Daily Blogs : home decor

Beaded Home Decor and More!

Leslie — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:19:00 GMT

My Fair Beader
I attended the 20th anniversary celebration of the Upper Midwest Bead Society last weekend. The event was a proper high tea, complete with sandwiches and cakes, lacy tablecloths, and flowers everywhere. You know, I tend to get a little bawdy when I’m around a group of fun girls, so for this event I had to channel Eliza Doolittle (“I washed my face and hands before I come, I did.”) in order to remember my manners. I mean really, there were even a few women with gloves on! Anyway, the event was simply lovely—a beautiful expression of how volunteer organizations like bead societies can create the most fabulous events.

I could have beaded all night
The tea party invitation requested that we wear our Sunday best (yes, lots of “beaders’ handshakes” going on), but also to decorate and wear a bonnet to be judged during the event. You should have seen the entries! Everything from a straw hat with brooches pinned on to a fully-beaded flapper-style cloche. What struck me while watching all the ladies strolling around in their bead-decorated hats was how jewelry-centric I am when I sit down to design something. I automatically go to necklace, bracelet, or earrings—the “jeweler’s troika.” But I have an inkling I’m not alone in this habit, right?

Wouldn't it be 'loverly'
We all know there are many other ways to express yourself in beads. A quick visit to the Beading Daily store’s Home Decor and Gifts section should be inspiration enough. One project catching my eye today is Sandie Abel’s embroidered Beaded Butterfly––a great addition to a tea hat, don't you think? And while I'm thinking about it, next time I host a high tea I could sew rich-looking trim to my table linens using the edging technique in my Beaded Scarf project.

Show me
So in my never-ending effort to expand my thinking about the possibilities of beads, I’ve done a quick brainstorm of non-troika designs. Things that aren’t too over the top, you know? Things I’d definitely like to have around, but don’t scream, “You’re a freaky bead lady!”

Scarf, sweater, purse edgings
Furniture “jewelry” like tassels and chains
Shower curtain slides
Letter openers
Belts
Fan pulls
Serving utensils

What would you add to this list? Do you get stuck inside the jewelry troika like me, or do you find it easy to design other types of beadworked pieces? And most importantly, does Professor Higgins really think I can ever become a lady? Please share your thoughts below and on the Beading Daily forums!

Hurray for Herringbone: Free Project & Technique Tips

Michelle M. — Fri, 29 May 2009 12:20:00 GMT

Almost all the instructions I'd seen for flat herringbone stitch projects started with a base row of another stitch, usually ladder stitch. So when I saw today's free project, I was momentarily flummoxed. Begin herringbone without ladder stich? I felt like the Peanuts character Linus must have felt when he lost his security blanket!...(read more)

Wedding Jewelry Ideas from a Bride-to-Be

Michelle M. — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:27:00 GMT

On August 2, 2008, my life changed forever. My fiancé Michael got down on one knee, took my hand, and asked me to marry him. The first words out of my mouth (wet with joyful tears) were, “Absolutely, 100 percent, yes!”...(read more)

Create a Beaded Journal

Michelle M. — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 11:01:00 GMT

I'm thrilled to introduce today's guest editor, Robin Atkins. Robin is a nationally known bead artist and author of four books, including Beaded Embellishment, a book she co-authored with Amy C. Clarke (now Amy Clarke Moore). Her two current passions are fabricating sculptural pieces and combining bead embroidery with bookmaking to create bead-embellished journals. ...(read more)

Quick Beaded Valentine Cards, Plus New Reader Gallery

Michelle M. — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:01:00 GMT

The first reader gallery of 2009 includes designs by 35 readers from all over the world, including Mexcio, Greece, the United Kingdom, and Germany. From simple strung necklaces to a Victorian-style beaded bag with size 15 beads to a bead embroidered pin, you'll find something to love in this gallery!...(read more)

Just for Fun: 10 Other Uses for Beads

Michelle M. — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 14:26:00 GMT

Beads show up in the oddest places. I'm not talking about in my sofa cushions or in the kitchen rug (though I find plenty of beads there), I'm talking large beaded hood ornaments for your car! If you've ever wondered what to do with some of your beads besides create jewelry, take a look at these oddly wonderful tidbits that I've found....(read more)

Easy Beaded Snowflakes

Editor — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 17:00:00 GMT

Easy Beaded Snowflake Ornaments

View the snowflake gallery

It's that wonderful time of the year. Well, wonderful for some; wonderfully stressful for others with not only the holidays, but all that year-end, wrap-up stuff at work. I decided to offer an anti-stress solution to those in the Colorado office: pick up a wire snowflake form and make a beaded ornament. Twenty people--many from accounting!--took me up on my offer.

At left: Nicole's beaded snowflake uses silver bugle beads, crystals and glass beads.

Why do I love this project? Let me count the ways . . . It's inexpensive. It's quick. It's an ideal project for new beaders--male and female alike. And children can definitely contribute--one employee let her 8-year-old son design her snowflake. (Great job, Ian!).

Best of all, because the technique is so simple, this project lets people put most of their energy into the design process--choosing the colors and shapes of beads and arranging them into a pleasing pattern. It really showcased people's personalities and talents. Susan created a red, white, and blue version in honor of her husband in the military. Danielle placed a large, flat-backed pink crystal in the center of both sides of her snowflake, so it would look fabulous no matter which way it hung. Sandi fashioned her own hanger on the back with wire.

At right: Sandi twisted some wire to create her own hook for hanging the snowflake.

View the snowflake gallery to see all 21 snowflakes.

Basic Instructions

	1. Start with the basic wire form. (We used the 3.75" size from BeadSmith.)
	2. String the beads onto the wire. Tape the ends if you don't want to commit to your design immediately.
	3. Working on one end at a time, bend the ends into simple loops or use glue to finish the ends. (Bending the wire is much easier with the larger wire forms.)
	4. Add a loop or ribbon to one end.

Project Tips:

Shopping for beads: Beads with very small holes--like freshwater pearls--will probably not fit over this wire. If you are going shopping for special beads for this project, it's a good idea to take the wire form with you.
Bending the wire: This wire is STIFF. A few people were able to bend it, but others broke it (or their beads) when they tried. You may want to glue the beads on the end instead. (E-6000 works well.) Try using a toothpick to put some glue inside the hole of the last bead before sliding it onto the wire. You may also consider using the larger snowflake forms--the wire used in those is much more malleable.
Taping the ends: I taped the ends as I worked on them, then did all my finishing once I was happy with the design. (I learned this trick the hard way when I strung all the beads on, picked up the snowflake to see how it looked, and watched all the beads fall off and roll under the sofa.) If you're more of a "make a commitment and stick with it" type of beader, than you can just finish the ends one at a time as you go.
Buy an extra package: I bought a package of eight wire forms at my local bead shop, thinking that would be plenty. I ended up buying two more packages! Trust me, even though before now your Uncle Marty has expressed no interest in anything other than armadillos, he will want to do this project once he sees how much fun the rest of the family is having!

Coming Friday: A beautiful pair of crystal earrings, just right for your holiday parties!

Michelle Mach is the editor of Beading Daily. She created two more beaded snowflakes after finishing the one she "had" to do for the gallery!

Bead Embroidered Star Ornament

Editor — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT

I continue to be amazed by the generosity of the beading community. A few months ago, I casually mentioned to Amy Clarke Moore that some of my Beading Daily readers wanted to learn more about bead embroidery. Not only did she create this fabulous free project, the Little Star ornament, she also agreed to share how she got started and her best bead embroidery tips. If you're not into ornaments, don't worry. Once you get the basic idea of this bead embroidery technique, you'll be able to adapt it for other projects.--Michelle Mach, Beading Daily editor

How I Began

I started bead embroidering in earnest ten years ago when I was the editorial assistant for Beadwork magazine (along with other Interweave publications). We had a staff project to cover a satin button with beads. I decided to embroider an image and started by drawing an outline on the satin and then beading the outline and trying to fill in with beads around it. I got frustrated, though, when I couldn’t fill in all the spaces around the outline very evenly. I started over and this time started in the center and worked out in a spiraling backstitch. Each time I reached the outline line on the satin, I placed a dark bead on the thread and my problem was solved.

At left:Little Star Ornament by Amy Clarke Moore

I was hooked. I couldn’t wait to start the next piece, and immediately walked to the neighborhood bead shop (yes—I was so lucky to live within a block of a bead store then) and bought more beads and smaller beads. Each time I started a project, I realized I needed a larger range of colors to get the subtle gradations that I wanted. Eventually I started working over drawings instead of just outlines to help me see the color transitions I wanted. As a weaver this idea came naturally—it was like the cartoon that weavers hold behind the warp threads to remind them of color changes.

Then I met bead embroidery artist, Marcus Amerman. He shared his technique of stitching right through the paper. I had been painting my images onto canvas at that point and wasn’t entirely satisfied with the process. I tried working through paper and it was great—I didn’t need a embroidery hoop anymore because the paper held the cloth stable. Soon after that, I started shooting photos of the images I wanted to bead and printing the photographs onto archival quality paper, stitching them to cloth, and beading. Over the years, I learned some things—here are a few of my tips:

Amy’s Bead Embroidery Tips

Drawing your own star

If you’d like to try your hand at drawing your own cartoon for the star pattern, I say, “go for it!” It is a fun process. The trick is including enough value contrast, color, and gradation to create an image that will really pop when it is beaded. As you’re drawing, keep in mind that it will be translated into beads—so if you’re not completely satisfied with the drawing, try to see beyond it to the beaded image—it may be just fine. For more detailed instructions, see the tutorial for how to draw the star pendant on my blog.

Seeing color

As you’re choosing your beads, take a moment to look at the colors in your star—look for the variations, the overlapping color that creates different colors, try to see as many colors as possible and go through your beads matching colors to the colors you see in the piece. When I’m creating my mixes for my bead embroidery, I try to include as many values and bead finishes in one hue as possible. You’ll find that even if you have every color of bead made, there are not enough colors of beads to match the colors in the piece. You’ll need to mix the colors as a painter would, except that beads don’t mix physically like paint. To mix colors visually, place two colors next to each other, step away, and see how your eye mixes them at a distance. Unfocus your eyes as you look—if you wear glasses, simply take them off.

As you’re beading, match the color of the beads to the color on the paper underneath them. Use a variety of bead finishes to create a surface with depth and variation. Keep an eye on where you place the finishes so that you don’t create any unintentional lines. However, do place beads intentionally to create the lines of the drawing. For example, I used mostly dark brown matte beads to create the outline of the star because dark matte beads really absorb light and create depth. Each time you come around the circle created by the spiraling backstitch, you’ll create a part of the line. Don’t worry if it isn’t an exactly straight line. Your eye will make the adjustment when you step away from the piece.

Spacing

It will take some practice to figure out how closely you need to space your rows. You want them close enough so that you can’t see the paper underneath, but with enough space (a needle’s width—usually) so that they don’t start to bubble up. If they do bubble up, you can go back in and tack them down with some couching stitches (going over the thread).

At right: Spacing takes practice.

Turning point

I had been beading in this style for years when a beading friend wondered aloud why, as I reached each edge in my spiraling path of beads, did I knot off, cut the thread, and start on the other side? He suggested that I just turn around. I had to admit that it had never occurred to me to just turn around and bead in the other direction. While intellectually I agreed this was the smarter and faster thing to do, it was a hard adjustment to make. I was used to beading all my pieces in a counterclockwise direction. To reach the edge, turn around, and do one row clockwise just seemed wrong. But I tried it, and after a while, it didn't feel so bad.

At left: A quick sketch showing the reversal of the thread direction.

Getting smaller

Now that you’ve mastered the spiraling backstitch technique over an image with size 11 seed beads, you may try smaller beads! I find that I’m able to get greater detail with the size 15 Japanese seed beads and there is a huge selection of color in this size. Try out the star ornament in size 15 beads to make a necklace pendant—just print the image a little smaller (maybe 1" by 1"). As always, make sure to bead with good light over your work to avoid eye strain.

Amy Clarke Moore is the editor of Spin-Off magazine and co-author of Beaded Embellishment: Techniques and Designs for Embroidering on Cloth. Her article "A Sense of Color: How to Blend Color in Bead Embroidery” appeared in the February/March 2006 issue of Beadwork magazine. Learn more about Amy on her website, www.amyclarkemoore.com or her blog, www.sixswansflying.blogspot.com.

Good News: We just launched the Beading Daily store! I'm excited that not only are we going to be able to offer you projects from our magazines and books, but we're also going to pay royalties to our designers! We're adding projects as quickly as we can, but I want to make sure that you're finding the kinds of beading projects that you love. Please take a look around the store, then fill out the new poll and help me pick out some dream beading projects! Thanks for your help!

New Poll: What kind of projects do you want?

Fleur Russe by Dustin Wedekind is one of the projects for sale in the store.

Michelle Mach is the editor of Beading Daily. She is still not finished with her holiday beading. How did it get to be the middle of December already?

Why We Love (and Hate) Beaded Home Decor

Editor — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 21:00:00 GMT

Why We Love (and Hate) Beaded Home Decor

How do you feel about beaded home decor? Love it? Hate it?

While I do find some beaded home decor appealing (especially napkin rings!), I also have this practical, Midwest sensibility that kicks in around beaded objects and asks questions like:

"Is that beaded spoon dishwasher safe?"

"Will that bead-encrusted lampshade give me enough light to read?"

And, of course, the big question: "How convincing will it be when I say, 'Oh, no, you didn't wake me', when I answer the door with bead-shaped craters all over my face from that beautifully beaded pillow?"

Above: Star-Topped Magic Wand by Sylvia Becker. This was one of the most popular projects during October.

More than 1,000 readers answered the latest poll:
How do you feel about beaded home decor?

If you don't have an opinion on beaded home decor, you are definitely in the minority!

Love it! (27%)
Like some of it. (43%)
Don't have strong feelings one way or the other. (7%)
Don't like most of it. (19%)
Hate it! (4%)

Even before the poll was over, people were already chiming in with their thoughts about beaded home decor. Check out the comments on the original Beaded Home Decor Trend post.

Why You Like (or Love) It

"I love big, gaudy things to bead, but as a professional student clad always in jeans and tees, and a mom of two young kids who pull at everything on my body, much of the time it doesn't pay to make big, beautiful creations only to see them shelved or boxed. Beaded home decor gives me the opportunity to express and continue to enjoy long after completion."

"I truly think that women are born with the heart of an artist. That's what we all are, creators of the home, of family and all that's beautiful in the world. It's only natural that we have a strong desire to create beautiful objects."

"Beads add sparkle to life! Put them everywhere!! I'd have beaded cobwebs if I could figger out how to make them!"

Clever Candle Wrap
by Katie Hacker, Instructions in Hip to Bead

Why You Don't Like It

"Beaded decor should be done with a very light touch. Too much and it looks like a flashback to the 70s or some old Victorian nightmare."

"Most beaded decor looks cheap and tacky, even if it isn't cheap and even if it's well done."

"I'd rather adorn myself, not my house. LOL"

Beaded Pinecones
by Arlene Baker

People tend to be more open to beaded home decor for gift items or for the holidays.

"I'm always on the lookout for new ways to use beads--especially for gift items at this time of year--so it's interesting to see what home decor ideas people come up with, even if I wouldn't necessarily use them all myself!"

"With the holidays coming up, beaded decor items like ornament covers, napkin rings, and candle holders are essential."

Among those who didn't like home decor, the cleaning issue came up. Again. And again. (Aren't there any beaders on this list who love to dust?)

"Beaded home decor objects are dust catchers to the nth degree."

"These home decor projects all seem so fussy. Not my style and TOO DUSTY! If I have to clean, that's less time to bead."

"I prefer home decor that is washable. If I can't wash it, I won't make it or buy it."

A final thought:

"Just because you CAN bead something, doesn't mean you SHOULD! To me it's just another Martha Stewartism. Decorate anything that can't run away!"

Finally--a way to keep your wayward teenagers at home . . . bead them!

Coming Friday: Jewelry business tips, plus another project from Step by Step Wire Jewelry.

Have you ever sold a beaded item you've made? This poll ended November 16, 2007.

Michelle Mach is the editor of Beading Daily. She is wondering whether she'll have time to make beaded napkin rings for Thanksgiving, or if she is going to experience something akin to "second sock syndrome" and be unable to finish more than one!

Peyote-Stitch Magic Wand

Editor — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 16:00:00 GMT

Peyote Stitch Magic Wand

This week's featured project, Star-Topped Magic Wand by Sylvia Becker, is from a sold-out issue of Beadwork magazine. Here's why I chose this holiday project for Beading Daily:

Inspiration. I like projects that serve as a jumping off point for my own creations. If you'd rather not make a beaded wand, you can use this project as the basis for peyote-stitched Christmas ornaments. Or 4th of July coasters. Or make tiny versions for earrings. Or use the stars to embellish a denim jacket. Or something else entirely!
Peyote stitch! Whether you think it's easy or not, peyote stitch is the most popular offloom technique.
Beaded holiday decor. Some beaders like to occasionally create non-jewelry projects, especially for the holidays. (Be sure to take the home decor poll if you want to see more non-jewelry projects--or not.)

The star begins with a circle of 90 size 11 seed beads. My sample circle measured approximately 1 3/4 inches across. The star is shaped from the outside in, decreasing at the points. The instructions assume that you have some experience using one- and two-drop peyote stitch and creating decreases. I'd love to see examples of this project by Beading Daily readers.

Peyote Stitch Tip

"A thin, single thread will produce a flexible, soft, piece that lies flat like fabric. For a stiff, freestanding piece, use thick and/or double thread. The heavier the thread, the stiffer the piece."--Beading with Peyote Stitch by Jeannette Cook and Vicki Star

Coming Wednesday: An interview with bead artist Natasha St. Michael, plus a last-minute Halloween beading idea.

NEW Free Peyote Stitch Pattern eBook: Our first free beadweaving pattern e-book features 5 peyote stitch projects, plus two full pages of step-by-step illustrated instructions on even- and odd-count peyote, and a sheet of peyote stitch graph paper for creating original jewelry designs. Download Peyote Stitch Projects with BeadingDaily: 5 Free Peyote Stitch Patterns

Michelle Mach is the editor of Beading Daily. She worked on her challenge project over the weekend--did you finish yours? Deadline is this Friday, November 2.

Beaded Home Decor Trend

Editor — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 22:00:00 GMT

Beaded Home Decor Trend

Everywhere I go, I'm seeing more and more beaded home decor items--bead-covered bottles, wineglass charms, beaded lampshades, bookmarks, picture frames, napkin rings. Even Wal-Mart is carrying items like beaded curtain rods!

This past summer I went to a local outdoor craft show and as usual, there were a fair number of booths carrying handmade beaded jewelry, mostly simple necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. What was new this year were a few booths that were also--or exclusively--carrying beaded home decor items, particularly serving spoons, pie servers, and other utensils wrapped with thick wire and large, colorful glass beads.

I'm expecting that I'll see even more beaded home decor items at holiday craft fairs in November and December since many of these non-jewelry items are marketed as gifts. Plus, crafters from other areas seem to be incorporating beads into their work. Beaded beer can airplanes here we come!

At left: Starry Night Bottle by Jean Campbell. Two other free beaded bottle projects by Jean Campbell:Fringed Peyote-Stitched Bottle andNetted Bottle.

What do you think of this beaded home decor trend?
Love it? Hate it? Want to see more beaded home items on Beading Daily?

Take this quick poll by Monday, October 29, 2007. I'll share the results in a future Beading Daily newsletter.

At right: Poinsettia Napkin Rings from the book, Beader's Stash (Instructions are available in the book.)

Easy Wirewrapped Candle Holder

This week's featured project, Clever Candle Wrap, is from the book Hip to Bead by Katie Hacker. I asked Katie how she got the idea for this project. Here's what she said:

"I wanted to find a way to incorporate beads into a candleholder because I'm always looking for ways to incorporate beads into my décor. I thought they'd look pretty with candlelight glinting off of them. I'd seen this wire-wrapping technique used on hoop earrings and it just took a little experimenting to transfer it to my coiled wire design."

This would be an easy gift to personalize--use the recipient's favorite colors or use colors that match the season or holiday. It's also a great way to use those leftover beads from another project.

On Wednesday, I'll have more from Katie Hacker, including her thoughts on beading trends.

From the Mailbag . . .

Thanks to everyone who added their ideas and tips to last Friday's post, Kazuri Beads and Other Good Causes. One reader wrote me to say how much she loved seeing beads change lives. Another was happy to find a good cause to donate some handmade lampworked beads. If you know of any beading charities or good causes, please add your comments so that everyone can benefit.

Michelle Mach is the editor of Beading Daily. Over the weekend, she started a simple wiredworked bracelet with black and white beads. She'll share a photo of it soon.

Terrifically Tacky Seed Bead Tins

Editor — Tue, 08 May 2007 16:00:00 GMT

Dustin and Michelle work on their tins at Bead Expo.

Are you ready for a seriously addictive beading technique? Dustin Wedekind, author of Getting Started with Seed Beads, showed Sandi Wiseheart and I how to create "Terrifically Tacky Tins" using seed beads, metal tins, Terrifically Tacky Tape, a needle, and thread. I promise that once you learn this technique, you'll start seeing potential beading projects everywhere from restaurant salt shakers to office filing cabinets!

We both found it challenging to work with the color palettes that Dustin chose for us. (If you're ever in a creative rut, having someone else choose your bead colors will snap you out of it!) The gecko on my tin is a button with the shank cut off. I also painted my tin with an acrylic paint. Sandi managed to sneak some purple glass butterfly

Sandi's ByzanTin (left) and Michelle's Southwest Cupcake.

beads and tiny bronze glass hearts into her design.

Before we were halfway finished, we were both saying, "And next time. . ." Here's a few tips we learned:

For a symmetrical design, lay the thread in a spoke pattern on the tape before beading to divide the space evenly into sectors. This also makes it easier to find the center.
Filling the tin with beads gives it enough weight so that it's not easily dropped while you work.
If you use the same size beads in a single row, you won't be aggravated by weird gaps in between rows.
Do your best not to drop the exposed tape on the cat. Enough said.

You can find more tips and the full instructions for these beaded tins in Getting Started with Seed Beads by Dustin Wedekind.

A Bit of Beaded Flower History

Editor — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 10:00:00 GMT

Have you ever wondered who made the first beaded flowers? According to Arlene Baker, author of Beads in Bloom, “The craft dates to the Middle Ages and was introduced in Venice where bead production was a widely practiced trade by highly skilled craftsmen. The sheer abundance of wondrous glass beads in this area contributed to the development of beaded flowers. Women of modest means, who sold or traded the flowers for their livelihood, fashioned them with beads and wire. The elaborate decorative arrangements and they made adorned altars, banquet tables, and statuary during most religious festivities and other celebrations.”