Last month I created some designs with the newest Bead Gallery beads found at Michaels. It's always fun to see the new beads and learn about the upcoming jewelry trends.
Here are four of the latest beading trends you'll be seeing this year:
- Botannicals
Use pretty flowers and leaves to make floral garlands for your neck, wrist, and ears. This trend always seems to pop up in the spring, especially around Mother's Day. (That doesn't stop me from designing with flowers all year round.) - Brights
Combine bright shades of yellow, green, pink, orange, or blue into can't-be-missed creations. I've found that you can get away with a very simple design if your bead colors are strong. Take a look at my simple Tropical Island Necklace as an example. Even though it's simply strung, the combination of turquoise, orange, and neon green still packs a punch (and makes me want to sit by a swimming pool sipping something delicious). - Natural
String gemstones, pearls, and earthy colors together to form neutral-toned jewelry. This is always my go-to palette when I'm trying to design for a wide audience (for a craft show, for example). Jewelry that can be worn with many outfits is always a great investment when budgets are tight. - Gypsy
Think exotic travel with pyramid-inspired beads and boho-style jewelry. In my view, this is the trendiest of the trends; I'm seeing jewelry just like this in all the store windows at the shopping malls.
You can find the full instructions for my Summer Days Bracelet made with bright daggers knotted on cord on the Halcraft USA website.
Here's an insider secret about this bracelet: These dagger beads come on strands of mixed colors. I love that feature because it makes the beads a better value; you don't have to buy one strand of red, one of yellow, etc. and have a ton of leftover beads. (Although, admittedly, there are worse things than bead leftovers!) It looks like I used every color available, but I actually did not use the pink or white beads that were on the strands. I thought the white would dilute the punch of the bright colors and the pink was just a personally challenging color for me. (I still saved them. Who knows? They could be perfect for a future project.)
You'll find a few project instructions related to these new trends, as well as more jewelry ideas on the Trends page on the Halcraft USA website.