Turkmen and Fabric Boho Necklace

 I'm crazy about fabrics. Crazy about beads. Crazy about Turkmen jewelry parts, crazy about lapis. For weeks--maybe months--I had been trying to create a necklace with some of the gorgeous Turkmen parts that Gwen Lafleur carries on her website.

One day I accidentally placed a length of orange ribbon by the parts I was puttering with on my jewelry tray and decided that I just HAD to combine orange with the dark blue lapis Turkmen pendants, Turkman Waziri and Kuchi Pendants, and silvery Turkmen jewelry parts.

The Turkmen jewelry pieces looked great together on the design tray, but were too heavy when all used together.

The problem was that the orange ribbon wouldn't thread through the Chinese blue and white beads from my jewelry stash that I had incorporated into the design. So, off I went to the Garment Center to find orange beads or thin orange cord.

When I got home, neither the new cord nor new beads worked. And they didn't have exactly the size or color I wanted so I ended up with red beads and turquoise beads.

The red and orange beads weren't quite right with the Turkmen coins and Chinese blue beads.

Neither the red nor turquoise beads really looked right, so I took them away. The orange silk cording didn't seem strong enough to support the heavier Turkmen parts. Then I came up with a design that looked good on the tray, but when I strung them on the wire, it didn't hang right, it was waaaay too heavy. I also realized that I already had a necklace (created a few years ago) that was very similar sitting right in my jewelry box. I put the tray and beads away and slept on it.

This design looked pretty, but was almost identical to a necklace I had made previously.

Then I decided to start over. I puttered and puttered, adding and subtracting beads.

 

Finally I pulled it all apart, pulled out a few lighter weight Turkmen pieces, mixed it with the red and turquoise beads, added some rolled fabric beads I had made years ago, and decided to aim for a festive look. (Fabric scraps were cut into long triangles and rolled on a skewer to create the beads. They were hand-stitched and a few decorative seed beads added for accent.)

The handmade fabric beads were a lightweight, colorful and refreshing addition.

While deciding what to string it on, I remembered some colorful Spice Market Yarn. I "auditioned" it next to the beads and it seemed just right. The colorful "warm base" twisted fibers were just the thing to unite the fabric beads and lighterweight Turkmen elements.

The spice market "darn good yarn" went nicely with the handmade fabric beads.

Some lightweight Turkmen jewelry parts were mixed with the fabric beads.

I wanted the cording to show, so I decided to try tying the beads and baubles on with knots. I tested a small piece to see how it worked.

Small silver beads were used to keep the Turkmen parts from sliding off the knot.

To keep the Turkmen pieces from sliding over the knot, I added a few silver-colored spacers.

The colored beads had a tiny hole and the cord wouldn't go through them. My solution was to use a small headpin and turn a loop so the bead would hang off the cord.

A closeup of the bead with a turned loop, and the blunt needle used for stringing the necklace.

Several closures were tested, but a simple knot worked best.
The necklace is long enough to slip over the head without requiring a fancy closure.

The question, once all the beads were on and knotted, was how to create the closure. The cord was too thick for the silver closures I had on hand, and the little crimps were also too small.

I decided to make it long enough to go over my head and tied it closed.

The "Darn Good Yarn" was tied securely before being stitched to hide the ragged ends.

I didn't like the raggedy edges so I wrapped them with a pinkish-red thread and stitched it down neatly...well, not perfectly, but my wobbly stitching blended in pretty well with the colorful cord.

An blanket stitch was used to secure the loose ends of the closure.

The finished necklace is lightweight and fun, and makes me think of summer...maybe it is because the central Turkmen part that hangs down reminds me of a fish, or maybe it is the gingham check and calico prints that the fabric beads were made from. I picture myself wearing the necklace with a summer tee shirt, a flowing gauze skirt, walking barefoot along the beach boardwalk, watching the waves break on the sand, and feeling totally relaxed and recharged.

Humong Star Medallion Choker and Elegant Sari Trim Gift Box

Here's a gift duo that's very eye-catching, yet surprising easy to make: a handmade choker medallion necklace inside a handmade, glitzy gift box!

The minute I opened my first box of supplies from Gwen Lafluer Studios, I fell in love with a small red medallion that was stitched to a piece of black velvet. I had no idea what the red starburst design symbolized, but I immediately envisioned it as a choker necklace, and sketched the design in my "Idea Journal." I only had one medallion, so I ordered a couple more, then got to work. I learned that they are vintage embroidered star patches, made by the Hmong tribes in Thailand.The question was, what should I pair with the star medallions? Flat pearls? Red buttons? Swarovski crystals?

Using small, sharp scissors, excess fabric was trimmed from the Humong Star Medallion

 I rummaged through my boxes of buttons and jewelry components, and finally settled on some black and white rubber beads that were in my stash. I had taken apart a bracelet and used some of the black and white harlequin beads years ago for an Alice in Wonderland project. The rubber beads were a little strange, but somehow worked with the medallions.

The medallions and beads were "auditioned" for spacing and arrangement before being stitched to the velvet ribbon

After the medallions were hand stitched to the ribbon, the rubber beads were pinned in place

 

Close-up of beads being sewn on to ribbon

The necklace is nearly complete

I pinned everything into place on a piece of black velvet ribbon that had a little white edging, then hand stitched the necklace. Last, I added a sticky-backed velcro closure. The velcro makes the choker not only easy to put on and take off, but makes it adjustable so it will fit on anyone's neck.

The finished necklace, adjustable to any neck size

It occurred to me that I had the perfect place to keep the necklace--inside a little gift box I had recently made!

I had been saving a small brown cardboard box for a few months. One of the people that I trade small art with had sent me some ATCs and ephemera in the box. I had been storing some Irresistible India gold trim with black squares and pearls in the box, along with some other supplies, and realized that somehow the color of the cardboard went beautifully with Gwen's sheer trim.

I had some black velvet ribbon that went nicely with the fancy trim, and decided to use both the fancy trim and velvet ribbon on the box, and to paint the rest of the box black. I carefully measured, and taped off the area that would show through the trim, revealing the beige color of the unpainted box.

The area under the sari trim would be left natural, and the rest of the box painted black

 I used black gesso to cover most of the box top and bottom, and when dry, gave it a shine with a coat of clear gloss medium. Next, I carefully adhered the sheer trim to the box top with heavy gel medium and used clips to secure it. When dry, I added the velvet ribbon trim.

Clips held the sari trim in place until the heavy matte gel dried

When the ribbon and trim had dried and the box was almost done, I added the finishing touch: flat bottomed pearls. I attached them to the velvet ribbon with a glue gun.

 

Top view of the finished gift box

Top and side view of the finished sari trim gift box

 The finished box is elegant and striking...perfect for any occasion...and who would think it was really easy to make?

Like the trim and medallions I used? The good news is that there will be a big Cyber Monday Sale on the Gwen Lafleur Studios website...just in time to create some special items for holiday gift-giving! Or, take a look at Gwen's original mixed media and jewelry creations, they are just gorgeous! You may also want to check out what the other Artist Tribe members have created by going to Gwen's blog, or click here to see all the Artist Tribe projects.