Aug 10, 2017

The Tiara Challenge




We have a lot of fun here at beadshop.com...it’s certainly not all work and no play! And when our new Tiara Frames arrived soon after Kate’s Free Tip Friday video on beaded hairpins aired...well, a challenge was born!

We’ve created ours, now it’s time for you to create yours. Purchase a Tiara Frame in either Silver or Gold, and get beading! Use whatever you like, beads from your personal stash or our shop...we did! Take some beautiful photos (of both the tiara alone, and if you’re not camera-shy, of you wearing it!) and send them to us at showcase.beadshop@gmail.com, by November 5, 2017 (we updated this!! We figured Halloween would be an awesome reason for making tiaras...why didn't we realize that sooner??). Winners will be announced shortly after...with beadshop.com gift card prizes!
1st place: $75 gift card
2nd place: $50 gift card
3rd place: $25 gift card
Check out the beadshop team’s tiaras below for inspiration...will you wire wrap like Janice and Ivan? Create an ocean vibe like Cara and Louise? Use chain like Karen, charms like Grace? The possibilities are endless...you’re limited only by your imagination!


Baranduin - Rising


We often see inspiration in fire, the stars, the sun...Baranduin’s beautiful tiara uses wire to create a very sunny look!

I was inspired by an art piece I made years ago for a family gathering which was a wire wrap of a sun with feet.”

A multi-textured look of both color and shape, Baranduin’s “flames” are created using wires in different metal finishes and sizes. From one end of her silver Tiara Frame to the other the wires fan out. She’s used bronze, gold, silver, and copper...framing her beaming face, she really does look like a sun goddess.




Cara - Mermaid Dream


Cara started out with a palette inspired by the colors of beads in the “extras” boxes in the office. Looking for a way to add height, she started creating swirls with 16 gauge wire, though she wasn’t quite sure where the design would take her…

“The beads and pink pearls especially seemed like colors and baubles a mermaid would wear! The swirls seemed to turn into waves…”

Completing her look with with the gorgeous Tiffany Flower Czech Glass Button in Sea Green, Cara also added Silver Little Shadows and a host of pearls and baubles (some from her personal stash...don’t you wish we had those pink pearls??). It’s definitely a Mermaid’s Dream.






Drea - Myasthenia Princess

Drea has a confession to make...she is a princess-loving fool. So as soon as the words "Tiara Challenge" were out of Kate's mouth she was ready for this. 

The inspiration came quickly...Drea was recently diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis, sometimes called The Snowflake Disease because it affects each patient so differently...but “beading is great therapy and this was a great project to energize me.” Using teal, the awareness color for MG, and a snowflake motif, Drea bead-embroidered patterns with superduos, seed beads, and 4mm fire polish. C-lon and True-2s Macrame’d up the sides kept the base simple.


Grace - Ornate Boho

Grace’s golden tiara was inspired by the bohemian look. “I love organic things that exude life and happiness.”

Using leaf charms and wire to build, Grace completed her piece by adding a hint of color to counterbalance all the gold: Czech Rollers in Champagne and Olive Copper paired with Sueded Gold Jonquil Fire Polish

The details are exquisite, even wire-wrapping the leaves and their "stems." Overall, it creates a look that’s powerfully feminine without being overly girly-girl...just like Grace.








Ivan - Prince Medley

Of course, Ivan had to join the challenge. Who says tiaras aren’t for men? While not a beader, Ivan certainly rose to the occasion by creating a jewel-encrusted band fit for a king.

“I was inspired by my teammates! While I don’t have as much beading knowledge, their enthusiasm was infectious.”

With mixed metals and a selection of Dakota stones (Devotion and Greek Moon), Czech Glass, and tribal Shadows beads, Ivan created an almost color-blocked design (so on-trend right now!) with his wire-wrapped patterns and colors. We think he knocked this challenge out of the park.





Janice - Charlotte

"It's really fun to encrust a tiara, bobby pin, hair comb, or even a bead with this style of wire wrapping.”

To get the symmetrical yet eclectic look, as Janice worked on one side, she set aside a like-bead for the other side. The Rhodonite and Rose Quartz Pavers are large but flat, so encrusting them with layers of wire and little beads is lots of fun. Janice rounds out her design with an assortment of pearls, Czech glass, and seed beads, all in pastel pinks and creams, and with a hint of blue for fun and interest. 

Named for her goddaughter, the Charlotte tiara is beading royalty.


Jen - Goddess

Jen gives “encrusted” a new meaning...a simple gold band is made anything but simple with a collection of 6mm Fire Polish in several colors inspired by one of the first mixes Jen made, "the midnight mix." 

Rather than neatly wire-wrapping a single row of beads around her tiara, Jen gave her beads a bit more freedom as she created layers and dimension...it gives her crown texture and depth. 

This piece definitely has a Gypsy Goddess vibe, like a treasure chest of jewels just waiting to adorn your head. To recreate this color story, you’ll want to stick with a cool blue/purple family, and add hints of gold and brown for warmth.



Karen - Shadow Queen

Winter has come...and Karen is Queen of the North in this beauty. 

“I was actually inspired by the white walkers from Game of Thrones and my love of the icy white winters.” Known for its exceptional costuming, we think Karen's work could easily be featured on the show.


Her 16 gauge wire frame is draped with silver figaro chains, white moonstone chips, and a selection of 4mm fire polish in snowy whites and silvers, Karen’s tiara is a masterpiece. Using skull beads and a pentacle pendant from her personal stash, she really made it her own.




Kate - Deco Dream

Kate has always loved the hair ornaments of the 1920's. “When I was working on the design, I saw my Lalique Looming Cuff in Nymphs and thought I would continue that theme into my Tiara.”

Kate wanted something with a starburst silhouette since that is a very period style for hair ornaments. The color samples she strung up on eyepins for the FB LIVE broadcast were still together, so she started there and the design evolved onward. Coiling leather around a Czech Glass button, Kate’s bugle beads radiate outward...simply glorious. Check out her process on this Free Tip Friday broadcast.




Louise - Beaded Waves


Summertime is wedding time, and in California many couples choose the beach as their location to tie the knot. “The soft, delicate colors of the waves and sand inspired my tiara design for either the bride or perhaps the flower girl.”

Memory wire in the ring size was beaded with a collection of blue 2mm Czech glass and peachy seed beads, along with some Silver Little Shadows and Copper seed beads. The ring Memory Wire “spring”  gave dimension to the tiara and while Louise used silk flowers, she thinks fresh flowers woven into the memory wire loops would be even prettier.






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