Friday, March 1, 2013

Art Nouveau coin purse

I've always admired beaded handbags and other accessories. There are so many beadwoven necklaces, cuffs, earrings...so after my first attempts to create something that wouldn't be a piece of jewelry (which I didn't even put out there in the public) it was time to make a coin purse.
To be honest, I didn't really know what I was doing, I just knew that it was time to try something new. I got a brass frame with two crystals on the closing and for the middle of both sides I chose a Swarovski rivoli, which turned out not to be such a great thing to work with for this particular purpose (I was just getting acquainted with the Swarovski elements and had no idea there were also flat-back stones available). There was some struggle, a bit of cutting the thread and  re-embroidering and some banging my head against the wall but I managed. And to not forget about the beads - I used mainly Czech glass beads Jablonex and the central motif embroidery is made of Japanese TOHO beads.

I didn't have a clear idea about the embroidery, although I knew I was going for the Art Nouveau look. The colors as well as the ornamental shape match the color and the ornaments on the frame and I can't deny a bit of inspiration by the ornaments in Mucha's paintings.
I don't really know how to sew, so it was an actual obstacle to figure out how to assemble the embroidered felt and the frame and how to line it on the inside. As you can see, there are small holes in the purse frame and that gave me the possibility to make the joint of the felt and the frame prettier.
Overall, I was and still am happy with my first proper non-jewelry design. It is an elegant small piece which doesn't go unnoticed. 
This piece placed 2nd in the contest of Fler Beadweaving Team, theme "Non-jewelry".

Here you can enjoy some more photos:





Check out the Art Nouveau coin purse also here.


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