Bling Binge!

 

2024 was a busy year of writing, podcast, and video commitments and not a lot of sewing or crafts until the holidays. However, there's always time for some handmade bling!

The best of part of jewelry making is being able to fill a gap in my wardrobe or accessories with new earrings, necklaces, or bracelets – a dangle or pop of color to suit any neckline, sleeve length, or mood. I wear certain accent colors per season, so it's easy to see a purple gap in the winter, a red gap in the fall, or the need for festive holiday green and make something accordingly. I know what I want, make it, and wear it immediately! It feels good, I get compliments in public, so it's all win/win, right?

This January however, my jewelry-making process changed drastically when I began bling binging non-stop. This one bead at a time catharsis is something I can control now that the world has become so out of control. Instead of doom scrolling I've made dozens of new jewelry sets in a variety of combinations and colors. Upon realizing that some of these pieces were very similar to each other and some past me-made bling, I also created a spreadsheet chart coordinating which colors and metals had been done in each earring, necklace, or bracelet. Because I put a cross somewhere on most sets, I also made a checklist for what color sets have a cross where. It sounds silly as well as complicated, but apparently my prior handwritten list of what combinations I needed was not enough to avoid duplicates! There were more sideways cross charms then pendant styles in my bead stash, so I continued to make a cross bracelet in every combination possible. I wear a cross solely for me, yet thanks to the current administration, I also don't want to wear a more prominent cross necklace anymore lest people think I am one of these fake “Christians” who doesn't understand compassion for the suffering and marginalized as Jesus intended. Thankfully, a bracelet with a small cross facing inside the wrist is a creative comfort in such trying times. I give my bracelets a touch when encountering such ignorant people in the wild. It keeps my mouth shut!

Instead of seeing the need for something I wanted to wear right now, the goal of this binge became filling in all the color and style gaps in my handy chart regardless of my accessory season. Making my summer blues during the March gray? Gasp! Rather than going to buy specific beads, this forced me to use up the supplies in hand – including thrifted glass beads, broken vintage pieces in need of repair, and findings that have toiled around in the plastic sorting boxes for years. I did end up using a holiday Amazon gift card for some new wire and elastic supplies or lacking bead colors. Strangely however, this pattern meant that there are some me made pieces that I kind of don't really like. The sets that are too similar to one another frustrate me, and by time I get to wear the autumn orange, I suspect I may end up re-doing the items I dislike. February is my purple month yet one fireball purple set I made right on time to wear actually looks kind of pink, and I hate pink.

This did give me brief pause on my bling binge, hesitant to make a no good disappointment despite my current need for more silver and crystal style beadwork. Creativity is such a give and take these days! I work on something pleasing yet question it's worth. Fortunately, after the pink lackluster lull, I got my groove back recently with two sets made from Dollar Tree beads. Wood bead orange Easter garland was transformed into a fun autumnity set with a fifties vibe, and a bag of assorted tear drop plastic beads combined with leftover vintage glass beads and beaded Christmas garland form a dramatic necklace. Obviously iridescent rainbow plastic looks are not a replacement for a high end occasion, but it's a fabulous feeling to take it up a notch by wearing something totally unique. Further scoring some Joann liquidation jewelry findings has also replenished my stash, revitalizing my need to bling it every time political events make me want to scream. Slowly but surely I can check an item off my list and give myself a new elan inside and out.

You can still find my Kbatz Krafts Facebook Photo Albums and Instagram page, however I'd like to post more project photos here on the blog and move craft updates to Blue Sky. Peruse our Kbatz Kraft Archive for more bling including:

Joannand Thrift Finds 2.0

Going Green Holiday Jewelry

Jewelry Making Basics

Fashion and Jewelry YouTube Playlist