A Short Cut The Long Way Around

This photo may not look like it has anything to do with polymer clay, but allow me to digress a bit...and perhaps my skewed logic will eventually get on point.
A friend of mine, who is a member of my polymer clay guild, is also very talented in many other arenas.  Karen came to a meeting with a beautiful beaded bracelet she had made, and I drooled.  I have ALWAYS wanted to leran bead weaving and beading, but every time I've looked at one of those diagrams, my eyes crossed.  I simply cannot make heads or tails of the instructions...even when they promise it's for total beginners!!!  Needle A, color A, needle B, color B...blah-blah-blah....can't do it.  Soooo. as I drooled over Karen's bracelet, she took it off and very simply explained how it was done.  Holy crap!!!...I said to myself....I understand now!  I'm a "see-it-and-do-it" person, not a "read -about-it-and-do-it" person.  I went home and that night I made one.  Granted, it wasn't the best in the world (the black and gold one), but, CRIPES!!!!, I could do one now.  So, as is with my usual fashion, I proceeded to make more!  Thus, the other two bracelets in the photo. Now, as I was sitting in front of the TV mindlessly stringing beads (only stopping ever so often to make sure I have the right color!), I started thinking about what else I could do with this simple pattern...what other beads?  what other variations?...and, VOILA!!  Polymer clay in all shapes and colors will be perfect.  Big ones, little ones, round ones, oval ones, mokume gane, striped, etc., etc.  Now that I know the simple construction, I can branch out and use my polymer clay beads any way I want.  I bought a wad of SpiderWire Ultracast Invisi-Braid from Fire Mountain Gems simply because I wanted to try and use it with my stringing...little did I know that it would be the perfect material for these bracelets.  It's the translucent 1lb. diameter.  It's waxy, and I found that burning the end of it with my lighter is better than trying to make a perfect knot.   Yeah, I'm goin' back for more.
So, gentle reader, there's my "almost" polymer clay musing for the day.  Hope your summer is starting out cooler than the one here in Central Florida...Mickey's melting, guys, and it ain't even June yet!
Cheers!