beadpoint and more

We just got these in at the shop...Lucite flowers and leaves in complementary color combinations are too cute!  There are 60 pieces in each package.  (From the really nice folks at The Hole Bead Shoppe in Bartlesville OK) 

Anyways, onward.  I've been working fairly steadily on the beadpoint project and now have 6 entire rows completed!  woohoo!  .It's a s-l-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-w process.  And i'm limited to working during daylight hours because i can't see at night without cheaters AND the  handheld magnifying glass that comes with the OED (a teeny tiny print dictionary).  Total eyestrain.  But!  i can see the pattern beginning to emerge and i'll tell ya what it's pretty cool!  And i really like the frost opaque seeds for this project.  Just don't look too closely at the stitchwork.
eh. 

So while i'm waiting for daylight, i found these kyanite beads lying on my dresser amongst all the other beads and trinkets and dust. My first thought was to make earrings but that's so yesterday. (just kidding!) I picked out some 18ga NT brass wire and linked three or four of the beads with simple loops. That wasn't it. The brass and the gauge looked good with the kyanite but the loops were plain and uninspired. hmmm.

So i hammered them. Sweet! Now i just have to decide how to make this long enough for a necklace. I need about 8-10 inches. More hammered links? Seed beads? Small, like 4mm, kyanite rounds knotted on silk? Leather? wheeeee! the possibilities are ENDLESS!  Check back.  Maybe i'll finish this one!