The Vintaj "Global Village" Inspiration Projects

We are so excited to be beading partners this month with Vintaj for their Global Village design theme. As we mentioned in our last post about our partnership, the designers at Vintaj have created some beautiful pieces inspired by the Global Village theme.  Today we thought we should share more about these projects.  We hope they will inspire you to create your own Global Village pieces!

Global Village Necklace Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Global Village Necklace

By combining hard and soft elements, this colorful necklace embodies the "Global Village" theme. The hard gemstones and Vintaj metal components are softened by use of the the silk fabric fairy ribbon and custom mixed patina colors on the filigree brass beads. The color changing mood beads bring this necklace together for a bright, yet antiqued, worldly design.

Goa Tassel Necklace Designed by Betsy Kaage

Goa Tassel Necklace

This long tassel necklace uses a fun technique of wire wrapping three Vintaj Scrolling Abacus stamping pendants to create the foundation for this chain tassel. A beautiful mirage color changing ocean pearl pattern mood bead elevates this funky brass design.

Persian Henna Necklace Designed by Betsy Kaage

Persian Henna Necklace

For this statement necklace, Betsy created her own custom blank using patinas, archival ink and rubber stamps. I love the way she combines several Vintaj pendants in focal piece of this design. There is a ton of visual interest, from the custom stamping to the color mixed gemstones, and even in the cross hatch design of the jump rings.

Global Occasion Necklace Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Global Spear Earrings

Global Occasion Necklace

By using various colors of patina in the recesses of these Global Spear pendants, Jess brought out the depth of these natural brass stamped drops. I think the addition of the yellow honey jade beads lighten up this design and help balance out the large brass findings. For the complete look, Jess created the Global Spear Earrings.

Ancient Bukhara Necklace Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Ancient Bukhara Necklace

If you look closely you will see that Jess has used our Vintage Lucite Art Deco beads in this design. A combination of Marble + Agate + Clay patina was applied to these patterned Lucite beads to create an Antique White finish with a smokey gray background. Simply brush it on and wipe off with a paper towel. Jess also uses gemstones and Vintaj filigree to complete this necklace.

Indian Boho Bracelet Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Indian Boho Bracelet

Get your bracelet bending pliers ready to create this cuff-like bracelet. By using several bent components attached with jump rings, Jess gives this bracelet structure. The faceted nugget gemstone dangles provide that extra pop of color and shine.

Turkish Baubles Bracelet Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Turkish Baubles Bracelet

This charm bracelet highlights a great technique to try on your chain. Jess used a combination of Marble + Agate + Clay patina and applied it to the Rounded Oval Chain to create an Antique White finish. Simply brush on, allow to dry for a minute and use the Vintaj metal reliefing block to remove color from areas to achieve an aged look. This chain becomes the perfect backdrop for the colorful brass, turquoise and ivory beads.

Guilded Gypsy Bracelet Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Guilded Gypsy Bracelet

The Guilded Gypsy bracelet shows off the unique coin shaped wood beads. When the brass filigree pieces are layered and bent like this it gives the appearance of an ornate bezel setting for these beads. This is a great way to incorporate a bead where you want it to look like a cabochon.

Arabian Adornment Earrings Designed by Jess Italia Lincoln

Arabian Adornment Earrings

I love the way Jess uses the CzechMates 2-hole lentil beads in these gorgeous chandelier earrings. They add that pop of gold that brings out the brightness of the brass stampings that have been buffed with the Vintaj relief block. They may be small by the lentils are essential to this design. Again, Jess uses the color changing mood beads to tie it all together.


I hope you have enjoyed our trip around the world with these Vintaj designs!  You can see more designs like these ones in our Vintaj Inspiration photo gallery.

Let Vintaj know who's in your "village" - your circle of creative support and inspiration. Stop by their giveaway post to let them know and you could win a gorgeous stash of globally themed goodies from Vintaj and Beadaholique. The deadline to enter is Friday, Monday May 5, 2014 at midnight CT.

-Kat

The Vintaj "Global Village" Giveaway and Design Theme

Our friends over at Vintaj have launched their newest giveaway and design theme: Global Village.  They want to know who's in your village - your circle of creative support and inspiration!  Stop by the giveaway post to let them know and you could win this gorgeous stash of globally themed goodies from Vintaj and Beadaholique.  The deadline to enter is Friday, Monday May 5, 2014 at midnight CT.

The Vintaj team has created some wonderful designs for the Global Village theme, so be sure to stop by their Idea Gallery to see them all.  We especially love the Global Occasion Necklace by Jess.  The color palette and creative use of the global spear pendant are so interesting!

ENDED Giveaway #8: Vintaj Sizzix BIGKick Machine and Metal Blanks

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS NOW ENDED. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO ENTERED. A WINNER WILL BE CONTACTED AND ANNOUNCED SOON. 

Giveaway #8 features the Vintaj Sizzix BIGkick Die Cut Machine along with a great collection of blanks, filigree and die plates!  Vintaj is famous for their signature natural brass pieces and have expanded into a beautiful variety of arte metal, pewter and artisan copper pieces.  We wanted to make sure that you will get a little bit of everything to see what you like and see what you love.  To learn more about what the BIGkick can do, see our product demonstration video on How to Use the Vintaj BIGkick Machine to Etch and Emboss Metal Stampings.  We also have several projects made with the BIGkick so you can get an idea of the design options available—the possibilities are endless!

You will receive this whole lot of Vintaj Blanks to get you started.

We would like to give a huge thanks to Vintaj for their donation to this giveaway and for helping us make this a wonderful prize.  I hope you are ready to make some fun, unique projects with your new Vintaj Sizzix BIGkick.

Estimated prize retail value: over $150

To enter, leave a comment on this blog post. But be sure to do it soon, because this giveaway ends on Wednesday Dec. 18th at 7PM ET (4PM PT). Winner will be chosen at random.

BONUS FLASH SALE: Monday, December 16th only! Save 30% on all Vintaj and Sizzix with code FROSTY at checkout.

Remember, only comment once per giveaway and do not comment anonymously. Also, please do not use your Facebook, Twitter account, or Google Plus account when commenting. You can comment to enter as many of the giveaways as you like, but you can only win 1 Beadaholique giveaway every 12 months. Visit Beadaholique's official The 12 Giveaways of Christmas page for even more details. For a complete list of terms and conditions, please click here.

Featured Brand for the Month: Vintaj Week Four

For our final week highlighting Vintaj, let's take a look at one of their more popular components - Filigree! Vintaj is well known for their detailed filigree stampings. They are so beautifully ornate and are sure to add a special touch to any piece of jewelry you create.

I personally love the look of filigree stampings in my jewelry and I especially enjoy using all the different finishes and styles Vintaj has to offer. Incorporating them into your pieces can give your jewelry a lovely vintage-inspired look. You can use them as is or hang other components from them to create striking necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. You can also use filigree to wrap stones and flatback cabochons to create truly unique pieces. Below are the Featured Project and Video for this week.

Featured Project: Victorian Jewel Necklace by Kathy Mannix

Victorian Jewel Necklace by Kathy Mannix

Kathy's necklace, Victorian Jewel, is a wonderful example of how filigree stampings can add a unique, vintage look to your handmade jewelry. The gorgeous Vintaj Natural Brass Garden Trellis filigree stamping and Natural Brass Circle Filigree pendant link are embellished with a SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS Crystal rivoli and a few Crystal rhinestone flatbacks for some added shine. This piece is very synonymous with the Vintaj brand and a wonderful example of how their filigree stampings can change the look of a simple necklace, transforming it into a statement piece.

Featured Video: How to Apply Gilder's Paste

In this video, you will learn how to apply Gilder's Paste onto your filigree stampings for added highlights. Check out the video below.

Take a look at our Designer Picks for Vintaj's line of filigree:

 Julie: 

 I love the Vintaj Natural Brass Ornate Orchid Filigree Stamping because of its distinct Deco feel and its versatility. You can keep the filigree as is or you can bend and wrap it around a found object or bead. One of my favorite projects with the piece is the Roaring 20's Hair Pin Set.

Megan:

This Artisan Pewter Framed Scrollwork Stamping Pendant is such a pretty piece.  I love the possibilities it presents, and can imagine numerous ways to use it.  I love the idea of framing a mixed media piece with it, and the artisan pewter looks so beautiful with the Vintaj patinas too.





 
Kat:

There is something very unique about this Natural Brass Nouveau Scrolled Ornate Corner Embellishment.  I think this could be a really interesting piece to combine with one of the Vintaj blanks and perhaps used for a scrapbook or craft.  Also if you use the Vintaj Relief Block on this one, it can really bring out the beautiful scroll work.




Karlin: 

I think the detail and look of this Vintaj Brass Etruscan Swirl Filigree Stamping is so pretty. I think it would look gorgeous placed on a bracelet cuff or on a vintage-inspired headband, with a touch of patina. It's ornate and looks like it belongs in an old antique shop. I love it!

We hope you enjoyed exploring Vintaj, November's featured Brand of the Month! We will be continuing our Brand of the Month in January. Stay tuned to see which brand is up next!

Featured Brand for the Month: Vintaj Week Three

As we continue on with our featured Brand of the Month, Vintaj, this week we would like to highlight their assortment of Blanks. Vintaj blanks are incredibly versatile. Depending on your aesthetic, you can use a variety of tools and components to enhance the look of your blanks and transform them into beautiful, personalized jewelry.

Experimenting with different tools is a great way of adding a cool new look to your blanks. For example, using a hammer to texturize, a Vintaj Bick Kick to emboss, and/or a metal design punch to decorate are all wonderful options for Vintaj blanks. You can also choose from a collection of rhinestone flatbacks, cabochons, links and patina to add a special, unique touch. Let your creativity flow and create one-of-a-kind pieces by incorporating these ideas.

As usual, we will be featuring a beautiful Vintaj project as well as a helpful instructional video that shows a fun way Vintaj blanks can be altered and personalized. Take a look below!

Featured Project: Titanic Earrings

Titanic Earrings by Julie Bean

For this pair of earrings, Julie used the Vintaj Big Kick Machine to emboss Natural Brass Georgian Drop Stamping Blanks with a swirl pattern, adding an extra decorative touch. The DecoEmboss Die in Moonlit Night was a beautiful choice that adds a detailed graphic. Julie also used a Vintaj Metal Relief Block to highlight the raised areas of the blank. This project is a wonderful example of how a specialized tool can really transform a pair of plain Vintaj blanks. She pairs the blanks with pretty SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS faux pearls in Petrol Crystal for the finishing touch.

Featured Video: How to Use the Vintaj BIGKick Machine by Sizzix to Etch and Emboss

This week's featured video shows how to use the Vintaj BIGKick Machine by Sizzix to cut, embosses and etch many different designs leaving you with total customization. You can also see this tool being used in the Birds of Paradise set.

Below are the Designer Picks for our favorite Vintaj Blanks: 


Julie:

I love the Vintaj blanks that look like ornate tags. My favorite has to be the large vintage style pendant tag in antique brass. I can think of so many things to use this stamping for; from wedding favor labels to jewelry to room key adornments at a bed and breakfast, the possibilities are endless!




Megan:

I love the Artisan Pewter pieces from Vintaj, and especially these Blank Round Token Charms.  They're thicker than normal blanks and feel like a more substantial charm.  I would love to do metal stamping on these, or use them in a mixed media piece.

Kat:

As a musician, I can't pass up these Vintaj Natural Brass Guitar Pick blanks.  These are perfect for initials or use them with the BIGKick machine.  My favorite DecoEmboss Die is Distressed Textures.  It has three different patterns all on one Die. 




Karlin:

I think this Vintaj Natural Brass Manor Key stamping is so pretty! I'd like to use it for a long pendant necklace and embellish it with different washes of patina. I especially think that patina in Aged Bronze would look lovely on this blank.