Sequins and Crystals

I got to take a short break from the mask yesterday as I did some housework. Oh, don't worry it was just laundry. Then I opted to remake a necklace that I had sold. The tatting distraction was nice since I really do begin to lose my mind whilst sewing on individual sequins one by one. That fact is just one reason why this mask has far fewer of the sparkly disks than its predecessor. I opted to trace a fill in portion on each side as well as a nice zigzag around the side on the eyes. I also ended up reinforcing the sequins I had already sewn to the bottom edge. They initially warped the scallop, but once I sewed them flatter, the shape returned. I want to say that I'm finished with the sequins, but there is always a chance that once I think I'm finished I'll go back and add some, so I'm finished with them for now.

Next up I started work on the Swarovski crystals. The last mask had them only on the center motif. This was partly because it was a last thought to add them and partly because I only had a small baggie of them on hand at the time. After I made the lace maille pieces I ordered a dealer pack of them, Yes, that's a lot and yes, it wasn't cheap. I like to buy supplies in bulk when I think I will use them often so for this mask, I'm going to town with the crystals. I started in the center like the first mask, but this time I will add them around the entire mask where rings meet. Will this mask be gaudy? Well as one of my facebook friends said yesterday, nothing exceeds like excess!

Once I think I'm done with the crystals, I'll start on the embroidery. On the last mask I used silver filament. It stretches and breaks and leaves an uneven line unless you are very careful. I am not very careful. I work fast and deliberately and I am aware this is not the filaments fault, but it does make us fairly incompatible. I still use the filament when it is the best choice for the look I want, but for this I will use something else. I have this great three ply silver thread. I separate the individual threads and use those instead. Each thread does have a tendency to unravel at the end if I work with too long a piece, but it stands up so much better to my abuses. With the speed I've managed to keep on this project there is a real chance that I will have a finished product to show you come Monday. Just don't get mad at me if I don't. I also thought about immediately remaking the mask while the design is still fresh in my head and leaving it completely without embellishment. Since I made a much more complete design this time around I though it looked lovely just as lace too. If I can replicate it without too much frustration, then the plain lace once can enter the shop as a repeatable design. I guess we'll just have to wait and see on that one too.