Whim and Whimsy

I've always been attracted to do-it-yourself (DIY) projects, minus the ones including sewing (I seem to have issues with sewing machines and needle/thread). Knitting and crocheting shrugs, shawls and sweaters. But the accessories that always compels me are articles of jewelry, whether rings, earrings or pendants.

Etsy is always an amazing source of inspiration, and recently Pinterest has been a good venue for seeing what has captured other people's interest. Beading and wirework have always been popular but recently the newest crave in handmade jewelry includes a combination of the two as well as traditional Peruvian thread art and scientific/artistic/historical influences.

The first of the batch are bird's nest wire wrapped beads which can be used for pendants or earrings. I used 3 beads of different colors as my eggs and made "matching" pieces for earrings.
The Bird Nest Necklace tutorial can be found here.

Next up are DNA helix earrings made of seed beads and bugle beads interspersed on headpins and then twisted.
I saw these on etsy but couldn't justify spending $20+ not including shipping for something I could easily make myself.

At the same time, I had a plethora of seed beads and decided to make a few baubles which could be used when I felt the need to wear something different and boost my mood.

Along the same lines of the bird's nest pendant, I created a wire nest and strung beads onto the wire and wrapped it around the "nest."You could add this onto a plain ring or string it on a chain.
Since we're on an island, I love incorporating sea glass and shells into my jewelry to remember things by.
Wandering around the interwebs, I found some Peruvian thread art earrings and googled a tutorial.
The basic concept is the same, involving wire coils and thread of multiple colors.
They can be tear-shaped and made into earrings or pendants.
Or even circular.

Wire-wrapping can be easy with the right tools, or just a good way to express yourself without worrying about how clean a wrap turns out as long as the overall piece is something you like. From the thread art earrings, a link showed me a blog with multiple pieces of wire-wrapped bead work creating animals and zodiac signs. Since Sagittarius seemed the most feasible, I concocted a more basic version of the bow and arrow the hunter uses.