In the Metal Garden

I think that I have not yet quite gotten the knack of buying supplies on-line yet. I am used to buying beads and findings by sight. The ability to actually hold the item in my hand, while comparing its colours against other potential mates; being able to size up the appropriate findings; being able to judge the scale and heft of the item with which you intend to work - None of these are possible when shopping online.

You must scrutinize all the given details, not just skim. Consider the measurements. Account for the fact that the colour you are viewing on your monitor may not be exactly like what you will receive. Remember that the photos of the item have possibly been taken under studio lights, whereas the piece when worn will be worn in sunlight, office light, candle-light, and none of these look the same. Viewing something in two dimensions is very different than seeing it in 3-D and with the naked eye. If an item has been photographed from different angles, look at them all. Certainly, I have learned, never just get sucked in by a pretty picture and bright colours.

Well, sometimes in one's excitement, all these lessons learned fly out the window. I have to admit recent guilt in getting sucked in by a pretty picture and bright colours. I have been ogling enameled bead caps for sometime, and a few weeks ago in a frenzy I ordered a sizable amount of them. Yesterday they came in the mail, and I realised that though were extremely beautiful, and the colours were spectacular, they were not exactly what I had hoped. Some were gigantic; others teeny-tiny.


I pulled out the beads that I had hoped to use them with, and none of them, not a single solitary bead cap would wrap itself around these beads. So I pulled out more beads, and tried more bead caps. I was getting discouraged as I discarded vial after vial of beads. Had I really wasted my money on these? In a final desperate attempt, I placed one cap inside another to see if I could, by layering, achieve a proper fit.

Well, didn't those two caps look lovely all snuggled together like that. The colours played off each other nicely and the difference in design made for a gorgeous textured look. I pawed through the pile in front of me and looked for another cap that would be pretty with it, layered it in. Continuing to skewer a variety of different bead caps, I finally arrived at a place I never expected to be. No longer were these bead caps I was playing with, suddenly they had blossomed into enamelled flowers. They remind me so much of vintage Parisian pieces, and I am as happy as I am surprised by the outcome.

This is the first one that I did. It reminds me of an ornamental cabbage while at the height of its colour.



This second one reminds me a pond lily:



I don't know if this resembles any type of flower that actually occurs in nature, but I love the soft vintage colours with the little pop of strong colour in the centre.



So far I am stumped as to what to do with them, although I think the cabbage flower would make a smashing cocktail ring, if only I can decide how to attach it to a ring. Darcy will be home in a couple days and he is far more mechanically minded and I suspect he may have a solution for me. As for the others, I am picturing brooches or maybe pendants.