if you don’t like your necklace pendant to move all around.

I didn’t want the necklace to be too plain, and usually will add a bit of flair to each piece to make it absolutely unique. Next I added real turquoise pieces along the chain by attaching them with a jump ring on each. I wanted perfect symmetry for the beads, four on each side. If you do this, you need to count each chain piece so that both sides are equal. I recommend doing one side entirely first, then counting on the other side.

IMPORTANT: If you add beads to a chain such as this, make sure you add the jump ring to the outside of the chain; otherwise it looks awkward the it’s a hassle to redo! Sometimes it’s difficult to tell which side is the outside when you’re looking up close. I had to re-do a couple of the jump rings because of this. Best thing is to keep laying it out on your bead board prior to adding each dangling bead.

Finally I added a lobster claw clasp and an extender to the chain so that she can adjust as she likes.

Voila! She loves it!

Memory Necklace for a Mom Who Lost Her Daughter

2011-08-26T13:24:00.001-05:00

From Facebook, I obtained this photo to use as a tribute for the mother of a courageous young woman who died of cancer this month. Her courage is inspirational to me. So is her mother’s. No mother should have to go through the loss of a child, and I feel deeply for any parent who has this heartbreaking experience.

I felt inspired to make this necklace for her mother, with a photo of the two of them in a square bezel; on the back is her name and the words “Always Near Mom’s Heart.” I designed it to be worn so that the photo is literally on her heart. It can also be worn underneath clothing for privacy.

I used a silver bezel and chain, with a red bicone bead at the end. To me, red is a symbol of both love and pain. I attached a small silver cross to the bottom of the frame.

(I also used red in this photo for the woman’s husband.)

Photo with Quote for a Widower

2011-08-26T13:03:00.001-05:00

From Facebook, I obtained this photo to give to the husband of a courageous young woman who fought hard to battle cancer and be the best mother in the world. She died this month, still in her twenties. She was my neighbor, fellow parishioner, and our kids went to the same daycare. Otherwise I did not get the opportunity to meet her. Her courage is inspirational to me.

This photo really awed me; it’s one of the most romantic I’ve ever seen. Romantic not in the usual sense of the word, but in the sense of true and deep love, of sticking together through the very toughest of times, and of testament to the most beautiful, fleeting, ethereal moments in life.

The bible quote is one of my favorite, because while faith and hope are important, it is Love that sustains us. When we die, it is all we take with us.

To make this, I got a double squared frame and measured the interior parameters. Then I printed the black and white photo on high quality photographic paper. I used the Papyrus font to type the quote in Microsoft Word, with “LOVE” in red.

I cut and inserted the photo on the left side, and the quote on the right side. This can be hung or stand upright on a side table or mantle.

Necklace for Zoie

2011-05-13T17:29:00.000-05:00

I had a lot of fun designing this personalized necklace for a 5 year old girl! This was done with hemp cord and twisted closures.

Necklace against a denim background

Around the neck

Delivered in a heart-shaped box with matching colors

Happy Birthday Card for Child Age 5

2011-05-13T17:25:00.000-05:00

I came up with this idea for a birthday card for my friend Heather's daughter.

Birthday Card for Zoie

Inside the Card

Front of Envelope

Back of Envelope

Door Hangers

2011-05-13T17:03:00.001-05:00

Wagon Wheels

2011-05-13T17:00:00.000-05:00

Wagon Wheels without photo editing

Wagon Wheels with photo editing

Party Cupcakes

2011-04-29T16:52:00.000-05:00

Cupcakes Before

Cupcakes After

Zoie Before and After

2011-04-29T16:48:00.000-05:00

Zoie Before Edits

Zoie - saturation effect