I started this necklace project a while back and would have finished it far sooner had life not gotten in the way, which has wont to do. Part of the reason this project took longer than expected was that I was unsure of what shape of beads to use for joining the beaded bead components since I intended the necklace length to be 48”. I wanted to be able to wear it long (like a flapper!) or doubled for a shorter version. Miyuki #2 6mm tube beads were a consideration as were bugle beads. However, I decided to create my own tube beads using Premo! polymer clay and I love the results! The polymer clay tubes are lightweight and I was able to vary the length of each bead by slicing with a craft knife…some are 1/2”, others are 3/4”, and a few are 1” long. And making the tube beads allowed me to mix various shades of clay that perfectly coordinate with the beaded bead components. I used 4mm vinyl disk beads between each tube bead…I could have made those in polymer clay too, but as I had the vinyl disk beads on hand it made perfect sense to use those. I am now in the process of editing the step-by-step tutorial and photos and hope to have both tutorial and beading kits listed in my Etsy shop very soon. Stay tuned!
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