Elayne began creating beaded necklaces (some with matching earrings) about 10 years ago after seeing a lot of cheaply-made but highly-priced necklaces in stores. Because she loves a lot of "light" in what she creates, Elayne decided to call her beaded jewelry Circles of Light. She first started showing them at an MIT Lincoln Laboratory craft fair to raise money for Alzheimer's. At that fair she sold so many necklaces to both men and women with one male buyer telling her she needed to get a business card that Elayne began to think more seriously about beading.
One of the fun things about beading is having a group of friends to bead with. That way not only is it more interesting, but everyone can share techniques that can be helpful. Also, there might be a friend who has beads to sell to those who are new to beading. Elayne met a beader named Linda Litchfield at a Lexington dinner party who invited her to her home in Burlington for a beading night with appetizers. It turned out to be so much fun that Linda had several more beading events and they became very good friends. Unfortunately, Linda moved to Florida and a friend who had beads to sell got married and moved away; however, it was fun while it lasted and Elayne was able to share some techniques and learned how to make wine glass charms from Linda, even helping her make a bunch for her daughter's bridal shower.
Elayne purchased beads from numerous places. Michael's, A.C. Moore, and Joanne Fabrics had coupons that could be used in these stores, so Elayne tried to take advantage of the 50% ones, 40% if necessary, as well as special sales (note: A.C. Moore went bankrupt in 2019). Elayne also bought beads in beading stores in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, if they were unusual or she could get a good price. Sometimes Elayne would purchase bracelets or necklaces that had interesting beads then would tear them apart for her own designs.
Many of Elayne's supplies came from Michael's in Burlington, MA. The supplies she worked with most of the time are as follows:
Tool Box - to contain tools, bead mat, ear wire, pins in different metals, crimps, etc.
Bead Boards - Elayne had short and long grey boards, a pink bracelet storage board, and a cobalt blue plastic travel board for any unfinished necklace she would bring to a friend's home to complete (many of these have now been sold as part of Elayne's downsizing)
Lamp - a hooded lamp with a long cord great for directing light onto a bead board or bead mat
Bead Mat - excellent for placing tools while working as well as finishing off a necklace with crimps and toggles/clasps, earrings, a memory wire bracelet, or some other beaded project since small items are contained and don't slide off
Basic Tools - good side cutter, crimper, needlenose plier, regular plier, memory wire cutter
Wire - Elayne's go-to wire is .018; for heavier beads .024 and lighter beads .012; Elayne always cuts enough wire to wire back to reinforce the necklace, something she never was taught but felt important for a good finished necklace
Alligator Clips - these are vital to hold beads on wire; unfortunately, Elayne did know know about them until she created her first bunch of necklaces (it was a tip she learned from a friend)
Toggles or Clasps - Elayne initially used large clasps on necklaces that were easy for everyone, including older women, to put on and take off but then switched to toggles to match the metals in her necklaces
Crimp Beads - it is important to use the right size crimps and select colors that go with the toggles, whether they are round or rectangular; when Elayne went to a one-on-one beading class, she was told to use only one crimp but experience has shown that at least two or or three crimps might be needed to hold a necklace firmly together depending upon the weight of the beads
Memory Wire - Elayne uses memory wire to make her bracelets last and may add a small dangle/charm at one end (note: bracelets made with elastic will stretch and rot)
Elayne has created over 900 Circles of Light items, of which over 500 necklaces and bracelets are displayed at https://sites.google.com/view/circlesoflightjewelry. In 2019 Elayne decided to use up her bead inventory and convert it to necklace and bracelet inventory as part of her downsizing. She has already sold excess beads, bead boxes, bead boards, and some supplies to Facebook Marketplace customers and will continue to sell more as she continues her downsizing. She will, however, keep her toolbox and basic tools in case she gets in the mood to create more designs or to fix a friend's necklace.
A few examples of Elayne's one-of-a-kind beaded creations are shown on the following pages. For bigger views of these necklaces, go to Elayne's website noted above. Elayne has a lot of available finished stock, so if anyone is interested, please contact her at the following email: circlesoflight17@gmail.com.