New Pattern: Serotonin and Dopamine Molecules

I've finished my final beading pattern of 2013, the Serotonin and Dopamine Beaded Molecules!

Beaded Chemistry!

This pattern describes how to make weave the beaded skeletal chemical structures of two molecules important to brain chemistry: serotonin and dopamine. Like the Morning Coffee Molecules pattern, this design uses 8°, 11°, and 15° seed beads for a simple approach to creating beaded representations of molecules. The resulting beadwork is flat and self-supporting, and I included instructions in the pattern on how to use an acrylic floor finish to stiffen up the finished beadwork. These beaded molecules can be attached to jump rings for individual pendants, or they can be strung together in a larger piece.

Neurotransmitters: Brain Molecules

As I previously mentioned on this blog, serotonin and dopamine are neurotransmitters; molecules that carry messages from one cell to another in the nervous system. Serotonin is associated with feelings of happiness and well-being, and regulates mood, appetite, and sleep. Many antidepressant medications aim to increase serotonin levels in the brain. Dopamine is part of the reward system of the brain, and it's the molecule responsible for the happy feeling after a rewarding experience.

Here are both molecules in CPK colors, a standard coloring system used in the sciences to color-code each atom in a molecule.

Lacy Molecule Necklaces

In addition to individual pendants, the serotonin and dopamine beaded molecules can connect together for fancy, lacy necklaces. You might remember this gold and pink necklace from a few months ago:

More recently, I also wove this purple and green necklace using two beaded serotonin molecules, and three beaded dopamine molecules. I wove one of each molecule in its mirror image to make the necklace look more symmetrical, and I explained how to do this in the pattern too. A 17 mm Swarovski briolette drop crystal adds a final touch to this piece. I love the lacy look of this necklace, and it has the most comfortable drape!

The Serotonin and Dopamine Molecules Beading Pattern is available exclusively at beadorigami.com. Kits for this design will be available in the new year.

In the meantime, I'll be traveling internationally during this holiday season, so I will not be shipping beading kits between December 19 and January 5. Patterns can still be purchased and downloaded, however all kits ordered during this time will ship on January 6. 

Have a very warm and Happy Holiday Season!

New Pattern and Kits: Annular O Necklace

My third O bead design of this year weaves these little ring-shaped beads into bezeled rivoli crystal components, and into a custom, matching beaded chain in my Annular O Necklace.

Four Bezeled RivOli Crystals

This necklace features an intricate focal woven from four connected rivoli crystals, bezeled with seed beads, round beads, and shaped seed beads using a unique method that somewhat resembles circular MRAW. If you've ever woven my Rivoli Kaleidoscope or Tropical Dahlia pendants, this bezeling method may seem familiar, as it starts off with similar (but easier!) thread path. The O beads in each beaded crystal component, however, came together in a delightfully surprising way to both support the attached bicone crystals, and to echo the circle shape of each component.

A Custom Beaded Chain

The necklace is finished with a simple, delicate beaded chain, again featuring O beads and just two sizes of Japanese seed beads. It works up very quickly, and since it can go with a wide variety of beaded pendants, I'll definitely be using this O-chain idea in future designs.

Three Kinds of Swarovski Crystals

The completed necklace is finished with a Swarovski briolette crystal to complement the bicone and rivoli crystals in each component. A final small rivoli component (not shown) serves as a matching toggle clasp.

The Annular O Necklace pattern is available exclusively at beadorigami.com, and beading kits for this design are available in the three colorways shown above. Each kit contains all the beads needed to make the complete necklace!

Thanks for looking!

New Pattern and Kits: Magic O Ball

For my second O bead pattern, I turned back to my roots in 3D geometric beadwork, and developed the Magic O Ball.

A dOdecahedron Beaded Bead

This large beaded bead is in the shape of a dodecahedron, a polyhedron with 12 sides, each in the shape of a pentagon. It's the same structure that I used in the Tila Garden Pendant and the Wildflower Fields Pendant, however it's also hollow, like the Fiberoptic Dodecahedron. It's my largest dodecahedron design yet, measuring about 34 mm in diameter!

O Beads + Chaton Crystals

The Magic O Ball features two different colors and orientations of O beads, along with 12 sparkly Swarovski chaton crystals. The crystals, oddly enough, came about after I completed the first prototype of this design. The prototype had just enough space for an 8 mm crystal on each side of the beaded bead, and an 8 mm rivoli didn't work, however an 8 mm chaton crystal turned out to be the perfect fit!

A Sparkly Pendant!

I like to wear this design as a pendant, so I included instructions on how to weave a bail using modified right angle weave (MRAW). Since the design is hollow on the inside, you can include a special something in the middle such as a rattle bead. The green Magic O Ball above encloses a little jingle bell! 

The Magic O Ball pattern is available exclusively at beadorigami.com, and beading kits for this design are available in the three colorways shown above. Each kit contains all the beads needed to make one beaded bead!

Thanks for looking!

New Pattern and Kits: Lucky O Bracelet

The patterns and kits for my new O bead designs are now available on my website! Over the next couple days I'll talk about each of them here on the blog. First up is the Lucky O Bracelet:

O Beads + Bugle Beads

This bracelet features two different colors of O beads in two different orientations: edge-on, and face-up. I wanted to contrast the round, smooth O shape with something angular, so I used several Japanese bugle and triangle beads on the back of each component.

Connected Snowflake Components

The finished bracelet is made up of nine connected components that look like little snowflakes. There are tons of possibilities for other jewelry items from these components, such as earrings, charms, or rings!

Custom Matching Clasp

The beading pattern for this bracelet includes instructions on how to make a matching beaded toggle clasp, with more O beads and bugle beads, for a seamless look to this beaded bracelet.

Three Kit Colorways!

This O bead pattern is available exclusively at beadorigami.com, and beading kits for this design are available in the three colorways shown above. Each kit contains all the beads needed to make one bracelet!