I have always made alot of raised designs on my beads, spirals and dots, which I usually melt in partially and slightly flatten so they are not completely raised. I have noticed though that most of the bead sets these days seem to have completely melted in designs. Am I just the last one to notice that raised stuff is no longer as popular? Or is this all in my head?
I would love to hear from the jewelry designers about which you prefer and why? I always liked partially raised because I felt like it gave another degree of texture and interest. But then, I don't make jewelry so I have no idea if this makes it more difficult to design with. I would also like to know if your thoughts are different when you consider focals vs. sets? Is raised design more acceptable, or easier to work with when it is done on a focal bead? I'm really curious about these things so I look forward to hearing from you all.
Well, I don't make a lot of jewelry; I'm more of a "string it on a cord" type gal, but I like both styles. I really like your beads because they are unique and beautiful and I like your partially melted in look. I've been a polymer artist for almost 6 years and pretty much all of my work is textural because I just soooo hate to sand the beads! And now that I am learning lampworking, I have to say that most of my melted in beads are that way because I tried to create a raised design but messed it up so I just said "oh the hell with it" and melted it in! Anyway, for what it's worth, I like both styles and you don't need to change a thing IMHO!!
I like beads with sculptural decoration but not if it's just bumps that are raised. I do like it better on a focal, if it's a design where one side is sculptured on and there's a smooth side that can go next to the skin. This only works if it's the kind of bead that has the hole oriented or weighted so it won't flip around, like a tabular drop with the hole going across the upper 1/4 of the bead. The sculptural decoration can be all over if it's not too raised.
Great replies so far, thank you! And thanks for the wonderful compliments. David, I'm glad I'm not the only one wondering about this! I was starting to think that I should take another look at the way I decorate my beads but I am glad to hear that raised is still ok. I do think I need to be more conscious of how the beads will lay. Since I don't design jewelry I am probably not as conscious of that even though I try to be. That's why I have always slightly flattened my raised stuff, especially on lentils because they just don't lay right and they are too bulky I think when the design isn't a bit flattened. I had also read on another forum recently, one designer's opinion that raised decoration was "going out of style" so I really wondered. She also said that lentils were going out of style and I hated to hear that because I don't own any of the newest bead presses, I've just got my trusty lentil presses :/
I like both, but when I'm making something that requires the bead to lay just so, I want something with at least one smooth side. Now, some raised designs don't interfere with the way the bead lays, but I've bought a few that have such big dots that the bead "wobbles" when you wear it because it rocks back and forth on the dot. I have one in particular that I'll probably never use for jewelry..it's a stunning bead, a large tab, but it has a huge raised dot on either side that sticks out so far that the bead would probably be uncomfortable to wear, or would do the wobbly thing.
I do love raised scrollwork and designs that look like runes and glyphs. Those are probably amongst my favorite lampworked beads. Your one bead up right now, the jackal, is a perfect example of the kind of scrollwork I love. I'd bid on it, but I have no doubt it will go way beyond my budget (and rightfully so, it's a beautiful piece of art that deserves a high ending price!).
For me, dots have to be really, really well done to appeal to me. Some dots just make it look like the bead has some sort of weird skin disease. well, if a bead could have skin disease, that is.
I love metallic dots, though. Kalera does some wonderful things with metallic dots. Her beads never look like they have a skin disease. It would probably be better for my bank account if they did, though.
Thanks everyone for all the replies. Wow, tastes sure do vary don't they? I guess I'll just keep on doing what I'm doing and not worry about it. There will be someone out there who will like it :) I thought the comment about the clear dots looking cancerous was interesting! That just goes to show how very different we all see the same things.
Dr. Sooz, I hadn't heard about them wanting to get rid of the penny. I figure why not, it's one less piece of money we need to carry around. Just watch them if they do it though. When they changed from Deutsch Mark to Euro here, the prices on nearly everything doubled over night and is still that way to this day. We got royally screwed when that happened. At least with a penny the worst they'll do is round everything up to the nearest .05 cent mark...but still, it's the principle of the thing.
My favorite beads are transparents with "stuff" going on inside that are encased in clear. I like to be inside beads. But I also like raised (especially floral) motifs. I don't care for dots, raised or flat, but I like a web-like design with dots at some junctions. And I like plunged beads.
It seems to me that usually women are innies and men are outies. Though I think women also especially appreciate texture. And color. SaraJane mentioned that women have been trained through the millennium to recognize the safety of food through use of color, texture and smell. Seems reasonable to me.
As outies, men tend to do a lot of dots. Though one of my favorite maker of floral beads that have layers of background, fine leaves and plunged and layered flowers encased in glass is Calvin Orr
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flowers:
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I particularly like hand shaped beads because they retain the flow of the glass. Some of the flattened beads I've gotten have had the surfaces pitted by harsh flattening. And some presses give beads an unnatural shape, too straight side, too abrupt angles. I think what I like so much about the Kalera press is that is just a rather natural looking elongated tube. And I like the oval lentil because it's a shape much like a lump of clay might assume from being held in the palm of your hand. You know, Kandice is a good example of what's desirable in both raised and flat beads. Her beads are symmetrical and well balanced in both cases.
One thing about raised decorations that should be noted, is that if the decoration is not smack in the middle of the bead it can make the bead sit lopsided.
But all this is just generalization. It doesn't have much to do with you. Partly because your beads are so often sculptural, but mostly because you are such an original that your beads defy classification. (And I feel so sorry for the people who imitate your beads, because they look like poor imitations, when they might be able to do something new and wonderful).
I am making polymer clay beads and it's different because there are restrictions to glass that aren't present in clay but also some things missing from the equation, like glass flow and no truly transparent for casing. I like the cased look but the only technique I've seen to do it in clay is using utee embossing powder and it looks lumpy and plastic. Transparent clay is more of a frosted white. So I really hope raised decoration is not out because that's about all I can do with some things. I too will end up doing what I like and hope others agree.
Ingrid
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LavenderCreek wrote: I guess I'll just keep on doing what I'm doing and not worry
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