Neck-Less

I figured I would do a simple project to get the ball rolling on this blog.  While this only took me a total of maybe 6-8 hrs (including shopping for supplies) spread out over a weekend, I still had been wanting to make a version of this Shadowplay necklace for months:

This particular piece reminded me of sea foam on the shore, full of shiny pebbles, and other ocean treasures...  er seaweed and dead things.  Not that I want to wear any of that around my neck—but it's about the essence of the beach, and the easy-going organic shape of the necklace and peak-a-boo of the crystals.  I have seen this, and other necklaces from Heather Goldberg on Fab.com for around $300, but I knew I could make a version of this for much much less.

I checked out my yarn supply, and only found some black yarn that was a suitable gauge, then headed out to a local yarn shop and a Michael's for the rest of my supplies.  I bought a teal skein of yarn at the shop, and another multi-color (great for this project!) skein at Michael's with tans, whites, and greys.  I also found beads, clasps, and beading needles at Michael's.  I guess the main difference in our necklaces is that I didn't use Swarovski crystals.  I wanted to take this further into that easy-going beachy direction, so I got a stone chip bracelet in a dark grey color.  Then I just turned on Hulu and cast on some 15 or so stitches, and knit, decreasing the stitches, adding beads, and changing colors whenever it felt right.  And this is how it turned out:

This may need to be refined, but overall, I am happy with the piece.  I've noticed it is a bit scratchy and it doesn't quite have what I can only describe as the "sloppy chic" look of the brand name version—at least not unless you look at it up close.  But with that said, I think it has a preppy meets surfer quality, and I think it's a perfect style fit for my current city, Annapolis.  I have yet to wear it, but I will soon because I am anxious to see if I get any comments.  Here's another picture of the original, on a model this time:

I didn't see this photo until tonight.  It certainly clears up my questions about scale.  I had originally thought the necklace was slightly smaller and more delicate.  I may have to make a version with thicker yarn now.

That's all until next time, which promises to be a very unique post about an Easter project I took on this year.