Exotic Beaded Motmot Earrings
Recently, I received a rather challenging and exciting custom order request for a pair of beaded Turquoise-Browed Motmot earrings! It was a nice surprise to receive a request for a beaded bird. Before I began beading dogs, I started out making beaded birds - both pins & paintings! I have always been interested in birdwatching, so last year I went on my first birding excursion in the Yucatán Peninsula. It was there where I viewed a motmot for the first time in the wild. He was perched in an orange tree as happy as can be!
To properly depict the Motmot in beads, I had to make the earrings in a large size. My customer wanted long statement earrings. These earrings consist of 4 separate pieces of bead embroidery which were linked together using sterling silver components. I beaded the bird's body, tail, and feathers first, then I added a second layer of beaded fringe to accentuate the bird's colors.
Once all the beadwork was complete, I stitched sterling silver eye pins, links, and sterling silver posts to the back. Now, the tail and feathers dangle freely. These were a little bit of a challenge to create as the construction of them was fairly time-consuming. Its never easy for me to duplicate one of my own pieces, so for that reason, earrings always take me a little longer to create.
As you can see, the finished earrings are quite long - approx. 4" x 1"! They definitely attract attention! What do you think?
I liked how these turned out so much that I made a (slightly different) second pair for myself which I plan to wear this month! If you are interested in custom beaded bird jewelry of a different species, please let me know! Currently my Amazon shop is in vacation mode, and I would like to note that any Ready to Ship items purchased in my Etsy shop between Feb. 3 and Feb. 16 will not ship out until the week of February 18. Also, during this time, made to order items have been temporarily deactivated. I will be making my annual journey South of the Border in search of nature, adventure, inspiration. Perhaps I will see another motmot! :D