Wednesday, January 21, 2004

And Now For Something Completely Different…

Before I was a knitter, I was a beader.  In many ways, the attractions were similar - beading is a hand craft; it involves lots of wonderful colors and can be used to create many beautiful effects.  I have a huge storage bin full of beads and beading paraphenalia that has been encroaching on my thoughts more and more these days.  I’m going to have to get down to the basement sometime soon and do some serious prowling around in that bin. 

The notion of combining the beading with the knitting has also planted itself in my fervid little imagination and I need to let that simmer awhile before I can tell if anything interesting will come of it.

In general, beading is the process of linking beads together with needle and thread in various ways to create various patterns and effects.  About.com has a pretty good beading section and there are many resources on the web that teach the particulars of various methods: peyote, brick, square and looming.  These are the basic stitches.

The wolf head here was done in square stitch and graced the front of my work computer for years.  The pawprint was done in two-drop peyote stitch.  As Myria mentioned in her Wednesday post two weeks ago, wolf is one of my totem animals so it’s something I often represent in my crafts.  Wolf is a teacher and, as I often see my life as a long process of lessons, it seems a most appropriate symbol.





The Green Man was one of the first loom pieces I did and remains one of my favorites.  He is associated with Celtic mythology (though this may not be entirely accurate) and with nature and green, growing things.  To me he represents the beauty and the wild unpredictability of nature. 

This piece was done with translucent beads and is meant to be hung in a window so the sun can shine through it, highlighting the colors.  It has been in a cedar box on my dresser for quite a while now and I’m thinking it’s about time I put him back into the sunshine where he belongs.

Aside of decoration, beading has practical purposes as well.  I don’t wear a watch often - makes me feel like I’m chained to a clock.  But, sometimes, there’s no alternative so I do own a watch that I wear once in a while.  The bracelet is done in square stitch (which is extrememely sturdy and so a good stitch for something that gets vigorous wear).





Of course, beading can be - and most often is - used for jewelry.  I find something enormously appealing in the idea of making my own jewelry.  It’s more personal and represents something besides adornment.  It is also great fun as you can work with colors tailored to your wardrobe and customize as you like.

The above necklace is strung, not stitched, but it is beading all the same.  The strand is composed of pearl and mother-of-pearl and the large trio at the bottom are amber.  The earrings, made in a traditional Native American style are glass beads and citrine quartz.  I like these earrings on grey, nasty days because they are so sunny and cheering.

The above assortment are all pieces I wear frequently.  The white ones in the upper left I think of as my winter solstice earrings because that’s when I made them and the colors were chosen for their reflections of snow and ice.  These were done, mostly, in brick stitch and the dangles are terminated with black pearl and hematite.

The pair below them are made from iridescent beads, blue-dyed pearls and sterling charms - wolf and moon.  Also mostly brick stitch.

The pair on the right use materials I don’t usually find attractive but, somehow, the combination worked for me.  The faceted beads are red tiger-eye (an iron component is what changes the color from the usual yellow-brown to red).  I was fascinated with the idea of faceting an opaque stone.  This was the first time I had run into it and I thought it worked very well.  The lighter pieces are lace agate.  These beads were strung on a silver pin, the end of which was bent into a loop to attach to the earring hook.

Most cultures have beading traditions.  While the ones we often employ here in the states are related to Native American design, there are many others.  The design for this necklace is Russian and is worked along the length in two passes.  It is surprisingly light weight.  The technique is simple and, depending on the beads, can produce a necklace that is totally funky or sleekly elegant.

The earrings are mother-of-pearl and carnelian and are a seat-of-the-pants design :)

This is a beading loom.  It is strung with thread and the beads are attached by weaving them between the threads.  This can produce some amazing effects but it is not a very sturdy technique.  For this reason, loomed work is usually attached to a backing of some sort to give it a little more strength.

The piece on the loom is a portion of Picasso’s “Don Quixote” that I had adapted as a beading pattern.

Beads come in all shapes and sizes.  There are the ordinary seed beads that you can find at Wal-Mart.  They’re fine for stringing but unsuitable for weaving because of their size variations.  There are the Japanese “delicas” which more resemble tiny, colored tubes and come in every color of the rainbow - and probably a few more than that :) These are wonderful to work with because their sizes are so uniform.  There are beads as big as your thumb and as small as a grain of salt and beads are made out of every material imaginable.  Most are glass, but there are amber, precious stone, bone and horn beads as well, not to mention wood, gold and silver.

I really have to think seriously about getting back into this.  As I’ve typed this post, I’ve been remembering what fun the process was and how much I enjoyed the whole thing.  I never intended to abandon it - but you know how it is when another notion (knitting) comes along and knocks you upside the head - for a while, it’s all you can think of!

No trackbacks yet.

1. Gorgeous wolf! And that last necklace there is just lovely! We still have the beadwork you did some time back--the cats grace the boys’ playroom and the others I have tucked away somewhere so they don’t get damaged before I have my own place and find the perfect home for them!

   Posted by corvidae  on  01/21  at  12:34 PM
   Location :



2. Whoa! Unbelievably cool beading.... love your green man, I have done a rather nice green man cross stitch which I *still* haven’t had framed. You reminded me, I should get onto that :) Anyway, just wanted to say your beading is gorgeous, and I hope the kimono comes out great! You’re probably like me - I look nicer in slightly longer styles which are tailored at the waist.

   Posted by Monica  on  01/21  at  05:31 PM
   Location :



3. Donna - I remember those kitties!  Hoursa of looming fun :)

   Monica - For waist-tailoring, I would have to havbe a waist! LOL!  I am tall and very round and just didn’t want the bottom line of the sweater hitting mid-bulge.  Want it nice and loose and loooooong :)

   Posted by Robbyn  on  01/21  at  11:14 PM
   Location :



4. Wow, sounds like you had a great time.  Did you save a croissant for me????  Love the beading work, especially the Green Man.  I bet he looks fabulous with the sun shining through him :)

   Posted by Pamela  on  01/22  at  08:26 AM
   Location :



5. Pamela - Sadly, I didn’t even save a croissant for myself :( But I will have one in your honor on the next trip :)

   I haven’t put the Green Man back up yet - probably because it’s been grey and overcast here for the last couple of days, and I want to see him with the sun shining!  I’m thinking in the kitchen window - the one we watch the bitds out of :)

   Posted by Robbyn  on  01/22  at  09:17 AM
   Location :

Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.