2023 Swap N Hop

The 2023 Swap N Hop of the Bead Peeps group is here and my partner for this swap is the organiser Ms. Linda Anderson. She is from Saint Cloud, Minnesota where the snowfall has been phenomenal this year. Linda loves using lots of colour and texture in her work. She makes and sells jewellery under the brand name Cherry on Top design and blogs at From the bead board. Hello and welcome to all those who are new to this blog. I hope that you will stay for a while and explore the blog section and the exhibitions listed on the homepage. To the rest of you, I am excited to show all the beaded jewellery that I made in this Swap N Hop reveal post.

Beads swapped

Here are most of the beads and components that I sent Linda. There were a few more last-minute additions like teal beads, Czech glass flowers and a Tribal metal tassel that I do not have a photo of. I wanted to send her as many handmade components as possible and sent four pendants that were made by me along with brass handmade Dokra beads and artisanal lampwork drops that I bought at a fair. Since Linda loves colour, I sent beads of different colours – green, pink, purple, teal, brass, off-white and blue.

Linda sent me a set of lampwork discs, lots of leather cut outs and beads in yellow, blue, and white or clear with iridescent coating. Since I do not have a picture of what she sent me ( I will tell you why in a minute), here is an image that Linda had shared with me earlier.

The customs Snafu

I was really buried under work that I was able to send my beads slightly after the mailing deadline. Linda could not mail her package as the roads around her house were buried under snow. Hence, both of us decided to send our parcels via speed/priority mail to meet the deadline. Thankfully, my parcel reached her soon. However, her parcel was stuck at the customs for more than two weeks and took its own sweet time to be delivered.

When it finally reached me, I was in for a big shock. I was levied a customs duty of 5000INR – my travel budget for an entire month. I have received jewellery from US and UK without having to pay duty. Sometimes for supplies for costume jewellery, they charge a moderate amount. But this was ridiculous. When I challenged the duty, I was given only two options. Either return the parcel to its sender or pay the duty. Of course, I kept the parcel as Linda put it together with care. I channeled my frustration into making jewellery , the moment I opened the box and hence no pictures.

2023 Swap N Hop reveal

The good news is that, I made four pairs of earrings and one necklace. I have also used a few teal beads in a necklace for an upcoming collection. Despite my inclination for bright colours, I find yellow very difficult to use. Hence, I tabled it for future use. I attempted earrings and pendants using the gorgeous lampwork discs but they were all epic fails. Eventually, I moved to the clear beads and those with the iridescent coating. they became the two pairs of earrings and the necklace seen below. I used the coated beads, Czech glass, recycled glass, lampwork (pink) and vintage sequins beads to make the necklace. While both pairs can be worn with the necklace, the one with the sequins beads suit better, in my opinion. What do you think?

Model – Anuprabha | Hair & Makeup – Abhirami Shivakumar | Clothing -model’s own

Since the beads are a bit heavy, I used some rose gold tone chain to decrease the weight of the necklace. I was organising a makeup workshop for the students of my Fashion styling class and since the set matched the garment the model had, it turned into a whole look. I love how the swirls on the beads matched those on her dress. The necklace and the earrings (one with sequins beads) are for sale as a set.

Other than findings, I was determined to use only what Linda had sent me, without dipping into my stash (a.k.a. comfort zone). I achieved this objective with these pieces. However, I will use the remaining beads along with my stash in the jewellery that I will make in the future.

Leather earrings

The moment I opened the box, the cut bits of leather attracted me. After playing around with combinations for a while, I quickly made two pairs of earrings. Both are large studs. However, one has a leather dangle. They are a bit fuzzy as they are machine cut and the back is raw. I did not cover the back with felt as I normally would do. Though I like both, my personal favourite of this reveal is the layered hexagonal stud shown below.

I thought that I could get a few more pieces done. However, this is it for now. This swap got me working on a new collection of jewellery after a hiatus and therefore I deem it a success. Thanks to Linda who is both the event host and my swap partner 🙂

Participant List

Please do check out what everyone else has made

Kelly Hosford patterson
Marde Lowe
Tele Raack
Gloria Allen
Inge von Roos
Michelle Curran
Divya N (You are here)
Linda Anderson
Terry Jeanette Lynch Carter
Kathy Zeigler Lindemer
Robin Kae Reed
Crystalle Hall
Cheryl Prondzinski
Kemberly Mills
Mandee Riemer
Dyanne Seguin
Tami Norris
Michelle Voges
Ramona Hayes
Naomi Knafla
Tina Hemr
Sabine Melanthe
Nancy Edmundson Miller
Christina Marie Hickman

I hope you find it interesting
Cheers

2 responses to “2023 Swap N Hop”

Rozantia Petkova

17/04/2023

I understand your frustration but I’m glad you dealt with it and made some wonderful pieces! Swaps usually give you beads that may not be common in your country and this alone adds interest to the pieces. As much as I like the necklace and earrings set, the leather earrings are outstanding! In your opinion, do they need a backing?

1. Divya
  
  17/04/2023
  
  So true. Recycled glass beads are super common in India but I have never seen them with a rough edge finish prior to this. I think backing is about personal preference as some folks dislike leather touching their skin. It also gives a neater finish and makes the pieces sturdy.