Beads

*Versión en español aquí*

Beads are tiny pieces of different materials that have been used since ancient times for making jewelry or accessories such as bracelets, necklaces, talismans and charms. They are usually spherical, but we can also find them cylindrical, cubical, and almost in any shape we can imagine. Materials are also varied, from wood to fine crystal, metal, plastic, rubber or even paper.

There is a world of creations with beads, from simple necklaces to complex 3D figures. Here I show a collection of figures I made during some holidays, after I learned how to make the classical bead crocodiles:

Some 2D figures and a 3D giraffe

It is hard to stop once you start making figures! I prefer to work with copper thread instead of nylon, since it is more malleable and easier to work with.

Two complex figures

An angel

A funny shepherd with his sheep

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Origami flower brooches

*Versión en español aquí*

Some time ago I wanted to make a small gift for a group of people I was working with. But I wanted it to have a special, personal touch, so I decided to make these origami flower brooches:

They are really eye-catching, but at the same time very easy to make. We need:

– Paper squares of different sizes. For each brooch, we need a square of 9×9 cm. (3.54 x 3.54 inches), another of 6×6 cm (2.36 x 2.36 inches), and a third one of 4×4 cm (1.57 x 1.57 inches). It’s better not to use thick paper, especially for the little parts.
– Glass beads for the central part.
– Needle and thread.
– Brooch bases, that you can find in every notions store/haberdashery.
– Glue may not be essential but it will help to get a better result 🙂
– Some soft varnish; again, it’s not essential but it makes the result look better.

Firstly, we have to fold each piece of paper so as to make an origami flower, following the steps as shown in the image below. That way we will get three flowers of three different sizes, and of three different colors if we choose the adequate papers.

When we have the three flowers, we put all together by sewing them with the needle, starting in the back of the biggest one and adding the other two on the same thread. To make the centre of the brooch look nicer, we can add a glass bead to the thread before sewing the three flowers on the other way back. To join the flowers in a better way, we can add a drop of glue between each pair of flowers before knotting the thread at the back of the brooch. We can sew the group of flowers to the brooch base with the same thread, also adding a bit of glue to secure the joint.
Once the glue has completely dried, we can apply the varnish to the flowers. That will make the brooch more resistant, and it will also look brighter. The easiest option is to use a spray varnish for paper, since it reaches all the small holes and corners of the origami.

These brooches I made were not too big, so they are quite easy to combine to get a touch of color in our outfit. As they are so easy to make, you can have several in different colors and use them with different clothes; I’m sure more than one person will ask you about them!