31 Days of Halloween - Day 16 - Wicked Wire Wrapping

Eeek! It's day 16 of Smeared and Smudged Forum's 31 Days of Halloween Blog Hop!   This has been so much fun, hopping and commenting AND I thank everyone for the awesome comments you've give me! 
 So you made Halloween Doughnut Beads, now what? Now we make them into earrings! This is basic wire wrapping! Yea! Go grab some wire, some head pins and pliers and let's get to making!

Material: Beads - any beads will do, but this will cover a double holed bead like these doughnuts
20 gauge wire
Head pins
Assorted beads
Round nose pliers
Chain nose pliers
Wire cutters

	You don't want to see a wire in the center of the doughnut beads, so you'll want to begin with 2 head pins and thread them from the center out. The wire tails need to be rounded to thread this way.
	This is how it should look with both head pins in place.
	Grab on wire tail and wrap it around the round nose pliers to form a loop.
	Wrap the rest of the tail around itself below the loop 2 or 3 times. Use the chain nose pliers to grab the wire end while the round nose pliers are still in the loop.Trim off excess.
	Try different combinations of beads until you get the look you want.
	Repeat the loop on the other side of the doughnut, but don't close it.Make a loop on the top of the beaded head pin and close it by wrapping the tail around under the loop as above.
	Slide the closed loop of the dangle on the open loop at the bottom of the doughnut.
	Close the last loop as above.
	We'll do the ear wires in another post.

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Amber Moon Earrings

New on the Bone Tree - Amber Moon Earrings

I made these little guys from polymer clay.  The base color is black and I brushed on iridescent powders in amazing colors.  I added glitter and finished with a glossy sealer.  The dangles are a white iridescent moon and an amber glass  teardrop.  You can find them on my Etsy shop - Delicious Mischief

New on the Bone Tree

Heaven and Earth Earrings

In my Etsy shop

Did I mention that I love asymmetry?  These are recycle earrings in that the polymer clay strips were leftover from another project.  In fact, they are leftovers from the leftovers.  

Craft foil on polymer clay is spectacular!  I love to foil both sides of a piece of black clay,  I cut out tiny shapes and make one or two holes so they can be used for anything you would use a bead for.  Some pieces may come out with only one foiled side. I use those for tiles in my mixed media work.

When I'm out of room to use the cutters, I cut up the leftovers and press them together showing as much foil as possible.  Then I use a cutter that will use most of the pile.  These make great pendants.

First Leftovers Pendant

Then I take what's left of that pile, push it together and run it though the pasta roller on the widest setting.  The shapes are organic and really fun!  Of course they are asymmetrical!  Yea! 

What do you do with your leftovers?

Cookie and Crystal Earrings

Who doesn't love cookies!  Chocolate chip cookies are my favorite and I use the images of cookies and tiny polymer clay cookies in all kinds of mixed media art and jewelry.  Exhibit A:  Pearl, Crystal & Cookie Earrings.

My daughter doesn't always like my jewelry, but she loved these!  It's just the right combination of elegance and kitsch, she says.  Booyah! is what I have to say.

What are YOU working on?  I want to see and hear all about it!

 candace@cool2craft.com

Darkness Inspiration's Monster Challenge

Coffee Monster

Yes, this is what I look like before my morning coffee.  It's an inch and a half tall it's made of white earthenware clay and colored with crayons and black paint.

Check out Darkness Inspiration's Blog!

Candy Corn Riot Earrings

These fun funky earrings are made with real candy corn!

I love the smell of candy corn! It's the smell of autumn for me. I got the idea to try this 15 years ago, and I still have the original pair. They are quick and easy to make, but you'll need several hours to condition the candy corn. Here's what you'll need to make these earrings:

• Candy Corn (about $1.50 for a bag)
• 1 Spool of 24 Gauge Wire , any color (about $1.30 for 17 yds)
• 1 Pair of Earring Wires (about $1.30 for 6 pair)
• Tacky Glue (about $2.50 for 4oz)
• Assorted Beads
• Any Kind of Acrylic Spray Sealer (about $2.50)
• Small Wooden Skewer

Joanns has the next three tools for $20 in a pack

• Needle Nose Pliers
• Round Nose Pliers, the Wooden Skewer can be used in place of these
• Wire Cutters, or Old Craft Scissors

1 Place several candy corns on a newspaper and in a well ventilated area spray them lightly with sealer. Let dry completely. Turn the candy corn over and repeat. Turn and repeat. Turn and repeat...You get the idea. You'll want to coat each side ten or more times. If you try to spray a heavy coat of sealer, the colors will run, so patience is key.

2 Cut about 2 inches of wire for each piece of candy corn. Fold about one third of the wire over the wooden skewer. Use the long end to wrap around the short end, keeping the short piece as straight as possible. What you end up with looks something like a screw with eye at the top.

3 Put a drop of Tacky Glue on the end of the eye screw and screw it gently into the top of the candy corn. You may also want to put a tiny drop of glue where the eye meets the candy corn. Let dry overnight, if you can. You should be able to give the wire a gentle tug and have no movement.

4 Now comes the fun part! Cut a three inch length of wire. Make a loop around the skewer not quite in the middle and don't twist it. Choose an accent bead and slide it on the wire. Now make a loop on the other side of the bead.

5 Slide the candy corn onto one of the loops and holding the loop with needle nose pliers, twist the straight end between the loop and the bead. Twist at least twice, then cut off the what's left sticking out.

6 Cut five 5 or 6 inch wire pieces. Choose one accent bead per wire. Thread one wire at a time through the loop below the bead. Slide the bead on and give the wire one complete twist so it won't work itself out of the loop.

7 Holding the wire on the bead side close to the pointy end of the skewer, wrap the wire around the point to make a coil. Slide it off and repeat with the other end of the wire. I repeated this with three different colored beads on the loop.

8 Slide the untwisted loop onto the loop of an earring wire and holding the untwisted loop with needle nose pliers wrap the end around to close it. add two more beaded wires and wrap the ends on the skewer point. The coiled wires can be arranged any way you like for maximum bling.