When I saw the post I went to Michael's to pick up the beads right away. The only beads I had a little trouble finding were the white quartzite nuggets. Eventually, I found a single strand hiding behind something else. I have to say that I really enjoyed the bead selection because it was very different from beads I would have picked out. I puzzled for a while over whether I thought I could make the colors work together but then I was ready to get started.
When I finally began designing, I really wanted to work with the natural feel of the beads. I haven't worked much with leather, but I had a couple of leather cords that I thought would complement the beads. After a short while, I abandoned this attempt and decided to tackle the project again the next day. Here is a picture of the failed attempt:
I love how you can suspend another bead in the center of the white shells, it makes a really nice element for the necklace and the little brown shell discs added a lovely texture.
I ended up using the owl button as the focal and I hammered a clasp out of brass to finish off the necklace.
Overall, I was pleased with how my necklace turned out and I had a lot of fun participating. I still think there could be potential in my abandoned design but that is for another day. I am so looking forward to admiring all of the other fantastic creations! You can check the others out too on Lorelei's awesome blog: http://lorelei1141.blogspot.com/
-Sarah O