Welcome to the August 2021
Pretty Palette design challenge!

August's Pretty Palette is inspired by Brood X, the periodical cicada. I can currently hear the annual cicadas, but I heard and saw the periodical cicadas' amazing presence last month. I remember looking up to see the air sprinkled with cicadas as far as I could see one particularly steamy Indiana afternoon. Their buzzing voices droned on and on as I walked through them, trying to avoid bumping into them. As much as I appreciate them as a species, touching them gives me the heebie jeebies!

Did you know that a group of cicadas is called a cloud? And like many other insects it has three life stages: egg, nymph, and adult. Females lay eggs in twigs and branches. In six to 10 weeks, these eggs hatch into nymphs, which burrow into the ground to suck the liquids of plant roots. Here's where the magic of the periodical cicadas happens. These little nymphs stay underground for years happily sipping that plant root juice until, usually 17 years later, they all suddenly decide to emerge at once in a glorious symphony buzzing! Scientists aren't sure exactly what triggers the emergence, but they believe it could be tied to chemicals that are produced cyclically in the tree systems to which the cicadas life cycles are tied.

This month's Pretty Palette is inspired by the amazing colors of the cicada in its various life stages. Immediately after it emerges from the old shell of its nymph stage and leaves its old shell of underground life behind, its wings are lined with minty green veins, as seen in the images of the adult next to the nymph's shell. The image in the lower right shows the cicada's mature adult body studded with orange eyes and "elbows", yellow lined wings, and dark green body. It's a masterpiece of design!

The August Pretty Palette beading kit includes a variety of semiprecious stone, glass, and metal beads in many shapes and sizes for a fantastic beading experience! Click any from the list on the right to get a closer look or add to your cart!

Individual bead strands and the full kit are 30% off during the month of August, but don't wait to get yours! Our Pretty Palette kits sell out fast!
    *You can buy the entire collection with one click.
    *You can browse the collection and choose which you'd like to add to your own collection.

If you're a newbie to my monthly challenge, read on to learn how you can play along!

1. Check out the current month's Pretty Palette challenge right here.

2. Get your August 2021 Pretty Palette bead kit for 30% off all month with Halcraft Collection's quick and easy ordering. Click to have the Cicada Symphony Pretty Palette Kit delivered to your doorstep right now! 

3. Bead with your current collection while your Pretty Palette beads make their way to you as quickly as possible. Halcraft Collection's shipping can't be beat--and it's FREE to the U.S. with every order over $50!

4. Once you have the beads in hand, create something that is YOU! Feel free to add beads from your stash that flow with the provided palette or use only a portion of the beads chosen here. The key is to have fun and use your creativity.

5. Share an image of your creation on the last Wednesday of the month (August 25th) or later--we want everyone to be able to play along--in our Beaded Jewelry Facebook group or tag Halcraft Collection with #halcraftprettypalette and follow us on Instagram!

Keep up to date with all the sales, new additions to the Halcraft Collection, and the latest DIY projects by subscribing to receive our email. We typically send three of these information-packed notes to your inbox per week, so you'll always be sure to catch our amazing sales and get the best tutorials first! 

Molly Schaller is a design thinker, transmedia storyteller, user experience designer, and craft industry consultant who loves finding connections and creating dialog through craft. Contact Molly about her Pretty Palette design challenge and more!