Margie and Me: The Glamorous Ladies of Hollywood

I really enjoyed working on this month's palettes.

I made a decision to not skip out on either palette, but to definitely try to tackle both of them.

They really were very different in their color sense, but I am very, very happy with the pieces that I created this month, and I've been wearing them since I finished them earlier this week.

The first up was Ms. Grace.

I took the background color of the light gray that I was seeing in the photo, and made it the main color in this piece. It's a soft pleasing color and by adding the little punches of the yellow and garnet in the embroidery, it kept the piece simple, but pleasing to the eye.

In the close-up, you can see that the ocean jasper bead has these little inclusions in it that give it a druzy-esque finish. 

It's a substantial pendant, measuring just over 2" in length, and I beaded a chain to add a little color up the neck. (It really needed it for balance!)

I've called it Grace's Pendant, and I've put it in the shop here.

The second color palette really had me stumped. I don't think I've ever put together these colors and I really struggled with proportion when I started working.

I tried adding the red, subtracting the red, using black as the focal....

In the end, the red got canned. It just wasn't working.

But, I REALLY like the resulting pendant. It's simple, nothing fancy, but it features this really chunky piece of turquoise surrounded by mustard yellow seed beads with transparent turquoise and matte black.

I worked in the soft pink around the edges by creating a picot that is a smooth transition from pendant to skin. The little drop adds some movement and interest to the piece.

I call it the Warhol Pendant and it's also in the shop here.

The best part about both of these pendants?

I kept records as I worked, noting the exact amount of the supplies and the hours that I spent on each piece and then took into account listing fees, paypal fees, shipping materials and time spent photographing each piece which means that they are priced fair to both myself and my customers.

Which means that I'm proud to put them out there knowing that I've given myself and my work the value that it deserves.

It really feels good to know that it's not arbitrary and that the past three years of learning through trial and error and gaining experience through practice are reflected in my work and in the prices that I charge for it.

I do hope that if you played along this month with Margie and Me that you'll leave a comment with a link to your creation!

I would love to see how everyone was inspired by the color palettes.

Have a great weekend all!