Stabat Mater dolorosa

I bought these beads at JSM Bead Coop. They are a dark purple fiber-optic (cat's-eye) bead. These are the same color and kind of bead as were in a rosary I re-worked for the owner some time ago. I was so pleased with how that one came out that I thought I would try to replicate it from scratch (except that the original used bead-caps on all the beads, and I thought it would look better without them). I re-worked the original rosary using 21 and 18 gauge sterling silver wire. I started to use the same wire on the replica I was trying to make, but I began making mistakes, and wasting expensive wire. I had let too much time go by without practicing my wire skills. I decided to use base metal for this rosary and to use it as a opportunity to practice those wire skills. I used 20-gauge nickel-silver wire for the Hail-Mary beads, but I didn't have 18-gauge nickel-silver wire for Our-Father beads and bows, but I did have non-tarnishing brass wire in that gauge. I thought that since this is "just a practice" rosary, I wouldn't buy a new spool for it, but just use up the wire I had. It turns out that the contrasting colors adds something special to the appearance of this rosary.

Despite being brand new, this rosary gives a sense of age, as if it might have been handed down from someone's great-grandparents, perhaps because of its dark cast, substantial weight and sturdy construction. The construction is, in fact, very sturdy. It may not have come from someone's great-grandparents, but it may be handed down to someone's great grandchildren.

The wire and beads come from the Bead Coop, the centerpiece is from Ave Maria's Circle, and the crucifix from Our Lady's Rosary Makers.

two Anglican rosaries

I made an Anglican rosary suitable for a man. I used 9x7mm black oval wooden beads for the week beads, and 10mm howlite globes for the invitatory and cruciform beads. The cross is carved from black horn. The rosary is cable-strung and the beads are fixed in place by separating them with matte black seed-beads. I showed it to a friend of a friend who prays the Anglican rosary. She was taken with its large size and soft, flexible drape (apparently the one she uses is small and stiff). She said she liked it, but wondered if I could make something more feminine. The result is the pink Anglican rosary at the top of the picture. For week beads I used frosted pink 10mm drucs with a partial AB finish. It uses the same 10mm howlite globes for the invitatory and cruciform beads. It is cable-strung and the beads are fixed in place with silver-lined crystal seed beads. The ornate base-metal cross has a faux oxidized silver finish.

Lutheran prayer beads

This week I made these two sets of Lutheran prayer beads. The larger set is the "Lutheran rosary" or "Lutheran Lenten Chaplet" of the same kind I made back in February. The smaller one is called the Wreath of Christ - Frälsarkransen or Savior Ring.

For the Lenten Chaplet, I got the black cross from my local bead store (JSM Bead Coop). It is carved from horn. The cable is covered with #15 matte black seed-beads from JSM. The small black beads (the weekday beads) are 7 millimeter wooden ovals [AMC #522] from Ave Maria's Circle. They slide on the cable as your fingers move over them in prayer. The larger black and gray globes (the Sunday beads) are fixed in position on the cable. They are snowflake obsidian and come from JSM too. The large white globe (the Easter bead) is howlite, and also comes from JSM.

The largest bead on the Savior Ring is the gold God bead. I used a gold colored globe of dichroic glass from JSM. Next largest in size are the seven 8mm rounds. Five of them are glass druks from JSM, and two are glass pearls [OLRM #655] from Our Lady's Rosary Makers. The 6mm rounds are Swarovski glass pearls. There are also six 5x9mm clear glass ovals from JSM. For an explanation of how these beads are prayed, go here.

brown Saint Joseph rosary 5

This shows the back of the crucifix and centerpiece. It is also the best picture for telling how well (or poorly) the colors of the crucifix, Hail-Mary beads, and Our-Father beads go together.

brown Saint Joseph rosary 4

the Our-Father beads are strung on 20 gauge copper wire and are connected to the decades of Hail-Mary beads with wrapped wire bows of the same wire.

brown Saint Joseph rosary 3

brown Saint Joseph rosary 2