Email this post

Bookmark this post

Print this post

Share your comments

Tips for New Beadweavers

Topic: Beading Tips

Beading Daily reader Christine K. wrote, "I am a brand-new beginner now attempting to learn the off-loom stitches. Although I am generally skilled with crafts that use one's hands (e.g., I can both crochet and knit), my learning of beading stitches is SLOW. My major question now is: what is the main difference between right-angle weave stitch and peyote stitch? Also, when I try to work in peyote stitch, I find it difficult to make the beads lay correctly. After figuring out the main difference between peyote stitch and right-angle stitch, is the "trick" to making the beads lay correctly to just relax and continue to thread the beads as required by peyote/right-angle stitch?"

When I read this one I had to smile. I pictured my first run-in with peyote stitch: The first few rows looked like a tangled fisherman's net. And doing right-angle weave felt like driving down the wrong side of the road. It's amazing any of us beaders get past those first brushes with needle and thread!

How to "See" Beadwork

First off, I'll make a suggestion about how to "see" beadwork. This one's kind of subtle, but was helpful for me. Keep in mind that in beadweaving the focus is on the bead placement, not the thread path. The thread path is key, of course, but it's invisible and should stay that way. While knitting and crochet are all about the fuzz, beading is about the firmness of the glass. It's a more planar technique. So when you're beading, if you can imagine your job is to build the beads into a certain formation--your thread acting as the magical cement--then you might more easily imagine locking the beads into place. Seeing the beadwork as a sort of Lego exercise will help you understand where your need to put up the next wall or window. That may sound a little David Carradine, Grasshopper, but there it is.

Peyote Stitch	Right-Angle Weave

Photos from The Beader's Companion by Judith Durant and Jean Campbell

Peyote Stitch vs Right-Angle Weave

In regard to peyote stitch vs right-angle weave, keep in mind that the shapes of these two stitches are very different. Peyote stitch produces a beaded fabric that looks like a brick wall; the beads sit side-by-side. Right-angle weave makes a fabric that looks like a series of little crosses; the beads sit at right angles to one another. The thread paths of these stitches are very different, too--in peyote stitch the path moves straight back and forth across the work; in right-angle weave the path moves back and forth, but by one little circle at a time.

Some basic stitch tips:

Counting Rows. When you string the first strand of beads for an even-count flat peyote-stitched project, keep in mind that these beads will make up your first two rows. Peyote stitch rows are counted on the diagonal, not along the side of the work. For right-angle weave, you can count the rows by counting the outside edge beads. Note that each little circle of beads that makes up the row is called a "unit" in most printed instructions.

Subsequent Rows. The third row in peyote stitch is a bear. If you can get past the third row, you're sailing. I've seen lots of clever techniques to make that third row, including passing another needle through the odd-numbered beads to separate them from the second-row ones. This will automatically reveal which are the "up beads" to work the third row. I've also seen someone put a little dab of Wite-Out on every-other bead to distinguish the rows and then scrape the stuff off after the work is established. You could also start the work by creating several false rows in alternating bead colors to differentiate them. Then, once you're rolling on the proper beads, remove those first couple false rows by sliding them off the tail thread.

For the second right-angle weave row, I think it helps to take a T pin or toothpick and poke it through the center of each first-row unit. This makes the work fall into formation, revealing the up beads very clearly.

Tension. Thread tension is really important for all the off-loom stitches. It's best to keep it tight as possible from the get-go, again making your job of forcing those little glass lovelies into formation. It may help to use a tension bead to start off (just remember to remove it!). I don't like extra steps, so I just use my fingers to keep the thread tight on those first few rows. If I keep the beads of the first several rows pinched tightly between my thumb and forefinger, it usually does the trick to keep the beads in place until I'm able to yank hard on the thread to tighten the beads into position.

---

Jean Campbell writes about beading and life every Wednesday on Beading Daily. If you have comments or questions for Jean, please post them on the website. Thanks!

---

May 7, 2008 | Read More... | Read Comments (6) | Share Your Comments on this post.

Topic: People and Events

Enter Beadwork's Beaded Book Competition Frog and Toad are Friends, Guinness Book of World Records, Betty Crocker's Cookbook for Boys and Girls . . . Ever since I heard that the new juried Beadwork exhibition would combine books and beads, titles of my favorite childhood books have been popping into my head at odd moments. If I add in my adult memories of books (English major in college, reference librarian jobs, book club follies), it seems like there is no end to the number of design possibilities for this exhibition. Even though as an employee I can't enter, I'm very tempted to jump in and play anyway just for myself--and for you--if any of you would like to see what I come up with! Posted May 5, 2008  | Read More... | Read Comments (0)

Topic: Off-Loom Stitches

Dragonfly's Garden Download Dragonfly's Garden

Ideas for Using Fringe, Plus Free Fringed Necklace Project Fringe is a fun way to add a little pizzazz to a project. At least, that's what I've been told. I'm not much into fringe myself--it feels too fussy for my designs. But a recent discovery has had me thinking about fringe a lot lately. I'd love to say it was because I've seen the light and been converted to a fringe-lovin' fool, but in truth, it's all because of the color brown. Posted May 2, 2008  | Read More... | Read Comments (27)

Topic: Beading Tips

Learn to Create Perfect Simple and Wrapped Loops Remember your first simple loop? I remember mine. Santa Monica, 1990. It wasn't neat and it wasn't pretty, but it opened up a whole new wirey world to me. I guess you could call it an "entry" technique. Not far behind were wrapped loops, coils, and free-form wrapping. Next thing I knew I was pawning my wedding crystal for hand tools and bumming wire off my metalsmith buddies. Posted April 30, 2008  | Read More... | Read Comments (16)

Topic: People and Events

Find (and Rate) a Bead Shop Near You Some tourists may snap up T-shirts or boxes of salt water taffy, but when I travel, it's all about the beads. A bead or even a handful of beads is the perfect souvenir--small, not too pricey, and lasting, never shrinking or fading, or worse, being eaten. Whenever I paw through my bead stash, memories of my trips coming flooding back. There are those pretty shell flower beads from that shop in Honolulu that was nearly impossible to find, but oh so worth it! There is a tube of hip anodized blue jump rings from a funky bead shop in Ohio and pretty silver dollar charms--perfect for summery earrings--from California. And how can I forget the pair of copper leaf beads that I bought when I was in Australia last year? Posted April 28, 2008  | Read More... | Read Comments (68)