Beading Hearts

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Traditionally each year, the 14th of February is Valentine's Day. A day for expressing your heartfelt feelings for your loved ones - partner, friends, family and even your pets!

And the ultimate symbol of Valentine's Day is a heart. Whether it's the iconic Cupid with his arrow shooting through a heart, or hearts emblazoned on cards holding hopes and dreams, a heart is representative of this special day of love. 

Beading and hearts go hand in hand - and I've utilised a few in my beading journey. 

One of my favourite projects ever is the 'Winged Heart', by designer Sherry Serafini (
https://sherryserafiniart.com/). I made this heart way back in my beading journey, and it is still one of my favourite pieces to wear. Funky and edgy is how I would describe Sherry's style, and this piece is one that has been a foundation for building and learning techniques in bead embroidery. 

It uses a Raku clay fired heart as its centre focus made by Marianne Kasparian of MAK (http://www.makustudio.com/about.html). Each of these hearts are different - finishing touches can include glazes, divots, metallic accents (like nails or large staples) and have a unique and distinctive feel. When you see a MAK piece, you know exactly who's made it. 



Another of my favourite 'heart' projects, is the heavily beaded essential oil pendants, featuring a bead  encrusted woollen felted heart shape, and space to add a few drops of your favourite essentail oil on the other side. I've made this design in rose gold, silver, black and lilac tones, and it is always a stunning unique 'heart' piece! 


Hearts also feature on my 'Crystal Flora Pendant' design. A simple peyote inspired band, with tiny flowers and a feature heart holds a large crystal drop. You can find this tutorial here, to make your own! 


I hope this retrospective look at 'heart beading' gives you some inspiration to create your own heart themed piece for Valentine's Day or any other time you want to show of your heart! 




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