Autumnal Equinox at Glen Onoko Falls - Finalist
This necklace was created for the 2015 Bead Dreams competition. The idea was born on a hike up a very slippery waterfall trail near Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania in the Pocono Mountains. The path you follow wanders back and forth across the stream while hiking up the rocks that are covered in moss and leaves. Once you reach the top the temptation is to sit perched on the rocks mid stream to admire the view. There have been a few unfortunate incidents. It is so dangerous that it has been closed to the public since 2018 after the last fatal fall occurred.
Nothing so dramatic happened the day I visited, thank goodness. On my journey up the mountain I spotted a small blue glass bead embedded in the dirt mostly hidden under a leaf. It set my mind to wondering how I would depict the scenery in beads.
I used labradorite beads as the boulders that lined both sides of the waterfall. The slight rainbow effect on the polished surface of the beads suggest the rainbows that appear in the spray mist in the air. For the smaller rocks and stones I used tila and brick beads, building them up in a wall like fashion.
The base is stitched using random free form stitch with seed beads. The weave incorporates semi precious gemstone nuggets and shaped glass beads to add texture and dimension. I stitched ferns from delica beads and planted them into the base. I added a few leaves to add some color to the forest floor. The leaves are the same as the ones I added to the trees. The tree area of the base was created by stitching a couple of lengths of spiral stitch. The larger tree is made using peanut beads in the center of the spiral stitch. I filled the area between the trees with random free form to represent the view from the mountain top - a blue sky glimpsed through the trees.