Colour Inspirations For The SHOUT! Girls!

I have a rather large collection of beads that I've been amassing over the years.

"Oh, look!  These are sooo pretty!" is no longer an excuse to buy beads.  It's getting outta hand!  I do stand by a credo of 'finishing everything on your plate', and I'll use them somehow.  Maybe not directly in jewelry projects - my consideration for the Bead Soup Blog Party will be from this vast selection.  I also thought I'd put together a collection of beads for my Shout! girls for colour inspiration during the 'great costume hunt'.  The beads I had selected out of my stash had a vintage vibe to them, either being vintage themselves or having a 'mod' style.  Take a look at what goodies I pulled together for the lovely ladies!

Samantha Russell plays The Blue Girl, the "sophisticated" (read: flaky) supermodel.  I had found two plastic flower pendants - very mod!  A shell pendant with a real daisy glossed onto the piece is a great find for a hippie feel, and probably look lovely on a string of the small blue crackle beads.  The two-holed plastic beads can be fitted together to make a cuff bracelet that would have an effect like fish scales, but there isn't enough to make a bracelet for my wrist (and I'm a rather petite lady!)  Problem solved - a few small bead inserts between the pieces, a bigger bracelet it makes!  Also in the mix are a few vintage lucite and acrylic beads in various fun shapes.

Abi Adekoya plays The Yellow Girl, the American of the group with an unhealthy obsession for Paul McCartney.  These large vintage lucite crackle beads are a beautiful, buttery bright yellow without hurting the eyes; these came from a thrift store find and have been used in a few other projects.  I love these yellow plastic pendants - the two triangles came from a pair of earrings, and the yellow circle pendant I found at a thrift store. 

Justine Christie plays The Red Girl, the youngest of the group, stumbling her way through maturity in the 1960s and 70s - one awkward moment at a time.  I had found these nifty triangle two-hole beads, as well as the long two-holed bar.  The red daisy cubes are a sweetheart find for this character!  The red crackle beads are fantastic, and would probably suit well for her hippie 'love beads'.  Random vintage lucite shapes and sizes hide within the mix, as well.

Elizabeth Glenday plays The Orange Girl, the motherly figure of the group.  This character has some 'colour double duty' - midpoint she changes colour to purple!  (Reminds me of a mood ring!)  The orange collection features two shell-and-daisy pendants (like The Blue Girl's pendant above), one with a hint of pink.  The vintage lucite twisted oval beads came from the same find as the yellow crackle beads from The Yellow Girl's haul.  These two acrylic orange hoops were left over from a consignment piece.  The two lampwork beads were purchased at an arts show on sale, just before the artist was packing up (I got those and a set of purple ones for a steal!)  The purple stash features more of these small crackle beads in lilac purple, acrylic two-hole bars, and these long glass rectangles with a gold shimmer effect.

I had my collection all set, but the batteries in my camera died before that shot happened and I had to get to rehearsal.  I do, however, swear by the contents of this next photograph to help ease a tense throat.

Green tea with lemon and fresh ginger.  I had been feeling a little tight in my throat today, even with all the warm-up practice.  A cup of this midday helped relieve some tension, and brought a small thermos full to rehearsal.  (Yep, forgot the travel mug at work - again.)  Oh, did it help.  And the glass of wine after, too.

I've already got a few things from my own closet to use as potential costumes for The Green Girl, and one lucky dress got a stamp of approval!  It's a benefit playing a character completely decked out in a colour that a good portion of your wardrobe already consists of.  Here's looking for that green fringe dress and go-go boots - and I'm keeping those!

Original off-Broadway cast of Shout! The Mod Musical! From left: Julie Dingam Evans, Denise Summerford, Erica Schroeder, Erin Crosby and Marie-France Arcilla.