Crocheting with Cabochons

Monday, September 23, 2013
Have you ever crocheted with cabochons? Do you know what a cabochon is? Well, it's a french word meaning, a gem or bead cut in convex form and highly polished but not faceted. Because I am on a mission to "cover my world in crochet," I've been intrigued by cabochons for quite a while.

Today my favorite cabochons come from Tanya McGuire Lampwork & Jewelry. We met a few years ago at a fiber show and Tanya is a gem of a person who creates fabulous "gems" with her lampwork. I fell in love with her pieces and this past summer I bought my first cabochon from her. Here's what I created...

Tanya McGuire Lampwork-cabochon bead-crochet brooch

Tanya gave me a shout-out this week on her blog

Following is a little history of how I got started making brooches from cabochons. I love the colors, designs and the possibilities. Some of the first cabochon brooches I made were done with cabochons I made myself from postcards and decopage. Remember that stuff? I called it my "Famous Faces Series."

Diego on my Mind

A few years ago when I was a member of the Bead Society of Chicago, I became familiar with dichroic glass cabochons. I had to use this beautiful piece for something and this is one of the first brooches I created with cabochons:

Years and years ago I bought this cloissone piece in Honduras and at the time i made a macrame cord to wear it one. (That tells you how long ago I'm talking about!) Recently, I ditch the macrame and used the piece as a cabochon.

My friend, Deb, creates fabulous fused glass pieces and recently invited me to add some of my brooches with her glass to an art show she participated in. They sold well! See Deb's work:

Want to see some cabochon brooches created in my fan group on Ravelry: Cro-Kween Designs? I led a tutorial on creating cabochons and the very talented Courtesans created some great works! Want to try it yourself? Here's a link to the pattern in my Ravelry store.

Have fun and post some of your creations here!

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