St Petersburg Chain with Pearls, from “Seed Bead Stitching”, by Beth Stone
"Seed Bead Stitching" project: Metallic Chain with Pearls
This was a fun project. I loved how quickly it came together once I understood the stitch.
This is out of Beth Stone’s book “Seed Bead Stitching”
In the book she calls for twisted hex cut cylinder beads and I think those would be awesome, however I had trouble finding them in the right sizes so I just went with plain ol’ hex beads and I think it worked out fine. Mine have a nickel finish and it’s a bit like stitching with little mirrors, they make the necklace look like a metallic chain. I also went with Faceted pearls that I’ve had in my stash since I went to Florida four years ago.
St Petersburg Chain with Pearls from Beth Stone's "Seed Bead Stitching"
For the clasp I opted for a simple seed bead toggle clasp. I used size 15 hex beads and size 8 seed beads to construct it. It’s not perfect, but I’m ok with how it turned out.
I’m really glad I stepped outside of my comfort zone and tried something new. Generally, beaded chains don’t appeal to me (especially beaded ropes) but I really like how this lies. I’ve worn it once and I received tons of compliments on it. Also,another variation of the St Petersburg stitch appears on the current issue of BeadWork magazine. Had I not just tried this one, I’d probably not give the Beadwork cover piece another glance.
Speaking of which, I always seem to get a new bead magazine right after I place a bead order. I’ve got beads coming to make a couple of projects out of “Creating Glamorous Jewelry”. I couldn’t get all of the beads for the project I most wanted to make though and that sucks. I guess its just the way Murphy rolls sometimes.
I’ve decided I want to make a few designs out of the new BeadWork Magazine including “sleek in silver” (cover piece) “bring on the bezels”, “bollywood earrings”, “Around the block” and the “winding path” bracelet. I’d love to make the “jeweled backlace” but it seems intimidating. If anyone else tries it, I’d love to see it when it’s done.
Happy Beading!
Sometimes I get so caught up in creating something new that I forget how fun some of my older work is, especially when I see others try it. I am in the process of making some new pieces for a show in December and your necklace has inspired me to revisit this stitch. Thank you for including me in your blog.
Beth