An Easy Micro Macrame Earring Class

If you're looking for an easy little project, these micro macrame earrings might be just the thing for you.  My new class at CraftArtEdu.com covers how to make them, step by step.  I've included videos and scads of photos like this:

I get so up close and personal in the photographs that you can detail every broken fingernail, dry skin cell and hangnail.  What can I say - I suffer for my art.  There are even some really nice close ups featuring my flesh-toned band aid:

Oh, yeah.  Look at that - that picture is a great shot of the bandage (chopped my finger instead of the celery) and the great hangnails.  But the need for a manicure aside, the photos in the tutorial will be very helpful in context, I promise.  You'll be making your own little tiny work-of-art earrings in no time.

Just to sweeten the pot a little, the nice folks over at CraftArtEdu.com are having a little sale on not only this new class, but all of my classes there (20% off through midnight CT, Thursday, March 6, 2014).  If you haven't been there to check them out yet, you really should go.  No really, go.  I'll wait here...  

Are you back?  Did you see I have my own little Micro Macrame section over there?  I'm pretty proud of that section.  I've put a lot of time and effort into making those classes the best that I can.  I really do try to make them as thorough and detailed as possible and my goal is to make you feel like you're taking a class with me in person.  BUT... this is even better.  You can pause me and rewind me and replay me all you want and I won't even yell at you.  That's a deal you can't beat.  Add in the 20% off and even I want to buy my classes.

A New Micro Macrame Tutorial

It's been a long time coming, folks, but I finally finished a tutorial for a version of the Curves micro macrame bracelet!  This one is knotted in Tex 400 cord for a nice beefy bracelet.  

The whole bracelet uses only ONE macrame knot.  Yes, really - only double half hitch knots (which you can learn how to make here).  You make them backwards and forwards and every-other-wards, but it's still only ONE knot.  

I finished off this design with some clamp ribbon ends for a nice, neat look and added a simple toggle clasp.  A lobster clasp also works nicely.  

This is an example of one of the photographs from the tutorial.  I took a million photos... okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but I did include about 70 photographs in 24 pages of step by step instructions.  I'd probably rate this pattern as sort of middle-of-the-road as far as difficulty.  It's not hard (only ONE knot, remember?) but you do have to keep track of the cords that are trying to go off in one direction or another.  If you are comfortable with the double half hitch knot, you're probably ready for this one.

You'll find this new micro macrame bracelet tutorial in my Etsy shop here.  Happy knotting!!

A Micro Macrame Fairy Tale

Once upon a time in the farthest reaches of a a faraway land, there lived a dragon.  She was a beautiful, wild creature who hunted in the craggy mountains and made her home in a rocky cave.  Her graceful body was covered coppery scales which perfectly camouflaged her sinuous curves and sweeping wings.  But she was far from dull, this coppery dragon, for when the sunlight caught her body just right, she shone with golden hues and glints of pink and blue and green.

This dragon thought hers was the perfect life.  The perfect setting, the perfect coloring - everything a dragon should be.  One day this dragon decided to venture further into the kingdom and what she found amazed her.

Everywhere she looked, she found dragons in magnificent colors, with brightly colored scales and feathered wings.

And each of these new dragons thought it was the perfect dragon.  Perfect in every way.  The first dragon was so dazzled by the beauty of the others that she began to doubt herself.  She forgot what a fierce and powerful hunter she was, how cunning and smart and perfectly suited for her life.  She compared herself and felt inferior.  

And the moral of this dragon's tale?  We must never forget that each and every one of us is perfect - just exactly the way we are.  Perceived flaws and all.  We are all different and we are all perfect.

If you look for the flaws, you will find them.  And if you search for the strength and beauty, you will find that instead.

Red!?! Oh, Horror of Horrors!

When I was asked to work up a couple of micro macrame demo pieces using natural stone beads, I said sure!  And when asked what stone, I said, "Anything as long as it isn't red or orange."  As you can probably guess from the post title and the photo above, the beads I received were Mexican Red Snowflake jasper.  RED is even in the name of the stone, for crying out loud.  And if that's not bad enough, it's paired with brown.  *sigh*  Well, I'm not one to back down from a challenge or break my word, so I figured I'd better find some inspiration.  And believe me, I hunted.  I even ended up in the fabric department looking for interesting color combinations and finally found a paisley that added some unexpected coral tones in with the red and brown.  Okay, I'm thinking, I can work with that.  So I dug through my stash and came up with this:

Now we're talking.  My next challenge was to fit my cord through the beads.  One cord would pass easily through all of them, but for the design I had in mind, I needed to get two cords through the hole.  Uh, huh.  I resorted to dipping my cord ends in Fray Check, which I don't usually have to do any more, and I had to use the bead reamer on a couple of the beads, but I did get them to work.

Well, now.  That's kind of interesting, if I do say so myself!  The central stones are 8mm and the ones around that are 4mm.  I used dark red, brown and a peachy shade of cord and accented with glass seed beads in dark red, peach and coral-lined crystal.  Then I had a thought (shush - it happens!).

What if I brought a little turquoise color to the party?  

I heard a choir of angels singing in the background, I swear I did.  Now that's my style - even with the natural stones and the warm colors.  I won.  I worked through it and conquered my fear.  I am triumphant!  Okay, so maybe it's not as good as curing cancer or making it to the top of Everest, but I'm feeling pretty good and I take that wherever I can get it.

And now, I think I'll reward myself by snuggling up in a blanket on the couch in front of the fireplace and watching a cheesy movie.  Hopefully I can find something with dinosaurs.  Or ancient Egyptians.  Or ghosts...  

Pantone's color of the year for 2014 is a vivid Radiant Orchid and I've been playing a bit with the color.  My first piece was a simple four part braid just to see how the the different shades work together.

I felt like my warm up piece read a bit too pink, so for my next piece, I concentrated more on the purple side of things.  I knotted a spiral using three shades of orchid and a bit of olive for some contrast.

I tied on a pendant with a polymer clay bead by Barbara Bechtel and a pendant by Humblebeads.

The bead caps I found mimic the flower petal/leaf theme.

The floral motif is topped off with the sterling silver clasp.

And the finished necklace looks like this:

Micro Macrame Inspired by Downton Abbey

Downton Abbey is one of my absolute favorites - even if I am still mad at them for killing of Matthew last season.  Besides getting wrapped up in the characters' stories, I get lost in the period setting.  The scenery is amazing and the styles are sublime.  See - I'm getting a little giddy just writing about the show!  So when one of my favorite bead stores, Bello Modo put out a challenge based on Downton Abbey and Vintaj, I couldn't resist.

A waterlily ribbon slide by Vintaj became my focal, and to tie it in a little with my cord color, I hit it with some gilders paste.  I think it really shows off the graceful curves of the piece.

I echoed some of the curves in the micro macrame band, and accented it with vintage Venetian seed beads and some really old (antique?) glass seed beads of unknown origin (maybe French).

Using vintage beads was very different than the precise Japanese seed beads I usually use.  They are very much more imperfect both in cut and color distribution, but really like the feel they bring to this piece.

Even though neither Vintaj nor nylon bead cord were available during the time period, I had great fun with the inspiration.  And it was a great excuse to finally use some of the vintage beads I've been hoarding!

More Micro Macrame in Purple, Olive and Teal

I will admit, I can be a teensy bit obsessive, and lately I've been stuck on a color palette from a quilt my mom made.  If you missed the inspirational quilt, you can find it in this post.  The colors are purple and teal and olive and I can't get enough.  

I've knotted waves of purple and teal and olive and lacy flowers of olive and purple and teal.

I also admit I love to see multiple micro macrame pieces in palette side by side.  To compare and contrast, you know.

All that and I think I am not quite finished with these colors yet.  I still see inspiration in the pile.

Stay tuned!