Using 'Stretch Magic'.

Q: Is there a way to tie off a bracelet using 'Stretch Magic' so that the knots are bumpy, and so that they stay secure?

A: If the knot was too big to fit inside a bead hole (after gluing), I'd use a crimp instead of tying. Now, I'm using 0.7mm 'Opelon' elastic. It's a little more expensive than 'Stretch Magic', but I'm getting much better results with it. It makes a nice, tight little knot that doesn't slip apart the way 'Stretch Magic' does. Hi, I absolutely love the 'Opelon'! Yes it is more expensive than the 'Stretch Magic', but the results are better & certainly worth the extra expense. 100 year old Victorian 2-hole ambers are a tricky deal. It is the best of the elastic threads. FYI: I found that 'Soft-Flex' was great & 'Soft-Touch' was even better, as it was even more like a fiber threading {silk] material. The question is: ARE BEAD ARTISTS WILLING TO PAY A LITTLE MORE? Sorry for getting a bit off balance, but when I hear that my vendors are considering not buying the premium-grade materials, because people are going for the less expensive spread, I have to kind of wonder..... butter or margarine? You decide. If I have very expensive beads I'm working with, I want butter. If it puts a stress on the materials , I'm losing out because the materials are rare & irreplaceable. 'Victorian Jet' , or 'Amber' will shatter on the wrong stuff. Believe me , I have suffered the losses. You make the call. I'm just happy that some of my really good stuff is strung on [expensive] reliable material. If you don't agree, you don't remember that monofilament was a choice & 'Tiger Tail' was a revolution! The new threads are awesome & we should go for the gold! Been there, done that. Helene, a.k.a. beadfairy. I got some cheap, clear elastic (not sure of brand name) at 'Michaels'. I have been wearing "power bead" bracelets made from it & 4mm stone beads for 3 months, almost daily. Knot used: surgeons' knot, which is tucked into a larger-holed ceramic bead. No glue used. Beads slide a bit, and the knot has to be re-positioned/returned to the ceramic bead occasionally. I wish I could change my message to that. Get this, I spent 2 hours and 3 minutes on the phone with 'AOL Tech Support' because I can't find where to change my signature line. I know it's there somewhere, but I can't find it....and neither can they! They said that because I'm using 'AOL 3.0', and they have "changed things on their systems" that the only way they'll know what to do it is to have me uninstall and reinstall 'AOL', and I can't do it because my computer might crash! According to 'AOL', my signature line (that they helped me set up when I first installed 'AOL'!) can NOT be changed now! So.....if ANYONE out there uses 'AOL 3.0' and can tell me how to change it (going to 'mail center', 'mail controls', 'preferences', 'help' menu, etc. doesn't work!) PLEASE let me know!! The technicians know 'AOL 4.0' and 'AOL 5.0', and neither of them are anything like 3.0, so they can't help. I need someone with 3.0, or the ideas can't work.

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