I’ve been having a lot of fun going through my beads and ribbons and fibers to make lots of kumihimo braids and turn them into necklaces.
I’m using bronze and copper metal that I’ve etched to make the end caps, and I’ve etched lots of pendants in bronze, brass, copper and even a bit of silver here and there, including mehndi style hands.
There’s been lots of cutting and soldering, filing and sanding going on in the daytime and braiding on the kumihimo wheel at night.You can see some of the endcaps and hand pendants here.
I am making the jump rings from bronze wire, and they will connect pendant pieces to the necklaces once I solder them closed. And file them, and sand them, and patina them and buff them up on the raised spots to a nice shine!
I have another dozen or so of the starfish and shells to cut out, but at least the metal has all been etched, so that necklace is well on the way–a mermaid’s delight with lots of coral and pearls, alabaster and knotted rope.
My goal is 20 necklaces by the 1st week of May, as well as finishing up a collection of anodized titanium earrings and pendants, some of which will be on the kumihimo necklaces.
So much to do–but it comes along if I work on it every day.
Today, I took a few pics of what I did earlier this week and I’m going to do my math homework and then string up another set of bobbins for the next necklace, which will be purples and silver.
I’ve already shopped in my bead drawers and picked out what I need, just need to string up all 8 bobbins and I’ll be ready to go!
