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Is your stash keeping up with your creativity?
Like many of you, my beading stash behaves like a kudzu vine. It grows anywhere I set it. Take my office, for instance: The closet is full, and its contents have begun creeping across the floor. The books on the shelves have been overgrown by clear storage boxes. My desk is piled high with tubes, baggies, and loose beads. And no kidding … I’ve even started to hang things from the ceiling.
So how is it possible that I still run out of something? I could open a 24-hour bead diner with all the junk I have around here, but every once in a while I just have to scratch my head. I really don’t have any copper 6mm bead caps or red size 6° seed beads?
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Keep your stash stocked with what you use most
Running out of things is particularly true with my stringing materials, so when I’m inspired by something fabulous in a great magazine such as Stringing and want to do something a little tricky, my jungle of a stash comes up short.
To help us all out, here’s my list of suggested stringing materials to keep in stock. I figure I’ll post it on the inside of my closet in order to remind me which materials I should always have on hand for the types of stringing that might happen in the Bead Kudzu Palace.
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Bead Type
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Flexible beading wire
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Silk cord (Japanese sizing and German sizing)
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Woven cotton, satin, and
(p)leather cord
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Seed
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Fine
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Thin (10)
OO, O
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1mm for size 8°s
1.5mm for size 6°s
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Pearls
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Fine
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Thin (10, 12)
O, A, B, C, D, E
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NA
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Czech
fire-polished
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Medium
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Medium (13, 15)
F, FF, FFF
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1mm, 1.5mm
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Crystals
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Medium, Heavy
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Thick (15, 16, 17)
F, FF, FFF
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1mm, 1.5mm
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Metal
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Medium, Heavy
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Thick (16, 17)
F, FF, FFF (or use alternate material)
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1mm, 2mm, 3mm
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India glass
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Heavy
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Thick (17)
FFF (or use alternate material)
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3mm
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Lampworked
Glass
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Heavy
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Thick (17)
FFF (or use alternate material)
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3mm
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Subscribe to Stringing for more tips on how to keep your stash well stocked. Be sure to comment on Beading Daily and share your favorite ways to avoid running out of stuff!