A number of woven polymer beads have popped up online. Eliska Koliosova weaves extruded strips in this light summery choker. She alternates the colors under and over each other, perhaps creating a flat sheet that’s then cut up and rolled into a bead.
Or maybe Eliska is using the Mummy Bead technique that Emma Ralph outlines on her site. She starts by winding a base color on a wooden skewer and then layering on additional colors.
My brain doesn’t decode weaving very readily so rather than ponder this any longer, I’ll show you and hope that some enterprising PCD reader can unravel the mystery.
Whatever the method, the effect is eye-catching.
Thanks to Carrie Harvey for leading me to Emma’s tutorial.
Carrie Harvey ,
These are pretty!
Valeria’s beads are the same process as Emma Ralph’s “mummy beads”:
http://www.ejrbeads.co.uk/mummybeads.htm
Carrie Harvey ,
In fact I’m sorry to say it but the photos are Emma’s too.
Perhaps you’d remove the link, Cynthia?
Laurie lee ,
I’m pretty sure these beads are woven or possibly braided- they are not mummy wrap- i’ve done quite a bit of weaving and braiding- haven’t gotten very adept at doing either one with polymer clay yet
Koliosova ,
Hello,
I thank you for publishing my necklace ! I am happy!
The method is, quite simply, not properly braided, but stripes on stripes laid across.
I have started this technique years ago: https://www.flickr.com/photos/fimeli/16893426408/in/album-72157629599033057/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/fimeli/16883800927/in/album-72157607450747052/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/fimeli/34652754901/in/album-72157607450747052/
Greetings from Germany
Eliska Koliosova
Christina L Whipple ,
Beautiful beads. And thanks so much for the tutorial, Carrie!
Emma Ralph ,
So thrilled to see there is still interest in my Mummy Beads techniques. My project was first published back in 2001 in Jewelry Crafts magazine – but since that went out of print long ago now, I put the technique on my EJR Beads website for all to enjoy. Please feel free to use the techniques however you wish – there are many cool ways to adapt these techniques and put your own spin on things, as Eliska has shown, but credit is always appreciated and please remember text/photos from my own project are copyrighted and cannot be used without my permission.