ABS May 2012: The Italian's House

                                          "Italian's House at Monmarte" by Maurice Utrillo

This wonderful painting with its contrast of green and white is the inspiration piece for our jewelry designs this month.  For more information about this painting and artist, please visit the Art Bead Scene May 2012 Monthly Challenge page. 

I made two pieces for the Challenge this time.  In the past, I've primarily made necklaces, so I was determined to try a bracelet this month.    I wanted to include the green and white colors, but also the light brown earthy toned walkway and the brown wood-tones.  I wanted to capture the pattern of the alternating greens and whites of the buildings and shutters, and the rectangular frames of the window shutters and doors.  

The focal of the bracelet is by Cindy Kovac, Captured Moments.

Copper jumprings and aqua-plated copper wire connect this to the rest of the bracelet.

I began by ordering the beads I hoped would be "just right."  Then when they arrived, I put them in a pattern that fit the painting.  I wanted one side green and the other side patterned with green and white.   It would have been perfect... but it was about 4 inches too large around the wrist!   So I eliminated, and eliminated, and then removed more beads... until it no longer had the pattern I had yearned for, but only one or two of each bead.   I suspect yet one more needs to be removed, but here is what we have...

Three of the green stones remain on the left side, 

in honor of the green building standing alone on that side.

Hand-dyed ribbon from Prairie Bird Boutique 

intertwines among the beads,

as the green of the shutters keeps breaking the solid whiteness 

of the wall on the right side of the painting.  

There are smaller green rondelles in multiples on this side of the bracelet, 

divided by the white beads, representing the right side of the painting.

Sandy Brown Daisies Ceramic Bead, handmade by Natalie Pappas of NKPBeads,

is for the roadway between the two buildings.

It is surrounded by a Fossil Bead in Natural Stone White and 

a Blue Sky Jasper Faceted Nugget, 

the colors of the buildings in each side 

of the road/walkway.

After I finished the bracelet, I couldn't help myself, I had to make a necklace too!  This one is not nearly so representational as the last piece, but I repeated the blue/green element with the remaining Jasper nuggets.   

The primary beads are not white, but red wooden beads with a delicate cream-color design on them.  

The colors seemed to be a fine match for the copper beads that appear in the chain of beads,

and at the end of the pendant. 

 The bail is also genuine copper.

The hand-made ceramic pottery link 

is from Captured Moments.

And more hand-dyed seam-binding at the end.  I tried to use coordinating colors, but they didn't seemed to bring anything special to the piece.   When I finally tried this sunflower yellow, it seemed to lighten and brighten the entire piece, and just felt right to me.

Thank you for taking a closer look at my entry in the Art Bead Scene May 2012 Monthly Challenge.      I hope you'll take a look at the other entries.

  

ABS will host a Blog Tour of the participants on Thursday, May 31st.   Please join the fun.  It begins at the ABS Monthly Challenge page!  

Sharyl ~ Sharyl's Jewelry*

Reminder:   May 31st is last day of Wedding & Special Event Jewelry Sale

and

10% off ALL Jewelry & components, even off sale prices!