Beaded Flowers - Day 4

I make flowers out of all sorts of leaf beads, but this is one of my favorites. It's a 7mm x 12mm top/side-drilled bead (note the arrow in the photo). These leaves are available in all sorts of finishes: vitrail, matte, lustre, rainbow AB, half-metallic, and marea (the one shown) as well as others. To make the 5-petal fower, you'll need ten 10/0 Delicas, fifteen 8/0 seed beads, five 7x12mm leaf beads, and one 6mm Swarovski montee, a #10/11 needle and beading thread (Wildfire, 6-lb Fireline, or C-Lon).

Begin as detailed in the third post . Then work one row of 8/0 beads, remembering to step up at the end of the row. Once the 8/0s are on, begin to add the leaves being careful to ensure the fancy finish is on top. Once the leaves are all set, move the thread to a delica on the inner ring to add the montee. Go through one of the channels on the montee to the other side and through a delica. Move to the other channel and go across as before. Weave your thread back through one of the 8/0 beads. Work two rounds of 8/0 beads. Take the thread to the back, make a few overhand knots between beads. Tie to beginning thread and clip.

Six-leaf variation: Begin with twelve 10/0 Delicas. Use round 8/0s rather than hex beads like I used above and work one round. Add the leaves and the montee in the center, moving the thread back up and through one of the 8/0 beads after the montee is in place. Work two rounds with the 10/delicas. Pull tight and take the thread through beads until you can take it through one of the leaf beads. Add one row of 8/0 beads between the leaves. Weave the thread on the back down to the beginning thread. Tie in a square knot and clip or burn thread.

Here's a bracelet that showcases these flowers, that is, if you can find them. The embellishment is very exuberant to say the least. The flowers are very quick to make. If you wear earrings, you can easily make two flowers, glue them to an earring back in less than an hour. Well, that is, if you have the beads at hand. It usually takes me longer than that to find the beads I want to use.