Dance of the Damselfly

We all love a good Monthly Mix, don't we? Well, we especially love Alley Mori's mix! Created while she was visiting the Beadshop offices in February 2019, Alley's Kaleidoscope Mix was inspired by a gorgeous Stev'nn Hall piece of art that has been making the rounds in our private FB Group as an inspirational photo.

Alley put Kaleidoscope to work in this latest wrap bracelet masterpiece...adding O Beads, SuperDuos and CzechMates Tiles to round out the mix, this wrap is just heavenly. See more photos and her ingredients list below! We've added some "or" options to the list, since Alley used a button from her own stash and also because some of these items are very popular and are often sold out! Check out these substitutions on Kate's FTF, which we'll embed below after the Live Broadcast airs.

Ingredients:
1 Small to Medium Silver Button, we suggest  Little Fish Pond Button OR Humble Lotus Button
1 Spool Eggplant Micro C-Lon
1 Spool Grape OR Amethyst Micro C-Lon
1 Spool Teal Micro C-Lon
1 Pkg 1.5mm Metallic Maroon Leather
1 Pkg 1.5mm Metallic Purple Leather
1 Pkg 1.5mm Metalic Teal Leather
1 Tube Kaleidoscope Monthly Mix
1 Tube SuperDuos- Pastel Bordeaux OR Halo Magenta
1 Pkg O Beads- Crystal French Rose
1 Pkg O Beads- Crystal Magenta
1 Pkg O Beads- Crystal Cerulean Blue
1 Strand CzechMates Tiles- Pearl Coat Teal
(Are we out? Take a peek at our other Blue-Green CzechMates Tiles or try these colors: Gold Marble Rosaline, Metallic Flax or Matte Metallic Copper)
1 Dragonfly Pebble Bead OR Bali Dancer Slider
2 Jardin Round Rings- Antique Silver
1 Pkg Transitions Beads- Antique Pewter

**FYI, Alley paired her Leathers and Micro C-Lons as follows:
Metallic Maroon with Eggplant
Metallic Purple with Grape or Amethyst
Metallic Teal with Teal

Additional Learning:
How to Ladder
How to Macramé
Alley's Splice, four on Page 13 of these Episode Notes
FTF 4.5.19


Check out how Alley does her "splice" here...this joining of the leather at the middle of a wrap enables her to use lark's head knots at both ends...isn't that clever? Kate shows this more in-depth on the FTF episode linked above and embedded below. Check out these photos from Alley and Kate's broadcast to take a closer look at how this comes together! Note how Alley's splice can be covered by a variety of large-holed beads...in her sample she uses the Dragonfly Pebble Bead, on Kate's it's the Bali Dancer Slider...but you could also use Czech Rollers, Transitions, Evolve, River Shannon, a variety of Sliders...you do you! You can also see, above, how Alley attaches all three of her laddered sections of her Alley Bracelet (AKA Kate's Favorite on Steroids) by tying one strand in a lark's head knot through the button shank and then attaching the other two leathers to that knot itself rather than to the shank, chichis so smart!

Finally, here's the video! Enjoy...

Alley's Tribal Necklace

Since Stones and Tribal are being featured together this weekend we wanted to show off one more of Alley Mori's creations. Based off Janice's Trail's End bracelets, Alley made another "convertible," this can be worn as a necklace or as a wrap bracelet. As usual, Alley's eye for color, design, technique, and her sheer ingenuity are on display. With leather wall knots, Tribal beads galore, and an ingenious use of a Vintage Find, Alley has hit another home run!  Scroll down for the full list of ingredients and techniques used, and please enjoy!

Ingredients List

1 Pkg Distressed Gray 2.0mm Indian Leather 

1 Vintage Finds Wanderlust- Golden Serpentine 
1 Spool Light Copper Regular C-Lon 

1 Pkg Tide’s Out- Pumpkin 

3 Pkgs Keep Away- Red and Yellow 

1 Tube West African Mix- Earth 

1 Strand Popcorn Padres- Natural 

1 Tube 6-1233 Matte Opaque Mustard 6/0 Miyuki Seed Beads

1 Tube 6-1255 Matte Metallic Bronze 6/0 Miyuki Seed Beads

1 Tube 6-1236 Matte Terracotta 6/0 Miyuki Seed Beads

1 Strand Tribal Heishi- Brass 

1 Pkg Rattle 'n Shake- Brass 

1 Pkg Pony- Brass 

1 Pkg Pony Express- Brass 

1 Large-hole Serpentine bead from a beadshop.com Trunk Show, any large holed bead will do!

Techniques Used

How to Macrame

Learning the Wall Knot

Alley's closure consists of a loop of leather to secure around her Wanderlust stone. That leather loop is wall-knotted ends with a large-holed Pony Bead, then knotted around the macrame loop created in the strung bead section. The tails of the leather are decorated with Rattle 'n Shake and beads from the West African Mix. For the strung section, Alley starts at the Wanderlust with several strands of C-Lon going through the holes of the Wanderlust and knotted behind. Note the single Pony Express bead embellishment at the center...how pretty! Her strands are strung with her selection of Tribal beads and 6/0s. See how she tapers her strands at the end, combining two strands into one, before ending them in a macrame loop attached to her leather knot. Before attaching here, a large-holed Pony bead and her large-holed Serpentine bead are strung over her macrame loop to hide the end of it. 

Alley Mori's Maya Mix Necklace

This weekend, as we feature Stones and Tribal together, seemed like the perfect time to showcase Alley's beautiful necklace, based off Janice's Trail's End bracelet design. This piece is truly a work of art, and also a two-for! It can be worn as a necklace or wrapped around your wrist as a bracelet. As usual, Alley's eye for color, design, technique, and her sheer ingenuity are on display. Supplementing our February 2019 Monthly Mix, Maya, are a selection of beautiful semiprecious stones and tribal beads, including heishi, shadows, and more of the Natural Padres found in the mix. Scroll down for the full list of ingredients and techniques used, and please enjoy!

Ingredients List

1 Pkg Sable 1.5mm Indian Leather

1 Spool Gold Fine C-Lon
1 Vintage Finds Pinwheel- Blue Serpentine
1 Strand Popcorn Padres- Natural

1 Strand Matte African Turquoise- 6mm
1 Strand Matte African Turquoise- Large Hole
1 Strand Tribal Heishi- Brass 
1 Strand Shadows- Antique Brass (Bright Brass also works!)
1 Large-hole Serpentine bead (Alley bought hers from one of our Trunk Shows, but any large hole bead will work, it hides the end of the macramé loop) 

1 Tube Maya, February 2018 Monthly Mix, or purchase separately once sold out:

• 8-4481 Duracoat Opaque Eucalyptus
• 8-409- Opaque Chocolate 8/0
• 8-1233 Matte Opaque Mustard
• 8-4202- Duracoat Galvanized Gold 8/0
• 8/0 Metal Seed Beads - Gilding Matte Gold Plate
• 6-135S- Silver Lined Dark Topaz 6/0
• Popcorn Padres Natural

Techniques Used

How to Macrame

Learning the Wall Knot

Alley's closure consists of a loop of leather to secure around her Pinwheel stone. That leather loop is wall-knotted and strung with Padre beads and ended with a large-holed Matte African Turquoise bead and knotted. The tails of the leather are decorated with Padres, 6/0s, and Shadows. For the strung section, Alley starts at the Pinwheel with several strands of Fine C-Lon going through the holes of the Pinwheel and knotted behind. Note the single Shadow bead embellishment at the center...how pretty! Her strands are strung with the Maya mix, 6mm African Turquoise, Shadows, and Heishi. See how she tapers her strands at the end, combining two strands into one, before ending them in a macrame loop attached to her leather knot. Before attaching here, a large-holed Matte African Turquoise and her large-holed Serpentine bead are strung over her macrame loop to hide the end of it.