Two Gifts for Two Friends

 My friend celebrated her 50th birthday. I met her through one of my sewing discussion groups. We have become good friends over the years. Her husband threw her a big shindig. I was hoping to go, but since the party was taking place during Passover, I would have loved to attend the party but given that it was Passover, I wouldn't have been able to eat anything. This was a serious food oriented party, so I declined.

I did however make my friend a gift. and here it is.I will need to mail it out tomorrow.

It is made out of foil lined glass beads, dyed black and white pearls.  It feels nice on. My friend is very pale and blond. I think that the light colors will look beautiful on her.

Another friend, also someone I met from the world of sewing, is celebrating her birthday on Tuesday.I was invited to the celebration in Brooklyn. She has reddish hair, and the coloring that many red heads have. The necklace looks more casua lthan the first necklace, but is actually made with fancier beads.

Sometimes I buy beads specifically for a necklace. Usually when you do that, you end up with extra beads.Both of these necklaces are made up of left overs from other projects. The big square foil lined beads came from a piece I had made for my niece. The pearls from a bat mitzvah gift.

The reddish necklace is made out of beads from several beading adventures. The coral was purchased in Chinatown, some of the beads were my mother's. some I purchased online for other gifts and some came from strands I had owned for years and then broke.  As I put each necklace together I think about how each of the beads came into my life. I think about the other pieces of jewelery I had made with the same beads in entirely different combinations. The gift is partially just a necklace, and partially a narrative of other adventures.