Niky Sayers makes the most delightful clasps out of old coins. I’ve designed jewelry with her clasps before and was excited to throw my name in the hat to win one of her hare clasps this month.
I am always inspired by autumn colors and textures. It’s easy to picture hares hopping through fallen leaves while scoping out safe burrows for their winter retreats, (although, do hares only live in drier regions? Hmmm, I may have to look into that… )
And that’s how the idea for this bracelet came to be. I paired one of my ceramic leaf bracelet focals with Niky’s hare clasp and accented it with earthy, fall colors.
The bracelet went through two iterations. Version 1 is shown below. Originally I wanted the clasp near the front, hoping it would be more in the spotlight there. I was pleased with version 1 initially. I took all the bracelet photos for this blog post and went about the rest of my day, wearing my new bracelet.
However, the more I wore it, the less I liked it. It was too bulky and it didn’t drape gracefully on my wrist. It just looked stiff and chunky.
Should I start over, including re-doing all the photos? Yup, it just wasn’t right and I knew that I would always feel uneasy about it, if I left it as version 1.
Enter Version 2. Much better. Some of the bulk in the front was reduced by moving the clasp to the back of the bracelet. I also replaced the bulky and awkward tip drilled pearls, with a double strand of smaller “peanut” beads.
Now there is a focus of interest in both the front and the back. The bracelet curves to the shape of the wrist, rather than standing out at stiff angles. I’ve said this before, but I think that creating jewelry is like writing an essay. First you free-write to express all your ideas. Then you go back and do the painstaking work of editing it down to the down to the crystallized essence of your vision. I hope you can see that process at work here.
Many thanks to Niky for the opportunity to design with her awesome clasp. And thanks, also, to my friends at Art Elements for hosting this giveaway and blog hop.
Now please visit all the participants in this blog hop, to see how they have used Niky’s clasp in their own unique designs.
Guest Designers
Art Element Team
Linda's Bead Blog & Meanderings 
Very pretty autumnal bracelet Linda.
Thank you Lesley!
I always wear jewelry that I make to see how it will look and feel. You ended up with a lovely bracelet that is perfect for the fall. Well done!
Thanks Kathy. I hate redoing stuff, but sometimes it is just necessary.
I never get to the point where I take it apart and redo a design, probably because I spend so long procrastinating about the first design, this is because I am not a jewellery designer, but I do think your second version is more wearable and appealling.. maybe I should take your advice and be more brave at redesigning 😀
I despise redoing designs, so if you can get it right on the first go, more power to you!
Linda, love both versions of the bracelet! I hate when the first design I make doesn’t work out but your second and final version is fantastic!
Thank you Diana.
I love your Essay writing analogy. Design unlike what many people think is not a linear process. IT is very iterative – going forward and backward, testing, changing and re-testing is what makes a design usable. Otherwise its just art.
Its probably more of a process than many people realize.
Thank you for joining us Linda, I throughly enjoyed seeing version one and two and love reading about how other designers design! I too try wearing pieces first to make sure they hang/ware as expected. A charming and very autumnal bracelet!
I’m glad you like the bracelet. Thank you again for the inspiring hare clasp!
Beautiful design Linda! I love your leaf!
Thank you Caroline!
I love your essay analogy! I also made a necklace I wasn’t pleased with Soni made a bracelet. My intent is to go back and redo the necklace one day. I love both designs you created and even thought the pearls didn’t work they look fabulous! Your final bracelet is perfect and showcases Niky’s clasp beautifully.
I agree the pearls look great with this colorway. I left them out on my work table to use in a new brown, green, cream and copper bracelet or necklace.
Hi Linda! I actually like both, but the second is great as well! Glad you played along, I miss you!
I can relate well to your post I remake a lot of designs because they’re not comfortable or, as you mentioned, wearing the way I had intentioned. I love following you & your work. Very pretty.
Gorgeous Linda! I’m so glad you were able to play along this month. Such a pretty palette, but the textures are what really gets me.
Texture and color make my world go round! Thank you so much!
Hi Linda – sorry I am late. I loved the top drilled pearls, but agree that gravity is a factor in bracelet design. Your final piece is lovely! very autumnal – and the essay analogy? Brilliant!
I loved those pearls, too and I plan to use them in a necklace with a similarly colored autumn leaf pendant. Glad you liked my take on the writing/ designing/editing anaology.
Sometimes it so hard to decide that something we made and initially like doesn’t really work. You did just that, and I’m sure it took a lot to make that decision. I think it was the right one. Your second version just seems to flow better. It sounds like you’re happier with it too. Wonderful job!!