ArtFire

Christi Friesen inspired peacocks

Published On: 01-06-2012 05:29pm

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Category: Animals

A while back I discovered this tutorial from Christi Friesen on making a peacock necklace http://www.firemountaingems.com/galleryofdesigns/jewelry_design_gallery.asp?docid=940J&sact=search&kwsearch=christi+friesen.  I also got her book Birds of a Feather.  Both inspired me to try my hand at sculpting birds, one of the few animals I haven't actually created too often.  The pictures of the peacocks were just so colorful and striking I decided to start with some peacock projects.  The first thing I created was this wall hanging.

I had these little mirrors that added the perfect amount of sparkle and shine.  This type of project is a great way to make use of all my beads and findings too.  I've got a lot of really cool beads, but not all of them match.  This way I can use single beads to add color, texture, and interest.
After working on this somewhat large project, I decided I wanted to make some peacocks that you could wear.  So I created these colorful little peacock earrings.

I used tiny glass seed beads and tube beads to accent these fun earrings.  One of the things I love about Christi Friesen is that she always encourages you to take projects in your own direction and get creative with them.  It's all about having fun and creating something that will make you smile. 
My newest, and most challenging peacock piece is this necklace.

I must admit, I love this necklace!  I really only had a very vague idea of what I wanted to do when I started this project.  I had four red Swarovski beads left over from another project, and those inspire the flowers.  The teal blue Pearl Ex on the body and the bright blue Pearl Ex on the tail add the most gorgeous shimmer.  I even created my own polymer clay beads by mixing the leftover clay from the flowers and the peacock.  Then to make them even more interesting I added a band of mixed Pearl Ex powders around the center of the beads.  I coated the beads with glaze, and while it was still wet (and on a skewer so it could roll), I rolled the beads through a dusting of mixed pearl Ex powders.  Once the glaze was dry I added another coat of glaze to protect the powders.  The effect is very unique and no two beads are quite the same.

I think I spent as much time choosing beads and designing the layout of the necklace as I did sculpting the focal peacock, flowers, and beads.  And it lays perfectly when you wear it too.  This is the kind of necklace that makes people say "Wow!  Where did you get that?!" 
I had so much fun creating these pieces, I'm sure you'll be seeing more birds from me in the future!
Thanks for stopping by and sharing another creative adventure! =)

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