And the experimentation continues.

So I found these awesome beads made from vintage glass, and I made totally awesome plans for them. They reminded me of seafoam, and I thought they would be perfect to pair with the sea charms I've just bought.

So I made a charm bracelet, which I posted before:



I wasn't happy with that one, though. The awesome beads just don't do very well in this sort of design; they stick up here and there. Plus, I didn't like the look of the charm chain.

So here is attempt #2, which was a little better but not quite right:



This chain is better, but still not quite right, though it does give it more freedom of movement. The long links aren't great--I wanted to add more little "sand" (picture jasper) rounds, but they look funny. I think I'll remove the two that are on this bracelet and sell it.

Attempt #3:



This makes me the happiest, though it still isn't perfect. But it's good enough that I will make a few more just like it for Etsy. I think the charms look a little long and lonely while it's being worn, which bothers me. But nothing I picked to help offset this really worked. If I add too many dangles to the oval links, they'll hang the wrong way because of the weight. I'd have to add something that was just the right length, because otherwise they dangle right next to the bead in the link, and that doesn't look right either. The other thing I don't like is the strict design--it's hard to make bracelets of differing lengths because of the oval pieces. I'll have to add small links of sand rounds to make it work.

Sometimes it takes a while for a piece to look "right" to me. That's part of the reason why I don't make a lot of new designs; this finicky design process really makes me obsessive. And I also keep thinking in the back of my head, "I could have made twenty pairs of earrings by now!"