My Work in Progress

[The Dragon]

I don't know if I'm suffering from a lack of confidence or I've just got the heebee geebeies because this is the first time I've tried to produce something purely to sell, but I can't settle on the final design for this piece, even after 3 days of trying.

I think I'm in need of a little critical assessment. I may be quite good at making roses but as a designer I've got a long way to go, there have been a couple of times over the last few days where I've thought I'm an idiot for thinking I can make a living out of this even though I love doing it.

There are two versions at the moment, both below, but neither one of them gives me that little sigh of satisfaction.





Ah well!

[Di Sandland]

Okay, Annie, its the middle of the night and I'm the only one around so I'll venture an opinion - or rather a couple of observations. I am far from a design guru tho

1. The first thing to strike me was the very 'balancedness' of the design. I personally would never use four of the same thing in a piece. To me, four is all about stability - its very static, design needs movement. When your eye alights on the four-square roses, it just stays there, not moving up or down to the rest of the design but just sort of stuck.
2. A similar observation could be made about the two roses - the eye travels back and forth but just between the two roses.
3. All the beads are more or less the same size - something else that causes the design to sort of stand still
4. Now - a difference, but one I think that shouldn't exist! For me, the wrapping on your lampie is out of kilter with the coils - I would either use larger gauge wire or double wrap there
5. If you used a jump ring between your wrapped loop and the rest of the design, it would give more of a swing to it - more movement, I suppose.

I hope that this helps a bit?

[The Dragon]

Actually the more I look at the pictures the more I realise that both designs are hideous.

Time to put the tools away and go back to the real world I think

[Di Sandland]

They're not hideous Annie! You've just been so eager to use those roses - which are gorgeous - that you've just waded in. We've all done that

[Petal]

Hi Annie,

A quick tea break look in here. I'm no designer, but there is one rule I always follow (taken from my OH and his landscaping days) and its this:-

Always use odd numbers, never evens.

Don't give up, you're not going bonkers, just having a 'bad design' day. When I have a day like that I put that particular design away and look at other designs on the web/in books and see some things I can take inspiration from. Look at colours, numbers of beads and how they sit together!

Give it a go and don't be so hard on yourself.

luv

[snow_imp]

Annie - I love all the individual elements of what you've done, but like others have mentioned I also tend to work with odd numbers of focal beads - I like the fact that my eyes move round odd numbers of items more comfortably.

It may be related to what Di said about the pieces looking "static" when I love fluidity and movement in jewellery.

The roses you have made are amazing!

[mizgeorge]

I think the biggest problem is trying to bring too many disparate elements together in a single piece, and it's not quite working.

Here are my initial reactions:

Lose the coils - they're far too heavy for the roses, and are too 'industrial' for the delicacy of the flowers.

Lose the focal - it doesn't actually go with either piece - I suspect it's a bead you like and have wanted to include, but it would work better in something else.

Make the whole thing lighter.

I think I might try using three of the roses - one in the middle, and two to either side, with the four plain turqoise beads spacing them. You could use the fourth rose as a drop pendant if you want to keep it in there. Using chain between the pieces, or even a seed beaded string, would keep the whole thing lighter and more feminine.

Those roses are just too pretty to lose them in too large a setting

As a tip, try laying the elements out on a bead mat or board and shuffling them around a few times, sometimes the right arrangement just presents itself when you're not expecting it!

[Solunar Silver Studio]

If it was me - I would ditch the plain turquoise beads... the colour of these is too strident and dilutes the glory of the focal bead. I think the roses and the focal lampie go really well together as the central swirls echo each other perfectly! I'd be inclined to just go with 2 roses and the focal which would all support and reinforce the design element in each other...and keep the spiral wire too...as that keeps the swirl/spiral theme going. I agree with Di too that the wrap on the lampie could do with beefing up. Were you making a 'hanging thingie' with it...I've just noticed that you have joined the ends at the top to make a loop?

How about going for a short necklace/choker length with 2 roses instead so that the roses and focal spread out into a line more and have the room to show their full glory!!...and threaded onto the thong - which would also help the coils to lay better without overlapping each other at the ends!

Don't call your work hideous, Annie!!! Your roses are stunning - and everybody has told you so! It just all needs a bit of tweaking! Keep fiddling - and suddenly - maybe a few days down the line - you'll find the combination that really sings to you!! Don't lose heart!

I've just noticed the other comments that have gone on while I was typing!! It just goes to show - if you give the same bag of goodies to a dozen different designers you would get 12 totally diferent things made from them!! Vive la difference!!

[caroleallen]

I think the advice given is good. The elements are all nice but don't work together so well. The coils are a bit heavy and there's no movement. Maybe use some silver or copper rings in different sizes on a length of chain just to add lightness and movement to it. Everyone gets stuck sometimes with a design and it'll come to you if you stop trying too hard.

[bustagasket]

I personally would say drop the turquise beads and open out the design, it makes it too heavy. The swirl on the focal is echo'd in the roses so they go, and although the plain beads echo the colouring in the focal its just too heavy for me, without them i think the roses would be more noticable as would the focal bead. Atm my eyes are immediately taken to the plain beads as they are very bold, and so that doesnt do your work justice.

As the others have said, please dont give up hun, have a jiggle and i am sure, you will suddenly see what it is that you are looking for. Keep at it hun