This week the family is in Washington DC. One of my favorite stops on the Mall is the US botanical Gardens. Imagine my surprise to find beautiful beaded flowers as part of one of the current exhibits!!
The exhibit on medicinal plants included some beautiful flowers made entirely of beads and wire. I wanted to post these pics right away to share. I will definitely turn them right side up when I get home on my own computer (Using the Dear Husband's at the moment in a hotel room).
This exhibit should run through the summer, so please be sure and check this out, if you are in D.C. The gardens are also a wonderful respite from some of the more crowded and crazy stops along the mall -- Jazz and classical musical is discretely piped in and you are surrounded by lush growth everywhere and cool mists. There were even a package of free wildflower seeds available on the way out. How cool is that?!
Shown above is the "Candy Stripe" friendship bracelet.
The example above, orange turquoise and yellow is a friendship anklet, done in the pattern known as Chinese Staircase or spiral.
This bracelet, in progress, is a series of alternated square knots. It is a pretty traditional macrame pattern. By using several colours, the knotting pattern is more visable.
This sample is a series of repeating half knots, which creates a tightly coiled spiral of knots. It is good for bracelets as well as chokers.
In the class, we will be using wooden beads in adition to hemp, embroidery floss, and yarns.
For a full listing of classes you can go to http://www.bedfordartacademy.org/
This Summer I will be offereing classes for children. In a previous post I showed the fabric friendship bracelets I made up for one of the classes I will be offering.
Another class For the kids this Summer will be making felt stuffies. I will be using original patterns designed by my daughter Becca. (She's 10 and I am very proud!) The samples posted here are all designed and made by Becca.
One of the things I will be stressing in the class class -- patterns are a starting point for learning the basics. I hope to encourage them to go home and experiment with designing their own.
Stuffies have such appeal - not just for kids but grown-ups as well. I love these, in part because they are tiny. Small enough to slip in your pocket and carry about with you, like a secret friend.
The Japanese call them mascots, and in a way they become your mascot - cheering for you along the way. I keep one in my car and always get a smile every time I look at him. (He's a frog Becca made for keeping me company in the car while she is at school.)
Since this is a class I'm offering, I wanted to be sure and get the word out about it. Bedford Art Academy is putting up a new web site: http://www.bedfordartacademy.org/ hopefully it will be up and running later today.
The samples above were made in a hurry, and don't have any bead embellishments, but I have already purchased some beads for the kids to use, in addition to the ribbon and embroidery.
One of the great things about this project - kids will be learning running stitch, stem stitch, lazy daisy stitch, and sewing on a button or velcro. It is also pretty quick - just right for a morning class.
I will try to have some more samples up soon, as well. Preferably with beads. But since it is a class I'm teaching, and it's jewelry - I figure I can get away with putting here.
I want to share the post from Cornflower Blue that inspired my versions of the friendship bracelet. Rachel has a tutorial here: http://cornflowerbluestudio.blogspot.com/2008/04/whip-up.html
Here's a better view of a bracelet I posted in an earlier post. I will be teaching a class on this bracelet in April. Please email or leave a comment, if you have any questions about the class. The class is offered at Bedford Academy of the Arts in Bedford, Virginia. The class is titled "Intermediate Right Angle Weave."
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