I learned to do free form peyote just in order to make this piece. It was one of the first peyote pieces I ever did. I was so naive at the time that I had no idea I was not supposed to mix my beads in a peyote piece! So .... the wings, which are supposed to lay flat, instead were all wavy, because my beads were not all exactly the same size/height.
After several, rather creative, comments about myself, I added some soft copper wire behind the wings and deliberately curved them. Then I mounted my new dragon against a piece of soft leather cut to make it resemble a full-size body piece.
I'm quite happy with how the piece looks.
4 comments:
Where did you get the pattern for the dragon? I really like it.
This is a Suzanne Cooper pattern. I am not sure which of her books it is from, any more, and we are in the middle of a move. All my pattern books are packed & in storage. I've no idea how soon I'll find them again! However, Suzanne has a website & I believe it shows which patterns are in which book. I really love her designs, especially her dragons. I'm doing another of her dragons, from another book.
THANK YOU!!! I was able to find this pattern form the name you gave me. It was in the book, Adorn Thyself. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to start my own.
Yep, that's the one! If you are an experienced beader, the pattern isn't nearly so difficult as it looks at first. Unless ::laughing at self:: you attempt to *learn* how to do this type of peyote by doing this piece .... which wasn't the most intelligent move I've ever made but hey, I never did believe in starting on the learner pieces!
If your wings don't come out flat, try sewing pieces of soft copper wire (fairly fine gauge) on the edges of them on the back side so you can at least make your wings 'move' the way you want them to.
The other change I'd make if I ever made this again would be the eye - I really wish I'd use either a higher contrast bead or perhaps a 'drop' bead - one of those beads that looks like a teardrop but with a hole on one end so it will (normally) hang down. If you use one of them in the middle of a peyote piece like this (something I learned much later), it will 'stand up' above the piece, and looks very much like an eye on a lizard. Which is just a very small, wingless dragon. :)
Post a Comment