No Rest For The Wicked

I'm on a roll now- after months of not feeling very creative, this colour challenge has had the desired effect and I'm itching to create at any opportunity!

I'm currently working on a new herringbone rope necklace. I have made a couple of these before, see here and here.

This one will be like the second one and will have a hidden clasp.

To fit in with my colour challenge I'm going to make a couple of these based on red colour schemes.

My first one matches reds with greens, blues, violets, oranges, pinks, yellows and golds- in fact every colour on the colour wheel and every shade inbetween!

An analogous colour scheme is where you use colours next to each other on the colour wheel.
Previously when using red in an analogous scheme I have matched it with yellow and orange- but this time I'm matching it with every colour but using red as the dominant colour.

The reds I am using go from bright "red, red" to pink, to violet and to orangy-reds. Click on the photo for a larger view.


The contrast colours I'm using go from blue, to green, to violet, to gold, to orange, to yellow and just about everything in between- I just grabbed tubes and tubes of beads and went for it! Click on the photo for a larger view.

This will appear as a project in a future issue of Bead magazine.

Geometric 3-1-1

I finally finished my new set of beaded beads all done in reds with bright colours to match which I have been working on for a few weeks.

I decided I wanted to make these nice and bright so added in yellow, orange, blue, green, teal and purple.


You can wear them all threaded onto a bangle at once or indivually- or any combination inbetween.

Colourful Temari

I had a busy day today temari-ing- something I've been itching to do for a while. I love using threads and of course they're just another excuse to play with colour!

The first one I made was a Rose Garden design and, as I'm still working away using reds, I used an analogous scheme with red, orange and yellow.

The second was more complicated, and probably the most complicated one I have made, and uses an "interlinked pentagon" design.

Again to keep in with the challenge I used 12 different reds. Right from orangy-red, through pinky-reds and violet-reds, and teamed them with a green as the contrast colour.

As I made this one I used pins to help me see where I needed to work and planned to add another embellishement to the centre of each pentagon at the end.

But once I had finished I decided I liked the look of them so may leave them in, at least until I decide what else to do.

More Colourful

If my previous post with colour games tempted you then why not try these ones.

New book

- Testudinarious
- Divisia
- Coloury
- Flemingin
- Porret
- Glenting

I'm loving my new book- "A dictionary of colour" by Ian Paterson. Now I just need to try and fit those words into everyday conversation!


The definitions are:

- Gleaming, shining brightly
- A yellowish green- linked to a baby's leak!
- having colour/ possessing an abundance of colour
- Having the colour (and other characteristics) of a tortoise or tortoise-shell
- A yellow dyed used for silks
- The coloured ribbons used in bull-fighting

Now, obviously I'm not going to make it easy for you- so see if you can match up the definition to the word.

Red and green should not be seen?

Still on red and at the moment using using that classic complementary scheme- red and green.

I have so often heard "red and green should not been seen" but that makes no sense. Mind you I also often hear "blue and green should not be seen" so I guess it's used for anything "and green"

Red and green are opposite each other on the colour wheel which makes them ideal partners - and a classic combination which begins to be especially apparent at this time of year.

I'm still working away on my red beaded beaded but as a bit of variety I've decided to crochet myself a necklace inspired by a scarf fringing I saw recently.

I want lots of red cherries with green leaves hanging from a long, green crocheted chain- well, that's the plan.

I can't decide at the moment whether to mix up the reds I use or stick with one. So, I'm just working with one at the moment.


I think looking at them that just going with one will be best as then they'll be more cherry-like.


We'll see!

Getting ready for blue

Ok, I know blue is a few months off but today was The Big Bead Show (you can read more about it here on my blog) and I managed to buy yet another blue cabochon from Designer Cabochons.


It was only as I took the photo that I realised the only things I bought today featured the blue and brown colour combination I love so much- the do perfectly together- wonder if I can work out a way to use them in the same project?

Beginning with reds

I have begun, finally, working in reds and realise that once again it's a colour I rarely use.

I did use it in a analogous scheme with my red embroidered cuff.



Then mixed with black and white for a more monochromatic scheme in Geometric 3-4-1.


I'm now working away on sets of interchangable beaded beads based on work in my Geometric Beadwork series and playing around with red.

I began with a mix of reds and decided that rather than use any colour "rules" I woudl just put in any other colours I felt like.

I wasn't happy at first as it was all a bit random and they didn't seem to go together at all.

But once I looked at what I had beaded it soon became apparent that there were two groups.

The first used darker beads so I took these off and put them onto a metal chain.


The second used brighter colours and it's now this group that I'm working on to make lots more.


I'm hoping that just playing around with reds will teach me a lot about what works with it and what doesn't.
Check back to see if my plan works!

Reverse Chilli Bead

I have now beaded a new version of my Chilli Beaded Bead- but this time swapped around the orange and purple beads and used purple crystals instead of orange.

I was interested to see how different they looked and although it's a simple colour swap it really does make a different.

The bead with more orange looks a lot larger- this is because the lighter colour 'expands' it visually. That's why people tell you to wear black if you want to look slimmer!

A similar effect is apparent in my piece Geometric 3-4-4.
3-4-4a looks a lot larger than 3-4-4b as the use of colour in the 'valleys' makes them visually expand and when the two bracelets are put next to each other it is hard to believe they are exactly the same- just the use of black is swapped.

Another visual difference is that the green on the 'purple' bead looks a lot darker than it does on the 'orange' one. On the orange it is a lot 'springier'.


I am teaching these beaded beads in New York in November.

Chilli Bead

A new beaded bead today- I'm loving making these at the moment!
I need to move onto red soon but I'm away and didn't realy pack any red beads with me so am sticking with orange instead.

The colour scheme for this one was inspired by a plant I saw on my recent trip to Arundel Castle.


I loved the mix of green red/ orange and purple and couldn't resist translating that into a simple colour scheme.



The original photo/ plant had more green in it but as I'm working with orange I upped the use of that colour instead.