Oh my goodness, I was stunned at how exquisitely this piece worked up. So simple to make, so incredibly opulent and lovely...my little girl commented that it looked like pieces she had seen on a class trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I made it as a birthday present for my mother, and now I am seized with the desire to make one for myself as well! – Leah N.
I wore this necklace for the first time today and received so many compliments. People seemed awed when I told them I made it. Ellen's products are so fantastic. I'm really picky about kits and color combinations, but her color sense is phenomenal and she uses quality supplies. I'm officially addicted to Earthfaire! – Danielle Marion
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We recently were able to get quite a few of the larger fire polish crystals in some absolutely beautiful combinations of colors. So we've been playing around with ways to use them to best advantage.
This is for all of the marvelous Queen Mothers out there --- we hereby present some royal Crown Jewels for wonderful fun wearing.
This necklace is a variation of Sivia's MoonRise Neckpiece once again.
As I was making it, I wasn't sure about it at all -- it just seemed as if it would be "over-the-top." But once it was done, and I tried it on, it started to appeal to me more and more. Mind you, this is not a necklace for wearing with jeans and a tee shirt. But for fancier occasions, this could be the perfect piece to add sparkle and glow to your look.
We stated out with a 20 meter spool of Tapestry Braid #12 in gold. And for the smaller beads we used some really special ones from Miyuki that are called gold lusters -- somewhat more expensive than usual seed beads, these have some precious metals to them and have a wonderful depth to their look. We also added metallic gold megatamas and some crystal AB 5mm megatamas as well as some rich burgundy triangles from Toho.
So the overall look is definitely one of richness and royalty.
I strung these smaller beads on, for about 20 to 22 inches of the thread and then started adding the larger fire polish crystals. I can't even begin to describe these -- they catch the light in a most amazing way. We used various mixes in many shapes and sizes though the majority were 10mm ones.
These were threaded on for another 20 inches and then the small ones again. These measurements end up giving a finished necklace of about 15" (not counting the clasp) -- with roughly 5" of each section once it is knitted.
I used size 0 (2mm) needles (not included in the kit).
It was all finished off with a lovely gold plated silver magnetic clasp -- detail can be seen below -- that holds the necklace well and makes it oh-so-easy to put on and take off.
[One idea on using the magnetic clasps -- courtesy of Catie -- the strength of the magnet can break the thread, and it is always a better idea to open the magnetic clasp with your fingers rather than pulling on the thread. Obviously, should the thread break if pulled on, your necklace could unravel. So this tip is: Complete the necklace, and finish off the ends. Then attach a SEPARATE piece of thread, and use THAT to sew the magnetic clasp to your jewelry. That way if the thread breaks, your necklace is saved, and you can just attach a new thread.]
There will be plenty of extra beads in the kit and lots of excess thread -- enough to make the necklace longer if you so choose or, alternatively, to make a matching bracelet. All you'd need is another clasp for that.
The pattern is the original one that Sivia wrote for the Moonrise Neckpiece, so if you have it already, we offer the option of getting the kit by itself.
These necklaces are easy to make and yield tremendous results. A fast and most satisfying knit -- and beautiful to wear.
