When I visited Michigan back in September, my SIL asked me to bring some beads along because she wanted me to create a bracelet for her. She was drawn to the idea of silver with either stone or crystal. After getting some ideas about what she likes, I created this bracelet for her as a gift. I wanted to experiment with a different technique in my wirework, one I hadn’t done before. So, in my internet research, I came across the work of Eni Oken. And, lo and behold, she offered some tutorials. Her work is exquisite and very inspirational. With the herringbone weave tutorial and some thin 26-gauge silver wire, I had a lot of fun learning and practicing. I chose these faceted blue chalcedony beads because I think they go very well with the wire. The color reminds me of shadows on snow drifts. Wire wrapping around their square shape was a little challenging at first but I soon got into a nice rhythm. After I created the individual wire wrapped links, I choose some small Bali silver beads to use for spacer links.

I made a simple S-clasp from 18 gauge silver wire, hammering it slightly to give it some texture. Once the bracelet was constructed, it got a dunk in a liver of sulfur solution to give it a nice antique patina. I’m happy to say that she loved her gift, especially when she saw that it matched the sweater she was wearing perfectly! She’s on the right and my daughter is on the left.

Chalcedony is a form of silica and comes in many colors, the most common in the white to grayish blue to brown range. According to my book entitled Healing Crystals and Gemstones, it is named after the city of Chalcedon (Turkey) where it was first discovered. It was a popular carving stone in antiquity for motifs of gods and goddesses. According to its magical properties, it encourages calmness, purity and focus on what is essential.