GetCrafty Craft Facts

Q: I've seen three ways to make beaded beads now. Has anyone tried making these and what were the results? Any hints on sizes of seed beads to use or best size for the wooden beads? I'd appreciate a good starting point for this.

A: I have made peyote stitch ones over a base bead - beginning with 3 drop in the center and decreasing by 2-drop and regular (I hate decreases - this is the only way I can do them w/o messing up!) I didn't anchor the beginning row to the bead in any way, and it worked just fine. This method is not sturdy enough to work not over a base, though (mine weren't anyway). I made the hollow brick stitch ones from 'B&B #30' April 99 - very slow to work, but very sturdy when done. I made a nice variation with only 3 diamonds - it came out a "football" shape that I think will be very useful. I've made hundreds of beaded beads now, and none of them have beads inside. I've made them in lots of shapes and sizes, too. I'm not sure where the idea of a bead inside originated, but good engineering skills don't require one. Being one of the lucky ones who have some of your beaded beads, I'd just like to know one thing - when are you going to write a book about this? You really should. I sure can't find any book that focuses on the beaded beads and little objects, and I know that I want to learn a lot in this area. I second this, Marilee - you should think about it! You have more experience than anybody I can think of with beaded beads (except those ladies at hummingbeads, maybe) And there are certainly some people around (both here and the other boards you follow) you could talk to about publishing! Go ahead, try some non-fiction for a change! Now I have had a brainstorm - my last peyote beads were too squashy from hole to hole - but I started in the center - widest part - you start yours at the ends and increase, don't you? Would that be sturdier? I did those jack-o-lantern earrings to your directions (which were quite good, BTW, see previous comment) and they seem a bit stronger. I'm stringing them in a necklace and mine collasped under pressure! Becki likes the squashy ones, and I make them that way for her on purpose. :) For beaded beads, I work from the most convenient point, which is sometimes an end and sometimes the middle. I do think increases look better than decreases. The two primary things required for self-supporting beads is good structure (and frequently, square stitch is better at this than peyote) and tension. I think most people don't pull the tension tight enough for beaded beads.