I love Olives

I have fond memories of the holidays when I was a young girl.  We would go to my grandparents house and there was always wonderful food to eat.  My favorite treat was the olives.  My Unkie Dan (his special name) was always helping the ladies in the kitchen, and he would let me put an olive on every finger.  How I loved those olives, I thought my granny must be rich to be able to always have olives for Christmas.  I can remember telling myself that when I grew up I wanted to be rich enough to always have olives in my refrigerator.  As an adult I have almost always had a jar of olives in my refrigerator as I still love those tasty green treats.  I made some super cute olive beads, they make me smile.  I hope you enjoy them too.

See past blog post for a tutorial on how to make this cuff

Here are some great designs made with my beads. The following three designs are made by Stephanie.  Stephanie has a great eye for design, she is a Tampa girl transplanted to New Jersey caught between lovin' the big city and wantin' to be a country girl. You can find Stephanie's shop at https://www.etsy.com/shop/SassyBelleWares

This was a special order bead that Stephanie had me design

Girls Raised In the South focal bead

A few more great designs using my pottery beads.  These designs were made by Lisa Casteel Morton she loves creating works of art with beads, chain and wire. She enjoys wearing pieces that she creates as well as making jewelry for friends and family. Her Etsy shop is https://www.etsy.com/shop/SouthernGraceJewelry

Lisa has a great quote on her profile at Etsy.

"The biggest myth about Southern women is that we are frail types-fainting on our sofas....Nobody where I grew up ever acted like that. We were about as fragile as coal trucks."
----Lee Smith 

The focal bead is in copper brown

Edgy bracelet tutorial using a pottery cuff focal bead and a bicycle tire

If you have been following my blog you know I like to recycle or up cycle items.   This hole project began when I spotted a old bike I had as a child up against the barn of my childhood home.  My daddy helped me take the chain off the old bike and I used it to press into the wet clay to make this super cool edgy pattern.  Then another crazy idea was to use a recycled bicycle inter-tube as the cuff of the bracelet.  The inter-tube was rescued from a bike my kids have recently out grown. I took the old bike inter-tube and fashioned this cool, edgy bracelet.  It was super quick to make and a fun accessory especially for bike lovers. 

I started by cutting off approx. 9 inches of the inter-tube, I then folded about a half inch of the tube inside itself to form a more finished edge.  I punched a hole with my leather punch and attached a metal button like one finds on their bluejeans. See post for details.
 

 

 

I then cut a button hole on the opposite side and curved the ends of the inter-tube using household scissors.  I glued the ends shut with household white glue.  To hold in place while drying I put clothes pins on the end.  Sorry I forgot to photograph that step. After it had dried overnight, I removed the clothes pins.

 

I held a 30x60 mm pottery cuff bead up to the center of my bracelet and punched holes to match the hole placement in the bead.  I then attached the bead to the inter-tube using micro screws.

 

This is the finished bracelet, ready to wear.  It should be a fun piece to wear with jeans and perfect for a bike or motorcycle enthusiast.  This piece was made with a stormy blue pottery bead but I have it in rusty truck also which is a brown with red rust spots.  Enjoy! Cindy

Note: that bike tubes have a natural curved shape so if you use a focal bead that has a top and bottom design you may consider adjusting that with the curve of the tube.

A Recycled Boot is Now Leather Cuffs Accented with Pottery Beads

     My family has always recycled items since I was a child.  Only when I was a child, it was not called recycling and it wasn't necessarily cool like it is now.  I wore recycled clothes (hand me downs).  My mom and dad re-purposed items daily (old stuff used again).  Daddy bought scrap metal at the salvage yard and made everything you can imagine from bar-b-q pits to cattle pens.  Mama recycled old jars and filled them with delicious canned goods; and she would even save every last piece of pie crust when she made a pie and roll it out and fill it with cinnamon, sugar and pecans for a tasty treat for us kids.  If it could be used again it did not get thrown away.
     My husband just bought a new pair of work boots and I spied them before they made the trash and I recycled one of the boots into two leather cuff bracelets.  I still have one boot and have plans to use it soon.  Here is a quick tutorial on how hand me down boots became two new bracelets.

    First I cut the leather into 1 1/2 to 2 inch leather strips about 9 inches long.  I added a metal button (see previous post for how to).  On this bracelet I wanted to use the leather piece that you hook your fingers into when pulling on the boot.  I took a pony tail holder in a brown shade to use as part of the connector.
 

      Regular everyday pony band for hair

     I cut the band in half and threaded it into the loop of the boot for my connector.

      I tied a knot in the pony band and put some glue on it to secure it, then I hid the knot under the leather loop.

      Here is the start of my first cuff, the leather came from the part of the boot that was the side at one time. 

      I choose one of my 30x60mm cuff beads in Sea Green and I held it up against the leather and marked the holes to match the holes in the bead, then I punched additional holes just outside those that matched the bead.  Using a leather punch makes this really easy (see previous post for how to).

      I then used waxed linen thread, available at your local craft store and I sewed the bead on using simple stitches and knotted the thread on the back of the leather. Below is the finished product.  I think it turned out cute and edgy.

     For the second cuff I put two of the metal buttons on it and cut holes for the button hole (see previous post for how to).  I determined the center of the leather and placed a key hole bead to the middle and marked the hole placement and then punched holes using my leather punch tool.  Then punch a hole just outside of the holes that match the beads so you can sew your key hole bead on to the leather.  I used simple stitches with the thread and since the holes in the leather are large and the thread is waxed you do not need a needle as it goes in easily.

  

     Gather some old keys and punch holes on either side of the keys and sew on to the leather using waxed linen thread.

 

 

    This is the back and you can see the stitching where the bead and keys are.

 

 The finished cuff, I really love this one. I wore it yesterday and received lots of compliments.

 

      I hope you enjoy the tutorial, have a great day! Cindy

My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys Pottery Cuff Bead

My new "My heroes have always been Cowboys" Pottery cuff bead

     This Cowboy on a Horse in one of my Elli pottery cuff beads.  I call these Ellis as they are Elliptical or Oval.  I really like how they turned out.  I am also excited to soon be wearing my fantastic cuff bracelet made featuring this cowboy bead.  Brenda from Beaded River Jewelry made me the fantastic cuff and sent me a sneak peek photos of my bracelet.  I have wanted one of these wrap style bracelets for quite a while.  And after Brenda sent me a photo of one she made with one of my  "If the boot fits" beads, (see past post).  I had to have her make me a wrap cuff with this handsome cowboy.  Now I am like a kid at Christmas patiently waiting for my new goodie.  
     Brenda sent me a note, "Here's our guy! He's made of my favorite Picasso finished tube beads that look old and rustic like they've been buried in the dirt for a couple of hundred years. I hope you like him. He's sporting a bit of some of my old jeans too.
     Like him I love him, and since I seldom take off my jewelry when I am working with pottery it will have some real dirt on it soon.
    I hope you enjoy a sneak peek at my new treat.  Later, Cindy

Lovely new piece designed and made by Beaded River Jewelry on Etsy

LOVE The Star button especially since I am from the Lone Star State 

Beautiful Christian Jewelry

The focal bead is a Carmine

I jokingly call my beads THE KIDS, and as a parent we hate to see our kids leave the house but it is fun to see them all grown up.  Lora Dalton ADOPTED some of THE KIDS...LOL.  And has raised them in a good Christian home.  Joking aside, I do love making Christian beads, along with the Rodeo beads and fancy beads that I have in my shop.  Lora was kind enough to send some gorgeous photo of some pieces she has recently made with my pottery beads.  Lora has a new shop on Etsy, Jeremiah 29:11 Jewelry.  Lora is a Christian artist who lives in Lees Summit, Missouri and she loves to create and repurpose jewelry and fashion items. 

Focal bead is one of the popular fish beads in my shop

This blue beauty features a Carmine bead also

Happy Girls are the Prettiest Bead

She added a cross detail to this Carmine bead in Malachite Green

Tutorial for an Easy Peasy Cuff Bracelet

Hello, Oh how I love cuff bracelets, I actually feel undressed if I am not wearing some type of bracelet.  I made this great bracelet it took only 15 minutes or so.  I love that the beads can unhook and you can change it to a totally new look quickly.

Tools & Supplies:

Leather cuff
Micro Screws and Nuts
Decorative Ends
2 Large Jump Rings
2 Smaller Jump Rings
1 Elli Bead 
2 Lobster Claws
Leather Punch
Small Screw Driver
Wire Cutters
File 

The layout

Directions:

Take the leather bracelet and measure from each end 2 1/2 inches this is where the holes will be punched to screw in the Decorative Ends.  Punch a tiny hole with the leather punch and then screw the decorative ends to the leather using micro screws and nuts.  If the ends are too long they can be cut with wire cutters and filed smooth with a file.  

Attach a small jump ring to the single end of the decorative end and attach a lobster claw, repeat on other side.  

Take Elli bead and attach one large jump ring to each end.  The bead will feel loose on the leather when layed flat but will be snug with the bracelet is snapped.  If you use another size bead be sure and measure the middle and attach all hardware and hold up to the snapped cuff to help determine where the decorative ends should be attached.

Here you can see the microw screws and nuts through the leather back

Finished Piece

 
To complete bracelet just attach the lobster claws to the jumprings on each side of the bead.

Front view

 

Next I changed the bead to one of the Boho Flower beads and I have a totally new look.

Another great cuff design using my pottery cuff beads.  The lovely bracelet below was designed by Brenda her Etsy shop is Beaded River Jewelry.  She makes beautiful bracelets with beads and leather woven together. I just love the mix of pottery and leather.  I appreciate her allowing me to share these great photos with you.  If you have a design that you have made using my beads I would love to show them off on the blog, so please share photos soon you can send them in a Convo on Etsy.
Enjoy! Cindy

Leather Cuff Using Recycled Upcycled Leather Tutorial

Free Tutorial, this is so easy you can make it today and wear it today. :)

Supplies: 

1. Find an old belt that doesn't fit anymore or one from a thrift store.  Cut off approx. 7 1/4 inches of the leather (for a large cuff-less if your wrist is smaller).  Most belts will make 3-6 cuff bracelets or more depending on the size of the belt and the cuffs you make.
2.  Choose a great pottery focal bead.  I have several 100 to choose from I used the 30x60 mm cuff bead.
3.  Gather your leather punch, an ice pick would work also (just be careful).

 4.  Micro screws are used to cold connect (Cold connection refers to the process of joining together two pieces of metal without the use of heat) the pieces. I use a screwdriver to attach the screws like one you would use to repair eyeglasses.  The ends of the micro screws can easily be cut off if too long using wire cutters, and filed if needed with a household file to debur the edges.  I will often put a tiny drop of glue to make sure the screws do not loosen as the cuff is worn.

Stainless steel micro screws and nuts

 5. A pair of decorative ends in sterling silver plate.

These are reversable

Directions:

1. Cut the leather to size about 7 inches.
2. Hold the decorative end to the top end of the leather and mark where the screws will go.  Punch with leather punch.
3.  Attach decorative end using the micro screws and nuts.  Trim excess if needed with wire cutters.

One side attached to the decorative end

The back of the cuff

4.  Repeat with other side and attach a jump ring to one side and a lobster claw to the other side.

5.  Choose a cuff bead and mark the center placement on the leather using a pencil to indicate hole placement.  Make holes with leather punch and attach with micro screws and nuts thru the top of the bead, down into the leather, and finishing in the back with the nut.  Trim screw if necessary with wire cutters.  The screw should hold the bead to the leather but do not over tighten as you could break the bead. 

The back of the cuff before the screws were trimmed with wire cutters

 The finished bracelet, so cute and so easy.  How many will you make?

Leather cuff with pottery cowgirl bead

 I hope you enjoy creating with this free leather cuff and pottery bead tutorial.