Another Kind of Rondelle

I decided that I wanted to share my version of rondelles today. They're a variation of my versatile bead and about the size of a dime. I use them instead of buttons as closures on bracelets, on the end of lariats as shown here, and sometimes as flowers. I have another reason as well. Barry Kahn of Caravan Beads announced yesterday that Miyuki is making a longer magatama (a real favorite of mine) that he will have in May. Aha, I thought, I'll make one of these beads with magatamas to show you how they're made. I can't wait for the longer ones because I know they'll really make nice flowers...but, obviously, that's for another day.


When I was coming back from dinner tonight, I had another idea that I also wanted to try. I got out 15/0s (10) and 11/0s (10) for the center, 8/0s (10), and the magatamas (5). Here's what you do: Thread a #12 needle with 30" of 6-lb fireline, double the thread and pick up one 15/0, one 11/0, alternating them until there is a total of 10 beads on the thread. Bring the thread around and take it through every other bead (the 15/0s starting with the first one put on the thread) until the end when you take the needle through the last two beads. Pull it into a circle. Work one round of peyote with the 8/0s, one round of magatamas, and another row of 8/0s, stepping up after each row. Now, what I would usually do, is finish with one round of the 11/0s and the final round with the 15/0s.

But, I set it down and looked at it. Wow, there was this lovely cavity just waiting for something to fill it. You'll soon learn that I have a large (probably a gross understatement) stash of beads from which to choose. I thought I'd try a new chaton I bought the other day, but it was a bit large, so I grabbed a standby of mine - a top-drilled pearl. I'm so excited I'll probably make another five or six (they're real quick) this evening and then decide what to do with them later.

Here's the final in all its glory. It's sitting on a nickel so you'll have an idea of its size, and it appears that there's another round of beads sitting on top of the magatamas. That's just a reflection. Now, I can't wait to try them in other colors and with different beads in the center. Besides, if I finish them as I did in the lariat with the last two rows, they'll make a real statement as rondelles between other beads. Let's see, I can make rings, earrings, a bracelet, string some necklaces...