I have to jump on the vine stringer bandwagon! Seems like it is the tutorial of choice lately.
If you want a vine that looks like wood, roll the end of a rod of ivory in silver foil or leaf. Burnish the leaf. Burn it off. Yes, basically you have just made silvered ivory.
Once the silver is burnt off, encase this with clear, not too thickly. Heat evenly and pull into a thin stringer. You now have encased silvered ivory stringer. Doesn't look like much.
But, when you use it in a bead, it makes lovely striated shades of brown and you don't have to worry about the silver reacting with other colors because it is encased in clear. It doesn't look like silvered ivory at all.
Here are some beads made with this vine cane.
Have fun!
~~Mary
