How Would This Look if I Did it Another Way?

by Dr. Gail H. Devoid
(Need for Beads, Inc.)

Sometimes you finish a piece and it looks good, but then you think, "How would this look if I did it another way?"

I made a bead crochet bracelet with seed pearls and tiny faceted sapphires (see photo above).

I wanted to make a matching necklace but did not have enough leftover sapphires to make a piece that would go all the way around my neck.

Instead, what I did was make a short tube of bead crochet, and add findings to each end. Then I added a delicate chain to it:

I wondered how this would look if I use chain maille techniques to make a larger chain:



The pictures show the bracelet I wanted to match, the necklace with the thin chain, and the final version of the necklace.

It was not much work to remove the thin chain and replace it with the chain maille. I used the thin chain on a piece I intend to sell.

The point of this tutorial is that if you're not happy with something, try something else. It doesn't mean any of your work is going to go to waste.

The last picture here is the one I intend to sell:



The less expensive garnets may appeal to a younger person who would like the thinner chain and find it more attractive than the larger one.

Dr. Gail Devoid
Need for Beads, Inc.
Gail's free bead stitch tutorials