"There's nothing you can do that can't be done..." ~ Beatles
From the moment I was able to hold a book in my hands I have been fascinated with history, more specifically the history of how mankind had this deep need to create beauty and adornment for themselves and their community. As bead makers and jewelry artists we are always thinking "what if..." and trying to create something no one has attempted before. We feel like we are pushing the envelope with each new trend. The trend that is my personal favorite though is the faux look. There are several excellent tutorials to achieve the faux look. If you are interested a good place to start is the free tutorials on Youtube and progress to places like etsy for more in depth ones.
Recently I have been making beads with a faux ceramic appearance and have some of my results for sale on etsy. I also have been playing around with faux faience and what I am (tongue in cheek) calling "Fauxnician". Phoenician beads are clay or glass and have a very distinctive look to them. For this look I simply googled pictures and then set about making them as close as possible. Of course to get that old look you need to distress them quite a bit; staining with acrylic paint gives them that "buried in the ground" look. Surprisingly many of the really old beads are still vibrant in color so I made several of mine bright, and several with a more rough finish.
Recently I have been making beads with a faux ceramic appearance and have some of my results for sale on etsy. I also have been playing around with faux faience and what I am (tongue in cheek) calling "Fauxnician". Phoenician beads are clay or glass and have a very distinctive look to them. For this look I simply googled pictures and then set about making them as close as possible. Of course to get that old look you need to distress them quite a bit; staining with acrylic paint gives them that "buried in the ground" look. Surprisingly many of the really old beads are still vibrant in color so I made several of mine bright, and several with a more rough finish.
 Picture source http://sadighgallery.wordpress.com/2012/07/12/glass-beads-from-ancient-world/ |  Picture source "Ancient Beads and Artifacts" Blog |
I am sure the trained eye will have no trouble telling the real from the fakes here; what about you, which do you think are real and which are my "Fauxnicians"?The original beads have a child-like quality about them, due to the bright colors and simple designs, and that's what I attempted to duplicate in my beads.
Now off to research finished jewelry using these beads. Probably a simple stringing would show them off to the best advantage. So while the original beads may strain your budget, I can enjoy these fakes as a colorful substitute. And who knows? Maybe someday, some one will find these stashed away and "rediscover" them all over again.
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