Hi all! And welcome to my reveal in the Button Swap Blog Hop! Thanks so much
Cindy, for such a fun challenge! I had sooooo much fun swapping buttons with my awesome partner
Sue Kennedy and a load of fun creating with the buttons she sent me. Thank you Sue, for my buttons!
Here are the buttons Sue sent me: a really neat fish one, a beautiful glass one (Sue made that one herself—I'm so lucky!), an incredibly adorable Scottie dog, and a lovely blue flower made by Lisa Peters. I used three out of these four buttons.
Come see what I made...
My first creation used the fish button—I call it "Sea Worn". I knew right away that this button was totally me and this design fell together so perfectly, I was shocked! I don't think I've ever had a design come together so quickly and without any kinks along the way.
The focal, or focals of this necklace are, of course, the fish button, with a ceramic bead from
Gaea tied in the center, and two ceramic pendants from
Birgitta Lejonklou.
From there I combined a mix of ceramic rounds (also from
Gaea), large-hole ceramic rondelles (from Michael's—I love how the glaze mimics the look of shallow sea waters), chocolate pearls, carnelian discs, mother-of-pearl chips, and a few scattered brass beads and bead caps.
And for the closure, I used another of the large-hole ceramic rondelles and I made a small macrame loop.
The next piece I created uses the glass button Sue made for me. This one was a real challenge. You know me and blue—we don't always get along! And green—well, green is blue's best friend... and best friends stick together, so green doesn't always like me either. But I reeeally wanted to make something with this button... and I wanted to do it justice too. After a few retries here's what I came up with, and I have to say I'm super pleased with it!
I call it Magic in the Water. The colors of the glass remind me of glistening water and also of dragonfly wings. So pretty!
I've had these pretty faceted glass beads in my stash for quite some time and they were the first beads I thought of when I saw this button—and they match perfectly! The addition of fiber (yep, this is my first time using fiber in a design!) was my little work-around for a slight problem. You see, the button is clear glass... and that was my problem. Up against my skin it all turned sort of yellow looking (no, I don't have yellow skin! Skin just does those sorts of things!). So I needed something light colored behind it to bring out the colors. Fiber was the solution!
I took a long strip of blue chiffon fabric, frayed the edges, and then threaded it onto the wire behind the button, folding as I went.
And I did the same thing for the beads, but only on one end. I really love the ruffly, airy look it added. This bracelet is such a fun one to wear!
And for my third design, it was my little girl, Pepper that inspired me...
Here she is. She's 100% Rat Terrier and the sweetest little thing. She's a bit nervous and shy, she's spunky and playful, she's my fierce protector, and she's my bestest friend. She's not just my little dog, she's my terrier... and that says it all.
And so, when I got a little Scottie button from Sue that was super special. The button belonged to Sue's grandmother who was Scottish, and she loved Scotties. My mom's side of the family is from Scotland too, so that made it even more special. And here's what I made...
I call this bracelet "Terrier 'Tude". It's simple, but something I'll wear all the time. I wanted to use something red for the band and I searched for a while for a red cord to match the Scottie's collar, but couldn't find anything quite right. And then I remembered Pepper's old bed was plaid. I say "old" because that bed met its end a while back—first the washing machine had a fight with it and tore a small hole in it, and then Pepper decided it wasn't puffy enough for her and she tore it up to make it puffier... and so I had to buy her a new bed.
Plaid and Scotties go together perfectly! I used four strands of the fabric from Pepper's bed and made a braid for the band and stitched the little Scottie on in the middle. My second ever fiber design! I love it!
And here's how I did the closure—knots on each end wrapped with wire and a hook clasp.
I showed it to Pepper when I finished and I think she recognized it as her "old" bed, and she looked a little confused... she probably would have liked to make it puffier!! :-)
And there you have it—three designs with three fabulous buttons! The blue flower is next on my to-do list... Go see what Sue made with the buttons from me
here!
Thanks so much for stopping by! Happy hopping!
Kim Roberts and Partner unable to participate at this time.
