Skip to main content

September Component of the Month - Kristi Bowman-Gruel

Yep, gonna say it again...it's time for the AJE Component of the Month already!  The month of September's component was provided by Kristi Bowman-Gruel.  You can find her gorgeous copper and polymer creations here in her etsy store.  Since Linda was coming to Bead Fest again this year, she brought Kristi's components for many of us to choose, and I chose this one:

 The first thing that came to my mind was silk ribbon.  I checked on etsy and found Jamn Glass and purchased these exact silk ribbons. 
 Photo by Jamn Glass

Unfortunately, I haven't received the ribbons yet so I haven't been able to finish my CoM.  However, I thought I would do a work-in-progress post and you can at least see my process until the silks arrive.

The first idea I came up with is this one, and this is the one I am actually going with.  As you can see, I drew my design in a notebook that I received from Jenny Davies-Reazor - I love the notebook, and I love that she encouraged me to draw - I have been doing this with bead designs as well and it really helps!

 You can see I was going to use the silk ribbon, a lentil shaped bead of mine, two large-hole spacers and some knots. This is the bead I am going to use - I think it matches the colors of the silks well, but I will see when I actually get them if I am right!

When the silks didn't arrive, I decided to try and come up with some other ideas. This next idea was going to use wire wrapping, either in annealed steel or patinaed copper.  However, when I set out the beads I was going to use, I felt the colors were too dark and wouldn't bring out my focal. 

 These are the beads I was going to use; while they are awesome, I felt the beads needed to be brighter and I just don't have the right mix.
  My last design used a pendant that would hang from a bail on the silks.  I used annealed steel to make the pendant.  When I actally made it, I found that the pendant would not stay centered when wearing it, and it just wasn't pretty enough or did much for the focal.  I took it apart and decided to wait for the silks.
So, when I get finished, I'll be sure and post the final design.  In the meantime, please head over to Art Jewelry Elements to see what the team members and our guests made with Kristi's pretty pendants. 

Monthly Winners

AJE Team Members


Comments

I can't wait to see the finished piece!! Thanks for sharing your sketches and playing along this month!
Lesley said…
This has great potential to be stunning Sue - can't wait to see it finished.
Kari Asbury said…
I am excited to see your finished design. I think that silk will be gorgeous. I think it's great you posted about your process and other things you considered when your ribbon didn't arrive.
Caroline said…
I can't wait to see what how this turns out, I love everything you've chosen! The ribbon and component look like a match made in heaven!
jessememan said…
This is going to be gorgeous when it is done! The ammonite with the swirl in the pendant will be perfect. Can't wait!
Ann Schroeder said…
Those silks look great, and I love the sketch of your piece. I look forward to seeing it.
Jenny said…
Hurray for sketches and journals and doodles, oh my! I love all the things you have debated... The silk is lovely...and I'm glad you shared your process with us. Have fun creating!
Sarajo Wentling said…
I can't wait to see your finished piece! It's neat seeing the process other folks use to design too.
Anonymous said…
I look forward to seeing your finished design. It will be cool the way that your lampie will echo the spiral shape in Kristi's pendant. And that ribbon looks luscious. Hope it arrives soon!
Unknown said…
The silks will look awesome! I have to tell you I am very envious that you can draw up your designs like that!
Lori Anderson said…
I love seeing people's work process. Awesome!

Popular posts from this blog

Bead Soup Blog Party!

Welcome to the 3rd Bead Soup Blog Party! What is a Bead Soup Blog Party? Each beader was paired up with another jewelry designer and tasked with sending the following: ~ A focal ~ A special clasp (not just a lobster claw) ~ Some coordinating spacers or beads Using the focal and the clasp was mandatory, but we could use anything from our own stash to round out the rest, and choose to use the coordinating beads or not. You may recall my partner was Margot Potter ; click this link to see the blog post I wrote of what she sent me! Here's what I made! Dangly earrings! Come see what the rest of us made! 1. Lori Anderson, Pretty Things 2. Kitty Durmaj, Perles and Life 3. Michelle Heim, Life In the Bead Lane 4. Lisa Petrillo, Lucid Moon Studio 5. Anitra Gordy, Leelu Creations 6. Paige Maxim, Paige Maxim Designs 7. Marianna Boylan, Pretty Shiny Things 8. Cheryl Roe, BeadRoe 9. Heidi Post, Ex Post Facto 10. Cindy Wimmer, Sweet Bead Studio 11. Terri Gauthier, Blooming Ideas 12. ...

Bead Soup Blog Party!

Today is the day of the big Bead Soup Blog Party reveal! Lori Anderson, the wonderful host of this event, reported that there are 362 participants this year! That's a lot of blogs to look at. I will try my best to get to each and every one, but it may take weeks! My partner was Laura Zeiner from Stick Lizard Designs . She has a lot of talent, that girl. If you recall in my previous post , she sent me these beads: And this is what I made: I love love love the focal she sent me. It's gorgeous! The lack of sun here in Pittsburgh does nothing for this rock! The colors and crystals are beautiful! I had no idea what to do with it, though, and I pondered for quite a while. I decided to make links with 18 gauge copper wire and think I did an ok job at it. I'm sure there are some better ways to do this, and I'd love to hear about them. I'm just really starting to get into the world of wire and so my skills aren't that great. In any event, I made some beady links ...

The Tacky Earring Blog Hop

Diana Ptaszynski had a great idea, instead of a Tacky Christmas Sweater blog hop, a Tacky Holiday Earring blog hop! I was on it.  I had ideas right away.  I had so many I had to control myself.  You can buy these for $15 each, too!  Here we go! I found these awesome wreaths in the miniature Christmas section in Michaels, and they go perfectly with silver and copper colored plastic beads! These trees were found in Michaels, on an end-cap - I assume they are scrapbook or card making supplies, but make fantastic earrings.  The holes were a little small and far down, so I had to make LARGE loops.  Paired these with cute little gold colored jingle bells! And, finally, the ones I had in my head the moment she announced the blog hop.  Dr. Seuss sparkly puff balls with ribbons.  The only thing that would have made these better for me is if I could have found the red ribbons I really wanted to pair these with - don't get me wrong, the silver is ...