The theme of the month for Art Elements’ March design challenge is “nests.” Even before I signed up to participate I knew I didn’t want to make a typical bird’s nest for my design. I’ve made wire-wrapped nests with bead “eggs” before, including as a component in a spring-themed necklace for a past Art Elements design challenge. They’re plenty of fun to make, but I wanted to try something new for this challenge.
I started my jewelry design process by thinking about which animals other than birds make nests. And the first thing that came to mind was “wasp nest.” Rather than dismiss the idea and keep brainstorming, I did an image search on the internet. The nests made by mud dauber wasps are spectacular. I was especially taken with the “organ pipe” mud dauber constructions. (There are no insects visible in the photo, only mud tubes.) They were the perfect inspiration for organic beads.
Warning: If you are creeped out by insects, or photos of insects, you probably shouldn’t click on the links below with reference to wasps or wasp nests or bees or beehives. Just sayin’. There are no photos of insects in this post. I linked to other pages where you can see them if you are interested.
These organic-looking hollow tube beads are made from polymer clay, and intended to resemble the nests made my mud dauber wasps.
Female mud dauber wasps make their nests by bringing mud, or preferably clay, one mouthful at a time to a selected spot such as the sheltered side of your home. I am humbled to note that these insects make much more consistently-shaped structures with their mouths than I could with my hands. I’m also fairly certain a single wasp could have made three times as many nests in the time it took me to make my beads.
Did you know mud dauber wasps are also called potter wasps? I wonder if humans got the idea to make vessels and things from mud/clay by observing wasps? Also, they are solitary or eusocial, meaning they don’t form or live in hives. Consequently, they don’t defend hives and are generally known to be docile and only sting if you mishandle them. They’re also considered beneficial garden insects because they control spider populations.
My wasp nest-inspired beads are hollow, just like the actual nests, and I did form them one row at a time, just like the wasps do. Unlike the actual nests, which are built against a flat surface and therefore “backless”, my beads are complete tubes. Also unlike the actual nests, my tube beads are open at both ends. The female wasp seals the top and bottom of her tubes to protect her eggs as they mature. Also, unlike the actual nests, my beads don’t have paralyzed spiders or “garden pests” in them as snacks for hatching wasp larvae.
My ode to the Mud Dauber Wasp necklace was made by stringing the nest tube beads with round blue beads (also polymer clay) and brown jasper rondelles on antiqued brass chain.
When I was making the tube beads, I planned to turn them into a pendant by attaching them to a piece of “house” made of polymer clay to resemble weathered wood shingle. That didn’t turn out the way I envisioned and Plan B emerged, in which I used the tube beads in a fringe- or fan-shaped focal.
One species of organ pipe mud dauber wasp is black with gorgeous iridescent blue-black wings, which gave me the idea to accent my tube beads with black or iridescent blue beads. I didn’t want to be overly literal, but I did happen to have some AB Czech glass beads that were a pretty close match to the blue-black wing color. But they didn’t look right.
I auditioned some turquoise, which in my opinion goes with everything. I didn’t like it as much I thought I would. Finally I decided to make my own blue beads. They aren’t the dark iridescent of the wasp’s wings. Rather, they’re more of a blue sky color, which I think brightens up the design without overpowering the focal beads. I finished the front of the necklace with some brown jasper rondelles, and the back is textured antiqued brass rolo chain finished with a lobster clasp.
The wasp nest beads on these earrings are polymer clay coated with bronze Swellegant metal coating that’s been given an aged verdigris. They’re accented with faceted Czech glass beads (like wasps hovering around the hive) on Vintaj brass hoops and wires.
After I made the tube beads and before I settled on the final necklace design, I made more wasp nest beads. These are inspired by paper wasps, which make ovoid or spherical nests from plant fibers. Some people probably associate this nest shape with bees rather than wasps because the illustrations for things like Winnie the Pooh depict beehives in this shape. Actual beehives don’t resemble that shape. But you know, artistic license. The beads, which I turned into dangle earrings, are polymer clay painted with Swellegant bronze metal coating.
After I made the wasp nest beads that resemble what people think bee hives look like, I decided I should probably make a bee hive-ish bead. If you do an image search for wild bee hives (assuming you aren’t freaked out by images of bees) you will find they are not shaped the way they are in Winnie the Pooh. At all. They are flattened lobe-like structures that seem to drip from branches.
This pendant is inspired by the shape of wild bee hives. It’s made from translucent polymer clay colored with alcohol inks to resemble bees wax and honey.
If you’re familiar with raw honey, you probably know it isn’t “honey” colored. That is, it’s not the rich amber color you find in bear-shaped squeeze bottles in the grocery store. It’s pale yellow and milky. I had some trouble getting my polymer clay “honey” and “beeswax” pale enough. It’s still a work in progress. I’m probably working on a new recipe even as you read this post. I am determined to make my “vision” come true on this one. So far, I’ve made three attempts, which I’m sharing with you here.
This polymer clay pendant, inspired by the hives of Australian stingless bees, is darker than I intended. And I’m not loving the verdigris brass bee bail (which is Swellegant coated polymer clay) as much as I thought I would when making it. Or rather, I love the little bee, but perhaps just not with this pendant.
There is one type of bee that makes spiral hives, but they still don’t look like the hives in Winnie the Pooh. The Australian stingless bee builds its hives on the ground in the shape of a spiral. I had some engineering challenges trying to duplicate the spiral shape. And I still was not getting the color of honey I was after.
This is Version 2 of the spiral Australian stingless bee hive pendant. The shape is much closer to realistic but the color turned out too orange.
I am not a patient person, and as a result I did not test cure my tinted polymer clay before spending hours sculpting the spiral hive pendants. If I had, I would have known the clay was going to turn out more orange than I was intending and I could have color-corrected before it was too late. C’est la vie. I think I have a good reason for not curing test swatches, ever. It wastes energy to warm up the oven for a 15-minute bake. So while I’d like to say, lesson learned and from now on I will test swatches, I probably won’t. But I might use my heat gun to cure a small drop of the tinted liquid clay before painstakingly adding it one drop at a time to each hexagonal-shaped well of pendant Version 3. Maybe.
Spiral bee hive pendant made of polymer clay, on antiqued brass ball chain. There’s a polymer clay tube bail hidden on the back of the hollow pendant.
I hope that even those of you who don’t admire wasps and bees as much as I do can still appreciate my nest jewelry designs. Maybe if you think of them simply as random organic structures? As a reward for making it all the way to the end of what may have been a creepy-crawly post for some of you, I made some innocuous bird nest charms to leave you with happier thoughts. I didn’t turn them into jewelry because I think I’m going to put them in my Bead Shop.
I used polymer clay to make some birds nests with eggs. These nests are about 1.5 to 2 inches diameter and have spaces to add jump rings or wire wrap as charms or pendants.
Thanks for visiting my blog today. This post is also part of a blog hop, so be sure to visit the other participating artists for more nest-themed art. I’m reasonably certain there won’t be more mention of wasps or bees. 😉
Guest Participants
Tammy <– you are here!
AE Team Members
I love all the pieces you made and the idea of the insect nests is genius! I especially love your was nests and reading how much thought alone went into the making, especially how you realized them! 🙂
Thank you, Claire. I quite enjoyed taking this theme into the insect world. They’re pretty amazing architects.
wow!! Wasp nests fascinate me but I never knew that some wasps are referred to as potter wasps. I love LOVE the first necklace that is just beautiful. The spiral nest intrigues me. Lovely pieces and thank you for the wasp history too 😀
Thanks, Laney. I am very happy with that first necklace, and still determined to get the spiral “just right” one of these days.
Love your interpretation! Would NEVER have thought of wasp nests … love all your pieces too.
Thank you, Alysen. I don’t know why my muse went to wasps, but once it did, I had to go with it.
Wow! Your creativity was in overdrive for this theme. I love all your wasp nests and the tiny bird nests also.
But that first mud dauber nest necklace is amazing! The nests look so real-it has a very organic almost tribal feel to it.
I really like the earrings also!
Thanks for playing along this month.
Thank you, Cathy. Some challenge themes are easier than others to be creative with. Sometimes I get stumped, but not this time.
That’s quite some inspiration from the insect world! Each and every one of your pieces was mesmerizing. And I learned a lot about wasps and their nests today. 😉 (I agree, most insects are under-appreciated.)
On a lighter vein, I was disappointed when I saw the post end with birds nests, lol. But on a serious note, I love them too – the speckles and markings on the eggs are a wonderful touch.
Thanks, Anita. Sorry to disappoint (LOL) with the cuter birds nests. I really felt I had to throw them in there for all the people who don’t appreciate insects the way we do. 🙂
When I first looked at pictures of the first 4 fourdesigns, I thought “Oh my God, they totally creep me out!” A second later I realised it was a good thing. While beehives, nests and other nesting structures have been romantised in cartoons and greeting cards as being sweet and pretty, in real life they are messy. They have porous details and projections which are beautiful in their own right. I think that you have created some realistic pieces even with the artistic license.
Thank you, Divya. I think your initial reaction is probably typical of a lot of people, but few would pause to think about how nests really look. I like to think of my home as a nest – and that’s my excuse for why it always messy. 🙂
Loved reading your post and all of your beautiful designs. The potters wasp beads are my favourites, they look fantastic as a necklace!
Thank you, Caroline. The more I look at that necklace, the more I am glad my original idea didn’t work out. I really do love the plan B version.
You always amaze me with your polymer clay creations. The potters wasp beads are a great idea. They look wonderful in your necklace. I like the colors that you selected to go with the wasp beads. Great job!
Thanks so much, Kathy. It’s always so nice to see your comments here. 🙂
Your pieces are all very unique and beautiful! I love your Ode to Mud Dauber Wasp necklace!
Thank you, Kym. That necklace does seem to be the winner for this post.
I am so enamored of birds nests I didn’t even think of other types of nests. Yours are very creative
Mona
Thank you, Mona. I like birds nests too. But I couldn’t think of a way to challenge myself with them, which is why I had to take the challenge in a different direction.
I certainly don’t like stinging insects but can appreciate their nests. The tube nest beads are unbelievable! And that first necklace design is gorgeous! What an unusual idea! I don’t work with polymer clay but your experiments sound fascinating, trying to mimic the shape and color to the best! Good luck with that, even though I like them all, especially the first bee hive necklace!
Thanks, Rozantia. I am allergic to bees and wasps, so I confess to getting a bit nervous around them, but I know most of them have no interest in me and they truly are amazing little creatures.
Oh my gosh, I have thoroughly LOVED reading through your post! You clearly put a lot of thought into this and it really shows, I did not know that there were wasps that lived singularly and were docile and calling them potter wasps and showing how beautiful they can be might actually be enough to make me think that maybe wasps are not the worst insect ever, and spiral bee hives! I have learnt so much from your post and got to see beautiful jewellery as well, thank you so much!
Thank you, Niky. I am happy to do my part to increase appreciation of wasps. I didn’t know about the solitary wasps until i was in college. Once a fellow student told me about them, I had to learn more and ever since, I have a different way of looking at them.
Tammy- I loved all of this. One mouthful at a time. Paralyzed spiders. Dripping from trees. Wow. I am thrilled you took the idea and ran, and played, and experimented! I’m sorry the tints weren’t cooperating. You were so prolific! My favorite may be the spiral bees nest- bc spiral! But he texture is really interesting. Thanks for joining Us!
Thank you, Jenny. I thought the details in my post might creep some people out, but also knew there would be others who would find it intriguing. 🙂
Amazing designs, the potter’s wasp (we call them mud daubers) nests look just like the real thing!
Thanks so much. I don’t usually succeed at realism with my amateur sculpting. It’s so lovely to know others think they look realistic.
Thank you for playing along with us! Your creations have given me much food for thought and inspiration. I really need to think more about incorporating my bug habit into my art! Thank you!
Thanks, Lindsay. Yes, definitely do let your bug habit infest your art. LOL.
I love the direction you took with this challenge…so many original designs. Well done.
Thanks so much, Lesley. I had a lot of fun.
I think we have those mud dauber wasps in my area. I’ve definitely seen those nests before. I think your version of them is super. In fact, all of your creations are pretty sweet – even if you’re not completely happy with the beehives.
Thank you. I haven’t seen them IRL, but there were plenty of images on the interweb to choose from. As for the beehives, you know how it is when you have a vision and the materials and tools just won’t cooperate.
Your mud dauber nest necklace is truly inspired! I love the colors and textures in that piece and really appreciate the different direction that you took this challenge in. That first spiral bee hive necklace is probably my second favorite even if the tints weren’t behaving for you. Great stuff here!
Thanks so much, Sarajo. If I weren’t so impatient when I create, I would have tested the colors before “wrecking” my sculptures. But I am who I am, and patience is not my strength. Persistence, though …
I looked at your post earlier, because I always love to see what you make,and this is no exception! VERY cool interpretation of the theme!
Thank you, Susan. I really enjoy these challenges, and hearing from my fellow artists.